Rhys carefully studied Helga's notes and came to a conclusion: Helga's role in helping Cedric awaken his pseudo-domain was like the foam on top of a butterbeer—something that only looked impressive.
The more he thought about it, the more his body temperature began to rise. To think he had worked like a slave in Helga's office for three days and nights straight for this kind of "humorous" document!
"Hel—GA—!" he roared toward the woman sitting in the office chair. Yet Helga didn't respond at all. She just sat there quietly.
Rhys strode forward in two steps and grabbed her by the collar—only to realize she wasn't breathing.
"This is an insult to my intelligence," he sneered coldly, then immediately cast a Bombarda.
The body before him exploded into countless fragments—but no blood spilled from the shattered remains. Instead, a cloud of dust filled the air. Helga, knowing full well that Rhys would explode in anger after reading her notes, had already fled long before this.
From within the swirling dust, a piece of parchment floated out. On it were the words:
[Rhys, don't make too much noise. It wouldn't be good if Dumbledore got curious, would it? You wouldn't want the professors to learn your true identity either, right?
Besides, I truly believe my notes can help your two precious apprentices awaken their domains. Go on, give it a try~]
Rhys narrowed his eyes. "Helga… very good."
With a flick of his wrist, the note turned to ash.
Watching the last of the parchment burn to ash, Rhys felt that if he stayed around this group any longer, he'd probably awaken a domain related to fire or stress—and it wouldn't even be surprising.
Still, he had to admit Helga wasn't wrong. He couldn't cause too much of a scene in her office—but that didn't mean he couldn't cause some destruction.
With a cold sneer, Rhys snapped his fingers. Immediately, large droplets of water began forming on the ceiling of Helga's office. The drops multiplied rapidly until a downpour filled the room.
The rain grew heavier by the second, and soon a layer of water covered the floor. Rhys stood calmly in the center of the office, controlling the weather without the slightest hesitation.
When the water finally rose to waist height, he floated toward the window and left.
As he drifted out, the rain that had touched him peeled away from his clothes and body, returning obediently to the flooded office.
Have fun mopping, Helga Hufflepuff.
Having vented his frustration, Rhys departed. Not long after, Helga returned to her office.
When she saw the water nearly reaching her waist, her face twitched twice before she silently began cleaning up the mess Rhys had left behind.
Fortunately, for a witch of her caliber, handling such a situation was easy—so easy, in fact, that she restored the room faster than it had taken Rhys to flood it.
Meanwhile, Rhys had returned to the Slytherin common room, where Daphne and Astoria were huddled in a corner doing their homework.
"Rhys, you're back?" Daphne looked up, her face lighting up with joy when she saw him enter the common room.
These past few days, Rhys had been leaving before dawn and returning only late at night. Other than attending a few specific classes, he was practically nowhere to be seen during the day.
Naturally, Daphne was curious about what he had been so busy with.
"I've been helping Professor White develop automatons," Rhys replied frankly, not bothering to hide anything. "I suggest you buy one or two of the top models. This batch turned out quite well."
He wasn't trying to advertise for Helga—it was just that he genuinely believed her automaton designs were good enough to be passed down as heirlooms.
Whatever bickering came afterward aside, both he and Helga had poured a great deal of effort into their creation. Even the "service mode," which he had wanted to mock at first, turned out to be surprisingly efficient at handling household chores.
"Really? Then I'll write to Father and have him order a few," Daphne said immediately. She knew Rhys wouldn't lie about something like this, so she made up her mind to have her family purchase several of the new automatons.
"You won't regret it," Rhys nodded, then sank into a soft armchair—three straight days of work had worn him out completely.
As he curled into the comfort of the chair, Rhys began pondering over the notes Helga had given him.
To be fair, she had indeed pointed him toward a new path.
Should I take Daphne and Astoria to try it out?
The thought flashed through Rhys's mind, but he quickly dismissed it.
He didn't agree with Helga's approach at all. To him, what she did was nothing more than forcing a seedling to grow by pulling at it—stunting Cedric's potential in the process.
If Cedric had been left to awaken his domain naturally, he might have developed something entirely different. But thanks to Helga's interference, the boy was now bound to the path of the Earth Domain for life.
Granted, it was still an excellent domain, but it went against Rhys's teaching philosophy. He believed in helping students find their own path, not deciding it for them.
Still, Helga's actions had given him inspiration—he thought of a far more viable approach.
Helga's method relied purely on the student's innate talent, whereas Rhys's method would truly guide the awakening process.
The moment that realization hit him, Rhys sprang up from the armchair, ignoring Daphne's curious questions behind him, and headed straight for his secret chamber.
His idea was simple: though Helga hadn't done much, she had at least guided Cedric personally. So why couldn't he do the same?
He could lead Daphne and the others, letting them witness the birth of a domain with their own eyes. The more they saw, the higher their chances of awakening one themselves.
Of course, this kind of approach was difficult to replicate—after all, how many domain-level wizards in the world would bother with such a thankless, tedious task?
Once inside the Chamber, Rhys immediately unfolded his Domain.
Murky lake water quickly filled the entire room.
After letting his Domain envelop the chamber, Rhys began to slowly compress it, expelling the "impurities" within and making the magic as condensed as possible.
With each round of refinement, the water level in the chamber dropped further and further, until only a thin layer of clear water remained across the floor.
The remaining water was crystal clear, without a single trace of impurity. It rippled with astonishing magical energy—so dense that with just a flicker of intent, it could expand into a vast Domain.
Gazing at the "compressed Domain" before him, Rhys showed a tired but satisfied smile—he had succeeded halfway.
He gathered the water on the floor into a sphere half the height of a person.
Then, reaching into his robe, Rhys took out a piece of amethyst. With a tap of his wand, he reshaped it into a hollow teardrop and cast an Extension Charm inside it.
After that, he sliced off a football-sized portion from the water sphere and sealed it inside the crystal.
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