dmims Chapter 88 Ironclad Curse Transformation Case
Chapter 88 Ironclad Curse Transformation Case
Chapter 88 Ironclad Curse Transformation Case
Leaving Professor Flitwick's classroom, Karen walked up the stairs and down the corridor toward the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor's office.
Upon arrival, Karen raised her hand and knocked on the door knocker; the dull "knock-knock" sound was particularly clear in the silence.
"Come in." A deep, steady voice came from inside the door, and the lock opened in response.
A familiar scent wafted through the air: aged parchment, dried herbs, and a faint hint of sulfur. The office was dimly lit, with several suspended brass lamps casting a steady, warm yellow glow. A large ebony desk occupied the center, behind which Professor Castor sat.
"Professor," Karen greeted respectfully, gently closing the door behind her.
Castor looked up and his gaze fell on Karen. "How was your vacation?" He gestured for Karen to sit down in the high-backed armchair opposite him.
"It was very fulfilling, Professor. Thank you for your concern." Karen sat down. His gaze involuntarily swept over the glaring curse marks again, but he suppressed his emotions.
Then he took out a box wrapped in oil paper from his small burlap purse and gently placed it on the corner of the table not covered by the scroll. "These are cookies my mother baked, Professor."
Castor's gaze lingered on the cookie box for a moment, then he nodded slightly. "Please give my thanks to Mrs. Hawthorne."
He didn't touch the cookie box. His gaze returned to Karen. "So, have you studied your Christmas present, 'Hermes' Touch,' during the holidays?" He tapped his fingers lightly on the table.
Karen sat up straight and answered honestly, "Due to the environment at home, I only briefly observed its structure. The energy circuits, as active as Niven, resemble the trajectories of living stars. It is in dynamic equilibrium yet contains destructive explosive power."
Then Karen raised an eyebrow slightly. "But the core area—is heavily enveloped by an extremely complex, multi-layered magical lock. It's far beyond my current understanding."
Castor nodded slowly. "Your caution is justified, Karen."
He then leaned forward slightly. The candlelight cast flickering shadows on his striking features. His tone was more solemn than ever before: "The Touch of Hermes is no ordinary alchemical creation. It possesses the power to forcibly intervene in the source of magic. It can create a 'pseudo-magical vacuum,' turning any wizard within it into a Muggle, unable to use magic."
Then he paused. "This power is both a reliance and a shackle. Never delve into it before you truly understand and tame it. That would be like walking on the edge of an abyss; one wrong step and you're doomed. Your primary task is to build a solid foundation. I'm not giving it to you to study right now, but rather to give you a power you can rely on in times of danger."
Karen's palms were slightly sweaty, and she nodded solemnly: "I understand, Professor. I will not attempt to touch the core again until you deem me ready."
Karen recalled the Christmas gift she had given him earlier. Her gaze unconsciously fell on the professor's left wrist. "Professor, did you try that bracelet during the holidays? Did it have any effect?" she asked hesitantly.
Castor's gaze also fell on his wrist. He raised his left hand. The silver ring gleamed with a cool, luminous light under the lamp.
"The effect is actually very slight," Castor commented, his tone revealing his delight, "but it does exist; the burning pain is somewhat suppressed by a touch of coolness."
He looked up at Karen. "More importantly, it's the thought that counts. I can see that you've put a lot of effort into studying those ancient pain-relieving runes. I really like this gift, thank you."
"I'm glad I could help you in any way. You've already helped me so much," he said sincerely.
The tense atmosphere in the office seemed to have eased considerably.
"Well then," Professor Castor leaned back in his chair, "besides studying the 'little trouble' I gave you and that bracelet, what else is worth mentioning about your vacation?"
Mentioning this, Karen's eyes immediately lit up with eager anticipation. He took the modified watch from his dragon-skin bag and handed it to him. "Professor, take a look at this. During the holidays, I tried to make a little gadget by referring to a book called 'The Muggle Gadget Modification Guide'."
Professor Castor took the watch. He opened the case and gently ran his fingers along the etched runes. His grey eyes swept sharply over the dial and the miniature array of runes inside.
"After solidifying and miniaturizing the magical model of the primary vital signs detection charm commonly used at St. Mungo's Hospital, we transformed it into a visualized array of runes." He slowly revealed the key point, a hint of approval flashing in his eyes.
"Then it was cleverly integrated into the physical structure of a Muggle timer. The idea was clear, and the execution was quite effective." He looked up. "How was the result?"
Karen's spirits lifted: "It can quickly scan the wearer's superficial skin condition. It can identify and display abrasions, minor injuries, small-area inflammation, and slight fluctuations in the magic field, with acceptable accuracy."
"But its limitations are also obvious; it is powerless against deep tissue damage and internal organ problems."
"A very solid and inspiring starting point, Karen." Professor Castor handed the watch back to Karen.
"Transforming the effects of intangible spells into intuitive, physical feedback is one of the core essences of advanced alchemy."
"It seems the author of this book is a rather talented alchemist." Then he changed the subject. "I suppose you didn't just want to show me this, did you?"
"Yes, Professor!" Karen's heart raced. "The success of this testing watch has given me a new inspiration!"
"Since the magical model of the detection spell can be successfully solidified and visualized, theoretically, could the magical model of defensive spells like the Protector spell also be transformed, solidified, and given a trigger mechanism in a similar way?"
His thoughts became clearer. He spoke faster and with enthusiasm: "I want to try making a prototype of a protective device, also integrated into a device the size of a watch."
"The core function is: to quickly and instantly activate a miniature, one-time Ironclad Shield when the wearer suffers a sudden physical or magical energy impact! No incantation, no wand, and not even prior awareness of danger is required!"
Karen's eyes gleamed under the light. "This is certainly not as powerful as a complete autonomous defense system. But it's a clear, verifiable, and crucial step! And it's highly practical."
Professor Castor listened quietly, his fingers unconsciously rubbing the mithril bracelet on his left wrist.
"A very feasible direction, Karen," he said slowly. "To solidify instant magical protection within everyday objects, giving them a passively triggered 'instinct.' This is indeed an important branch of alchemy's practical application."
A sharp glint flashed in his grey eyes. "The Eye of Truth grants you unparalleled insight into the flow of magic. This will be your greatest asset in optimizing rune arrays, increasing trigger efficiency, and enhancing shield stability. Your talent seems to have been born to explore this path."
Karen was greatly encouraged by Professor Castor's approval.
"However," Professor Castor's tone suddenly turned stern, "the leap from theoretical conception to practical verification, from detection charm to defensive charm, is enormous, like an insurmountable chasm. The magic model of the Armor Charm is far more complex than that of the detection charm. It has limitations regarding the strength of the carrier, the capacity to bear magical flux, and..."
The requirements for the stability of energy bursts all increase exponentially.
"A slight deviation in the angle of a rune etching, a minor conflict in the flow of magic—at best, the item is ruined; at worst, it can trigger a violent backlash or even an explosion, with unimaginable consequences."
"Don't be blindly optimistic. You need to learn from other tools, Karen." Professor Castor stood up.
He walked towards the wall on one side of the office, which was completely covered by a thick, dark green veil.
"We need to stand on the shoulders of giants. In particular, we need to deeply understand the lessons learned from their failures. Those lessons are often more valuable than their successes."
With a flick of his wand, the curtain slid silently to both sides, revealing a whole wall of built-in display shelves behind it.
Dozens of items of various shapes and sizes were displayed on the shelf: some were dull and cracked; some shimmered with an unstable and dangerous light; and several were restrained by a distorted magical field.
Castor's gaze swept over the alchemical relics, and he tapped the tip of his wand three times. The three items were lifted by an invisible force and floated in front of Karen.
The first item was an ancient bronze amulet with charred edges and spiderweb-like cracks, shaped like a curled-up leaf.
"This is a piece from a long time ago, an attempt to solidify a simplified model of armor protection. The theoretical calculations are perfect. The rune design is impeccable."
"But he underestimated the impact of the magical overload generated when the spell was instantly activated on the carrier material. The bronze he chose was not strong enough. After the third successful activation, the amulet shattered. The flying fragments severely injured the wearer."
The second item was a silver bracelet set with a dull, cracked ruby. Inside the ruby, there appeared to be solidified black, flocculent material wriggling.
"A variant of the obstacle-laden spell has been solidified, originally intended to slow down attack speed."
"The failure lies in a fatal flaw in the rune loop design, where the mana flow forms an undissipable vortex inside the gem nodes."
"The wearer not only received no protection, but ultimately died in the magical explosion caused by the expansion of the gem's magical power."
The third item was a relatively complete arm guard made of matte black metal. Its surface was engraved with intricate runes that shimmered with a flowing silver light. It exuded an aura of calm and sturdiness.
"The work of an anonymous alchemist in modern times. Successfully solidified the basic Ironclad Charm, achieving reliable passive triggering." Castor's tone was full of admiration.
"There are two key breakthroughs: First, the rune array employs a unique nested distribution structure. Before the impact energy reaches the core, it is distributed to multiple secondary loops for buffering and bearing, greatly reducing the instantaneous pressure on the core nodes."
"Secondly, meteorite iron and mithril were selected as carriers. The combination of these two materials has a perfect ability to absorb and disperse impact energy."
He gestured towards the flowing silver patterns on the gauntlet. "Observe carefully here. The smooth transitions at the turns of the runes and the carefully designed energy buffer zones between the magic nodes are the essence. The rune structure concept and energy channeling mechanism of this piece are extremely inspiring and valuable for your design."
Karen held his breath, staring intently at the three alchemical artifacts before him, especially the black gauntlet. He could clearly "see" how magic was subtly diverted, channeled, buffered, and accumulated.
"Truly exquisite!" Karen couldn't help but murmur in admiration, immersed in the world of flowing magic.
Professor Castor watched Karen's almost obsessive gaze, a barely perceptible twitch at the corner of his mouth. This was exactly what he wanted to see.
He didn't disturb her until the glimmer in Karen's eyes subsided and her breathing became steady, then he slowly spoke: "Materials science, rune structure science, and energy dynamics are the eternal cornerstones of alchemy."
He tapped his wand again. Several thick notebooks, their covers branded with danger symbols, flew out from the display shelf and landed on the table beside Karen. "These samples, along with detailed records of failures and research notes, are for you to take back and study carefully."
“Remember, Karen,” his grey eyes deepened. “On the path of alchemy, failure itself is not terrible; it is even a stepping stone to progress. What is truly terrible is failing to learn from failure, or becoming blindly arrogant in accidental success and failing to see the hidden dangers.”
His gaze swept over the mithril bracelet on his left wrist, then settled on Karen's chest. "You possess extraordinary talent and eyes that can see the true nature of magic. This allows you to go faster and see further. But precisely because of this, the temptations and deadly dangers you will face in the future will be greater than anyone else's."
"Be grounded and have reverence for knowledge, and even more so for power itself. This is my only and most important requirement for you as your mentor."
Karen solemnly put away the heavy notebooks. "I understand, Professor," he replied respectfully. "I will not let you down."
Professor Castor nodded slightly, his gaze sweeping across the high window of his office. "It's getting late. Take these back and study them carefully. Don't rush the design of the Ironclad Charm protective gear; first, thoroughly digest the lessons learned from these failures and the essence of the successes."
"Yes, Professor." Karen carefully put the notes into her dragon-skin bag.
Professor Castor waved. Karen stood up, walked to the oak door, and placed her hand on the cold brass doorknob.
Just as he was about to turn it, that deep, familiar voice came from behind him again. It held a hint of warmth that was almost imperceptible: "That bracelet is really nice. Thank you for the gift, Karen!"
Karen softly replied, "Thank you, Professor." Then she turned the doorknob and went out.
Torches had been lit in the corridor. Karen took a deep breath of the slightly cool air outside.