Chapter Twenty-One: Do You Have Any Idea What the Consequences Will Be?

“Sir, why do I feel like you look oddly familiar?” Mr. Stuart blinked uncertainly, his voice tinged with doubt.

“Not at all, Mr. Stuart. I’m new here—I don’t know you.” Wu Yanzu couldn’t help but let out a savage laugh. “Heh, heh, heh, heh, heh.”

[…]

As Louis spoke, he started pacing outside the mirror. The specter’s face darkened, shadowed and brooding. Like a reflection, it mimicked Louis, pacing in tandem inside the glass.

“You came here specifically for me? You know the Witch Queen now lets me out for a breather at this time every day?”

The wizard outside the mirror gave no reply, but the presence within noticed something strange: no matter how either of them circled the mirror, neither could leave the area surrounding it.

They were both trapped here.

“Heh, an interesting spell, but ultimately meaningless—did you think this would let you escape my shadow? I’ve seen you now. Wherever you run, as long as you glimpse your reflection, I’ll find you.”

“So, do you realize what you’ve just done?” The specter in the mirror let out a sinister chuckle, though if one looked closely, its pinky finger was trembling.

“Don’t be hasty.” Louis, rubbing his hands together, drew a pocket watch from his sleeve and pressed its dial. The energy within paused its flow. “Just as I said, Mr. Stuart—a Möbius loop.”

“A Mö—Möbius loop? That’s—cough—what I mean is, do you know what will happen?” The figure in the mirror grinned ever more menacingly, and his trembling pinky grew more pronounced.

“Hmm? Do you know what’s going to happen?”

The wizard remained silent, peering into the mirror with a child’s excitement, even trying to crawl inside. The specter shoved him back, hard.

“It’s of no consequence. I can read your mind—fear is pointless, little one. I’ll give you a chance: leave now. I was once the Witch Queen’s magic mirror!”

“Magic mirror?! I knew you were no ordinary thing!” Louis quivered with excitement, cutting Stuart off. “This is a rare opportunity!”

“Come, then.” Louis glanced at his pocket watch, pressed pause, closed his eyes, and spread his arms anxiously. “Pull me in, quickly. Time is precious—today I can only play for eight hours. No matter—I’ll return tomorrow.”

Yet he waited and heard nothing. Frowning, Louis opened his eyes and looked at the mirror, only to find the figure within running in frantic circles, desperately seeking a way out.

“Damn it! I knew you were a Black Wizard of the Hermetic Order! Do you even realize what you’re doing? You’re violating school rules! If you dare use me for black magic experiments, I’ll report you to the Ministry!”

At this, Louis sighed.

So little magic could be practiced outside the mirror.

He wasted no more words. Raising his wand, he swept it at the magic mirror, again and again.

“Begone, evil spirit! Begone, evil spirit! Begone, evil spirit…”

The mirror’s inhabitant paused, taken aback by the incantation, nearly laughing aloud.

Black wizard? He didn’t even know the most basic banishment spells for evil spirits!

The specter’s face twisted into a snarl. This was no time to assist with an academy assessment—an opportunity to toy with a wizard was too rare to waste. Suddenly, a spectral chain shot from the specter’s hand, aimed straight for the wizard’s collarbone outside the mirror. What happened next left Mr. Stuart dumbfounded.

The wizard swatted the chain aside as if it were a mere fly!

This was no ordinary spell—no simple shield charm could defend against it. The chain, heavy as a thousand pounds, could pierce even a giant ogre’s soul, leaving it howling in agony.

Yet this wizard possessed strength surpassing even an ogre lord, and his moving arm radiated an alarming magical power.

The wizard’s chanting never ceased. After batting away the chain, he pointed his wand at the warden, and Stuart watched in astonishment as countless runes appeared on his own body, an uncontrollable dread flooding his heart.

This was neither an exorcism spell nor a banishment—he had never seen anything like it.

It was far more terrifying than either of those.

“What…what is this…?”

“Demon-Subduing Spell, sir. It’s called the Demon-Subduing Spell.” Louis stroked his chin, murmuring to himself. “As I suspected, the structures of the exorcism and banishment spells seemed off. They’re not incomplete at all—they’re actually one spell.”

By now, the specter in the mirror was in utter disarray, careening wildly, unable to control its body.

But this time, it could no longer escape from the chamber within the mirror, only circling madly within its confines.

Above Louis’s head, a narration appeared.

[Exorcism Spell Comprehension +1]

[Banishment Spell Comprehension +1]

[Your understanding of ‘Forbidden: Demon-Subduing Spell’ has deepened, though more experimentation is needed…]

[Mr. Stuart is dazed: 9, 8, 7…]

Just as he suspected! He’d long believed the exorcism and banishment spells were related—or even one and the same.

The spell he’d cast today was a reworked version, and when released, it didn’t conjure a brilliant white phoenix, but instead covered the target in dense runes.

Louis raised his wand again. After several more castings, he noticed his proficiency with both exorcism and banishment spells increasing, but for the spell to take effect, the little lightning bolt had to strike the target, and even then, the success rate was only one in three, with mediocre results.

Reflecting, Louis picked up his wand and resumed his work. Whenever his magic waned, he pressed the pocket watch. With 200% mana recovery and energy infusion, the effect was astonishing.

Spell after spell shot toward the mirror. Though his accuracy was low at first, the relentless barrage left the specter no chance to regain its senses, making it dash about like a wind-up automaton.

Gradually, as Louis experimented and refined the incantation, his understanding of the new spell deepened, and the magic itself began to change.

Yet the specter in the mirror was no ordinary being. Despite so many direct hits, its body showed no sign of dissolution.

This gave Louis the chance to master his new spell without harming his precious test subject.

After some time, the spell was finally perfected. The runes on the specter’s body spread like a dreadful contagion, wrapping it up as though it were under the same curse Sasuke once received from Orochimaru.

Then—crack—the wand broke.

The specter slowly regained its senses, while the wizard outside stared at the shattered wand, stunned, then closed his eyes in thought.

“My own spell, and it starts at level 10?” Louis scratched his chin in disappointment. “Not 999? Clearly, I’ve got a long way to go—my knowledge and skill are lacking.”

“Foolish wizard! How dare you mock me like this!” the evil spirit suddenly lunged, determined to make the wizard pay dearly.

At that moment, the wizard lifted his head, his eyes opening—pools of endless magical power that rooted the specter to the spot.

A horrible whisper echoed through the hall. The evil spirit trembled, nearly collapsing to its knees.

For an instant, it felt as though the man before it was its master—no thought of rebellion could rise, as if a slave pact had been forced upon it.

“What…what spell is this?” Stuart felt this magic was different from what he’d just experienced. “Who are you, really…?”

“Just a newly arrived professor.” Louis shook out his aching arm and glanced at the narration.

[You have repaired and improved upon the ‘Forbidden: Demon-Subduing Spell lv10’ left to Saint Oak Academy by ‘Anthony’.]

“All right, let’s continue.” Louis pulled back his robe, producing a fresh wand, ready to practice another spell.

At that moment, the evil spirit gazed at the wizard’s parted robe with utter despair—his waist was lined with an entire row of wands!

With a thud, the specter dropped to its knees.

“Sir! Sir! We’re colleagues, after all… Whatever you wish to know, I’ll tell you!”

“I don’t want to know.”

“No! You do want to know!”