The sea stretched endlessly in every direction, a breathing expanse of deep blue and shifting silver beneath the pale morning sky.
Thaddues stood alone on the deck as the cold sea wind tugged at his navy-blue robes. Each gust stirred the enchanted fabric, which yielded without resistance before settling back into place.
Beneath his boots, the ship creaked.
It was still the same wooden merchant vessel—but only in appearance.
Bound to his will, it had been transformed by layers of ancient runes and practical charms until it seemed almost alive, breathing in quiet rhythm with the magic sustaining it.
A month ago, something like this would have felt impossible.
Now, it simply was.
The vessel no longer relied on simple utility spells. Ancient rune arrays intertwined with practical enchantments spread through every beam, plank, and sail, each layer reinforcing the next. What once required renewal every five days now endured for nearly two weeks before another reinforcement was needed.
But instead of continuing west along its intended course, the ship rested motionless beneath the morning sky.
He had already completed the latest reinforcement. The stillness was intentional.
Thaddues lifted a weathered wooden plank. There was nothing remarkable about the wood itself. Its true value lay in the runes carved into its surface.
A pulse of magic flowed into the plank.
He tossed it overboard.
For a heartbeat, nothing happened.
The sea swallowed it without a ripple.
Then the water answered.
A faint distortion spread across the surface before rapidly expanding outward. Fish across a wide radius wheeled in perfect synchrony, abandoning their natural paths as though drawn toward an invisible center.
The sea erupted.
Hundreds of fish burst from the water, driven not by instinct but by compulsion. Silver bodies twisted through the air as they surged toward the waiting net Thaddeus had prepared.
The ropes snapped taut.
Wooden pulleys groaned under the sudden strain, protesting a catch no ordinary fishing haul could produce.
The spectacle lasted only seconds.
Thaddues raised his free hand.
The strain vanished.
The net drifted upward as though weight had ceased to exist, thousands of kilograms of water and fish suspended effortlessly by a Levitation Charm. Droplets streamed from the mesh, catching the morning light like falling crystals.
He studied the result in silence.
"The attraction spell functions within expected parameters."
Good enough.
A slight flick of his fingers.
The net unraveled in midair.
Fish poured downward in a controlled cascade, guided by his Levitation Charm. They landed neatly inside five waiting barrels arranged across the deck.
Not one missed.
Within moments, the barrels were full. The frantic splashing gradually subsided as the fish settled into confinement. The scent of saltwater and fresh catch drifted through the air.
Thaddues gave a small nod.
"It should last for a while."
As the words left his mouth, the ship rumbled softly before resuming its westward voyage toward the wizarding world.
Another flick of his hand.
The barrels sealed themselves with muted wooden thuds, their lids locking through minor enchantments. They lifted into the air and settled behind him, following like silent attendants.
Without another glance, Thaddues descended below deck.
The moment he stepped inside, space unfolded around him.
The narrow passage beyond the doorway gave way to a vast chamber far larger than the ship's exterior should have allowed.
Extension Charms, reinforced by intricate rune arrays, held the impossible space together.
The galley had become something else entirely.
Polished stone countertops lined the walls. Cabinets held neatly arranged cookware, everything organized with meticulous precision. At the far end stood a large iron stove, its fire sustained by enchantment rather than fuel.
Overhead, a chandelier floated in place, its candles burning with unwavering light despite the ship's gentle sway.
At the center of the room stood a long dining table.
Too long.
Too formal.
Built for many, though it had never served more than one.
The barrels drifted silently behind him.
Without sparing them a glance, Thaddues crossed the room and stopped before a thick wooden door.
The moment he opened it, a wave of frigid air spilled outward.
Beyond lay a preservation chamber where decay had simply ceased.
Frost coated the doorway. The air inside hung perfectly still, heavy with suspended time. Ancient runes glowed faintly along the walls, interwoven with freezing charms and structural enchantments that kept the chamber stable.
In his previous life, living without refrigeration had taught him how quickly food became precious. Once he had the means, creating one had been among his first priorities.
With a small gesture, he guided the barrels inside.
They floated into place beside neatly stored provisions—meat, vegetables, preserved fruit, and other supplies. The cold embraced them at once, halting the slow march of decay.
Satisfied, he closed the door.
Warmth returned to the galley like a quiet breath.
He exhaled softly and turned away.
Beside the preservation chamber stood another wooden door.
At first glance, it appeared completely ordinary.
It wasn't.
The moment he opened it, space unfolded once more.
Beyond the doorway stretched an immense field enclosed within a vast wooden chamber, impossibly larger than the galley itself. Neat rows of wheat swayed gently in the breeze, while vegetables and fruit trees grew in orderly patterns, each planted with deliberate precision.
High overhead floated dozens of arc lamps.
They radiated artificial sunlight—not an illusion, nor a simple glow, but a sustained enchantment carefully tuned to mimic the warmth and brilliance of the sun. They also illuminated the entire space without flicker or shadow.
Thaddues stepped inside.
The air changed immediately.
Warm.
Humid.
Rich with the scent of damp earth and growing crops.
A gentle breeze drifted through the chamber, maintained by low-level atmospheric charms.
This was his most ambitious creation.
Not because of its size, but because every part depended on multiple branches of magic working in perfect harmony.
Charms sustained the environment. Transfiguration transformed seawater into fertile soil. Beneath it all, Ancient Runes formed the framework that bound every enchantment into a stable whole.
Without that framework, the entire space would have collapsed under its own complexity.
Two Master Cards from the system had made it possible.
He had used them on Transfiguration and Ancient Runes, raising both to the same level as his mastery of Charms. He was no longer merely a Master of Charms, but a master of all three disciplines.
The system had not simply granted him knowledge.
It had forced his body to adapt to it.
The first time he used a Master Card, the torrent of magic had nearly overwhelmed him. Only after surviving the process twice had his magical capacity expanded from medium to high, something he later confirmed through his status window.
He brushed his fingertips across the wheat as he walked.
Everything was working exactly as intended.
The soil beneath his feet had once been seawater. By any ordinary standard, such a transformation should have been impossible.
But here it stood.
There was, however, one unavoidable limitation.
The entire space was anchored to him.
The rune framework gave it form, but his magic kept it alive. Every enchantment ultimately drew upon him to remain stable.
Without him, the farm would slowly unravel, returning to little more than wood, seawater, and empty space.
Fortunately, maintaining it required only a fraction of the magic needed to sustain the ship. Compared to the countless enchantments woven throughout the vessel, the burden was surprisingly light.
Even so, every spell carried a cost.
There was another benefit as well.
For the first time since arriving in this world, he no longer had to ration the ship's dwindling stores or wonder whether every meal might be his last before reaching land. Nor did he need to worry about food left behind by strangers before he claimed the vessel.
Everything growing here had been cultivated by his own hands.
That peace of mind alone made the effort worthwhile.
He harvested a handful of herbs and several fresh vegetables, already planning a simple salad for dinner.
After a while, he left the chamber and closed the door behind him.
The warmth of the galley welcomed him once again.
His gaze drifted to the third wooden door nearby, but he made no move to open it.
Beyond it lay another expanded space—one that housed the livestock he had raised aboard the ship.
Since dinner would be salad, the chickens earned another day's to live.
Thaddues crossed the galley and set the freshly harvested vegetables on the counter for later. It was still too early for dinner. He intended to spend the rest of the afternoon practicing magic.
On his way out, he passed a series of shelves built into the walls of the dining hall.
Rows of crystal vials rested upon them, each arranged with meticulous precision. Their contents shimmered faintly beneath the chandelier's warm light.
Healing.
Restoration.
Protection.
Among them sat three ornate wooden boxes.
Inside each rested a dozen slender vials filled with softly glowing golden liquid.
Felix Felicis.
The famed Liquid Luck.
Few witches or wizards would ever see a single vial in their lifetime. It was notoriously difficult to brew, dangerously unstable when misused, and so rare that many regarded it as little more than legend.
Yet he possessed three full sets.
Another quiet reminder of the system's generosity.
Thaddues paused and lifted one of the boxes, turning a vial between his fingers. The golden liquid shimmered gently within the glass.
Luck, captured in a bottle.
A contradiction made tangible.
"I wonder when I'll actually need this."
The thought lingered for a moment before he returned the vial to its place and closed the box.
The surrounding shelves held more than potions.
Enchanted artifacts occupied one section. Another contained spare wands crafted by Ollivander, along with spellbooks he had already studied from cover to cover.
Most of his larger rewards, however, weren't kept here.
His Nimbus 2000, chests of Galleons, and countless other valuables—including everything worth salvaging from the merchant ship when he first arrived in this world—remained safely stored inside his enchanted pouch.
He carried it everywhere.
Even while he slept.
It was a habit born from caution—and the quiet fear that, if he ever let it out of his sight, everything he had built could disappear overnight.
Thaddues returned to the upper deck and stopped at its center. Wind rushed toward him, tugging at his robes until they billowed behind him in a quiet, almost theatrical sweep.
He wasted no time.
With a single thought, magic surged outward.
The space around him rippled.
Then it expanded.
To anyone watching from afar, nothing would have appeared unusual. He still stood upon the merchant ship's deck.
Within his own perception, however, the world had changed.
The deck stretched outward, its boundaries pushed far beyond their natural limits until the training area was nearly three times its original size.
"Two hours."
That was how long he could sustain the expanded space through Charms alone, without relying on rune arrays or permanent enchantments. It was a temporary domain shaped entirely through skill and control.
Even so, he suspected he could push it further if necessary.
For now, two hours was more than enough.
He raised a hand.
Three wooden barrels scattered across the deck shot into the air.
Before they landed, they twisted and reshaped themselves, transforming into three humanoid dummies clad in black robes, each holding a wand.
The sea answered with a strong gust.
Salt-laden wind swept across the expanded deck, snapping at their robes.
Then three flat, emotionless voices spoke in perfect unison.
"Expelliarmus."
Three crimson flashes streaked toward him.
Thaddues remained perfectly still.
Only when the spells were a heartbeat away did a Protego snap into existence before him, intercepting all three.
Almost simultaneously, he answered with his own Disarming Charm.
The dummies reacted at once.
Three shimmering shields appeared in perfect synchronization, effortlessly blocking the incoming spell.
A faint smile tugged at the corner of Thaddues' lips.
The combination of Charms and Transfiguration had worked exactly as intended.
Even alone in the middle of the sea, he could spar against capable opponents whenever he wished.
Though, in hindsight, it was mildly amusing that the idea had taken him two weeks to develop.
"Bombarda."
The dummies moved first.
Three explosive curses roared across the expanded deck, distorting the air as they raced toward him.
Thaddues reacted instantly.
His left hand rose.
Frost spread through the air, condensing into a thick wall of ice just as the explosions struck.
A deafening blast echoed across the sea.
Cracks raced through the frozen barrier.
Before it could collapse, his fingers curled inward like a claw.
The ice didn't shatter.
It unraveled.
Thousands of razor-sharp icicles burst forward under his command, converging upon the dummies in a relentless storm.
At the same time, his other hand swept toward the sea.
A Water-Making Charm answered his call.
The ocean surged upward.
A towering torrent of seawater erupted beside the ship before crashing across the expanded deck like a charging beast.
The icicles struck first.
Though they failed to break the dummies, they disrupted their formation, forcing split-second adjustments and breaking their perfect synchronization.
It was enough.
The torrent arrived an instant later.
Three Protego shields rose together.
Too late.
The rushing water smashed through them in a single overwhelming surge.
Before the dummies could recover, frost raced across the torrent.
The water froze solid.
All three constructs stood imprisoned within thick ice, frozen mid-motion.
The duel had lasted less than two minutes.
"Not bad."
A flick of his fingers.
The ice melted away, dissolving into water that scattered harmlessly across the deck before vanishing beneath a drying charm. The frozen constructs reverted to ordinary wooden barrels and settled neatly back into place.
Moments later, the expanded space collapsed, restoring the deck to its original dimensions.
Satisfied with the afternoon's practice, Thaddues made his way to the railing and rested a hand against the weathered wood.
The ship sailed steadily westward, cutting through the endless sea.
As the days passed and his mastery deepened, comparisons became inevitable.
With mastery over three branches of magic, could he now stand alongside Albus Dumbledore?
The thought lingered only briefly.
He doubted it.
Knowledge and control were one thing.
Real combat against another wizard was another entirely.
Besides, this was an older age than the one he remembered. History rarely recorded every remarkable wizard. There might have been those whose names had simply been forgotten—men and women who rivaled or even surpassed Dumbledore in their own time.
"Time will tell."
His gaze remained fixed on the distant horizon.
He had intended to enjoy the silen
Instead, something caught his attention.
Dark clouds gathered at the edge of the sea, thick and heavy, slowly swallowing the light as they rolled across the horizon. Beneath them, a blanket of fog crept over the water, spreading in every direction despite the absence of wind.
"A storm?"
The thought came naturally.
Storms at sea were nothing unusual. Since arriving in this world, he had already weathered three of them. The last had been little more than an inconvenience. Protected by layers of runes and defensive charms, the ship had endured without the slightest damage.
This should have been no different.
But the closer the vessel drew, the more something felt... wrong.
By now, he should have felt the wind strengthening.
The waves should have begun to rise beneath the approaching storm.
Instead, the sea remained unnaturally calm.
Only the clouds moved.
Thaddues narrowed his eyes.
"This... isn't natural."
The words had barely left his lips when the silence around the ship seemed to deepen.
Even the sea felt as though it were holding its breath.
TBC
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