[Note: Read up to Chapter - 143 on P patron at: p-atreon.com/Knockturn_Alley]
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"Aris, is this alright?"
Harry and Ronald looked at the boy with hopeful eyes, tinged with a bit of nervousness.
They'd all witnessed the power of elemental magic firsthand.
What they were learning now wasn't bad, but honestly, which young wizard wouldn't want to pick up cooler, more powerful skills?
Especially for fresh-faced kids eager to stand out at school — looking sharp is half the battle!
Under their expectant gazes, Aris gave a small nod.
"You can learn it if you're up for it, but you've got to be mentally prepared. Elemental magic isn't as simple as it seems. It'll take a lot of graft to get anywhere, and you can't just ditch your current studies!"
"What I can promise is that once you master elemental magic, your potential will skyrocket. It'll boost the spells and knowledge you're already learning, and help you level up your strength much faster!"
Truth be told, that last bit was exactly what Harry and Ronald wanted to hear.
Seeing how powerful Hermione and Aris had become, they both dreamed of reaching those heights themselves.
They nodded eagerly, eyes sparkling with determination.
"Aris, don't worry—we'll graft hard!" The two immediately stretched out their hands and swore the oath.
"Good on you!" Aris nodded, clearly pleased with their attitude.
At least, they seemed properly motivated for now.
"Moss!" Aris whispered softly.
The air before him shimmered, and the magical AI computer, Moss, projected into view.
"Help me carve a magic circle to test elemental talent."
As Aris's most capable assistant, Moss's magical core contained nearly all of Aris's research, including Merlin's ancient magic circles. The test circle wasn't complex, so Moss could easily handle it alone.
At Aris's command, Moss—now in the form of a fairy—nodded promptly.
"As you wish, Master!"
Before Harry and Ronald's astonished eyes, Moss flickered and reappeared about ten metres away.
Above a clearing, glowing light radiated from Moss.
A fiery red magical energy cascaded down, tracing intricate lines on the ground.
In less than a minute, the prototype of the test magic circle was complete.
"What's that creature?" Harry blinked, stunned, staring at the magical brain known as Moss.
"I swear, I've never seen anything like that creature anywhere!" Ronald shook his head flatly.
"That's Aris's assistant, Moss—an fairy, a proper magical fairy!" Hermione explained. "She's brilliant!"
"Why is it that there's always something around Aris we've never seen before? This little fairy... she's gorgeous!" Ronald's eyes lit up.
"I reckon this must be a product of elemental magic, yeah?" Harry guessed.
"Nearly. Aris says it's summoning magic," Hermione added.
Although Hermione didn't know much about Moss herself, she'd spent far more time with her than Harry and the others. Whenever you popped by Aris's lab, you'd see the fairy buzzing about him. That familiarity had taken away some of the initial awe she felt when first seeing Moss.
"You two, step into the test circle one by one," Aris reminded them.
He then pulled a small shard of magic crystal from the system space and placed it right in the centre of the magic circle.
The whole circle suddenly glowed softly.
"Proper cool, that!" Harry couldn't help but exclaim.
"Is this magic circle safe, though?" Ronald swallowed hard, clearly wary of the unknown.
"Do you really think Aris would do anything to harm you?" Hermione rolled her eyes.
"I'll go first!" Harry showed real courage, gritting his teeth as he stepped into the magic circle.
"Don't be nervous, just relax," Aris said with a smile.
Thanks to his improvements on the talent-testing magic circle, the young wizard no longer needed to feed magic power into it.
The complete magic circle could now directly communicate with the magic energy inside the person stepping in, accurately gauging their talent level and elemental affinity—very handy, indeed.
With just a few tweaks, it could be solidified for repeated use; all you'd need to do is swap out the magic crystals in its eyes regularly.
Of course, you could still manually input magic power, and it'd work the same. But without a crystal core, it wouldn't be solidified—you'd have to recharge it every time.
As the magic circle's glow gradually intensified, Harry grew more nervous.
Hermione quietly reminded him that if he lacked elemental talent, there'd be no chance to learn elemental magic.
His heartbeat quickened. The nerves he felt now were almost the same as when he first arrived at Hogwarts and sat beneath the Sorting Hat.
"Red, sky blue, and even yellow..." Hermione said, a bit surprised.
"Fire, wind, and earth—the three elemental affinities," Aris nodded.
As expected of the protagonist in this world, Harry's talent was impressive!
What's more, Harry's affinity for all three elements was quite high, and the light streaming from the magic circle was dazzling.
This means, with some graft, Harry could become a triple elemental mage in the future!
Blimey, isn't that just the sort of fate a protagonist deserves?
At that moment, Aris imagined an entire drama unfolding—thirty years of ups and downs. The hero with average grades in youth, driven to study magic; tragic tales of lost parents, mastering three types of magic, and finally seeking revenge...
"Congratulations!" Aris patted Harry as he stepped out of the magic circle, smiling. "You've got affinity for three elements and excellent talent. Your future's looking bright!"
"Just try to keep calm and focused, and work hard at your practice and studies."
"Yeah, I understand, Aris, thanks!" Harry nodded eagerly, finally feeling a weight lifted from his chest.
Starting today, he'd also learn elemental magic!
One day, he'd be able to shake the earth and bring spring to dead trees with a mere wave of his hand—just like Aris.
That scene must've been quite the spectacle!
If Aris knew what Harry was thinking at that moment, he'd no doubt give him a right clip round the ear. "Mate, if you haven't got a knack for wood, don't even think about bringing dead trees back to life..."
Next up was Ronald's turn.
As the red-haired lad stepped into the magic circle, the light flickered once more.
Red, dark blue...
A dual elemental talent—fire and water!
Not too shabby at all. After all, he's one of the three main players, and his elemental aptitude was pretty impressive.
A future dual-element mage mastering both fire and water—rare, considering how those two elements usually clash.
"You're likely to face quite a few headaches down the line," Aris warned. "The fire and water elements don't mix easily, so balancing them will be a proper challenge."
"But if you manage to crack it, you might just pull off a miracle—water and fire working in harmony."
Aris offered his usual encouragement, but he knew Ronald's talent still fell short of Harry's, and was even further behind Hermione's.
Hermione, with her dual talents in fire and wind, also boasted the rare gift of elemental wisdom.
On paper, she had three elemental talents too, but in truth, her ability probably surpassed even Harry's.
Because the possibilities that come with the element of 'wisdom' had to go well beyond the usual natural elemental talents.
"Thanks, Aris!" Ronald nodded eagerly.
Dual elements of water and fire—that sounds proper powerful.
Even though Harry's got affinity with three elements, he can't exactly make his enemies feel the sting of ice and fire at the same time, can he?
As the test magic circle pulsed twice with light, it caught the attention of the nearby centaurs.
A few of them slowly gathered round, eyes curious as they stared at the glowing formation.
"My king, is that a magic circle?" Firenze asked, surprised.
He clearly knew a bit about these formations.
"That's right," Aris nodded.
After a moment's thought, he added, "Let every centaur in the camp step inside the circle and get tested!
If any of you have the knack for elemental magic, I'll teach you how to use it!"
Aris recalled how in some fantasy tales, there were magicians among centaurs, but they were few and far between.
"Really?!" Firenze's eyes brightened immediately, and he quickly bowed.
"As you command, my king. I'll gather everyone right away!"
He knew full well that if even one centaur showed magical talent, their whole fate could change.
The idea of a centaur magician was something they'd never dared dream of before.
Soon enough, the camp was buzzing with life again.
Hundreds of centaurs lined up eagerly to step into the test magic circle.
Just as Aris had expected, some of them managed to activate the magic circle. Those confirmed to have elemental talent could hardly believe their luck—they dashed about the camp, leaping for joy, their excitement far from settling anytime soon.
"As I thought, the arrival of our king marks a turning point for the centaurs!"
Bain was so chuffed he nearly shed a tear, especially since he himself was found to have talent with the water element. Ronan, on the other hand, was gifted with fire.
Though both were single-element talents, they were more than satisfied. They'd be proud to call themselves centaur wizards for the rest of their days.
"The wheel of fate has begun to turn… and this is only the start!"
Firenze smiled warmly.
Watching the gifted centaurs bounding about the camp filled his heart with joy, even though he himself wasn't detected to have any elemental talent.
But Firenze had no regrets whatsoever, for at this moment, he could see the star belonging to the centaur tribe's destiny faintly glowing.
It seemed to pierce through the dark clouds, breaking free from the shackles of fate!
This was, without a doubt, the most thrilling astrological prophecy he'd ever witnessed.
Night had fallen.
Aris knew it was time to take Harry and the others away from the centaur camp and return to Hogwarts Castle for the time being.
The camp's houses and infrastructure were complete, and the centaurs had settled back into their normal lives.
Not only that, Aris had left several magic circles scattered around the camp to accelerate elemental perception, allowing those centaurs with confirmed elemental talent to begin their practice.
Once they can sense elemental energy on their own, they'll be ready to formally learn elemental magic.
Aris reckoned he'd be visiting more often in the future.
This place was becoming his second secret base.
Any magic requiring ample space for practice could be tested and honed here.
"My lord," came a voice, "I've recently observed that the Morning Star, symbolising hope, has been overshadowed, and the disaster foretold by the stars is set to unfold within Hogwarts Castle."
"Be careful out there, and if you can, try not to go it alone!"
Just as Aris and his group were about to leave the camp, Firenze hurried over with a worried look.
"Oh?" Aris raised an eyebrow, surprised.
He hadn't expected Firenze's prophecy to be so sharp that he could sense a looming threat within Hogwarts itself.
The shadow cast over the Morning Star surely pointed to Voldemort's secret schemes, didn't it?
Thinking that, Aris couldn't help but cast a quick glance at Harry Potter.
That look made Firenze's eyes narrow slightly as he quickly put two and two together.
"Harry Potter... could it be that the disaster foretold is aimed at this very boy?"
The lad, the sole survivor of Voldemort's grasp, was known throughout the magical world.
"The prophecy isn't set in stone," Aris said with a reassuring smile, patting Firenze's shoulder.
"No need to fret just yet. At least Dumbledore's still holding the fort. Those dark creepers won't dare cause mischief under his watch."
"I bloody well hope so!" Firenze admitted, still looking uneasy.
But there wasn't much more he could say.
"My king, it's getting late — shall we be off?"
He gestured behind them as he spoke.
Nearly forty centaur warriors had gathered, all armed and ready.
"Well then, let's get moving!"
Aris gave a nod and strode ahead towards the castle.
The group marched into the Forbidden Forest with a powerful presence.
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Castle, Ravenclaw Common Room.
Cho sat on the sofa, her eyes flicking between the book in her hands and the lounge's archway.
She'd been waiting there for two hours.
After dinner, she'd been waiting for Aris to return.
She couldn't quite say why, but lately, whenever she couldn't see the boy, an inexplicable sadness crept over her.
"Cho, do you know where Aris has gone?"
Suddenly, Terry and Anthony bustled into the lounge, looking a bit flustered.
"What's up?" Cho had been hopeful that Aris had come back, but seeing the pair, her excitement faded.
"Professor McGonagall asked us to find Aris. Apparently, it was Headmaster Dumbledore who sent word..."
"Something's gone down at Aris's place!"
Terry and Anthony both wore worried expressions, their voices quick and urgent.
"Something happened at Aris's home?"
Cho leapt up from the sofa, her mind racing.
She recalled that Aris seemed to be the only one left in the entire Shafiq family.
Who on earth could have been in trouble?
Noticing Cho's confused look, Terry hurriedly added,
"I heard it's his old foster family — the Lovegoods!"
"Foster family?" Cho blinked in surprise.
She vaguely remembered Aris mentioning them before.
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Drop power Powerstonessssssssss!
[Note: Read up to Chapter - 143 on P patron at: p-atreon.com/Knockturn_Alley]