Chapter 70 - The founders
After dinner, the excited students headed to their dormitories. Interestingly, in ELYSIUM, there is no prohibition on nighttime strolls, but it becomes your concern if lack of sleep hinders your focus in class. If someone receives 6 "unsatisfactory" marks out of 10 subjects in the annual exam, they face expulsion. Such individuals must then attend the School of Magic. Both Elysium and Nurmergard academies are currently in dire need of professors. Due to the shortage, Elysium operates at only 1/4 of its full capacity, and a similar situation persists in Nurmergard, though not as critically. Both academies are actively searching for teachers.
The next morning, students dispersed to their respective classes. Class S began the day with a lesson on "communication with the curator" and followed it with a course on "combat magic," also taught by Asmodeus. Thus, they spent the entire morning together.
Entering the classroom, students settled into their seats, discussing their expectations for the lesson. Time passed gradually, and with just 1 minute left before the class, Asmodeus was still absent. As everyone began to think that the academy director would be late for the first lesson, Asmodeus flew in through the open window.
"Well, did I arrive on time?"
Seeing Asmodeus in action, Cedric and his companions whispered quietly.
"Show-off..."
"Uh, did I hear someone dissatisfied?"
"No, no, no."
Cedric was the first to deny everything, remembering the last time Asmodeus took him for a celestial journey. He understood that joking about flying with Asmodeus was not a good idea.
"Alright, I don't take offense, especially since after some time, you'll understand why I came to class this morning like this.
Our first lesson is dedicated to communication and getting to know each other.
I need to understand each of you better before I can carefully devise a training program for you.
When I have a better grasp of your strengths, I'll set a goal for each of you for the next month.
I'll skip the group of students familiar to me from Hogwarts for now, let's start with you, Miss Torbils. How are your overall magical achievements?"
"Um, I studied magic at home before classes started and noticed that I excel in levitation spells and anything related to moving objects."
"Good, good. As a mage with an affinity for the air element, you should focus on your strengths. By the way... about air."
With a smooth motion of his hands, Asmodeus conjured an air sphere around him, allowing him to fly.
"This is still too complex for you, but this, you should be able to master within the next month."
While Asmodeus spoke, he compressed the sphere into a smaller but denser ball and began rolling on it like a scooter.
"This is the means of transportation for an air mage, an air scooter. Margerit, your goal is to learn how to create an air scooter and ride it in the next month! When I give tasks to the other students, come to me, and I'll explain how this air magic works."
"Alright!" Margerit nodded happily; she never thought her first task would be to assemble her own magical scooter.
"Moving on to the next person, Miss Amelia. How are your achievements in studying magic?"
"During the summer break, I noticed that I easily excel in detection, search magic, and so on."
"Good, although your talent for prophecy isn't as clearly defined yet, it's already noticeable. Your goal for the month will be to learn the magic of appraising items. It's goblin magic that I bought from them. The guide to this magic is in the library; give this to the librarian, and he'll tell you where the book is."
Saying this, Asmodeus handed Margerit a note with the title of the book and his signature. Gradually, Asmodeus moved through each student.
To the boy who excelled in the magic history exam, he assigned a task to write a research paper on the second goblin uprising. The lad with the highest score in potion-making got the assignment to prepare a presentation on the composition of an anti-itch potion.
This continued until he reached Cedric.
"Well, I know your situation, and I know you regularly receive tasks from the Ents, but I have a challenge for you for the next three months. By the way, this will explain why I flew into the class instead of walking in.
You've probably seen the Tower of Glory, right? In three months, our classes will take place on the top floor of that very tower, on the 13th floor. The catch is that those with an affinity for a specific element must get there through the window, just as I did. You can't use stairs or a flying broomstick! Margerit, this applies to you too; you must learn to ride your air scooter vertically in three months. But I don't think it will be difficult. By the way, I don't care if you damage the tower, as long as it's not a complete demolition; you can do whatever you want."
"So, Cedric, learn to use your druidic magic for transportation!"
Upon hearing Asmodeus's words, Cedric sat down with a bitter smile on his face. The twins, jokingly and quietly, sang a funeral march at the same time.
"Hmm, twins... You understand alchemy, and even Nicolas noticed you. Then... join Cedric and Margerit; use the alchemical item you created to get upstairs!"
"Ha-ha-ha!"
Cedric struggled to contain his laughter as he watched the twins quickly deflate.
"Hermione... You're too fixated on following the book in magical matters. That's why your task is special; you'll have a goal for only three months, as it will force you to overcome yourself in a way. In three months, you must create some spell, potion, etc. The main thing is that it should be something new, not found in any previously written book. I don't care about the functionality of the spell; even if you just make the 'Lumos' spell change color, it will be a success."
"Alright…"
"Chang, your grades in charms are outstanding, but you can't cast a single spell silently. Your goal is also for three months; at least one spell should be learned to cast without words."
"Penelope, you have excellent performance in all subjects, but you haven't decided on a future direction. Your goal for the month is to choose a specialization in what you want to pursue after completing your studies."
"Harry, you have very good reflexes, and overall, you're well-suited for the study of combat magic. It's decided; your goal is to learn the Disarming Charm within a month."
"Alright!"
"Ding, ding!"
"Oh, the bell. Alright, everyone take a break; in 15 minutes, back in class. Next will be combat magic training."
As the students left, only Margerit remained.
"About the air scooter..."
"Yes, yes. Look, you use a wand, but in this case, it's not needed. With your hands, make smooth movements as if forming waves, gradually accelerating and changing hand positions, as if compressing the air around into a sphere, and then…"
Over the next five minutes, Asmodeus explained how to form the air scooter. He carefully outlined the steps on a sheet and handed it to Margerit. The satisfied girl left the classroom with the note in hand to mingle with her peers.
Seeing Margerit off, Asmodeus wearily sank into a chair.
"Sigh, who knew being a teacher would be this challenging. I'd rather sit in the office..."
As Asmodeus was about to take a sip of tea on the table, a sudden interruption occurred.
"Ding, ding."
"****."
Asmodeus stood up, ready to resume teaching. One by one, students entered the classroom.
"Now, let's move on to the lesson on combat magic. In this course, you'll learn to fight using magic! But for that, we need a wider space."
Saying this, Asmodeus reached for the sword hanging from his belt. With a graceful swing of the sword, the room quickly expanded. Asmodeus tapped the sword lightly, and it transformed into something resembling a standard magic wand. Another wave, and a stone dummy appeared in the middle of the room.
"This is our opponent for today. The dummy is made of granite, a material sturdy enough for us to accurately determine your damage. The first and most crucial point, especially for Harry, is that in these lessons, we try not to disarm but to incapacitate the opponent by dealing damage! Disarming spells, while they can become powerful in the hands of a skilled wizard, are still primarily disarming. That's why today, you'll learn a new spell. The Reductor Curse—a very convenient and versatile combat spell that can even be lethal for a human.
Now, all those using the classic magic wand, line up in front of the dummy. Those with magical weapons have two options: either be the last in line and wait until I explain how to use this spell with your weapon, or transform your weapon into a classic magic wand. It's your choice."
Except for Margerit, everyone quickly transformed their axes and spears into wands.
"Hmm, only Miss Torbils, very well."
"Now I'll demonstrate the spell. Reducto!"
With a wand wave, a blue ball shot out from the tip, exploding upon touching the dummy.
When the smoke cleared, the students saw that only the legs remained of the dummy, everything above the knees was destroyed.
"Good, now it's your turn."
With a wand wave, the dummy seemed to rewind time and started to reconstruct.
"Pay attention to the pronunciation of the spell, RE-DUC-TO, and don't forget about the wand movement."
While Asmodeus was teaching at the academy, Dumbledore in his office at Hogwarts felt that something was amiss. He was losing the authority of the headmaster, one by one, as if he were no longer the sole director of the school!
Let's go back 45 minutes.
Dumbledore stood at the entrance of Hogwarts, looking disapprovingly at one of the squibs loyal to Asmodeus.
"Director Dumbledore, good day. We've come to install a magic amplifier. Mr. Flamel asked to apologize for the delay; he said he first wanted to create a magic amplifier for his school..."
"Hmm! Everyone wants to surpass my beloved Hogwarts using all types of means! Fine, come in, we'll install it above the North Tower; it's the most suitable place."
Dumbledore said discontentedly.
"Alright, apologies once again..."
"Okay, no worries. I'll take you to the tower."
"Good."
Carrying the massive red crystal, Dumbledore and the man walked towards the North Tower. In 15 minutes, they were already standing on the roof of the North Tower.
"How long will the installation and activation take?"
"Well, the installation is quick, I can handle it in 15 minutes. Another 5-10 minutes to adjust the on-off system. By the way, which days of the week do you want the amplifier to work?"
"Monday, Wednesday, Friday."
"Oh,the same as in Elysium, good. In Charmbaton, Mr. Flamel set the amplifier for Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, wanting students to feel the magic intensity even outside of classes."
"What about in Nurmengard and among the druids?"
"Well, the druids said they didn't care; they can draw additional mana from the earth. They suggested setting it up like Mr. Morningstar, so Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. As for Nurmengard, the installation hasn't been done yet. As a secret, Mr. Flamel said about Nurmengard, 'He almost burned Paris; I'll set up the amplifier for him last!' So, you'll have the amplifier before Mr. Grindelwald."
"Hmm, at least Nicolas hasn't forgotten our friendship here. Alright, I'll leave you to it. When you finish, come to my office, and we'll have a cup of tea."
"Sure, Headmaster Dumbledore!"
Nodding to the "installer," Dumbledore headed to his office. In about 15 minutes, he was already seated in his office, enjoying his tea with four sugar cubes. But as he was about to take another sip, he felt the density of magic increasing.
"Oh, finished the installation already? Good..."
Barely did Dumbledore finish his sentence when a sound reverberated throughout Hogwarts, as if glass had shattered.
*Crunch!*
Dumbledore abruptly stood up, sensing that with that sound, his authority as the headmaster had decreased by a quarter. Just as he was about to investigate, he heard three more similar sounds.
*Crunch!*
*Crunch!*
*Crunch!*
Three consecutive sounds echoed through Hogwarts again, and Dumbledore felt a significant loss of his directorial privileges. Now, he resembled more of a deputy headmaster…
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