To Unlock Bonus Chapters:
Reach 50/100/200/400 Power Stones! 1Extra Chapters!
Reach 800 Power Stones to activate NP!
Resets Weekly! [Monday]
—————————————————————————————————————————
"Although Artificers and Herbalists lack combat abilities, these two courses and professions are the lifeblood of our entire Dragonland. They are of utmost importance," Lin Yu concluded his explanation and immediately reverted to his usual lazy demeanor.
From Glenn's perspective, Artificers and Herbalists were essentially responsible for logistics in Dragonland—a critical and indispensable role.
"Lin Yu, do you think Hermione and I might have the opportunity to study at your school for a short time? While we can manage self-study on our own, it's still slower compared to receiving guidance from teachers before diving into independent learning," Glenn conveyed Hermione's question.
Lin Yu shook his head and replied candidly, "Honestly, I'm not sure. Our school has never admitted foreign students. But I think if it's the two of you, my grandaunt would probably fight to have you enrolled. On the very first day you arrived, she went to see the old man. I overheard her telling him to contact your headmaster—what's his name again? Dumble… Dumble-something? Anyway, she said to get both of you transferred to the North China School of Sorcery."
Hermione's lips twitched. Was her grandmother always this decisive? It didn't feel like she was seeking permission—it sounded more like she was preparing to abduct them.
Well, while it made Hermione happy to know her grandmother liked her so much, the thought of transferring directly to the North China School of Sorcery gave her pause. She couldn't bear to leave her friends at Hogwarts. They were some of the few people she had grown close to over the years, aside from Glenn.
Moreover, being foreigners, she wondered if they would face rejection or isolation in Dragonland.
The young girl couldn't help but reach out and hold Glenn's hand.
Although Glenn didn't know what was troubling her, he silently tightened his grip on her hand, offering reassurance.
Lin Yu, of course, noticed the little gestures between the two and sighed inwardly, lamenting the vigor of youth. Without further ado, he excused himself and left.
Why stick around?
To be force-fed more "dog food"? No, thanks!
He quickly retreated, heading home for a nap.
"Hermione, do you want to attend the North China School of Sorcery?" Glenn asked directly. He figured Hermione's unease might stem from this question, so he decided to address it head-on to see if it could ease her worries.
"…I don't know. Honestly, I want to learn and master the knowledge from both schools. But… if I were to transfer here, I'd miss Professor Dumbledore, my friends, and everyone else at Hogwarts. And… I'm afraid of being isolated again, like when we were younger…" Hermione lowered her head, her brown eyes staring absentmindedly at the tips of her shoes, as if they held some sort of fascination.
Glenn understood. Given Hermione's personality, it made sense she'd feel this way.
Personally, Glenn preferred the idea of studying at the North China School of Sorcery. After all, there would be no threat from Voldemort here.
But…
Since this was what Hermione wanted, and considering how much Dumbledore, Snape, and others had cared for them, not to mention the uncertainty of whether the North China School would even accept foreign students, he decided to let it go.
Compared to the threat of Voldemort, ensuring Hermione's healthy and happy growth was far more important.
As long as his own strength grew to the point where he could protect Hermione, these issues would no longer matter.
Besides, Voldemort was someone Glenn had already resolved to eliminate. Even if he didn't fully understand the grievances between them, the fact that Voldemort allowed his minions to wreak havoc and take lives—most importantly, targeting Glenn himself—was reason enough.
Anyone who crossed Glenn's bottom line would face the same fate.
No matter the cost, no matter the means.
---
When immersed in studying, time seemed to fly. At Glenn's request, Lin Yu begrudgingly carved out an hour from his otherwise lazy day to answer questions for the two youngsters.
To Glenn and Hermione's surprise, their cousin—who appeared to be a laid-back slacker—had an impressively deep understanding of the material. Any difficult question they posed to this cousin, who lounged in a rocking chair swaying back and forth, was met with clear and detailed explanations that were easy to grasp.
This newfound respect for Lin Yu left Hermione in awe.
So, he turned out to be a studious person after all! And despite spending most of his days resting, his knowledge was still so extensive. How amazing!
Lin Yu's image underwent a complete transformation in Hermione's mind. Anyone who loved learning naturally earned her admiration.
When Hermione, with her slightly awkward Dragonlandese, praised Lin Yu, he waved it off with a blank expression, dismissing it as undeserved.
Once upon a time, Lin Yu had been a cheerful and lively boy. That was until he signed up for ten courses, exhausting himself to the point of collapse. The once-happy boy was no more, replaced by a hollow shell tormented by his choices.
Lin Yu's personality didn't allow for slacking during study sessions. He always aimed for perfection in everything he did.
The result? During school terms, Lin Yu worked himself to the brink of death, living a life of intense toil. But during vacations, he completely shut down, spending his days lounging at home, doing absolutely nothing.
It was as if he had skipped decades ahead into retirement, living the life of an old man while still in his youth.
Over time, Lin Yu realized he actually enjoyed this leisurely lifestyle.
Thus, two extreme habits coexisted within one person.
Lin Yu: "I'm burned out."
Hermione tilted her head, sensing Lin Yu's apparent lack of joy, and decided not to continue praising him.
With Lin Yu's help, their progress in sorcery studies was steady. The main challenge lay in Hermione's struggle with learning Dragonlandese.
The young girl insisted she was doing her best, but Dragonlandese was proving to be incredibly difficult.
Hermione was on the verge of breaking down. Dragonlandese was nothing like English. Why did a single pronunciation have so many different characters and meanings?!
There was no choice but to slow their pace in sorcery studies to accommodate Hermione's language learning. Fortunately, with Glenn's assistance, she was making rapid progress.
Apart from their daily studies, the most notable events were Lin Yingqing's occasional visits to the courtyard.
"Do you remember what we discussed earlier, Glenn? You can start practicing 'Shrinking the Ground into Inches' now," Lin Yingqing said during one of her visits, fulfilling her promise to guide Glenn in this advanced technique.
"Sorcery, like your magic, is a form of idealistic power. It requires absolute willpower to successfully cast. The prerequisite for 'Shrinking the Ground into Inches' is to firmly believe in what you envision and hold unwavering conviction," Lin Yingqing explained. "The principle of this technique is to reduce the distance between where you stand and your intended destination to zero, effectively overlapping two separate points in space. This allows for instantaneous long-distance movement. Of course, this concept is difficult to comprehend, and the greatest challenge lies in believing it's possible. Then, you must take that step forward."
With a flick of her finger, Lin Yingqing drew a straight mark on the courtyard floor, extending from Glenn's feet to a point ahead.
"Give it a try, Glenn. Imagine the distance represented by this line as zero and attempt to break the constraints of space."
Without replying, Glenn focused intently on the task. However, the concept of collapsing space—a notion far beyond his understanding—was difficult to fully believe.
At one point, Glenn felt a complex and intricate magical circuit form within his body, though it was highly unstable. While he couldn't maintain complete belief in the overlap of the start and end points, he sensed the right moment for the spell and resolutely took the step to traverse space.
"Shrinking the Ground into Inches," Glenn murmured softly. The Hand of Sorcery on his left hand emitted a faint black glow, and the space before him rippled like water disturbed by a pebble.
It worked… but not entirely. Glenn felt a massive drain on his magical energy, and his body seemed to be torn apart as he surged forward. His surroundings blurred into streaks of light.
In an instant, his vision returned to normal, and Glenn found himself at the end of the line Lin Yingqing had drawn.
However, something felt off. Looking down, he saw that his left leg, starting from the knee, was missing. The severed surface was unnaturally clean, with a faint white glow covering the wound. The glow was slowly fading.
His severed leg lay on the ground with a soft thud, evidently cut by space itself.
Thankfully, Glenn had left Hermione behind in the Library of Sorcery to study. Otherwise, she would have been worried sick.
Lin Yingqing remained unfazed, clearly prepared for such an outcome. With a wave of her hand, the severed leg at her feet disappeared and instantly reappeared, perfectly reattached to Glenn's knee.
It was as good as new.
Glenn maintained a calm demeanor, carefully testing his left leg's functionality. Everything seemed normal, as if the incident had never occurred.
But Lin Yingqing's words dispelled that illusion.
"Partial dismemberment is a common accident when practicing 'Shrinking the Ground into Inches.' However, as long as the severed part is reattached within three seconds, there won't be any issues. Beyond that, the severed limb will be permanently lost," Lin Yingqing explained. Still slightly concerned, she approached to inspect him thoroughly. Fortunately, he was unharmed.
"Do you want to continue, Glenn?" Lin Yingqing asked.
"Yes." Glenn retrieved a vial of magical potion from his pouch and downed it in one go, restoring himself to peak condition.
If he couldn't master the spell, he would keep practicing until he did. Glenn didn't mind repetitive effort to achieve his goals.
"Shrinking the Ground into Inches," Glenn murmured again.
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
"8 amazing fanfics available on my Patreon.
Support for 200+ advance chapters:
patreon.com/DarkGolds"