Afterward, Ludo went over a few more general rules and precautions for the upcoming task.
However, he did not utter a single word about what kind of challenges the champions would actually be facing.
"It is all about building up the suspense and mystery," Ludo said cheerfully. "What do you think, Mrs. Heep?"
Mrs. Heep offered a polite, somewhat stiff smile in response. The other judges were keeping a noticeable distance from her—likely unable to stomach the overwhelming scent of her perfume—but she appeared entirely unbothered by it.
The meeting concluded shortly after.
As Maurise was leaving, he noticed the Weasley twins being pulled aside by Cornelius Fudge.
"We just landed a massive order!" Fred whispered to him as he passed by, barely able to contain his excitement.
Maurise later learned that the twins had successfully sold their surveillance crystal balls to the Ministry of Magic.
---
A month passed quietly.
During this time, Maurise spent his days either attending classes or holed up inside the Ship in a Bottle.
He now had twelve skeletal workers, allowing him to passively harvest around five hundred Gap Energy Crystals every single day. The number wasn't perfectly exact, but it was generally stable, with a margin of error of no more than fifty crystals either way.
It was a terrifyingly efficient production rate. Over the course of a single month, he had stockpiled well over ten thousand energy crystals.
With such abundant resources at his disposal, Maurise began to seriously ponder how to utilize them to further enhance his own strength or research more interesting branches of magic.
---
A quiet Sunday.
"It really doesn't work, does it?"
Inside the ritual chamber of the Ship in a Bottle, Maurise frowned as he observed the scene before him.
A complex undead evolution array was drawn on the floor. Currently underway was Tin's attempt at a fifth-tier evolution.
The underlying principle of the evolution ritual was not overly complex: it involved gathering an immense concentration of ambient energy and converting it into a potent 'catalyst' that forced an undead creature to evolve.
However, facts were facts. It seemed this 'catalyst' had an absolute upper limit.
The greyish-black mist generated by the array simply swirled around Tin without being absorbed. Or rather, it was absorbed, but it had absolutely zero effect; the energy merely lingered inside Tin's body for a brief moment before being expelled entirely unchanged, dissipating harmlessly into the air.
Judging by this, if Tin wanted to advance any further, they would need to either discover a completely new method or drastically overhaul the current version of the evolution ritual.
With a sigh, Maurise halted the ritual.
Tin padded out of the magic circle, a deeply disappointed expression etched onto its furry face.
Maurise suddenly crouched down and stared at the cat intently.
"Are you looking a bit... different, Tin?" he asked.
Recently, the expressions on Tin's face had visibly grown much richer and more nuanced. To put it simply, the cat was becoming increasingly human-like.
Maurise reached out and gently pinched the loose skin on Tin's cheeks.
"Meow!"
Tin took a step back, looking slightly indignant.
Suddenly, Maurise felt a distinct ripple of magical energy emanating from the cat's body.
In the next second, to his utter astonishment, Tin stood up perfectly straight on its hind legs. Its physical structure seemed to undergo a subtle, rapid shifting process.
It stood tall, its hind paws planted firmly on the floor, its two front paws hanging naturally at its sides. It looked exactly like a tiny human wearing a fluffy cat costume.
This appearance instantly reminded Maurise of a movie he had seen in his past life: Puss in Boots. Tin's current form looked remarkably like the titular protagonist.
"Transfiguration?" Maurise asked, arching an eyebrow.
Tin nodded happily. It had magically altered its anatomy into a form far more suited for bipedal locomotion. Its bodily curves had smoothed out, its tail sat slightly higher, its limbs had lengthened, and its front paws had become significantly more dexterous—almost hand-like.
"Why on earth did you change yourself into this?" Maurise asked, entirely bewildered.
"Meow~"
"You think it's more convenient this way?"
"Meow!"
Maurise's expression grew even more peculiar.
Well, he supposed it wasn't a bad thing. As long as his pet liked it.
He dismissed the oddity, bent down, scooped Tin up, and walked out of the ritual chamber into the living room.
On the table in the center of the living room, a cauldron was bubbling softly. The air was thick with a sweet, deeply calming fragrance.
It was Felix Felicis. Liquid Luck.
Maurise set Tin down on the floor. The cat immediately scurried over to the bookshelf, hopped up, and skillfully used its newly dexterous 'hands' to pull a thick copy of Advanced Potion-Making from the middle shelf.
'Alright,' Maurise admitted to himself. 'I suppose it really is more convenient.'
Nodding in quiet approval, Maurise walked over to the bubbling cauldron. The potion inside had taken on the color of molten gold, shimmering with a clear, luminous brilliance.
He had been fascinated by Felix Felicis for a very long time. A potion that literally brought good luck to the drinker—the concept itself was intoxicating enough to tempt any wizard.
He had already been brewing this particular batch for two weeks. However, the brewing cycle for Felix Felicis was downright maddening; it required a full six months to complete. Furthermore, if he made even the slightest error, the entire batch—which had cost several thousand Galleons just in raw ingredients—would be ruined instantly.
Just thinking about it gave him a headache. He rubbed his temples.
The only saving grace was that he had Cinder to help him keep an eye on the potion's status. If any abnormalities arose, Cinder could alert him immediately, saving him from having to stand vigil over the cauldron twenty-four hours a day.
After thoroughly checking the potion, Maurise turned to Tin. "I am heading up to the castle, Tin. Make sure you tidy up the room while I am gone."
Tin offered a sharp meow of acknowledgment, set down its book, and immediately began tidying.
---
By the time Maurise left the Ship in a Bottle, it was already noon.
On his way down to the Great Hall, he ran into Snape.
"Hello, Professor Snape," he offered a brief greeting.
Snape gave him a curt nod, his face devoid of any expression. He swept past with rapid, purposeful strides, radiating an intense aura of 'do not speak to me'.
Maurise acutely sensed that Snape was in an exceptionally foul mood. However, it likely had nothing to do with him; he hadn't done anything recently to provoke the Potions Master, and he had barely even sought his advice on potion-making lately.
He turned and continued on his way.
Inside the Great Hall, the four House tables were packed with students. The air was filled with a cacophony of chatter and laughter.
Maurise walked over to the Ravenclaw table, took a seat next to Kyle, and grabbed a piece of bread.
"You're a bit late today."
Kyle handed Maurise a copy of the Daily Prophet. "Here is today's paper. Apparently, a pack of werewolves attacked several young wizards recently..."
Before Kyle could finish his sentence, a Gryffindor boy burst through the doors of the Great Hall and bellowed at the top of his lungs, "Professor Snape and Professor Sirius are fighting! Right outside the entrance doors!"
The entire Great Hall fell dead silent in an instant. Every single pair of eyes turned to stare at the Gryffindor boy.
The boy shrank back, seemingly realizing the magnitude of his announcement, and scurried over to his House table.
Simultaneously, several students from both the Gryffindor and Slytherin tables leaped to their feet and sprinted out the doors.
Maurise took a bite of his sweet roll, chewing thoughtfully.
'Hmm... should I go watch the drama unfold?'
As everyone knows, the desire to witness a good spectacle is deeply ingrained in human DNA.
"Let's go."