allendalepharm Chapter 31 The Essence of Magic
Chapter 31 The Essence of Magic
Lily Evans?
It turns out the previous owner of this book was a female student. However, considering she was about to graduate in 1977, calling her "Auntie" would be more appropriate.
Following the title page is the preface. In the preface, Abed Wolfling explains the reasons for writing this book, the importance of magical theory, his gratitude to his assistants, and his message to the readers.
Lily Evans wrote in the blank space: "This book is on the Hogwarts first-year reading list, but in the curriculum, there is no course called 'Theory of Magic.' Instead, it is broken up and integrated into courses such as Charms, Transfiguration, Potions, and Defense Against the Dark Arts."
"Professors do not deliberately connect the classroom content with this book when they teach, which leads to many students focusing only on 'Standard Spells, Beginner' and 'Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration', hoping to learn new spells from them, while completely ignoring this seemingly boring book."
"In fact, this book is fundamental to understanding magic and how magic works; it is extremely important and requires a significant amount of time for self-study."
"Unfortunately, I didn't realize the importance of this book when I was in first grade. I even lost the textbook and had to buy a new one. This time, after six years of review, I have gained many new insights and resolved many of my previous confusions."
"My heartfelt thanks to the author of this book, Abed Wolflin."
After saying that, Lily drew a cute smiley face.
Lucas laughed too, pleased with her progress in reviewing and learning new things, and also a little smug.
As a Muggle-born wizard, my understanding of magic is completely blank, and I'm worried about falling behind and affecting my research on magical cuisine. But now, with Lily's reminder, I've started to emphasize the theoretical foundations of magic from the beginning. Could this give me a head start?
It can also be confirmed that Lily Evans was already a seventh-grade student when she bought this book in 1977. So, is NEWT a graduation exam? Or some kind of professional qualification exam?
Thinking about it further, Hogwarts' curriculum must have changed with the times. But at least in 1971, this book, *Theory of Magic*, was already a first-year textbook, and it remains so twenty years later, which shows how important this book truly is.
Lucas solemnly opened the catalog.
Chapter 1, The Essence of Magic.
Chapter Two: The Origin and Evolution of Magic.
Chapter Three: From Magic to Enchanted Magic.
Chapter Four: Key Elements for Successful Spellcasting
Chapter Five offers further exploration of spells and gestures.
Chapter Six, The Function of the Magic Wand.
……
Lucas could hardly help but be visibly excited; this was exactly what he desperately needed!
So he didn't bother washing up or sleeping at all, turned the lamp on to its brightest setting, and started reading intently with his book in hand.
Lily Evans's notes were a great help to him during this process. She was always able to summarize those obscure arguments and rigorous but overly convoluted conclusions in concise language.
Moreover, Lucas was certain that the witch Lily was also Muggle-born, because she would use Muggle expressions to summarize and analyze, which made the book particularly familiar and easy for Lucas to understand.
For example, regarding the nature of magic, the original author, Abed Wolflin, devoted a great deal of space to arguing where wizards' magic comes from, what its connection is with the magic of magical creatures, how it is manifested, and what changes occur during the process of heredity.
Lily directly states her conclusion here: "Magic is an innate supernatural power that cannot be acquired later in life. It is mainly inherited through bloodlines and has both strong and recessive hereditary characteristics. Therefore, wizarding families may occasionally have 'Squibs' who cannot cast spells, and Muggle-born wizards must have ancestors who were wizards or Squibs."
For example, the feeling of weakness Lucas experienced after accidentally firing a beam of light was quickly explained in the book. Abed Wolfling's original work is still very rigorous, using examples, analysis, arguments, and summaries. However, it is filled with many words that Lucas cannot understand at all, and some of them cannot even be found in a dictionary. Lucas suspects that these are special magical terms, which Muggles naturally cannot understand or find.
Lily offered a brilliant explanation: "For wizards, magic is a talent, an aptitude, not a stored energy. Therefore, magic isn't something that can be used up, but rather more like a 'license' or 'certificate.' As long as you possess magic, you can use magic indefinitely. Casting spells consumes a wizard's physical and mental energy, not a stockpile called 'magic.'"
"Just like a person's language ability, as long as you can speak (have magic), you can keep talking (casting spells) until you are hoarse (physically tired, mentally exhausted) and stop to rest, rather than because you have exhausted your 'language energy'."
"The physical and mental exertion from spellcasting is usually relatively mild, but when a wizard releases magic far beyond their own level under the drive of strong emotions and will, they will immediately feel extremely tired and may even faint."
Seeing this, I recalled how Ellie used a powerful levitation spell to fly directly onto the dragon's back when she was hanging beneath it, before losing consciousness in mid-air. And the feeling of fatigue I had just experienced after somehow exploding the flowerpot was also due to the same principle.
Lucas was immediately impressed.
If it weren't for this book, "The Theory of Magic," how could I have imagined that magic power is not a consumable? At first, I thought magic power was like "MP" or "blue bar" in video games, which was completely wrong.
Lucas read the first chapter several times, carefully and repeatedly. He certainly didn't think that having Lily's annotations and notes meant he could abandon the original text. The original text was the foundation; Lily's annotations were to facilitate his understanding and digestion, helping him comprehend the profound and obscure parts. If he were to prioritize convenience and skip the original text, relying solely on the notes, there would undoubtedly be a risk of bias.
After reading for an unknown amount of time, Lucas finally realized that he had grasped most of the content of the first chapter and had gained a deeper understanding of it.
For example, since magic is not a stored form of energy, it cannot be measured or quantified.
The so-called "powerful" and "weak" magic is more of a comparison of quality than quantity. For example, an adult wizard with powerful magic is like having an "advanced qualification certificate," while a young wizard with weak magic only has a "basic qualification certificate."
If I haven't learned how to cast spells or recited any incantations, but only possess magical power, how could I release an explosive beam of light from my wand?
Lucas was eager to read the second chapter, "The Origin and Evolution of Magic," but just then, a loud rooster crow startled him from his book.
I raised my stiff, sore neck. The deep darkness outside the window had long since faded; the crescent moon had sunk in the west, leaving only a few scattered stars in the sky. A pale dawn was breaking in the east, with faint glimmers of light beginning to form below the horizon.
The night has passed, and dawn is breaking. I glanced at the alarm clock; it was already four o'clock.
Lucas then felt dizzy and extremely tired. Remembering his money-making plans for the day, he knew he couldn't afford to stay awake. He closed his book and collapsed onto the bed.
In his final moments before falling into a deep sleep, Lucas murmured, "Thank you, Lily Evans."
I wonder how you are doing now?
I sincerely hope you've successfully joined St. Mungo's and become a respected therapist. If I ever visit this hospital in the future, will I be able to run into you?