Louis's behavior was downright infuriating—if the two girls hadn't been so patient, they probably would've given him a smack.
"Fine," Hermione huffed, pursing her lips. "We'll be over there. Come find us later."
"Alright." Louis nodded, then turned and made his way toward the depths of the library—the Restricted Section.
The division between the Restricted Section and the rest of the library was stark. From the decor alone, it felt much gloomier, guarded by enchanted portraits.
Unlike the books outside, every single volume here was chained tightly to the shelves with thick iron links, each one enchanted. Brute force was nearly useless.
Even the Ox Talisman's strength wouldn't work here. The magic bound the book, the chain, and the shelf into a single entity—Louis could maybe drag the entire shelf out, but he had no chance of removing a single book.
Maybe the Muramasa-series swords could cut through them.
But Louis didn't plan on stealing by force—there was no need. He hadn't come here for the powerful, forbidden dark magic that even Dumbledore would fear. He couldn't use that stuff anyway. What he was here for were books related to alchemy or magical item crafting.
He wanted to create performance props with magical cores—tools that would be harder to detect, infused with real magic but disguised as sleight of hand.
This wasn't just a sudden whim sparked by Phoenix exposing his trick earlier. Louis had been nurturing this idea long before entering Hogwarts. Everything since had only confirmed its importance.
That was why he hadn't flatly rejected the Weasley twins' offer—he hoped to gain some experience from them. Once he had enough theoretical knowledge, he would craft his own tools.
Sure, he could've just commissioned the twins to build whatever he wanted—just hand over a design and let them make it. But that would be like pulling back the curtain before the show even began. It would ruin both the experience and the chance to earn Trick Points.
Besides, while a magician doesn't always make their own tools, they're always more confident when they do. His grandfather, John Wilson, had always insisted on personally crafting his escape props because of how dangerous escape acts were.
Lambert Wilson—his father—was different. His grand illusions required elaborate props, too vast and complex to build alone, so he was affiliated with several major theatrical companies that could provide what he needed.
Louis scanned the shelves, searching carefully. At first, he worried that there might not be any alchemy books here, especially since the Weasley twins had said Hogwarts barely offered alchemy as a subject.
But those concerns quickly disappeared. Clearly, the twins had wandered into the Restricted Section during their late-night escapades and picked up quite a lot from here.
From Chaos to Precision: The Evolution of Alchemy
Hermes and the Homunculus
Potions and Alchemy — The Paracelsus Manuscripts
Louis found three alchemy books, each with a distinct style. The first, From Chaos to Precision, began with recipes for early explosive compounds and gradually moved to more refined constructs crafted through alchemical techniques.
Unfortunately, the back half of the book was missing—where it likely described more modern magical artifacts, like Two-Way Mirrors or Time-Turners.
Still, the parts about unstable, dangerous explosives were painstakingly detailed.
"No wonder this one's in the Restricted Section," Louis muttered, flipping through the massive tome chained to the shelf. When he finished, he shook his head and returned it.
The thing weighed at least twenty pounds. Without the Ox Talisman strengthening his eleven-year-old body, he wouldn't have even been able to hold it up.
"Not much in the way of useful constructs, but the crafting techniques and logic behind them are worth remembering." He mentally sorted what he'd learned, intentionally forgetting the bomb recipes and keeping only the important insights.
As for explosives? Why waste materials on something he could easily replicate with the Dragon Talisman?
The second book, Hermes and the Homunculus, referenced Hermes—the Greek god often associated with alchemy—and the homunculus, considered the pinnacle of alchemical creation: a tiny, all-knowing being born in a bottle.
The title sounded promising, but its contents made Louis frown.
It was a guide on creating artificial life through alchemy. But the methods described were gruesome—requiring the lives of an entire village, or even a town, to create a mute, half-conscious creature.
"Stupid and deranged," Louis muttered in disgust, shoving the book back. There was nothing worth learning in that mess.
However, it did include a resurrection ritual—eerily similar to the scene of Voldemort's rebirth. Likely something he found in this very Restricted Section back in his school days.
Compared to the first two, the third book was far more practical and normal.
Potions and Alchemy — The Paracelsus Manuscripts was a professional work examining the relationship between potion-making and alchemy. It was only in the Restricted Section because of its complexity—far too advanced for young students.
Paracelsus, both a healer and an alchemist, was known for blending potions and alchemical theory. His knowledge fused the two, producing alchemical potions and traditional brews with identical effects but different natures.
The Weasley twins' Quick-Skip Candy was likely inspired by something in this book.
After finishing it, Louis felt his head swimming—he'd absorbed way too much information in a short time.
"No rush. There's plenty of time, and the books aren't going anywhere," he whispered to himself, gazing up at the towering shelves, then walked out of the Restricted Section, satisfied.
He found Hermione and Padma in the main area. Both had nearly finished their homework. Judging by the number of open reference books, they'd clearly done their research.
"Ladies, how's the homework coming along?" Louis strolled over, casually set down his top hat, and sat beside Hermione.
"Almost done. Doing it in the library really helps—there's always exactly the book we need," Hermione said, then glanced up. "So? How were the books in the Restricted Section?"
"To be honest… not great. There's a reason they're restricted," Louis shook his head. "By the way, did you two find any books on alchemy out here?"
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