Chapter 215: Evaluation
Chapter 215: Evaluation
"Professor." "Hello, Professor Hep."
Harry, Cedric, Ron, and Hermione greeted him.
"Come and sit." Felix nodded at them and waved his wand, causing four small tables to rise from the grass. The four of them chose their seats.
Small teacups leaped into their hands, followed by a slender, long-necked teapot that elegantly bent over to pour amber liquid.
Harry took a sip of the tea. He rarely drank tea, but he found it quite pleasant. The long-necked teapot moved to refill his cup, and he curiously scratched its large belly with his finger. Suddenly, it began to tremble as if tickled, clunking and shaking, spilling tea all over the small table.
"Sorry, Professor? It suddenly became..." Harry was at a loss.
"Oh, it's not your fault." Felix waved his wand, calming the teapot. "I've been trying to make them more autonomous... but sometimes they get a bit too lively."
Hermione asked in surprise, "You've given them intelligence?"
"Not exactly. More like a rudimentary response mechanism. From a feedback perspective, they are—"
Felix pointed to the small platform in front of them. "—actually more advanced."
The four of them turned their attention to the Magical Automatons—
The play continued, and these 'actors' seemed to possess their own intelligence. Some conveyed strong emotions and delivered their lines smoothly, while others appeared more lackadaisical, occasionally pausing as if they had forgotten their lines, only to continue after a few seconds.
The idle ones would look around, appearing quite unprofessional. For example, a peculiar old-man-like Magical Automaton held a wineskin, taking sips from time to time.
Harry stared at it for a while, finally confirming that the small wineskin was just for show. He said curiously, "Professor, do they slack off?" He searched his memory for similar examples. "Like the portraits in the school, which have their own interests?"
Felix explained, "Their intelligence is similar to the portraits, but fundamentally, they lack emotions. All their actions are pre-programmed. Of course, I don't intend for them to have human-level intelligence; understanding simple commands is enough."
The four of them listened, somewhat understanding. Ron said enviously, "It sounds a bit like a House-elf, helping with household chores and all. I once wished for one to do my homework."
Hermione replied, "Ron, they wouldn't do such boring tasks."
"Actually, Hermione, you don't know. They can do everything, they're versatile", Ron countered. "Ask Harry; Dobby must have told him, right?"
Harry shook his head. "Dobby didn't talk much about his life at the Malfoys', but it was pretty bad", he said, looking at Felix. "Professor, how is Dobby doing now?"
Dobby resigned from the Leaky Cauldron on the day before the start of term and is now handling some book publishing for Professor Hep.
Felix nodded and smiled. "He's doing well, and I'm considering giving him a raise..." He waved his wand to end the play. "Alright, let's get back to the topic. You all want to join the Rune Club?"
"Yes, Professor." Harry took out a stack of parchment. "This is my essay." Ron also pulled out a few crumpled sheets from his bag, trying to smooth out the curled edges.
Felix tapped them with his wand, and they immediately became neat and tidy.
Ron asked curiously, "Professor Hep, what magic is that?"
Felix replied casually, "It's a simple trick, hardly even magic."
He turned to Cedric. "Diggory, based on your performance in class, you're more than qualified..."
Cedric declined the offer. "I've practiced a lot in my free time and would like you to see the results."
Felix had no reason to refuse. He took a half-finished Magical Automaton from his ring, which bore only faint Runic Script markings. "You have about two hours. I think that should be enough."
Cedric took it eagerly and began his work.
Felix waved his wand to create a quiet environment around Cedric, shielding him from distractions. Cedric was initially surprised but quickly understood, smiling and nodding in thanks.
The students participating in the assessment arrived one after another, their eyes curiously scanning the space. A few seventh-year students pointed and gestured, their faces filled with nostalgic expressions.
A senior girl sighed, "We had our Runes Practical Class here last year. I dug up three Hidden Boxes and managed to complete a precious Runic Manuscript."
Harry, Ron, and Hermione began bustling about, recording the information of the participants. They recognized many familiar faces.
Harry spotted a few of his teammates, "Angelina, Alicia, Katie, you're all here!"
He also saw the twins approaching from a distance and joked, "Is this a team gathering today?"
"Ha, Katie and I are here to give it a try, but Alicia has a good chance", Angelina said. "As for Wood, he's not here. I bet he's hiding somewhere, working on new strategies. It's his final year, and he definitely wants to win another Quidditch Cup."
As they spoke, the twins sauntered over, their arms around each other's shoulders, seemingly engaged in some game. When they got closer, Harry noticed their legs were tightly stuck together.
"We're testing the limits of the Adhesion Charm", Fred winked. "Pretty cool, right?"
The twins exaggerated their movements, but they didn't quite control the distance and ended up rolling to the ground together.
The three girls burst into laughter, and Angelina waved her hand, "Oh, stop it, you're making me laugh."
Ron rarely saw the twins in such a predicament, so he walked over, grinning, and squatted in front of them, holding a piece of parchment. "Excuse me, your chosen assessment task is—"
The twins lay on the ground, Fred chuckling, "Little one, we're just here to watch the show. We already got an internal invitation."
Ron looked at them in surprise, "You're serious?"
"Of course, I bet Hermione got a spot too."
"But she wrote an essay just like us!" Ron exclaimed.
Hearing this, Fred glanced at George and put on a serious face, "Should we reflect on ourselves? This might make us look like we're slacking off."
George sighed, "Luckily, we came prepared."
They stood up and walked over to Professor Felix, pulling out a small, heart-shaped block from their pockets. "Professor, remember the Lover's Mirror from last semester? This is the final product."
Felix examined the magical creation in his hands. It looked more refined, one side painted black and the other pink. He touched it, and the heart-shaped block automatically split into two halves.
"You designed it as a pair? A clever idea..."
Inside, it resembled a small makeup mirror, but instead of a mirror, there was a carefully polished circular surface coated with silver powder.
Around the circular surface, intricate patterns were carved, and Felix traced the raised lines, feeling a familiar trace.
"Is this the runic circuit I taught you last year?"
"Exactly. We followed your suggestions and used the runic circuit to store Synchronization Magic. It works great—information is transmitted more accurately, and the communication distance is much greater", Fred explained.
George added, "We also added anti-tampering magic."
Percy appeared out of nowhere, standing at a distance with Penelope Clearwater from Ravenclaw House.
Penelope said to Percy, "They seem to have developed something impressive, that Lover's Mirror."
"You know about it?" Percy asked, surprised.
Penelope replied calmly, "They snuck into the Ravenclaw common room a couple of days ago to promote their new product and noted down the names of those interested."
"You didn't kick them out?"
"Why would I? Ravenclaw welcomes anyone who can answer the door's question correctly. And", she smiled, "I left my name on the list too."
"Penelope, how could you..." Percy looked at the twins in the distance, who were having a serious discussion with Professor Hep, their faces lit up with enthusiasm.
(End of Chapter)
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