"..."
I've got legs! I can go ashore and be Sea Superman! Ariel seemed overjoyed, which puzzled the Sea Witch, but she didn't dwell on it, as she had already obtained what she desired. It was worth noting that Ariel's Sea King bloodline and magic remained intact, enabling him to breathe underwater even with legs. After thanking the Sea Witch, Ariel eagerly exited "The Sea Witch's Fortune Telling Shop."
The others waited outside, but to Ariel's surprise, Tom was nowhere to be found. Cassandra and company utilized the Bubble Head Charm, confirming that Tom wasn't present. Sensing Ariel's confusion, Nagini explained, "Tom has stepped away for a moment; he will be back shortly."
Hearing this, Ariel, though still puzzled, simply nodded.
...
Inside "The Sea Witch's Fortune Telling Shop"...
"At last…at long last, I have it!" The Sea Witch excitedly admired the small conch shell in her hand. But then her expression froze.
"Give it to me."
Tom materialized beside her, seemingly from thin air, his left hand outstretched in demand, and the Elder Wand aimed at her temple.
"..."
The chilling sensation, as if her soul had plunged into an abyss, filled the Sea Witch with immense dread. Barely suppressing her fear, she asked, "Why?"
Tom clearly had no desire to waste words. "Then I shall simply have to kill you and take it..."
"No! I'll give it to you, alright?!" The Sea Witch shuddered, the conch shell feeling like a hot potato as she swiftly tossed it to Tom.
Taking the conch shell, Tom heard the familiar system notification in his mind.
[Ding! Current mission progress: 3/5]
With the item in hand, Tom didn't linger and turned to depart from the "Sea Witch's Fortune-Telling Hut." Throughout this entire exchange, the Sea Witch kept her head bowed, fearful that any unintentional display of resentment might cost her her life.
Only after confirming that Tom and his group had truly departed did the Sea Witch hang the "Closed" sign on her shop and leave.
...
After leaving Atlantis, Ariel's excitement remained palpable, and even Eric was swept up in it, both filled with a surge of hope for the future.
"I can't wait to find a bunch of pirates to practice on!" Eric was already feeling cocksure; he was the "Ocean Ranger"! Although his physical abilities were only slightly better than an average person, and he possessed no supernatural water or fire manipulation… he could breathe underwater! If he secretly drilled a hole under a pirate ship, the pirates who fell in as it sank would have to contend with him in the sea! Alright, that did sound a bit far-fetched, but it didn't matter; Eric still believed he would become the greatest hero of all time.
Tom and his group swam away from Atlantis, discussing their plans as they went.
"Before we get ahead of ourselves..." Tom flicked his left hand and produced a small gadget from his silver snake ring—a small alchemical ornament shaped like a starfish, which he had casually crafted recently. "Ariel, this is for you."
Taking the little starfish, Ariel looked puzzled. "What's this for…I can talk?! Wait! What is that voice?! Is this little thing doing it?"
It was a high-pitched, androgynous voice, typical of someone of a young age. Ariel realized that it wasn't him speaking, but the little starfish, only it was uttering the words he wanted to say.
"It can help you speak your mind." As if sensing Ariel's confusion, Tom explained, then urged, "Quickly put it on and see. I put a great deal of effort into making this."
Ariel looked at Tom gratefully and hung the little starfish around his neck, resting comfortably against his chest. It's worth mentioning that Ariel's chest was already adorned with starfish, and with the small starfish in the middle, one might be forgiven for thinking he had three... you know.
"...Pfft!"
Harry and company desperately tried to hold back their laughter, while Cassandra and the others covered their mouths and turned away. Even Ariel's trusted partner was turning pale from the effort of holding it in.
"What's so funny?!" The voice, which sounded like a cross between a loli and something else, was the final straw.
"Hahahaha..."
The laughter from the crowd made Ariel's face darken. Finally, on the verge of tears, he turned to Tom and asked, "Can't you change this voice?"
"Regrettably, time was short, and there are some minor flaws at present." Tom's sincere expression seemed genuine. Of course, this was also because Ariel hadn't known Tom for long and wasn't familiar with his awful personality.
"Sigh..." At least he could talk; he resigned himself to his fate.
Then Tom casually brought it up again, "Speaking of which, why did you elect to use a starfish to cover yourself?"
"..."
Ariel's expression turned as ugly as the depths.
...
Amidst this playful commotion, they traveled roughly ten nautical miles from the Atlantis area. Honestly, had anyone else attempted to swim like this, even with the ability to breathe underwater, they would have been utterly exhausted. Only Harry and Malfoy, as melee mages, could pull off such a feat with physical abilities far exceeding those of ordinary people. Furthermore, it's worth noting that even for most Muggles and ordinary wizards, these two's physical prowess was truly absurd.
Just in terms of long-distance swimming alone… In a few months, a man named Martin would swim 162.5 kilometers in the Adriatic Sea, setting a new long-distance swimming record in the Muggle world with a time of 55 hours and 11 minutes. But the "Dark Lord's right-hand man" was far more capable than this man; he swam from where he fell into the sea to Atlantis with his bare hands, taking less than a day. Even if their initial location wasn't too far from Atlantis – otherwise, Ariel wouldn't have been nearby.
Even with Tom and Ariel manipulating the water flow to reduce resistance and increase speed, Harry and his friends strained to keep up. Well… this is what it means to be fully committed to the path of "melee wizards"! There's no turning back! Melee combat is the true path of wizards!
Whether others believe it or not, Harry and Malfoy certainly do. It's also worth mentioning that although Tom insisted on the path of "elegant wizards," he was quite pleased with Harry and Malfoy's growth. After all, he knew that while the "Combat Transformation Case" could enhance the host's physical abilities using their magic when not in human form, the amplification wasn't significant. The fact that Harry and his friends had such a noticeable improvement showed that they had quite a bit of talent in this area.
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