The next morning, Ryan had just finished washing up and stepped out of his room when he saw Hermione emerging from the room next door. She had dark circles under her eyes and was stifling a yawn. When she noticed Ryan looking at her, Hermione quickly turned her head away, clearly embarrassed.
"I found out yesterday that we were going to Mahogany Town," Hermione said. "So I stayed up late researching it. I didn't expect there to be so much information. I accidentally ended up pulling an all-nighter."
"I'm impressed," Ryan said with a shake of his head. "It's just a vacation, but you've made yourself look exhausted over it."
"Because Mahogany Town is a really important place," Hermione replied, defending herself. "So many key events in South American magical history happened there. Like the phantoms that appear daily on the Crocodile Pyramid, or the site where the Brazilian Ministry of Magic was founded in the 18th century. This town is practically a condensed version of South American magical history! If we're visiting such a meaningful place, it would be a shame not to prepare."
"So that's how you became a panda?" Ryan teased, gesturing around his eyes to mimic dark circles.
Of course, Hermione understood what he meant. A few years ago, in the autumn of her first year at Hogwarts, a giant panda named Mingming had arrived at the London Zoo. Hermione had even gone to visit the panda during the Christmas holidays. So when Ryan made that gesture, she instantly caught on.
"Are my dark circles that obvious?" she asked nervously. Even though she wasn't overly concerned with appearances most of the time, she still didn't want to look too disheveled—especially now that they were in a group and she was more aware of her appearance than before.
"They're pretty obvious," Ryan confirmed with a grin. But then, seeing Hermione's disappointed expression, he added, "Don't worry. I have just the thing to fix that."
He pulled out his wand, pointed it at Hermione's face, and said, "Natural Soothing." As he cast the spell, a gentle natural energy slowly flowed into her body. Hermione felt as if she'd just woken up from the most refreshing nap—her fatigue lifted, her eyes no longer sore.
When the spell ended, Hermione pulled out a compact mirror and looked at herself. Her dark circles had vanished, and the redness in her eyes was gone. She looked at Ryan, surprised and grateful, about to say something.
"Don't even think about it," Ryan interrupted, already knowing what she wanted. "I'm not teaching you this spell. I know you'll use it to justify more all-nighters. This kind of magic can only temporarily relieve fatigue; it doesn't actually replace real rest. And besides, you probably wouldn't be able to learn it anyway."
"Why do you say that?" Hermione asked, a little annoyed but mostly curious.
"Simple. How are you doing with the meditation technique I taught you last Saturday?"
"Aside from making it easier to fall asleep, it hasn't helped much," she admitted.
"And that's why I say you won't be able to learn this spell," Ryan replied. "It relies on channeling natural forces. That meditation method is the most basic way to start sensing nature. If you've been practicing it and still can't feel anything, then you probably don't have any talent for that path. In magic, talent often sets the limit. Hard work alone isn't enough."
"What a shame," Hermione murmured, clearly disappointed. But she quickly brightened. "Anyway, I've mastered all the runes you taught me last time! I've even started experimenting with modifying spells."
She pulled out her wand, gave it a little wave, and chanted, "Firefly." A small white light appeared at the tip of her wand. Slowly, it began to change color, shifting into a deep red.
"Right now it only turns red, and the spell uses more than three times the original amount of magic," she said, a bit embarrassed.
Ryan raised an eyebrow, surprised. "You're learning faster than I expected. You've already started modifying spells?"
After they had discussed starting a reading club together, Ryan had taught Hermione the fundamentals of runes and natural magic. His reasoning was simple: enhancing his friend's magical ability also helped improve their team's overall strength. Plus, Ryan was already stretched thin. With so many paths of power available to him, he didn't have the time to innovate in every area. Just mastering the knowledge he had inherited kept him busy enough. So he had always intended to pass on parts of that knowledge to trustworthy people, hoping they might develop new insights.
Hermione, as a trusted friend and someone who shared his ideals, seemed the perfect person. So he had given her portions of the Nordic rune heritage and natural magical practices. He hadn't expected such rapid progress—especially in runes.
It was clear now: Hermione wasn't particularly attuned to nature magic, but she had a real talent for the cerebral work of runes. She was, in essence, a natural-born arcanist, not a druid.
"Right now, I can only tweak minor spells," Hermione continued, "but after the changes, the spells aren't as effective as the originals. I'm not sure what the point of it is if the result is weaker."
"How could it be pointless?" Ryan said seriously. "In fact, this is one of the secrets behind the strength of many pure-blood families. Sure, common spells are polished by generations of experimentation and are highly universal, but that same universality makes them harder to master on a personal level. Powerful wizards eventually customize those standard spells to suit their own style. For example, everyone knows the Fire Spell, but Dumbledore can use a personalized version of it to defeat dangerous dark wizards."
"I see," Hermione said, eyes lighting up. "Thanks! I think I finally have a clearer idea of the path I want to follow."
She smiled brightly at him, clearly feeling much more relaxed.
Looking at her smiling face, Ryan suddenly found himself noticing things he hadn't paid much attention to before. Maybe it was because they had known each other for so long, but the slightly messy brown hair, the thick eyebrows she never bothered to trim, even the slight overbite—suddenly it all seemed a little… cute.
Shit, Ryan thought, feeling a cold shiver run down his back. Was he just lonely from being single too long?
No, no, no, he told himself firmly. This girl is still just a kid. What you're feeling is just a warm sense of friendship. You're only teaching her because she's a like-minded partner. That's it. Nothing more.
Trying to suppress that odd feeling, Ryan composed himself.
Unaware of the little mental crisis Ryan had just gone through, Hermione looked at her watch and gasped. "Oh no! It's already 7:30! We've got to get to the hall for breakfast. We're leaving for Mahogany Town today, remember?"
Without waiting for an answer, she grabbed Ryan's arm and pulled him along toward the dining area.
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