This puppet of Wayne was specially crafted, using numerous alloys produced by military enterprises. In terms of hardness, it far surpassed ten ordinary puppets.
Grace also witnessed the entire process.
"What is that?"
Through the book page, she couldn't sense anything special about that glazed-coloured fragment. None of the treasures or spell effects she remembered from her knowledge resembled this existence.
Wayne didn't answer, merely frowning in deep thought.
Seeing his serious, contemplative expression, Grace didn't dare disturb him and waited quietly.
After a long while, Wayne finally emerged from his contemplation.
"Let's go?"
"Where to?"
"You'll know when you follow me." Grasping the young girl's wrist, Wayne Apparated to the isolated island where he had broken through to the Legend rank.
"I've figured out what that fragment is."
Before Grace could even ask, Wayne extended a finger, terrifying energy condensing at its tip. The sky darkened accordingly, as if instantly shifting from morning to midnight.
Grace stepped back repeatedly, staring in shock at the speck of starlight on the youth's fingertip, her hair standing on end.
That horrifying fluctuation couldn't be matched even by her most powerful magic at her peak - it fell short by several times.
After gathering energy for about ten seconds, Wayne released the starlight towards the distant horizon.
A fine, thread-like arc of light sliced through the night sky, like a slash across a beautiful oil painting. The world was split in two, first showing a tiny black crack that then rapidly expanded into a massive black gap.
The gap resembled a large mouth, devouring everything around it. Seawater violently poured inward, terrifying suction distorting and tearing the nearby space, creating warped distortions.
"Watch carefully, focus on the expanding edge of the rift." Wayne held Grace's hand, erecting a protective barrier to shield them from this force. The girl, still stunned by this strike, immediately snapped back to attention and focused completely on observing.
Soon she understood what Wayne wanted her to see.
Piece after piece of irregular crystals, similar to the fragment the puppet had encountered, continuously shattered before being absorbed by the black hole.
Gradually, the black hole slowly healed, though the sea surface remained turbulent with raging waves.
"That's... a spatial fragment?"
"Should be." Wayne nodded. "Though the colour is somewhat different, it might be due to being from different spatial layers."
"Completely passing through that white mist, what you encounter is the endless chaotic void currents."
"Of course, this is only the most superficial layer. What lies beyond this chaotic flow region, I cannot yet determine."
It was only after breaking through to Legend rank, when he wanted to test his maximum explosive power, that he accidentally shattered space and confronted the void.
Stable space isn't frightening - it's those chaotic fragments and turbulent flows that are most terrifying. Even Wayne didn't dare venture deep into the void.
There, one not only faces the danger of getting lost but must constantly guard against spatial fragments like the one just seen. He didn't think his pure physical strength was much superior to the puppet's.
"Stop investigating the arch for now," Wayne said to Grace. "Wait until I become stronger. Don't go out during this period either; first, learn this."
His finger touched Grace's forehead, and a stream of information flowed into her mind.
"The Sun Disc, the Ascension Rite..." Grace's beautiful eyes widened into perfect circles. There was a great deal of content, and she had only skimmed through it roughly.
"Hmm, complete the Ascension Rite, and your physical energy will also be greatly enhanced, achieving dual transcendence of both body and soul. Only then can you be considered a true Legend."
Grace closed her eyes once more. This time, a full ten minutes passed before she reopened them.
She looked up at the sun in the sky and asked somewhat uncertainly, "Can it really be done? The sun mentioned in the Ascension Rite... surely it doesn't refer to an ordinary star like the one above our heads?"
"Don't worry," Wayne said calmly. "I am your sun."
...
Grace went home to carefully study the Ascension Rite, while Wayne returned to school with Astoria.
He was also very curious about the world beyond the arch. Coincidentally, the new stage of the Dragon King inheritance contained a wealth of knowledge related to space. He was sure to gain some insights after researching it for a while.
Back at school, Wayne explained to Hermione and Cho that he needed to go into seclusion for research. The young women both expressed understanding, but also urged Wayne to pay attention to eating and resting on time, and not to overwork himself.
He also informed Grindelwald to prevent him from throwing a tantrum when he couldn't find anyone.
Sharpening the axe won't delay the work of cutting wood. After entering the suitcase, Wayne didn't immediately begin receiving the inheritance. Instead, he prepared to build a small Time Chamber first.
With his experience from the Virtual Brain Machine, he had gained some understanding of the properties of Sand of Time. Simple time acceleration wasn't actually very difficult; it just required a lot of materials.
The resources he had previously squeezed from the various national Ministries of Magic were almost depleted. Fortunately, he had managed to acquire a considerable amount more from the Department of Mysteries this time.
Coupled with exchanging some through the system's lottery, he finally barely met the requirements.
The Time Chamber was the size of a bedroom, just enough for him to move around in.
Using a large number of magical runes to maintain magical power transmission and the room's stability, Wayne briefly transformed into a construction worker, building the house.
Originally, he had planned to emerge only just before the OWLs examinations, but an urgent message pulled him out of his intense work mode.
The information about Grindelwald coming to Hogwarts with a large group for an academic exchange hadn't been publicly announced beforehand, but it hadn't been deliberately concealed either. They had been there for about a week, and other countries had gradually learned the news.
And so, President Keynes, along with a large number of Ministers for Magic from various countries and the Head of the Auror Office, had cornered Dumbledore in his office, demanding an explanation.
Why was Grindelwald at Hogwarts? Why were they coexisting peacefully?
The old Headmaster couldn't handle the questioning from so many people and had no choice but to summon Wayne.
BANG!
The door was pushed open roughly. Wayne walked in with an impatient expression, followed by Crouch and his father-in-law, Mr Chang.
Anyone whose research state had just been interrupted would be in a bad mood like him.
Dumbledore started to speak, but Wayne raised a hand to stop him. The young man's gaze swept around the room and finally settled on Keynes, his look unfriendly.
"President Keynes, are you trying to interfere with Hogwarts' decisions?"
"Mr Lawrence, of course, I don't mean that. We merely wish to know why Grindelwald is staying at Hogwarts so openly and brazenly."
"It's simple," Wayne said bluntly. "Because we have reached a peace agreement."
"A peace agreement?" Everyone was shocked.
"Correct." Wayne couldn't be bothered wasting time with them. "Mr Grindelwald believes continued conflict would only harm the entire wizarding world, so he made a pact with me never to wage war against Muggles again. Dumbledore served as witness."
"But he just ransacked Mahoutokoro not long ago!" a short man shouted in broken English.
"That occurred before the contract was signed." Wayne didn't need to look to know which country this fellow came from. "Mr Grindelwald has donated Mahoutokoro's warm jade to Hogwarts as a gift for this exchange."
With a single statement, the stolen goods were laundered clean.
How could these people possibly agree? No one wanted another terrifying Dark Lord looming over them, never knowing when he might storm their Ministry of Magic and overthrow the established order.
The room instantly erupted into the clamour of hundreds of quarrelling ducks - they insisted Dumbledore and Wayne must capture Grindelwald and return him to Nurmengard (they'd actually rebuilt and renovated the place!).
"The British wizarding world has no obligation to guarantee your security."
Growing irritated by the noise, Wayne directly activated his domain, restraining everyone present as he coldly declared, "If you dare bother me again..."
"Even if Grindelwald doesn't come for you, I'll personally pay each of your ministries a visit."
Having spoken, Wayne vanished, leaving behind a crowd of bewildered politicians.
"Albus..." Keynes could only look helplessly toward Dumbledore - their last remaining hope.
Dumbledore sighed wearily, pushing up his glasses with tired resignation. "President Keynes, you've witnessed Mr Lawrence's attitude yourself. I'd advise you not to provoke him, as I'm certainly no match for him.
"Lawrence is a uniquely gifted genius - his current abilities place him in a class of his own worldwide. As for Grindelwald, even if we imprisoned him... what about his newly reassembled followers? Perhaps it's best to leave things as they are."
Dumbledore could tell Wayne was currently as irritable as someone suffering from morning grogginess, and he had no intention of testing that temper.
"..."
Ultimately, they reluctantly accepted the reality that three Dark Lord-level powers had reconciled, even formed an alliance.
With their own motley collection of inadequate forces, challenging Grindelwald was clearly impossible. Since they couldn't defeat him, joining him became the only option.
It was just appeasement policy—something they were most adept at implementing.
Soon, Keynes published an article in the wizarding world's mainstream newspapers worldwide - "We Have Brought a Generation of Peace".
The newspaper lavishly praised Grindelwald while revealing the contract's existence, assuring witches and wizards that, from now on, Grindelwald was on their side and that his Acolytes would comply with each nation's laws without easily overthrowing the Ministries of Magic.
Though many remained dissatisfied with this arrangement, there was nothing to be done about the fait accompli.
The most aggrieved were Mahoutokoro and the Japanese Ministry of Magic—why should their school be plundered for Hogwarts' exchange programme?
...
As the outside world gradually settled, Hogwarts itself grew increasingly turbulent.
The three weekly Duelling Club sessions filled the air with the scent of gunpowder. While last year's Holy Grail War had been a competition among each school's top students, this year would test their overall strength.
At every club meeting, professors would deliberately—yet seemingly casually—pair students from different schools as opponents.
To lose would mean utter humiliation; to win wouldn't exactly bring glory to one's ancestors, but would at least secure one's dating prospects for the coming years.
Among them, Harry received the most attention – hardly surprising since he was personally acknowledged as Grindelwald's apprentice.
Fortunately, Harry withstood this immense pressure, remaining undefeated through several consecutive events. Durmstrang even sent seventh-year students against him, yet none could best him.
Soon, the title "Grindelwald's Successor" had eclipsed his former "Boy Who Lived" moniker, becoming Harry's most prominent epithet.
Grindelwald watched this development with satisfaction, even taking over Wayne's duties to give weekly guidance lessons to him and Malfoy.
Malfoy benefited from Galleons well-spent – failing to deliver services wasn't the Lawrence family tradition. Simply by attending Grindelwald's classes, his standing in Slytherin rose dramatically.
Old Malfoy sent another collection of precious treasures, hoping to establish connections with Grindelwald, but the latter dismissed these trinkets, storing them all for Hermione to pass along to Wayne later.
With Voldemort's destruction, Grindelwald now stood as the banner for pure-blood traditionalists.
Durmstrang students watched with both envy and admiration.
They could only train in secret, hoping to perform better in future club activities to earn Grindelwald's notice.
Professor McGonagall and other Heads of House would occasionally tutor outstanding students during their spare time, helping improve their abilities.
Amid this competitive atmosphere, time flew by swiftly.
Before they knew it, late May had arrived, and the examiners for the OWL and NEWT examinations had arrived at the school.