Since Wayne could materialise the power of the Killing Curse like Voldemort, developing some variant applications was naturally within his capabilities.
As a transfer student in her fifth year at Hogwarts, Ariana naturally had to master the spells that transfer students should know.
As for whether teaching a blonde little girl the Killing Curse was too much...
Wayne saw absolutely no problem with it.
There is great terror between life and death. Ariana was no fool. After experiencing past events, her mindset had long undergone significant changes.
Towards friends, Ariana was a naive and innocent girl.
When facing enemies, her indifference to life would far surpass that of many others. Combined with her innate talent and the Obscurus's assistance, she was more than qualified to be a Dark Lord.
Teaching her the Killing Curse was quite appropriate.
"Ariana, to use a chained Killing Curse, your killing intent must be blazing, and the arc of your wand movement must increase. Treat all enemies before you as your targets, but don't think about area attacks. Instead, maintain continuous, sustained focus. Come, give it a try."
Wayne waved his hand and reconstructed several dummies, then stepped back.
Ariana repeatedly thought about the key points Wayne had just mentioned, released a bit of the Obscurus's aura, and enveloped herself in the strange black substance.
Negative emotions surged in her heart. Ariana drew her wand back, swinging it in an exaggerated arc.
"Avada Kedavra!"
A flash of emerald light streaked past, but it only shattered the first dummy before weakly dissipating.
Wayne, who had been observing Ariana's state using the Legilimency Spell, immediately identified the problem.
"Don't think about controlling the spell's movement direction; ignore the surrounding space. You only need to focus on eliminating several people at once."
"Again!"
"Avada Kedavra!!"
"Avada Kedavra!"
"Avada Kedavra!"
Ariana kept trying. By the end, the power of the Killing Curse had diminished somewhat, but she was gradually getting the hang of it.
About one or two times out of five attempts, the curse would chain to the second dummy.
Grace, who had been fast asleep, was awakened by the two. She draped a shawl over her shoulders, came over drowsy-eyed, and rested in Wayne's arms.
"Were we being very loud?" Holding her delicate figure, Wayne asked with some surprise.
"Not loud, but who could sleep through the incantation of the Killing Curse?" Grace looked at him speechlessly. "What were you thinking, teaching this child the Killing Curse?"
Was this raising a little sister or training a Dark Witch?
"You've seen it yourself. Ariana has the Obscurus. Learning ordinary spells is practically useless to her; it's purely a waste of time."
"It's better to start directly with the Unforgivable Curses - simple and effective."
Wayne's logic defeated Grace. She closed her eyes and stopped talking, soon falling asleep again.
At noon, Ariana left after lunch. She had plans to visit Diagon Alley with a few classmates in the afternoon.
Grace was also preparing to leave.
Wayne took out a gold business card with his signature and the Lawrence family crest on it.
"When you get to the Ministry of Magic, show them this card. I've already made arrangements in advance; no one will stop you."
This time, Grace's outing wasn't aimless wandering - she was visiting departments similar to the Department of Mysteries in various national Ministries of Magic to examine their archives firsthand.
Most countries with such departments had long histories, increasing the likelihood that they had relic-related documentation.
Grace took the card and brushed her lips lightly against Wayne's forehead.
"Have fun with your little girlfriends."
Before her voice had fully faded, her form gradually dissipated, leaving only a faint fragrance behind.
...
Several days later, the examination results finally arrived in every student's hands.
Wayne achieved unprecedented perfect scores in all twelve subjects, while Hermione earned Outstanding performance across all her courses.
That evening, the girls gathered at Wayne's house to celebrate them. During dinner, Hermione kept chatting with Penelope about various matters within the Ministry of Magic.
Penelope now served as Deputy Head of the Department of Transportation. While the title of Department Head still technically belonged to Madame Greengrass, she was currently preoccupied with establishing a bank and rarely involved herself with Ministry affairs anymore.
As her position elevated, Penelope's presence strengthened, gradually developing the bearing of a powerful career woman.
She didn't hesitate to share her experiences with Hermione, and the two conversed until late before reluctantly concluding their discussion.
...
The Vosges Mountains, located in northeastern France along the left bank of the Rhine, stretch approximately one hundred miles in total. While not considered a major mountain range, they possess exceptionally rich natural resources.
Not only do they contain vast forests, but also open-pit mining areas with diverse mineral varieties.
Precisely because of this, the Goblins skilled in metalworking established one of their major strongholds deep within these mountains, where they've been rooted for over a thousand years.
The Gringotts branches across the European and African continents fall under their jurisdiction.
Wayne and Hermione descended from the sky, strolling through vast fields of lavender. Wherever they walked, the flowerbeds nearby automatically parted to create a pathway.
"I'll leave these negotiations to you," Wayne said, holding the young witch's hand while looking at her encouragingly. "Consider it practice - no need for psychological pressure."
"I won't mess it up, will I?" Hermione said anxiously, aware of what these negotiations represented - what could even be called a turning point in wizarding history.
"Don't worry, the outcome is already determined," Wayne reassured softly. "The only variable is the means through which we achieve our objectives."
The scene before them blurred suddenly, the lavender garden disappearing to be replaced by a cliff edge.
Looking downward, they saw a large, flat area in the valley, containing hundreds of buildings that formed a small town. At the town's very centre stood a magnificent structure resembling the Gringotts of Diagon Alley.
Their passage through the protective wards had already triggered alarms, and by the time they descended, dozens of armoured Goblins stood ready.
The lead Goblin wore human-style formal attire. Seeing Wayne and Hermione, he stepped forward and bowed slightly.
"Mr Lawrence, Miss Granger, greetings. I am Treek, head of Gringotts' Southern Hemisphere operations."
"Your presence brings great honour to our Goblin community."
"Miss Granger..." Wayne revealed an inscrutable smile. "It appears you've researched us quite thoroughly."
Treek felt a sudden tension internally, though he showed no outward reaction, maintaining his deferential posture as he escorted Wayne and Hermione into the conference room within the main building. Seven or eight Goblins already sat along one side of the negotiation table.
Wayne and the others sat opposite, with Treek introducing the identities of those goblins to him.
There were tribal elders, as well as high-ranking officials from Gringotts who had come from Persia.
The most ancient goblin spoke first, "Mr Lawrence, we have already compensated you as requested and permitted you to establish your own bank. What brings you here this time?"
Wayne picked up his teacup and took a sip.
Hermione cleared her throat, drawing their attention before speaking in a clear voice:
"We're here to demand minting rights."
"What?!"
Several goblins turned pale simultaneously. Treek, who had brought them in, was the first to react, shrieking: "That's impossible!"
"Nothing is impossible." Hermione maintained a stern expression as she pulled out a stack of documents from her backpack behind her, sliding several pages across the table.
"Here's the signature from the British Ministry of Magic, along with the voting results from the International Confederation of Wizards meeting. Over eighty-seven countries have voted to demand that Gringotts hand over the minting technology for the three currencies."
Why had Galleons, Knuts, and Sickles become globally accepted currency?
This naturally involved considerable effort on the part of the Goblins.
The three currencies were originally general equivalents circulating internally among Goblins. Before Gringotts was established, the wizarding society remained quite primitive, still in the stage of barter trading.
After several failed rebellions, the Goblins changed their strategy, opting to control the wizarding world's lifeline through economic means.
After all, what they loved was treasure. When most wizarding transactions used their currency and wizards stored their valuables in Gringotts, it amounted to indirect control over their wealth.
Wasn't this better than rebellion?
Agreeing to let Wayne open a bank and providing transaction facilities was already their biggest concession. They had nearly kept Crouch from leaving until they noticed the white-bearded old man nearby, which temporarily calmed them down.
But this time, Wayne's demand for minting technology was undoubtedly targeting their most vital interest.
It was the same principle as dollar hegemony - they controlled both the banks and the printing presses, making it all too easy to amass wealth through financial means.
"Mr Lawrence, we absolutely cannot agree to your demand."
The elder took a deep breath, almost shouting the words, "Minting technology is fundamental to Goblins. Does this mean wizards intend to violate the ancient treaty and declare war on all Goblins?"
The so-called ancient treaty did indeed exist. Centaurs, Goblins, and House-elves were all allies of wizards, having helped them win the ancient wars.
That's why, no matter how much trouble they caused, no species had been completely eradicated thus far.
"Wizards have no intention of going to war with Goblins." Hermione remained calm, unfazed by the threat. "Galleons are wizards' currency. When Gringotts was absolutely secure, wizards had no reason to intervene. But now that you've failed to demonstrate the capability to protect wizards' property, naturally, we must turn to other banks."
"This isn't about handing it over to us, but returning it to collective wizarding ownership."
"Fine words!" a Goblin snapped angrily. "Aside from Mr Lawrence, who else would dare compete with Gringotts?"
"Does Grindelwald count?"
"Even if it's Grindelwald, we won't back down." Treek declared loudly.
"Young lady, more words are useless." The elder's voice was aged yet resolute. "If you don't wish to see Goblins rebel once more and cause the deaths of innocent wizards, then leave."
After all, being newly initiated, Hermione was still too inexperienced.
When it came to matters involving war between the two races, she no longer dared to continue speaking, instead casting a pleading look toward Wayne.
The youth finally set down his teacup and spoke lazily.
"It's just war. If you want to fight, I'll oblige. Shall we start with your tribe?"
The Goblin elder glared at him darkly. "Lawrence, do you truly believe defeating Voldemort gives you license to act without restraint?"
Wayne didn't become angry, instead revealing a curious smile. "It seems you hold cards I'm unaware of?"
"Then why not play them? Are you waiting to die here?"
Having said this, he raised his hand and released two streaks of starlight, randomly selecting two fortunate Goblins and blasting them to smithereens.
"You brought this upon yourself, Lawrence!" roared the Goblin elder, taking out a red gemstone and crushing it violently.
The floor beneath several Goblins instantly split open, revealing a hidden passage through which they fell.
Wayne flashed into mid-air, firing an Avada Chaing Lightning downward that silently eliminated several figures.
The guards outside heard the commotion and violently broke down the door, but before they could utter a word, they were sent flying by a powerful shockwave.
Boom!
The building suddenly trembled violently. Wayne grasped Hermione's hand, and the two of them had already appeared on level ground.
Wayne's eyes had narrowed to slits.
He could already sense it - an aura extremely similar to that of Slytherin from before.
Was this the Goblins' trump card?