Chapter 41: Mindsteel Imprint

The diary said, "I have read about a spell that can plant a belief, a phrase, or an emotion as a seed into someone's mind. Once successful, this seed takes root in the person's brain, becoming a permanent part of them, impossible to remove."

"Since it is not a curse, the seed is implanted at the moment the spell is completed, making it unbreakable even for wizards."

"This spell is too evil!" exclaimed Alex.

Even the Imperius Curse, one of the three Unforgivable Curses, could be considered a weaker version of it.

After all, the Imperius Curse only controls a person for a period, and it is reversible, unlike this permanent effect.

Murphy was also startled.

This was like a magical version of a thought imprint! A wizard's equivalent of a mind control technique?

He immediately became excited, "What is this spell?"

Alex intended to advise against it, but Murphy glared at him.

That terrifying aura of "dare to speak another word and get out" made Alex immediately comply and write in the diary.

However, the diary's reply disappointed Murphy.

"I have only read about its existence in a book. In 'Catale's Compendium of Dark Wizards,' it mentions a wizarding family named Herl, known for this terrible magic."

"Ah!" Alex suddenly exclaimed, "Catale's Compendium of Dark Wizards, I've seen this book, at my sister's place. I remember now, the spell I mentioned earlier must be from this book!"

Murphy rolled his eyes.

Bringing this up now was useless.

He continued reading the diary.

"This family originally lived in Egypt, then settled in Europe. Because of this spell, they became wanted criminals in many countries. The last member of their family, Joachim Herl, wandered to England and eventually lived in a small village."

"Catale only mentioned in the 'Compendium of Dark Wizards' that the village was in South Wales, near Carphilly, but did not specify its name or location."

Murphy frowned, "Are there any other clues?"

"Only a sketch drawn by Catale of the village from a distance."

After saying this, the diary displayed a very simple sketch: distant mountains, nearby trees, a wall in the middle, and a few scattered houses. Beyond that, Murphy couldn't make out anything else.

Still, Murphy took out a camera from his Undetectable Extension Bag and took a couple of photos.

His camera was a Yashica Electro 35 GTN, fittingly complementing his former use-name, Peter Parker.

After developing the photos, Murphy found Celica Wood, who was still working in the spell research lab.

She tried to run upon seeing him.

Murphy was baffled but didn't indulge her, "Celica, come here!"

Celica was immediately pulled toward Murphy by an unseen force, her limbs flailing helplessly, but she was still caught by the collar by Murphy.

Like a little dog lifted by the neck, the girl suddenly stopped struggling.

"Why are you running?"

Celica didn't know why she was running herself, but she felt guilty and nervous seeing Murphy. She mustered her courage to retort, "Why are you grabbing me?"

"Fine, I'll let you go, but don't run away."

"Okay."

Murphy released her collar, but Celica immediately started to run again.

Murphy frowned, feeling provoked. "Stand still!"

Celica stopped, looking dejectedly at Murphy, and didn't dare to run again.

"Come here! Stand here! Don't move!"

She reluctantly obeyed, standing where Murphy pointed, like a schoolchild being punished.

Hmm, does this girl have a potential for being trained? Murphy looked around; the other wizards who had been working with Celica were gone. "Why are you alone? Where are the others?"

"They all left."

"Left? Who allowed that?"

"I did," Celica glanced at Murphy, relieved to see he wasn't very angry, "They said the spell might involve dark magic and didn't want to continue."

"Why didn't you leave?" Murphy was curious.

"I've spent so much money. If I also left, wouldn't it be wasted? I wanted to try a bit more, maybe it will succeed..."

"And if it doesn't?"

"Then, I'll work for you and pay back the money."

"Ha, that's several thousand Galleons. How will you repay it? By getting spanked?"

Celica's face turned red, "I, I..."

"Never mind," Murphy stopped teasing her, "You don't need to work on the secrecy spell anymore. I've found a good one. I came to tell you to test its effectiveness."

"You found it? Who..."

"Don't worry about the details," handing her a note with the spell written on it, Murphy said, "Take this and test it, study it, see if it works. Though it should be fine."

Celica took the note, unsure whether to feel happy or lost. Happy that Murphy finally got the result he wanted, lost because it had nothing to do with her.

"There's one more thing." Murphy handed her a photo, "This is a village in South Wales, Carphilly, where a wizard named Joachim Herl lived."

"Alex said you've seen 'Catale's Compendium of Dark Wizards'? Go check for clues, see if there's any other information about Joachim."

Celica initially couldn't recall, but upon hearing "Compendium of Dark Wizards," she understood, "You want to find that spell? Herl's Mindseed?"

Herl's Mindseed? So that's its name? "Yes," Murphy was straightforward, "You were part of the Magical Archaeology Society, right? You should have some methods for uncovering ancient magic. Can you help me find it?"

"I'm not sure," Celica's confidence in her professional skills had recently wavered, "And it's a very evil dark magic. Because of it, the Herl family was wanted in many countries. What do you want it for?"

What for? Murphy thought for a moment. Naturally, to use it to make fewer enemies and more friends.

Such a convenient spell, now that he knew of its existence, naturally warranted a search.

However, he didn't hold much hope.

Simply put, Tom Riddle would have wanted this magic even more than he did, but from his later actions, it seemed he never found it.

Murphy was just giving it a try; finding it would be like activating a cheat code, but no harm done if he didn't.

This was just an extra move in his game.