Helena looked disappointed by that answer, but she let it go since this was far from the first time she had encountered a book written in an unknown language. "So what is it about?" she asked, since she could not read it for herself. "I haven't gone through it yet, but from the first page it seems to be a wizard's research notes," Julian answered honestly. "Ugh, why is it always research notes and other painfully boring things with you?" she complained before promptly ignoring him and returning to pampering Steve like she usually did.
Julian laughed at that, though he did not bother denying it since she was absolutely right. He generally only read things that would expand his knowledge, and this book was no exception. Naturally, he was not about to mention that it would let him create an entire army of loyal magical creatures originating from another world altogether. Atronachs were essentially beings of pure elemental power given spirit and form through magical energy. Because of that, they could be summoned or shaped into all kinds of forms depending on the power and skill of the summoner. In Julian's case, he would most likely stick to familiar animal shapes such as bears or lions.
The rest of the day passed with Julian carefully committing the contents of the book to memory, and it provided him with several fascinating discoveries. For instance, he learned that unlike most atronachs, the ones produced by the atronach forge were truly created by it. Normally, summoned atronachs were beings that had naturally been "born" in one plane of oblivion or another. Somehow, whoever had written this book had actually discovered the process by which an atronach could be "born," which was extraordinary in itself. Julian was especially pleased to find that the method was included in the book through the enchanting runes required to create the forge.
The process itself was fairly straightforward. It required a medium such as a ruby or sapphire to be infused with a highly concentrated form of the appropriate elemental energy, fire for ruby and lightning for sapphire, for example. After that, the gem had to be filled with neutral spiritual energy until it burst apart. If the process was done correctly, a vortex of magical energy would then appear, and from it the newly formed atronach would emerge. There was a warning included as well, stating that if one wanted the atronach bound to its creator, the gem first had to be soaked in the maker's blood before the process began. Otherwise, the atronach would be born "wild."
Julian grimaced when he reached the schematics for the forge at the end of the book and saw the listed ingredients, because when he checked the system shop, the materials were absurdly expensive. The two worst offenders by far were a fairly large quantity of ebony and an unaligned sigil stone. Those two items alone would have cost him nearly five hundred thousand points from the materials section. 'Good thing I'm almost certain I can reproduce the same function with a ring array for much cheaper,' he thought in relief.
Time moved quickly after that, and before long two full weeks had passed as June ended and July began. During that stretch, Ollivander had not really taught him anything entirely new beyond the woodworking techniques used to shape the wood itself. It was honestly not all that different from ordinary muggle woodworking, so more than anything it just required practice. By the end of the month, Julian could identify almost any type of wood and successfully tap and shape it into a decent wand housing.
He still made mistakes with woods that needed a more experienced touch, like burl wood, but in Ollivander's opinion he had reached an acceptable level. Then on the first of July, that calm routine was broken when a tall middle-aged man with long, thin black hair and a neatly trimmed goatee stepped into the shop wearing a dark muggle suit with the front hanging open. "Welcome to Ollivander's. Makers of fine wands since 382 B.C. How may I help you today, sir?" Julian heard Ollivander say from the front of the shop while he himself was in the workshop carefully shaping a piece of elm.
"I am looking for Julian Ravenclaw. Would he happen to be here?" the man asked with a polite smile. Julian immediately stopped what he was doing and listened more closely, since the question concerned him directly. "May I ask who is inquiring about him?" Ollivander replied, apparently not recognizing the man standing before him. The stranger chuckled. "Sirius Black," he said, sounding entirely unconcerned about not being recognized. A decade in Azkaban had left permanent marks on him, and very few people could identify him on sight anymore.