NOVEL NEXT Chapter 15: Exploring The Muggle World
Dante's first day at the muggle school was unlike anything he had experienced before. The bustling hallways filled with students, and the strange, unfamiliar technology were a stark contrast to the quiet, ancient halls of Hogwarts. He moved through the crowd with an air of detachment, his eyes had a rare light of curiosity, observing everything around him. The students, the teachers, the posters on the walls, the speaking box they called tv—nothing escaped his notice. Yet, he kept his distance, not out of shyness, but to remain a critical observer of the environment.
To the muggles, he was just another transfer student, quiet and unassuming. But Dante's mind was anything but ordinary. As he walked through the school, he couldn't help but marvel at the mundanity of it all. The muggles had built a world without magic, relying instead on their ingenuity and resourcefulness. It was a world Dante found both fascinating and perplexing.
His first class of the day was sixth-grade mathematics. He sat at the back of the room, listening as the teacher explained basic algebraic equations. To Dante, the material was laughably simple. He had mastered far more complex concepts centuries ago. The pacing of the class was painfully slow, and he found himself growing restless.
By the time the teacher moved on to a problem involving fractions, Dante had already tuned out. He considered the option of leaving but decided against it, it was his first class and might as well complete it to the end before making the final judgement. When the bell finally rang, he was the first to leave the room. The idea of sitting through more classes like that was unacceptable.
Dante thought about it a little and came to the conclusion that attending muggle's school like regular students is not the way to go. Instead, he decided to explore the school library. The classes were going to waste his time, he would make better use of it when he studies at his own pace.
The library was smaller than the Hogwarts library, but it was filled with books on subjects Dante had never encountered before. He browsed the shelves, his fingers trailing over the spines of books on physics, chemistry, engineering, and mathematics. He picked up a few, flipping through the pages. The muggle approach to understanding the world was vastly different from the wizarding way, and Dante found himself drawn to it.
He didn't limit himself to the books meant for his age group. Instead, he collected advanced textbooks on different topics that he viewed as practical such as mathematics and physics. The librarian raised an eyebrow when she saw the stack of books he was checking out, but Dante simply gave her a polite smile and said, "I like to challenge myself."
Once he had his books, Dante found a quiet corner in the library to begin his reading. He opened the first book, his eyes scanning the pages rapidly. But he didn't just read—he used his mastery of Occlumency to absorb the information at an astonishing speed. The words and diagrams imprinted themselves in his mind, forming a mental library of knowledge that he could access at will. It was a skill he had honed over centuries, and it served him well now.
As he delved deeper into the books, one subject captured his attention more than any other: electric circuits. The concept of harnessing energy to power devices, to create light, to transmit information—it was a form of magic in its own right. Dante was particularly fascinated by the muggles' advancements in energy fields. The idea of generating and controlling electricity, of using it to build machines and systems that could perform tasks once thought impossible, was nothing short of revolutionary. He also could see a form of resemblance to ancient rune, both of the fields aimed to control raw power beyond the human abilities but electrical engineering seemed the more complex and refined version of the two.
He spent hours in the library, his mind racing with ideas. The muggles had achieved so much without magic, and Dante couldn't help but wonder what they could accomplish if they had access to it or would they fall into stagnation like the wizarding world. But more than that, he wondered what wizards could learn from muggles. The wizarding world had stagnated for the last few centuries, clinging to traditions and ignoring the advancements happening right under their noses. Dante saw potential—a way to bridge the gap between the two worlds.
By the end of the day, Dante had absorbed more knowledge than most students would in months. He borrowed more books to the library, his mind searching for a new path. As he walked out of the school, he couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement. The muggle world was a treasure trove of ideas, and this was just a school, muggles had a much bigger institute for more advanced knowledge. Dante knew he was just beginning to scratch the surface.
Dante dropped out from the muggle school the next day, he viewed it as a waste of time, but he did not return to Hogwarts. Instead for the next year and half, he immersed himself in the muggle world, moving between libraries, research centers, and even universities. His focus was narrow but intense: mathematics and electricity. These two fields fascinated him the most, and he dedicated all his time to mastering them. The muggle world libraries and learning institutes became his home.
During this period, Dante used his magic for a single purpose: to bypass the restrictions muggles placed on facilities and to live among them undetected. His mastery of magic allowed him to access information effortlessly. He even entered and lived in some universities without anyone realizing a child was lurking around. He remained undetected, a shadow moving through the muggle world.
Throughout this period, Dante didn't return to Malfoy Manor unless Lucius contacted him through magical means, he would come back to pacify Narcissa and show her he was okay before she loses her mind, but he didn't linger as he would leave as soon as he came. Her frustration and worry grew with each passing day. She couldn't understand how her smart son could abandon everything and wander the world alone, mingling with muggles of all things. "What kind of child leaves his family home to live among muggles alone?" she screamed at Lucius one evening, her voice trembling with anger. "How is he even surviving out there without our help? If he used magic, the ministry would have noticed him"
Dante is an extremely powerful wizard and living alone is not a difficulty for him, Lucius knew that much, but he didn't know how he avoids the ministry detection, after all using magic among muggles would have alerted the ministry as a possible breach in the statute of secrecy.
Ultimately the only thing he can do is to try and calm her, though he knew his words would do little to ease her distress. "Our son is unique," he said carefully. "He's undoubtedly the most outstanding wizard the magical world has ever seen. We must trust that he knows what he's doing."
This only infuriated Narcissa further. To her, Dante was a child wasting his potential and future on what she saw as silly, pointless pursuits. "Outstanding? He's throwing his life away!" she retorted, her voice rising. "He should be at Hogwarts, mastering magic, not wasting his time with muggle nonsense! Where is he even sleeping? What is he eating? Is he living like street rats?"
Lucius, however, was troubled by more than just Narcissa's anger. He knew the truth about Dante—that he was no ordinary child, but an ancient dark wizard with knowledge and power far beyond their comprehension. If not for that knowledge, Lucius might have shared Narcissa's frustration. But he couldn't shake the belief that whatever Dante was doing, it must be extraordinary. Still, the uncertainty gnawed at him. What could possibly be so important that Dante would isolate himself from his comfortable home and the wizarding world for so long?
When Dante finally returned to Malfoy Manor. His arrival was met with a storm of emotions. Narcissa, who had been simmering with anger and worry for so long, unleashed her frustration the moment he stepped through the door. "Where have you been?" she demanded, her voice sharp and accusatory. "Do you have any idea how worried I've been? How could you just keep disappearing like that? And among muggles, of all places!"
Dante stood quietly, letting her vent. He knew resisting or arguing would only prolong her anger, so he simply took it, his expression unchanged. Lucius, meanwhile, tried to intervene, his voice soothing but firm. "Narcissa, please, calm down. He's home now and he is completely fine. Let's not make this harder than it needs to be."
But Lucius's attempts to mediate were driven by more than just a desire to keep the peace. Deep down, he feared what might happen if Dante lost his patience. He didn't know how far his son's tolerance could stretch, and he had no desire to find out. The thought of Dante's anger was enough to make Lucius tread carefully.
Eventually, Narcissa's tirade began to wind down, though her anger still simmered. Dante, seeing an opening, offered a simple apology. "I'm sorry, Mother, I didn't mean to make you worry." he said, his tone polite but lacking sincerity. "My exploration has led me to fascinating possibilities. If you don't mind, I have things to test." With that, he turned and headed to his workshop, leaving Narcissa seething.
Her anger boiled over again, this time directed at Lucius. "What kind of father are you? How can you just stand there and defend him? let him walk away like that?" she demanded, her voice shaking. "He's your son too! Do something! We can't let him destroy his future like this! Please lucius"
Lucius felt utterly helpless. He knew there was nothing he could do to control Dante, nor did he want to. But explaining that to Narcissa was impossible. All he could do was try to calm her, even as he silently hoped that whatever Dante was working on would be worth the chaos it had caused.