In the early morning, as sunlight streamed into the inn room, Lyla yawned and slowly got out of bed.
After a quick wash, she changed into the fresh robes she had purchased from Madam Malkin's a few days prior. She sat down at the small table in her room.
A thick stack of newspapers lay scattered across the surface. These were historical editions spanning the past fifty years, delivered alongside her new books on Magic Array Studies.
Mr. Lupin is truly a gentle person! Lyla thought, lowering her head to read through the historical news.
Although wizards were not very sensitive to the passage of time, the wizarding world hadn't remained entirely stagnant. Many things had happened during the fifty years Lyla was unconscious.
Besides the defeat and subsequent imprisonment of Lord Grindelwald, she found several other interesting historical tidbits.
For example, the Quidditch World Cup winner in 1946 was actually the Heidelberg Harriers from Germany. In Lyla's memory, that team had never been a hot favorite to win.
The International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy had not received any modifications. Those Ministry of Magic bureaucrats were as stagnant and boring as ever.
Dumbledore had actually become the Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot. He must have bribed the council with five hundred thousand Galleons! And in his legendary duel with Lord Grindelwald, he surely must have used some insidious, underhanded tricks...
Then, there was Lord Voldemort.
A fellow naming himself "Lord Voldemort" had declared himself the new Dark Lord. He had swept across Britain, attempting to establish his own dark rule.
Not just anyone can call themselves a Dark Lord, okay?!
Lyla couldn't help but curl her lip when she read about Voldemort's ultimate defeat. Look, even the great Lord Grindelwald couldn't defeat Albus Dumbledore, so how could this upstart possibly win?
For some unknown reason, Lyla felt a little happy to see Dumbledore's side emerge victorious over this pretender.
Wait... Thinking about it carefully, Dumbledore was her enemy now. If neither Lord Grindelwald nor this Voldemort could defeat him...
Lyla's smug smile faded, and she sighed heavily.
She was subconsciously growing nervous. She needed to read something light-hearted to ease her mind. So, she picked up a book titled What is a Magic Array, According to Lockhart.
This seemed to be one of the few books vaguely related to Magic Array Studies in all of Flourish and Blotts. At least, that was Mr. Lupin's opinion.
If Lyla were to give her professional assessment... she could only say this book had absolutely no connection to Magic Arrays. The only relevant part was the title on the cover.
Mr. Lockhart seemed to be a famous wizard. Could it be that the term "Magic Array" had taken on another meaning over the past fifty years?
According to Dumbledore, it shouldn't have. But then again, Dumbledore was an old man; it was perfectly normal for his ideas to be out of touch with the times.
Lyla mused while sketching on the parchment beside her. She was reviewing the Magic Array Studies knowledge she had mastered in her youth.
A Magic Array is composed of Ancient Runes and spells. The Ancient Runes form the main body of the matrix, acting as the core, while spells play an auxiliary role to provide structural support.
Currently, Magic Array scholars only knew the true meanings of about ten Ancient Runes. Each had different functions, including energy storage, communication, protection, and teleportation.
There were roughly a hundred more types of Ancient Runes whose meanings remained completely unknown.
Lyla already possessed a thorough understanding of the ten known Ancient Runes. She picked up a quill and sketched a perfect circle on the parchment.
Next, she gently pricked her finger with the quill's sharp nib. Using her own blood, she slowly drew the Ancient Rune for energy storage in the center of the array.
Drawing a functional Magic Array required potent magical materials, and Veela blood happened to be one of the best magical conductors.
Unfortunately, she was only a half-Veela. Its effectiveness as a Magic Array pigment was not optimal. It truly was miserable being a half-blood sometimes.
Lyla couldn't help but think of her miserable days at Durmstrang. If it weren't for her pointed ears...
She twitched those very ears and patted her cheeks sharply. She had to focus! This was the great science of Magic Array Studies!
As Lyla's hand moved faster, the runic matrix on the parchment grew more complex. Finally, with a light, finishing touch of her quill, a perfect energy storage array was complete.
This specific array could continuously draw ambient magic from the air to charge itself. It was the foundational baseline required for all Magic Array tools.
Watching the blood-drawn ink emit a faint blue glow, Lyla offered a satisfied smile.
She really hadn't forgotten a thing. Deciding to strike while the iron was hot, she prepared to draw another one.
Bang, bang, bang!
A sudden, heavy knock at her door startled her so badly she almost fell out of her chair.
"Miss Hamilton," a polite voice called out. It was none other than the gentle Mr. Lupin. "I have something I need to see you about."
Since their chaotic trip to Diagon Alley, Lupin hadn't visited her, save for when he initially dropped off the books.
Now that he had suddenly arrived unannounced, Lyla was subconsciously nervous. He wouldn't have brought Dumbledore with him, would he?
After carefully peeking through the crack in the door to ensure Dumbledore wasn't lurking in the hallway, she pursed her lips.
"Please come in... Mr. Lupin."
As she spoke, she quickly pulled up her hood to conceal her pointed ears and silver hair. She still wasn't used to showing them to anyone.
"I hope I'm not disturbing your rest?" Lupin poked his head in and asked softly. Confirming that Lyla was indeed awake, he nodded and stepped inside.
"No." Lyla forced a welcoming smile.
Mr. Lupin was her first and only friend. How could a friend's visit ever be a disturbance? Even if it were midnight, Lyla would have forced herself to sit up and entertain him.
"That's good." Ignorant of Lyla's intense internal loyalty, Lupin smiled.
He glanced down, noticing the blue-glowing parchment on the table.
"This is..." Lupin started to ask, but realizing what he was stepping into, he quickly clamped his mouth shut.
But Lyla had already heard the question. She excitedly held up the glowing parchment.
"Mr. Lupin, this is the Magic Array I just drew! It's an energy storage array! It can draw ambient—"
"Cough, cough. Wait just a moment, Miss Hamilton!" Lupin quickly interrupted her.
He truly didn't understand Magic Arrays at all. Originally, after buying the book by Lockhart, he had casually flipped through it, wondering if he should learn a bit to keep up with her.
Unfortunately, Lupin found the subject incredibly dry. He quickly interrupted Lyla, lest the eager witch launch into another three-hour lecture.
As he spoke, he quickly brought forward an item he had been hiding behind his back. It was a medium-sized cage, draped in a black cloth.
"What is this...?" Lyla looked at the covered object, momentarily stunned. She slowly lowered the glowing diagram.
"A gift for you," Lupin smiled gently. He reached out and pulled away the black cloth, revealing exactly what was inside.
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