Chapter 44 — Professor Corvey's Private Lesson
Hearing Russell's words, the mummy on the left returned to its original stiff posture, while the one on the right helpfully pushed the office door open for him.
The office interior was decorated entirely in Egyptian style—golden motifs, sandstone textures, and hieroglyphic patterns everywhere. Russell even spotted a miniature sphinx sitting atop a cabinet.
"Welcome, Fythorne."
Professor Corvey sat behind his desk, eyes gleaming behind his glasses. In his arms lay a small mummy cat, resting quietly.
A delighted expression crossed his face.
"I've been waiting for you."
"Sorry, Professor. I've been a bit busy lately."
Russell gave an embarrassed smile and scratched his head.
"No matter."
Professor Corvey handed him a cup of tea.
"With your talent, a little delay won't change anything."
He winked and gently set the mummy cat down.
The mummy cat gave a raspy mrrrow, pacing with slow elegance before settling in a corner like an ornamental relic.
"My pet, Anka—found in a Pharaoh's tomb. For some reason, it decided I'm its master."
Corvey laughed lightly.
"That's incredibly unique."
Russell couldn't help admiring it.
In the entire wizarding world, there might be only one person who kept a mummy cat as a pet—and he was standing right in front of him.
He wondered idly whether a mummy cat counted as a magical creature, and whether Newt Scamander's creature-affinity spells would even work on it.
"Come, Fythorne."
Corvey stood up from behind his desk.
"I made you a promise, and I intend to keep it. Your Lumos spell is already excellent—so today, I'll teach you a very fundamental charm: the Banishing Charm (Depulso)."
"As the name suggests, the Banishing Charm knocks an enemy back. It delivers a strong force impact—ideal for dealing with a single dark magical creature. Against multiple creatures, however, its effectiveness drops sharply."
He paused, then added as if correcting himself:
"Well, that's not entirely absolute. I once heard of a dark-creature hunter who practiced the charm to such mastery that he could release a wide-area shockwave centered on himself."
Corvey shrugged.
"Though personally, I don't see the point. The Banishing Charm isn't very powerful—it's not lethal. Its purpose is simply to buy time and help you escape from dark creatures."
Naturally, they did not practice inside the office.
Everything here was one of Professor Corvey's prized collections, and damaging anything would've been a tragedy.
They found an empty classroom and brought the mummy inside.
"I'll demonstrate first," Professor Corvey said, drawing his wand.
"Depulso."
He flicked his arm sharply.
A burst of invisible force slammed into the mummy, hurling it across the room.
"Did you see that clearly?"
He turned, eyes bright with expectation.
Russell nodded firmly.
Once the mummy shuffled back to its original spot, Russell took a deep breath, visualizing Professor Corvey's movements. He raised his wand and called out:
"Depulso!"
The mummy staggered back several steps—
He'd succeeded.
Clap clap clap.
Professor Corvey applauded warmly, a touch of nostalgia in his eyes.
"Excellent. I knew it wouldn't give you any trouble."
Seeing that Russell looked slightly fatigued, he pulled a Chocolate Frog from his pocket and handed it over.
"It's normal to feel tired the first time. More practice will fix that."
As Russell bit into the chocolate, Corvey continued:
"While the Banishing Charm can only delay dark creatures, in wizard duels—or disputes between young witches and wizards—it can be unexpectedly effective."
A faint, wistful smile crossed his face.
"When I was a student, the Dark Lord was rising. Slytherin House worshiped pure-blood status. I wasn't a Muggle-born, but as a half-blood, I was still looked down on."
"In their eyes, half-bloods and Muggle-borns—what they cruelly called Mudbloods—weren't much different. Just a little less 'mud' in the blood."
A trace of bitterness touched his expression.
"They had numbers. I was alone. I couldn't confront them openly, so I hid away and studied magic—especially the Banishing Charm."
"It makes no sound when cast, and hardly any movement. Impossible to guard against."
Russell thought about it—he was right. Even Expelliarmus produced a visible burst of red light. Anyone quick enough could dodge it.
"I bided my time, waiting for an opportunity. Then came a Quidditch match—Slytherin versus Gryffindor. Gryffindor won by a huge margin."
"Slytherin was furious. They started arguing on the pitch, nearly coming to blows."
"And then you used the Banishing Charm to make them fight each other?" Russell guessed.
"Of course not," Corvey chuckled. "My spell range was nowhere near that far."
"They didn't fight on the field, but afterward, tempers were high. In the Slytherin locker room, the Chaser blamed the Seeker, the Seeker blamed the Keeper…"
"At that moment, I used the Banishing Charm—just once. Their captain flew straight into their Seeker."
"You can guess what happened next. A full-on brawl. Wands out. At the time, Hogwarts hadn't banned the use of dark magic in duels—much like Durmstrang is today."
"The Hospital Wing was overflowing for days."
"In the end, I was found out. Thanks to Professor Dumbledore's defense, I wasn't severely punished—but I was expelled nonetheless."
"That year, at fourteen, I was cast out of Hogwarts. I went to Egypt alone."
Russell froze.
He never would have guessed that the gentle, cultured Professor Corvey had lived through something so harsh. And the fact that he willingly shared this with Russell warmed him a little.
"Fythorne," Corvey said softly, "I often wonder—if I had been sorted into Ravenclaw, would my life have been completely different? When I look at you, I see my younger self. We are both… gifted."
Russell felt a bit embarrassed.
He didn't think he was a genius—just someone who worked harder than most.
[Banishing Charm (Level 1): 26/100]
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