Hogwarts: The Greatest Wizard

Chapter 96– Back to School

Slytherin's wand was made of snakewood and had a core crafted from basilisk horn.

Snakewood was a rare and highly prized tree. It had many uses in potioneering, alchemy, and wand-making. Among these, wands were its most well-known application.

The unique trait of snakewood was its lack of a magical upper limit when casting spells. In other words, a wand made of snakewood could channel as much magical power as the wizard possessed—enough that even a simple Stunning Spell could become lethal.

However, this power came at a cost. Snakewood wands demanded exceptional magical control. Even someone as experienced as Dumbledore required time to adjust to its use. Unlike the Elder Wand—which also had no spellcasting limits but actively assisted its wielder—snakewood had no sentient core or intelligence to stabilize its magic.

Most wands possessed a form of autonomous consciousness. This usually emerged from the fusion of their wood and core. Only a few wand materials, such as grapevine wood, rosewood, or phoenix feather, had innate consciousness on their own.

The Elder Wand was unique in that both its elder wood and thestral tail hair core possessed autonomous magic. That was one reason it was so notoriously difficult to replicate, despite every wandmaker knowing how powerful the combination was.

Snakewood, by contrast, had no consciousness at all. That made it unstable—and dangerous—in the hands of anyone without near-perfect control.

To manage this instability, Slytherin had crafted a wand core from basilisk horn, and he used Parseltongue to command the wand, even to the point of putting it to sleep, rendering it unusable by anyone else. Without the ability to speak Parseltongue, the wand couldn't be controlled.

Of course, owning a phoenix could achieve a similar effect—phoenixes were intelligent and could attune themselves to their master's magic—but even then, it wasn't quite the same.

Because of the snakewood's rarity and its risky qualities, it was nearly extinct in the magical world. Perhaps the Elders still had a supply, just as they still possessed phoenixes.

Now that Phineas had significantly improved his magical control, he began to seriously consider crafting his third wand—a custom wand allowed by the system.

He had already chosen snakewood for the body, but the core remained an issue. It needed to be something he could personally command. Unfortunately, the system couldn't generate a suitable core on its own.

If he used a phoenix feather generated by the system, the wand would function like any ordinary one—its uniqueness would be lost.

As for using a basilisk horn, Phineas had no way to control it since he didn't speak Parseltongue.

Just then, he remembered he still hadn't claimed a reward from a completed mission. He opened the system interface to check the latest update.

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Mission Complete: Ancestors' Approval

In recognition of your choice to preserve the purity of your bloodline by risking your life to reject a powerful being, your ancestors are pleased. They encourage you to continue advancing the Black legacy.

Mission Objective: Increase bloodline purity (recorded in family's bloodline sublimation ceremony).

Reward: Enhanced magical talent, higher spellcasting proficiency, and improved magical power level.

---

Upon receiving the reward, Phineas found that his magical talent, casting proficiency, and magic level had all increased. Notably, this time the system hadn't raised his total magic points, but rather the level of magic itself—refining the strength of each spell he cast.

However, he was still missing a few rare gems needed to craft his system-customized wand. And since those gems were also necessary for other contingencies, he couldn't afford to deplete his stores recklessly. So, the new wand would have to wait.

The bloodline sublimation ceremony had clearly brought many benefits, though Phineas wasn't entirely sure of the full extent just yet. Still, he didn't linger at Black Castle to investigate further. Instead, he summoned Puff and returned to Hogwarts.

He had already asked Puff to deliver his luggage to the Slytherin dormitory ahead of him. With the school dorms protected by strong enchantments, no student—only professors—could break into them. And Phineas didn't think any professor would violate his privacy.

As he stepped back into the grounds of Hogwarts, Phineas felt as though he had re-entered another world. His holiday hadn't been eventful in the traditional sense, but he had grown immeasurably.

At the very least, the system interface now included a catalogue of ancient magic, and his understanding of ancient runes had deepened substantially.

The new term had already begun a few days prior, and Phineas still didn't have Slytherin's class schedule. His first order of business was to visit Professor Snape.

It wasn't his first time going to Snape's office, which was located conveniently next to the Slytherin common room in the dungeons.

Knock knock knock.

"Come in."

Snape's voice came from within. Phineas opened the door and stepped inside.

"Mr. Black?" Snape said, arching a brow. "If Headmaster Dumbledore hadn't told me you'd been granted leave, I'd have assumed you'd died over the break. There were probably several impromptu celebrations in the common room."

Snape was clearly displeased. Phineas had told Dumbledore about his leave but failed to inform his Head of House.

Phineas gave a sheepish smile.

"I was in a bit of a rush, Professor Snape, and didn't think to contact you. I'm here now to collect my schedule."

Snape nodded curtly.

"Regardless of the reason, your failure to inform me caused complications. You'll serve detention for a week. Report to me every evening starting tomorrow."

He handed over a class schedule.

Phineas glanced over it. It was nearly identical to his first-year schedule—only the times had changed, and flying class was gone. That made sense. From second year onward, students could bring their own brooms, and the Quidditch teams began recruiting, so flying classes were no longer mandatory.

"I understand, Professor Snape. I'll return to the dormitory now."

Snape nodded again. It was Friday, and the last class of the week had just ended. Phineas could head back, rest, and prepare for the weekend.

Back in the dormitory, he briefly organized his luggage, then left again—this time heading to the Room of Requirement on the seventh floor.

His first task was to return the books and notes from the Ravenclaw Chamber of Secrets that he'd borrowed over the holidays. Then he selected new books for the upcoming term and tidied up his alchemy lab, which he planned to use for intensive study going forward.

He also needed to take inventory of ingredients and tools. Once the list was complete, he would have Popsicle head to Diagon Alley and place the necessary orders.