After giving his ignorant roommate a thorough thrashing, Tom felt a heavy weight lift from his chest. His bottled-up frustration—like a cauldron boiling over—finally had an outlet.
With his mood lighter, he ordered the three dazed boys in the dormitory to wash up quickly and crawl into bed. Once the dorm fell into silence, Tom slipped away and stepped into the study space, the one place where he could breathe freely.
---
The Study Space
Andros was waiting for him. The towering shade of the ancient warrior immediately frowned.
"What took you so long?"
Tom let out a sigh, as though life itself conspired to make him late. He explained the whole scuffle in the dorm.
When he finished, Andros's stony face broke into a grin, and laughter shook his broad shoulders.
"It seems reality is far more magical than books describe. Pure-blood pride? Bloodline? Utter nonsense. Strength is the only currency that counts."
He jabbed a finger in Tom's direction.
"You did well. You must be decisive when it's time to strike. Too soft, and it's no lesson; too heavy-handed, and the teachers come knocking. Today, you struck just right."
Tom, however, was less triumphant. His head dipped slightly.
"It's not that simple. This was only the beginning. More trouble will come. Just wait and see."
He sighed again, frustration flickering in his young eyes.
"All I wanted was to study in peace… Why did you make me go to Slytherin?"
---
Why Slytherin?
Andros chuckled darkly, folding his arms over his chest. His scarred face carried the look of someone who had seen too much to be patient with whining.
"Boy, I didn't tell you before because I respected your choice. But after combing through all the information about Hogwarts, I realized one thing: Slytherin is the most suitable house for you."
Tom's brow furrowed.
"Why? Knowledge is the foundation of wizardry. Wouldn't Ravenclaw be better?"
Andros's smirk sharpened into something more dangerous.
"Knowledge is vital, yes. But throughout history—not in my lifetime, nor after my death—has any wizard reached the pinnacle through knowledge alone."
He tapped his temple.
"Do you know what truly makes a wizard?"
Tom answered instantly, his voice clear:
"Magic and will. Combined, and guided by incantation, they change reality."
---
The Third Element
Andros shook his head, eyes glinting with mischief.
"You missed one more: emotion."
Tom blinked.
"Isn't will the same as emotion?"
Every book Tom had devoured treated will and emotion as interchangeable. Not once had he seen them separated.
Andros gave a sly smile, and for the first time in a while, the rarely seen wand appeared in his hand. He lifted it above his head.
"Expecto Patronum!"
A colossal Patronus erupted into existence, its brilliance filling the space with oppressive majesty. The creature's roar merged with Andros's voice, creating a resonance that rattled Tom's bones.
"Powerful magic, unyielding will, and boundless emotion."
The Patronus's glow shimmered as Andros's lecture rolled like thunder:
"Magic power is the root of everything. It is the foundation of your spells. Will determines your success rate—the stronger your determination, the more accurately your magic transforms. And emotion… emotion decides the upper limit of your spell."
He lowered the wand, his gaze sharp as a blade.
"Remember this, Tom. Magic is subjective. The mind is vast, but it must anchor itself to something. That anchor is emotion."
"Talent matters. But those with deep, abundant emotions can often surpass their limits and achieve the impossible."
His words echoed like scripture.
"The petty trouble Slytherins cause you is nothing but a test—a chance to balance your will and emotions. Do not waste it."
---
The Transcendent State
Tom froze. Every word seemed both obvious and incomprehensible at once. His mind understood the surface, yet something deeper—the raw essence—slipped through his grasp.
Then it struck him like lightning. His awareness expanded, and he slipped into something he had never experienced before: the transcendental state.
The world blurred. Time seemed to crawl. For ten minutes he drifted weightless, his mind absorbing Andros's words with unnatural clarity.
When he returned, his eyes snapped back into focus, glittering with a new intensity.
"Expecto Patronum!"
From his wand burst silvery-white mist, coiling, twisting, condensing. Slowly it shaped itself into a human figure—faint and hazy, nothing compared to Andros's towering guardian, but undeniably there.
Tom's Patronus was about his own size, frail in comparison, yet still a true manifestation.
Andros's expression softened with rare astonishment.
Only three days earlier, Tom had managed to condense a physical Patronus. Andros had destroyed it deliberately. He knew the first form fixed the path of the Patronus, and to change it later required monstrous effort. He hadn't wanted Tom to stumble into the same trap.
But now, Tom had bypassed hesitation and summoned a humanoid form on his own.
What was meant as a small lesson about loosening up had turned into an unexpected breakthrough.
---
System Rewards
As the light shimmered around Tom, an ethereal voice chimed in his ears:
[Teacher 'Andros' recognition of host has reached 50%. Drawing reward...]
[Congratulations: Talent obtained – Absolute Justice]
[Absolute Justice: All non-dark magic attack spells are amplified. Amplification increases alongside host's magic growth.]
[First private teacher approval 50% reached. Unlocking function – "Practice What You Want."]
[Practice by Example: Teacher may borrow host's body for up to five minutes to perform magic, increasing teaching efficiency. Duration grows with recognition. Cooldown: 24 hours.]
The moment the system's blessing took hold, Tom's Patronus surged. It doubled in size, swelling to over two meters tall, shimmering with newfound vitality.
Andros, unaware of the system's role, muttered in awe.
"This boy… his talent is far stronger than I thought. I misjudged him."
---
After the Breakthrough
Tom cut off the flow of magic, letting the Patronus dissolve into mist. Yet the aftertaste of transcendence clung to him—threads of inspiration dancing at the edge of thought. He seized them immediately.
Questions tumbled out of him—questions so intricate that even elite Aurors would scratch their heads. Most Aurors were merely technicians: they mastered spells but rarely pondered the underlying theory.
Andros, however, thrived on such puzzles. In his era, magic was still raw and unrefined. To master it, one had to carve out understanding alone. Beneath his blood-thirsty warrior's exterior, he was an academic master.
For over an hour, the two sparred—not with wands, but with minds.
By the end, Andros had even taught Tom two new spells. Not modern classroom incantations, but relics of the past—ancient magics, simple yet practical.
One spell detected poison in food.
The other acted as a trap trigger, summoning a protective shield if an enemy struck by surprise.
Tom memorized them carefully before finally exiting the study space.
---
Sleepless Night
The dormitory was dark. His three roommates snored in oblivion. But Tom lay awake, staring at the ceiling.
His heart still raced from the transcendence. Ten minutes had been enough to equal weeks of training. If he could master that state… if he could enter it at will… the possibilities were terrifying.
He glanced at his system panel. Over 300 credits blinked back at him.
He sighed heavily.
"When will I ever become rich?"
The ceiling gave no answer.
---
🔑 Highlighted Insights from This Chapter:
Magic's three pillars: power, will, and emotion.
Emotion sets the upper limit of a spell's strength.
Tom enters his first transcendental state, accelerating growth.
Summons his first humanoid Patronus.
System reward unlocks: Absolute Justice & Practice by Example.
Andros is not just a warrior, but also a true scholar of magic.
Tom's restlessness shows his hunger for power and recognition.
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