Chapter 31: Roger's Path of Alchemy

Clear reading voices intertwined with snores of varying intensity, as if performing a musical composition.

Normally, students should not be sleeping in class. But this class was an exception. It was a "water course" that shouldn't have been—History of Magic.

The history of wizardry is a subject well worth delving into, but at Hogwarts, the professor in charge of this course is a ghost. A ghost in the wizarding world is not merely a soul after death; it is more like an echo left behind in the world by the deceased. While possessing a certain degree of intelligence, it has no future to speak of. It can only contemplate the things it experienced during its lifetime, and if its obsession is too weak, its intelligence is further diminished.

Professor Cuthbert Binns, who was thinking about going to teach class in his final moment before death, falls into this category. As a ghost, he views the living as lifeless objects, making communication difficult most of the time, and his lectures are essentially just readings from the textbook—quite tedious. Consequently, this class became a "nap session" for the vast majority of students.

There were only three exceptions.

One was Roger. Usually, just as he did when he first boarded the train, he would compare wizarding history with Muggle history and his own memories from his previous life, trying to uncover "tampered" details, treating it as a form of relaxing amusement.

The second was Hermione. Because of Roger’s presence, she felt the pressure of her studies, so she held a book and previewed the course content.

The last one was Harry. The current Harry did not have the habit of wandering at night, but his curiosity about Hogwarts Castle remained undiminished. He used the History of Magic class to do homework for other subjects, giving him more time to explore the magical castle and attend to other matters.

Today was no different; only the three of them remained awake in class. However, there was a slight change in Roger. He did not pull out two history books to relax as he usually did, but was instead lost in thought.

Nearly a month had passed since Professor McGonagall first gave Roger private lessons in alchemy. Over this month, Roger had gained a rough introduction to the field. He soon discovered that alchemy was a path with immense potential, but it seemed... not suited for him.

The alchemy of this world, though complex to learn—involving how to convert one substance into another, how to combine various magical materials to imbue objects with magical properties, and the vast amount of knowledge points involved—could be broadly categorized into three schools.

The first is Spell Solidification: preserving a magical power so that when specific conditions are met, a magical effect is triggered. Dumbledore’s Deluminator, the Weasleys’ flying car, and backpacks enchanted with Undetectable Extension Charms all fall into this category.

The second involves combining various magical materials imbued with mystery by the collective consciousness of living beings, using wizarding magic as a guide to trigger special reactions and ultimately crafting the artifacts wizards need. The difference here is that the wizard’s direct participation is reduced; for example, to create an item with spatial properties, one no longer needs to understand space magic, only the recipe and a certain level of magical power.

The third, which Roger had read about in *Ritual Magic is Far More Than Blood Sacrifice*, is the path pursued by the "Externalist" faction seeking to break through the limits of wizarding power by utilizing the power of legend to create alchemical items.

All three schools have great potential. One can store one's own magical power for others to use; one can obtain various magical abilities one has not yet mastered; and the last one even holds the possibility of transcending boundaries.

The problem is... they don't align with Roger’s specific traits.

Roger's magical ability had advanced by leaps and bounds, allowing him to create remarkable spells as an eleven-year-old first-year at Hogwarts. Beyond his own talent, this was largely due to his "Crisis Pre-cognition." In magical experiments highly relevant to his own safety, it acted like a guiding light. In body modification experiments, even a slight error could lead to death, so whenever there was a possibility of failure, his pre-cognition would issue a warning, helping him discern the right path.

Alchemy, however, is purely external. Although there are risks during creation, most alchemical research errors do not result in dangerous incidents, so Roger's pre-cognition could not provide him with relevant prompts during the process. After all, wizarding alchemy is not Goblin engineering, which explodes at every turn.

Therefore, compared to the development speed of his human transfiguration, Roger’s progress in alchemy was like a "free-to-play" player compared to a "whale" who had spent millions. Roger was certain that if he focused solely on alchemy and slowly developed recipes, let alone immortality, he would have no hope of even longevity in this lifetime.

But through his rough research, he found that alchemy, as Professor McGonagall said, did indeed have the function of enhancing one's own "talent." An external alchemical information processing and storage device was indeed a possibility.

He couldn't pick it up, yet he was reluctant to let it go... Should he do as Hagrid did and outsource the work? The problem was, even if Roger wanted to find one, he couldn't find an alchemist within Hogwarts capable of crafting such a high-level item.

Until the class ended, Roger had no idea what to do. Should he wait until the end of the term, take the opportunity Dumbledore had promised, and beg Nicolas Flamel? The end of the term was next June, and it was currently October—eight months away! Was he to watch this path lie before him while unable to walk it for eight months? A rare look of annoyance appeared on Roger’s face.

"What's wrong? You look miserable; that doesn't sound like you." A pleasant voice sounded in his ear. Turning around, he saw it was Hermione. Harry was busy waking up the sleeping students after class, and Hermione, while tidying her books, had noticed Roger's expression and walked over.

Last month, Roger had helped her resolve her conflict with Ron. After that incident, Hermione had viewed herself through Ron's perspective and realized that some of her past behaviors had been too much. She took the lesson to heart and reflected on her actions. Now, she was no longer so aggressive, and her slightly softer demeanor had helped her make friends. Although most were superficial "plastic" friendships, she had at least achieved a breakthrough from zero to one. She was no longer as anxious as before, and her life was moving in a better direction. She never forgot that it was Roger who had changed everything for her; she remembered this kindness. So, when Roger seemed troubled, she approached.

...Actually, Ron, who had just woken up, had also noticed Roger's expression, but seeing Hermione go over, he didn't dare to approach. He had hurt someone who truly wanted to help him, and he still felt guilty, usually avoiding looking at her.

Roger, being a straightforward person, didn't hide it and told her directly what he had been planning.

"Thought speed, multi-threaded thinking... an alchemical item that can enhance one's own wisdom." Hermione pondered for a moment, and her eyes suddenly widened. "My god! You want to create another Ravenclaw’s Diadem?!" The knowledgeable and well-read Hermione immediately thought of a legendary object highly similar to what Roger described.

"Only similar in function, but the underlying principles should be different," Roger shook his head. What he intended to create was merely an external alchemical computer that could link to his brain and understand his thoughts—something to store information and assist in calculations.

As for the actual Ravenclaw’s Diadem, Roger had no interest in it. Although he didn't know the details of what happened after *The Order of the Phoenix*, he knew that the founder's "relic" had been turned into a Horcrux by Voldemort. The diary, the locket, the diadem, the cup, Harry Potter—Roger knew of five Horcruxes, and the diadem was one of them. He had no interest in dealing with the remnant soul of Voldemort inside it. He wasn't strong enough yet; going there would be pure suicide.

Roger then discussed some aspects of alchemy with Hermione. Without involving his core secrets, he was a person happy to share knowledge. But clearly, the knowledge from this high-difficulty course, typically reserved for excellent sixth-year students, was a bit much for the first-year Hermione. She soon felt dizzy and could only respond with vague nods and sounds.

However, although she couldn't understand the technical details, Hermione could understand the point of Roger's frustration. But she truly couldn't help with that.

Finally, Hermione could only sigh: "...If only your transfiguration could transform alchemical items." Everyone who paid attention to Roger knew that his transfiguration grades were excellent and he was highly regarded by Professor McGonagall.

"Yes," Roger nodded subconsciously.

"If only it were like my transfiguration..." Halfway through his sentence, Roger suddenly went still. After a few seconds of silence, suddenly—

*Thud!*

With a sharp sound, Roger jumped up, knocking his chair over.

"That's it!"

"My transfiguration!"

Recently, his thinking had been trapped in the realm of alchemy, within the constraints of textbooks, and he had almost forgotten his own greatest skill. Sometimes, "cognitive barriers" are just like a leaf obscuring one's eyes.

Pointed in the right direction by Hermione, Roger knew how his future path should go!

"Transfiguration, human transfiguration modification... alchemy, human alchemy..."

"Exactly."

"Human alchemy! This is my path of alchemy!"

Roger had attained enlightenment!