"Ding! The Starter Pack is opening!"
"Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining mastery of the Three Unforgivable Curses!"
"Huh?" Lucas Summers froze for a moment, stunned by the sudden notifications echoing in his head. He quickly focused on the system panel floating before his eyes and noticed that three new spells had appeared beneath the Spells section.
...
[Spells: Avada Kedavra Level 9 (Max), Crucio Level 9 (Max), Imperio Level 9 (Max)]
[Talent: None]
[Dark Magic Mastery: 9]
...
Lucas stared at the panel in silence for several seconds before asking cautiously, "System… what exactly did you say your name was again?"
"Ding! This system is called the Strongest White Wizard Cultivation System!"
"You sure you didn't grab the wrong title somewhere?" Lucas said with obvious suspicion. "You gave me all three Unforgivable Curses and maxed-out Dark Magic mastery right from the start."
"Ding! There is no error in the system designation. According to system analysis, powerful white wizards are often no less knowledgeable in dark magic than dark wizards themselves. Many are even more proficient."
Lucas paused and thought about it carefully. After a few seconds, he reluctantly nodded. "...Honestly, that does make a weird kind of sense."
Now that he had settled down a little, his attention returned to the rusted iron cage surrounding him. The bars were stained dark with age, and an old brass lock hung from the door. Judging from the damp smell and corroded metal, the original owner of this body had clearly been imprisoned here for a very long time.
Lucas lowered his eyes slightly. Even though he had inherited this body through circumstances completely beyond his control, he still felt a trace of guilt toward the boy who had died here.
"I'll avenge you," he whispered quietly. "I promise."
The cave was cold and silent around him, broken only by the occasional drip of water somewhere deeper underground. Lucas examined the lock on the cage and quickly came up with two possible ways to escape.
The first option was simple brute force. With enough strength, he could probably twist the old brass lock apart.
The second method was magic.
Lucas immediately preferred the second choice. The Unlocking Charm had appeared countless times in the Harry Potter books, so he already knew the incantation by heart. More importantly, he desperately wanted to test whether magic was truly real.
He didn't even have a wand right now, but according to the system, the Great Magician template allowed him to cast wandless magic without much difficulty.
Lucas fixed his gaze on the brass lock and carefully recited the spell from memory.
"Alohomora."
The moment the word left his lips, Lucas felt a strange warmth flow through his body. A faint magical force extended outward alongside his focus and landed directly on the lock.
Click!
The sharp metallic sound echoed through the cave as the brass lock sprang open instantly.
At the same time, the system panel updated again.
...
[Spells: Avada Kedavra Level 9 (Max), Crucio Level 9 (Max), Imperio Level 9 (Max), Alohomora Level 1]
...
Lucas blinked in surprise before his eyes lit up with excitement. He quickly locked the cage again and recast the spell.
"Alohomora."
Click!
The lock opened once more.
When he checked the panel again, the spell had already risen to Level 2.
"Ding! Repeated spell practice is one of the methods used to increase spell proficiency apart from direct enhancement. Due to the host possessing the Great Magician template, Intelligence Level 9, and exceptional comprehension, lower-level magic such as the Unlocking Charm can be upgraded rapidly through practice."
Lucas immediately understood. His expression brightened as he looked at the rusty lock again. If simple repetition could level up spells this quickly, then his growth speed would be terrifying.
Without wasting more time, he removed the lock completely and pushed open the cage door.
The rusty hinges let out a long, ear-piercing creak that echoed throughout the cave. The sound carried surprisingly far in the underground darkness.
A few seconds later, Lucas heard furious shouting in the distance, followed by hurried footsteps.
The dark wizard had noticed.
Lucas frowned slightly, but unlike before, he no longer felt powerless. In fact, with three max-level Unforgivable Curses sitting on his panel, he felt strangely calm.
Moments later, a black-robed wizard stormed into view from the cave entrance. His gaunt face twisted viciously beneath his hood the instant he saw Lucas standing outside the cage.
"You little bastard!" the man snarled. "I don't know how you got out of that dog cage, but clearly yesterday's lesson wasn't enough!"
As he spoke, the dark wizard yanked out a slender wand and raised it viciously toward Lucas.
"Cruc—"
But Lucas moved faster.
He instinctively raised a finger and pointed directly at the wizard.
"Imperio."
An invisible wave burst outward instantly.
The black-robed wizard's body froze mid-motion. The rage on his face disappeared almost immediately, replaced by a dull and vacant expression. His raised wand trembled weakly before lowering on its own.
He stood there motionless like a puppet with its strings cut.
Lucas slowly walked over, his heartbeat speeding up despite his calm expression. He carefully took the wand from the wizard's hand.
At that moment, another system notification sounded.
"Ding! Host successfully cast wandless magic for the first time. Imperio successfully activated. Congratulations to the host for obtaining Occlumency Level 9 (Max)."
Lucas nearly laughed out loud from relief.
In the wizarding world, Legilimency was a terrifying ability. There were plenty of powerful witches and wizards capable of reading memories or probing thoughts. Lucas had been genuinely worried that someone might eventually discover he was a transmigrator.
Now, with max-level Occlumency, nobody would be able to casually pry into his mind anymore.
After calming himself down, Lucas finally focused on the wand in his hand. The moment he touched it properly, he felt a strange sensation run through his fingers, almost as though the wand itself were reacting to him.
A pale yellow panel suddenly appeared before his eyes.
Unlike his usual blue status screen, this panel displayed the information of the object in his hand.
"Ding! The host can now use the system to view the attributes of any magical item."
Lucas's eyes widened immediately.
This ability was absurd.
If he could inspect any magical object instantly, then cursed artifacts, hidden enchantments, or dangerous dark magic items would become nearly impossible to use against him.
His gaze returned to the wand's panel.
[Item: Wand]
[Wood: Blackthorn]
[Core: Dragon Heartstring]
[Length: Eleven and a Quarter Inches]
[Flexibility: Rigid]
[Status: Good (Original owner defeated, allegiance transferred)]
[Compatibility: 91%]
[Dark Magic Affinity: 89%]
Lucas immediately recalled the lore from the original books. Wands with dragon heartstring cores were known for their power, but they were also notoriously easy to win from previous owners. Compared to unicorn hair wands, their loyalty was much weaker.
He casually gave the wand a small flick.
A faint sense of submission flowed back through the wand and into his palm, as though it had willingly accepted him as its new master.
Lucas nodded in satisfaction.
Now armed with a wand and powerful dark magic, he slowly turned his gaze back toward the blank-faced wizard standing obediently nearby.