Excitedly

Leaving the library, you flip through the pages of Arcanist Hellgrave's guide. There are chapters on many topics such as counterspells, shield walls, anti magical fields, and more. Your mind races at the possibilities as you see the assortment of defense magic. Some even showcase methods on how to turn an opponent's own magic against them. Ivar Hellgrave must have been quite the duelist. Or combatant. Stopping on one page, it talks about triggering energy an opponent is channeling, causing their own spell to backlash onto them, sometimes inside their own body. A truly hellish idea.

Getting lost in the pages of the book, you look up to find you have wandered into the Seven Winds Courtyard. It is filled with gardens of flowers and lush exotic trees you have never seen before. Small gravel walkways intersect grass fields and an occasional park bench can be found under a tall stone torch. The fall evening weather is nice and it only now starting to get dark, so you decide to have a seat and read through your new book.

You take a seat and open the black leather book, flipping to its table of contents. Tracing a finger down the list of chapters, your eyes scan for something useful. Chapter Five: Methodology of charms and curses. This appears to be exactly what you are looking for and flip to its first page. It goes into explaining that charms and curses are a special kind of magic that affect one's body or mind in peculiar ways and are difficult to defend against with standard methods. Two of the best ways to defend against them, in Ivar Hellgrave's opinion, are what he calls a band of nullification and a sphere of reflection. You scan the remaining pages of the chapter to find descriptions of both.

The band is a specially crafted artifact with enchanted gems set into it. Each gem acting as a single charge to nullify the effects of either a charm or a curse cast upon the wearer. Although the gems shatter after nullifying a charm or curse, a single band can have multiple gems set into it and the gems can be later replaced. Despite its limited use, it has the advantage of being automatic: the wearer doesn't even have to be aware a charm or curse is being used against them.

The sphere of reflection, a much more devious defense, is an ancient spell that must be cast on a target who remains within eyesight. The victim usually being unaware of the sphere until it is too late. After saying the spell words, circumdantibus reditus, and tracing a complex rune, the target is surrounded by an invisible magical field. The next spell they cast will be reflected back upon them, making them the victim of their own magic. While the sphere does affect many types of spells, not just charms and curses, it is useless against others. Conjuring, summoning, and some alchemy, to name a few, are completely unaffected by the sphere. After reflecting a single spell back at its caster, the sphere collapses and can not be rebuilt on the same target for a few minutes. While the casting itself is rather simple, it does require channeling a large amount of pure arcane energy, making it a difficult spell to master.

While the sphere seems easy enough to attempt, you do not have someone to try it on. You decide to read up on creating a band of nullification. The band itself must be crafted from bronze heat treated with the sap of any naturally animated plant. Gems need to be obsidian infused with a potion of magic nullification, a whole vial per stone.

Considering your options, the alchemy lab does have a supply room. You could probably find bronze there, or the metals needed to make your own. The storeroom might have obsidian too but you are not sure. As for the rarer components, finding someone in a potions class might be a good place to start. What goes into a potion of magic nullification anyway? Sap from an animated plant seems like it might be the most elusive, you have no clue where to begin on that one.

It's starting to get late and you should probably be getting back to House Phoenix if you want to get dinner before the dining hall stops service. Suddenly, you remember that you happen to know a certain professor who specializes in magical artifacts.