Chapter 44 Let's Try It Then!

V德 bought that lighter for the price of ten bronze Knuts.

Securing it for such a low price indirectly proved that Tom was not the only one unable to see the blue light emanating from it. If everyone could see this glow, the price certainly wouldn't have been so cheap.

After Tom browsed through a few second-hand books of magical manuscripts, the two returned to the designated meeting place.

Toby was already waiting there with numerous large and small bags.

Following the same routine as before, Toby brought them back to the Hogshead Inn one by one.

Upon entering, V德 casually asked Aberforth at the counter about the lighter.

However, Aberforth was likewise unable to see the blue light on the lighter.

After listening to V德's description, he suggested that V德 wait until Dumbledore visited next time and show it to him then.

V德 agreed that this made sense; Dumbledore was deeply accomplished in alchemy and would surely know something about it.

Thus, he temporarily set the matter of the lighter aside.

In any case, Dumbledore would be visiting again soon, so V德 was in no rush.

...

Upon returning to his room, Tom immediately picked up the book he had set aside earlier and resumed reading.

The constant drive to become stronger was Tom's sole pursuit right now...

Meanwhile, V德 walked out carrying the five old wands he had just purchased.

Having seen quite a few dark arts in the wizarding tower last night, V德 was eager to pick out a few interesting ones to test out.

Living in such a world, one always needed some trump cards for self-defense.

To practice dark arts, however, one needed to find a secluded location...

V德 already had such a secluded place in mind, and that was the first floor of the wizarding tower.

The first floor of the wizarding tower had originally served as a laboratory, but since the experimental equipment had all been sold off by the previous owner, it appeared vast and empty.

This made it the ideal place for V德 to let loose and thoroughly practice dark arts.

Seeing V德 just return and then leave again with Toby, Aberforth didn't say much.

Dumbledore had told him earlier that as long as V德 didn't do anything outrageous, there was no need to interfere.

This went to show how deeply Dumbledore trusted V德.

This was thanks to the good impression V德 had previously left on Dumbledore.

Of course, this was also the very goal V德 had aimed for by painstakingly acting out a persona in front of Dumbledore all this time.

He certainly didn't want to end up like the original Tom, who—no matter how well he performed at school—was watched like a hawk by Dumbledore and never truly trusted.

That was entirely because he had failed to establish a trustworthy, favorable impression with Dumbledore from the very beginning!

...

Toby brought V德 directly to the first floor of the wizarding tower.

The place looked completely different from when V德 had last seen it.

The floor and the surrounding shelves had been cleaned to a spotless finish, and all the cluttered odds and ends had been thoroughly cleared away.

It was evident that Toby had put a tremendous amount of effort into the cleaning.

"Young Master V, if you need anything else, you can simply instruct Toby."

Returning to the wizarding tower made Toby immensely happy; for him, this truly felt like coming home.

"Well, I might need some targets for practicing dark arts, preferably quite sturdy ones," V德 said.

"Of course, those are readily available," Toby said, snapping his fingers.

Instantly, five or six dark humanoid dummies appeared before them.

V德 gave the darkly colored humanoid dummy in front of him a hard pat, noting that it felt exceptionally solid.

Considering that the Somnoren family's library was filled entirely with dark magic...

It made complete sense that the targets used for practicing magic here would be exceptionally tough.

If they weren't sturdy, they wouldn't have been able to withstand the bombardment of dark magic from generations of family members.

Now, however, all these facilities belonged to V德.

V德 said with satisfaction, "Very good, place these targets over there."

Hearing this, Toby snapped his fingers again, and all the heavy humanoid dummies floated up into the air, landing precisely in the designated spots.

One had to admit that having a house-elf to help made things significantly easier for V德.

At this thought, a sudden inspiration struck V德. "Toby, if I want to learn Apparition, can you help me?"

Toby nodded. "Of course I can, but... Young Master V, if you wish to learn Apparition, it is best to wait until you are a bit older. You are still too young at present; attempting to learn it forcibly will greatly increase the probability of splinching..."

V德 immediately caught the crucial point and eagerly pursued the question with delight: "You mean, if I splinch myself, you can help me put my body back together?"

"Yes." Toby nodded. "When Master Sophocles first began practicing Apparition, Toby was the one who assisted him by his side..."

"Splendid! Then my safety is in your hands, Toby!" V德 cheerfully patted Toby on the shoulder.

A house-elf would never lie to its master, so since Toby said he could help him practice Apparition, he definitely could.

Once he mastered Apparition, he would gain yet another trump card, providing a retreat route should he ever encounter a situation he couldn't handle in the future.

Moreover, if he could truly master Apparition proficiently, this magic would provide him with tremendous assistance in combat!

Hearing his master express such deep trust, a flash of ecstatic joy crossed Toby's face, immediately followed by a wave of worry.

"Young Master V, you trust Toby so much, and Toby is deeply moved! But... but you are still young. Practicing Apparition at this age is extremely dangerous..."

Toby continued to advise V德. Although with him around, V德's life wouldn't be in danger, why take the risk now when the terror of splinching could be avoided?

V德 smiled and said, "With you here, I'm not worried at all."

"Oh... My master! Toby will do his absolute utmost to help master learn Apparition!"

Toby shrieked with excitement, his address even changing from the previous "Young Master V" to "Master."

This showed just how thrilled the house-elf Toby was by V德's casual remark expressing trust...

V德 had always believed that to make others dedicate themselves to helping you, you had to give them sufficient reward first.

If you want the horse to run fast, you must make sure it is well-fed with grass.

For a strange creature like a house-elf, a master's words of trust were the finest fodder of all!

"Master, would you like to practice Apparition right now? Toby will go prepare immediately!" Toby was trembling all over with excitement.

V德 originally meant to say they could study it next time, since he hadn't planned on learning Apparition just yet and was completely unprepared.

But now... the atmosphere had been built up to this point; should he... give it a try?

Let's give it a try!

Apparition was bound to be much safer than the dark arts he was planning to practice!

Besides, once he learned Apparition, he wouldn't need Toby's help to travel back and forth to the wizarding tower anymore.

"Then let's begin!"