Chapter 3 The Old Wizard
I got home.
My uncle and aunt had taken Ethan out to buy school supplies, so no one was home.
I locked myself in the bathroom and sat down on the toilet.
"Wizards... In this world of wizards, being a Squib is worse than crap. At least nobody dares to step on crap."
My shoulders shook a little as I let out a bitter laugh at myself.
I ran my fingers through my black hair and bit down hard on my lip, letting the faint taste of blood spread at the corner of my mouth.
Even though I hadn't shown any sign of distress over the past few hours, every word from my uncle, my aunt, and Emily had cut into my heart like a knife and made my whole body tremble.
"Heh, kid, looks like you could use some help."
Just then, an old, strange laugh suddenly reached my ears.
My expression changed, and I spun around, my gaze cutting across the bathroom, but I couldn't see anyone.
"Heh, stop looking. I'm on your finger."
Just as I was about to brush it off as my imagination, that strange laugh came again out of nowhere.
My eyes narrowed, and my gaze suddenly stopped on my right hand... on the ring.
"Are you talking?"
I forced down the fear in my heart, trying to keep my voice calm.
"Kid, you've got pretty good composure." A mocking laugh came from the ring.
"Who are you? Why are you in my ring? What do you want?"
After a brief silence, I asked the questions that mattered.
"Never mind who I am for now. I won't hurt you anyway. But I do need to thank you for your seventeen years of contribution, kid. I'm really lucky, or I'd probably still be sleeping inside this Horcrux."
"Contribution?"
I blinked in confusion. A moment later, my face darkened, and I forced out a few cold words between my teeth:
"The magic power that mysteriously disappeared from my body, me being a Squib--that was your doing?"
"Heh, I had no choice, kid. Don't blame me."
"Fuck you!"
Usually, I'm calm and composed, but now I suddenly jumped up like a madman, my face twisted with rage. Not caring that this was the only thing my parents had left me, I immediately pulled the ring off my finger and threw it hard into the toilet, slamming the flush button.
Right after hitting the flush, my mind suddenly cleared, and I reached out to grab it.
But the ring had already gone straight down with the water.
I stared blankly as the ring disappeared down the swirling water, stunned for a long moment. My face slowly calmed down, and I slapped my forehead in frustration.
"Idiot. Too rash. Way too rash."
I had just learned that the culprit behind three years of humiliation was the ring I had been wearing all along, so it was no wonder I had lost control like that.
But this was still my parents' only keepsake.
After sitting on the toilet for a while longer, I finally shook my head helplessly and stood up.
Then.
My eyes widened, and my finger trembled as I pointed at what was floating in front of me.
Right in front of me, a pitch-black ring was now floating in the air.
What shocked me most was that above the ring, a transparent old figure was hovering.
A ghost? A soul?
After being around a wizard family for so long, I knew some basic magical knowledge.
"Heh, kid, no need to be so angry, right? I just absorbed seventeen years of your magic power." The transparent old wizard looked at me with a smile as I stood there dumbfounded.
The corner of my mouth twitched, and my voice came out through clenched teeth:
"Old man, since you've been hiding in the ring, you should know what all these years, especially the past three years, have been like for me because you absorbed my magic power, right?"
After my outburst, my mood gradually calmed down, and joy followed.
Now that I knew why my magic power had been disappearing, it meant I wasn't a Squib and actually had a chance to become a wizard.
Just thinking about finally having a chance to shed the Squib label made me feel almost reborn. Even the annoying old man in front of me didn't seem so hateful anymore.
I stretched my wrists lightly, let out a long breath, and looked up.
"Although I don't know who you are, I want to ask: do you still plan to stay attached to the ring and keep absorbing my magic power? If so, you'd better find another host. I can't afford to keep you."
"Heh, no one else has talent as strong as yours." The old wizard stroked his beard with a smile. "But since I've chosen to reveal myself, I naturally won't absorb your magic power again without your permission."
I rolled my eyes and sneered without speaking, having already made up my mind that no matter how sweet his words, I wouldn't let this old guy stay with me.
"Do you want to become a wizard?"
Although I'd already decided not to get involved with the old wizard, at those words, my heart still couldn't help but skip a beat.
"Now that I know why my magic power disappeared, do I still need you to become a wizard and get stronger?"
I took a slow breath and said flatly. I knew very well there was no such thing as a free lunch in this world. Accepting favors from a mysterious person out of nowhere wasn't a wise decision.
Horcrux.
That didn't sound like a good word at all.
"Kid, your talent is certainly good, but you need to know this--you're already seventeen years old, and your magic power has been absorbed by me for so many years. It can't be recovered in a short time. I seem to remember hearing that October is the registration month for the magic academy, right?"
"Do you really think you can restore your magic power to the level of a normal wizard your age in just three months? Or do you want to continue being a Squib for a few more years?"
The old wizard's wrinkled face now looked like a blooming chrysanthemum.
"If you hadn't absorbed my magic power, would I be in this mess? You old bastard!"
Hit right in my sore spot by the old wizard, my face darkened again, and I cursed through gritted teeth.
After a good round of cursing, I deflated again. At this point, no amount of swearing would help. Even though this mysterious person would no longer absorb my magic power, I still didn't feel any different from usual. Even if my talent had recovered now, getting back to normal in three months was basically impossible.
I sighed in frustration, glanced at the transparent old wizard who was pretending to be mysterious, and my heart stirred. I curled my lip and said, "You have a way, don't you?"
"Perhaps." The old wizard laughed ambiguously.
"You help me reach the magic power level of a normal wizard my age within three months, and I'll write off your previous absorption of my magic power. How about it?" I asked tentatively.
"Heh, you're quite the calculator."
"If you can't help me, why should I carry around dead weight? I think you'd better find another unlucky person to parasitize..." I sneered. After chatting for a bit, I could tell that this transparent old wizard's soul couldn't just absorb anyone's magic power at will.
"You don't act like a seventeen-year-old at all. Is this what they call karma?" Looking at my slick attitude, the old wizard was stunned, then shook his head with a somewhat helpless laugh.
"If you want me to keep letting you absorb my magic power, you need to show some sincerity, right?" I spread my hands.
"That's true."
The old wizard asked with a smile:
"So then, do you want to become a Potions Master?"