The Butcher of Hogsmeade

Shen Houhui didn't know many spells. Although the knockback spell and the stun spell weren't very powerful, the Ironclad Spell was clearly more suitable for this situation. After all, Old Master Ollivander's repeated instructions couldn't have been unfounded.

"Protego!" Facing the direction of the shop door, Shen Hou gently waved his wand. He remembered Ollivander's comment that his magic was volatile and sensitive, so he subconsciously lowered his voice when chanting the spell, and even the movement of waving the wand was as light as a feather, for fear of making the slightest sound when it passed through the air.

Unfortunately, Shen Hou—and everyone present, including Ollivander—still underestimated the extent of the magic's volatile nature.

At the very moment the wand's trajectory ended and the tip pointed straight ahead, the doors and windows of Ollivander's Wand Shop shattered with a deafening roar, sending countless shards of glass flying outwards. The sound of the shards hitting the ground was deafening, and to the wizards inside, it felt as if their worldview had been shattered.

Who has ever seen the Ironclad Charm used as an offensive spell?

An ordinary wizard's "Thunder Explosion" would have about this much power, right?

Shen Hou was the most frightened. He'd only ever heard of maintaining good relations even after a deal fell through, never of tearing down a shop after a failed transaction. Feeling incredibly guilty, he was about to say something when he heard someone outside shout, "What happened, Mr. Ollivander? Are you alright?"

"Oh, no, it's nothing..." Ollivander snapped out of his reverie and called out towards the door, "We were trying out a wand and something went wrong."

"Something's blocking your shop door. Are you sure everything's alright?" someone outside shouted again.

Hearing the growing noise and discussion outside, Ollivander had no choice but to go out to explain. However, he felt as if he had bumped into an invisible wall before he had even taken two steps out of the shop.

Because I was walking slowly, I didn't hit it too hard, and the wall didn't feel very hard, but it was invisible yet substantial, incredibly resilient.

"What happened? Was your shop attacked?" A crowd gradually gathered on the street and asked Ollivander. They had all been drawn there by the sound of the explosion, and not everyone had heard Ollivander's answer.

Ollivander ignored the clamor of questions, instead stroking the intangible wall in front of him. After a moment's thought, he suddenly pulled out his wand and waved it: "Clear Water Like a Spring."

The gushing water crashed against the wall, splashing everywhere. Water droplets clung to the wall and slid down, much like raindrops falling on glass on a rainy day.

"Clear water like a spring!" Ollivander amplified the power of the spell, and the water surged forth. At the same time, he moved his wand in all four directions, up, down, left, and right, and with the help of the water, he quickly figured out the height and width of the invisible wall.

"What are you doing, Mr. Ollivander?" Sirius was the first to come out of the store, followed closely by Shen Hou and Gideon.

"Ah, I think I should know the effect of that armor spell now." Ollivander put away his wand, turned around shakily, and his eyes once again flashed with surprise.

"The Ironclad Curse just now? Didn't it fail?" Shen Hou was both embarrassed and guilty.

Ollivander shook his head repeatedly: "No, in fact it succeeded! It was just too successful, Mr. Shen; your armor spell didn't just protect you, it protected the entire shop. If you look closely, you'll see that the top edge of the armor shield is almost level with the second-floor windowsill."

In fact, Sirius didn't need Mr. Ollivander's explanation at all; he immediately took action, spraying the shield with "Clear Water" and then gently "tapping" it with a knockback spell, having a great time. Only after the spell's effect wore off two minutes later did he reluctantly put away his wand.

"You're amazing, Shen! Others' Ironclad Charms are at most a shield, but yours is a wall; next time you fight, please remember to remind me to stand next to you, okay?"

Sirius's words reached the ears of passersby, sparking a new round of discussion. Someone asked, "Mr. Ollivander, was that the Ironclad Charm? Has someone improved the spell?"

"Oh, I don't know what this spell is all about," Ollivander said with a smile. "The only thing I'm sure of is that yet another customer has found a wand that suits him."

The passerby who asked the question exclaimed, "Maybe it's even a wand suitable for casting the Ironclad Charm? In this day and age, I really wish I had a wand like that."

"Being half-hearted with your wand can make it turn around and abandon you, Mr. Shafik!" Ollivander had clearly recognized another former customer and was giving him a special reminder. "Especially ash wands, they are inherently loyal and expect loyalty in return."

"Alright, I've learned my lesson. I was just saying." The passerby glanced at Shen Hou, who had already walked back into the shop, but ultimately suppressed his curiosity about the "new type of armor spell" and turned to leave.

Sirius and Gideon remained standing in front of the door, waving their wands and using Restoration Charms on the shop doors and windows. Simple physical damage is the most suitable scenario for using Restoration Charms, and both of them were clearly quite skilled at it, quickly restoring the shards of glass and broken door and window frames to their original state.

Gradually, the wizards who had gathered in front of the shop to watch the commotion dispersed. Strange things happen every day in the magical world, and in the eyes of many wizards, the explosion just now was no more unusual than a minor wizard's burst of magic, nor as terrible as the consequences of deliberately ignoring a roaring letter.

Inside the shop, Shen Hou was still shaken by the wand in his hand. Seeing Ollivander enter, he hurriedly asked, "Mr. Ollivander, you just said that this wand is the most suitable for me?"

"Without a doubt, it perfectly suits your volatile magic and faithfully responds to your spells."

Perfect?

loyal?

Shen Hou had a complicated expression on his face, as if he had returned to 2026 and was watching a live-streaming e-commerce video; although he himself knew that the old man in front of him was not the same kind of person as those live-streaming e-commerce hosts who would say anything to sell goods.

"You don't seem to understand the magic of 'irritability,' Mr. Shen."

Ollivander's silvery-white eyes seemed to see right through Shen Hou's thoughts;

"You can imagine the magic within your body as a river. The 'rivers' within other wizards are generally docile, with calm and tranquil currents, which wizards can use for irrigation, navigation, and cleansing. But the 'river' within you is different; its current is turbulent and even violent, with its course constantly changing. Faced with such a river, what you need is not an aqueduct or a boat, but a sufficiently strong dam, a wider canal, to divert the water in the direction you need, ultimately making it work for you."

"This bone spike wand in your hand can respond to your spells and coordinate the magic within your body, thus allowing the magic to take shape. This is something that no other wand can do."

Shen Hou's gaze fell on the second old box on the counter. He asked, "Isn't there a second wand? Maybe I should give it a try. Perhaps it's more suitable for me?"

"Are you really going to do this, Mr. Shen?" Ollivander asked seriously. "When you insist on trying other wands, it means you have lost faith in the wand you currently hold. And faith is not one-way; it is mutual between the wizard and the wand."

Shen Hou was taken aback: "You mean, the wand chooses the wizard?"

“Yes, the wand chooses the wizard.” Ollivander’s gaze was deep, as if admonishing, yet also imploring. “It not only chooses its master, but also its destiny; I sincerely hope that you can respect this choice, respect the fate of the wand.”