After the day they practiced flying, Augusta Longbottom no longer allowed Neville to visit the orphanage.
At first, Vincent assumed it was because Neville had crashed so many times while practicing.
However, after receiving an owl from his friend, he realized that wasn’t the reason at all.
Vincent,
I won’t be able to visit for a while.
Grandmother says Aurors are everywhere right now.
Apparently something has happened involving the Department of International Magical Cooperation, and several foreign witches and wizards tried to enter Britain illegally.
She says everyone needs to be extra careful until things settle down.
I think she’s worrying too much, but that’s just how she is.
She always prepares for every possible danger.
I’ll keep practicing the Transfiguration spells you taught me.
I can’t wait until we start Hogwarts together…
as long as they don’t decide to cancel my acceptance first.
—Neville
Vincent smiled as he folded the letter.
He wrote a reply wishing Neville well, but he wasn’t overly concerned about losing his study partner.
At the moment…
He had something far more important to focus on.
He could feel a second heartbeat.
After completing the evening incantation, Vincent lowered his wand and listened carefully.
Inside his chest…
Two distinct heartbeats echoed together.
One beat was steady.
The other was slightly faster.
They remained out of rhythm for only a few moments before gradually merging into one.
Then the second heartbeat disappeared.
A familiar pale-blue panel appeared before him.
[Step Three: Continue reciting the Animagus incantation at sunrise and sunset until the magical changes stabilize — Completed.]
Additional Talent Unlock Progress Updated.
Completion Progress: (3/10)
“So…”
“Now comes the waiting.”
Once Neville stopped visiting the orphanage, Vincent’s daily routine became remarkably simple.
After breakfast, he would retreat to the storeroom to study his Hogwarts textbooks.
Whenever he encountered something he didn’t understand, he would compare multiple books until he pieced together the answer himself.
In the afternoons, he read the magical books Ms.
Kenna had quietly collected over the years.
Days passed peacefully.
Soon…
He no longer needed an alarm clock to remind him of the sunrise and sunset incantations.
They had become as natural as breathing.
Since stepping onto the path of magic…
May had been spent with a mandrake leaf hidden beneath his tongue.
June had passed studying alongside Neville.
Now…
July was drawing to a close.
The days became hotter.
The air grew heavier.
Dark clouds gathered almost every afternoon, bringing heavy rain before quickly drifting away again.
Curiously…
There was never any thunder.
Vincent had an inexplicable feeling.
Soon.
Very soon.
That afternoon, thick storm clouds once again covered the sky.
Yet not a single drop of rain fell.
After sunset…
The clouds grew even darker.
The air became humid and oppressive.
“I think we’re finally getting a proper storm tonight!”
Several children chatted excitedly during dinner.
Sitting quietly in the corner, Vincent broke off a piece of bread and glanced toward the calendar hanging on the wall.
Tonight…
It should finally happen.
For some reason, the date felt strangely familiar.
He knew it was significant.
Yet no matter how hard he tried…
He couldn’t remember why.
After dinner, he returned to the storeroom and distracted himself with a book.
By the time he looked up again…
Night had completely fallen.
One by one, the children disappeared into their dormitories carrying oil lamps.
Eventually…
Even the light in Ms.
Kenna’s room went out.
Silence settled across the orphanage.
Only the strengthening wind remained.
It howled through the trees and rattled the windows.
The feeling in Vincent’s heart intensified.
Without hesitation, he picked up his wand, threw on a raincloak, grabbed an oil lamp, and quietly slipped into the forest.
The first heavy raindrop struck the ground.
Within minutes, the path had turned to mud.
The rain quickly extinguished his lamp.
Now surrounded by darkness, Vincent relied entirely on memory as he pressed deeper into the forest.
Then—
A distant rumble echoed across the heavens.
Vincent instinctively looked upward.
Lightning split the night.
The towering canopy flashed silver for an instant before darkness swallowed it once more.
A familiar notification appeared.
[Step Four: Continue maintaining the ritual until the arrival of a thunderstorm — Completed.]
Completion Progress: (4/10)
Vincent didn’t stop.
Following the marks he had carved into the trees weeks earlier, he hurried toward the great English oak.
Rain streamed down the trunk.
The ancient tree stood exactly where he had left it.
Vincent raised his wand.
“Softening Charm.”
The hardened earth immediately loosened beneath the spell.
Rainwater seeped into the softened soil as he knelt and dug with both hands.
Moments later…
His fingers struck glass.
He pulled the crystal phial free.
The contents had changed completely.
The mandrake leaf had dissolved.
The strand of hair had vanished.
The Death’s-head Hawk Moth chrysalis had disappeared.
Only a single measure of deep crimson potion remained.
Each flash of lightning caused the liquid to shimmer with an eerie crimson glow.
Another notification appeared.
[Step Five: During the first thunderstorm, recover the completed Animagus potion — Completed.]
Completion Progress: (5/10)
Without another glance, Vincent clutched the phial tightly and sprinted through the rain.
Somewhere along the way…
He realized he had abandoned his oil lamp.
Oddly…
He no longer needed it.
An unfamiliar instinct had awakened inside him.
Even in total darkness…
He instinctively knew where to run.
Every scent carried on the rain-soaked wind felt sharper.
Every sound echoed with startling clarity.
Most noticeable of all…
The second heartbeat had returned.
This time…
He hadn’t even pointed his wand at his heart.
It simply appeared on its own.
Thump.
Thump.
Growing stronger.
Growing faster.
He crossed the forest much more quickly than ever before.
Mud splashed beneath his shoes.
Branches whipped against his raincloak.
He barely noticed.
Lightning flashed again.
The forest ended.
The wide meadow opened before him.
Exactly where he had intended to perform his first transformation.
Vincent raised his wand and pointed it toward his heart.
“Amato…”
“Animo…”
“Animato…”
“Animagus.”
With his free hand, he uncorked the crystal phial.
Then…
Without hesitation…
He drank the crimson potion in a single swallow.
Another notification appeared immediately.
[Step Six: Point your wand at your heart, recite the incantation, and drink the completed Animagus potion — Completed.]
Completion Progress: (6/10)
At that exact moment—
The brightest bolt of lightning yet tore across the night sky.
The empty crystal phial slipped from Vincent’s fingers and disappeared into the tall grass.
Then—
Pain.
Unimaginable pain.
Every bone.
Every muscle.
Every nerve.
His entire body twisted violently as the Animagus transformation truly began.