Chapter 273 The Scepter and the Magic Wand
Chapter 273 The Scepter and the Magic Wand
Chapter 274 The Scepter and the Magic Wand
To Xiren's surprise, the golden scepter he was looking at was indeed a type of magic wand.
The Pharaoh's Scepter, a magical artifact found by fairies in the pyramids a thousand years ago. Later, a wizard discovered that holding this scepter made casting spells smoother and more powerful.
Unlike England, the magical world here didn't have Ollivanders or the concept of wands, but it did have fairies and alchemists.
So the fairies collaborated with the wizards to create a replica of the Pharaoh's scepter, which is the golden scepter that we see in Siron today.
What Xilun couldn't understand was that these were all things from over a thousand years ago, so how could they still be displayed in stores for sale now?
If this were at Ollivanders Wand Shop, his grandfather would never have brought out something like this.
It's not because it's precious, but because the quality is too poor. The craftsmanship of wand making has been constantly improving, especially the magic formulas engraved on the wand, which have been improved countless times by Ollivanders.
To be honest, those Ollivander wands from a thousand years ago might not even be as good as the ones Siron casually practiced with.
The scepter here is the same.
While the shop assistant wasn't looking, Xilun secretly gripped the scepter and cast a very simple cleansing spell. To be honest, the speed at which the magic gathered was driving Xilun crazy. It was too slow, and it felt no different from casting a spell without a scepter.
No, that's not quite right. There are still differences—for example, the design of this scepter is simply amazing, it's dazzling with gold, and the length is just right, so that you can put your arm down and touch the ground.
More importantly, it feels substantial in your hand, so even if you can't beat the spell, you can still grab it and smash it over the opponent's head.
"How much is this?" Xilun asked.
Lupin immediately asked in the local language.
The shop assistant looked up and mumbled something.
"One hundred and eighty Galleons—." Lupin translated, and as he said this, Siron noticed that the muscles in his face twitched slightly.
The same applies to Xilun himself.
One magic wand costs 180 Galleons?
Crazy!
Would anyone actually buy at such an outrageous price?
"Of course—no." Lupin helped answer Xiren's question.
"Most of the wizards here graduated from Heliopolis Academy of Magic, and the founder of this school was once a student of Vagado Academy of Magic."
"Vagadu Magic Academy," Xiren muttered to himself, "gesture magic?"
"That's right, most of the wizards here are skilled in hand gestures, so they don't need wands at all," Lupin said.
"No wonder the store is so deserted," Celen said. "I thought it was because school hadn't started yet."
"Didn't you know that before?" Lupin asked.
Siren shook his head. "I thought only the sorcerer tribes of Uganda's Moon Mountain used hand gesture magic."
"It was centuries ago," Lupin said.
"No wonder. I felt something was off. You wanted to learn more about wands, so why did you choose to come to Egypt? I thought you had some special purpose."
"No, it was my grandfather who suggested I come," Siren said. "Actually, I initially wanted to go to Bulgaria to see Grigorovich's works."
As a wandmaker on par with Ollivander, Grigovich's wands are also very popular in the wizarding world, but the differences between the two are also obvious.
Garrick had previously stated that Gregorovich valued the practicality of wands more. In other words, the wands he crafted were more powerful, especially renowned for their flight spells and dueling capabilities.
Ollivander, on the other hand, sought a perfect match between the wand and the wizard, with power being secondary.
Siren had always wanted to see Grigorovich's work, but Garrick thought it wasn't a good time for Siren to get in touch with Grigorovich and recommended that he come to Egypt first.
Trusting his grandfather, Siron naturally did not object, which is why he and Lupin were here.
"Mr. Ollivander?" Lupin said softly, not understanding Garrick's purpose in doing so.
"In that case, are you still going to buy this wand?" he asked.
"I won't buy it." Xilun shook his head without even thinking.
Just kidding, even if Siren made some money at school, he wouldn't spend 180 Galleons to buy a wand that he can only look at but can't use.
Not to mention that the main material of this thing is silver, with only a layer of gold plated on the outside.
Even if Xilun was curious about this technology, it wasn't worth spending so much money to buy 180 Galleons; he could have forged a pure gold staff that way.
"Where are we going next?"
"I don't know either," said Siren, as he walked around the store again.
At that moment, another person walked into the shop, wearing a hood that covered half of her face, making it impossible to see her appearance. It could only be vaguely discerned that she was a witch, and probably not very old.
Unlike Xilun, she didn't wander around the store. She went straight to the shelves after entering, picked and chose for a while, then went to the counter, paid, and left.
The whole process was efficient and quick. From entering the store to selecting items and paying to leaving, it probably took less than five minutes.
It was at this moment that Siron noticed that the way to buy wands here was completely different from that in Ollivander.
There's no need to measure arm length, nor to test whether the wand is compatible with the wizard or whether there are any magical conflicts. The wands here are no different from the ordinary goods displayed outside; you can simply look at them and pay to buy them.
As for what to do if it doesn't work or is not good after buying it, Xilun doesn't know. After all, he can't just sit here and wait to see if anyone comes to return it.
He just didn't expect that there would actually be business here. Wasn't it said that the magic school in Egypt would teach hand gesture magic?
Seemingly noticing Xilun's confusion, or perhaps in a good mood after completing a transaction, the wand shop clerk finally stopped ignoring Xilun, stood up, and rattled off a bunch of things Xilun couldn't understand.
"He said that not all Egyptian wizards are skilled in hand gesture magic," Lupin translated. "For wizards who cannot learn or remember the gestures, using a wand is also a good option."
Xilun pursed his lips.
Although he couldn't understand it, Lupin had already sensed the undisguised sense of superiority in the shop assistant's tone before Lupin even began translating.
Just as a wizard who can use hand gestures is better than one who uses a wand.
However, this was, after all, someone else's territory, and although Xilun felt disdain, he did not show it.
Not only that, he also spent fifteen Galleons to buy an ordinary wand as a souvenir.
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