"Is that enough?"
George didn't mind. He took out a bulging cloth bag and, with a smile, placed it on the table.
There were two main reasons he chose such a large owl.
First, an owl of this size possessed considerable offensive capabilities. If he ever encountered danger, it could provide significant help.
Second, he valued its flying ability. If normal magic owls could carry items weighing over ten pounds, then an owl this large should have no problem carrying over a hundred pounds.
If he ever got into trouble and couldn't win a fight in the future, he could have the owl carry him away. It wasn't just a pet; it could also serve as a flying mount. Why choose anything else?
"Since you're sure, then of course it's no problem."
The shop assistant estimated that the bag contained at least four hundred Galleons. This was serious money, not a joke. He immediately enthusiastically helped George move the eagle owl onto the trolley, afraid George might change his mind.
This owl ate a lot every day; if no wizard bought it soon, they would be losing money.
With the pet purchased, George moved on to the last and most important shop: Flourish and Blotts.
Today, he wasn't just buying all the textbooks for first year; he also wanted to buy many other magic books, especially those on non-verbal spellcasting.
Because if he couldn't learn non-verbal spellcasting, his main body in the Marvel world would be unable to properly use magic until he created a wand.
Today was August 3rd, eighteen days until Gilderoy Lockhart's book signing at Flourish and Blotts. So, the bookstore wasn't too crowded, and finding books was relatively simpler; he could just ask a staff member.
"Non-verbal spellcasting? Those kinds of books aren't sold anymore. Everyone uses wands now; who would still learn such an outdated method of casting?"
The shop assistant shook his head.
George didn't give up, however, and continued:
"I'm very interested in that outdated method of casting. I wonder if you could help me find a copy?
I can pay extra!"
To show his sincerity, he first took out twenty Galleons.
The shop assistant hesitated at the sight, then extended four fingers:
"It requires a special order, and the cost is high. Forty Galleons."
"No problem."
George immediately took out forty Galleons and placed them on the table.
He knew he was definitely being overcharged, but as long as he could get a book on non-verbal spellcasting, let alone forty, he'd pay four hundred.
"Three days. It'll be here within three days."
The shop assistant immediately grinned and pocketed the forty Galleons.
"Then I'll come pick it up in three days."
After another quick browse, and having paid the clearly marked Galleons, George pushed his full trolley, humming an unknown tune, and began to return to his potion shop in Knockturn Alley, ready to teach himself magic.
On the way back, the massive, eye-catching eagle owl attracted many curious glances.
"Be a good boy, don't squawk."
Back at the shop, he placed the eagle owl on the desk in his bedroom, fed it a wild rabbit bought from the owl shop, gave it a stern warning, and then began to organize the magic books he had just purchased.
And when the eagle owl heard George's words, it actually nodded very docilely.
For ordinary young wizards, an eagle owl was too large to handle and too dangerous to be a pet.
But for George, it was different.
His body was stronger than a normal adult's, so even a large eagle owl was no match for him.
As for danger, his psychic abilities inherited from Professor X were only at Level 2, having very little effect on complex human minds, but they worked quite well on simple animals.
He could not only easily communicate with animals but also influence their behavior to some extent.
Sometimes George wondered if, given time to focus on the study of magical creatures, he wouldn't be far behind Newt and Hagrid in the future, and could also become a master of magical creatures.
"Standard Book of Spells, Grade 1" and "Magical Theory". I'll start with these two.
He pulled out the two most important books from the pile of magic books and began to study them intently.
Currently, the most important thing was to master practical spells. As for other subjects like History of Magic, Herbology, and Potions, they could be temporarily set aside until the crisis with his Marvel body was over.
He studied until evening.
"Indeed, it's not that simple!"
Putting down the magic book, George rubbed his somewhat dry eyes and picked up some bread he had bought in Diagon Alley to munch on.
When watching the movies, it seemed like wizards could just wave their wands to cast spells, as if it were very simple.
But in reality, when he truly tried to learn, he found that successfully casting a spell was not so easy.
It was like cooking.
It looked like just a few steps, but when it was his turn, he was lost.
Even if the steps were the same, the taste would vary.
According to the magic book, to successfully cast a spell, first, you must have wizarding blood and magic. Otherwise, even if all subsequent steps were perfect, it would still be useless.
Next was the incantation. The words of the spell must be clear, and different spells required different speeds and emotions. If they didn't meet the standards, the spell's effect would either be greatly weakened or simply not work at all.
There was also a very small chance of producing some unexpected effects.
Finally, there was the wand movement. Waving the wand wasn't just random; the trajectory varied for different spells.
Of course, these were all for beginners.
If you truly understood and mastered a spell, and had even deeply researched its fundamental principles, then casting that spell non-verbally and wandlessly would not be difficult.
Truly top-tier wizards could instantly cast most spells non-verbally and wandlessly.
"Softening Charm, Severing Charm, Unlocking Charm, Levitation Charm, Locking Charm, and Repairing Charm. I'll focus on learning the Unlocking Charm first."
After finishing his bread, George turned to the page in "Standard Book of Spells, Grade 1" that explained the Unlocking Charm.
The spells in the first-year textbook were the most basic and easiest to learn, and also generally had no real power.
Like the Severing Charm, even if he learned it, at his level, he could probably only cut a paper napkin or something; trying to cut a person probably wouldn't even break the skin.
Rather than that, it would be better to learn the Unlocking Charm first. This way, his main body in the Marvel world could unlock the mutant power dampener around his neck and thus unleash his abilities.
He could also open the various high-tech doors of the experimental lab and escape smoothly.
If there was any extra time, learning other spells wouldn't be too late.
He actually thought the Transfiguration spell should be more useful than the Unlocking Charm, especially against high-tech weapons. If he could just damage one component, he could render it inoperable.
However, after thinking about it carefully, he gave up.
Transfiguration, as a separate major category of study, would definitely be much harder to learn than other spells. Even a genius like Hermione couldn't learn it before school started, and he didn't think he could learn it quickly without guidance.
Even if he did learn it, the effect probably wouldn't be that significant. It wasn't worth the risk.