Regulus of Hogwarts: Lord of the Stars

In a corner of the library, candlelight cast a warm glow on the thick pages of books.

Lily Evans finally couldn't hold back any longer. She put down the heavy potion book in her hand and looked intently at Regulus opposite her with her green eyes.

"I heard about the duel in the Slytherin common room, with a fifth-year student." She lowered her voice, her tone filled with pure and unbiased curiosity.

"They said you only used some basic spells, but the effect was completely different, as if we weren't even using the same textbook. How could you possibly achieve that level?"

Regulus raised an eyebrow in slight surprise upon hearing this, not expecting her to ask such a question, but then he thought it made sense.

Details of Slytherin's internal activities are never leaked; this is a consensus among all Slytherins, such as the dark magic that appeared at the orientation party.

But Travers's provocation, which ended in an ugly defeat, became a good topic of conversation, and no one would hide it from him.

He looked up at her and could tell that Lily's curiosity contained no probing or hostility, only fascination with magic itself, which made him willing to say a few more words.

"The spells themselves are indeed from the book," he replied calmly. "The key is how to use them."

"You mean, there's a trick to it?"

"Understanding, proficiency, body, consciousness." Regulus waved his wand, casting a soundproofing spell.

He continued, "Understand the essence of a spell: what magical properties it invokes, what kind of matter or energy it acts on, and what kind of change it hopes to achieve."

Proficiency means countless hours of practice until the spell becomes almost instinctive, with chanting, gestures, and magic output perfectly synchronized, without a single superfluous or hesitant movement.

In a duel, you can't just stand still and chant spells. You need to move to avoid spells, adjust your angle to get a better position to cast spells, and maintain your balance to be ready to respond at any time.

A strong physique and quick reflexes are themselves part of combat effectiveness.

Regulus thought for a moment and added, "This is a point that many wizards overlook."

"Finally, there is consciousness." Regulus's gray eyes appeared particularly deep in the candlelight: "To anticipate the opponent's intentions, calculate the trajectory and intersection of spells, and make the optimal choice in an instant."

In many duels, the battle of wits precedes the clash of spells.

Then he added in his mind, "Of course, this is just a regular duel, not involving any more advanced magic."

This doesn't apply to everyone, such as Voldemort, Dumbledore, Grindelwald, and later, me.

Lily was stunned; she had never heard anyone analyze a wizard duel so clearly and systematically.

At Hogwarts, professors teach young wizards how to pronounce spells and make gestures, emphasizing the importance of practice, but rarely do they connect the use of spells to the spellcaster's overall qualities in such depth.

This made her vaguely aware that there seemed to be a profound chasm between Muggle-born individuals and their peers from ancient wizarding families.

She opened her mouth, as if to say, "Isn't this unfair?"

Children from pure-blood families are exposed to these deeper concepts from a young age, and they...

As if reading her thoughts, Regulus shook his head slightly: "This has nothing to do with whether someone is pureblooded or not."

Family inheritance does provide an earlier opportunity to access these ideas, but this is only "knowing" them. What is needed to go from "knowing" to "doing" them is personal study, practice, and reflection.

Many pure-blood wizards only know about it, and some even neglect practice because of their arrogance.

My skill level stems primarily from my own dedication and effort.

His words were like a bucket of cold water, waking up Lily from the vague resentment in her heart.

She suddenly remembered that Professor Slughorn had also praised her and Severus's talents, and that they had achieved good results through their own efforts.

Resources may be unequal, but effort and wisdom are something everyone can possess.

Regulus wasn't defending the pureblood monopoly, but rather emphasizing the decisive role of individual effort, which made him more acceptable to her.

Lily nodded thoughtfully.

But she never imagined that, besides Regulus, which other pureblood would say these things to her?

The conversation gradually became more in-depth.

Lily hesitated for a moment, but still asked the question that had been lingering in her mind for a long time: "Lately, I've felt that the atmosphere at school is a bit strange."

Especially Slytherin, and... some other pure-blood students in their upperclassmen from other houses.

They sometimes whisper about "that person" or "that amazing wizard," very enthusiastically. "What's going on outside?"

Regulus remained silent for a moment.

He knew that Lily had grown up in the Muggle world and had limited knowledge of the wizarding world, but her keen senses made her notice something amiss.

But clearly, the crucial information will not be revealed to a wizard of her background.

However, Regulus didn't mind saying a little more.

"The magical world... is on the eve of a transformation." He chose his words carefully, avoiding mentioning the name directly.

Lily can get that name from somewhere else, but not from him.

"A powerful wizard who advocates the supremacy of pure blood is rising, and he has attracted the support of many ancient families."

He believed that pure-blood wizards should re-establish their absolute dominance over the magical world and purge the impure elements.

Lily's green eyes widened: "This is absurd! Just because of one's background?"

"Whether it's absurd or not depends on your perspective." Regulus's voice remained calm: "For many ancient families, they control the vast majority of the wealth, knowledge, and power in the magical world, a dominance that has lasted for hundreds or even thousands of years."

They believe this is a natural right derived from bloodline, and that the increase in mixed-race and Muggle-born individuals is diluting and threatening this right and purity.

The wizard's claims perfectly aligned with their anxieties and ambitions.

He looked at Lily seriously: "The other pure-bloods from other houses you've met, such as Potter, Longbottom, Prewitt, and Weasley, may have families that are more open-minded or more satisfied with the status quo."

But the situation was different for Slytherin, and many of the families closely associated with them.

Lily bit her lip, looked at Regulus, and said softly, "And you? You must also... support that view, right? You're Black, practically the epitome of pureblood."

Regulus did not answer immediately. He turned to look out the window at the deepening night, as if through it he could see the chaotic situation isolated from Hogwarts Castle.

"Bloodline," he began slowly, "is like an ancient key that can unlock some dusty doors and grant access to resources and perspectives that are difficult for others to obtain."

It represents tradition, and it also represents vested interests. I cannot deny that I enjoy and take advantage of everything it brings.

He turned his head and looked at Lily with an honest gaze: "But bloodline cannot represent wisdom, cannot represent character, and cannot determine a person's entire value."

Historically, many wizards who advanced magic were not pure-blooded. Attributing everything to bloodline is lazy and narrow-minded.

The stance of many pure-blood families is less a matter of faith and more a matter of maintaining their existing interests and ruling position.

They monopolized knowledge and resources, and through marriage alliances, formed a closed and powerful class.

At this point, he suddenly muttered to himself, "In my past life, I owned a dog. Its bloodline was incredibly pure, but apart from being good-looking and pampered, it wasn't much smarter than the mixed-breed dogs on the street."

Lily was shaken as she listened to this almost cold analysis.

She never expected that someone from the most illustrious pure-blood family would view pure-blood itself in this way.

He was neither fanatical nor defensive; he simply presented a calm analysis based on history and interests.

This made her wonder if Regulus Black was actually not the typical pureblood she had imagined.

If she asks that question, Regulus will tell her that he can be, or he can not be.

The two then refocused their attention on their books.

Regulus searched for records related to skin-adhesive potion carriers, magic-releasing matrices, and the stability of rune-engraving media.

The books he read went beyond the scope of ordinary OWL, even involving NEWTs content.

Lily was initially just curious about what he was looking for, but when Regulus occasionally asked questions in a low voice or made insightful comments about certain difficult passages, she was once again amazed by the depth of knowledge of this peer.

She guessed that Regulus might be researching a rather obscure and advanced subject.

"What are you researching?" she couldn't help but ask again. "This stuff... is very obscure."

Regulus looked up and thought for a few seconds.

Lily's potion-making talent is acknowledged by both Slughorn and the original author, and her sharp mind and strong curiosity may make her a good helper.

However, the true purpose cannot be revealed.