Chapter 120: Pathway Expansion Stele, You Are Back
Leonardo heard the system's voice and quietly took Bloodlines and Talent into his hands.
As he opened the book, he quickly skimmed the contents of his system panel:
[ Loan: Pathway Expansion Stele (monthly) ]
[ Repayment deadline: 30 days ]
[ Loan contents: A peculiar stele that can imprint the internal magical pathways of any magical creature (including wizards) for observation and experimentation ]
[ Loan task: Witness a memorable birth of life ]
Good stuff.
If the stele could imprint magical pathways, it would make observation that much easier.
Now that he had become an Animagus, mastering Transfiguration perfectly meant developing new directions for the art. The very first time he had touched a wand, he had attempted an incomplete magical-creature transfiguration. The winged serpent had unraveled quickly, but at least it had been a start.
It had given Leonardo a sense of the way forward.
The more he studied Transfiguration, the more instinct told him that magical‑creature transfiguration was possible. Training with the meditation method from Divination and Inspiration had sharpened his intuition, and that inner certainty only grew.
And after becoming an Animagus, he had tasted the strange profundity of the Transfiguration talent granted by Loki's Faceless. Such things showed their true edge only in the high reaches of Transfiguration.
To achieve magical‑creature transfiguration, the problem of magical pathways had to be solved. Magical beasts, whose internal pathways were utterly unlike a wizard's, came in a thousand shapes, each race with its own pattern.
Leonardo had long been vexed that, while the Peeking Fiend's Eye was a fine way to observe pathways, it always required a specific subject right in front of him. He could not look whenever he wished.
If this stele could hold a large enough number of imprinted pathways and keep them preserved for a long time, his efficiency in studying them would leap forward.
He spoke to the system in thought.
"System, how many magical pathways can the Pathway Expansion Stele record at once, and how long will those records last?"
[ It can record ten million magical pathways simultaneously. The records will last one hundred years. ]
Plenty.
How many wizards were there in the entire magical world, after all? Even counting the magical creatures, he was not sure he could fill the stele.
The duration was equally abundant, enough to record the lifetimes of most wizards and magical beasts. Wizards and some beasts might live beyond a century, but do not forget…
Some wizards liked to court death. Some magical creatures liked to fight.
What puzzled Leonardo was the loan task.
Witness a memorable birth of life?
Plants? Animals? Humans? Wizards? Or magical creatures?
Did "birth of life" mean the birth of a young?
And it had to be memorable…
Since it was a monthly loan, the difficulty should be within reach.
"System, the birth of life—what exactly does that mean?"
[ The moment life fully arrives in this world, touching it as a newborn. ]
"So, the birth of a young? Are there any limits on the subject, such as human or animal?"
[ The birth of a young qualifies. ]
[ No restriction. The key is that it impresses the Host. ]
"Good. Understood. I want to take the Pathway Expansion Stele loan."
[ Loan: Pathway Expansion Stele (monthly) approved. ]
[ Evaluation: This stele's ambition is to record an era. ]
[ Item delivered to system space. Retrieve at will. ]
Leonardo drew his thoughts back and focused on the present.
Daphne had been watching him without pretense, and when she saw the light in his eyes as he turned the pages of the grimoire, the corner of her mouth lifted.
Draco had been right. Leonardo's hunger for knowledge outstripped everything else.
It was good for him to want something. Daphne thought of the family library.
Luckily, she had many books.
"Leonardo, how long will this book cover me for tuition?"
He considered briefly. "I have not read it closely yet, so I cannot say for certain, but not less than a full year. Do not worry. My reputation matters to me."
Exchanging knowledge for knowledge deserved respect.
Daphne's eyes crinkled faintly at that.
Excellent. The books at home could keep him on retainer for years.
"Then, Professor Grafton, when do we begin?"
Catching her smile and the expectation in her expression, Leonardo could not help but sigh.
The child made it sound like tutoring was play.
This was not a hobby club. What had Malfoy told Daphne?
Had he conveniently omitted the daily homework, the weekly quizzes, the monthly exams, and the end‑of‑term finals?
Or did Malfoy truly think it had been a bit easy?
Well, Harry and the others had managed to keep pace lately.
Malfoy's home education was the best of the lot; at least his magical fundamentals were solid.
Very well. Time to raise the intensity again.
Hogwarts had year‑end examinations this term, after all. They might as well start their review early.
…
Forbidden Forest.
Moonlight flooded the ground.
Two unicorns ran with bright joy.
Seleneia could feel it. She was nearly at term. The foal within was fully formed. All that remained was the moment. Then it would see this world.
In a unicorn's way, she ran beneath the clear wind and moonlight, letting magic flow smoothly along her pathways, storing power for the birth.
Asterion ran close and carefully at her side, every sense widened to catch danger.
There was little need. At a unicorn's speed, few creatures could so much as track their motion, much less hinder or endanger them.
The silver‑bright horn could also cut through many barriers and bindings, and paired with their vaunted speed, left them few equals.
As the nest came into view, Asterion eased his guard and prepared to slow.
Seleneia ran faster, sounding a clear, ringing call.
At the long cry, a human glimmer of joy lit Asterion's eyes. Seleneia's voice said:
The child was coming.
The familiar nest appeared ahead. Seleneia cried again and was about to dart inside.
A formless ripple spread out of the nest and wrapped her, and Asterion behind.
Crack. Crack.
A twin sound came near their horns. Web‑fine, illusory fractures spread in the air from each horn.
A low, thin voice slid out of a dark corner of the nest and into their ears like a cold serpent.
"Ah. You are back."