The thicker the wall, the slower things moved through it.

  But there was more to it. If the spell created a solid wall, Alex realized it could be used as a shield. By pushing it toward an oppo with a burst of magic, it could also be turned into an attack.

  Without dey, Alex cast the Impedimenta spell again, this time in the open space of his room.

  "First, I o uand how this spell actually works," he murmured to himself.

  He moved closer to the invisible barrier, reag out to touch it. His fingers met solid resistance, as if he were pressing against a perfectly smooth gss wall, though he couldn't see it.

  "It's less than an inch thick but totally blocks anything from passing through either side," he noted, running his fingers along its surface.

  ‘Let’s test its strength,’ he thought.

  Alex picked up a dumbbell from his luggage and gave the barrier a solid hit. An odd sound filled the room—a mix of a dull thud and a soft spsh, like hitting water's surfastead of something solid. Intrigued, he hit it a few more times, notig the strange sound each time.

  "It's definitely not metal or stone… more like solidified liquid," he observed, marveling at how stra felt. Then, putting the dumbbell dowested the wall with his fists. After a few punches, something unusual happehe wall began to soften. It didn’t shatter like gss; instead, it turned pliable, almost rubbery.

  "Iing," Alex murmured, rubbing his sore knuckles. "It gets softer after repeated hits. I wonder if that's because it’s losing magic."

  After a few more strikes, Alex mao punch through the softened wall. Although he’d pierced it, the spell was still there, making it tough to push through.

  He took a step back, then threw himself against the wall, slowly f his way through it.

  "It’s like moving through thick gel… but without the stiess. This spell is really something," he said, grinning at the strange feeling.

  Ohe spell’s duration ehe wall vanished. Alex quickly wrote down his observations in his notebook a the spell.

  "Now, let’s see how it handles magical attacks."

  Alex stepped back a few meters from the newly formed invisible wall. Raising his wand, he cast Expelliarmus, the Disarming Charm, at the barrier. To his surprise, the spell was blocked by the wall. The magic spread out across its surfad fizzled away.

  He tried again, casting spells from different angles. Sometimes the spell was absorbed; other times, it bounced off at a sharp angle.

  "That's ued," Alex remarked, watg a spell deflect. "If the spell hits straight on, it shatters. But if it hits at an a deflects. That could e in handy during a duel."

  He spent the hour testing different angles and types of attacks, making notes after each attempt.

  The more he experimented with Impedimenta, the more possibilities he saw. It wasn’t just an obstacle—it could be a shield, a on, or even a tool for moving strategically.

  "It's almost like a magic barrier I shape however I want," Alex mused. "I make it solid or fluid or even turn it into something like magical quid. The name Impedimenta doesn’t quite fit—it’s more like a kind of magic shaping."

  Satisfied with his progress, Alex mapped out a pn for improvement.

  "I o focus on a few key areas," he thought.

  "First, I'll work on casting it faster—if I do it quickly, it’ll be much more useful in a fight. Then, I’ll practice trolling the wall's thiess and shape. I’ll also see if I improve my push, making it a real attack."

  With his pn in pce, Alex dedicated the en days to refining his teique. Each m, he read his textbooks and learned new spells, but he spent every afternoon practig Impedimenta. He also visited Flourish and Blotts to buy more books on spellcasting but found them shogly expensive—some ore than alchemy items or potions!

  In the end, he bought three books: The 7 Ways of Casting a Spell by Barnabus Fihe in of the Spell: An Introdu to A Runes, and Elegant Steps in a Duel test. Although he wanted more, he had to prioritize due to his limited funds.

  Still, Alex soaked up knowledge like a sponge. His magic grew stronger every day, and he knew his background and discipline gave him an edge over other students his age.

  One evening in early August, Alex stood in the small courtyard behind the Leaky Cauldron. He raised his wand, and with a sharp flick, a transparent “onball” made of magical energy shot from his wand. It hit a target made of stacked chairs, shattering it to pieces.

  He walked over to the scattered chairs, flicked his wand, and said, "Reparo." The chairs reassembled themselves as if nothing had happened.

  "It’s ing along nicely," Alex murmured. "I’ve mao shrink Impedimenta into a onball about the size of a washbasin. If I keep practig, I might get it even smaller—maybe fist-sized."

  He smiled to himself, imagining what he could do ohe spell was fully refined. His goal was clear: he would turn Impedimenta into a powerful on, like an “air on” he could use for both attad defense.

  Over the month, Alex had practiced his casting nearly a thousand times. He trained daily, pushing himself until he was drained of both magid strength.

  In terms of defense, Alex had made remarkable progress. He could now accurately p invisible barrier wherever he wanted, solidifying it into a protective wall. He had also mastered a low-density deceleration shield, which could be quickly summoned as a transparent shield around him, about a meter in diameter, and moved with him as he walked.

  The best part?

  He could cast it without waiting for the spell to expire—he had learo trol its release and recall at will.