great-warnovel Chapter 127 Polymer Galatea and Anti-Curse Pieces
Chapter 127 Polymer Galatea and Anti-Curse Pieces
Chapter 127 Polymer Galatea and Anti-Curse Pieces
"But I only came here to buy things," Hermione said, feigning hesitation.
Mrs. Sinta slapped her forehead: "I forgot about that. Let's tell you what you're looking for first."
She forced herself to calm down. The girl in front of her was clearly not an innocent and naive girl. She was obviously trying to manipulate her. But when it comes to business, as long as there is no explicit refusal, there is room for negotiation.
Furong's mouth dropped open in surprise. She hadn't expected that simply bringing a young girl along to shop would result in her pulling out something that could change the entire alchemy system.
Although she is currently in the sales department, how could students trained by Beauxbatons be completely ignorant of alchemy? At the very least, they should be able to speak fluently and knowledgeably when customers ask about the products. Therefore, she deeply understands the practical value of the inducing spray.
Hermione thought for a moment. She couldn't reveal too many details about the invigorating incense and the iron pot incense, so she could only describe them based on the characteristics of the materials: "I need an activated inorganic substance, like living armor, but not one that is temporarily transformed by a Transfiguration Charm, but a real life that can continue on its own; or another material that needs to be a byproduct of the life-creating project in alchemy."
This was precisely the characteristic of the Living Pot Fragment and the Silver Teardrop Shell; she hadn't yet found a substitute in this world. Lady Sinta frowned as she recalled that these two items were indeed quite obscure and belonged to rather advanced fields.
"I have some ideas about activated inorganic matter, but not about the part about life-forming processes," she said with a serious expression.
"This part is strictly prohibited even in Beauxbatons. It can only be attempted with the unanimous approval of the principal and the five alchemy professors. Moreover, the byproducts are not allowed to be taken out of the laboratory and must be destroyed immediately after the experiment. If I were you, I would advise you to abandon this plan."
The transmutation of life has always been a taboo subject, and even Beauxbatons did not openly engage in it.
Hermione sighed. It seemed that the Invigorating Incense wouldn't be ready for practical use anytime soon.
"However," Mrs. Sinta hesitated for a moment, but still chose to continue.
"In the east, under the Muggle-led Soviet regime, there was a scientist named Sechenov—their alchemy master."
With the help of the fairies, they developed a new material called polymer. It is said that this material enabled their nuclear energy technology to advance by leaps and bounds, and it is also based on this material that they mastered the method of giving thought to iron blocks—those—uh—robots, that's what they call them, capable of thinking like humans, and like our house-elves, undertaking a great deal of servant work.
"Polymer? — Sechenov." Hermione memorized these two words; perhaps she could go there and take a look sometime in the future.
"Wait for me a moment." Mrs. Sinta turned and went into the storage room at the back of the shop. After a while, she came back with a few pieces that looked like ivory fragments.
Do you know Pygmalion?
Hermione shook her head innocently. The only place she acquired knowledge was at school, and obviously this was something the professors hadn't covered, nor was it in the library.
Instead, it was Furong who spoke up from the side: "Pygmalion was the king of Cyprus in Greek mythology. He was skilled in sculpting, but he disliked any mortal women. Therefore, he used his sculpting skills to create a perfect ivory maiden, which he named Galatea. He poured all his energy, passion, and love into this statue. In the end, Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty, was moved by him, gave the statue life, and made them husband and wife."
Mrs. Sinta added, "But in reality, Pygmalion was a powerful sorcerer in ancient Greece who was very skilled in transfiguration and used it to rule Cyprus."
"Galatea was indeed a sculpture he sculpted, but it was not the gods who truly brought her to life, but the wizard himself."
Hermione exclaimed in surprise, "His Transfiguration has completely brought an ivory sculpture to life? This violates Gump's Transfiguration Laws!"
Lady Sinta shrugged: "In fact, most wizards consider this a rumor, but the descendants of Galatea still live on the island of Cyprus. They rarely show themselves, and even when they do, they disguise their skin color as human. Unless they are injured or dead, no one can see their inorganic bodies."
She pointed to the ivory fragments in front of her: "These are the remains of their bodies that I once collected, still bearing traces of transmutation power that I cannot comprehend."
Hermione picked up a small fragment and touched it with her powerful senses. As expected, unlike ordinary inorganic matter, it resisted the penetration of her power, as if it were still alive and part of a living body.
In a sense, these Galatea offspring are indeed very similar to the Living Pots; they are all products of magic.
An inorganic life form capable of self-replication—if this were used to blend spices in an iron kettle, it might actually be successful.
Hermione was energized; the trip had made a breakthrough.
"How much are these fragments?" If the price is right, she's prepared to take them all.
Mrs. Sinta removed her monocular goggles and respirator, and smiled, "Now can we talk about the induction spray?"
Hermione crossed her arms and laughed, "Madam, you can't buy my exclusive recipe with just these."
Sinta didn't intend to win over the little girl with this. She laughed heartily, "How about this? I'll give you these fragments for free, and in exchange, you give me three bottles of trigger spray. I need to use this to persuade the principal and the other professors."
"Not enough." Hermione shook her head.
"Beauxbatons' alchemy is at the pinnacle of the world. Giving the potion to you, who might be able to crack it in a few days, would be too much of a loss for me."
"What a cunning little fox!" Cinta laughed in exasperation. Her alchemy skills were quite excellent even in the whole school, but she had no clue what to do with this completely new subject of spray.
Why do spices have such a magical effect when mixed together?
Why can saliva act as a control valve?
Her knowledge offered no path to understanding, and the analyzer remained unresponsive. Even with the combined efforts of all the professors in the university, it would likely be impossible to crack the code in the short term.
"So what do you think would be a good addition? Is there anything else in my shop that you like?" She knew the girl was just raising the price, so she readily agreed. She believed that if she showed these sprays to the other professors, they would be willing to pay a high price for them.
Hermione looked around and realized that she didn't recognize most of the things. She felt that picking things randomly was not a wise choice.
It wasn't until she saw the sequins on Mrs. Sinta's clothes, and the same ones on their headmistress, Mrs. Maxim, that she pointed to them and asked, "Are these some kind of alchemical artifacts? I've noticed that you and Mrs. Maxim both have quite a few on you."
Sinta was taken aback for a moment, then laughed and said, "You really have an eye for things. This is called an anti-curse plate. It's our latest research result, a miniaturization of the original anti-curse hats, anti-curse jackets, and other equipment."
She took one off her person and handed it to Hermione: "These little sequins can record the spells you receive. For example, you can cast a disarming spell on it beforehand and then wear it. When you are attacked by a disarming spell, it will automatically neutralize the enemy's spell."
Hermione thought of the dense sequins on Mrs. Maxime's body, and realized that all common spells would probably be ineffective against her.
"What amazing props! If we covered ourselves in sequins like Mrs. Maxim, wouldn't we be invincible?"
Sinta shook her head: "The number of times the anti-curse tablet can be neutralized is limited. If you consume too many curses, it will still become ineffective. Moreover, it can probably only weaken very strong curses to a limited extent, such as the Killing Curse."
"Furthermore, if the enemy uses rare or ancient unorthodox spells, or if he has significantly modified certain spells, anti-spell films are powerless."
"But this is still quite powerful equipment; it at least increases a wizard's defense by several levels," Hermione praised.
Lady Sinta shook her head regretfully: "Making anti-curse tablets is not easy. It cannot be mass-produced at present. Moreover, the cost of the base material is very high. Even if it can be mass-produced in the future, it is probably not something that ordinary wizards can afford."
Hermione recalled Lucius's armory at the time. Although it wasn't as powerful as the anti-curse plates, the tortoise shell was indeed very hard, and the little device specifically designed to prevent cutting spells had taken her a lot of effort. If he had also added these sequins, he would probably have been even more difficult to deal with.
Mrs. Sinta pulled a handful of sequins from her person and stuffed them into Hermione's hand, about a dozen: "Hey, that's all I have. If it's still not enough to satisfy your little appetite, then I can't help you anymore."
"That's enough, that's enough." Hermione smiled and held the sequins, putting them and the ivory fragments into two separate bags.
He then pulled out three more bottles of trigger spray and placed them on the table: "I have a feeling that if this business succeeds, it won't be a small business."
You are welcome to take it and discuss it with the professors. I will also speak with Professor Lily, and we will give you priority as our partner.
When Hermione stepped out of the store again, she felt a sense of satisfaction, as if she had returned home with a full bag.
Looking at the little girl in front of her, Furong felt a mix of emotions: "Maybe in just a few years, we'll have to add another person to the list of famous people's characteristics that we need to memorize."