Harry Potter: Don't Touch the Badger's Plants

Professor Flitwick's face showed an encouraging expression as he addressed Ciel with genuine enthusiasm.

"Don't have any reservations, Ciel. Any spell you want, as long as it's within my capabilities, I'll help you complete it. This is the reward you deserve."

He spoke with confident pride. "Whether it's a gorgeous fireworks spell—I mean the kind that would spell out your name in the sky with brilliant displays—or a convenient and practical everyday charm, even combat spells that would make you invincible in a duel. I bet young wizards your age would love this kind of magic..."

Professor Flitwick puffed out his chest slightly. "By the way, don't let my small stature fool you—I was once a dueling champion. So you can completely trust my abilities."

But contrary to Professor Flitwick's expectations, Ciel showed no particular interest in any of the flashy spells he had just mentioned. Instead, he pulled out a thick, well-worn notebook from his robes.

"Regarding this spell and its basic properties, Professor, I already have a preliminary concept," Ciel said earnestly. "Could you please see if you can help me complete it?"

Professor Flitwick looked at the hefty notebook Ciel handed him, his eyes showing genuine surprise. It seemed Ciel had been prepared for this outcome? Was he so confident he could place in the final test?

Professor Flitwick's curiosity intensified. What kind of spell could this determined young Hufflepuff possibly want?

He opened the notebook and began examining it carefully, his expression becoming increasingly peculiar as he read. Professor Flitwick alternated between deep contemplation and concerned frowning, clearly wrestling with complex magical theory.

Finally, he closed the notebook with a thoughtful expression.

"I roughly understand what spell you want," he said slowly. "A Lumos Charm that can adjust its properties, correct?"

Ciel rarely showed nervousness, but now his composure cracked slightly. "Professor, can it be done?"

A frequency-adjustable Lumos Charm would be absolutely crucial for his cultivation work. If his hypothesis was correct, magical herbs would have preferred frequencies for Lumos Charms, just like Muggle plants had preferred light wavelengths. Casting different frequency Lumos Charms targeted at specific magical herbs could potentially accelerate their maturation significantly.

Accumulated over time, this would represent a considerable improvement in his cultivation efficiency.

After observing Ciel's nervous expression, Professor Flitwick's face initially grew tense and serious.

"I can't say for certain about this," he admitted with scholarly honesty. "I've never contemplated such a modification before. You know, novel magical attempts are always extraordinarily difficult."

As Ciel's heart gradually sank with disappointment, Professor Flitwick suddenly winked mischievously.

"So I'll need about two weeks to work on it. Two weeks from now, on Saturday, come to my office. You'll get the spell you want."

Ciel suddenly felt torn between laughter and exasperation. Good grief. Professor Flitwick had quite a sense of humor. He'd almost made Ciel believe he would leave disappointed.

Fortunately, the Charms master's reputation wasn't built on empty promises.

Ciel breathed a sigh of relief. Just two weeks—that was remarkably fast for such innovative magical research. He could wait patiently.

Perfect timing, actually. He could first test whether the Deluminator could really work as he hoped.

After Charms class ended, news of the Slytherin students' potion-enhanced performance spread among the other Houses. Learning that the serpents had performed so exceptionally because they'd received chemical assistance, many students were absolutely indignant.

The Gryffindor lions were practically exploding with righteous anger.

"Despicable!"

"Shameless!"

"That's outright cheating!"

"I wondered how Crabbe and Goyle could suddenly use the Lumos Charm so skillfully. So they were cheating with potions?"

"This isn't fair. Your rankings and points should be canceled, and you should lose points instead!"

The Slytherins retorted with characteristic smugness.

"What's wrong with using potions? That's also our skill and knowledge."

"If you're capable, acquire Phosphorescent Draughts too. Did the Ministry of Magic ban you from using them?"

"Besides, even without drinking potions, do you honestly think you could outperform us?"

"If you're not convinced, let's compete again."

Malfoy couldn't accept losing to Ciel even under these circumstances. His face flushed red as he firmly declared that Ciel must have used similar enhancement methods.

"His talent is so pathetically poor, Professor Sprout must have given him some magical herb enhancement. Otherwise, how could he possibly beat me?"

This accusation caused the normally peaceful Hufflepuffs to explode with indignation. Although they typically avoided confrontations, Malfoy was now directly slandering Ciel's integrity. This they absolutely could not tolerate.

For a time, even though the Lumos Charm final test had concluded, the heated discussions and arguments surrounding it showed no signs of stopping until dinner time. During the evening feast, when Slytherin and the other Houses' students looked at each other across the Great Hall, they were practically grinding their teeth in frustration, as if they wished the food on their plates was their opponents!

However, Ciel, the protagonist of this entire Lumos Charm controversy, was completely unaware of the ongoing drama. Or rather, even if he knew, he wouldn't particularly care.

He'd secured the points and obtained the actual benefits. What was the point of engaging in verbal disputes? Better to cultivate a few more magical plants.

At this moment, he was in the abandoned warehouse next to the Quidditch pitch. But this time it wasn't to trim flying broomsticks. Rather, he wanted to test how much the Deluminator could assist with his cultivation work.

For this experiment, he needed to eliminate interference from other light sources. The dark, isolated warehouse became the perfect testing environment.

Ciel continuously waved his wand with methodical precision.

"Lumos!"

One Lumos Charm after another was cast in steady succession. But simultaneously, he was repeatedly pressing the Deluminator's activation mechanism.

Click.

Click.

The light from each Lumos Charm transformed into glowing orbs, absorbed and stored within the Deluminator's magical reservoir.

When Ciel estimated he had accumulated sufficient stored light, anticipation appeared in his eyes as he walked purposefully toward the greenhouse.

In his experimental field, the previous batch of mature Lumos Shrooms had already been harvested completely. A fresh batch of Lumos Shroom mycelium had been planted in their place.

At this crucial early stage, the young fungi had an especially intense need for Lumos Charm illumination.

Originally, Ciel had planned to spend his entire evening manually tending to the Lumos Shroom mycelium with repeated spell casting. But now, with the Deluminator's capabilities, perhaps this time-consuming process could be automated.

The next moment, standing in his experimental field, Ciel clicked the Deluminator's release mechanism.

The stored Lumos Charm energy immediately transformed into floating orbs of gentle light that drifted out, suspending themselves above the cultivation area. Soft, nurturing illumination bathed every corner of the experimental plot.

The magical power contained within these released lights was virtually identical to what Ciel cast himself—the Deluminator had preserved not just the illumination, but the essential magical properties.

Immediately, the newly planted Lumos Shroom mycelium began responding with visible joy, their microscopic structures practically dancing with vitality. The reward orbs hovering above them began rapidly expanding in size, indicating accelerated growth.

Ciel's eyes shone with triumph and satisfaction.

It really worked!

This way, he could save his entire evening's worth of manual cultivation work. The implications were staggering—he could now dedicate that freed time to other magical pursuits.

Thinking of this expanded possibility, Ciel's heart stirred with new ambition.

"Perhaps I can consider cultivating another type of magical herb."

(End of Chapter)

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