System answered in reply to that. Seemingly agreeing with his request for discount. The best system.
[Acknowledged. As this is the Host's first 'Magic Loan,' the minimum interest rate will be applied.]
[Mission parameters are being modified...]Lucien was checking out his options
[New Loan Mission: Achieve Perfect Mastery of Transfiguration.]
Seeing the revised mission, Lucien breathed a sigh of relief. This, at least, seemed within the realm of possibility.
"System, what is the standard for 'perfect mastery'?" he asked.
[To learn and master all existing knowledge of Transfiguration, to apply it with flawless skill, and to develop entirely new applications for the discipline.]
Hearing the system's explanation, Lucien fell into deep contemplation. Mastering all relevant knowledge and using it skillfully was one thing. But the key was the final requirement: to develop new directions. He was being asked to innovate.
Transfiguration was a cornerstone of magic. To achieve true, perfect mastery would undoubtedly require an immense amount of time and effort. He had only one year. Lucien's eyes flickered with analytical light. He believed the mission, while daunting, was not impossible. The reason for his confidence was the core of his reward: Loki's strongest magical talent was Transfiguration (SSS).
The system's talent levels for magic ranged from E, D, C, B, A, S, SS, to the god-like SSS. An S-rank signified a genius who could pioneer in their field and leave a significant mark on history. So, what did SSS-rank mean? In the system's evaluation, it was a talent that belonged in the realm of a deity. Once Lucien prepaid the reward and received this talent, his ability to learn Transfiguration would be unmatched.
[Would you like to accept the 'Loki's Faceless' loan?]
"Accept."
Lucien didn't hesitate. Even if he failed the loan mission, the only consequence was the reclamation of the reward. He was about to embark on a journey to learn magic anyway; possessing Loki's phenomenal talent would be an invaluable asset.
A mask, half-real and half-illusory, materialized in the air before him. It was a shifting thing of black and green, its eye sockets and mouth constantly migrating across its surface. The very shape of the mask was in flux, one moment fitting a human face, the next contorting into the visage of a wild animal. A description flashed in his mind: Constant form is the limitation of mortals; for Loki, change is truth.
As Lucien looked up, the mask surged forward and covered his handsome face. It softened into a liquid-like substance, a pool of black and green that flowed over his nose and mouth, spreading toward his hairline until it had completely enveloped his head. Yet, Lucien felt no sense of suffocation. Instead, invisible waves of power began to emanate from his body, reverberating throughout the entire bedroom.
After a few moments of profound silence, the room began to answer the call of this new magic. The air grew thick and heavy. The wooden bed frame, the tables, and the chairs began to tremble not with vibration, but with transformation. Patches of wood warped into cold, hard iron or rough, gray stone. The surfaces of inanimate objects sprouted biological features, a fine layer of feathers on a lampshade, a patch of gleaming scales on a leather-bound book.
In the living room downstairs, Penelope was enjoying her exquisite afternoon tea, occasionally flipping through the pages of a novel. "I've really been influenced by that boy," she mused. "I don't feel right if I don't read something every day."
A tabby cat with distinctive markings around its eyes walked gracefully toward her. Penelope assumed a stray had snuck into the house and was about to call a servant to escort it out. But then she watched, stunned, as the cat's form flickered and stretched. In the space of a heartbeat, the animal had transformed into a stern-looking woman wearing dark green robes and square-rimmed spectacles.
"Hello," the woman said, her voice crisp and authoritative. "I am Minerva McGonagall, a Professor at Hogwarts. Where is Mr. Grafton?"
Penelope's red lips parted slightly, her hand, holding a delicate pastry, frozen in mid-air. She had just seen a cat turn into a person. When she heard the word "Hogwarts," however, her training as the head of the Grafton household took over. She quickly composed her expression.
"Hello, Ms. McGonagall. I am Penelope Grafton, Lucien's aunt. The boy is upstairs..."
Before Penelope could finish, Professor McGonagall's eyes narrowed. She could feel it—a distinct and powerful magical anomaly from the floor above. "Excuse me," she interrupted, and without another word, she swept past Penelope and walked directly up the stairs. Alarmed by her hurried actions, Penelope rose and followed.
Without needing any guidance, Professor McGonagall arrived at the source of the disturbance: Lucien's room. The original wooden door was now a chaotic collage of textures. Large patches of iron-black metal covered its surface, while the remaining parts had taken on the appearance of gray-white rock and yellow sand. She twisted the doorknob, but the door wouldn't budge.
"A Transfiguration spell?" McGonagall murmured, drawing her wand and pointing it at the door. "Reversion."
The metallic and rocky textures melted away, revealing the plain wooden door beneath. She pushed it open, and the scene inside met the eyes of both Professor McGonagall and Penelope. The latter gasped, her face a mask of unconcealed shock.
The once neat and elegant room was in total chaos. The soft quilt on the bed was now a pile of green grass and wildflowers. The legs of tables and chairs had grown fur and were now scampering playfully around the room. Books flapped their covers like wings, gliding through the air. In the corners of the room coiled creatures that were part wolf and part snake, their forms unstable and shifting between species, their original forms impossible to discern.
Sensing the door open, every living and half-living thing in the room turned its attention to the two women. Professor McGonagall immediately waved her wand, and the Reversion Charm shot out, accurately striking each transformed object. Whether inanimate, living, or one of the strange chimeras, everything reverted to its original form upon being hit by the spell. Furniture and books clattered to the floor, as if the preceding madness had been merely an illusion.
In the center of the room, Lucien floated, his eyes tightly closed. The black-green mask on his face was gone. Seeing the boy was safe, Professor McGonagall breathed a quiet sigh of relief. Normally, a young wizard who received their Hogwarts letter would have already experienced a bout of accidental magic—a brief, uncontrolled magical outburst. This initial awakening could often hint at their innate magical preferences and talents. But what she had just witnessed from Lucien was on an entirely different scale.
Professor McGonagall couldn't understand why his magical outburst was so violent, but one thing was absolutely certain: the boy's talent in Transfiguration was astronomical. Having taught at Hogwarts for decades, and as a master in the field herself, she keenly sensed how extraordinary Lucien was. In an unconscious state, he had managed to perform object-to-object transfiguration, object-to-animal transfiguration, and even cross-species switching. Many students at Hogwarts couldn't master these skills even after four or five years of systematic study.
Her gaze toward Lucien brightened, as if she were beholding an unpolished gem that was already radiating a brilliant luster. Such talent...
Under the watchful eyes of Professor McGonagall and Penelope, Lucien slowly drifted to the floor. His dark golden hair was slightly disheveled. He opened his eyes, and his once dark black pupils now held a distinct hint of green, giving them an overall dark, emerald hue.
Lucien looked toward the doorway. He saw the stern-looking witch gazing at him with eyes now full of kindness and profound expectation.
"Hello, Lucien."