Chapter 44: The First Alchemical Creation
Chapter 44: The First Alchemical Creation
Vader turned abruptly to look at Michael.
Michael looked at him quizzically. "Have you never thought of questioning him about this?"
Vader: ...
No, he hadn't.
His knowledge of the plot had, to some extent, clouded his judgment. From the beginning, Vader had known about Quirrell and Voldemort, and that no one had died this year. With a sense of superiority as a "time-traveler" and a "seer," he even had a game-like mentality. Discovering Voldemort's secret felt more like an accident, and he didn't blame anyone for it.
Now, under Michael's gaze, he carefully went over the whole incident again, including his thoughts, Dumbledore's possible considerations, and the eventual fate of the characters in the plot.
He realized that he still wouldn't question or resent Dumbledore.
"Why not?" Michael asked, puzzled. "He's the headmaster. He should protect our safety."
"What would I gain from questioning Dumbledore?" Vader asked seriously. "To see him repent or apologize to me? What's the use? Would resenting him keep us from danger in the future?"
Michael fell silent.
"It's pointless to dwell on what has already happened, Michael," Vader finally said. "Shouting at the only person who can protect us, questioning and resisting him, is even more foolish. Only when we are favored can we be fearless. Since we are not, we should not indulge in venting our emotions."
Michael remained silent for a long time before asking softly, "Don't you feel wronged?"
"No," Vader said. "If I've learned anything from this incident, it's—
"First, don't pin all your hopes on others.
"Second, only those with power can do as they please.
"And third... when you can't beat someone, you have to endure it."
"That's just how this world is—it has always been."
...
Vader spoke rationally to Michael, but in truth, he wasn't entirely unaffected.
On several nights, when he woke up in the middle of the night, his dreams seemed to flash with the green light symbolizing death, or sometimes, the cruel and hideous voice of the noseless, bald monster.
During the latter half of the night, Vader would stare at the stars on the ceiling, unable to fall asleep for a long time. Eventually, he would get up and read a book.
He began to spend more time on his studies and alchemy.
In the last week before Christmas, Vader finally completed his first alchemical creation.
On the pale yellow parchment, golden lines formed a complex and regular geometric pattern. The inner and outer circles rotated at different speeds, and ancient magical words alternated, flashing with golden light.
Vader clearly saw the trajectory of magic flowing within, the way the spells operated, and he could even vaguely sense where adjustments were needed and which materials should be replaced.
After a while, his eyes felt dry, so he closed them to rest. When he looked again, the parchment before him was once again ordinary.
After independently completing his first alchemical creation, Vader's eyes underwent another change, gaining a new ability.
In addition to seeing other people's true names and the way they cast spells, Vader found that he could also see the magic diagrams, the flow of magic power, the spells used, and the engraved magical words within alchemical items.
However, he had to concentrate very hard to "see" these things; the moment his attention wavered, the special vision disappeared.
While this was a good thing, Vader really wished his cheat ability would come with an instruction manual.
At first, he thought he would make a great Auror in the future—with his eyes, polyjuice potions and human transfiguration would never escape his notice.
Later, he felt that he would probably make a good teacher, providing one-on-one tailored tutoring for each student, with an excellent rate of at least ninety percent if not a perfect one hundred.
Now, Vader believed that he was a born alchemist.
However, if he had never come across alchemy in his lifetime, wouldn't he never discover that his eyes could see even more wondrous things?
On Thursday's tutoring session, Vader handed his meticulously adjusted creation to Professor Mori.
"Oh, let me see... a piece of parchment?"
Professor Mori put on his glasses, stopping Vader from explaining further with a gesture. He then gently ran his slender fingers over the seemingly ordinary piece of parchment.
"Hmm... ordinary parchment, with a touch of mercury, stonefish oil, and mountain mouse grass. None of these are particularly special ingredients." Professor Mori muttered the incantations under his breath, his fingers gently swaying as he inspected the magical circuitry. "Alteration Charm, Association Charm, Vanishing Charm... and even a Concealment Charm... Clever—a very clever idea, indeed—"
He looked at Vader with sparkling eyes, full of delight. "I assume you have another identical piece of parchment in your possession, am I right?"
"Yes, Professor." Vader smiled and took out a self-bound notebook from his bag. "In fact, I have a whole stack of them!"
Professor Mori revealed a smile and sat down, carefully contemplating for a while before inscribing a sentence on the parchment in his hand—
"Superior wisdom is mankind's greatest wealth."
The vigorous and powerful font appeared simultaneously on both parchments, identical in content and position.
"As I thought." Professor Mori inspected it further, "The structure of the magical circuitry is extremely stable. Even I cannot find any room for alteration... It's almost unaffected by distance, instantly transmitting information—"
As he spoke, he got up and began pacing back and forth in the room, muttering to himself in a voice that no one could understand, his eyebrows nearly flying off his face in excitement.
After a while, Professor Mori abruptly turned and strode towards Vader, placing his hand on the boy's shoulder with fervor. "My child! Do you know what this means? You will change the world! This is a magnificent invention that will reshape the world! Merlin! It is more meaningful than any of my inventions thus far!"
"Incredible, and you're only eleven years old!"
"This is a piece of parchment, but it's not just a piece of parchment! It will revolutionize the way wizards communicate!"
"How has no one thought of this before? It's so simple yet so brilliant!"
Seeing Professor Mori's sparkling eyes and slightly manic demeanor, Vader's heart began to pound. He forced himself to remain still and not take a step back, his fingers curling slightly as he almost reached for his wand.
In an instant, countless examples flashed through his mind—like the murderous Song Zhiwen, or Newton, who suppressed and persecuted other scholars.
Vader's alertness heightened in an instant, as if he had returned to that fateful day—separated by a wall, he had heard Voldemort's voice.
Dumbledore's calm, pale blue eyes seemed to be staring at him.
Vader secretly pinched a bean the size of a button, his emergency insurance against such situations.
Maintaining his humility and composure, he smiled and said, "It's not really my invention—I merely drew inspiration from the Muggle network communication concept. If not for your meticulous guidance, Professor, I wouldn't have been able to succeed."
(End of Chapter)
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