Chapter 109: Understanding, Instinct, Reply Letter

Before Ciel had finished speaking, he heard Liss emit an excited shriek that broke to an impossibly high pitch. "Young Master has work for Liss! Young Master says he needs Liss's help! Liss is needed!" Ciel had to quickly interrupt Liss. Otherwise, he suspected this house-elf could remain excited for half an hour straight. Under Liss's expectant gaze, Ciel explained what he needed the creature's help with. "I want you to practice combat with me." Upon hearing this, Liss looked absolutely terrified. "Combat? No, no, that won't do. How can Liss fight with Young Master?" However, Ciel spoke with complete seriousness. "Liss, this is my order. House-elves cannot disobey their master's commands, right?" Then his tone softened slightly. "Besides, we're not really fighting. You won't hurt me either. Just think of it as a game where whoever doesn't react in time gets hung up. How about it?" Only then did Liss nod timidly. "Alright. Yes, Liss must obey Young Master's orders." The next moment, Ciel drew his wand with a grave expression. Having read the Harry Potter books, he would never underestimate any house-elf. "Then, Liss. Begin. Use your full strength, or I'll dismiss you and make you a laughingstock among house-elves." Upon hearing this threat, Liss immediately burst into a terrified scream. "Dismiss? No, no, no! Liss cannot lose her job!" The previously hesitant elf immediately sprang into action. With just a snap of its fingers, Ciel felt the familiar spinning sensation before he could dodge. He was suspended upside down once again. Liss was startled and quickly snapped its fingers to lower Ciel. Just as it prepared to cry and repent for its perceived sins, Ciel took a deep breath and showed excitement instead. "Continue, Liss. You did very well. You're a very loyal house-elf, and this helps me greatly. Come on." Only then did Liss breathe a sigh of relief. Next, Ciel faced the house-elf's finger snaps, repeatedly attempting to dodge while following what Snape had taught him about sensing magical fluctuations and responding accordingly. However, while Liss might not match Snape in raw power, its magical fluctuations were far more subtle. Magic seemed to flow as one with the creature's very essence. Ciel often found himself hanging upside down from invisible magic before he could detect the fluctuations. Being suspended repeatedly only made Ciel more delighted. This training effect exceeded even his combat practice with Snape! Continuing like this through the Christmas holidays should produce some breakthrough in his combat abilities. Ciel concentrated fully, sensing the magical fluctuations each time Liss snapped its fingers. When Liss finally gasped from exhaustion, Ciel called for a halt. "Let's rest a bit. We'll continue after you've recovered." Hearing this announcement, the nearly exhausted Liss showed no resentment whatsoever. Instead, it was overjoyed. House-elves naturally took pride in endless work. The busier the tasks, the happier house-elves felt. At this moment, Liss truly felt ready to burst with happiness. Its eyes reddened again, and it sobbed. "How lucky Liss is to meet Young Master. Young Master will surely become a wizard remembered in history. Wuu wuu wuu..." Hearing its crying, Ciel felt a headache developing. House-elves were wonderful in every way except they were far too emotional and cried excessively, which he found difficult to tolerate. "Never mind. Rest is cancelled." Liss was stunned for a moment, then let out another delighted shriek. Meanwhile, in the Sprout family study, Professor Sprout looked tired as her quill scratched against parchment, making rustling sounds. She seemed to deliberate for a long time with each line she wrote. Normally, with her status in the herbology world, publishing in top journals required no great effort. There was no need for such mental exhaustion. But this was the academic stepping stone she was preparing for Ciel. Professor Sprout hoped to make it as perfect as possible. She was even more focused than when she had submitted her first paper, weighing every word and striving for absolute perfection. The sound of finger snaps in the greenhouse continued from day to night. The rustling sounds in the study also continued from day to night. Time seemed to pass especially quickly in the Sprout family home at this moment. In the blink of an eye, a week had passed. In the greenhouse, Liss continuously snapped its fingers, creating loud popping sounds. Ciel was dodging and weaving throughout the space as if avoiding invisible projectiles. Unseen magical forces were dodged by him with increasing skill. After Liss had snapped seven fingers in succession, Ciel was grazed by a magical force and stumbled. But a moment later, he still stood firmly on the ground. Liss immediately stopped, its voice somewhat choked. "Young Master did it. Liss is so happy. You will surely be remembered in history." But Ciel showed no emotion on his face. His expression even seemed somewhat unsatisfied, his brows slightly furrowed. Compared to a week ago, under such intensive training, he had certainly made some progress in combat. His judgment of magical fluctuations was more skilled than before. But this magnitude of improvement wasn't enough in his view. Far from enough. Even if he could dodge Liss's magic seven times in succession, this performance might fool others, but it couldn't fool himself. This wasn't any breakthrough progress. It was just that he had become familiar with Liss's way of casting magic and developed muscle memory. Like preparing for exams in his past life by doing the same problem repeatedly. After a whole week, even the most hopeless student would probably answer fluently when facing the original question. But what if it changed or was modified? What if the question was completely disguised? Then it would be hopeless. However, those students who truly learned the material, no matter how the question changed, as long as it remained the same concept, might take more time but could still handle it easily. These two approaches might look similar when facing familiar questions normally. But when it came to real exams, the difference was like night and day. Ciel was facing a similar dilemma now. He was familiar with Liss's magic, so he could dodge it. But if he faced an unfamiliar wizard casting spells at him, it would be the same old story, at best performing slightly better than his first combat experience. There would be no fundamental change. He frowned tightly. He didn't continue practicing with Liss. Instead, he kept reviewing in his mind, especially what Snape had mentioned during their combat practice. "Too slow. You're just too slow. You must make your reaction to magic instinctual." But Ciel still hadn't grasped this point. He always felt like there was still a barrier between him and understanding. He could never be as swift and sharp as Snape described. After pondering for a long time, Ciel still couldn't figure out the problem. He shook his head and decided to temporarily stop drilling into this dead end. Instead, he looked at Liss. From his past life, he knew that sometimes you had to solve problems yourself. But if you couldn't solve them persistently, seeking help from others wasn't shameful. Perhaps a problem that was incredibly difficult for him could become clear with someone else's guidance. House-elves' perception of magic far exceeded that of wizards. This could be seen from how they needed neither wands nor incantations, casting spells with just a finger snap. Maybe Liss could tell him what he was lacking. So Ciel asked the question. "Why is my perception of magic always half a beat slow? I've concentrated on sensing and calculating, but I still can't determine the direction and position of magic the instant you release it. But when it's reversed, when I cast spells at you, you can easily react every time. Liss, how do you do it? Is there some trick or technique involved?" Hearing his question, Liss looked completely bewildered. "Huh? Liss doesn't know. Does this need any technique? Liss thinks it's just like breathing and a heartbeat." It looked at Ciel with some confusion. "Why does Young Master think about such simple things? Once you think, doesn't that slow you down?" Ciel also frowned in confusion. "Not think? Then how would I know what magic you're using? Where the magic is coming from, what's its speed?" Liss was even more confused. "Do we need to think about this? Isn't this what magic itself should do?" Upon hearing this, Ciel suddenly froze. A lightning bolt flashed through his mind, illuminating the fog that had always surrounded him. "What magic itself should do... That's right. I forgot that magic is an inseparable part of a wizard; magic is something in a wizard's bloodline. It is part of the wizard, like hands and feet, like a heartbeat, like breathing. So why deliberately try to control magic?" "Like a boxer going to compete, would they deliberately think about how to step, how to extend their hand, or even control their heartbeat every moment? In a split second, how could there be time? Of course, everything should be left to the body's instinctive reaction!" "And what I've been trying to do this week is use my rational thinking to try to control the body's instincts, to control magic's own spontaneous reactions. Stupid, absolutely foolish!" Ciel's eyes blazed with intensity. "What I need to do is embrace magic. Just leave such things to it, wouldn't that be better?" The next moment, Ciel suddenly emptied his mind. Magic flowed freely and unrestrained through his bloodline. He said to Liss, "Liss, come." Liss immediately snapped its fingers. This time, Ciel didn't deliberately try to sense which direction Liss was casting toward. He tried to leave everything to the magic within his body. He tried to treat magic like his heartbeat and breathing. Thump. Thump. Ciel gradually had a wonderful sensation. His magical perception and strength hadn't changed. But magic seemed to come alive. And in the next second, he naturally sensed an invisible magical force acting toward his abdomen. He nimbly turned and avoided the magical force. This made his eyes suddenly burst with bright light. He understood! Ciel felt unprecedented joy, like a baby who had finally learned to walk. He looked at Liss and laughed. "Faster, Liss. Don't hold back anymore, quick, faster." Liss also felt his joy. It danced with excitement. One finger snap after another was made. Magical forces flew toward Ciel. Faster and faster. At the same time, Professor Sprout looked tired but couldn't hide her excitement. She walked quickly toward the greenhouse, as if she had good news she couldn't wait to share with Ciel. When the greenhouse door opened, Professor Sprout saw a scene that left her stunned. Invisible magical forces, like raindrops, swept toward Ciel. And he, immersed in some kind of joy, was dancing alone in the magical "rain"! Until he noticed Professor Sprout's arrival, Ciel was distracted. Then he was grazed by magic. A hanging force was generated. But he did a backflip and landed steadily on the ground again. Professor Sprout watched all this with eyes full of amazement. She had experienced great wars and wasn't just a scholar who only stayed in greenhouses. In her view, Ciel had already glimpsed the essence of wizard combat. A first-year who could do this was a genius! This made Professor Sprout clench her fists even tighter. Talent-enhancing potions... she had to speed up finding those materials. After filling in the talent gap, Ciel would definitely become a legend in magical history! At this time, Ciel also showed joy as he looked at Professor Sprout. "Aunt. You've been locked in the study for several days. Any results?" Professor Sprout finally came to her senses. She smiled and nodded. "The papers on Piranha Algae and Lumos Charm were submitted this morning. With my relationship with the journal, even during Christmas holidays, there are special channels for peer review. If I'm not mistaken, the reply should already be on its way." As soon as she finished speaking, the dense sound of owls flapping their wings roared overhead at the Sprout family home. [Chapter Complete] *** Want more? Check out my Patreon for: ✓ Advanced chapters of all my stories ✓ Exclusive novels & fanfics ✓ Early access content [email protected]/meowthtl ???? Community Goal: 500 Power Stones unlocks a bonus chapter! Thanks for reading and supporting the story!