Chapter 58: Path to the New Age
Harry was... stunned. The only thing he could do at this moment was stare in amazement at the Pope, the ruler of Vatican City. How did the man know about magic? Did he encounter wizards and witches on any of his travels? Many questions arose at that moment.
"Does His Holiness know about our magical world?"
"Of course not. I know it's a closely guarded secret, and I've kept it that way, at least from those who can't use magic." The Pope smiled kindly as he walked to a small table near one of the room's windows. He extended his hand toward a chair.
"Please sit, young friend. You have spoken to me about an important matter you need to discuss."
Seeing the older man's kindness, Harry nodded and walked over to the chair before sitting down.
"May I know how you learned about our world?"
".... Well, young man; that was years ago, when the Second World War was going on. In those moments, I saw how a man could do things I'd never seen before to help others. And when I became Pope and traveled, I met others like him. Perhaps it was a coincidence that I met them... or perhaps something else..."
"The Second World War. No wonder..." Harry frowned. "That event was truly... many wizards decided to use their gifts to help, and others to cause harm."
Harry inhaled before taking out his folder and handing it to the Pope, who read it with some caution. Harry had included the points that would make life better through magic; this so he wouldn't have to repeat himself again.
"Tell me, young friend, what do you think about God and Jesus Christ?"
"Well..." Harry shifted a little uncomfortably. "Honestly?"
"Of course! I have no problem with non-believers!" The Pope laughed lightly. "We humans have free will."
"Honestly, Your Holiness, I'm not a religious devotee. And perhaps only wizards from India, Greece, and Italy are. These are the countries I know the most about, so I can't speak as much about others who might have the same circumstances."
"For us wizards and witches, it wouldn't be so strange to think that Jesus Christ was a wizard. The creation of the wand actually occurred before Christ. The origin of magic dates back more than 100,000 years in Africa, with anatomically modern humans."
"Turning water into wine, multiplying things, healing others—many of those things can be done with magic, so we can't attribute it entirely to something sacred and divine. Not because we can't believe in something higher, but because they are things we can see and achieve with magic."
"Of course, many of the things he is said to have done are still miracles; a wizard definitely can't be resurrected. Not unless drink a special potion that puts him in a state of suspended animation before receiving a potion that counteracts those effects."
"So, it's not that I find it hard to believe, but hard to understand that someone really is the child of an almighty God."
"Hmm..." the Pope nodded with a small smile. He wasn't displeased, but rather curious about the way wizards thought and saw things. He had met many people on some of his travels. He had seen the good and bad sides of humans, so he wasn't someone who would point his finger at another and judge them.
"Your plan to allow everyone to perform magic is truly complex, young friend. And I'm worried that if all goes well, our religion will become extinct at that point," the Pope let out a small sigh.
"And I also can't lie and say it's a miracle from God. That would go against my beliefs and those of many."
"If only gods existed in this world, everything would be easier," Harry muttered softly. But he shook his head.
"Young friend, I'm sorry, but I don't think I can be of any help," the Pope said with a slightly sad expression.
"I see..." Harry sighed.
"However..." the Pope continued, looking at Harry with a friendly smile. "Even if I can't help with this, I can definitely talk if things start to get out of hand. After all, I don't think you mean any harm, do you?"
"A better quality of life, being able to use magic, more jobs, scientific research, and posterity. Clearly, you want future generations to be better than those who came before them," the Pope laughed a little, remembering that he himself wanted to improve, or at least make the world a better place for children. For the Pope, Harry Potter wanted something similar when using magic.
Harry nodded, a little sadly, but knew he couldn't force himself on the older man in front of him. Then, he said his goodbyes before taking the folder and leaving the room.
. . .
Harry sighed, feeling like crying at the same time, but he didn't have the tears for that. He had spent almost his entire fortune to create what he saw before him. And not just the fortune inside Gringotts, but also the fortune he had from the One Piece world. Since Rias had his inventory, it wasn't difficult for her to store it, so she sent Harry's share before he exchanged it in countries around the world. He knew that doing so could lose him money, but if he did it all at once and in one place, he would only draw attention to himself.
But now that he was ready, he could announce the opening of Aeternum University. The facilities were large buildings; the main one was white with large windows on one side, showing the interior corridors. Behind the main building, there was another, slightly smaller one, with a design similar to that of a school. This place would be used to teach people about Muggle culture, especially subjects like chemistry, physics, mathematics, and biology. People could opt for higher education in the upper building and thus continue their studies.
Finally, the largest building of all, at the back, was where all kinds of research would be conducted. There were rooms for potions, transfiguration, charms, and, of course, rooms for researching subjects more related to science: physics, mathematics, chemistry, and biology.
Harry also created some rules.
1. No matter where they come from or their social status, everyone is equal within the institution; no one could abuse the power of their family, money, or anything similar. Should this occur, the person would be immediately expelled.
2. If problems arise between students, a teacher would be notified and would try to mediate between them. If this is not possible, the headmaster would mediate between them. Finally, if the problem could not be resolved, students could opt for a duel where a wager would be placed to end the problem; killing and/or maiming were strictly prohibited. The director, therefore, will be the judge and spectator of said duel.
3. Aeternum members (students) may choose to form clubs or research associations and earn merits that can be exchanged for funding for said clubs/associations and advance their research.
4. Aeternum members/students are strictly prohibited from using their student identity to abuse or attack innocent people or any city passersby; this, of course, unless they are attacked, in which case, they may protect themselves.
5. Research into dark magic is strictly prohibited. Members/students may only study and research to learn methods to defend themselves against such magic. Or, if truly necessary in specific cases, special permission will be granted by the director of Aeternum.
6. Aeternum members/students are permitted to carry their magical artifacts at all times, but are prohibited from abusing this permission: attacking without a purpose, such as protecting themselves, protecting someone, or using them for research and study.
7. Members/students will be punished for using profanity toward others, especially the words "mudblood" and/or "mudblood."
8. Within Aeternum, the word "muggle" is crossed out: to refer to non-magical people, the word "non-magical person" or simply "mundane" will be used.
Harry wrote many more rules that would make this place strict, but also not oppressive and abusive. At the same time, he set two goals.
Aeternum Goal #1.
The Aeternum University of Magical Research and Engineering aims to improve humanity's quality of life, improve magic and its uses, and advance new theories.
Aeternum Goal #2.
The Aeternum University of Magical Research and Engineering aims to preserve magic for posterity and future generations.
In addition to all this, there is an admission fee that must be paid. This will be used to improve the facilities and prevent Aeternum from stagnating. At the same time, it will also pay its professors and staff members. The research rooms also have a fee, but a much lower one, and you'll need at least two weeks' advance notice to request one of the rooms, no matter which one. This also applies to the costs of Aeternum.
After finishing everything, Harry was exhausted, but also happy to finally finish everything necessary to launch the inauguration of Aeternum. Of course, the ICW knew about all this and supported him. Those men and women in those positions were all similar to Dumbledore in their thoughts on non-magical people. If they weren't, they wouldn't get their positions. They not only have to look out for the wizarding community, but also have relationships with the non-magical side to make things better. If an extremist pureblood had a position, things would be much more complicated and difficult for the wizarding world to manage. This was also one of the reasons why those kinds of people rose up as Dark Wizards; in the end, very few people agreed with their opinions, and they could only be Dark Wizards or Dark Lords seeking to change things in an aggressive and deadly way.
If there had been more of these people in the ICW... Well, it would have been much easier for Voldemort to accomplish his goals.
Harry blew a breath out of his nose before stretching his body, raising his arms to the sky.
"Well, I finished just in time. I have to thank those Goblins. Who would have thought they'd be so willing to help just by granting them the opportunity to attend Aeternum?" Harry laughed, knowing this could cause controversy, but those Goblins just had to show what they could really do to sway opinions against them.
Even as greedy as those little idiots could be, they had some pretty good farming, mining, and smithing skills. All of this related to their spells that only they knew. So, for them to be willing to share these for a better life without being abused was brilliant.
"But now... I still have work to do." Harry used Apparition to travel from the foot of the mountain where he had created Aeternum and went to where the Queen was waiting. When he arrived, he saw the Queen, the Prime Minister, and several men and women—at least a thousand—waiting for him.
"Mr. Potter."
"Your Majesty..." Harry bowed, greeting you respectfully.
"Prime Minister, greetings; it is a pleasure to meet you."
The shoulder nodded, smiling slightly before accepting Harry's handshake.
"Should these be the people?"
"Yes..." the Prime Minister replied. "They're all reliable police officers, two of whom even have children at Hogwarts."
"Oh?" That was a small surprise to Harry. The Queen's request at the time had been to grant magic to the London police officers; this was to maintain order when Harry started with the more ordinary people. This plan would help maintain order in the city and its surrounding areas as well.
The Queen... No, even Harry and the Prime Minister knew this was the best plan. They could have started with the military, but that could backfire. It was best to start with the police officers handpicked by the Prime Minister and the Queen before moving on to ordinary people. The military inside Britain would be the last.
"Right... let's get started..." Harry inhaled before exhaling. Everyone held their breath as they walked toward the courtyard, where the ritual would be prepared. But this time it would be different; For Harry, who created the ritual, it wasn't difficult to modify it to work for the current number of people. However, this might be the limit; if he modified it for even more people, it might not work properly.
So, in the middle of a huge ritual circle, the police officers sat a meter apart while closing their eyes and following Harry's instructions. When the circle lit up and the ingredients changed their state and entered the bodies of each of these people, they could feel something they had never felt before begin to emerge from the center of their heads and move through their bodies. At the same time, they could sense this thing called Soul for the first time.
The spiritual energies of each person grew as their souls and bodies benefited from the diluted Immortal Liquor, giving them the potential to continue growing on the path of magic. Finally, when everyone was finished, Harry took out the wands created with the special stones that collected magical particles; Harry called them spirit stones.
After minutes, and now each policeman had one, Harry taught them a little, enough to be able to cast Lumos, Nox, and Stupefy.
Many laughed when one policeman hit another with a Stupefy and dropped him to the ground hard. Everyone was happy that it worked, and the two men, who each had a son at Hogwarts, were the happiest; they hoped to surprise their children with this.
Harry smiled; it was a genuine smile of happiness. Things were on the right track. And while he expected trouble in the future, it wasn't the time to complicate things. He decided to enjoy this moment and record it in his mind.
"Now..." Harry multiplied a book and dropped it into each policeman's hand. "These books are the same for everyone; they contain some useful spells and also training methods so they can continue to grow. At the same time, they also provide a method for protecting their minds from danger. This will help improve their memory and also protect it from external attacks."
In that happy moment, Harry frowned slightly as he looked away.
"Is something wrong, Mr. Potter?" the Prime Minister asked, seeing Harry Potter's strange expression.
"No..." Harry shook his head and smiled. "I thought I felt something, but it seems it could just be my imagination."
But while Harry was enjoying this moment, something was happening elsewhere.
In the most hidden parts of Scotland, enormous roars could be heard, deafening the screams of people casting spells. The sound of enormous chains echoed around the place as a dragon tried to escape.
"What is wrong with this dragon?! It's too powerful to be a simple Hebridean Black!" The men and women of Clan McFusty shouted, trying to calm the dragon, but try as they might, they couldn't.
The dragon has dark, rough scales, ridges along its back, and a tail with an arrow-shaped tip. The Hebridean Black has glowing purple eyes, bat-like wings, and would normally be 10 meters long, but this one was 15 meters long. Its long tail whipped around, thrashing against the ground as it tried to remove the chains from that place.
But, in a moment of carelessness, several men magically holding the chains around its snout were dragged away by the dragon's force. In that instant, the black dragon didn't even show mercy or wait a second; its mouth opened, sending waves of fire at the men in front of it and to the sides. It managed to break free enough to flap its wings, sending gusts of wind before roaring loudly and spitting more fire.
"No good, it's about to break loose!" a man roared in fear and concern. But no one heard him. Seeing that it was impossible to calm the dragon, and now also to control it in place, they all fled, leaving only the man, who could only see enormous fangs before everything went dark.
The dragon swallowed the man before taking off with force and flying south.
Perhaps it was fate... or the converging waves of so many events changing the world; or simply pure coincidence. But, at the time, no one knew.
The world would learn of the secret side of wizarding... not because of Harry Potter.
But because of the destruction caused by a single dragon.
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