NOVEL NEXT Chapter 2: Childhood
Since his first birthday fantasy had been shattered, Sebastian found himself sinking into another layer of anxiety.
Even if he wasn't the sharpest, Sebastian could still piece things together from the fragments of the plot swirling in his mind.
It was the times before Second Wizarding War, Dark times.
The era when will Voldemort would be at peak in the future and make people fear him even the bravest.
Sebastian, now fully identifying himself as part of the illustrious Swann family, couldn't help but worry.
What if old Voldemort cast his sinister gaze upon them and thought: 'Hmm, the Swann family… not bad at all.'
An ancient pure-blood family with a pristine reputation. A traditional alchemy lineage—basically a walking treasure chest of gold galleons.
No matter how you looked at it, horizontally or vertically, the Swann family was the perfect size and stature to catch Voldemort's attention.
What could the Swann family do if they were forcibly conscripted into his death eaters army?
What would he do?. Should he pretend to be a prophet, tell his family about the looming darkness? Could he tell them that the "Dark Lord Voldemort" would rise to power and plunge the wizarding world into war?
After thinking it over, Sebastian decisively tosses the idea aside. No, this isn't right—I need to calm down and think things through!
Sebastian only knows of two prophets in the world.
One of them was so powerful that Dumbledore himself was forced to imprison him in Nurmengard, that the dark wizard nearly succeeded in conquering the entire wizarding world.
The other? So pathetically weak that Dumbledore had to smuggle her into Hogwarts and hide her in plain sight and keep her alive.
No matter how you see it, being a prophet is a profession that screams "high risk, low reward."
And let's not forget the most glaring issue—Sebastian is just a kid! If he jumps into the prophet's role, there are only two possible outcomes.
The first? Everyone would laughs at him. A child prophet? Who would take that seriously? Trusting a kid's words is like betting your life savings on a dice roll.
The second? They brand him as a liar. And once that label sticks, it's game over. No one trusts a liar, especially one who earns that title as a child.
In my previous life, I was a law-abiding young man. Pretending to be some scam artist prophet? That's just not my style.
I can't predict the future, and even if I tried, someone would expose me in an instant. I could try not to predict something that wasn't in the movies, but even then, the smallest change could set off a chain reaction, altering everything—like the butterfly effect in action.
No, if you're labeled a liar as a kid, turning your life around later is next to impossible. There's no regaining your reputation in this game.
Sebastian didn't want to get ahead of Harry's parents—he hadn't even touched a wand yet!
At this point, Sebastian couldn't help but think of the transmigrator's beloved golden finger.
So, he began his daily routine—calling the system. He worked tirelessly, 365 days a year without interruption.
After all, the very concept of time travel was a reality in front of him—what if the system was real too?
He wanted the system so badly that he even prayed to Merlin, knowing full well that Buddha was unavailable in this world. In his previous life, he had always prayed to Buddha, but now in this new world, he had no choice but to turn to Merlin.
However, he couldn't figure out whether the system was avoiding him or because Merlin simply don't give a damn about his prayers at all. Or he just don't have a system.
Two whole years passed, and by his third birthday, Sebastian had yet to even catch a glimpse of the system.
There seemed to be no other choice. After a lot of thought, Sebastian came up with two major strategies for himself:
First, grind to become the strongest step by step.
Second, use money to his advantage, after all wizard or not everybody wants this shit.
What's more, he was born into a pure-blood family in the magical world, with a vast amount of money, collection of magical books and a solid foundation.
I've been studying diligently ever since I learned to read. If we were in the same grade as Hermione, I can definitely make her envy.
As long as I can become as powerful as Dumbledore, why should I fear that bald, noseless ugly bastard?
As for money, the Swann family is quite wealthy. But no matter how rich you are, you can't afford to spend recklessly.
So, Sebastian divided the Death Eaters into two categories: fanatics and fence-sitters.
Whenever he had the chance, he'd spend time with his grandfather, explaining his ideas. The old man was left stunned by his words.
He had once wondered why the child was so quiet, never interested in play, and always buried in books. Now, it seemed the Swann Family has a genius heir!
Through this, the Swann family kept their distance from the fanatics while maintaining close business relations with the fence-sitters among them. They fed them well, of course.
But these fence-sitters knew better not to treat the Swann family as a soft target. Grandfather Anthony Swan was incredibly powerful, and Grandmother Janet Swann a retired Auror, was no slouch either.
In fact, the fence-sitters were more worried about the Swann family stealing their limelight after joining the Death Eaters.
Ironically, the ones who least wanted the Swann family involved with the Death Eaters were the fence-sitters themselves.
Thanks to the help of these "allies," the Swann family managed to stay out of Voldemort's radar.
Fortunately, although Merlin had closed one door for Sebastian, he had still left a window open.
Even without a system, the Swann family's bloodline talent remained impressive.
Just as the descendants of Slytherin could awaken Parseltongue, the Swann family possessed an extraordinary magical talent: ultimate magical perception.
Thanks to this talent, the Swann family's ancestors excelled in alchemy and potion-making, although the family eventually shifted their focus more towards alchemy.
For Sebastian, this heightened magical perception proved to be the perfect combat ability.
Within a ten-meter radius, his 360-degree magical perception allowed him to sense everything magical around him—whether it was a wizard, magical creature, or alchemical item.
As soon as a wizard cast a spell within this range, Sebastian could immediately sense:
The intensity of the magic, speed at which the magic flowed through the wand, unique trajectory of the magic as the wand moved through the air. The direction in which the wand was pointed, and more and as his magical power grew, so too did the range of his perception.
Sebastian often jokingly referred to his magical talent as "Observation Haki" magic, likening it to a form of heightened awareness.
Thanks to this ability, he could frequently reconstruct the exact flow and casting trajectory of another wizard's magic, almost as if he were reading their movements in real time.
After successfully casting a spell quickly, Sebastian could slowly fine-tune it to suit his needs, making it 100% perfect for him.
He often lamented that no magic was truly unique before him. Moreover, the dying soul that had merged with his own during his time travel had produced an effect where one plus one was greater than two.
As a result, Sebastian's magical power grew many times faster in both quality and quantity than that of an ordinary wizard, taking him straight to the top.
By the time he started school at age 11, his magical power was already stronger than that of most adult wizards.
On top of that, the eight years he spent studying magic theory had filled his mind with more knowledge than most seventh-year students.
Naturally, he became a favorite among the professors as soon as he entered school.
There was only one exception: Dumbledore.
Why?
"Slytherin!"
Sebastian would never forget how loud the Sorting Hat's shout had been during the entrance ceremony.
What a pity... Sebastian's original choice had always been Gryffindor.
He had dreamed of joining the house to earn Dumbledore's favor and eventually step into his shoes as his successor.
But fate had other plans—he was sorted into Slytherin instead.
The Second Wizarding War had just begun, and Voldemort was sowing chaos. Slytherin had essentially become a breeding ground for Death Eaters. With a student as exceptional as Sebastian, it was no wonder that Dumbledore worried he might fall down the wrong path.
The truth was, Sebastian held no prejudice against any house, look at his family:
Grandfather Anthony Swann—Slytherin graduate.
Grandmother Janet Swann—Hufflepuff graduate.
Father Samuel Swann—Ravenclaw graduate.
Mother Shirley Swann—Gryffindor graduate.
Each of his family members had hoped for him to join their house, even betting 100 gold galleons on it.
However, Sebastian's mother refrained from joining the bet. She had always felt that her son wasn't suited for Gryffindor. Ever since he was a child, he carried an air of someone who want everything under his control, like some behind the scene boss. In her eyes, he was more of Slytherin than Gryffindor.
To him, the house didn't define person who they are, their own actions and choices does.
Sebastien philosophy had always been simple:"If you're reasonable with me, then I can be the next Dumbledore. But if you act unreasonable, then I can be Voldemort."