"In ancient times, in the distant East, there was a great land known as the Eastern Divine Continent. There, upon a place called the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit, one day, a certain stone suddenly had its magic erupt out of control and transformed into a monkey."
"This monkey was gifted with extraordinary talents and a remarkable aptitude for magic. But he lacked a wand. On the advice of the other monkeys, he journeyed to the Eastern Sea Dragon Palace to ask the Fire Dragon King there for a powerful wand known as the Sea-Calming Needle…"
"…"
Half-leaning in Tom's arms, Daphne listened intently, completely absorbed in the tale. But when Sun Wukong decided to seek out the great master Bodhi to learn magic, she could no longer fight off the pull of sleep and drifted off.
Tom smiled helplessly, tucked a blanket over the little witch, and then fetched another one for himself.
From experience, he knew that during naps Daphne could be quite the restless sleeper—Tom was fairly certain she'd steal the blanket before the night was through.
Sure enough, when he woke the next morning, she had wrapped herself tightly like a dumpling.
Not wanting to wake her, Tom tiptoed out of the room, only to bump into Astoria just as she was stepping out.
"Good morning, Astoria."
"Good morning, Tom."
Tom noticed her expression was a little odd, and that she kept glancing toward his doorway. He tested the waters:
"You saw Daphne go into my room?"
The silver-haired girl gave an awkward but still polite smile.
Even if she didn't know the full, intricate "details" of human biology, a girl her age still understood enough about "boys and girls."
Tom hurried to explain, eager to clear his name. "Last night Daphne couldn't sleep and insisted I tell her a story. I didn't get far before she fell asleep."
He added with another helpless smile, "Luckily the room had two blankets—otherwise I'd have frozen during the night."
Astoria blinked, but then, remembering scenes of sleeping beside her sister in the past, she suddenly understood. A small giggle slipped out.
"What story did you tell her? The Fountain of Fair Fortune? Or the Three Brothers of Peverell?"
"Neither. If you want to hear it, you can come tonight."
Astoria's fair cheeks flushed crimson, and she mumbled, unable to get a word out.
…
Having teased his future sister-in-law, Tom strolled out of the castle for his morning exercise in high spirits.
This was something Andros had strongly insisted upon—he firmly believed that wizards also needed strong bodies, since sometimes a well-placed punch was even more satisfying than a spell. What's more, now that Tom possessed the blood of a Dragon, his physique had been vastly enhanced. It would be a shame not to put it to use.
Tom had no reason to refuse—good health was never a bad thing. By now, he'd gotten so used to his morning routine that skipping it made him feel strangely unsettled.
After finishing his training, he had a simple breakfast and then buried himself in the library, searching for information on making two-way mirrors, hoping for some inspiration.
He soon found what he was looking for in a book titled Eighteenth-Century Alchemy Selections. But after only a glance, his heart sank; by the time he finished reading the whole article, Tom could only shake his head.
"Completely useless."
Two-way mirrors weren't all that complicated in theory—they relied on material stacking rather than sophisticated technique. When refining mirrors through magical means, there was a minuscule chance of producing two mirrors with matching magical resonance. Their size and shape, however, were entirely random.
This explained why two-way mirrors were so expensive—there was simply no reliable way to produce them consistently.
Tom found a few other alchemical items for long-distance communication, but after some consideration, he realized his current alchemy skills weren't enough—he was missing too many key components.
So, he decided to start with something simpler.
He projected all of his alchemy books into his study space, constructing a full library there, and then brought them into his meditation room to read—maximizing efficiency.
As a Prefect, his monthly salary was one hundred credits, with additional pay for academic papers. This made him far more liberal with using his study space.
Developing new means of earning credits sooner would bring in more stable income—forming a healthy cycle.
Seeing Tom work so diligently, both Andros and Grindelwald were pleased… yet also a little regretful.
The more time Tom spent in the meditation room, the less time they could use it themselves.
Especially Grindelwald—Andros, after all, was dead, so further improvement meant little. Grindelwald, however, couldn't help plotting.
If things kept going this way, Tom might one day surpass even himself at his peak, wielding the Elder Wand. If that day came, Grindelwald had to call Dumbledore over for a rematch.
Not because of any lingering grand ambition—no, it was simply that Grindelwald could never quite let go of losing to Dumbledore.
…
It wasn't until well past ten that Daphne awoke from her deep slumber. After breakfast, she came to find Tom, but upon seeing that he was busy, she obediently left the library and went to see the unicorns instead.
She might be clingy, but she wasn't inconsiderate—when Tom was resting, she could drag him off to play, but when he was focused on serious work, she knew better than to disturb him.
Still… last night's story had been so interesting—it made her itch to hear the next part.
Daphne decided she would go to Tom's room again tonight—not only could she hear more of the story, but it was also so comfortable sleeping there.
Only… tonight, she might be a little late.
After a long day's work, Tom returned to his bedroom, just finishing his wash-up and waiting for Daphne to arrive.
It wasn't long before the door opened. He was about to greet her when, in the dim moonlight, he saw the visitor clearly.
"Astoria?"