After initial experiments, Roger confirmed that using his microcosmic transfiguration as an entry point to pursue life extension was feasible.
But soon, he ran into the same problem as ancient wizards.
The reason ancient wizards didn't take the path of microscopic transfiguration or use transfiguration to manipulate neutron ray bursts was that transfiguration is a rational form of magic. It requires the caster to have a clear understanding of what the target is being transformed into and also to have a perception of the target itself.
If there's an insufficient understanding of the transformation, the result could be like Ron's transfiguration class disaster—turning a rat into a cup, but leaving half a rat's tail behind, leading to an incomplete transformation failure.
If there's an insufficient perception of the target, the spell will fail completely, and nothing will happen.
Whether you can see the rat directly or perceive it by touch, at the very least, you need to know you're turning A into B. You can't transform A into B if you don't even know what A looks like.
Creating something from nothing falls under summoning spells, a different branch of transfiguration.
Using a microscope, Roger could directly perceive cells and capture their shape. However, due to the microscope's limitations, his manipulation remained at the cellular level.
Like ancient wizards, he was restricted by his perception and couldn't perform more refined spells.
But Roger faced an even bigger problem.
His path to immortality required him to create microscopic matter that could be controlled by his will and modify and repair his own body.
Leaving aside what kind of material could help him alter his body, just figuring out how to link his consciousness to microscopic matter was already a huge challenge!
After his time at Hogwarts, Roger's understanding of the magical world had reached a new level.
Before long, he came up with a possible solution.
Actually, two possible solutions.
"I'll test them both."
—
Harry Potter hadn't expected that, just two days after running into Professor Quirrell and discussing Roger, he would cross paths with Roger again.
"Please, help me out." Roger spoke seriously.
He didn't feel embarrassed at all. If asking for help could solve a problem more effectively, then he should ask.
Trouble?
Relationships between people are built on "trouble." You help me, I help you, we prove our value to each other. Over time, the sunk cost grows, and trust is established. That's networking—unless you have nothing to offer in return and are just using someone one-sidedly.
When you're not yet powerful enough to take on the world alone, knowing how to leverage relationships is a crucial skill.
Of course, knowing whom to trust and whom to avoid is the tricky part of this skill. But for Roger, a "seer," this wasn't a problem at all.
"Sure." Harry agreed without hesitation.
After all, it was a small matter.
With that, Harry led Roger toward the Forbidden Forest on the other side of Hogwarts Castle.
He was taking Roger to see Hagrid.
Roger could have gone on his own, but an introduction from a familiar face always made things easier.
What Roger wanted from Hagrid was quite complicated. If Hagrid weren't already someone deeply interested in magical creatures, Roger would have struggled to get his help.
When dealing with difficult tasks, initial goodwill is important.
As expected, when Hagrid saw that Harry had brought someone over, he wasn't annoyed—he was actually delighted.
He was happy that Harry had made another friend at school.
"…Magical creatures invisible to the naked eye?" The half-giant Hagrid lifted his head from Roger's microscope with difficulty, twisting his stiff neck from bending over for too long.
He got the gist of what Roger meant—not invisible magical creatures, but creatures that were simply too small to see.
"Yes. And I'm also interested in crossbreeding different magical creatures." Roger nodded.
His idea was simple.
A Boggart is a magical creature that can see into a person's heart and transform into their worst fear. It once turned into a Dementor and nearly scared Harry unconscious.
In the magical world, some creatures can sense the thoughts of other living beings.
If a creature existed that was small enough, could perceive a wizard's thoughts, lacked a brain of its own (and thus had no independent will), and could shape-shift, then it might partially fulfill Roger's needs.
Roger wanted to breed such a creature.
But that fell under the domains of bloodline magic and magical zoology—fields he wasn't familiar with.
It deviated from his chosen path of transfiguration, and in terms of future potential, this route was weaker than transfiguration. So, Roger had no intention of switching tracks.
Instead, he wanted to "outsource" this path for now.
If his transfiguration-based immortality research ever failed, at least he'd have a backup plan—unlike the old wizard who wrote Bloodline Magic and Transfiguration—Speculations on the Future but ran out of time and died of old age before he could switch fields.
Roger liked to prepare for contingencies and always had multiple plans.
Even if his transfiguration path succeeded and he never needed these magical creatures, he would still owe Hagrid a favor. And if they managed to breed a unique new magical species, it could bring Hagrid massive profits!
"This…"
After hearing Roger's proposal, Hagrid lowered his head in thought for a moment.
"Alright! I'll help!"
He agreed to assist Roger in breeding these magical creatures.
Hagrid was a big guy with a simple heart. He didn't agree because Roger was a seer, because of Roger's promises, or even because of Harry.
He simply found the idea of creating an entirely new magical species—one so unique it could warrant its own classification in Fantastic Beasts—to be way too cool!
This was, hands down, the coolest thing he'd heard all year! Way cooler than the Philosopher's Stone!
After securing Hagrid's help, Harry and Roger left, both smiling.
Roger smiled because he had achieved his goal. Harry smiled because he was happy to help.
But just then, a cold wind blew past.
Their robes flapped wildly.
Roger's smile vanished.
"What's wrong?" Harry, who had been paying attention to Roger, noticed his expression turn sour.
"...Nothing. Just a side effect of a magical experiment."
Of the two solutions Roger had come up with, one was outsourcing the micro-magical creature route to Hagrid.
The other, he was testing himself.
But since his technique was still underdeveloped, his body was experiencing some… issues.
To put it simply, his pain sensitivity had increased drastically—like Blackbeard after eating the Dark-Dark Fruit.
His previously soft school robe now felt like a torture device.
And when the wind blew? It felt like he was being flayed alive.
"Magical experiment?" Harry knew Roger was working on immortality, but not the details of his research.
"Yeah. I call it… Magic Neuron Reconstruction."
Roger gave a kind smile.
"Want to try it out?"
---
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