Hogwarts: Starting with full Unforgivable Curses

“The waters separate the mermaids, and their habits differ greatly.” He looked towards the Black Lake and continued to explain, “The mermaids in the Black Lake rarely show their songs to outsiders. On the one hand, it is because specific water vapor conditions are needed for their songs to be melodious, and on the other hand… perhaps they are shy and unwilling to reveal this relatively private behavior in front of strangers.”

Ernie quickly greeted Dumbledore.

Dylan nodded as well.

Ernie pondered what she had just said and couldn't help but ask, "But Headmaster, they're just magical creatures. It's one thing for them to be intelligent, but do they really have such anthropomorphic emotions?"

He looked at the Black Lake again. The Durmstrang students, still on deck, were confronting the merfolk. The merfolk, their faces contorted with rage, had veins bulging on their grey-blue skin and sharp teeth bared with each shout, their rugged appearance adding to their fury.
Isn't that a bit too outrageous?
“Indeed.” Dumbledore nodded slightly, continuing to walk towards the lake shore. “Now we need to find a way to mediate. We can’t let our guests who have come from afar think that Hogwarts can’t even maintain order in the school’s waterways.”

As soon as he finished speaking, a miraculous scene unfolded. Dumbledore walked to the lakeside and stopped. Suddenly, a pale blue magical light shimmered on the surface of the lake beneath his feet, and a transparent bridge formed from solidified water slowly emerged from the water, steadily extending to the area where the mermaids gathered.

Dumbledore stepped onto the bridge, walked steadily to the mermaids, knelt down, and began to speak softly with the lead mermaid.

From the shore, the communication process was clearly not going smoothly. The mermaid kept raising her arms, pointing at Durmstrang's magic ship, her mouth opening and closing rapidly, her tone full of dissatisfaction, clearly not intending to quell her anger easily.

“It looks like this isn’t going to end well,” Ernie said, stroking his chin with concern. “Besides, it was Durmstrang’s students who started this, throwing stones and mocking others. If this continues, given Principal Karkaroff’s temper, who knows what kind of twisted truth he might do!”

Dylan agreed with Ernie's assessment.

He carefully observed the lake surface. The mermaids moved extremely nimbly in the water. Even though Durmstrang students kept casting spells, only a few Grindylos were hit and injured. On the other hand, several Durmstrang students had been hit by stones and shells thrown by the mermaids, and they fell on the deck, clutching their wounds. They were quickly carried into the cabin by their companions.

In this situation, if Karkaroff intervenes, given his consistent bias towards his own students, he will most likely shift the blame to the mermaid, which will only complicate matters further.

Dumbledore's choice to crouch down and communicate with the merman clearly indicated that he did not want to resort to violence. With his magical power, it would have been easy for him to forcibly end the conflict.

Thinking of this, Dylan quickly walked onto the water bridge summoned by Dumbledore, came to his side, and said softly, "Headmaster Dumbledore, perhaps we could try the Happy Charm? From my observation, this spell should be effective in calming the mermaid's emotions and making communication smoother."

"The Happiness Charm?" Dumbledore repeated softly, then looked up and gave Dylan a deep look, a hint of understanding in his eyes. "Dylan, it seems you've not only solved the riddle of the golden egg, but also made other discoveries about the secret of the Black Lake?"

“Yes.” Dylan nodded frankly. “Through experiments, I discovered that the merfolk of the Black Lake have a special reaction to the Happy Charm. This spell can quickly calm their anger and lower their guard.”

"A magical effect that only works for a specific group?" A hint of surprise flashed in Dumbledore's eyes, followed by an approving smile. "It seems you've made further progress in your study of magic."

Before he finished speaking, Dumbledore gently waved his wand, and a soft, pale pink magical wave spread from the tip of the wand, like ripples on a lake, slowly covering the angry mermaid.

The effects of the happiness spell were immediate. The mermaids' tense bodies gradually relaxed, the angry expressions on their faces slowly faded, and their originally rapid breathing became calm.

“Very good.” Dumbledore smiled.

The content of this communication was the same as before: he hoped the mermaid would stop attacking and that he would negotiate with Karkaroff to get Durmstrang to provide appropriate compensation to make up for the offense suffered by the mermaid.

Perhaps the spell of happiness had completely calmed his emotions, for after hearing it, the leading mermaid waved his arm and gave a low command.

The mermaids and Grindelwald around immediately stopped what they were doing, and with a splash, they all dived into the depths of the Black Lake, and the lake surface quickly returned to calm.

Karkaroff rushed over after hearing about the incident, intending to extort a large sum of money. However, he lacked the courage to say anything in front of Dumbledore. After completing the negotiation, Dumbledore walked back to the shore of the Black Lake along the water bridge.

At this moment, on the lakeshore, Dylan was standing with a group of people, chatting and laughing. The sunlight shone on them, and the atmosphere was relaxed and comfortable, completely devoid of the tension from the confrontation just now.

Upon seeing Old Dumbledore approaching, Dylan and Dumbledore turned into a relatively quiet corridor to continue their previous conversation.

As they talked, Dylan's initially vague ideas gradually became clearer and more transparent as he recounted his experiences.

This is also why he is willing to share proactively. Often, organizing and expressing his thoughts can help him discover details he had previously overlooked.

However, he didn't elaborate on the deeper connections to soul research, as these topics involved highly private magical explorations and were not suitable for casual sharing with others.

“Your views on that world are very interesting,” Dumbledore said as they walked. “And it seems you have something you haven’t fully expressed.”

Dumbledore changed the subject, his tone still gentle but with a hint of insightful keenness, "To be honest, although I'm old and my hair is white, I'm happy to learn about the things that you young people like and care about, so I won't be so old-fashioned."

He picked up a pale pink fruit juice jelly ball, twirled it gently between his fingertips, and slowly popped it into his mouth. After chewing it slowly, he continued, "I can probably guess why you're reluctant to say more—do you feel that some of your ideas are too outlandish, and as a traditional wizard, I might find them hard to accept?"

That's certainly not the case.

“Principal Dumbledore, that’s not actually the case.” Dylan paused, then explained, “It’s mainly because my ideas are still just speculations, without enough experimental data to fully verify their accuracy. I’m worried that if I speak too absolutely, it might mislead your judgment.”

“So that’s why. I’m relieved.” Dumbledore smiled and stroked his white beard after hearing this. The probing look in his eyes disappeared, replaced by gentle understanding. “Having ideas but not being reckless, and knowing how to verify them carefully—that’s the attitude you should have when doing research.”

As they talked, the two walked into the principal's office.

As soon as the door opened, a fiery red figure flew up from the perch, fluttering its wings and landing lightly on Dylan's shoulder—it was Fox. Dylan skillfully took a small bag of berries he had prepared beforehand from his pocket, opened his palm, and carefully fed it to Fox's mouth.

Fox immediately lowered his head, pecking at the berries in his palm, his eyes narrowed into slits, looking exceptionally content.

Dumbledore sat in the armchair behind his desk, picked up another jelly ball and put it in his mouth, watching Dylan and Fox interact, and smiled slightly.

“I admire your research on ritual magic, Dylan. You are a good boy, and I am glad to have you as a youth representative.”

Dylan smiled and said, "I still have to thank the principal for his promotion. Otherwise, how could I have such an honor at this age?"

Dylan paused for a moment.

His thoughts were being occupied by another intense feeling.

His understanding of ritual magic seemed to have made a breakthrough in an instant.

This breakthrough did not occur out of thin air.

First, there is the support of long-term accumulation. From the moment he came into contact with magic theory, he developed a strong interest in ritual magic. For many years, he has persisted in reading relevant ancient books and recording the ritual procedures and energy usage methods of different schools.

These accumulated experiences laid a solid foundation for the breakthrough, followed by the adaptation of research methods.

He is accustomed to using the core logic of ritual magic to interpret other seemingly unrelated magical principles, such as linking the transformation of shapeshifting magic with the energy guidance of ritual magic. This cross-disciplinary way of thinking fits his cognitive habits perfectly, allowing him to find commonalities in different magical systems.

As his thoughts wandered, Dylan recalled a core deduction he had made while researching the space he had encountered at the Black Lake: magic was not exclusive to wizards, but rather a form of energy that had existed since the birth of the world.

If we break down the world further, it can actually be divided into several key parts: nature shared by all living beings, Muggles and ordinary plants and animals, and wizards and various magical creatures.

Dylan was well aware that it was not the time to delve into the question of whether magic existed in the Muggle world. After all, the Muggle lifestyle and energy perception patterns were fundamentally different from those of wizards, and understanding their connection to magic required more systematic observation and experimentation.

However, he had already made initial contact with the magic of nature through many spells, and this contact, in turn, deepened his understanding of the magic itself related to nature.

Especially after accepting and digesting Ravenclaw's theory of transfiguration magic, his understanding of nature deepened, and he realized that the relationship between wizards and nature is not one of control and being controlled, but rather one of mutual adaptation and harmonious coexistence based on understanding.

In Dylan's view, nature itself possesses powerful magical abilities.

The changing seasons and climate, from a light rain or a gust of wind to a thunderstorm or a flurry of snowflakes, are all concrete manifestations of nature's magic.

However, this magic is too vast and diffuse, like an invisible net covering the world, making it difficult for creatures living within it to perceive its existence, just as people rarely consciously notice the movement of air when they breathe it.

The process by which a wizard casts a spell is essentially the guidance and adjustment of natural magic.

When casting a spell, the wizard needs to use their own emotions to determine the tone of the weather. For example, a cheerful mood can guide a sunny day, a calm mood can summon a drizzle, and a clear memory can set the scale of the weather. Recalling a scene of a rainstorm can make the summoned rain heavier, and recalling the morning mist can create a hazy misty scene. Then, a firm will can be used to clarify the specific form of the weather, such as controlling the frequency of lightning and adjusting the size of snowflakes.

Through this combination of emotions, memories, and will, the wizard acts as a coordinator, guiding the magical energy of nature itself to be released in the expected direction, ultimately achieving the effect of magic.

This process is less about casting magic and more about cooperating with nature and guiding magic, like using a wand to conduct an orchestra. The wizard's role is to coordinate each instrument to complete a symphony of weather.

This understanding made Dylan realize that the core of ritual magic is to establish a connection with existing energy and guide it to achieve its goal through a specific process.

Magic that controls nature, and ritual magic.

Although they may seem to belong to different categories of magic, they are actually highly consistent in essence. They all achieve harmonious interaction between humans and nature, and between humans and magic, through the understanding and guidance of energy.

This understanding has also given him a deeper perspective on the energy connection between the Black Lake world and the real world.

“Actually, the wizard himself is the most crucial factor…” Dylan tilted his head. “A complete ritual spell might, under certain special circumstances, coincidentally come together with the weather conditions, the location of the required ‘medium,’ and even the trajectory of energy flow. But without the wizard’s participation, no matter how perfect the framework of the ritual spell is or how powerful the energy it contains, it cannot be truly released—because it lacks the wizard as the core ‘initiator’ and ‘guide.’”

Dumbledore watched Dylan suddenly ignore him standing beside him and instead ponder new ideas for magic. He didn't say anything, but just watched him quietly.

Dylan paced back and forth a couple of times, his fingers lightly tapping the table as his thoughts raced: "Ritual magic requires basic energy from nature, a 'medium' to build an energy channel, and a wizard to control the entire process..."

Dylan suddenly looked at Dumbledore: "Headmaster Dumbledore, I'd like to ask you a question."

“Go on,” Dumbledore gestured for him to continue.

"Do you think the mermaids in the Black Lake have beautiful songs? Or more precisely, if you compare their songs with those of mermaids in warm water, which one is more melodious?" Dylan's question was clear and specific, indicating that he already had a clear direction for thinking.

Upon hearing this, Dumbledore gently shook his head, his tone objective: "If a comparison must be made, I must say that the Black Lake mermaids' songs are indeed inferior to those of the warm water mermaids. The warm water mermaids' songs are clearer and more rhythmic, while the Black Lake mermaids' songs always carry a hint of roughness." (End of Chapter)