boyutpedia Chapter 67 The Concept of Autonomous Defense Magic
Chapter 67 The Concept of Autonomous Defense Magic
Chapter 67 The Concept of Autonomous Defense Magic (3.7k)
Karen had just finished a day of classes on Friday and was on his way to Professor Flitwick's office. He was eager to learn how to use the Defense Charm, as his previous battle had given him some insights into it.
"Ah, Mr. Hawthorne, you've come at the perfect time!" Professor Flitwick stood amidst a pile of floating books, and with a flick of his wand, the heavy tomes automatically returned to their places. Today, he looked exceptionally sharp in a dark blue robe embroidered with silver runes. "I just brewed a pot of Ceylon tea, would you like a cup?"
Karen smiled and nodded. "Thank you, Professor." He walked to the armchair Professor Flitwick had designated and sat down. The office was filled with the mixed aroma of parchment, ink, and black tea, which unconsciously made one relax.
“First,” Professor Flitwick conjured two steaming cups of black tea with his wand, one floating to Cullen, “I learned from Minerva about your performance in the conflict with Selwyn, and I must say, you did a fantastic job!” His high-pitched voice trembled slightly with excitement, “especially those levitation charms and the silent illumination charm—the timing was perfect!”
Karen took the teacup and blew on it slightly. "Thank you for the compliment, Professor. But to be honest, it was more of an instinctive reaction." He took a sip of tea, the distinctive citrus aroma of Ceylon black tea spreading in his mouth.
"Instinct?" Professor Flitwick blinked his bright eyes. "This is the reward for your diligent training." He waved his short arms. "I've taught Charms for so many years, I know very well what luck is and what skill is."
The two discussed the topic for a while longer until it gradually got dark outside the window. Professor Flitwick snapped his fingers, and the magic lamps on the office wall lit up one by one, casting a soft glow.
"Alright, let's get back to the main topic." Professor Flitwick's expression turned serious as he took a thick book, "The Complete Book of Defensive Spells," from the bookshelf. "As we discussed last time, tonight we'll study the Ironclad Spell—the most fundamental spell among defensive spells."
As the professor explained, Karen intently took notes on every key point, comparing them with her own experiences in actual combat. Professor Flitwick's analysis of the Ironclad Charm was insightful yet easy to understand, explaining not only the standard spell form but also demonstrating several practical applications.
"Watch closely, Mr. Hawthorne," Professor Flitwick waved his wand, which glowed faintly, and a semi-transparent barrier appeared before him. "The standard Ironclad Charm is actually invisible, but we've made it easier to observe for the sake of demonstration."
What Professor Flitwick didn't know was that even if he didn't reveal himself, Karen could still observe him.
Flitwick continued, "Remember, the Ironclad Charm is generally a one-way defense. When used, it forms a magical barrier in the direction the caster's wand is pointing. However, by adjusting the wrist movement and the output of magic," he flicked his wrist slightly, and the barrier immediately expanded with a golden halo, becoming a semi-circular dome, "it can increase the protective area. But it cannot provide complete protection. In actual combat, it relies more on the caster's experience and intuition."
Karen's grey-blue eyes were fixed on the barrier, and he could see the subtle changes in the flow of magic. He noticed that Professor Flitwick's magic output was astonishingly precise; although the protective area had increased, the magic consumption had not increased much, while the defensive strength was still maintained.
"Now it's your turn to try." Professor Flitwick removed the shield, gesturing for Karen to attempt it.
Karen stood up, took a deep breath, and smoothly swept her wand through the air: "Protect Yourself!"
Unfortunately, Karen was unable to display his Iron Armor Spell yet, but he could see his magic forming a uniform network within the barrier.
"Excellent!" Professor Flitwick clapped his hands in praise. Although invisible, he could still lightly tap the barrier released by Cullen with his wand. "The magic distribution is very even, but—" Then he suddenly tapped it a few times with his wand, and several weak points immediately appeared on Cullen's barrier. "These areas need to be strengthened. Remember, the essence of the Ironclad Charm is to construct a magic matrix; any unevenness will become a breakthrough."
For the next two hours, they explored the various application techniques of the Ironclad Charm. Fine beads of sweat gradually appeared on Karen's forehead; continuously casting high-intensity defensive magic was a tremendous test of his magical control.
"Professor," Karen said during a break in practice, wiping the sweat from his brow, and asked the question that had been bothering him for a long time, "When you were explaining just now, you said that all defensive spells require the caster to actively cast them, and the Ironclad Spell consumes a lot of magic power. Is there a defensive spell that consumes less magic power and can be triggered automatically?"
Professor Flitwick's eyes suddenly lit up. He put down his teacup and leaned forward slightly. "Ah! A very insightful question!" He rubbed his hands together excitedly. "Indeed, all current defensive magic has this limitation. As for autonomous triggering, theoretically..." He fell into thought, his fingers unconsciously tapping the table.
A brief silence fell over the office, broken only by the soft crackling of the fire in the fireplace. Karen waited patiently, knowing that the master of spells was searching his vast magical knowledge.
"Let me think—" Professor Flitwick suddenly jumped off his chair and strode towards a tall bookshelf. "Autonomous Defense—Autonomy," he murmured to himself, waving his wand. Three ancient books flew out automatically: "The Origins of Guardian Magic, An Introduction to Consciousness Magic, and Research on Alchemical Lifeforms—Ah, here!"
He turned to a page in "An Introduction to Mind Magic" and pointed to the illustration: "Look at this, the Patronus Charm!" The illustration showed a silver cat jumping happily. "It's one of the few spells that can act on its own and doesn't rely on a continuous supply of magic."
Karen leaned closer to examine the contents. He himself remembered that the Patronus Charm seemed to only be effective against Dementors and Groundbats: "But the Patronus Charm requires positive emotions as its driving force and is mainly targeted at Dementors and Groundbats. It has no offensive or defensive properties other than that."
"That's right!" Professor Flitwick said excitedly, "But its principle is very inspiring, transforming emotional energy into magical entities with a certain degree of autonomy." He then opened another book, "Look at this one, the Sorting Hat! You saw it when you were sorted out, a magical artifact that has existed for thousands of years, possessing independent thinking ability and a high level of intelligence."
Karen's thoughts raced, various possibilities colliding in her mind: "These two are different, one is magic, and the other is an alchemical product, but if one could obtain the autonomy to choose between the two..."
"Plus a certain amount of predictive ability!" Professor Flitwick added excitedly, his face flushed red. "That certainly meets some of your requirements! Merlin, this is really interesting!"
The two became increasingly engrossed in their discussion, generating a constant stream of ingenious ideas. Professor Flitwick even summoned his Patronus.
A silver robin hovers and flies around the office as a research subject.
"But—" Professor Flitwick suddenly calmed down at a certain point in the discussion, stroking his beard as he pondered, "Even if the previous steps can be accomplished, to achieve true autonomous defense, several key issues still need to be resolved."
Karen nodded and quickly listed the key points: "First, the trigger mechanism—how to ensure that this autonomous consciousness can identify real threats; second, the energy source—how to maintain long-term operation; and third, the reaction speed—how to ensure timely response when a sneak attack occurs."
"A precise summary!" Professor Flitwick exclaimed. "Regarding the first point, perhaps we could refer to magic that detects malice, such as the protective magic of certain ancient families; as for the second point—" He paused for a moment, "emotional energy is one direction, but it's not stable enough."
"We can consider more than just spells. Some rune combinations in the alchemy I've learned can absorb magic from the outside world to power themselves," Karen suddenly recalled what Professor Castor had explained before. "Could we try using runes to replenish the free magic in the environment?"
Professor Flitwick pondered for a moment: "Merlin's beard! That is indeed a solution." He jumped up excitedly in his chair. "However, it will be very complicated to implement. The combination of spells is troublesome enough, and adding alchemy would probably make it even more difficult. Moreover, I probably can't help you much with alchemy."
The discussion continued late into the night; the tea on the table had long since gone cold, and the parchment was densely covered with various ideas and formulas. Karen's brain was throbbing from the diverging thoughts, but he was filled with excitement, feeling as if he were standing at the threshold of a completely new magical realm.
"It's getting late," Professor Flitwick glanced at the magic clock on the wall; it was already curfew. "Tonight's discussion was very fruitful, Mr. Hawthorne." He solemnly handed several reference books to Cullen. "If you really want to try to develop such a magical defense system, these materials might be helpful, but there's no need to rush. You have plenty of time, and there's still a lot of magic to master."
Karen carefully took the book, her fingers tracing its ancient spine. "Thank you, Professor. Tonight's discussion has been very enlightening."
Leaving Professor Flitwick's office, the castle corridors fell silent. Moonlight streamed through the high windows, casting a silvery glow on the stone floors. Karen's footsteps echoed in the empty corridor, her thoughts still lingering on the discussion they had just had.
"Emotion-driven environmental magic absorbs threat recognition," he murmured to himself, afraid of forgetting any crucial point. As he turned a corner, he nearly bumped into a suit of armor.
"Look what I've found, a midnight Ravenclaw wanderer." A hoarse, grating voice came from behind.
Karen turned around and saw Filch and his cat, Mrs. Loris, standing in the shadows, their eyes gleaming with excitement at catching the student who had broken the rules.
Karen calmly pulled out the note Professor Flitwick had given her: "I'm sorry, sir. I had an extra Charms lesson with Professor Flitwick, and it just ended."
Filch squinted and examined the note carefully, then snorted in disappointment, "Go back to your dorm, lucky kid." He muttered to himself and dragged his feet away.
This little incident quickened Karen's pace. When he finally returned to the Ravenclaw tower, answered the riddle on the door knocker, and entered the common room, he found only a faint glow remaining in the fireplace. The common room was empty; everyone had clearly gone to bed.
Pushing open the dormitory door, Karen was surprised to find Wesley still awake, reading a Quidditch magazine by the light of his bedside lamp.
"Merlin's beard!" Wesley whispered. "I thought you were going to be back in the early hours of the morning like before!"
Karen made a gesture, pointing to the sleeping Fabian and Ernesto: "Professor Flitwick thought it was a bit late, so he let me come back first." He carefully placed the several thick reference books on the bedside table.
Wesley glanced curiously at the spine of the book, his reddish-brown eyebrows rising: "A Preliminary Exploration of Consciousness Magic? What kind of advanced spells are you researching?"
Karen organized his thoughts and briefly shared his concept of autonomous defensive magic. As he spoke, Wesley's eyes widened.
"That's so cool!" Wesley almost shouted excitedly, then realized he'd wake his roommate and quickly lowered his voice. "It's like—like having an invisible Quidditch goalkeeper protecting you all the time?"
Karen smiled and nodded. "That's roughly the concept, but it's much more complicated." He yawned, suddenly feeling a wave of fatigue wash over him. "Let's talk about it in detail tomorrow. Although I got back earlier than usual, I put in a lot of effort tonight, and I can barely keep my eyes open."
After changing into his pajamas, Karen crawled into bed. He gazed at the four-poster bed and his thoughts drifted away.
If such a defense system can be successfully developed, it will not only ensure one's own safety, but also enhance one's understanding and mastery of magic. However, it must be done step by step, and one cannot be impatient.