Chapter 140: The Archmage's Conception

"Hermione, I'm in big trouble, you have to save me."

When Harry and Ron found Hermione in the library, she was nodding off and nearly asleep. The boys' loud shouting instantly startled her awake, while also drawing Madam Pince's feather duster, which promptly drove all three of them out together.

Once chased out of the library, Hermione tried to cover up the fact that she had just been dozing off by speaking up first: "You aren't allowed to make loud noises in the library. I told you that long ago. What on earth do you want?"

"Sorry, Hermione, but if you're tired you can go back to the dormitory or the Gryffindor common room. It's warmer there than the library—"

Seeing Hermione's angry glare, Harry cut himself short and quickly shifted to the real matter at hand.

"It's dragons, Hermione, the first task of the Triwizard Tournament. Hagrid took me to see them; they're just... incredible. I seriously want to curse the person who put my name in the Goblet of Fire."

Dragons were widely considered the most dangerous creatures in the wizarding world. Their hides could withstand the vast majority of spells; even the Killing Curse might not work on a dragon unless the wizard casting it was exceptionally powerful.

In Romania, subduing a single dragon required two or more dragon keepers who were well-versed in various methods of handling them to tame such terrifying beasts.

Making a few underage students who hadn't even graduated face a dragon was truly dangerous. Even with people standing guard, the slightest mishap could result in severe injuries.

Harry pressed on: "Hermione, I remember you went to the Romanian dragon reserve over the summer and even rode a dragon. Do you know any of their weaknesses?"

Ron chimed in from the side: "Preferably the kind of secret that lets you ride one."

"There is no secret. I was able to ride it because of my godfather. In fact, even the dragon keepers were quite astonished by that. However, I can summarize some weaknesses for you. But Harry, different dragons have different temperaments. Which one are you facing?"

Hermione hugged a stack of books and asked Harry. The key factor in dealing with dragons depended on their habits, and dragons from different regions had significant differences.

"Forget it, you might as well come with me and ask my godfather. He keeps a dragon as a pet."

Upon hearing this, shock crossed Harry and Ron's faces. Then, exchanging a glance, they immediately followed Hermione.

With the first task approaching, Harry was surely not the only one who had discovered what it was; the other contestants were all preparing methods to deal with the dragons to varying degrees.

The three of them arrived at the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor's office and happened to see Fleur walking out. Upon seeing her, Hermione took a deep breath. Why was she here during the day too?

Clutching her books, Hermione hurried forward a couple of steps, her tone carrying a hint of accusation: "Mademoiselle Delacour, the professor should be holding class right now. Why are you coming out from inside?"

"Class? But Professor Pender is right inside... I came to consult him about a few questions and, by the way, brought some French pastries."

Fleur smiled and explained. Although she wanted to use a love potion to resolve her family's crisis, how could she possibly just feed it to someone out of nowhere? There had to be a gradual process at least.

She wanted to make a plea for her family, so coming every day to deliver pastries felt like a method well-suited for her. Once it slowly became a habit or he actually ate them, she would find her opportunity.

Hermione raised her voice slightly in rebuttal: "Inside? How is that possible? This morning is the lower-year Defense Against the Dark Arts class, which is common knowledge to everyone at Hogwarts. Are you trying to say the professor skipped class? Right, Ron, Harry?"

However, the two boys didn't chime in. Fleur's smile held an inexplicable allure for Harry and Ron; a Veela's ethereal charm combined with a human woman's stunning beauty meant very few young wizards could resist the allure of the Court Flower.

Turning her head to see the expressions on Ron and Harry's faces, Hermione couldn't help stamping her foot in frustration.

Fleur stepped aside, gesturing to Hermione: "But Professor Pender is right inside. If you have business with him, you can just knock and go in."

I don't need your reminder!

Hermione desperately wanted to voice those words, but doing so would make her look somewhat aggressive. Though she had always received an education in politeness, for some reason, seeing Fleur Delacour made her blood boil.

She had no choice but to swallow the words, walk past Fleur to the door of the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor's office, and rap twice.

Less than two seconds later, the office door swung open. Pushing it open and catching sight of Kahn seated behind his desk, Hermione called out to Harry and Ron before stepping inside.

"Godfather, didn't you go to class today?"

"I did, but I used a shadow clone. That's me too, and the class is already over."

Kahn put down the book on runic analysis of magical creatures he was holding, looked up at Hermione, and asked, "Why are the three of you here together? Is it about last time?"

"Not at all, Godfather. It's about the first task. Harry found out the first task involves dragons, so he wanted to ask for your advice..."

As she spoke, Hermione's eyes kept drifting toward a box of pastries on the desk. They were exquisitely styled little cakes, and one look told her they weren't the handiwork of Phil or Isaac.

"Dragons, is it? Logically speaking, as a professor, I shouldn't provide you with help; that's forbidden in the tournament." Hearing Kahn say this, Harry's face darkened instantly, but Kahn continued, "However, if you want to see my pet, that's still acceptable... Hermione, if you're hungry, you can have some. Although Phil didn't bake them, they look rather good. You two can try them as well."

Hearing the latter part, Harry's face brightened up again.

Kahn pushed the pastries Fleur had brought toward the three of them. After muttering words of thanks, Harry and Ron began to sample them. Though Hermione wasn't particularly eager to eat, she did realize she was feeling a bit hungry.

Once the three of them finished the pastries on the table, Kahn waved his hand to clear away the plates and crumbs. Then, drawing a pet pouch from his coat, he said to them, "Step inside."

Harry and Ron looked bewildered. "Inside? Professor, you mean—"

Before they could finish, Kahn used a spell to drop them right into the pouch, followed by Hermione. Once all three had been sent inside, Kahn placed the pet pouch back on the desk, cast a Levitation Charm to transform into a wisp of smoke, and flew in after them.

Upon arriving inside the pet pouch, Harry and Ron were genuinely dumbfounded. It was their first time encountering such a phenomenon—a tiny pouch housing such an immense space.

Vast grasslands, azure lakes, and forests in the distance...

"Harry, look at that!"

Ron pointed in sudden terror at a colossal beast in the distance. It seemed a hundred meters away, yet its size was so immense... Viewed up close, it had to be at least twenty or thirty meters tall.

Catching sight of the dragon, Harry asked with a hint of dread in his voice, "Pro—Professor, is that a dragon?" The dragons he had seen possessed nothing of this staggering scale. Merlin above, he wanted to go back.

"Indeed. A hybrid dragon. Whether it's flame range, size, agility, or defense, it far surpasses ordinary dragons. Its appetite is equally massive, too."

It devoured dozens of sheep a month, and it still seemed to be growing. Kahn had no idea what Orochimaru had actually injected into this dragon.

"Don't be afraid. Godfather's dragon is very obedient and quite pretty."

Hermione spoke up to reassure them. She still remembered the expression of the Romanian dragon reserve administrator upon seeing this creature, who had even offered to trade three different dragons for the one in her godfather's possession.

Pure white scales shimmered radiantly in the sunlight. Though sharp horns crowned its head, they lacked any ferocious appearance, and its wings were covered in scaled armor, accompanied by two powerful forelimbs.

Once you grew familiar with it, you would find it exceptionally beautiful. But the last time Hermione had laid eyes on this dragon, it had only been about her height; now it had grown to this magnitude.

Kahn addressed the three of them: "Newt has always wanted to study my dragon. After I sent him photographs last time, he happily gave me two notebooks... Harry, you can practice with it; it won't hurt you."

"I think... maybe... a bit..."

Harry stared at the dragon drawing closer and closer to him. Its maw was wide enough to swallow him whole with ease. To spar with a monster of this caliber... Harry suddenly felt the dragons he had seen the previous night weren't quite so terrifying after all. He now felt brave enough to face last night's dragon with a Disarming Charm, rather than the beast standing before him.

Kahn chuckled. "If you can handle this one, then other dragons naturally won't pose a problem. Still, overcoming fear is indeed difficult... Let's leave this place for now."

As the dragon thrust its head closer, Ron dropped to the ground in fright, and Harry's legs turned somewhat shaky. He vowed to himself that if this dragon took another three steps closer, he would immediately sit down as well.

However, Kahn didn't give Harry the chance to sit. He instantly whisked them out with a spell, patted the dragon affectionately on the head, and exited the pet pouch himself.

"The dragon's weaknesses are quite clear. Once you conquer the fear in your heart and practice accordingly, the first task will be easily manageable. All fear stems from a lack of one's own strength. Just practice diligently after you return."

Kahn offered Harry a piece of advice: curb the fear, then practice specifically. It was very pragmatic. Yet having witnessed a dragon of such colossal scale, Harry suddenly stopped feeling quite so terrified of the dragon imported from Romania.

"Thank you, Professor Pender. I think I have a fair idea of what I should do next."

Harry spoke, resolving to practice specifically targeting a dragon's weaknesses. Fire and eyes... he remembered spells capable of warding off flames and targeting sight.

"Professor, then we'll be heading back." Dragging Ron, whose legs were still somewhat wobbly, Harry bowed to Kahn and took his leave.

Kahn didn't try to detain the two boys, but instead called out to Hermione: "Hermione, stay behind."

Once Harry and Ron had departed and pulled the door shut, Kahn continued: "Have you been staying up late recently? Your complexion is terrible, and you've caught a bit of a cold, haven't you? If you don't have classes this afternoon, rest here for a while. No one will disturb you."

"I may not have slept well in the middle of the night. It's nothing, Godfather. I've already brewed myself some cold potion, though I certainly need to intrude for a moment. Harry and Ron's carelessness got me chased out by Madam Pince..."

Habitually, Hermione scanned the room for that familiar knitting gear before remembering it wasn't needed anymore, though she still asked, "Godfather, could the hearth fire be a bit bigger?"

No sooner had she spoken than the flames inside the fireplace flared brighter. Within moments, the temperature in the room rose significantly. Content, Hermione curled up on the nearby sofa, feeling a blanket drape gently over her shoulders.

With Hermione settled, Kahn returned to studying those unfamiliar runic characters. After consulting Newt, he was able to confirm that many of these strange runes originated from the internal magic of magical creatures.

Newt shared Kahn's perspective: magic originated from magical creatures; by studying the power within their bloodlines, one could master the very source of magic.

Kahn himself had benefited from the genetic traits of phoenixes and dragons, which was why his command over magic was so exceptional. Inspired by his conversation with Newt, he even entertained the thought of constructing Norse runes within his own body.

Perhaps Runes alone wouldn't suffice—those had been devised by ancient wizards based on Elven scripts. Kahn would need to construct a wider array of ancient runes. If his hypothesis proved correct and he successfully wove ancient runes into his flesh, they would become the true source of his magic.

With a source of magic at his command, any spell or ability could be executed effortlessly—ten times more fluently than now.

Calling him a god of magic would hardly be an exaggeration.

In his letter, Newt had frankly called Kahn's idea audacious, yet conceded that it held a sliver of possibility. After all, when magical creatures exercised their abilities, they stirred magic from specific parts within their bodies. Interpreted through Kahn's terminology, that was the magical source of the creature.

Yet Kahn's conception of a magic source was far bolder. In his vision, once a source of magic was successfully established, he would be able to cast all spells instinctively—with the innate ease of eating and drinking.

The concept was immensely difficult, but Kahn believed he could pull it off because he possessed the Extremis virus.

After pondering a moment, Kahn penned another reply to Newt. Meanwhile, his plan to hunt down a unicorn in the coming years was set to proceed.

...

Before long, the day of the first task arrived, with the four champions each facing a dragon.

Kahn chose not to attend the match, knowing his presence would disrupt the four dragons. It had been the same in Romania—everywhere Kahn walked, the dragons behaved with absolute docility.

Even those fiercely solitary dragons showed no aggressive inclination toward Kahn whatsoever.

It was a wondrous phenomenon. If a dragon and a phoenix crossed paths in each other's territory, it invariably triggered bloodshed. Yet replaced by Kahn, the dragons displayed clear signs of affection.

Taking advantage of the first task, Kahn slipped into the Forbidden Forest.

He immediately conjured fifty shadow clones. Even if he had to turn the Forbidden Forest upside down, he was determined to find a unicorn.

With the execution of the Shadow Clone Technique, fifty clones of Kahn materialized at the edge of the forest with a chorus of soft *poofs*, instantly taking flight via Levitation Charms to scour the woods.

Kahn opted for a grid search. Armed with shadow clones and levitation, a substantial portion of the Forbidden Forest was covered in no time. As time wore on, a unicorn had nowhere to hide.

Suddenly, a surge of chakra and memories flashed back to him.

Receiving the memory, a smile bloomed across Kahn's face: "It really is those centaurs. But how are you going to run this time..."

The words barely left his lips before Kahn propelled himself with a Levitation Charm toward the spot where the clone had dispersed. The clones he dispatched patrolled in pairs precisely so that upon encountering a unicorn, one could shadow it while the other alerted the main body.

His cloned memory had just revealed that a unicorn was migrating under the cover of centaurs, and some centaurs had even attempted to attack him with bows.

The speed of the Levitation Charm amplified with the caster's magical power. Under Kahn's command, even a Firebolt 2000 couldn't hope to outpace him.

Reaching the site of the vanished clone in a flash, Kahn quickly detected the presence of another clone due to the loud commotion echoing ahead.

Two squads of centaurs were relentlessly pelting Kahn's clone with javelins, while two other squads constantly shifted positions, harassing them with showers of arrows.

Suddenly, a streak of black mist cut swiftly through the sky, followed by the resounding chant of *"Incendio!"*

In the next instant, raging flames engulfed a dozen nearby centaurs, racing along their spines to consume their entire bodies.

"Damn it, help..."

Seared by the scorching agony, some centaurs rolled on the ground, desperately trying to extinguish the fire. Their efforts proved futile, however, prompting one centaur to roar, "Head for the stream we just passed, quickly!"

It was only out of consideration for the Forbidden Forest that Kahn refrained from unleashing Fiendfyre, but death remained the sole destination for these centaurs.

Discarding the fallen centaurs, Kahn accelerated, rapidly closing the distance on the migrating, fleeing unicorn. With a flick of his wand, he cast a Binding Curse, freezing the creature in its tracks.

"Such a spiritual creature. But have no fear; I am merely taking a few materials from you..."

Alighting beside the unicorn, Kahn saw it fixing him with a hopeful, pleading gaze, and offered a soothing promise. In truth, Kahn never harbored any intention of slaughtering the unicorn; it was these meddling centaurs who had kept throwing obstacles in his path.

Otherwise, he would have secured the unicorn materials long ago.

Before harvesting anything, Kahn employed diagnostic magic to thoroughly examine the unicorn, soon detecting a powerful magical reaction centered around its lungs.

According to the theories exchanged between him and Newt, this region must be the unicorn's magical source.

Extracting a portion of flesh, tail hair, and half of its silvery-white horn, Kahn contentedly restored the unicorn and released it. Aside from the horn and tail hair, which could not regenerate quickly, the unicorn's other injuries healed instantly.

Shedding the binding spell, the unicorn scrambled to its feet, emitting a series of neighs laden with palpable fury.

This human was utterly outrageous, actually severing half its horn! Within moments, the unicorn vanished into the woods, likely avoiding the vicinity of Hogwarts for a long time to come.

Kahn returned to Hogwarts well satisfied. As for whether those centaurs would meet a grim fate, that fell entirely outside his sphere of concern.

They had attacked him relentlessly, harboring fierce hostility; being consumed by flames was entirely their own doing. Had they chosen not to attack, none of this would have transpired.