Versatile Flesh Puppet?
Leo quickly scanned through the loan information.
[Loan: Versatile Flesh Puppet (Weekly Loan)]
[Repayment Deadline: 7 days]
[Loan Content: Versatile Flesh Puppet, can transform into any non-magical creature, is a living being with consciousness, consciousness strength can be adjusted, only requires periodic nutrition to survive]
[Loan Task: Defeat a troll head-on]
Transform into creatures? Does consciousness have the ability to be adjusted?
This could be useful for Transfiguration practice: animate-to-inanimate and animate-to-animate. That was Leonardo's first thought about the Versatile Flesh Puppet.
When Transfiguration involved living things, the wizard needed to suppress the original creature's consciousness. Plants had almost no consciousness, animals' consciousness was relatively active, humans' was stronger, and wizards who could use magic to resist were the most difficult.
As a pure practice tool, judging from the description, it was perfect. Moreover, it only needed periodic nutrition to survive and could transform into any non-magical creature. Very practical.
He'd already repaid the Chimaera Manual loan earlier. The animate-to-inanimate section was completely mastered. With the Chimaera Manual's recorded creature information, combined with the Versatile Flesh Puppet for practice, animate-to-inanimate and animate-to-animate transformations could probably be learned very quickly.
Then he could attempt an Animagus transformation.
The loan task was to defeat a troll head-on? The loan triggered at precisely the moment Quirrell announced the troll invasion. What a coincidence.
Defeating a troll wasn't difficult anyway. And this reward was quite good—it would save him time searching for different creatures to practice Transfiguration.
Leonardo communicated with the system, borrowing the Versatile Flesh Puppet loan.
[Ding, loan application successful, item has been placed in system space, can be retrieved at any time]
[Evaluation: This is a very proper puppet, don't think dirty thoughts (・ε・｀)]
[PS: For the host's healthy development, certain transformations of the Versatile Flesh Puppet have been prohibited, unlockable upon turning 18]
Seeing the system's description, Leo's face darkened. He hadn't even thought of that. The system seemed a bit too forward-thinking.
"Quiet!"
Dumbledore amplified his voice with his wand, making it echo throughout the Great Hall. "Prefects, immediately lead your house students back to the dormitories!"
With this century's greatest wizard as their pillar, the students' panic was quickly settled. Prefects organized students for orderly evacuation. First-year students from all four houses were led away first.
Leonardo deliberately stayed at the side of the queue, leaving the Great Hall. When passing through a relatively dark corridor, Leo slipped completely into the shadows and flicked his wand from his sleeve. A silently cast Disillusionment Charm covered him.
Then Leonardo simply turned and walked into a side corridor. 'Little troll, where are you? For the loan, please bear with me for a bit.'
This move was too fast and natural, plus the panic from the troll invasion, so the young wizards around Leo didn't notice his departure. They just thought he'd fallen behind in the queue.
But someone was still watching him.
"Ron, Leo just disappeared."
Harry elbowed Ron, speaking rapidly in a low voice.
"Disappeared? Did you see wrong?"
Ron quickly scanned the Ravenclaw queue. Since Ravenclaw had the fewest people, he quickly spotted everyone. No Leo!
"Where'd he go! There's a troll in the castle right now! We have to find him!"
Harry and Ron quickly reached a consensus. They couldn't leave their friend exposed to danger. The two slowly fell to the back of the queue, finding an opportunity to break away from the group.
However, after just a few steps, an urgent voice stopped them. "You're going the wrong way, not that direction!"
Harry and Ron instinctively flinched, turning to look—it was a bushy-haired young witch.
"Hermione? What are you doing here?"
"Never mind that. Leo disappeared at the last side corridor. Follow me!"
Under Hermione's lead, the three kids weaved through the corridors. After just a few seconds, another young wizard with mushroom slices on his head also arrived.
"So, Grafton, what rule-breaking are you up to? Looks like I don't need to wait until tomorrow. Tonight, I can have you kicked out of Hogwarts."
Malfoy wiped his greasy hair, flinging off cream soup and mushroom slices, muttering resentfully. When he noticed Leo disappearing, he followed on impulse. But thinking carefully, Malfoy felt he might catch some dirt, saving the trouble of dueling.
Right after Malfoy left, another figure stealthily followed behind.
Leonardo walked through the castle. Searching toward the girls' bathroom should work. But if there were changes and he didn't encounter the troll today, he could go to the Forbidden Forest...
Suddenly, an extremely foul odor invaded Leo's nostrils. The smell was like stinky socks mixed with public toilets, the kind never cleaned.
Leonardo almost vomited. Fortunately, he was quick enough to cast an air-filtering charm, blocking the stench. This smell was definitely the troll's. Not far away.
"Little loan, where are you? I'm coming."
A minute or two later, the three kids ran up, panting.
"Ugh!"
Retching sounds arose simultaneously.
"It's a troll. Nearby. Be careful."
Hermione immediately recognized the troll's scent described in books. Truly nauseating.
"Let's hurry!"
Harry covered his nose, calling Ron and Hermione to continue searching. After just turning a few corners, the three arrived at a long corridor.
Low muttering came from the other end. The three kids saw the massive creature, their breathing stopping.
The monster was about twelve feet tall, with dull gray granite-like skin. Its legs were thick and short, two big feet flat and rough. Compared to its huge body, its head was pitifully small. The smell from its body was so strong it broke through their fingers and invaded their nostrils, making them dizzy with nausea.
The monster dragged a thick wooden club.
"A troll!"
Compared to the troll's size, the youth near this end of the corridor appeared much smaller.
"Leo!"
Harry and the others immediately recognized him. The troll's size made the three children tremble, and they suddenly dared not advance.
Tap!
Someone first stepped forward. It was Ron. He drew his wand. He wouldn't stand by and watch his friend get hurt. With Ron's movement, Harry and Hermione weren't slow either, also raising wands and running toward Leo.
True Gryffindors never lacked courage!
"We should run!"
Hearing this, Leo turned his head, seeing Ron running to his side while shaking with fear. Though saying he should run, Ron still held his wand up, aiming at the slowly approaching troll.
Leonardo's peripheral vision caught Harry and Hermione behind, and two somewhat familiar figures sneaking behind stone pillars, one after another.
Tonight was quite lively. Really quite a crowd.
Leonardo placed his hand on Ron's trembling shoulder, his tone calm and reassuring. "It's fine. Perfect timing to give you a preview lesson for the future."
Raising his other hand, the sleeve gently slid down, revealing that silver-black wand.
"The lesson topic is: How wizards fight."