Lewis ended the conversation and stepped into the converging moonlight. He took out a small crystal vial filled with golden liquid—the Permanent Elixir of Bear's Endurance.
Under Hermione and Ciri's worried gazes, he pulled out the cork and drank it in one gulp.
The liquid was cold, yet as it slid down his throat, it burned fiercely, spreading from his chest to his stomach like he had just downed an entire bottle of vodka.
Then the pain spread throughout his entire body.
At the same time, under the moonlight, natural energy surged into Lewis's body, soothing the burning sensation.
He could feel it clearly—his heart began to pound violently.
No… two hearts.
The second heart was formed entirely from natural energy.
It seemed to be the core of Wild Shape.
But the two hearts beat at different rhythms, causing his eardrums to tremble violently as blood rushed to his head.
Finally, their rhythms synchronized.
An image of his transformation began to take shape in his mind.
Normally, he would choose from animals he had seen before.
But now, under the influence of the elixir, a new form appeared—
The Chimera.
[You have chosen Chimera as your Wild Shape. Due to your deep research on the Chimera, you fully understand its transformation mechanism. You may freely select three animals as the components of your Chimera. You can choose from common creatures, including dragons. The symbolic meaning of these animals will become the source of the Chimera's power.]
Lewis almost laughed.
Just from writing a paper, he got a bonus like this?
That meant he didn't have to stick to the traditional lion-goat-dragon combination.
In a single moment, he made his choice.
[Selection complete. Due to high compatibility, your Chimera form is a four-component hybrid. You may freely adjust the proportion of each component.]
Lewis exhaled slowly and shut his eyes, focusing entirely on his first transformation.
He could clearly feel his arms, legs, and entire body beginning to change.
Muscles, organs, structure—everything was shifting, though slowly.
Even his clothes merged into his body.
He remembered the instructions of the ritual. The first transformation should not be rushed—his body needed time to adapt.
Time passed.
His hands and feet transformed into strange claws.
His shoulder blades and tailbone tingled intensely, as if something was growing out of them.
The glass vial slipped from his hand and shattered on the ground. Hermione quickly moved it aside, watching him nervously.
From her perspective, Lewis's hands had vanished, replaced by sharp beastly claws. But his lower limbs had become those of a bird of prey.
"Is it a beast… or a bird?" Hermione muttered.
"It can't be… some kind of hybrid, right?"
Ciri, however, seemed to realize something, her eyes lighting up.
Lewis couldn't hear them. The transformation was still ongoing, painfully slow—almost like a difficult birth.
After what felt like an eternity, coarse mane-like hair began to grow along his jaw and cheeks. A pair of wings sprouted from his back. Black-and-white patterns spread across his body, and a long tail extended behind him.
He looked grotesque—like several animals forcibly stitched together.
Gradually, fur and feathers covered his entire body.
Finally, his head changed.
His ears shifted to the top of his head, his upper lip split, and long whiskers extended outward.
At last, his head became that of a young male lion—though with unusually long fangs, and hidden venom glands at the back.
His body retained the general shape of a lion, but darker in color, with black-and-white patterns along his back. His wings were covered in brown-black feathers. His forelimbs bore sharp claws suited for both tearing and digging, while his hind legs were those of a raptor.
His tail was covered in smooth snake scales.
"W-what… is that?" Hermione gasped, her face pale.
"I've never seen a magical creature like this."
"It's a Chimera," Ciri said calmly. "Chimera simply means a hybrid. Lewis's version just isn't the standard combination."
Hermione immediately understood. She was stunned—not only by Lewis's transformation, but also by Ciri's insight.
Ciri didn't mention that in her world, Chimeras came in many forms. Unlike this world, where only the original combination remained, other worlds still produced new variants.
Now that she understood, Hermione examined the creature more closely.
Though the transformation process had been unsettling, the final form was strangely majestic.
The creature stood nearly 1.8 meters tall, with a body length of almost 3 meters, excluding its 1.5-meter tail. Each wing spanned about two meters.
It had the head and body of a lion, the wings and hind legs of an eagle, the fur and forelimbs of a badger, and the fangs and tail of a serpent.
Wait.
Lion. Eagle. Badger. Snake.
Weren't those the four house symbols of Hogwarts?
Lewis had fused all four into one.
The Chimera stumbled forward at first, clearly unaccustomed to its new body. But soon, it found its balance and began to run.
Then it spread its wings and flapped—slowly lifting into the air.
By normal physics, a creature of this size shouldn't be able to fly. But magic didn't care about physics.
After a few attempts, Lewis successfully flew a few circles above the tower before descending.
By now, most of the night had passed.
"Come on," Lewis's voice echoed in their minds. "The sun's about to rise. I'll take you to see it."
"Who's first?"
The Chimera crouched down, wings spread.
"Hermione was worried about you earlier," Ciri said, nudging her forward. "She goes first."
Before Hermione could protest, Ciri lifted her onto the Chimera's back.
Lewis stood, spreading his wings fully—spanning over four meters.
"Hold tight," he warned.
Hermione nodded, clutching his neck and burying her face into his warm mane.
With a powerful beat of his wings, a gust of wind forced Ciri to step back.
Dust and leaves swirled.
Lewis soared into the sky, flying over the forest toward Ottery St. Catchpole.
His owl, Homer, and the Fwooper, Circe, sensed his presence and joined him in flight.
From above, the entire village spread out below them.
But Lewis wasn't satisfied.
He climbed higher—through the clouds.
The cloud layer split like a curtain, revealing a glowing opening.
Hermione looked up.
The rising sun painted the clouds in gold and crimson.
She held onto Lewis tightly, her eyes filled with wonder as she gazed upon the breathtaking view.
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