"Apparition belongs to the branch of spatial magic, and the greatest difficulty in spatial magic is moving living bodies."
"I'll take you along for a few jumps first. Just focus on how it feels."
Helena took Rey's hand. As soon as he nodded, the two vanished into thin air.
After several jumps, Helena and Rey appeared on the grass in Godric's Hollow. Helena, looking relaxed and at ease, smiled and asked, "Well, how did it feel?"
Gasping for breath after the rapid succession of jumps, Rey replied, "Not great. It felt like being suddenly squeezed through a tight rubber tube. A massive suction force just yanked me to another place."
"That's a new way to describe it. I felt the same when I first started learning; you'll get used to it eventually. Now, you already know the three key points of Apparition, right?"
Rey nodded. "Yes. Destination, Determination, Deliberation."
Step One: Focus your consciousness on the Destination you want to move to.
Step Two: Focus your Determination to occupy the visualized space. Let the desire to be there flood from your brain to every part of your body.
Step Three: Feel your body turn into nothingness on the spot and move with Deliberation.
Rey knew these so-called secrets clearly without Helena needing to lecture him. What he wanted to know was the practical execution, and he trusted Helena wouldn't let him down.
Sure enough, hearing Rey's answer, Helena nodded like a little teacher, cleared her throat, and continued, "First is the Destination: our consciousness must focus on the target. This focus is actually a mental reconstruction of the destination in your mind."
"Reconstruction?" Rey asked, surprised.
"Yes, reconstruction. It means the imagined destination must be extremely close to reality. Furthermore, it must be visualized from the exact perspective you would have when standing there."
"It requires that much detail?" Rey was amazed. He hadn't expected such specific nuances in practicing Apparition.
"Yes. When your reconstructed visualization achieves a startling match with reality, you'll feel a mystical sensation. If you close your eyes, you'll be surprised to find that the destination feels as if it's right beneath your feet."
That was only the first step.
Once the first step was fully mastered, the second step was the firmness of mental will. At this moment, you shouldn't think of anything else. You only need to think of one thing: I can absolutely move there.
This is essentially an imprint of intent upon your magic, a command transmitted to your magical core to induce resonance.
Step Three: Magical Control.
This stage requires controlling your magic as easily as moving your own limbs. When the thought arises and your magic reacts autonomously, you need to spread that reactive magic instantly throughout your body, feeling it turn your physical form into a gaseous void. That is the beginning of the movement.
Therefore, for a high-level spell like Apparition, the three steps are indispensable.
After listening to Helena's explanation, Rey understood. Mastering Apparition in a short time was impossible. Still, he asked, unwilling to give up, "How long would it take for me to master it?"
"It took me three years. For you... probably four or five years," Helena said with a beaming smile, clearly feeling good about herself.
Although there was some exaggeration in her words, Rey believed she was mostly telling the truth. The key lay in the third step—magical control. To achieve ideal control, he needed to reach the level of an Intermediate Wizard, capable of achieving the best magical effects with the least amount of power.
High-level magic was definitely not something that could be achieved overnight.
He had a lot of practicing to do in the days ahead.
---
"AHHH! I'm going to dump a wastebasket on your head!" A shrill roar echoed through the corridors of Hogwarts.
It was the exasperated voice of Peeves.
When Peeves was first born, although his appearance and dress were eccentric, he was a very polite spirit. He would greet everyone entering Hogwarts with a courteous, "Welcome to Hogwarts."
However, in just over three years, the young wizards studying at Hogwarts had completely changed him.
Young wizards practicing magic in the castle caused destruction frequently. As the spirit of Hogwarts, Peeves felt this keenly.
But that was secondary.
Young wizards were naturally mischievous creatures. When a bunch of magical children started causing trouble, it was a headache-inducing nightmare. One moment there was a boom here, the next a pile of bricks was knocked over there. Facing these energetic little wizards, Peeves, who possessed the intellect of a child himself, was helpless.
If a modern-day teacher had to teach this group, they would absolutely go insane.
If teachers couldn't handle it, what chance did Peeves have, facing a group of magical brats running amok inside his very "body"?
So, Peeves' resentment grew heavier and heavier. Eventually, he began to return the students' mischief in kind, responding to every prank with a prank of his own.
A polite spirit had evolved into a nightmare for the students—a true case of karma.
Of course, finding balance in this manner wasn't a bad choice. In the future, every new student would become a target for Peeves' teasing, as this became his way of venting.
Life interacts with life like this; after meeting and coexisting, things naturally evolve into what they are meant to be. Everything seemed logical.
And logic is something that can be calculated. Perhaps these calculable things are what we call Fate.
"Fate... not exactly a fun thing," Rey muttered internally. Knowing the bad things that would happen in the future certainly didn't improve one's mood.
The bad thing in the future concerned Helena Ravenclaw.
Rey wouldn't say he was in love with Helena, but even so, he absolutely did not want to see her meet her original tragic end.
"Can I change it?"
Rey stood at the top of Ravenclaw Tower, hands resting on the railing, overlooking the scenery of Hogwarts, asking himself this question.
---
Over three years, Rey had continuously practiced his basic magical control. By now, he should have reached the stage of an Intermediate Wizard. As for his Apparition practice, in these three years, the only thing he lacked was long-distance movement.
Whether a White Wizard or a Dark Wizard, basic magical control was paramount. As the saying goes, towering buildings are built from the ground up.
However, relying on just this level of strength seemed far from enough to prevent Helena's tragic fate.
The source of Helena's tragedy was Terence Barrow.
For three years, Terence had been collecting pure Dark power and practicing the Dark Magic taught to him by Salazar Slytherin.
Now eighteen years old, his strength had undergone a complete transformation.
Rey, physically around fifteen, was 1.75 meters tall, but Terence was a full head taller than him.
Perhaps as a result of practicing Dark Magic, Terence Barrow was more stylish than before. Rey wasn't bad-looking, but by comparison, Terence—cool, cold, and carrying a hint of danger—was much more popular with the girls.
Even now, just walking through Hogwarts, he could elicit screams from the female students.
This scene naturally fell into the eyes of Rey, who was looking down from Ravenclaw Tower. Similarly, Terence spotted Rey at the top of the tower.
Amidst the crowd of girls, Terence Barrow suddenly vanished in a showy display, reappearing right next to Rey. Before Rey could speak, Terence said, "I heard you've been practicing basic magic for three years and haven't even collected any Dark power?"
Rey wasn't surprised by Terence's sudden appearance. He replied casually, "My magical foundation is my weak point. I wanted to solidify it first."
The current Terence was completely different from three years ago. The old Terence was clumsy with words and seemed a bit awkward. The current Terence had changed entirely—deep, unfathomable, a standard Slytherin from the inside out.
"Back to see Helena again?"
Terence had changed a lot, but the only thing that remained constant was his obsession with Helena. He had returned three times in these three years, chatting with Helena each time, though he no longer pestered her daily like he used to.
This change in approach had actually eliminated Helena's dislike for him.
"Seeing Helena is a given, but my most important purpose is to find you."
"Find me?" Rey turned his head to look at Terence. They weren't exactly close friends, so Rey was somewhat surprised that Terence was looking for him.
Terence also leaned his hands on the railing. Standing a head taller than Rey, he gave off a looming sense of superiority. He smiled and said methodically, "I'm looking for a duel."
A duel!
The guy hadn't mentioned that word in a long time, not since he started practicing Dark Magic three years ago.
Rey thought he had forgotten, but hearing this sentence confirmed it. His appearance had changed, but deep down, he was still the same Terence Barrow—obsessed with Helena and viewing every male peer around her as an enemy.
Still so stubborn, so extreme.
People with this kind of stubbornness rarely change.
His obsession with dueling Rey and possessing Helena had been hidden extremely well. If he hadn't spoken up now, Rey would have thought he'd forgotten his defeat in Godric's Hollow all those years ago.
"I'm not interested."
Rey turned back and replied indifferently. He wasn't a noble; he wouldn't engage in something as silly as a formal duel. Rey despised all the etiquette that came before a duel.
If it reached the point of killing each other, performing pretentious dueling etiquette was ridiculous—like Voldemort forcing Harry Potter to bow in the movies.
"Heh. What, are you scared?"
Terence chuckled, his voice dripping with contempt.
"Yeah, scared. Just consider it your win."
Rey paid no attention to Terence's provocation.
Rey was very familiar with the Thirty-Six Stratagems of Sun Tzu. As a mature soul from a culture steeped in such wisdom, how could he be goaded into losing his reason by a teenage foreigner?
Rey wasn't angered, but his indifferent attitude infuriated Terence. The calm expression on Terence's face instantly turned cold, and the way he looked at Rey changed.
---
Terence had indeed improved a lot; he could gradually control his emotions.
After his gaze shifted, he took a deep breath, and his expression slowly returned to normal. "Don't you want to know what the stakes are?"
"Not interested," Rey replied, shaking his head casually.
This time, Terence didn't get angry. Regardless of Rey's reaction, he continued on his own, "If I win this duel, Helena belongs to me."
Rey turned to stare at Terence. "Helena is not an object. And I have never fought you for her."
Terence's words weren't outside Rey's expectations. It proved that Rey's judgment of Terence was correct.
The guy was selfish and self-righteous.
"I will return three months from today. If you don't accept the challenge then, I will take Helena away."
Terence snorted coldly, unilaterally announcing the duel. Rey shot him a look reserved for idiots.
Everyone had grown over the last three years, Helena included. Terence had changed significantly, but Helena wasn't weak. She wouldn't be taken away easily like some helpless little girl.
"Heh. If you had absorbed pure Dark power in the graveyard, you might have encountered some interesting things too. Dark Magic is more useful than you imagine."
Terence laughed. His laughter was unsettling. Rey's heart skipped a beat, and he immediately asked coldly, "What do you mean?"
"You'll understand when you lose."
Leaving behind this cryptic sentence, Terence Apparated again, vanishing instantly without a trace.
Terence's words were asking for a beating, but they successfully caught Rey's attention.
Rey narrowed his eyes. At this moment, he missed the future rule: No Apparating inside Hogwarts. Otherwise, he would have grabbed the guy and demanded an explanation.
Terence definitely wasn't joking just now. He seemed to have a method he was confident enough in to take Helena away.
This method was likely related to Dark Magic. Rey wondered what kind of fortuitous encounter that guy had experienced while absorbing Dark power in the graveyard to make him so confident.
---