Hogwarts' Golden Glory

A month later, Hogwarts had returned to its usual rhythm.

Cheers erupted again in the Quidditch pitch—Draco had finally snatched the Golden Snitch from Harry in the Slytherin vs. Gryffindor match with Nimbus 2001, despite Harry's insistence that it was a foul.

The library was packed with students preparing for the OWLs and NEWTs exams, and Hermione was already making a study schedule for the exams three years from now.

Kane Malfoy stood atop the Astronomy Tower, his wand tracing intricate paths across the night sky.

The silver-blue magic condensed in the air without dissipating, forming a three-dimensional array of ancient runes—the "Magic Resonance Test Array" that he had reconstructed from the Slytherin Chamber manuscripts.

However, cracks appeared the moment the array was completed.

"The seventy-third time," Kane muttered to himself, his grey-blue eyes fixed on the crumbling rune array.

bottleneck.

It's not about knowledge, but about the limits of the magic container.

It's like a glass that's already full of water; no matter how much you pour in, the water level won't rise any further.

Over the past month, his magical theories, spell mastery, and combat skills have all improved, but his total magical power has stagnated.

"Is this the limit of magic?" He put away his wand, letting the night wind disperse the last vestiges of magic.

Footsteps came from the stairs, very light, but with a distinctive rhythm of hooves treading on the stone steps.

"Frenzer." Kane didn't turn around.

The centaur approached him, its silvery-white body gleaming faintly in the moonlight: "The stars indicate you'll be here tonight. Mars has entered Capricorn, a sign of breaking through a bottleneck."

"Is the ceremony ready?"

"The full moon will be in three days." Ferrenze's blue eyes gazed into the depths of the Forbidden Forest. "But the High Priest asked me to remind you—'Starlight Infusion' is not an ordinary increase in magic power. It will change the way you connect with the magical world, permanently."

Kane turned around: "How exactly will things change?"

“Everyone is different,” Ferenc said. “Some people gain an affinity for certain elements, some awaken prophetic abilities, and some…” he paused, “see things they shouldn’t see.”

"for example?"

"The very texture of magic itself. The flow of life. Even... the omens of death."

Kane's lips curled into a slight smile: "Sounds very useful."

"It's also dangerous," Ferenc said seriously. "Seeing too much is sometimes more terrifying than not seeing at all. Bain's uncle spent ten years learning how to 'shut down' that vision after undergoing the ritual."

"I understand." Kane nodded. "Three days from now, midnight, at the entrance to the Forbidden Forest."

Full moon night.

The air at the edge of the Forbidden Forest was as thick as liquid, and the moonlight gilded the treetops with a silvery edge. Kane wore a simple black robe—the ritual required that no magical items be brought in, not even his wand, which had to be left outside the border.

Ferenze was already waiting, with Bain and two other elderly centaur warriors standing beside him.

"Follow the starlight." Ferenze pointed to the ground—a path paved with luminescent fungi winding its way into the depths of the forest.

They proceeded in silence. The deeper they went, the older the trees became, some oaks bearing ancient runes that Kane didn't recognize. Occasionally, a Bowtruckle would peek out from a branch, only to retreat again upon seeing the centaur caravan.

Forty minutes later, they arrived at the ceremony site.

It wasn't the open space surrounded by stone pillars like last time, but a naturally formed, bowl-shaped valley.

The valley floor is a smooth, black rock with silver veins covering its surface, like a solidified galaxy.

Twelve centaurs—six males and six females—were already waiting at the edge of the rock, forming a perfect circle.

Xing Tong stood at the center of the circle, a new, larger crystal now embedded in the crystal groove on her forehead, with liquid starlight flowing inside.

"Take off your shoes and stand in the center." The old man's voice echoed in the silent valley.

Kane did as he was told. The rock surface was cold, but the silver veins began to warm slightly the moment they touched his skin.

"The ritual is divided into three stages." Star Pupil began chanting the ancient incantation, and the other centaurs echoed in unison, their voices like a polyphonic chorus. "The first stage—Starlight Guidance."

The twelve horsemen simultaneously raised their front hooves and stomped heavily on the ground.

The rocks at the bottom of the valley suddenly became transparent, revealing a vast illusion of a starry sea below.

The real starry sky pours down from above, connecting with the sea of ​​stars in the rocks, enveloping Kane in a three-dimensional celestial sphere.

"Feel the breath of the stars." Ferenze's voice echoed directly in Kane's mind. "Don't resist, let them flow into your magical circuits."

Tingling.

It felt like countless silver needles were coursing through his veins, but the stinging pain quickly transformed into a strange warmth. Kane closed his eyes and saw the magical network within his body being redrawn by the silver starlight—the existing magical channels were widened, and new branches were being generated.

This process lasted about fifteen minutes.

"Second stage - Bloodline Resonance." Xing Tong's voice began to tremble, and the crystal on her forehead emitted a dazzling light.

Three female centaurs stepped forward, each biting open their front hooves and dripping blood onto specific spots on the rocks.

The blood did not spread, but flowed along the silver veins to Kane's feet, forming three intertwined rings.

Kane suddenly saw the image—

It doesn't happen with the eyes, but directly in the consciousness.

An ancient forest, in an era when centaurs fought alongside wizards.

A battle against dark creatures, in which a centaur elder, on his deathbed, pours all his magical power into a human wizard...

"This is our memory," Bain said breathlessly, "and the origin of the ritual—Star Infusion was originally a battlefield first aid spell used to transfer power to allies when they were dying."

The images continued to flow. Kane saw more: the migration of the centaur tribes, the war with the eight-eyed spiders, the alliances with other magical creatures in the Forbidden Forest...

"The third stage—" Xing Tong's voice was hoarse, "The contract is complete!"

All the centaurs let out a long howl at the same time.

Suddenly, the full moon above the valley cast a solid beam of moonlight, shining directly on Kane.

excruciating pain.

This time it was truly excruciating pain, like molten silver being poured into my bone marrow.

Kane clenched his teeth and didn't make a sound, but his body trembled uncontrollably.

He saw more—

The magical textures, like a net woven from countless colorful threads, enveloped the entire world.

The flow of life, from a blade of grass to an ancient tree, from a beetle to a thestral, all living things have similar yet different lights flowing within them.

And...death.

It wasn't a concrete form, but a black, slowly spreading mist, swirling around certain creatures. He looked at Ferenze—the centaur was surrounded by a healthy, silvery-blue aura, but there was a very faint trace of black mist around his left foreleg.