"System, I need loans related to the field of Transfiguration—specifically transforming inanimate objects into living things, and living things into inanimate objects."
Lucien had already mastered transforming inanimate objects into other inanimate objects; the next level of difficulty lay in these two branches of Transfiguration.
The difficulty in turning inanimate objects into living beings lay in the need for a thorough understanding of biology; a wizard couldn't transfigure a creature they didn't understand.
Transforming living beings into inanimate objects, on the other hand, required the wizard to suppress the creature's will.
In that regard, the difficulty increased progressively: from animals, to Muggles, and finally to Wizards.
Wizards, in particular, could consciously channel magic to resist such Transfiguration. And even if the spell succeeded, they could often break free of it shortly after.
A loan that meets the Host's requirements has been customized.
Loan: Chimera Manual (Monthly Loan)
Repayment Period: 30 days
Loan Content: Notes left behind by a mad ancient wizard, focused on the Transfiguration of inanimate objects into living beings, living beings into inanimate objects, and living beings into other living beings—detailing methods for transfiguring biological chimeras.
Loan Task: Transfigure a chimera containing at least five distinct biological features.
Reading this loan description, Lucien's attention was immediately drawn to the phrase: "biological chimera."
When first learning Transfiguration, objects—whether inanimate or living—tended to retain some of their original characteristics.
However, this retention was relatively random, and it was difficult for a wizard to control which specific traits would be preserved.
For example, if a pig were transfigured into a goat, the first attempt might leave it with a pig's nose, while the second might retain the pig's ears instead.
Some wizards had attempted to use Transfiguration to create powerful hybrid creatures—like simply giving a tiger wings so it could fly.
Experts proficient in Transfiguration could indeed perform such alterations, selectively retaining certain parts with some degree of stability, but the process was always more trouble than it was worth.
Because any object or creature had a limited capacity for transfigured overlays, the more variation applied, the more likely the form would collapse, and the duration of the transformation would also decrease significantly.
Even if one managed to painstakingly transfigure a winged tiger, it might only fly for a minute or two before crashing back to the ground.
"System, using the methods recorded in this manual, how long can the transfigured biological chimeras last? And how many features can they include at once?"
Minimum duration: 5 minutes. Minimum features: 3.
That was the baseline. The upper limits depended on the wizard's Transfiguration skill and talent.
Sss... That ancient wizard must have been a Transfiguration genius!
Using his method, both the duration and the number of integrated features exceeded what ordinary Transfiguration could achieve.
Moreover, the upper limit was tied to one's Transfiguration skill and talent.
Lucien's own Transfiguration talent was at the SSS level—an absolute peak.
So transfiguring a Chimera with five biological features should definitely be within his capabilities.
It would just require a solid understanding of several different creatures, which was an easy problem to solve.
In Lucien's view, the key point was that this Transfiguration manual didn't just contain the knowledge he sought—it also included a section on transforming living things into other living things, making it undoubtedly worth borrowing.
"System, I want to take out the Chimera Manual loan."
Ding. Loan application successful. Item has been issued to the system space and can be accessed at any time.
Evaluation: There is often only a fine line between genius and madman. Success makes one a genius; failure…
Lucien retrieved the Chimera Manual.
What he held was a seemingly thin pamphlet.
The cover was stitched together from the skins of various animals—some with soft fur, some with scales, and some covered in sharp thorns…
Tsk tsk, it certainly didn't look like something made by someone mentally stable.
As he opened the manual, the first page revealed incredibly neat and elegant handwriting:
"Wizards cannot transfigure unknown creatures?
But I can piece together known creatures, and if enough fragments are combined, they can grow new fragments…......."
Lucien read the neat, meticulous words.
A calm madman?
Someone who firmly believes in their theories and methods, and carries them out without hesitation.
Such people are truly terrifying—especially when they are Wizards who can wield magic.
He couldn't help but wonder what kind of experiments that Wizard had conducted…
Lucien shook his head. Whatever kind of person that mad Wizard had been, his life and deeds were long buried in the dust of history. Only the knowledge he left behind remained real.
Turning past the first page, Lucien noticed the paper was extremely thin—so thin it might as well have been called cicada wings.
It looked like a small booklet, but in fact, it must contain a great many pages.
Lucien flipped through it quickly and estimated it had at least several thousand.
Wow, there's a lot to learn.
This is truly great!
Lucien flipped back to the second page and continued reading.
"Transforming inanimate objects into living things is not difficult; one only needs to understand biological characteristics, dissection..."
Below the text were extremely detailed anatomical diagrams.
The level of precision made Lucien feel as though he were reading a cutting-edge modern biology or medical textbook.
...
"You all must stay for dinner tonight; I've come up with a few new dishes…"
Hagrid's booming voice rang out from outside the hut. Hearing it, Lucien quickly put away the Chimera Manual.
The door swung open, and Hagrid squeezed into the house, followed by Harry and his two friends.
"Lucien, you should join us for dinner too. Harry and his friends—"
Hagrid paused mid-sentence when he saw Fang playing in the room with a white dog.
"Oi, Fang, where'd you find this friend of yours... Wait, what IS that thing?! That's ain't a dog, is it?!"
Hagrid's eyes widened as he stared at the white "dog."
Its body was entirely covered in white iron armor, with exposed, interlocking gears in the joints.
Two multifaceted crystal eyes glowed faintly blue.
Its tail was made up of dozens of segments, extremely flexible as it wagged, with residual magic flickering at the tip in a steady, rhythmic glow like breathing.
"I saw that Fang was lonely as the only dog around, so I made him a little toy to play with," Lucien said casually, picking up his wand and walking toward the cooking area.
He'd just heard that Hagrid was keeping them all for dinner, which meant he would once again have to display his culinary skills.
No matter how "delicious" Hagrid's new dishes might be, the young Wizards—still in their growing phase—needed something edible.
Hagrid and the three students stared in shock at the mechanical dog playing with Fang. Its agile movements and lifelike posture left them speechless.
If it were covered in fur, you wouldn't be able to tell it wasn't real.
"Oh, thank you, Lucien! You're such a kind young man, so thoughtful of Fang!" Hagrid exclaimed, pulling out a dirty, rough handkerchief and blowing his nose with a noise like a trumpet.
"You are such a gentle young Wizard. These little darlings must really love you."
Hagrid's praise made Lucien feel a little awkward.
If he didn't count dragging Fang deep into the Forbidden Forest and frightening him half to death... if he didn't count harvesting venom from Aragog... and if he didn't count Lumen beating up Fluffy…
Then maybe—just maybe—he could accept Hagrid's compliment.
This left him with a twinge of guilt. Fang had at least been compensated. Maybe next time he went into the Forbidden Forest to study magical creatures, he could check in on Aragog. As for Fluffy… perhaps he could bring a food offering, or even make him an alchemical companion too?
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11 Advance Chaps- P@treon/DarkDevil1