Chapter 196: The Enigma of the Shrinking Charm

Chapter 196: The Enigma of the Shrinking Charm

On the first weekend of the new school year, Felix Harp found himself incredibly busy.

With the first Dueling class approaching, he had to swiftly finalize the choice for the third permanent professor. In private, he sought the opinions of Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick.

Professor McGonagall politely declined, stating that she was also holding the position of Deputy Headmistress, and the school's numerous trivial matters demanded her attention.

"If it's an occasional participation once or twice, I would be quite willing," she told Felix.

On the other hand, progress on the other front was going remarkably well. Almost as soon as Felix broached the subject, Professor Flitwick eagerly accepted the invitation, as if he had been waiting for this day.

From a neutral perspective, Felix also agreed that Professor Flitwick was the most suitable candidate.

As the head of the Dueling class, he had to consider the difficulty and learnability of the spells taught, as he was dealing with students from all seven years of the school.

And as an experienced professor of Charms, Professor Flitwick undoubtedly possessed numerous techniques to simplify the learning process of spells.

In contrast, Transfiguration appeared to be more challenging—using Transfiguration skillfully in a duel wasn't an easy task. It demanded wizards to cast nonverbal spells rapidly and possess a vivid imagination for dueling.

Even among the older students at Hogwarts, performing complex biological transfigurations silently was a daunting feat, not to mention in a combat scenario.

"Transfiguration is the realm of geniuses, representing the boundless possibilities of magic," wrote a Dueling grandmaster skilled in Transfiguration in a magical scroll. Felix partly agreed with his perspective.

Headmaster Ravenclaw's Office.

After resolving the invitation matter, Felix and Professor Flitwick spent nearly a day discussing improvements to the "Reducing Charm."Ñøv€lRapture marked the initial hosting of this chapter on Ñôv€lß¡n.

"The performance of the Reducing Charm on magical creatures isn't impressive. Of course, it might be because the current test subject is only the Flobberworm, which isn't representative," Felix extracted a set of test data from a ring and handed it to Professor Flitwick.

The Flobberworm was a ten-inch-long worm, generally brownish in color, and it liked to dwell in damp environments. Its presence could be observed in the shaded areas of the Forbidden Forest.

Although the slime of Flobberworms could thicken magical potions, they were not highly regarded due to their commonness, akin to kneazles. They served as a food source for other magical creatures within the Forbidden Forest, positioned at the bottom of the entire biological chain.

Therefore, Felix carried out tests on Flobberworms without any psychological burden, as there were no legal concerns. However, the results were often far from splendid. Pustules grew on the already ugly worms, rendering them quite fearsome.

And crucially, he still couldn't identify the issue.

Felix nodded, saying, "That's exactly what I was thinking. Philius, did you discover anything just now?"

"Goodness, it's truly miraculous... I did uncover some intriguing details." Professor Flitwick waved his wand, restoring the room's arrangement, then flicked his wand to release a cloud of bronze-colored smoke.

The smoke constantly shifted its form, conjuring a phantom wizard casting a spell. Felix recognized it as the scene of his own incantation.

"Here, here, and here... there are extremely subtle imbalances in these three positions." Professor Flitwick used the smoky figure to illustrate what he had seen.

Felix gazed at the image and murmured, "I hadn't noticed any of this before."

Professor Flitwick laughed heartily, "It's difficult to notice when you're researching alone, but in any case, we have a new direction."

Leaving the office, Felix paid another visit to the Potions Master's office. He discussed the teaching content for the new school year with Snape and informed him about inviting Professor Flitwick.

Snape looked at him skeptically, "I thought you might invite that Lupon fellow."

Felix stared at him without saying a word. Isn't the reason obvious?

Perhaps his gaze was too direct, as it left Snape somewhat irritated. "I have things to attend to. If you don't mind, Felix..."

...

In the evening, Felix was in his office organizing materials for the Runes Club. It wasn't until Hermione knocked on the door to receive her Runes training that he realized he had missed dinner.

Unlock exclusive early access to more than 100 chapters before anyone else by becoming a valued member of my Patreon community.

As a cherished member of our Patreon community, here is what you'll get:

For just $5, you'll receive:

Early access to 100s of chapters before they go public. (check all the novels I'm translating from HERE, all the novels have 100s of exclusive early access chapters and some are complete.)Your name prominently featured on the "Wall of Gratitude".The power to vote on which novel I should translate next.

If you decide to pledge $10, you'll get all the perks from the $5 tier, plus:

You get to suggest a Novel (Chinese or Korean) for me to translate, It may take some time for me to do it but it will be done as soon as possible.Your name prominently featured on the "Wall of Gratitude" (in gold).

And if you're feeling generous with a $20 pledge, you'll unlock all the perks from the $5 tier and $10 tier, plus:

You get to recommend a Novel (Chinese or Korean) and I will immediately start translating it.You get to recommend an abandoned Novel (Chinese or Korean) and I will immediately start translating it.Your name featured at the top of the "Wall of Gratitude".

Don't let this amazing opportunity slip through your fingers!