7: Whose Patronus Is an Egg?!

After trying nearly a hundred wands, Wayne could be considered a seasoned veteran of this particular path.

When a wand wasn't compatible, his magic would strongly resist it, and the spells would come out wild and unstable.

If the match was just so-so, or if he felt nothing at all, the wand might sputter out a bit of water or let off a firework or two just for show.

When it was somewhat suitable, most of the spells he produced would be Transfiguration.

But never had a wand reacted like this one. The moment he held it in his hand, it felt like a perfect, seamless fit—like water merging with milk.

Wayne instinctively raised the wand high.

A silver-white mist poured forth, drifting through the air and gradually taking shape.

Professor McGonagall, initially puzzled, quickly realized what was happening—and for once, completely lost her composure.

"Impossible!"

Even Ollivander's lips were trembling.

"The Patronus Charm… It's the Patronus Charm…"

Never mind that the Patronus Charm was an extremely advanced defensive spell against Dark creatures—many adult wizards couldn't even perform it.

But what kind of child wizard, upon just receiving their wand, would instinctively cast a Patronus Charm?!

The silver-white mist finally coalesced into a fully-formed Patronus. Both McGonagall and Ollivander stared at it intently, their eyes gradually glazing over.

"Is… is that… an egg?"

Wayne was also plunged into speechless disbelief.

What the hell?!

Whose serious Patronus is an egg?! Was he supposed to hurl it at Dementors and hope it cracked them to death?

Hurry up and hatch already!

Huh?

A sudden thought struck Wayne —Hatch?

Could it be connected to that mysterious Pokémon egg currently incubating at home?

As the wand lowered slightly, the silvery Patronus faded away. Only then did Ollivander and McGonagall begin to recover from their shock.

"A magnificent display, Mr. Lawrence," Ollivander said with a deep breath. "This moment will be forever recorded in the history of the Ollivander family."

"Legend has it that Larchwood was used by Heracles in his offerings to Zeus, the King of Gods. In ancient Greece, it was known as the sacred tree."

"And unicorn hair is among the purest of magical cores—loyal and incredibly stable."

"I'm confident that you'll one day achieve great mastery in the Defense Against the Dark Arts. Perhaps… the next Dumbledore?"

Wayne laughed heartily and teased, "You don't say that to every young wizard, do you?"

Ollivander only smiled in response.

He did, in fact, say similar things when selling wands. It usually didn't mean much.

But this time, there was a touch of sincerity behind his words.

After paying seven Galleons for the wand and an extra fifteen Galleons for the full advanced wand care kit, the two finally left Ollivander's shop.

Damn, that hurt.

Only now did Wayne nderstand why such an important magical weapon was priced as low as seven Galleons.

On one hand, each young wizard's first wand was subsidized by the Ministry of Magic, and any shortfall would be reimbursed to Ollivander.

On the other hand, there was the after-sales service—just like the Muggle world's fourth-tier electronics stores, the real profit came later.

There was no time to dwell on the excitement of getting his wand. Since they had already wasted quite a bit of time earlier, they had to move quickly.

The bookstore, the robe shop, the cauldron shop, and the astronomy store—

After making a full round of stops, Wayne finally managed to buy everything required for Hogwarts, and even picked up a fair number of books that piqued his own interest.

Fortunately, Flourish and Blotts and the other shops all offered owl delivery services. For just three silver Sickles in postage, Wayne couldn't help but marvel at how affordable everything in the wizarding world seemed.

Three Sickles—honestly, it was practically free shipping.

The only pity was that, with Professor McGonagall accompanying him, Wayne wasn't in a position to buy many of the fun little items he had his eye on—like Sneezing Powder or Dungbombs and other prank supplies.

Before they parted, Professor McGonagall asked him once again if he wanted to buy a pet.

First-years were allowed to bring an owl, a toad, or a rat as their pet.

Wayne didn't have much interest in any of the three. Even the round-faced, chubby Scottish owls—which were arguably the cutest—didn't really appeal to him.

Owls were mostly used for sending letters, but he currently didn't have any friends in the wizarding world to write to.

If he ever needed one in the future, he could just borrow one from a classmate—or use one of the school's.

"Mr. Lawrence, my duty is now complete. The next time we meet will be at the start of term."

Having once again Apparated Wayne back home, Professor McGonagall was ready to leave. She had to visit another young wizard's family later that afternoon.

Before she left, McGonagall added, "Although the Ministry of Magic does not allow underage magic outside of school, there are exceptions to everything."

She said this meaningfully. "In the month ahead, you're allowed to preview your coursework—practice some of the less dangerous spells. If you run into anything you don't understand, you can send me a letter via owl from Diagon Alley."

After witnessing the scene in Ollivanders, McGonagall had high hopes for Wayne's talent and wasn't shy about offering what help she could.

Upon hearing her words, Wayne's eyes lit up.

"That wouldn't be bothering you, Professor?"

Even with his talents maxed out—and a cheat code on top of it—magic wasn't something you mastered overnight.

Turning talent into actual skill still required loads of knowledge and practice. With someone like McGonagall—an outright master—helping him out, he could avoid a lot of detours.

"Of course not. I'd be happy to help any young witch or wizard eager to learn."

With that, McGonagall gave a final wave and disappeared with a crack as she Apparated away.

Wayne watched her leave, then turned and walked back into his house.

He was grateful for McGonagall's kindness…

But Gryffindor?

That was definitely not the House Wayne wanted to end up in.