Chapter 27: For the Greater Good!

The magical system of this world is idealistic. Every spell cast encompasses the wizard's emotions and intentions at that moment. Ultimately, the essence of magic here is, to some extent, "wish fulfillment." Therefore, truly powerful wizards often do not need to chant incantations to perform magic. Of course, when they do utter the words, their emotions and intentions reach their zenith, and the power of the magic is reinforced to the greatest degree. Take Tom in the future, for example, who treats the Killing Curse like a basic attack. However, for Tom at that time, shouting the incantation served not only to boost its power but also as a form of intimidation toward others.

At this moment, Livid lay on a recliner, once again entering the state of meditation he had experienced before. But this time, he did not deliberately try to restrain his chaotic thoughts; instead, he silently felt the "energy" within him known as magic. "I need inner peace, a mind free of distractions," Livid thought to himself. He then felt the magic in his body stir, or perhaps it didn't. Just as he was about to try again, he suddenly felt a profound stillness; all distractions vanished in an instant! The feeling was peculiar, like standing in a bustling city when all surrounding noise suddenly fades away, leaving everything silent save for the sound of his own breathing and heartbeat.

Livid marveled at this change, but then grew puzzled. He was still thinking, so why was his mind free of distractions? Was this not a contradiction? It was like someone checking for breath and finding none, even though he could clearly feel himself breathing! Why could others not detect his breath? Not long after, Livid understood the reason. His distractions had not vanished, and his thinking had not ceased. They had merely been hidden! Why so? Because magic can fulfill a wizard's intent. To satisfy Livid's desire for a mind free of distractions, his magic had hidden the thoughts he could not remove, creating a false brain—devoid of memory or trace of thought—to replace his own. In other words, the memories and thoughts presented in this fake brain were all fabrications intended for others to see, while his true brain was locked behind a door. Only at this moment did Livid truly understand the operating principle of Occlumency and successfully reach its first stage: concealing his memories and true thoughts entirely.

Without delay, Livid began his attempt at the second stage. He started to expand the size of this new "brain," allowing the false thoughts and memories to firmly wrap around his real ones. Next, he attempted to bridge the two, subtly transmitting the false thoughts and memories generated by his real brain into the fake one.

At that instant, the rigid, false thoughts and memories within the fake brain suddenly came to life! They became indistinguishable from his real memories and thoughts. This meant that Livid could now change the memories and thoughts in his mind at will. What others perceived would only be what he wanted them to see.

It is unknown how much time passed, but when Livid finally opened his eyes, the sky had turned completely dark. Feeling his state, he was extremely satisfied; he had undoubtedly mastered Occlumency. The sensation was hard to describe, much like wearing a pair of sunglasses. Others looking into his eyes would only see the dark lenses, yet he could see them clearly through the glass. Although his Occlumency was only at the introductory level, it was more than enough to handle Queenie’s passive Legilimency. At this thought, Livid breathed a sigh of relief.

"You're awake? You slept for a long time," Tom said, eyeing Livid suspiciously. He had almost thought Livid had slept himself to death.

"Oh, I stayed up reading last night, so I'm very tired today."

"But didn't you go to bed very early last night?"

"I couldn't sleep, so I just read," Livid replied nonchalantly.

At that moment, Toby brought in the dinner that had been set aside for Livid. "Mr. Livid, you will get used to it in time. I was the same when I first went to new places; I could never sleep because I wasn't accustomed to them," Professor Hicks said with a smile. She still believed Livid’s insomnia was merely due to being in a new environment.

"Yes, I will try my best to adapt," Livid nodded earnestly. He suddenly realized that after mastering Occlumency, his acting skills had also improved. False expressions paired with perfectly calibrated false emotions were simply seamless. Occlumency could provide such a boost to one's performance; no wonder Professor Snape in the future could act as a spy right under Tom's nose, never revealing his true allegiance until the very day of his sacrifice.

Having not eaten much all day, Livid was indeed hungry. After devouring his dinner, he told Professor Hicks again that he felt tired and wanted to rest. Tom looked at Livid as if he were looking at a pig. Who sleeps that long every single day? This guy had suddenly become so lazy; wasn't he afraid that Tom might surpass him in strength and take revenge? However, what Tom did not know was that while Livid's claim of being tired last night was a lie, his tiredness now was entirely real. He had expended a great deal of energy to learn Occlumency and truly needed a good rest.

Closing the door once more, Livid sat on his bed and opened the system shop. He hadn't had the chance to check it last night, and if he didn't look now, he feared any good items might be refreshed at midnight.

[Item 1: Felix Felicis 10ml (Unlocked) 500 Merit Points]
[Item 2: Unicorn Hair (Unlocked) 5 Merit Points]
[Refresh Timer: 5 hours 21 minutes 55 seconds]
[Merit Points: 100]
[Dark Lord Achievement: Not Achieved]

Livid spotted the vial of Felix Felicis immediately. This was a treasure! Consuming it grants the user luck, and it is notoriously difficult to brew. Even for a master potioneer, ensuring success from start to finish would take at least half a year! Livid desperately wanted to buy it, whether for personal use or to sell, but he didn't have enough Merit Points, so he had to lock it for now. As for the Unicorn Hair, he didn't waste his points.

After closing the shop, a heavy drowsiness began to weigh on him. Between the side effects of the energy potion and the massive mental expenditure, Livid couldn't hold on any longer and soon drifted into a deep sleep.

His sleep was restless. In a hazy, dreamlike state, Livid felt he had arrived at a strange place. It was a vast, white expanse, as if shrouded in dense fog. Within the mist, a dark, featureless shadow beckoned to him, its lips moving as if it were saying something urgently. Unable to hear the shadow, Livid grew anxious, his legs feeling unnaturally heavy as he stumbled forward. Suddenly, he tripped over something, and everything around him began to collapse and vanish, the shadow fading away along with it. Livid tried to ask who it was, but to his horror, he found he could not speak.

Just then, he heard someone calling his name from behind. As he turned to see who it was, everything before him vanished, and Toby’s terrified face suddenly appeared right before his own.

"...Master Livid! Wake up! We must go! Toby must take you and Master Tom away! Someone... someone is attacking us!"

Livid jolted awake, and at the same time, the chaotic sounds from outside flooded in! There were the crackling noises of spells being cast, along with shouts and slogans... Among them, Livid heard one that felt chillingly familiar: "For the greater good!"