Chapter 41: Accessories, gifts, and space-time
'A letter from Grashnak was surprising, given that all things that could've been done have already been done. The only thing he could think of was the concern of the nobles requesting to ask me about the debts they owe; however, one thing that goblins value the most is integrity, well, at least for those dealing with other goblins. The thing is that since I'm basically a true friend of the goblins, it would be hazardous to give out details when I paid them well to keep their traps shut for just this summer, so what is this for?' he thought while opening the letter.
<Hello, Young Galegold. I have excellent news. I contacted one of the goblin construction teams and some wizards for moving materials. The only requirements we have of you are to provide the cost of construction, the cost of the produced materials, and the briefcases to be renovated. I was informed that your family was rather fond of using expansion charms; therefore, I have sent a letter to Mr. Lock to aid in the process. I'm familiar with his work, so it should only take a few hours to do all of the manors. Your mothers also informed me to create small cottages with libraries, amenities, and a target range inside two of the briefcases that weren't designed for your family. The small cottages can be finished in two days. So, with the cottages in tow, the product of all the constructions will be about 24 days after the starting day. Additionally, I asked the construction team when their soonest time with constraints was and if they were paid more to pause a current project. They will push the time to July 2nd if you double it. If it were at the standard fee, it would be only about August 23rd. The estimate for the homes in total will be about 640,000 Galleons, but without the cottages, it is 540,000 Galleons. So, double the cost of either is about 1,280,000 Galleons or 1,080,000 if you decide to push the timeline forward. I also have some goblins on standby when you and your guard are prepared to open the shops and renovate the space. Please notify me of your decisions as soon as possible.>
"Huh, well, I didn't expect to get provided service so soon, but man, pushing the process up to late August is pushing it, and they are supposedly making cottages for the girls?"
"Hey, Mum!" I yelled, notifying her.
"Yes, dear, what is it?" she asked.
"Did you request to make cottages for the girls' briefcases?" I asked.
"Certainly, while I would not agree to give them a manor, a small cottage with an expansion charm is reasonable," said Ann.
"Why?" I asked, confused.
"Dear, you can't give space to someone in a wild meadow and tell them that they can do whatever they wish with it. What do you expect them to do? Sit on the floor, or have a random chair sitting in the grass? Or perhaps create their own little hut?" asked Ann.
"Well, I guess not. I guess I'll green-light it and pay double the price since it fits the timeline better. I should also tell Grashnak to prioritise the cottages since each will take only a day. It will take about a week for a manor," I said in defeat.
"Hmm, are you perhaps looking to give the ladies their gifts early before the summer really starts ending? I'd say it's better that way to truly enjoy the gift, and it makes a nice segue into asking them what their birthdays are," asked Martha.
"Huh, I guess it is. And yeah, I agree; I guess I didn't really think about when their birthdays were. I was going to ask them when I met them, but I guess this gets rid of any issues like if their birthday had already occurred as well," he said.
"Unfortunately, this will only be doable roughly about a month later, so I guess we just do what we want as time progresses. Hmmm, I guess I'll practise the spells I learned over the summer to be done without chanting or hand movements," I said.
"I think that is for the best," said my totem guardian.
He later sent the letter with his instructions and agreement to Grashnak's suggestions, and he thanked him for his initiative, which aligns well with his personal preferences.
"Well, anyway, we still need to make at least the storage and interrogation accessories," I said.
"Oh, much better name; having a multiple-word named item sounds almost pretentious and slightly stupid," said Martha without tact.
"I wouldn't have worded it so coarsely, but I agree with that sentiment," said Ann.
Nagini nodded in agreement.
"Well, jeez, I feel the same way, but the unanimous shredding still hurts," I said in mock pain.
"Which do you prefer to be made next?" I asked.
"Why ask us?" asked Martha.
"The others were essential and needed to be done right away in a specific order, but either one can be made. I am already competent enough to make the interrogation ring, but I'll need to learn more about spatial magic to utilise the storage accessory. Also, what accessory do you think it should be? I was thinking of a locket, but it could flop around or be pulled off, thus being rather impractical," I said in contemplation.
"Why do it at all? The briefcases you've made will work without the need for magic from us, and they should be fairly small. At least a manageable size that we wouldn't have to lug the briefcase everywhere and still allow us to access all of the materials in it," said Martha.
"That's actually an excellent point, and my only statement is that it isn't tightly tied to your person as an accessory would be. I suppose it does seem a bit redundant. I guess I'll tie a Galegold steel loop to the case so that you can tie it to your clothing while it remains in your pocket; however, I do find it better to add the accessory in conjunction," said Aurelius.
"Anyway, one is easily made while the other is arguably more useful, but it takes a few days to truly master spatial magic to make a well-sustaining, undetectable extension charm," I said.
"I think it's best to do what you can now and do what you can in a reasonable amount of time in the future, so interrogation accessory first," said Ann with confidence.
Martha nodded.
"Alright, it's settled."
They went through the process that Aurelius has more or less mastered from the constant making of accessories using dragon's armory. They were tested and approved, allowing Aurelius to move to work on studying spatial magic and casting other spells voicelessly when he felt bored with learning just a single topic for so long. It took a few days, but he could create a solid spell of an undetectable expansion charm. He had to use it with movements and incantation, which was irrelevant for now. He made the storage rings he wanted, and it took no time at all.
He then decided to go back into spatial magic to master the art and then possibly make a new secret weapon.
While his mothers were away
"So, what is it you're attempting to do?" Nagini asked.
"I'm attempting to create a portal charm," Aurelius replied.
"Okay. And how are you interpreting how the spell would fundamentally work?" she asked while looking over his notes on what he was trying to do.
"Well, what I'm attempting to do is fold space-time so that the starting point and the final destination spot exist at the same position in space-time without interrupting anything between the two points," Aurelius explained.
"I can see it. I can see that your notes make sense, but there is a limiting factor in regard to the number of dimensions that you're able to move without actually interacting with them. So, you seem to be trying to move around it, so to speak," Nagini said.
"Exactly. I thought of it as a fifth dimension. You could consider it a form of 'outside.' We interact with four dimensions regularly: length, width, depth, and time. Now, you have to take a step outside that usual box that we walk around. It could arguably be more difficult than time magic and space magic because what I'm doing is stepping into the fifth dimension temporarily to grab the edges and fold them in half so that the position of the two spaces is in the same position," I explained.
"Why do that when we have apparition? I can certainly see it has potential combat application, but we also have reflection charms as well. I suppose if you really wanted to push it, you could use this as your general tool against literally everything; however, the defence ring that you've given to all of us does all of that. Are you perhaps thinking about things that are on a much larger scale?" Nagini pondered.
"Yes, it is an umbrella defence against essentially everything and more. The difference is that the mirrors don't necessarily handle larger objects. For example, could it deal with a fiendfyre? I can confidently say yes, but can it deal with someone throwing a large, hill-sized boulder at you? Probably not, but anyway, let's get back to the topic." Suggested Aurelius.
"Right. From what I understand, you are creating a fold, but that doesn't equate to a portal. It just turns into a folded piece lying on top of another," she continued.
"You are correct. There is still the hole. Keep in mind that essentially, I'd be flipping space on top of itself. So naturally, there's still a layer between the two that needs to be removed. This is where the portal itself comes into play. I'm temporarily pulling apart a doorway-sized hole in both layers. The portal itself is more like something to
wedge and keep tearing open the hole to keep it from shrinking. Since the space-time hole will immediately repair itself the moment that the magic is no longer ripping that layer," Aurelius clarified.
"If you're confused, a simpler way to think of it is literally to fold a piece of paper and then run a pin through both layers. They're effectively linked, and now there is a hole and a pin keeping it in place. The only difference is that the paper basically has a repair charm constantly going." He said he was not entirely sure if she got it or not.
"Ah, I see. So you're folding and tearing pieces that naturally are fairly strict and will naturally spring back to their original position. But wouldn't this require a ridiculously large amount of magic? After all, you're manipulating things on another dimensional level on top of temporarily ripping something that you shouldn't be able to rip," Nagini observed.
"Yes, I will effectively have to use four times that would be used to do a single Apparition at minimum to create a single set of portals; however, considering I'm basically manipulating space-time to such an extent that I'm basically making a wormhole, I think it's a cheap cost comparatively," Aurelius explained.
"If it's that costly, why would you use it? I could see this being incredibly useful for something like transporting large amounts of things and combat, but for transportation's sake, we already have portkeys and apparitions. And what's a wormhole?" Nagini asked.
"It's a theoretical hole that is created between two places in time that are connected by an Einstein-Rosen Bridge. Oh, right, Muggle world; well, basically, an Arithmancy master theorised a potential mathematical way to accomplish what my portals would do. It's just that it was never perceived by humans as far as they were concerned; however, what apparition does is essentially create a wormhole that's focused on themselves, while mine is a wormhole that is focused on the space itself," Aurelius said in response.
He continued, "As you're thinking, it is incredibly costly regardless of how incredible it is. Therefore, it's to be used when necessary rather than as my primary choice. Besides, it is better to have and not need than to need and not have."
"Fair enough, but what's the real reason?" she inquired.
"If I'm able to create a magical spell that is able to get past my defences, who's to say that someone nearly or more intelligent than I can't create such a spell?" he said nonchalantly with a complicated look on his face.
"Fair enough. So, you're making spells that could potentially get through your defences so that no one can catch you off guard with a new spell?" she said more than asked.
"How long will this take, and is this something you can muscle your way through?" she asked.
"No, unless you're okay with accidentally crushing everything in between. This requires arithmancy that could arguably take more math than what is available," I said in annoyance.
"What do you intend to do then? Make new arithmancy principles?" she said in jest.
"No, I'm going to take string theory from Muggle mathematics, more specifically. The fundamental concept will be the understanding of physics when it comes to dimensional perspective, which turns into a perfectly calculated situation that I may or may not be able to duplicate with my perception," I said.
"Does that really apply?" she asked with scepticism.
"You'd be surprised, but the mathematics and arithmancy are nearly identical, with minor differences being that numbers actually hold far more power than intended in mathematics and are specific to the things involved in the casting, so it is rather precarious should you do something like creating a formula for a ritual without taking that into consideration," I said, voicing my thoughts with little care.
"As for time, honestly, this could take a few years by myself; I might be able to power my way through as long as I limit the range is very short and practise, but eventually, I'll have to be able to do this on a massive scale while also learning string theory to a level that it would be applicable to my understanding of arithmancy," I said.
"Won't you need to consult an arithmancy and charms master?" she asked.
"Yes, it would be the peak of hubris to assume I can do this on my own, but I will need to ensure the fundamentals of how this spell is performed are not leaked, so I will need to limit their ability to use my spell or inform others," I said in all seriousness.
"Unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on how you look at it, I could audit string theory classes at universities. Worst case scenario, I say that I'm chilling there waiting for one of the professors who perhaps can pose as my parent to be finished with their classes that just so happen to align perfectly with their class schedule, with just a few changes in my appearance it'd be easy," I said with a chuckle.
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