Lucien looked at the small line of text on the back cover of Advanced Potion-Making and read it softly:
"This book belongs to the Half-Blood Prince. Prince... Prince? Prince?"
Hearing Lucien's murmuring, Snape's hand hidden inside his sleeve trembled.
He suddenly regretted bringing out this book. Who could have expected Lucien to pick it first and have such sharp eyes that he noticed the tiny text on the back cover...
And how had he guessed the wordplay behind "Prince" so quickly?
Then Snape realised.
Of course. Ravenclaws had to solve riddles to enter their common room, so their minds were sharper than most, and Lucien was among the best of them.
Lucien suddenly looked up at Snape and found the old bat staring at the tip of his nose with an expression of complete calm. A mischievous urge immediately rose within him, and he sighed:
"Even a cursory look reveals extraordinary and unique insights into Potions. This is the textbook for sixth-year Potions. I imagine the original owner, the 'Half-Blood Prince', must have been a young genius to possess such knowledge while still a student."
"Hmm, Half-Blood, Prince. It seems that senior was very proud of the surname from his wizarding bloodline. Could it really be Prince? I wonder whether it came from his mother's side or his father's. Professor, surely you must remember such an outstanding student..."
As he listened to Lucien's deductions, veins bulged on Snape's forehead, and a flicker of panic crossed his dark eyes.
He felt that if Lucien continued, none of his secrets would remain hidden.
Snape turned his head away and coughed heavily.
"Just a student from many years ago. I've long since forgotten. I still have Potions to brew. You should return now."
Hearing this, Lucien fought hard to keep his smile within reasonable bounds.
He had always remembered the scene in which Snape admitted to Harry that he was the Half-Blood Prince.
The reason was simple.
It was the equivalent of a middle-aged man proudly announcing the username he had chosen during his teenage chuunibyou phase.
"Yes, I'm the Half-Blood Prince."
Lucien quickly put away the recipes and the book, bid Snape farewell, and headed for the door.
Just as he was about to leave, Snape's low voice sounded once more.
"That book contains several spells. Do not use them carelessly on others."
"Understood. Thank you for the reminder."
...
Box World.
Lucien carefully opened Advanced Potion-Making.
Harry would originally have received this book in his sixth year. It was possible that Snape had placed it in the book cupboard in advance, waiting for Harry to obtain it.
With the help of the Half-Blood Prince's notes, Harry's progress in Potions had advanced by leaps and bounds that year.
On one hand, Snape was no longer teaching Potions, so Harry, no longer holding a grudge, had seriously devoted himself to the subject and finally unleashed his natural talent.
On the other hand, Snape's annotations were genuinely exceptional, surpassing many of the methods recorded in the textbook itself.
Although these notes represented only the insights and experiences of Snape's student years, the talent of a future Potions Master was already evident.
Besides the Potions knowledge, Lucien was equally interested in the spells recorded in the book.
There was the famous Sectumsempra, Levicorpus, and other creations, as well as useful non-combat spells such as Muffliato, which created a buzzing sound in the ears of nearby people to prevent eavesdropping.
Arriving at the training room, Lucien pointed his wand at a bionic magical dummy.
"Sectumsempra!"
Instantly, the dummy was flung backwards as though struck by an invisible sword.
Summoning it back, Lucien inspected the wound.
Even though he had deliberately held back, the slash had nearly cut the dummy in half.
The artificial flesh surrounding the massive wound was still splitting apart, and blood continued to ooze out slowly.
Hmm, it had a certain lingering effect as well.
The greatest strengths of Sectumsempra were its invisibility and speed, making it extremely difficult for opponents to evade.
It was indeed a very useful spell.
"Vulnera Sanentur!"
Lucien slowly waved his wand, chanting the spell almost like a ballad.
A remarkable scene unfolded. It was as if time itself had reversed. The blood on the puppet's body flowed back into the wound, which rapidly healed.
This was another feature of Sectumsempra: it could be undone by its exclusive counter-curse.
However, ordinary healing spells could not repair wounds inflicted by Sectumsempra.
After experimenting with the other spells, Lucien was quite satisfied.
He then left the training room and headed toward the area where Norbert was resting.
A massive magic circle was in operation, occasionally emitting a low hum.
At the centre of the circle, Norbert lay asleep.
Its body was slimmer than that of a normal Norwegian Ridgeback. Its black scales gleamed like metal, and the golden patterns covering them flickered in rhythm with its breathing.
Lucien stood beside the magic circle, his expression focused. Several key materials floated before him, foremost among them the Basilisk's heart, which still beat faintly.
Other materials had also been prepared: phoenix tail feathers tempered in dragon blood, mithril solution, stabilising crystals, and more.
Whether common or rare, they had all been carefully laid out, awaiting use.
Lucien raised his wand.
Azure flames emerged from the tip, and most of the Basilisk's heart gradually melted within them, extracting a dark green stream of energy.
At the same time, the mithril solution, phoenix tail feathers, and crystal powder merged in precise proportions, taking the shape of countless slender threads that spiralled through the air like streams of coloured glass.
Lucien repeatedly reviewed the circuit model he had constructed in his mind.
The threads immediately flew toward Norbert and accurately merged into its body.
Carefully, Lucien connected them to the dragon's magical circuits.
When the last thread disappeared beneath the scales, the golden patterns across Norbert's body suddenly burst into dazzling brilliance.
At the same time, the dark green energy extracted from the Basilisk's heart surged forth and completely enveloped the dragon.
Like a giant cocoon, the shell occasionally allowed rays of golden light to pierce through.
Lucien conjured a chair and sat down.
This was merely an optimisation of Norbert's magical circuits rather than a complete transformation, so there was no danger.
The difficulty lay in the fact that a dragon's innate physique and magical circuits were simply too powerful, making the requirements for adjustment extraordinarily demanding.
Furthermore, according to the system, Norbert's optimisation had to remain within certain limits. It absolutely could not exceed the boundaries of what defined a Norwegian Ridgeback.
Otherwise, it would fail to meet the repayment requirements of the Magic Weaving Technique's annual loan, which clearly specified that a "Norwegian Ridgeback" had to be cultivated into the king of its species.
Taking out the book he had exchanged from Snape, Lucien began reading.
Time passed.
He had only finished slightly more than half of it.
"ROAR!!!"
Accompanied by a mighty roar, the dark green cocoon shattered open, and flames mixed with golden light shot skyward.
Powerful magical fluctuations swept across the surroundings, causing Lucien's robes to flutter violently.
Soon, a massive dark golden fireball descended with a heavy crash.
The flames dissipated, revealing Norbert's figure.
The changes were not drastic. The golden patterns covering its body had simply become more intricate, resembling exquisite relief carvings when inactive.
"Daddy, you didn't lie to me. It really didn't hurt."
Norbert let out a soft roar and stuck out its tongue, intending to lick Lucien's already dishevelled hair.
There was no helping it. Once dragons grew up, they had little to do with cuteness, and their voices certainly couldn't sound adorable.
They were unlike Aether the Thunderbird, which could occasionally produce cute chirps, let alone naturally adorable creatures like Nifflers and Puffskeins.
However, since Norbert had been raised personally by Lucien, it had learned to address him differently.
Unlike when it had been a hatchling and knew only how to cry "Mama."
At the age of twelve years and four months, Lucien had already become a dragon father.
He raised a hand to block the complimentary hair gel provided by Norbert and began examining the effects of the circuit optimisation alongside the dragon.
The first change was the dragon fire.
It had transformed from its original orange-red colour into dark gold.
Not only was it incredibly hot, but it also possessed strong adhesive properties and was difficult to extinguish, capable of burning continuously until its target had been reduced to ashes.
This reminded Lucien of Lumen. The ability to continue burning shared remarkable similarities with the Qilin's flames.
The second change allowed Norbert to coat its entire body in dragon fire, increasing its defence while greatly enhancing its close-combat capabilities.
Strictly speaking, Lucien felt that only the latter ability truly counted as a new power brought about by the optimisation. It could be considered a further development of dragon fire magic.
As for the changes to the flames themselves, they seemed more like an accidental stimulation of Norbert's potential.
After all, the dragon egg had originally been hatched with Lumen's assistance, so certain corresponding changes were only natural.
Lucien vigorously scratched both of Norbert's cheeks, causing the dragon to rumble contentedly.
After playing for a while, he sent Norbert back to rest.
Watching the dragon spread its wings and fly away, Lucien took out two enormous eyeballs.
The bright yellow vertical pupils seemed to stare directly at death itself.
Lucien exhaled softly.
"My turn."
________
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