Chapter 147: Under the Spell That Shocked Everyone
The giant that had appeared moments ago was not a living creature, but a body conjured by Phineas using Transfiguration—a vessel created to carry a crystal.
That was why the giant displayed both intelligence and a soul.
In truth, it was the crystal that held both consciousness and soul.
This creation was inspired by Nicolas Flamel. At the start of the school year, Phineas and Professor Dumbledore had visited Flamel—also a Ravenclaw heir—and spent several days studying under him. From that time, Phineas obtained Flamel's personal notes.
Among those notes was a revelation that could upend the foundation of the wizarding world: the formula and production method of the Philosopher's Stone.
Though alchemical legends had long spoken of such a stone, in the entire recorded history of magic, only Nicolas Flamel had ever successfully created one.
However, this only referred to the commonly known history of the magical world. In reality, Flamel did not create the true Philosopher's Stone of legend. According to ancient lore, one authentic Philosopher's Stone exists—guarded by the Elder Council—and it is singular.
The stone's true function was to serve as a foundation for alchemical transmutations, reducing or eliminating the cost of equivalent exchange. The Elixir of Life, often associated with it, was merely a minor byproduct.
What Flamel managed to create was a magic stone, capable of turning objects into gold and refining a rudimentary form of the Elixir. However, this Elixir was incomplete.
Alchemy is a discipline grounded in exchange. Flamel's stone worked by storing immense quantities of soul and lifespan energy. These trapped souls supplied the magic; the lifespans served as the material base for the Elixir—imposed lifespans, forcibly taken. This was the origin of the side effects that plagued Flamel later in life.
Even though Flamel's Philosopher's Stone was considered a failure, it offered Phineas a critical insight: the idea of soul storage and utilization.
Phineas had long theorized a potent new kind of magic: Evocation Magic, rooted in Transfiguration.
Though the System had greatly aided his progress, Phineas, as a time-traveler, still trusted his own memories. In his previous life, the most iconic forms of magic in fiction had been things like fireballs and blizzards.
His goal was to recreate such powerful spellcraft from memory—shaping magical elements, enhancing their strength, and ultimately granting them intelligence, allowing the spells to act autonomously in battle.
He swiftly mastered the shaping and amplification stages. With the foundation of modern magic built upon magical script, Phineas could draw on a wealth of resources to develop and refine his spells.
The final hurdle was giving his creations independent consciousness.
Here, Flamel's magic stone provided the breakthrough: by crafting a simplified version of the stone—containing just one or a few souls—he could embed it within an evoked construct.
By channeling Plastic Magic through such a Soul Stone, the resulting creation would likely possess its own awareness. Crucially, since the soul remained anchored in the stone, no soul would be lost even if the construct was destroyed.
After much research and calculation, Phineas finally succeeded in creating the crystal now in his hand: the Soul Stone.
The Soul Stone could absorb and emit both energy and soul. Phineas imbued it with his own memories and, following guidance from Godric Gryffindor's notes, bound the stone to himself as a magical artifact.
Since the memories came from him, any consciousness that arose within the stone would naturally evolve according to those memories—making it the most compatible companion Phineas could imagine.
Thus, the giant that had just fought was a product of Plastic Magic cast through the Soul Stone. Its abilities were powered entirely by the energy stored within.
The Soul Stone had first absorbed soul energy back at the vampire castle, and this battle marked its second major use.
Phineas stored the Soul Stone away and glanced at the volcano before him. Depleted of the stone's power, it had reverted to a normal mountain—it would never become a giant again.
He sighed. Perhaps if he continued in this direction, he might one day create an entirely new race of magical beings.
Looking down, he stared at the ruined wand in his hand. It had been destroyed by the surge of magic used to activate the Soul Stone. This was his third wand.
At this rate, even the wealthy Black family wouldn't be able to keep up with the cost of replacing them.
And without a wand, many spells and techniques were simply impossible.
Wands weren't mere tools to be bought and used. Purchasing a wand didn't guarantee compatibility or peak performance.
Every wand had a trace of intelligence, shaped by the magical core within—not true sentience, but enough to require bonding. Only through continual use could a wizard and wand become a perfect pair.
Even for a powerful wizard like Phineas, adjusting to a new wand would take at least a month before it responded as naturally as an extension of his own body.
That meant that even if he returned to London and bought a replacement immediately, he wouldn't regain his full strength for weeks.
Phineas regretted not preparing in advance. Had he anticipated this, he would've secured a backup wand. Now, when he most needed one, he was left with a poorly matched substitute.
And Richie was still at Hogwarts.
Worse still, this Richie had gone completely mad—and Phineas had no doubt that his professor was plotting something against him.
He needed to stay in top form, ready to counter Richie's schemes at a moment's notice.
But it was too late for regrets. The wand was destroyed. Even the enchanted gloves, which he could once use to cast spells, were damaged and unusable for now.
"Alright, Lisa," he said quietly. "Activate the Portkey. We're heading back. And keep an eye on the vampires—we need intelligence on their base."
He paused, then added, "Hopefully you'll have good news for me soon. Let's hope they live long enough to tell us something useful."
Lisa nodded with a small smirk.
"Don't worry, young master. We'll get everything out of them—and it won't take long. Honestly, they'd better talk quickly… because I doubt they'll survive much longer."