Defeating Fear

"Disillusionment!"

Say the incantation,

In an instant, Ivan felt the space around him squeeze against him, his body slipping out of control, and then it was gone…

'Did it work?'

Ivan turned in a full circle and stopped to look around. He was still in place…

"Did I fail?" Yvonne said awkwardly.

"It's normal to fail. Practicing this magic is not easy!" Sirius laughed.

Yvonne quickly readjusted herself. Transfiguration was a very difficult spell to master, and it would be a real problem for her to master it at once.

Without using his GPA to cheat, Ivan estimated that his talent and magical affinity were at the level of an exceptional student after two bloodline modifications.

In the week leading up to school, one would be lucky to master Apparition.

'I'll tell you what, I'll familiarize you with the Phantom Shift a few times. It should help you to remember how it feels,' Sirius suggested after a moment's thought.

With that, Sirius grabbed Ivan's wrist, waved his wand, and performed several Apparition Flips, shifting between the two targets.

Yvonne tried to commit the sensation of teleportation to memory.

However, it was only when she tried it herself that Ivan realised how difficult it was to perform a spatial shift.

He finally understood why determination was the most important part of cultivation!

Every time Ivan sensed space and moved, he felt a great fear wash over him, a feeling that his body was about to be flattened, compressed, and segmented.

His mind was filled with all kinds of horrible images of failed spells, so much so that he could not concentrate on where he was going.

After more than an hour of practice, Ivan stopped in exhaustion as the system's prompt sounded in his head.

[Ding, after a period of practice, your proficiency in Transfiguration has increased, current progress 29/100]

Sirius stepped forward and patted Ivan on the shoulder, consoling him. "Take a break. It's easy to split up if you perform Disapparations when you're unstable."

Yvonne nodded, and they found a place to sit.

Sirius patiently explained to Ivan where his spell had gone wrong.

Eventually, Sirius joked about how he had been cut in half during a practice session because he was too impatient when it came to learning Transfiguration.

At that time, many students were scared out of their wits. Fortunately, the professor was there to save his body in time.

"And?" Yvonne asked curiously.

"I'm naturally bold. It's just that my body is split in half, right? That won't scare me, so I'm the first student in that batch to learn Apparition!"

Sirius was very proud of this, as James and Lupin were much slower than he was, let alone the averagely talented Peter…

Sirius's face fell at the thought of this traitor,

Ivan asked curiously, "How long did it take you to learn this spell?"

Ivan's question interrupted Sirius's recollection, and he quickly composed himself and spoke defiantly.

"It must have taken five or six classes, minus theory… Why? Do you want to compete with me?"

Almost ten hours? How fast!

Yvonne thought ruefully, but accepted Sirius's provocation. Stress is motivation!

After a short break, Ivan resumed his Apparition practice.

As the system notifications kept ringing in his head, Ivan gradually overcame the sense of alienation in space and tried to establish a connection between the two.

"Disillusionment!"

A few hours later, as the sky grew dark and Ivan was trying to cast a spell, he felt as if he were being squeezed into a small space.

It was as if his consciousness had been stripped away. His body spun inside, and the fear of being separated from reality gradually overwhelmed him.

Ivan, however, kept thinking about the location of the pothole.

I need to get over there. Now. Now!

Ivan soon felt his body being kicked out of place, and the world spun around him. When he regained his balance, he found himself at his intended destination.

[Ding! Phantom Shift has reached Level 1. Current Proficiency (9/200). Reward: 5 GPA!]

As the system prompt sounded, Ivan realised that he had performed a spatial shift and had learnt the spell.

Clap, clap, clap …

Sirius approached them, clapping his hands in appreciation. "You did it! Much faster than I expected…"

"It was a fluke." Ivan shook his head and looked at the darkening sky. He had been practicing for about seven hours.

This was faster than five or six lessons, as Sirius claimed.

However, Ivan was well aware that this was only possible in one-on-one situations, as Sirius did not have a single teacher to tutor him when he first started learning Apparition.

"With this success, I'm sure you'll be able to cast the spell at will with little more practice," Sirius said encouragingly, patting Ivan on the shoulder.

Ivan's initial mastery of the spell in half a day was beyond his expectations.

Sirius knew exactly how difficult Apparition was to learn. Aside from requiring the learner to have sufficient magic and exceptional spatial perception, the most important thing was to overcome fear!

This was because every time a wizard used Apparition, he or she would have to brave the danger of being split apart and forced through a spatial crevice.

The more powerful a wizard's ability to sense space, the more he or she would experience that fear, which was why determination and confidence were so important in the casting of spells!

Students at Hogwarts had plenty of time to adapt to the new spell, as there were a couple of days between each lesson.

Sirius had been prepared to spend several days practising with Ivan, believing that Ivan would not last more than an hour or two.

To his surprise, Ivan not only managed to hold on, but also managed to cast a Phantom Shift!

A successful spell-casting experience certainly did not satisfy Ivan.

However, after practicing for so long, Ivan was mentally and physically exhausted, and his magic was about to run out. He could only give up for the time being and continue practicing tomorrow.

Sirius then took Ivan on a long-range Apparition trip back to their temporary hideout.