Chapter 195: A Realization
"He's really good at pretending!"
If not for Ryan's first remark, Fleur would have thought the person speaking was either a lunatic or a saint.
The former possibility was about ninety percent.
But given the preamble, she figured Ryan was just teasing.
Ryan felt helpless. In this day and age, no one believed the truth. Both statements—liking admiration and wanting peace—were true, and they complemented each other.
"As the History of Magic teaching assistant for the Magi-Metal Academy, Fleur, you should attend Vice-Headmaster Quirrell's inauguration speech."
"What about you?"
"I don't hold any position at the Magi-Metal Academy. Tomorrow morning, however, I have an open lecture on Alchemy at Beauxbatons. I need to go back and organize my things."
"Alright then, mon cher Professor. See you tomorrow."
Fleur left, heading for the first floor.
Ryan had no reaction to the term of endearment. He figured it was just the romance of the City of Romance; Fleur often called him "my dear."
And not just Fleur—many students and professors called him that, including quite a few male students...
If he didn't know he was in France, he might have thought he'd ended up somewhere else entirely.
He could only say that the French were a bit too passionate and fiery for his Eastern-core, English-gentleman sensibilities.
He returned to his professor's quarters at Beauxbatons, sat on the sofa by the balcony, and quietly looked out the French windows.
His reflection in the glass showed a contemplative expression. He was thinking about Squibs and Muggles.
Squibs, possessing a magical core, could channel magic once a highly conductive metal—Magi-Alloy—was inscribed with the appropriate magical circuits and aided by Mana Beads.
This was the basis of his success. If past master alchemists had access to a material like Magi-Alloy, they too could have pioneered entirely new applications.
"If alchemy can use the properties of magical creatures to refine mana sources... can I use Magi-Alloy to create large-scale mana storage devices?"
"If so, by constructing a vast network of mana storage devices and linking them magically to future wizards' casting tools, a wizard's casting ability would far exceed their own limits. As long as they have the authority, they could draw upon thousands of times the stored mana to cast spells. At the same time, this would give ordinary people a chance..."
A mana storage device was Ryan's concept. Unlike alchemically refined mana sources, it couldn't automatically absorb ambient magic to recharge.
It would be like a massive battery for magic, capable of holding far more power than a portable mana source.
Think of it as the difference between a massive industrial battery array and a small, portable, self-charging battery.
Logically, the latter should be more technologically advanced. But magic defies logic. Ryan had simply stood on the shoulders of giants, using their records to achieve the portable version.
For the large-scale storage, however, he had no references. This made things difficult.
His current objects of study were the castles of Hogwarts and Beauxbatons.
Magical castles all possessed some degree of magic, especially those where large numbers of wizards gathered, like schools.
These structures could be seen as crude prototypes of mana storage devices, offering him some inspiration.
Calling them "crude" was purely because Ryan didn't know where to start.
Take Hogwarts Castle, for example. The surging magic within it was millions of times more powerful than any individual wizard.
Ryan could assert that even if he could build a simulated storage device, he wouldn't be able to figure out how to store such vast power within a hundred years.
Because school castles were built on the principle of "brute force solves everything" and lacked universal applicability for reference. For instance, the four founders built Hogwarts.
What level were the four founders?
They were four Legends. Their names made that era of magical history shine so brightly! Because of them, the era of magical academies began.
Since then, young wizards no longer had to worry about magical outbursts or having nowhere to learn. The advanced academy system replaced the traditional master-apprentice model, allowing magical culture to take root, sprout, and spark intense innovation.
This created the prosperity of the magical world.
What level was Ryan now?
Compared to the four founders, he was a nobody.
Ask him to build a castle like Hogwarts? Could he do it?
No.
What he needed to do now was simple: extract the key spells the predecessors used to build the castles and find a way to apply them to his mana storage device.
"This inspiration came from when Doro and I used the Hogwarts authority to draw upon magic far beyond expectation. So, Dumbledore at Hogwarts is invincible... By the way, in the original timeline, didn't Headmaster Dumbledore die at the school?"
Ryan frowned. With Hogwarts and the Elder Wand, to put it simply, it would take at least four or five wizards of the same level working together just to wrestle with Dumbledore.
In the original timeline, there was only one big boss, Voldemort. No one else.
"Could it be that the final step of the 'Savior Training Plan' is the Headmaster quitting?"
Recalling Dumbledore's behavior, Ryan felt this idea was very... Dumbledore.
This "very Dumbledore" thinking wasn't just in the Savior Training Plan.
Ryan suddenly realized something else. Maybe the curse couldn't be completely rooted out, but Dumbledore definitely had the means and authority to neutralize the jinx Voldemort left on the DADA position within a few years.
But Dumbledore pretended to be senile, letting Ryan grow wild, until this year when he successfully became a Grand Sorcerer. Ryan carefully recalled the past year.
Ever since Dumbledore changed his attitude, he had been responsive to every request, giving Ryan whatever he wanted, letting him learn whatever he wanted. He even explained in detail what abilities a wizard should focus on at different stages, systematically analyzing magic on both spiritual and material levels.
This generosity was enough to make Voldemort eat a ton of lemons in jealousy.
It was definitely more biased than giving Gryffindor extra house points.
Of course, it could also be because Ravenclaws, adhering to the principle of "not letting excess house points pollute the hourglass," broke the rules more often the more points Dumbledore gave...
But overall, it looked exactly like Dumbledore planning to make the next banner grow quickly by throwing him into a cursed position. He even suspected that even if Quirrell was fine, Dumbledore would find a reason to fire him, or make Quirrell co-teach DADA with him—one taking years 1-3, the other 4-6.
What a scheming old fox!
I can't outplay him, I can't outplay him. Ryan felt from the bottom of his heart that if he hadn't chosen to be honest, putting all his intentions on the table—storming into the office to say he wanted to be Headmaster and change the world—and instead tried to play mind games with Dumbledore from the start... the result would have been him being sold by Dumbledore, counting the money for Dumbledore, and then thanking Dumbledore.
"So if I'm guessing right... next year, the DADA position will definitely recruit someone new. I estimate he'll assign me an Alchemy or Muggle Studies class, give me a nominal title, and legitimately grant me some permanent authority over Hogwarts..."
"So, Dumbledore must think I can't figure it out this year! Impossible! Even if the first school year is almost over, even if all my current ideas have failed verification, I will figure it out in my first year!"
Ryan took out his Communicator. "Professor! Help me!"
~~~
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