The eighteenth of December, Hogwarts, Room of Help, Evening.
—Repetition is the mother of learning, right? — I expressed all my thoughts in one, succinct phrase. Truly, this phrase justifies the whole meaning that is put into it. Especially if you see direct confirmation with your own eyes.
A month and a half has passed since the memorable ritual. All this time was not in vain both for Hogwarts and for me personally. Especially for me.
For the last month I have been actively working on metamorphism, as well as the School of the Mind. In each of these schools there was global progress, which is good news. How could it be otherwise, watching your own development is incredible.
In metamorphism everything was much simpler. To advance to the next stage of development as a metamorph, I needed a little less than I expected at the beginning. If at first I was counting on six months, due to workload, now it became clear to me how much I was mistaken. It turned out to be much easier to master all the journeyman-level skills at the proper level. Now I can begin the test for admission to new knowledge in this school with a calm soul. The future prospects take my breath away.
To a reasonable question, how, exactly, did I manage to master the skills ahead of schedule? I have a logical answer - the school of the mind, or mental magic, it's all about it.
The devil is in the details, isn't it? This is exactly how you can describe this school. Who would have thought that a disciplined mind, even if it doesn't reach the level of an apprentice, could help so much in one's own development.
No, of course I read a lot of treatises about this school, but that's the problem. In all of them, the emphasis was mainly on the combat or defensive aspect of a given school, and there was little information about the auxiliary aspects. Still, most of the textbooks were written either in the Middle Ages, where you think about how to hit harder in order to survive, or by people from the Middle Ages who have lived for quite some time. Ossified thinking in all its glory.
It seems like a small thing, but so much is hidden in it. Another reason for yourself to double-check all the information and not trust books unconditionally. Which is already a count... it's scary to even think about it.
Let's return to metamorphism. The memorial ritual, as well as the blood that I managed, not without effort, to obtain, helped me a lot. I don't know what exactly I got after the rituals other than increasing the "quality" of mana, prana and psi, but it's definitely not something simple. At least that's what my gut tells me. And she hasn't let me down yet.
Psi is mental energy, at least that's what they call it in the School of Mind. Mental energy is too cumbersome and not entirely accurate name. So they came up with a name for this energy - Psi.
What is the meaning of journeyman level metamorphism? Basically - giving yourself alien traits, features, not just ordinary ones, but something significant, be it, for example, insusceptibility to the fire of dragons or pseudo-invisibility from thestrals. Incorporating these traits into your body and freely controlling them is the journeyman level. True, I have not yet managed to exceed the threshold of two features, but what are my years?
Of course, to obtain this title you need to succeed in other aspects, such as the speed of transformation, as well as the complexity of transformation, but all this is gained through practice. Remember the first saying? But mastering something fundamentally new, this is a completely different level. Worthy of recognition.
Let's return to troll blood. A more detailed study of it made it clear why magical representatives of flora and fauna cannot live in the world of magic on a permanent basis. Everything turned out to be banal simple. They simply "suffocate" from lack of mana, which causes death or, in rare cases, degradation.
The cells of magical representatives, indigenous - this is very important, need mana in the same way as the cells of ordinary people need oxygen. Without it they simply die. True, there is a small but. If a person not only lives at the expense of oxygen, but also dies at the expense of it, oxidation of organs occurs (pure oxygen is poison), then no harmful effects are observed from mana. On the contrary, the more mana in the environment and the "stronger and more concentrated the mana," the stronger the cells become, and with them the organism of the creature or plant itself. It's not for nothing that thousand-year-old ginseng is much better than hundred-year-old ginseng.
Why won't the same troll survive in the Muggle world if he has his own source of mana, that is, a mana core? Indeed, in theory, it can take upon itself the right to "feed" cells with mana. The answer is simple - his own mana reserves simply won't be enough. Trolls do not use mana on their own, it all happens on a subconscious level. Moreover, if there is mana around, why would we use ours, right? It is because of this that their sources are weak and cannot provide enough mana. That is why they die; a weak spiritual organ cannot provide for the needs of a starving organism.
From all this it becomes clear what kind of aura it is that protects magical animals from weak spells. Everything turned out to be simple - their body is so filled with concentrated mana that weak spells simply cannot cause decent harm; the construct of these spells cannot break through the film of mana. The opposite is also true - if you exhaust the same troll, you can kill him with a banal cutting curse.
Having learned this, I was inspired by the idea of transferring my body to constant replenishment, or strengthening, whatever you want to call it, from mana. This is radically different from the usual drinking of the body with mana, which I previously called, out of ignorance, strengthening. In the end, if the cell itself can absorb mana, and not under attack, then the Profit from this is much higher. Spoiler - I succeeded, all I had to do was kill a month with virtually no sleep or rest, but the result was worth the effort.
Due to the conscious control of my mana, I did not allow the use of borrowed mana to strengthen myself, creating a kind of shielding barrier throughout my body, except for the core, of course. You need to use all available methods for development, right? Of course, not turning into outright blackness. The consequences are too detrimental. You don't have to look far for an example – Tom is the most striking example.
Because of this, my core received an additional boost, another one, for its development and this makes me happy. Thanks to this, the quantity and quality of prana also increased, new cells produced much more "strong" vital energy, this led to the development of the brain, and after it the psi. Once again I am convinced that everything in a person is so strongly connected that it is impossible to become truly strong by developing one thing. Only comprehensive development. Which, unfortunately, takes too much time. Not many people can withstand such a pace.
And if you remember the anomaly in my soul, it's absolutely a fairy tale. True, now only fifty percent of the reserve of the nominal value is available to me, but at this rate in a year, these fifty will become a hundred. And there it will be possible to once again focus on strengthening the cells. It's beautiful, but now I don't want to get into trouble even more.
By the way, about the troubles. I never returned the Claymore. Because of the ritual, as well as all the mana that passed through him, he changed slightly. Well, slightly, now it's not a metal sword, but a full-fledged artifact. I had to create a temporary replacement using transfiguration. It will last until about Christmas, and then it will dissipate. All traces will disappear, and no one will be able to find out who whistled the sword.
Now, perhaps, let's talk about mentalism. There are two types of it. The first is pure mental, based on Psi, the second is magical. In this case, Psi and mana are mixed for better control and "greater" capabilities.
At first glance, the second option is preferable, because there is more energy, which means it will be easier to create all sorts of different things, but from the second, everything is a little different. There are quite often places in the world, rather a better name for them - traps, where mana cannot be controlled. Of course, if you have the strength of a carriage and a small cart, then you will simply not give a damn about this trap, you will simply overpower it. There is strength, you don't need intelligence, or something like that.
So, as it became clear, the first option has much more advantages. The main one is the ability to operate with Psi energy wherever you are. Yes, it is not so universal and strong, but even psionics has its undoubted advantages. It's easy to guess which option I chose, of course the second. Moreover, a sufficiently developed psionicist can develop additional streams of consciousness. True, I still have to work for a very long time before that, but where did ours not disappear? Yes, and this is not a priority. Most of the efforts will be spent on metamorphism, then on the mental, even further on healing, and the rest of the forces that remain will go to the school course.
This is how I have been developing for the last month. Yes, it's hard, and sometimes you want to die from fatigue. But the realization that it's me who needs it gives additional strength and motivation to move on.
An interesting fact is that my telekinesis is a branch of the second variant of mentalism. And I didn't even know about it.
Why, exactly, am I saying this? It's simple - I see with my own eyes the fruit of my efforts. Right now small evil eyes are flying at me, the most primitive ones. And watching how they cannot affect you because of your efforts in metamorphism is worth a lot. I'm still keeping quiet about the gradually increasing physical characteristics, as well as the reaction speed. Of course, this will not last all the time, but what I get excites my brain. Dopamine just flows through my body. (Dopamine is the happiness hormone in the human body.)
Well, perhaps we should call it a day; it's time to go to the living room. Tomorrow will not be an easy day.
Having made a decision, I headed to the exit from the room of help, which at the moment looked like a training ground for training protective spells. On one side there was me, and on the other there were mannequins armed with artifacts of different types.
Casting a stealth charm on myself, I opened the door and went out into the corridor.
*Top, stomp* with every step the distance between me and the room increased, and literally twenty seconds later the room completely disappeared, just a bare wall and nothing else.
*Top-top-top*
Only the sound of footsteps in the corridor, which were practically inaudible only if with the help of enhanced hearing, was my companion this evening and at this moment.
Even if a person is a social creature, even he appreciates silence and loneliness. What to say about me? They are my constant companions along the road of life.
*****
December 19th, Hogwarts, Hospital Wing, morning.
"So," Poppy began, sitting at the table in her "secret room." "For two months now, you have been studying healing with enviable persistence, surprising me more and more each time." It's time for you to take your first exam, but answer my question first. What is the difference between a medic and a healer?
— In the approach to treatment? — I answered after thinking a little. At the moment we were opposite each other, sitting in soft chairs. Still the same room, still the same scene that had been repeated for a month and a half. True, the ending of this "production" is always different.
- Your answer is basically correct. How do you understand it yourself? - She smiled and asked me another question.
- Well, witch doctors treat illnesses mainly with the help of potions, and healers use mana.
"Not entirely true," she answered, tapping her fingers on the table. — Both of them use both mana and potions, but if the former use mana as some kind of guideline and auxiliary tool, then for the latter mana is the main tool. It is with her help that they heal. She dominates everything. And the treatment results for the latter are much better. It is sad that modern magicians are increasingly moving away from this concept. You see, it's too hard to study. "We can deal with the problem with much less effort," she said with hidden anger. "They just lacked motivation and perseverance." Before me sits a living example of how hard work is rewarded. You can learn in a couple of months what they cannot learn in a couple of years.
All I could do was remain silent to this statement. I understood a long time ago - the topic of healing and magic medicine, a kind of "red rag" for Madame Pomfrey. There is something hidden behind all this, perhaps even some kind of story.
The silence dragged on. This gave me extra time to prepare myself and my mind. Today is a big day. Day of the first exam in the field of healing.
"Well," Poppy broke the silence. - Perhaps we should start now. Time, alas, does not stand still.
*****