Impedimenta, also known as the Barrier Charm, is described in textbooks as "a crucial part of a dueling wizard's arsenal. When cast swiftly, it can delay an opponent or halt a magical creature's advance for a short time."
However, when Anduin actually cast the spell, he discovered that it conjured an invisible barrier in the direction of his gaze—a wall of magical energy. The duration varied from a dozen seconds to over a minute, depending on the caster's skill.
By adjusting his Magic Power output, Anduin found he could create a non-solid barrier. Opponents could pass through it, but their speed would be significantly reduced. The degree of deceleration depended on the density of the barrier. A weakened Barrier Charm cast horizontally across the ground would make walking feel like wading through quicksand.
Conversely, a fully materialized Barrier Charm could serve as a defensive spell or even be propelled toward an opponent as an offensive maneuver.
Impedimenta, Anduin thought, and immediately cast the spell in the empty space of his room.
"First, I need to understand the nature of this spell," Anduin said, approaching the Barrier Charm he had cast. He reached out and touched it. The barrier materialized as a solid, invisible wall.
"It feels incredibly hard, less than an inch thick, and completely impassable," Anduin said, pressing his hands together until they met the wall, estimating its width.
"Let's test its physical defense."
Anduin retrieved a dumbbell from his luggage and struck the invisible wall. Thud. Thud.
"The sound isn't metallic or stony. It's more like hitting the surface of water," Anduin mused, surprised by the unexpected sound.
After several forceful strikes, Anduin set down the dumbbell and resorted to bare-handed punches, wanting to feel the wall's resistance directly.
Thud. Thud. Thud. After a series of punches, the invisible wall began to change.
"Its initial hardness is comparable to a regular stone wall, and the force rebounding into my fist confirms that. But why is it softening after repeated blows? It didn't shatter like glass; instead, it's becoming pliable. Is the Magic Power within the wall being depleted?" Anduin wondered, examining his reddened knuckles.
After landing over a dozen more punches, the now-softened invisible wall finally shattered. Anduin discovered that even after breaking through, the spell's effect persisted, though it could no longer block solid objects. It still provided a cushioning effect.
Anduin simply charged straight through, slowly pushing his entire body through the wall.
"It feels like wading through a non-Newtonian fluid, except without the stickiness. What an incredible spell," Anduin mused, feeling the Barrier Charm's effects. Soon, the spell's duration expired, and the entire wall vanished into thin air.
Anduin pulled out his notebook and recorded his experimental data and observations. Then, he cast another Impedimenta spell into the empty space.
"Next, let's test its magical defense."
Anduin positioned himself about two meters from the invisible wall and began firing offensive spells at it, starting with Expelliarmus.
As expected, the invisible wall blocked the spell. The spell's magical energy shattered upon impact, its fragments swirling across the transparent surface until their Magic Power dissipated.
"Let's try different angles," Anduin said, proceeding to cast spells at the wall from various directions. He even ran to the other side to experiment with more angles until the spell's effect wore off.
"Hmm, this test yielded a lot of information. Spells that hit head-on shatter if they lack sufficient power, but begin to ricochet at certain angles. And neither spell can penetrate the barrier. So, I can't just cast Impedimenta and safely counterattack from the other side."
Anduin repeated the Barrier Charm several times, testing its offensive capabilities.
"'Impedimenta' feels a lot like a mage's hand from my past life's games," Anduin mused. "It can be fixed in place, directly manipulated with Magic Power to strike opponents, or even used to slow enemies when ethereal. Calling it a 'barrier' is a bit of a misnomer; it's more like magical shaping." As he summarized the spell's characteristics, Anduin began mentally mapping out its potential applications.
Overall, Anduin was highly satisfied with the spell. It showed tremendous promise.
"The next phase of training will focus on several areas: spellcasting speed, targeting accuracy, intensity control, the velocity of launching projectiles (or, more accurately, the speed at which I can propel obstacles), and finally, attempting freeform spell shaping. It seems I'll need to undergo a period of intense special training."
Anduin began devising a new training regimen, meticulously recording his ideas about spells. He planned to test each concept individually and develop targeted exercises.
Over the next two weeks, Anduin dedicated his mornings to studying textbooks and learning new spells. Every afternoon was devoted entirely to practicing Impedimenta. He also made time during the day to visit Flourish and Blotts, purchasing several books related to spells.
He had initially wanted to buy more, but books in the Magical World were shockingly expensive. Cheaper volumes cost several Galleons, while more advanced texts could exceed ten or twenty Galleons—more than many alchemical tools or potions. In the end, Anduin settled on three: Barnaby Finkley's Seven Methods of Spellcasting, The Origins of Spells: An Introduction to Ancient Runes, and Elegant Footwork in Dueling Competitions. These three books alone cost him 22 Galleons, and there were several others he had wanted but couldn't afford.
Anduin was like a sponge, rapidly absorbing magical knowledge. His soul was inherently stronger than those of his peers, and years of targeted training had given him Magic Power far exceeding theirs, both in intensity and total capacity. As a result, his progress was astonishingly swift.
One evening in early August, in the small courtyard behind the Leaky Cauldron, a target hastily constructed from several chairs shattered into pieces under the impact of a transparent "cannonball." Anduin slowly approached, raised his wand, and murmured, "Reparo." The splintered wood floated into the air and reassembled itself into its original form.
"Looks promising," Anduin mused. "The 'Impedimenta' projectile is now about the size of a washbasin, and its velocity is steadily increasing. I could still shorten the casting time. Next, I'll see if I can shrink the spell's size even further." In his mind, Anduin envisioned reducing the 'Impedimenta' projectile to the size of a fist.
If he could achieve that, he might even rename the spell "Air Cannon."