As Hoffa stared at the bustling, harmonious library hall before him, he asked in a raspy voice, "So, what now? Do we walk through?"
"No, we fight through," Ossivia replied calmly.
"Fight?" Hoffa looked at the phantoms engrossed in their books, his disbelief apparent.
Ossivia said nothing. She placed a hand on Hoffa's back, and together they stepped forward.
The step felt like crossing an invisible barrier, or perhaps passing through a ghostly body. A sudden chill made Hoffa shiver.
The moment they crossed the threshold, all the phantoms in the library—the ones reading, arguing, or chatting—fell silent. Slowly, they turned their heads toward Hoffa and Ossivia, their expressions filled with cold vigilance.
Ossivia released her hold on Hoffa and said, "Though this ancient library has long been abandoned, the magic protecting it is still active. To these remnants of ancient memories, we are intruders.
"If we want to reach the other side of the Mirror World, we must defeat them."
She pointed to the towering statue at the center of the hall. "Take me there. I need to see if there are any clues."
Before Hoffa could respond, the phantoms of ancient wizards simultaneously set down their books, stood up, and began advancing toward them. Their expressions twisted with hostility.
"Can they harm me?" Hoffa took a step back.
Ossivia pushed him forward with a firm hand on his back. "Yes. Now fight."
Hoffa stumbled forward, crossing an invisible line. All the phantoms raised their hands simultaneously.
In an instant, the air was charged with violent magical energy. Their hands glowed with vibrant hues—fireballs, lightning bolts, and ice spikes hurtled toward Hoffa.
The ancient waves of magic sent shivers down Hoffa's spine. His pupils shrank as he vanished into thin air using his ghostly step.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The spells struck empty space, sending debris flying across the hall.
Ossivia, unfazed, raised a single finger. The flying debris was deflected by her shield charm, scattering harmlessly to either side.
Reappearing from his ghostly walk, Hoffa stared at the gaping craters on the floor and exclaimed, "Are you telling me these guys don't even need wands?!"
Ossivia tilted her head. "The standards for ancient wizards were stricter than today. Wandless casting was a basic requirement for admission. Only top-tier wizards were allowed to wield wands. Now, defeat these fragments."
"And you? Are you just going to stand there and talk?" Hoffa asked, sensing something amiss.
"Yes," she said, taking a step back to give him space.
What the hell?
Hoffa barely had time to react before the glow of incoming spells lit up his face.
With a swift motion, his wand transformed into a large shield. He charged forward, but several spells struck the shield, causing him to stagger.
The shield grew hot on one side and icy cold on the other.
After retreating three steps, Hoffa swept the shield off his arm and transformed it into a sharp, flexible whip. With a single slash, he cut through several phantoms.
There was no blood, no screams—only the sound of shattering glass as the broken figures crumbled to the ground into shards.
But more phantoms emerged from the surroundings, rushing toward Hoffa. As they ran, their hands shaped glowing, translucent purple blades from raw magic.
These phantoms were also masters of transfiguration. However, their ancient spells did not transfigure objects but instead reshaped pure magical energy.
Wielding transparent greatswords and axes forged from magic, they charged at Hoffa from all directions.
Hoffa knew just how terrifying a group of transfiguration experts could be. Retreating rapidly, he turned to Ossivia and shouted, "Are you seriously not going to help?!"
Unmoved, Ossivia replied, "I want to see what you're capable of."
As she spoke, a phantom on the right hurled its purple blade. The weapon expanded mid-air, sealing off Hoffa's escape route on that side.
Hoffa rolled to the left, clutching his shield tightly.
But the phantoms on the left were prepared. Two of them lashed out with sharp, transparent magical whips, aiming for Hoffa's lower body.
At the same time, another phantom leaped high into the air, wielding a translucent axe that descended toward him with crushing force.
Damn it! These phantoms were even coordinating their attacks!
Under assault from three sides, Hoffa channeled his mental energy into the ground. Shattergrasp!
Three slabs of stone rose from the floor, attempting to block the phantom's offensive.
As soon as the slabs appeared, two phantoms swung their left arms, casting shattering curses that blasted a hole in Hoffa's defenses.
From above, the airborne phantom hurled its magical axe.
The glowing purple blade spun as it sliced through the gap in Hoffa's shattered defenses, heading straight for him.
In the blink of an eye, Hoffa bent low and swung his shield, deflecting the axe off-course as he rolled to safety.
But he wasn't quick enough. The edge of the axe grazed his cheek, sending a sharp pain coursing through his head.
He touched his cheek and found his hand covered in blood—the wound was so deep that the bone was visible.
The phantoms of the ancient wizards gave Hoffa no time to breathe. After landing their first attack, they immediately organized their next wave. Seven or eight of the wizards transformed their glowing purple blades into burning red ropes and lashed them toward Hoffa. Meanwhile, two of the phantoms transformed into leopards, leaping at him with alarming agility.
The situation was dire.
At this critical moment, Ossivia shouted from behind, "Why aren't you using transfiguration to fight?"
"Are you blind? Am I not using it?" Hoffa snapped back, parrying an axe-wielding phantom and dodging frantically.
"You're not using what I taught you in class—human transfiguration," Ossivia said flatly.
"I didn't pay attention to a single one of your classes!" Hoffa retorted.
"Drop your arrogance. You can still learn now," Ossivia said.
"Really? I'd rather not turn into a snake!" Hoffa muttered as he switched his tactics, smashing through one phantom with a kick. But before he could recover, a leopard pounced on him, dragging him across the floor.
The scene became a deadlock.
Even faced with such peril, Ossivia remained calm. She said evenly, "I didn't ask you to turn into a snake. But I heard from Dumbledore that you're an Animagus—the youngest one in history, isn't that right?"
"What? Here? Now?" Hoffa exclaimed, rolling away just in time to escape the leopard's claws. "I don't have enough magic!"
"Weak excuses. Cowardly pretexts," Ossivia said coolly.
"Excuses?" Hoffa was stunned. As he smashed another phantom to pieces, he shouted, "Do you want me to die here?"
"You can do better," Ossivia said, unfazed. "As I told you in our first lesson, use every card in your hand. You have an ace up your sleeve, but you're not playing it. You have no control over your Animagus form."
"I told you, I don't have enough magic!" Hoffa insisted, rolling repeatedly to dodge the burning chains.
Ossivia swung her arm, which transformed into a snake, and struck Hoffa's leg like a whip.
Surrounded by enemies, Hoffa roared in frustration, "Are you trying to kill me?"
"Did you see that?" Ossivia said, her voice steady. "Transfiguration is magic of understanding, not magic of raw power. Human transfiguration isn't the same as Animagus transformation. It's about control, precision—not blindly pouring in magic."
Her words distracted Hoffa just enough for the phantom chains to entangle his left foot and right leg. The ancient phantoms pulled the chains taut, trying to tear him apart.
Hoffa cried out, "Can't you pick a better place for a lesson?!"
"Try it. Quickly," Ossivia urged.
Suspended mid-air, Hoffa glanced at his watch, which showed his remaining magic power at 0.2X. Looking around at the growing number of phantoms, he gritted his teeth.
"Damn it!"
He threw his wand, which transformed mid-air into a massive iron bar.
Boom!
The iron bar wedged itself in the center of the room, blocking dozens of approaching phantoms.
Hoffa seized the precious few seconds of reprieve to take a deep breath and enter a meditative state.
In the next moment, his eyes blazed gold, and golden patterns began to coil around his arms, slowly spreading across his body. Simultaneously, the magic indicator on his watch plummeted rapidly.
Lightning crackled around him as his muscles swelled. Hoffa let out a deafening roar, yanking the chains and slamming the four phantoms holding them into the ground, shattering them into shards.
He dropped to the floor, his claws gouging deep marks into the stone. His body elongated, fine fur sprouting along his joints, and his shoulder blades began to protrude.
Suddenly, a sharp lash struck his forehead, abruptly interrupting his transformation.
Hoffa turned to see Ossivia standing there, glaring at him with a snake-whip in hand.
Hoffa roared furiously, "Are you addicted to hitting me?!"
Unmoved, Ossivia swung her arm again.
Crack!
Another lash.
Roar!!
Hoffa whipped around, lightning-fast, and caught the whip in his hand.
By now, his magic had dropped to critical levels. In his mind, the balance between life and magic was shattered.
The Crimson Bloom activated automatically, draining his life force to convert it into magic and continue the transformation.
Life: 5
Life: 4
Life: 3
Holding the whip in one trembling hand, Hoffa panted heavily. His golden eyes glared at Ossivia, every muscle and vein in his body trembling with the surging primal energy of the Thunderbird form.
"Touch me again, and see what happens," he growled.
Ossivia's expression remained icy. "Is this all you've got? And you dare to call yourself the prodigy Dumbledore spoke of?"
Lightning danced around Hoffa's face as his features twisted uncontrollably. Without a word, he lunged at Ossivia.
His black claws extended further as he soared toward her.
Boom!
Ossivia didn't hold back. With a wave of her arm, her snake-whip transformed into a net, binding Hoffa and slamming him into the ground with enough force to shatter a floor tile.
"You don't need me to touch you. At this rate, forcing your transformation will kill you," Ossivia sneered. "I don't know how you gained such a terrifying Animagus form, but right now, you can't control it. Forcing it will only lead to your annihilation."
(End of Chapter)
Want to read the chapters in Advance? Join my Patreon
https://patreon.com/Glimmer09