Inside the world within his trunk.
Standing in the middle of a lush, green forest, Lucien gave the Varia Ring on his finger a gentle twist. A pale green glow emanated from the emerald, manifesting as a thin line of light that split the silver band in two.
One half remained on Lucien's left index finger, while the other detached itself and leaped into the air, rapidly morphing into a small sparrow. Driven by his magic, the bird beat its wings and took flight, darting gracefully through the trees.
Simultaneously, the emerald on the remaining half of the ring glowed again. It drifted upward and hovered before Lucien's left eye, transforming into a semi-transparent, emerald-green circle.
While his right eye saw the forest normally, his left eye's vision was replaced by a bird's-eye view of the canopy below. He was now sharing the sparrow's sight.
This was the unique ability of the Varia Ring: it could separate a portion of itself to transform into different shapes. The wearer maintained a connection through a miniature array carved inside the ring, allowing them to sense the surroundings of the detached piece. If you needed flexibility, a small animal was the best choice.
It was essentially a magical drone.
However, Lucien was far more interested in the array itself. This formation linked two distant points, transmitting images, sound, and even scents or temperatures. If he could replicate and modify this using alchemy, he could create a long-range communication device.
He could give the wizarding world a little "shock" with a magical smartphone.
Actually, it could do more than a phone. Since the array could share smell and touch, he wouldn't just be limited to sight and sound. He wondered if taste was possible too—he briefly considered making the sparrow catch a bug just to see if he'd taste it...
Lucien chuckled to himself. It reminded him of that old joke from his past life: watching a food video and saying, "When I'm rich, I'm buying a phone that lets me taste the screen."
Unlike Muggle technology, where the transmission of images followed text and sound by nearly a century, magic didn't always move in linear steps. Multiple forms of data could be synchronized instantly.
If he could pull off a magical phone—even if it only handled voice and video—it would be a massive technological revolution for the wizarding world. Not to mention a guaranteed bestseller.
Even though telegrams and phones existed in the Muggle world, wizards were often uncomfortable with—or flat-out looked down upon—Muggle devices. Lucien had heard half-blood and pure-blood kids complain that their parents refused to buy a TV or couldn't figure out how to work one, so they had to go to their neighbors' houses to watch.
But a magical item? Wizards would embrace that in a heartbeat. They wouldn't say no to something more convenient than owl-post.
He brainstormed for a moment; he could even design the "phones" to look like more traditional wizarding objects, like small leather-bound journals or enchanted hand mirrors.
"Ugh, but the range is a bit short."
The sparrow hadn't flown very far before Lucien felt a "bad signal." The shared vision became blurry and stuttered. Clearly, the array's connection range was limited.
He commanded the sparrow to fly back and began rubbing the ring thoughtfully. He'd have to find a way to expand the range, likely by simplifying some of the runic functions. He also had to consider the materials—rare ingredients would limit mass production.
He pulled his shiny Order of Merlin out of his pocket and looked at it. Sadly, the famous medal had no magical properties; it just looked nice.
However, the fame it brought was immeasurable. Lucien was now a household name in the magical world, even boasting a growing fan base. Combined with his achievements in Transfiguration, he had made a real name for himself in academia.
Owls had been arriving steadily with letters from all over the world. Some were from fans filled with praise, others from scholars wanting to discuss Transfiguration theory. Knowledge was the great equalizer; among scholars, the exchange was pure and focused.
Lucien checked the repayment progress for the Emerald Tablet shards. Sales for his potions and alchemical items were skyrocketing. He could only imagine how much that progress bar would jump once he released a hit product like a magical phone.
Stowing the medal back in his pocket, he looked at the shimmering Varia Ring.
"I wonder if the achievement rewards for Potions, Charms, or other fields have unique effects like this ring does?"
Collecting them was starting to feel like a very fun game.
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