[Author's Note: Starting next Monday, weekly chapter releases will increase from 2 to 3, with release days being Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
I will try to increase the weekly chapter number to 4 as soon as possible. For now, the main goal is 5 chapters per week. We'll see what happens after that.]
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Chapter 33: Magical Power Finder (MPF)
Bones Manor
Ronald Bilius Weasley
July 15, 1989, Saturday
Before she could leave, Ron called out to Susan, telling her to wait, and then turned to Madam Bones and said, "Madam Bones. This must be your niece, mustn't it? Could you please introduce us?"
Madam Bones looked at Ron's face for a moment, then turned to Susan and said, "Susan, come here, dear."
Susan then approached her aunt, surprised. Normally, her aunt wouldn't include her in meetings about her job, and this was a first for her.
But this time, the guests didn't look like the previous ones, and one of them was even a boy her age.
'Maybe this isn't a meeting about her job, and that's why my aunt called me in,' Susan thought.
"This is my niece, Susan Bones," Madam Bones said, looking at Ron and Bill. Then, gesturing towards Bill and Ron, she said to Susan, "These are William Arthur Weasley and Ronald Bilius Weasley. They're here to discuss something with me."
"Pleased to meet you, Miss Bones," said Bill.
"Hello, Miss Bones. I know it's a sudden question, but do you like games?" Ron asked.
"Likewise, I'm pleased to meet you," said Susan. Although young, it was clear she had been trained in manners. Then she added, "Games? I can't say I particularly like them. I don't have many friends to play games with."
Her last sentence was almost inaudible, and after saying it, Susan lowered her head.
'It seems that many fanfiction stories about Susan and Hannah Abbot being friends before Hogwarts aren't true,' thought Ron.
This also explained why Susan, who probably had no friends before starting Hogwarts, was sorted into Hufflepuff. She wanted to make friends.
Although Amelia Bones was also a Hufflepuff student during her Hogwarts years, and considering she was Susan's role model, that could also be a reason for Susan sorting into Hufflepuff.
'Probably both situations have an effect,' thought Ron.
"If it's all right with you, Miss Bones, could she stay here and try one of the games I've made? I'm sure Miss Bones would love it," said Ron.
Meanwhile, Madam Bones raised her eyebrow again and, after glancing at Ron, turned to Susan. But when she saw the hopeful look in her eyes, she knew she didn't have much of a choice.
"Only if my niece wants it," said Madam Bones.
Ron then turned to Susan and said, "What do you say, Miss Bones?"
"Then I'll try your game, Mr. Weasley," Susan said.
Ron thought Susan's answer was more about wanting to stay with her aunt's side than about trying the game, but he also thought Susan might change her mind after trying his game.
"Excellent. Just give me a moment to get it out," said Ron, turning to the chest behind him, opening the lid, and summoning out the Hightower (Jenga) game.
Then, holding the game, he turned and began to examine the room, and the next moment, with a wave of his hand, a table and two chairs conjured up in the appropriate spot.
Meanwhile, Susan and Madam Bones stared in disbelief at the conjured table and chairs resulting from Ron's actions.
Susan was astonished that a child her age could use magic, but Madam Bones's surprise was different. Although she had witnessed Ron's wandless spells, they were all minor spells.
But when it came to wandless conjuring, the situation was completely different. Conjuration was a difficult branch of magic in itself, and wandless conjuring was something that even many of the Aurors under her command probably couldn't do.
'It seems I need to take this child more seriously,' thought Madam Bones.
Meanwhile, Ron, unaware of the stares directed at him, was reviewing the work he had done.
The table and chairs were at the perfect height for someone of Susan's age to play Hightower. However, one of the chairs was larger than the other.
Ron had also positioned the table and chairs so that they were right of where Madam Bones was sitting and to the left of where he and Bill were sitting, and they were neither too far nor too close to the.
This way, Susan wouldn't be directly in their line of sight and disturb their focus during their meeting, while Madam Bones could turn her head to check on Susan whenever she wished.
"Bill, would you mind explaining the game to Miss Bones until she gets used to 'A Little Merlin'?" Ron said, turning to Bill.
Instead of answering immediately, Bill first looked at Madam Bones, and after seeing her nod in approval, said, "With pleasure."
Then Bill rose, took the Hightower game box from Ron's hand, and walked towards the table where Ron had conjured, sitting in the slightly larger chair.
Susan followed him and sat in the other, small chair opposite Bill.
Meanwhile, Ron summoned two other wooden boxes from his open chest with magic and returned to the sofa opposite Madam Bones, sitting down. And then, boxes that had floated through the air slowly landed on the table in front of him.
"If I remember correctly, it hasn't even been two weeks since your early magical awakening, has it, Mr. Weasley?" Madam Bones asked.
Ron, as he was about to open one of the boxes, stopped when he heard the question and answered, "Yes, that's right."
"Then how can you use wandless conjuration? It's quite a high-level spell, and even many senior aurors can't do it," Madam Bones said.
"Really? Is it that difficult? After reading the Hogwarts books, it took me a few tries to perform this spell," Ron said, tilting his head slightly.
And for the first time that day, Amelia Bones' cold expression was about to break and turn into a bewildered one, but she managed to restrain herself at the last moment.
Yet, she still couldn't think of a response to give Ron. Just as she was about to turn the conversation to the products on the table…
"Ah!"
A voice from the side made her turn her head quickly in that direction.
The voice belonged to Susan, and when Ron turned his head, he understood why Susan had let out a small scream of surprise. Apparently, Bill had activated the game, and now Little Merlin, Ron's mascot character, was standing on the table.
"What is that?!" Madam Bones exclaimed, and Ron could see her wand reappear in her hand.
But he answered with a calm tone. "Oh. That's Little Merlin. A mascot toy I designed for my games. Don't worry, Madam Bones, Little Merlin is completely harmless."
"But he talks and has a wand in his hand," Madam Bones said.
"That staff is purely for costume purposes, and if he doesn't speak, how will he explain the game and rules to the players?" Ron said.
"Can he explain the game and rules?" Madam Bones asked in surprise.
"Of course. That's the main reason I included him in the game. Actually, the products I'll show you also have a Little Merlin feature. You'll understand better if you examine them yourselves." Ron said.
Madam Bones watched Susan's side for a while longer, and after realizing there was no problem, she visibly relaxed, then turned to Ron and said, "Go on, young man. I hope you truly surprise me and that these products will be useful for DMLE."
Ron simply smiled and lifted the lid of one of the wooden boxes on the table.
Inside the box was a large crystal on a wooden stand, partially embedded in the wood. Next to it, three Ledgers—white, red, and black —were stacked.
Looking at the item, it appeared quite simple, but Ron knew it would profoundly change many things in the Wizarding World.
"Is this a… prophecy orb?" Madam Bones asked.
"Prophecy orb? Oh. I have to admit it looked a bit like that when you say it. But no. This has nothing to do with a prophecy orb," Ron said.
"Then what is it?" Madam Bones asked.
"I've named this item the Magic Power Finder. But I prefer to call it MPF for short. As for what it does, in short, this item is used to measure and numerically display the magical power of wizards and witches," Ron said.
And this time, Ron truly witnessed the cold expression on Madam Bones' face break, replaced by a look of disbelieving astonishment.
But he could understand her perfectly well. This device would lead to many changes and systematization in many ways.
Actually, this device had emerged while he was working on an item that would provide an excuse for his meeting with Harry. Although that item was a more advanced version of this one, the main functions were the same.
And since he had already created such an item for his own mission, Ron thought he could make another version of it and sell them to others. And the idea he had back then was proving quite useful now.
"Mr. Weasley, are you sure this device actually does what you say? What you're describing is something many in history have tried but never succeeded at," said Madam Bones.
"Oh. Then they don't need to try anymore because I've already done it," said Ron.
And frankly, producing this version was quite easy for Ron. After all, he had the status to show his own magic power scale. All he had to do was record his own magic power and divide it by its numerical equivalent.
This way, he had a measuring unit. And by doing this process a few times with his magic power scale at different levels, he was able to obtain a very precise unit.
"Fine. I'll pretend to believe you for now. How can I use it?" asked Madam Bones.
"It's quite easy, actually. To use it, you place your hand on the orb and say 'Mensura.' Then the MPF activates, drawing a certain amount of your magic. It's not harmful, but it feels like someone suddenly grabbed your hand and pulled it. After a while, an illusion spell appears on the orb, numerically displaying your magical power," Ron said.
"Is that all?" Madam Bones asked, surprised.
"That's all," said Ron. Then, to give a live demonstration, he placed his hand on the orb and said "Mensura."
At that moment, Ron felt his magic activate and be drawn into the orb, and the orb began to glow. After a couple of seconds, Ron felt the pulling feeling stop, and a result appeared slightly above his crystal.
[478 Sparks]
"478 Sparks. What does this spark mean?" Madam Bones asked.
"This is the unit I use to measure magical power. Each unit of magical power corresponds to a spark. I gave it this name, inspired by the sparks that appear when wizards first pair with a wand."
"I see. So, what is this measurement based on? It wouldn't be very convenient to use it if there's no standard," Madam Bones said.
"Although I don't currently have detailed data to create a comprehensive standard, I do have a basic standardization. This standardization is based on the average magical power that wizards and witches possess upon awakenings," Ron said.
"Oh. Please elaborate," Madam Bones said.
"The first awakening of wizards and witches occurs at age one, and they possess an average of 10 sparks. The second awakening occurs at age 11, and the average number of sparks is 100. The third awakening occurs at age 17, and the average number of sparks is 1000." Ron explained.
"You use the term 'average.' Does that mean these measurements aren't precise?" Madam Bones asked.
"MPF's measurements are precise. But our talents, effort, and conditions aren't. I say 'on average' because someone who is more talented and puts in more effort will have more sparks than someone who is less talented and puts in less effort," Ron said.
"So, you mean magical power develops depending on talent and effort?" Madam Bones asked.
End of Chapter 33.
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Author's Note: You folks can also read up to +20 chapters on my P@treon Page as an early access privilege.
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Next Chapters' Name:
Ch.34: Truth Seeker
Ch.35: Conditions and Request
Ch.36: Agreement on Price