Hogwarts: Dumbledore reigned over the wizarding world.

Chapter 99 Iphamoni's Invitation, Test, and Training

It seemed that Vaughn had already understood.

Crouch began talking to Vaughn about North America.

He said, "I've been paying attention to the issues in North America in recent years... Don't look at me like that. In any case, I am the Director of the International Department of Magical Cooperation. This is my job."

"The Muggle governments in North America are indeed trying to crack the wizards' powers, but as everyone in the world knows, they've actually been doing this since the 2s and 30s, and after decades, they've made virtually no progress. Muggles..."

Crouch paused. "I still prefer to say Muggle... Muggles without magic can't possibly understand the power of wizards. Their so-called science does have some merit; I've looked into it in detail. Yes, nuclear weapons are incredibly powerful, but that's about it."

When it comes to the most terrifying technological achievement of Muggles, the nuclear bomb, Crouch has neither the ignorance and contempt of a typical wizard nor the fear of a Muggle.

Instead, it was a rather detached attitude, as if they were just talking about a novel oversized toy.

Vaughn knew that this detached attitude was precisely the true attitude of the wise people in the magical world towards Muggles and their creations.

It's all because Muggles don't know magic!

The longer Vaughn was exposed to magic, and the deeper he went into the path of magic, the more he understood how vulnerable Muggles were when facing wizards.

It must be acknowledged that, purely in terms of destructive power, Muggle technology applied to weapons is indeed unmatched by wizards.

The problem is that since ancient magic was phased out, the modern spell system developed by wizards has abandoned the idea of ​​prioritizing power and instead developed towards diversification.

Let's take a few of the most common spells in the magical world as an example.

First, the Forgetting Curse and the False Memory Curse!

When combined, these two spells allow a wizard to freely alter the memories of others, especially the Forgetfulness Spell, whose effects are almost permanent.

Even wizards can only deal with these two spells by using Occlumency and counter-spells. The Oblivion Spell is less effective as it erases memories too thoroughly.

And what about the Muggles?

To wizards who have mastered memory magic, their skulls are practically like public toilets—they can enter at will, completely unguarded.

As far as Vaughn knows.

Every year, the Ministry of Magic handles at least several hundred magical incidents in which wizards used memory spells on Muggles—the Forget Charm is regulated by the Ministry of Magic, but the Dream Charm and Nightmare Charm are not prohibited.

Even though the use of the Oblivion Spell is strictly limited, it has already become widespread.

Under the Department of Magical Accidents and Disasters of the Ministry of Magic, there is an organization called the "Memory Deletion Command," which serves as the office for memory deletors.

Since the implementation of the International Law on Secrecy, after hundreds of years of evolution, the once insignificant memory erasers have grown in number year by year in modern times, when Muggles frequently witness magical accidents.

Today, the Memory Deletion Command has become one of the most staffed agencies within the Ministry of Magic, second only to the Auror Office—in peacetime, the role of the Aurors has greatly diminished, while handling magical incidents and upholding the Statute of Secrecy have become the Ministry of Magic's focus.

Of course, another important reason is that the current Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge, comes from the Department of Magical Accidents and Disasters, which is considered his inner circle.

The job of a memory eraser, as the name suggests, is to erase memories, making Muggles who accidentally witness or experience magical events forget everything they saw and experienced.

In recent years, this method has become the main means for the Ministry of Magic to handle magical accidents. Even though wizards know that the Oblivion Charm is a spell that is easy to get out of control, it is hard for wizards not to choose this simplest method when faced with the unguarded minds of Muggles.

Besides memory magic, there are also spells involving the soul, such as the Confusion Charm, the Muggle Expulsion Charm, and the Imperius Charm.

These spells are ones that Muggles cannot defend against.

Especially the confusion spell.

"In my past life's memories, in *Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them*, Gettler Grindelwald used a prophetic nuclear explosion to promote the Muggle threat theory, but that was just a tactic."

Why has the wizarding world continued its leisurely life in the years since the invention of nuclear weapons, without any sense of urgency about being destroyed by Muggles? Because after the invention of nuclear weapons, wizards discovered that they were just yet another tool made by Muggles.

"To Muggles, all tools are inanimate objects, but wizards are different. Wizards see everything as imbued with spirit, so some spells are not limited to intelligent life or inanimate objects, such as the Confusion Charm!"

Vaughn's thoughts were somewhat scattered.

The Confusion Charm can not only bewitch and manipulate a person, but also bewitch and manipulate an object. In the "future," Barty Crouch Jr.'s Confusion Charm bewitched the Goblet of Fire, sending Harry into the Triwizard Tournament.

Muggle nuclear weapons are certainly terrifying, but as a tool, they are just like any other tool and can be affected by the Confusion Charm.

Imagine a wizard, maintaining a Muggle expulsion spell, walking into a Muggle nuclear weapons facility as if on a picnic, and casting a confusion spell on the nuclear bomb.

With just one spell, control of the Muggle's most powerful weapon was taken away...

Crouch, unaware of what Vaughn was pondering, said with a somber expression, "Therefore, the wizards' concessions and the advancement of the Secret Code were never due to fear of Muggles, but rather a combination of factors."

He did not elaborate on what the so-called "multiple reasons" were. The Law on Secrecy was enacted exactly 300 years ago (in 1692, the International Law on Secrecy was enacted), and everything from then on is now a distant past.

However, if we limit this scope to pure-blood families, then the psychology behind their cooperation in implementing the Law of Secrecy is quite easy to summarize—compared to enslaving Muggles who are "useless" and "have no magic," severing the connection between Muggle society and the magical world, and letting magic forever belong to pure-bloods, is clearly more in line with their ideals.

This is a consensus among pure-blood families worldwide; otherwise, the Secret Law would never have existed 300 years ago.

The North American magical world, which originated from England and adopted almost all of its systems, was no exception.

"So the essence of the conflict in North America is still that pure-blood families are using the Secrets Act in an attempt to make magic pure again."

Crouch said, "Muggle governments' threats and persecution of wizards are mostly orchestrated by themselves. I dare say that the masterminds behind the tragic examples Isabella mentioned in her letter are probably the pure-blood families of North America."

"On the one hand, they promote the Muggle threat theory and enforce the Secret Service Act, and on the other hand, they sell information about Muggle-born wizards to the Muggle government, create persecution, and exacerbate the conflict between them."

"...Very likely."

Vaughn nodded. As a man of mature thinking, he was not afraid to speculate on anything involving politics with the greatest malice.

However, what Vaughn didn't understand was why Crouch was telling him all this?

He soon got the answer.

"The reason I'm telling you this is to tell you that you don't need to try to get Isabella back through the pure-blood family or through me and Dumbledore. She's now caught in such a huge vortex, and none of us who are outside the situation can do anything about it."

"Including the Watchers organization she's now joined, they're probably not exactly clean either. These organizations that issued death threats to pureblood families as soon as the conflict became public are either stupid or malicious. They might even be tools used by some radical families to 'persuade' other purebloods."

"Given her surname and the conflict with the Graves family, if we intervene rashly, it could very well backfire."

Upon hearing this, Vaughn paused for a moment, then suddenly realized.

He hadn't thought about it that way before, but when Crouch subtly mentioned it, he immediately realized it.

Humans are creatures that find it difficult to unify their goals and thoughts. Perhaps all pure-blooded people in the world want to drive out mixed-race and Muggle-born wizards, but in terms of specific actions, differences are bound to exist.

With so many pure-blood families in North America, it's impossible for all of them to want to achieve their goals using such radical methods.

Where there are radicals, there are also conservatives.

Vaughn recalled Isabella's letter about the pure-blood families who had received death threats. Connecting this to Crouch's earlier words, he looked at him and asked, "You suspect that the radicals are using organizations like the Watchmen to force the conservatives onto the war machine? Like Graves?"

Crouch nodded: "From a political perspective, there is no irreconcilable contradiction between radicalism and conservatism. The difference between the two lies only in their different propositions and different paces of action. This is not immutable; it just requires external pressure..."

This external pressure could come from so-called "thug groups" composed of Muggle wizards in North America, or it could come from... other countries!

Vaughan's mind suddenly became clear.

Crouch was right. Under the current circumstances, it was indeed not appropriate for him and Dumbledore to step in. In fact, any attempt by any force outside North America to intervene would immediately jeopardize the situation in North America.

Radicalism usually means a tendency to get out of control, and given the current powder keg-like state of the North American magical community, once it gets out of control, it could very well mean war!

Thinking about this gave Vaughn a headache.

He had originally thought that the chaos in North America was far away from him. Although he had paid some attention to it before, he didn't really feel it. Unexpectedly, the fire of chaos suddenly burned right next to him.

Because he suddenly realized that Crouch's previous long speeches, explaining the essence of the situation in North America, were likely not just because of Isabella Rozier.

really.

When Vaughn asked, Crouch's serious face twitched a few times, but he still pulled a thick parchment envelope from his pocket.

He handed the envelope to Vaughn and said dryly, "Actually, I don't think you should get involved in this mess. Without Dumbledore, the influence of pure-blood families in the North American wizarding world extends to every aspect. There's only one place they can't easily interfere with, and that place has now become a gathering place for half-blood and Muggle-born wizards, and it's also the place with the most serious conflicts in the North American wizarding world..."

Vaughn looked at the envelope.

The envelope was printed with a huge coat of arms, consisting of crossed ribbons and four animal figures. For a moment, Vaughn thought he was seeing the shield of Hogwarts.

In the world, besides Hogwarts, only one other magic school—Hogwarts—uses four animal images in its emblems.

Crouch uttered the name in a dry voice: "—Ivermoni! Yesterday, the International Wizarding Federation forwarded me an invitation to travel to North America this summer for an academic exchange on potions and to discuss the possibility of establishing a branch of the Werewolf Affairs Committee in North America!"

Hearing Crouch's words and looking at the letter, Vaughn was stunned...

……

Vaughn returned to Hogwarts at night.

He had just stepped out of Professor McGonagall's office when the twins caught him red-handed.

Today, the twins are in deep trouble.

Given that Ron had previously tested the drug on himself and achieved remarkable results, earning him a three-day vacation, the twins' truancy candy business not only covered all seven grades of Gryffindor, but also expanded to other schools.

Even Slytherin, who have the worst relationship with Gryffindor, had many fifth and seventh-year students who couldn't handle the academic pressure and secretly placed orders.

When the scandal broke, Gryffindor's clients, out of consideration for being in the same college, didn't push them too far.

The Hufflepuff badgers are always honest and simple-minded; at most, they'll urge the twins a little, and then they'll just wait patiently for the twins to pay them back.

But Ravenclaw and Slytherin are not so easily fooled, especially Slytherin. Those guys always have to annoy Gryffindor for no reason, let alone now that they're so self-righteous.

As soon as get out of class ended, Malfoy, along with his two henchmen and several fifth-year "victims," ​​unfurled a banner at the entrance of the Gryffindor Tower.

The inscription reads, "Weasley owes no money, Redhead drinks blood and sweat."

Even during class, he didn't stop. He bribed several Slytherin students in the same grade as the twins to wear enchanted armbands in class and repeatedly demonstrate the phrase on the banner.

Although there was no physical attack or bullying, this humiliation, which was comparable to social death, broke the twins' defenses far more than any actual harm.

So much so that when Vaughn saw the two of them, he almost didn't recognize them—their red hair was a mess, their faces were pale and haggard, and they were no longer the lively and optimistic people they used to be.

The two looked at Vaughn eagerly.

After today's ordeal, their ambitions had long since crumbled under the pressure from their creditors and the humiliation inflicted by Slytherin.

Their oft-repeated phrase, "Weasley never goes back on his word," suddenly became a joke.

Now, all they want is to get their deposit back as soon as possible. In the afternoon, the two contacted the shop where they had purchased the raw materials, trying to get them to take them back.

However, this is a case of water from afar not quenching an immediate thirst. Furthermore, with raw materials coming in and going out, there's no hope of getting a full refund. Their only hope of plugging the gap now lies with Vaughn.

Unfortunately, Vaughn has no time to care about them right now.

Ignoring the twins' attempt to cling to his leg, Vaughn told them to wait at the Room of Requirement before hurrying off to the principal's office.

As usual, Dumbledore started with dessert, and then Vaughn refused without hesitation once again. Only then did he shake his head regretfully, unfold the invitation Vaughn handed him, and look at it:

"Oh—an invitation from Ilfamoni, that's quite rare. The North American magical community is very closed off; they've always disliked paying attention to other countries and magic schools, always wanting to shut themselves off and live their own little lives..."

This was common knowledge, and Vaughn, not wanting to listen to his rambling, interrupted, "What do you think Iphamoni's plans are?"

Dumbledore smiled, his azure eyes as bright as the moon outside a window: "Clearly, Vaughn, you've shown the world the potential of werewolves. Ilfamoni wants to recruit werewolves through you!"

"If we consider werewolves as a kind of magical creature, then they are probably the most widely distributed species in the world... I apologize, please forgive an old man's pedantic and stubborn view, I always unconsciously exclude werewolves from humans."

"I can understand. After all, you're over a hundred years old, practically buried up to your eyebrows."

Vaughn, who was already used to Dumbledore's catchphrases, said sarcastically.

Dumbledore smiled nonchalantly and continued, "Werewolf disease—oh, I almost forgot you wrote a paper renaming it the werewolf virus… Anyway, the unique mechanism of the werewolf virus makes the expansion of the werewolf population almost unimpeded."

"Even if a place has never had werewolves before, as long as there is one in the past, it can quickly infect a group."

"The Americas are a major area where werewolves are rampant, which is related to its development history. As you know from your familiarity with Muggles, Muggles did not use normal labor to expand their colonies, but rather slaves, criminals, and death row inmates."

"The same applies to the magical world as to Muggle society. However, compared to the vast population of Muggles, the small number of wizards would be a huge waste to use for colonization. So, some people set their sights on werewolves."

"While the werewolf virus is certainly a disaster for Muggles and wizards, it is not entirely useless in the eyes of some. At least when they go berserk on the night of the full moon, they are the most efficient killing machines. They are physically strong and ruthless, and almost no weapon can harm them except magic."

"Any life before them is at their mercy. What's even more terrifying is that as long as some powerful wizards are sent to intervene and prevent them from killing all the lives, the more Muggles they scratch and bite, the more the werewolf virus spreads, and this killing machine will grow larger and larger..."

As he spoke, Dumbledore sighed, "In order to develop the Americas, wizards at that time captured werewolves and vampires all over Europe and threw them there. It's hard for us now to imagine how chaotic and bloody the Americas were back then."

Vaughn was somewhat taken aback.

For some reason, he suddenly remembered a movie he had seen in his previous life, "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter," a bizarre film that drastically altered American history, portraying the Civil War as a war between humans and vampires.

The scene described by Dumbledore gave him the sudden illusion that he had traveled back in time.

Seeing his bewildered expression, Dumbledore shook his head: "I know you find it absurd, but in those days, everyone went mad. The New World, the New Land, trade, gold... profit drove people all over the continent to become devils."

"Since the birth of wizards, no era has been as crazy as that one. The current history of magic is vague about what happened back then, but from the details we can tell that the Statute of Secrets was not just because of the witch hunts of Muggles."

"Including the several wars waged by Muggles in the Americas, it is very likely that they were related to the werewolves and vampires eventually getting out of control in the Americas... The wizards of that time chose to bury everything, but some traces cannot be erased, such as the werewolf population in the Americas, which was much larger than in Europe."

"According to an investigation by the International Federation of Wizards, there may be tens of thousands of werewolves and thousands of vampires throughout the Americas... These are problems left over from hundreds of years ago."

At this point, Dumbledore paused and added, "This intelligence was gathered 60 years ago when Grindelwald was wreaking havoc in North America. In order to find out his whereabouts, the Federation was able to force the Magical Congress to open its borders. Since then, the Magical Congress has no longer allowed the Federation to interfere. Nobody knows what the situation is now."

Having said that, he gazed intently at Vaughn with his bright, azure eyes: "But it's conceivable that the werewolves of North America must be a tremendous force, so powerful that they could very well directly determine the situation there, and your werewolf poison and werewolf affairs committee could very well be the key to influencing that situation!"

Vaughn remained silent.

He certainly understood what Dumbledore meant. According to the intelligence revealed by Crouch, the main conflict in North America was between pure-blood families and half-blood, Muggle-born wizards.

In this conflict, Ephamoni chose to protect half-bloods and Muggles, which forced it to stand against the pure-blood families.

To fight against all the pure-blood families with a magic school is something even Hogwarts, with Dumbledore, couldn't do, let alone Ilfamani.

Therefore, Iphamoni began to try to win over magical creatures.

This wasn't the first time this magic school had done something like this. When it was first founded, it tried to win over Pukki—a magical creature with a bloodline similar to fairies, short in stature, with gray skin, and possessing powerful magic.

If that were all there was to it, then Vaughn wouldn't have much to hesitate about. He could simply accept the invitation, go to North America, expand the Werewolf Affairs Committee, spread his fame, and incidentally rescue Isabella.

However, if werewolves become the key to changing the situation, then the problem becomes more serious.

At the very least, those pure-blood families certainly won't sit idly by and watch tens of thousands of werewolves join Iphamoni's camp; it's hard to say what methods they will use.

Seeing Vaughn's unusual furrowed brow in thought, he hesitated.

Dumbledore's smiling expression returned: "My dear, there are still three months until summer vacation, you can take your time to think it over."

Vaughn rolled his eyes at him: "Are you gloating?"

"No, no, no, I just find it very interesting that as you progress faster and faster on the path of magic, it seems that nothing can trouble you anymore."

That old bastard!

"Stop talking nonsense, what's your suggestion?" Vaughn asked impatiently.

"I have no advice. If I were to speak solely from the principal's perspective, I would advise you not to go. Matters in the Americas are unrelated to Europe, and you, as a student, should not be put in danger."

With that, Dumbledore smiled and said, "But I am not just a headmaster, and you, Vaughn, are not just a student!"

……

Vaughn had no idea what riddle Dumbledore was playing at once.

He was too lazy to ask any more questions. This old man was a master of riddles and was good at playing the fool, so he couldn't get anything out of him.

Vaughn wasn't discouraged by not getting advice from Dumbledore. Ultimately, he had to make the decision himself. Besides, Dumbledore was right; there were still three months to consider and carefully weigh the options.

At the very least, it's worthwhile to take this time to brush up on the history and related events of the North American magical world and understand the situation there.

But that won't start until tomorrow.

Currently, Vaughn also has to deal with his two older brothers and show them some "care" as a younger brother!

The corridor outside the House of Requests.

As instructed by Vaughn, the twins, who had arrived early, paced back and forth anxiously.

Across from the tapestry, Guo Guocha squatted by the wall, staring at the twins moving back and forth with his huge round eyes. The door of the Room of Requirement had already appeared above his head.

Because of Vaughn, the two had known about this magical place for several months. However, Vaughn often came here to practice magic and read books, and the twins, not wanting to disturb their younger brother, did not come very often.

Normally, they might have been curious enough to explore further, but now, with their minds preoccupied, the two of them had no time for it and were even too lazy to pay attention to the fruit tea.

After pacing back and forth for a while, the twins suddenly stopped, looking dejected.

"Fred, I think our good days are over."

Fred sighed, "Yes, George, the last person in the family willing to support our research may very well not support us anymore!"

The twins are very intelligent, with both high IQ and EQ.

Previously, the two were only focused on finding a way to balance the accounts and hadn't thought much about it. Now that they had calmed down and carefully considered Vaughn's attitude, they had to pessimistically realize that Vaughn, who had always supported them, might also abandon them this time.

"It's all your fault, George! Why did you have to show off in front of him those days? You knew perfectly well that our dear brother is petty!"

"Shut up! You were the one who said you wanted to show our petty-minded brother what we'd accomplished!"

"Don't talk nonsense, I never said that."

"I don't have any either."

The twins would routinely shift blame and bicker, then sneakily glance around the corridor whenever they remembered something, just in case some petty person suddenly appeared.

Then, they looked at the fruit tea.

"Is it watching us?"

"Um……"

"I've heard that tabby cats are very clever. What if it tells on me?"

"Are you crazy, Fred? Cats can't talk, and besides, it's a hybrid!"

"That's true!"

Guoguocha's round eyes narrowed to slits, reflecting the twins pacing back and forth, sighing.

Listen to them discuss:

"How about... we threaten him with his dating life?"

"How can I threaten you? Mom's been hoping we'd find girlfriends at school; she's been preparing our prom dresses since the day we enrolled!"

"Then what do you suggest we do?"

"I think we should be more assertive and negotiate with him. Yes, we did make some mistakes this time, but it wasn't our fault! It's the school that's suppressing us. I firmly believe that once this storm passes, the 'Skipping Class Candy' series will definitely be a huge hit!"

"Then you'd better be tough later, don't let him scare you into kneeling down."

"Heh, are you talking about yourself, George?"

The two exchanged sarcastic laughs and pointed at each other, but soon put their arms around each other's shoulders and whispered to each other about their strategy for dealing with Vaughn's arrival.

Ten minutes later, a series of crisp footsteps appeared in the darkness of the corridor.

Before long, in the dim light of the torches in the corridor, Vaughn walked over. His brows were slightly furrowed, as if he was immersed in some kind of trouble. He didn't even greet the twins, but directly picked up the fruit tea that was there to greet him, opened the door of the Room of Requirement, and went inside.

His voice came only after we went inside: "Come in!"

The twins exchanged a glance, reminding each other to be firm and not to back down, before following each other into the Room of Requirement.

The room was summoned by the two of them while they were pacing back and forth outside. It was an ordinary abandoned classroom with almost no furnishings.

As the two walked in, they saw Vaughn pull out his wand, point it at the ground, and an old table turned into a chair with a backrest. The chair shuffled over to Vaughn and helped him sit down.

Vaughn picked up the fruit tea and looked at the twins.

Before he could even speak, the twins, who had been warning each other to be tough just a moment before, suddenly pounced on Vaughn, hugging his legs on either side and accusing him in unison:

"My dear brother, I'm reporting George (Fred) for calling you petty!"

The two were stunned for a moment, then glared at each other angrily:

"You despicable liar George, I knew you were up to no good with those words!"

"Aren't you the same? Trying to seduce me into belittling my dearest brother, attempting to ruin our relationship!"

Fruit Tea, perched on Vaughn's lap, tucked its front paws in, its head bobbing left and right, curiously watching the twins undermine each other, before meowing at Vaughn.

Upon hearing this, Vaughn tilted his head and looked at the two of them with a half-smile: "I heard you two are going to be a bit tougher on me?"

The twins stared blankly at Fruit Tea, who was still tucking her paws in and looking at them with curiosity, and stammered, "It... no, she can talk?"

Vaughn smiled without saying a word.

Of course, Guoguocha cannot speak. In fact, he has woven a persona into Guoguocha, which can collect everything Guoguocha sees and hears, and convey some simple information to him when Vaughn approaches, and can also be read by him through mind control.

The specific effect is somewhat similar to the magical world's innate Legilimency.

However, those born with the ability to manipulate thoughts cannot control themselves and will receive the divergent thoughts of anyone. But the technique developed by Vaughn only receives the thoughts of beings whose personalities he has implanted.

This was originally a technology he developed to continuously monitor Little Barty's mental world, but he later discovered that it could be used on pets, allowing him and his pets to communicate across languages.

The twins, of course, didn't understand such advanced things. Apart from alchemy, which they were interested in, these two guys had always been mediocre in other areas.

But at the same time, their alchemy is indeed quite interesting.

Thinking it over, Vaughn opened his bag and took out a skip-class candy.

Many people think that the candies developed by the twins are magic potions, but in fact, they have little to do with magic potions; they are a type of alchemy.

A magical effect created from "nothingness" by using "ether" and potion ingredients.

Previously, Vaughn did not understand alchemy and his understanding of the twins' talents was limited to their imaginative way of thinking and their enthusiasm for pranks.

It wasn't until he could finally understand the introductory books on alchemy that he realized the twins' seemingly unreliable alchemical skills actually contained much more potential.

It's such a waste that they used it to make prank props.

Vaughn looked at the twins, hesitated for a moment, and said, "I heard from Hermione that you want to borrow money from me to pay off your deposit?"

Fred and George nodded repeatedly.

Vaughn smiled, reopened his bag, and while rummaging through it, asked the twins' anxious gazes, "What can you offer me in return for your help?"

"Well……"

The two looked at each other, not because they couldn't accept the "effort," but because they didn't know how they could help Vaughn.

Vaughn didn't expect them to answer. He rummaged through his satchel for a moment, pulled out a small box, opened it, and inside lay two Muggle light bulbs—

Fred and George had seen this before; their father had removed the headlights and taillights from the car when he was fixing it.

The two looked at the light bulb, then at Vaughn, completely bewildered.

Vaughn didn't say anything, but continued to rummage through his bag, finding the lamp holder, wires, and batteries, and assembling them.

The twins watched his movements silently.

The two were no strangers to these things. Influenced by Arthur and Vaughn, they had been exposed to things from Muggle society since childhood, and had even personally modified many Muggle technological products.

Once Warn has assembled the bulb, screw it into the socket and turn on the switch.

The light bulb did not light up.

One of the twins then "kindly" reminded him, "Dear brother, Hogwarts is filled with magic, which greatly interferes with the magnetic field. Muggle technology won't work here."

Vaughn nodded, thanking him for the reminder: "Thank you, but if I remember correctly, it was I who told you this, right when you first enrolled, that your radios were broken and you thought you'd been ripped off by a Muggle merchant."

"..."

The twins scratched their faces simultaneously, a little embarrassed, and quickly changed the subject: "So, dear little brother, what do you want us to do?"

Vaughn stopped mocking them and, looking at the light bulb he had assembled, stated his plan: "I hope you will temporarily set aside your pranks and use your alchemical knowledge to make the light bulb work at Hogwarts, or simply abandon Muggle electricity and research and create a magical lamp!"

"……what?"

The twins looked at each other in bewilderment.

For the two of them, making prank props is like their faith and soul; to give it up, even temporarily, would be very difficult for them.

But now they needed Vaughn's help, and the two didn't dare to refuse directly. After stammering for a while, one of the twins, it was unclear whether it was Fred or George, finally spoke up and argued:

"What's the point of this? Hogwarts has magical braziers and oil lamps, and we know illumination charms..."

Before he could finish speaking, Vaughn interrupted him: "More than a hundred years ago, Muggles had oil lamps and gas lamps, so why did they invent electric lights?"

The twins were somewhat bewildered; they were not yet old enough to think about such questions, so naturally they couldn't answer why.

Vaughn didn't want to lecture them or offer empty platitudes; he simply said, "In short, I only have one request: how much money is needed to pay off the deposit?"

Seeing that their younger brother was adamant and there was no room for negotiation, the twins finally realized the reality: this time, unlike before, they could not get away with throwing tantrums and acting spoiled.

"12 Galleons."

The two men slumped their shoulders, looking listless, but they didn't just make things up. Instead, they added, "Just give us 4 Galleons. We're dealing with the raw materials we bought earlier, and we should be able to scrape together 8 to 9 Galleons."

Vaughn ignored him and pulled out a small bag of gold coins: "Here are 20 Galleons, which is for the materials I buy for you, as well as your research expenses... You know my personality. I'm very serious this time. I will not only supervise your progress regularly, but also have requirements for the time to produce results. I hope you can complete this research before the end of summer vacation, whether it is solving the problem of using electric lights at Hogwarts or creating a magic lamp."

"At that time, I will no longer restrict your research and development of prank gadgets, and I will even fund you until 'Weasley's Magic Tricks' is established... although in my opinion, by then you may no longer care about any tricks!"

The twins hummed vaguely.

The Magic Tricks Studio is their life's work and career, how could they possibly give it up so easily?

After receiving the money bag from Vaughn, the twins were finally able to settle their debts, but they were not happy at all, not only because of their younger brother's coercion, but also because the time Vaughn had set was too tight.

One of the twins decided to try one more time: "Vaughn, it's impossible to finish this over the summer. We've never done research in this direction before. You need to give us some more time."

The voice just fell.

They saw Vaughn pull out a rather old-fashioned radio, made entirely of wood. As Vaughn turned it on, a crackling broadcast immediately came out.

This is a magic radio!

Rare in the magical world, products that combine magic with Muggle technology include radio stations that come with a radio. These are also a fusion of magic and technology, using magic to replace electricity while still achieving the same effect, and they are not distorted by magical magnetic fields.

This kind of thing isn't uncommon; the Weasleys have one, and Molly often uses it to listen to gossip and interesting stories.

"Whether it's using alchemy to protect the electromagnetic field from magical distortion, or replacing electricity with magic, this radio incorporates both. With such a finished product available for you to disassemble and learn from, I believe a simple problem like a light bulb shouldn't be too difficult for you!"

Seeing that their younger brother had prepared so thoroughly, and having confirmed his attitude once again, the twins reluctantly agreed.

Only after leaving the Room of Requirement did the twins whisper resentfully, "Look how well he prepared—money, finished technology, research ideas… I bet George, he's been eyeing us for a long time."

"That's right, Fred. That cunning fellow, he must have deliberately avoided us this morning, just to make us suffer so he could exploit us!"

"Those despicable capitalists!"

"That's right, Fred! But... at least I can finally get a good night's sleep tonight, sigh..."

Touching the small purse, the heavy Galleons inside brought them immense peace of mind. Although they had paid the price of their freedom, the feeling of being chased by debt collectors was far worse.

The twins walked away, feeling both relieved and disappointed. Guoguocha, who had been squatting by the door watching them leave, flicked its tail, turned around and went back to the Requirement House. It jumped onto Vaughn's lap, who was already writing something in his notebook, and meowed at him.

Vaughn tilted his ear, then smiled and ruffled Fruit Tea's hair:

"Oh, don't worry about them, Guoguocha. I just want to work on their character flaws and get them to settle down. Also, I don't want their talents to go to waste."

Meow~

"No, I respect their hobbies, but reality is not a fairy tale, and the magical world is not as safe as it seems. As wizards, we can have hobbies, but we cannot abandon the right path because of them. Doing so will only harm them in the end."

Guoguocha didn't make a sound again, but affectionately nuzzled Vaughn's chin before jumping off him and lying down to rest.

Vaughn continued writing in his notebook.

What he said to Guoguocha was indeed his own thought. He hadn't realized it before, but after he gained the talent for alchemy, he truly recognized that the twins' talent in alchemy was actually quite extraordinary.

In particular, their newly developed "Skipping Class Candy" series uses alchemy to achieve the effects of a magic potion, taking a unique and unconventional approach.

He had always felt that the twins' free-spirited and wild nature was not a good thing, and now he was even less willing to see them continue to waste their talents on crooked paths.

He intends to guide them back to the right path, both to prevent them from repeating the same fate they will face in the future, and in the hope that someone can help him.

As he thought about it, Vaughn paused, his pen poised as he wrote in his notebook.

He suddenly recalled Dumbledore's ambiguous attitude towards his decision regarding whether or not he should accept the invitation to go to North America.

"...That old guy, could he also be thinking the same thing, trying to test and train me?"

(End of this chapter)