"Can you be more specific?" Leonard asked.
He did not know much about Obscurus. He only knew it was a dangerous dark magical force, intangible and formless, yet still capable of harming the real world.
As for exactly what kind of harm it caused, he truly had no idea.
"Then take this as my last lesson before I leave the school." Harris Raymons walked over to Leonard. "You know where the power of modern magic comes from, right?"
"Modern magic draws its power from emotion," Leonard replied.
"Exactly. The power of modern magic comes from emotion. Throughout the development of modern magic, wizards have used all kinds of feelings and emotions to influence magic and produce different effects, including anger, fear, love..."
Harris Raymons poured a cup of tea and handed it to Leonard. "And this is where the branches begin. Magic triggered by all kinds of positive emotions is categorized as ordinary magic, while negative emotions are the source of curses."
"Tell me something I don't know." Leonard took the teacup and set it aside, with no intention of drinking it.
He had studied quite a bit of dark magic himself, so he naturally understood the difference between the two.
For example, the most famous light magic spell, the Patronus Charm, had to be guided by joyful emotion, while the infamous Killing Curse required the caster to possess intense killing intent.
Even ordinary curses such as the Flame-Freezing Charm and the Stunning Spell required a strong desire to attack. The stronger that aggressive intent, the more powerful the spell became.
That was modern magic built on emotion.
"All right, all right, you really are a terrible listener." Harris Raymons shrugged. "Obscurus is also a kind of dark magic, but it's a rather special one. It's a manifestation of dark magical power itself. You could say it's the purest union of malicious intent."
"Where does that malicious intent come from? Does it just appear out of nowhere?" Leonard asked. "You can't be saying this thing is some kind of creature that absorbs evil thoughts, can you?"
"It wouldn't be wrong to call it a creature, an energy lifeform of sorts, but it doesn't appear out of thin air, and it doesn't feed on other people's malicious thoughts either. It comes from wizards who suppress their own magic for long periods of time."
"Under pressure from the outside world, they don't dare reveal their magic. Add in the pain of magical outbursts, resentment toward oppression, and a suffocating home environment, and that kind of wizard can very easily become an Obscurial. Once that happens, the magic inside them mutates into an Obscurus."
"Then there shouldn't be any Obscurials around now, right?" Leonard said.
In Hogwarts, A History, there was a description of two mysterious magical objects with special effects, the [Book of Admittance] and the [Quill of Acceptance].
Those two items could record the names and addresses of every person with magical talent within Hogwarts's recruitment range, helping the Headmaster... or rather, Deputy Headmistress Professor McGonagall send out admission letters once they reached the proper age.
That effectively prevented children with magical talent from being oppressed or hated, and in turn prevented the birth of Obscurials.
"That's right. Magical schools in every country have measures to prevent Obscurials from appearing. After all, the danger posed by Obscurus is enormous. One slip and it becomes a huge disaster for both Muggles and wizards."
Harris Raymons poured himself a cup of tea and took a sip. "So in modern times, there are almost no Obscurials left, and naturally the Obscurus that accompanies them has all but vanished as well."
"But you still haven't explained exactly how Obscurus manifests." Leonard stared at Harris Raymons. "Be specific."
"Tsk. You definitely ran into an Obscurus, otherwise you wouldn't be pressing this question." Harris Raymons shook his head and set down his teacup. "Obscurus is the manifestation of chaotic magic. It usually appears as condensed black or gray mist. When it erupts, it releases extremely chaotic magical power. If you're swept by that kind of magic, you won't be able to cast spells for a while."
"Does that include ancient magic?" Leonard asked.
"No. Ancient magic and modern magic operate on different principles. Obscurus was born from modern magic, so it has no way to affect ancient magic." Harris Raymons said, "So where exactly did you find an Obscurus? Share the location. If that thing isn't dealt with quickly, the danger it poses is enormous."
Leonard ignored the suggestion and pressed on. "Don't the Ravens have any Obscurus?"
"Not now, but they did in the past. Someone wanted to study the magical power of Obscurus, the same way they studied ancient magic, to see if it could be mastered. But they failed. The reason Obscurus is so powerful is precisely because it is chaotic, and chaos cannot be controlled. Only exceptionally gifted Obscurials can manipulate it a little."
...
Harris Raymons thought for a moment. "My teacher once took part in Obscurus research. In the end, he was the one who destroyed that Obscurus."
Quite a few dark hunters throughout history had used Obscurials to hunt wizards, and the power of Obscurus truly was highly effective against them.
Leonard thought it over for a moment, then turned to leave without the slightest hesitation. "Thanks for the lesson. Goodbye."
"Hey, you still haven't told me where you ran into Obscurus," Harris Raymons called after him.
"I already said I didn't," Leonard replied without looking back.
"As if I'd believe that." Harris Raymons curled his lip, then after a moment summoned the raven Star, wrote a letter, and sent it off.
...
No matter where Leonard had encountered Obscurus, the fact that it existed meant he had to inform his teacher.
With his teacher's abilities, he should be able to divine the location of the Obscurus, right?
A few days later, the professors announced the final exam results. As expected, Leonard once again took first place in his year.
And with the release of the results, summer vacation arrived as well.
Just before boarding the train, Leonard successfully got another phoenix feather from Dumbledore.
Then he boarded the train to the sound of Fawkes's sharp but extremely filthy curses.
At King's Cross Station, old Londo stood well away from the crowd, craning his neck as he waited.
"Long time no see, Grandfather." Leonard came up behind old Londo and patted him on the shoulder.
Londo jumped in fright, then turned and glared at Leonard. "Where did you come from? How did you suddenly appear behind me?"
"Relax. I was just joking." Leonard waved a hand.
"Hmph." Londo snorted. "Come on, let's go home. By the way, where's that little girl who came back with you last summer?"
"She went back to her own home. Oh, right, I'm not going home this summer. I've got some personal business to deal with," Leonard said.
"Not going home?" Londo looked at Leonard uncertainly, and for a moment there was no telling what sort of thoughts had flashed through his head. "What, are you spending the summer at that little girl Claudia's house?"