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Chapter 11: First Encounter with Hogwarts - Part 2
Chapter 11: First Encounter with Hogwarts - Part 2
Wednesday was the first class for Defense Against the Dark Arts, and Liam arrived in the classroom with great excitement to meet the mastermind behind it all—ah, no, the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, Quirrell.
Honestly, sitting in the classroom, less than ten meters away from the final boss of the story, was an incredibly surreal feeling.
Hogwarts' Defense Against the Dark Arts professor had been notorious for being a one-year position for the past few decades. Despite this, every year, stubborn wizards would still apply for the job, a phenomenon that could be likened to the Wizarding version of why there are so few foreigners.
This showed that British wizards were not lacking in courage. More importantly, these professors were all highly skilled. Even Professor Lockhart, known for being a fraud, could perfectly cast a memory charm on a group of experienced wizards without ever failing. As for Umbridge, aside from her political maneuvers that forced Dumbledore to leave, her quill revealed her deep expertise in dark magic.
The other professors included Lupin, who had survived for years among werewolves without being killed by his enemies; the greatest double agent, Professor Snape; Barty Crouch Jr., who managed to hide under Dumbledore's watch for an entire year; and even Alecto Carrow, a Death Eater handpicked by Voldemort in their seventh year. All of them could be considered the cream of the crop.
However, Voldemort's curse was too powerful, and in the end, only the demented Lockhart and the prison-dwelling Umbridge survived.
This year's professor, Quirrell, had always been a top student during his time at Hogwarts. After the attachment to the back of his head, he became the Quirrell-Voldemort fusion professor.
Unfortunately, something must have gone wrong during their fusion, as Professor Quirrell showed no signs of a strong, combined force. His classroom was filled with the smell of garlic, and his lectures were mostly about reading from the book and boasting about implausible adventures.
Liam guessed that Quirrell was trying to hide himself to avoid attracting Dumbledore's attention. But honestly, such a drastic change from his usual self was more likely to draw suspicion. It seemed that sometimes, two brains together could be less compatible, resulting in an IQ lower than one brain.
After nearly a week of classes, it was Friday, the day Gryffindor students feared the most—Potions class.
Potions was held in a dungeon classroom, which was colder and darker than the main castle. The room was lined with glass jars containing preserved animal specimens, making it look like the lair of a legendary evil wizard. Many students were visibly trembling with fear.
After reciting his famous opening speech, Professor Snape singled out Harry Potter for a bit of individual attention. Watching this iconic scene from the movies, Liam couldn't help but think that the idea of a son paying for his father's sins was a universal concept across both Eastern and Western cultures.
After bullying Harry and finding an excuse to deduct a point, Snape divided the class into pairs and instructed them to brew a simple potion for treating scrofula.
Unfortunately, due to the alphabetical order of their last names, Liam was paired with Neville Longbottom. This meant he had to not only focus on brewing the potion but also keep an eye on Neville to prevent any mishaps.
Fortunately, Neville was only a bit clumsy and lacked confidence. However, he was very serious about his work. He did a good job measuring the dried nettle and crushing the snake's fangs according to the book.
Professor Snape patrolled the classroom, and Liam's group received a scolding from Snape for not cooking the horned slugs properly due to insufficient heat.
Just as Liam heard Snape praising Malfoy's method of steaming the horned slugs as perfect, he craned his neck to observe Malfoy's technique. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Neville adding porcupine quills to the cauldron.
Liam was shocked and quickly grabbed Neville's arm. Neville looked at him with a puzzled expression.
Liam whispered, "The board says to add the porcupine quills only after removing the cauldron from the fire."
Neville's mouth opened slightly in surprise, realizing he had forgotten that crucial step.
The System promptly chimed in:
— Shopkeeper prevents Neville's cauldron explosion, earning 1 Deviation Point.
Professor Snape silently appeared behind them, then circled around Harry and Ron's table. "Potter, why didn't you tell him not to add the porcupine quills? Do you think his mistake makes you look good? Another point deducted from Gryffindor." It was clear that Snape harbored a deep-seated grudge against James Potter.
An hour later, the class ended, and everyone submitted their potions. Liam noticed that Snape had written an 'a' on his label. Well, passing was a cause for celebration.
As they left the classroom, Neville kept thanking Liam, as this was one of the rare occasions where he managed to create a passable potion without exploding the cauldron or getting injured. Liam, however, thought Neville's technique wasn't that bad; it was just the immense pressure from Professor Snape that made everyone nervous. Even as an adult soul, Liam felt his hair stand on end whenever Snape walked by, let alone the impact on Neville, who was usually timid.
Harry and Ron approached from behind, and Neville stepped forward to apologize, "I'm sorry, I caused you to lose points this time." Harry smiled but didn't speak. Ron waved him off, "Don't worry about it, it's not your fault. We've known for a while that Snape isn't a fair person."
Potions was on Friday, so after the class, the first week of school was over. There were no afternoon classes, and after lunch, Liam gathered all his study materials and headed to the Library to start his weekend homework. It was always easier to finish assignments early and enjoy the weekend rather than rush at the last minute.
When he arrived at the Library, Hermione was already seated. Liam greeted her and began working on his homework. To be honest, in his previous life, Liam had been a believer and practitioner of the "just enough to get by" theory during his student years.
In this life, he had initially planned to coast through all seven years after receiving the acceptance letter. However, he hadn't expected to reunite with his elementary school classmates at Hogwarts. To avoid raising suspicion with a sudden drop in grades and to prevent being looked down upon by acquaintances or having his performance reported to his parents, Liam had to dedicate most of his time to studying.
This lifestyle reminded him of his college entrance exam preparation in his previous life, which wasn't a pleasant memory. But every time he thought about the power hierarchy in the magical world, where knowledge equaled power, Liam found studying less tiring.
By dinner time, they had completed most of their homework. They packed their bags and headed to the Great Hall for dinner, which reminded Liam of his elementary school days when he and his classmates would walk home together after school.
"Being young sure feels good", the 30-year-old soul inside Liam thought to himself.
(End of Chapter)
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