"Done." Rhys showed a trace of satisfaction as he pushed the compressed domain into the crystal.
At this moment, the crystal was filled with a colorless liquid.
Although it appeared transparent and clear, when the amethyst was gently shaken, the liquid inside swayed slightly, evoking an instinctive sense of unease and fear—an urge to stay away from it.
That was simply human nature—instinctively avoiding danger.
Even though the severed fragment of the domain had been placed into the amethyst, the only reason it remained quietly inside was because Rhys was constantly suppressing it.
Without his control, the domain wouldn't need even a second to crush the amethyst into dust and then expand outward at a terrifying speed.
Rhys originally intended to add a seal to the crystal to isolate it from the outside world and keep the domain inside stable. But after some consideration, he dismissed the idea.
He realized that this crystal was essentially a teaching tool, not an alchemical artifact meant to be passed down as a family heirloom.
If it were a close friend asking him for a treasure powerful enough to protect a home, Rhys would certainly have applied a sealing spell—turning the crystal into a single-use weapon capable of unleashing the domain upon activation.
But this was meant for Daphne and Astoria to study with… so why complicate things? All he needed to do was allocate a bit of attention to keep the domain inside the crystal under control.
After thinking it through, Rhys crafted another identical yellow, teardrop-shaped crystal, giving one each to Daphne and Astoria.
Once the crystal pendants were finished, Rhys checked the time and realized Christmas was approaching—perfect timing to use them as Christmas gifts. Every year, deciding what to give the younger generation for Christmas really drained his energy…
Thinking of this, Rhys suddenly realized a problem: Helga had taken on an apprentice this year—did that mean he had to prepare one more Christmas gift?!
Rhys felt a little troubled for a moment, but then he remembered that Cedric didn't know his true identity. In that case, perhaps he didn't need to give him anything at all?
…
As Christmas approached, the entire British wizarding world visibly relaxed.
At Hogwarts, professors began leaving more "free time" during classes, while Ministry of Magic officials collectively started slacking off from top to bottom. Except for the Department of International Magical Cooperation, the rest of the Ministry had become rather lazy and unmotivated.
"Minos, have you prepared the Christmas gifts for the department members?" asked the newly appointed Minister for Magic, Bones, rubbing her throbbing temples. Having just taken office, she needed to distribute some benefits to solidify her position.
As the Minister supported and nominated by the Greengrass family, her funding was relatively abundant—offering a few perks wasn't an issue.
"All prepared," replied Bones's secretary, handing her a quotation list for the Christmas gifts.
Bones glanced at the list. The prices were clearly above market rate, and she raised an eyebrow but said nothing. The new supplier was from the Malfoy family, after all, so a little markup was to be expected.
"A bit expensive is fine," she said after a pause. "What matters is that there are no quality issues."
"We'll conduct inspections upon delivery," the secretary assured her.
Bones nodded.
Minos then took out another document and handed it to his superior.
"This is a letter from Professor White of Hogwarts," he said. "She mentioned that the doll has been completed and will be sent to the Ministry tomorrow for inspection." Minos's expression turned a little odd as he continued,
"Professor White also said that the doll will come on its own. If the Ministry is interested in placing an order after seeing it, we should send her an owl to confirm. She'll fulfill the orders in sequence—and she accepts installment payments."
Selling goods without even showing up in person—Professor White certainly had confidence.
Bones raised her eyebrows. So Professor White was that sure the Ministry would place an order? And from her tone, she even seemed to think the doll would be so popular that the Ministry ought to order early before the pure-blood families did?
In Bones's mind, Smith White wasn't the type of boastful fraud who exaggerated her own work. Which meant she truly had confidence in her dolls. That made Bones rather curious about what would happen tomorrow.
"Send invitations to those prominent figures," Bones instructed. "Let them know they're welcome to come tomorrow and witness Professor White's combat doll for themselves."
After that, she went through more than a dozen documents and held several meetings with high-ranking Ministry officials, including Jamison Greengrass, the Head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation.
Unlike her predecessor, Fudge, Bones was a hands-on leader who preferred packing her daily schedule to the brim. By the time she finally finished for the day, night had already fallen completely.
Bones stretched lazily and exhaled a long breath. Being the Minister for Magic was by no means an easy job—but she enjoyed it.
News that Professor White from Hogwarts would be sending her autonomous combat doll to the Ministry had spread throughout the building before the end of the previous workday. From department heads to the newest recruits, everyone had heard the explosive rumor.
As a result, nearly the entire Ministry arrived early the next morning, eager to be the first to witness the magical creation for themselves.
At nine o'clock sharp, a figure appeared in the Ministry's main hall—dressed in a plain black wizard's robe and pointed hat, its face smooth and featureless, without any facial features at all. The Hogwarts crest embroidered on the front of its robe revealed its origin: this was Professor White's autonomous combat doll.
Its arrival immediately captured everyone's attention. The moment it stepped into view, the entire hall erupted into a low hum of whispers.
Wizards all around began commenting and speculating—some optimistic, others skeptical. Amidst the chatter, no one noticed two figures quietly appearing behind the doll.
Dawlish and Kingsley exchanged a glance and nodded—they had received direct orders from Minister Bones the previous day to ambush the doll as soon as it arrived.
If it could withstand attacks from two veteran Aurors without being destroyed, then Professor White's doll would certainly be a sensation.
"Expelliarmus!"
"Diffindo!"
Two spells shot toward the doll at the same time. The attack came so suddenly that most of the people present didn't even have time to react—but the doll did.
It spun around with astonishing agility, gracefully dodging both Dawlish and Kingsley's spells, then raised its hand toward Dawlish, who was standing to the left.
The next second, Dawlish was sent flying backward and crashed hard into a fireplace, losing consciousness on the spot.
Kingsley: ???
What in Merlin's name was that? Gravity magic? Magnetic field manipulation? He had never seen such a strange and unpredictable attack before.
It wasn't his fault—few in the modern wizarding world had ever witnessed this kind of ancient attack technique, a pure and straightforward shockwave of raw magical power.
When the doll "looked" toward him, Kingsley's expression changed dramatically, and he quickly cast a Shield Charm on himself.
The doll didn't repeat its previous attack method, since the magic wave module could only store enough energy for one strike. To continue fighting, it would have to switch to a different attack mode.
[Attack detected. Counterattack mode activated.]
[Protocol confirmed. Action One—executing.]
Kingsley: .....Fuck...
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