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Chapter 228: The First Study Group Gathering
Chapter 228: The First Study Group Gathering (Please Subscribe, Favorite, and Recommend)
After saying goodbye to the Weasley family at the Headmaster's Office, Liam inwardly celebrated. After all, among the many Pureblood Families, the Weasleys were one of the few who were truly friendly to Muggles. Moreover, in the original story, they were the family that benefited the most after the final battle. Boosting his reputation within their family would be a significant help for his future goals.
The rest of the day was quite ordinary. After finishing his classes and returning to the Common Room, Liam saw Hermione approaching him with a stack of parchment and a bottle of glue.
"What's this for?" He wondered if he had forgotten something, given his recent preoccupation with Scabbers.
"Really? Didn't we agree to start a Study Group? We need to post these notices so people can see them and join", Hermione replied, rolling her eyes.
After posting the notices on several bulletin boards around the school, Liam silently prayed that the turnout wouldn't be too small. He would feel very awkward if the Study Group only consisted of him and Hermione. Time passed quickly, and by Friday afternoon, after dinner, Liam was the first to arrive at the empty classroom on the third floor that the school had assigned them.
Opening the door, he found that the classroom could easily accommodate fifty to sixty people, though it didn't look that big. However, the thick layer of dust on the furniture proved that it hadn't been used in a long time.
"Scourgify, cough, cough, cough—" In this situation, Liam had no choice but to roll up his sleeves and start cleaning. Magic was indeed a convenient tool; clearing the trash here only required a wave of his wand.
When he was halfway through cleaning, Hermione entered, backpack in tow. Seeing the state of the room, she put down her backpack and joined him in the cleaning.
With the help of magic, the cleaning went very quickly. Hogwarts Castle was protected by magic, so the usual pest problems that plagued old houses in the magical world were not severe here. The only major issue they encountered was a patch of Devil's Snare under the teacher's desk.
This plant looked like a greenish fungus with eyes and, when disturbed, sprouted countless long legs and scurried away. Worse, it secreted a corrosive substance that slowly ate away at the foundation of the building. Liam noticed that the floor beneath the Devil's Snare was pitted and corroded.
"It seems Hogwarts' magic protection focuses on the exterior, with little attention paid to the interior", Liam concluded, recalling how easily the troll had destroyed the wall in their first year.
Fortunately, Liam had researched the types of creatures that could appear in old magical houses, so he successfully used the Scouring Charm to eliminate the Devil's Snare.
"What spell did you use just now?" Hermione asked, intrigued.
"A Scouring Charm, a type of household spell. I found that practicing household spells is a great way to improve the precision of magic power manipulation. Most household spells are easy to learn but difficult to master, and even slight differences in magic power can produce different results. For example, the Peeling Charm is very popular, but removing the skin from fruits and vegetables without wasting any is quite challenging."
"Maybe I should give it a try", Hermione said, clearly impressed by Liam's explanation. She decided to study household magic further when she had the time.
At 7:15 PM, with a knock on the door, the first members of the Study Group began to arrive.
Neville was the first to arrive, pushing the door open shyly. He was followed by Cho and Alicia, whom Hermione had saved from the troll. Then came Justin Finch-Fletchley, Hannah Abbott, and a black-haired girl with distinctive purple eyes and a teardrop mole below her left eye. Liam recognized her as a third-year Gryffindor. Luna Lovegood then wandered in, looking somewhat dazed, as if she had stumbled upon the room by accident. Finally, the Weasley twins arrived.
“Looks like more people showed up than I expected. But who is that black-haired girl? Why am I not familiar with her even though she’s in our year?” Liam whispered to Hermione.
“That’s Jackie Swinton. She’s one of the few Gryffindors who actually enjoys studying. If it weren’t for History of Magic, her grades wouldn’t be much lower than ours. Since she’s the heir to the next Earl of Glamorgan, both Muggle-borns and Purebloods tend to subtly exclude her. It’s normal that you’re not familiar with her,” Hermione whispered back.
“Aren’t British nobility titles only passed down to males? Doesn’t she have any male cousins?”
“No, she doesn’t.” Hermione’s expression turned a bit strange. “This title is a bit unusual. Her family has only had a single heir for at least seven generations. That’s why there have been a few rare female earls in their history.”
Liam finally understood. Britain is a place that places a great deal of importance on class. The appearance of a nobility heir at Hogwarts is seen as quite special by the British, so it’s natural that she would be isolated.
After waiting a bit longer, the clock struck seven-thirty, the time they had set. Once they were sure no one else would come, Liam got up and closed the classroom door.
Hermione took a deep breath and stepped onto the stage, “Um—um, everyone, hello. I’m glad to see so many of you who share our views. We all know that as wizards, we possess the power of magic, and behind that power lies a foundation of knowledge. That’s why we’ve gathered everyone here today, just as it says on the poster: whether it’s wizard books or Muggle books, we will read them and absorb knowledge. We will then transform that knowledge into power through practice, ultimately improving ourselves.”
Everyone in the room nodded in agreement. Since the poster specifically mentioned learning Muggle knowledge, those present were at least open to Muggles and had no issue with Hermione mentioning Muggle books.
“Excuse me, I have a question,” Cho raised her hand and, after Hermione nodded, stood up. “The magical world is very peaceful right now. I think it’s enough to just master what we need to know for our exams. Why do we need to learn about things beyond our textbooks, which might even be dangerous?”
“I’ll answer that,” Liam stepped up to the stage. “First, the magical world is generally peaceful, but you can’t guarantee that you won’t encounter any situations. Whether it’s Quirrell in our first year or the Dementors this year, it shows that risks are everywhere. We’d rather be over-prepared and not need it than find ourselves helpless when something happens.”
Cho nodded in agreement, and Liam continued, “Second, as someone who wasn’t born into the magical world, I’ve noticed that in this world, a person’s status is determined by their power. For example, our Headmaster became the leader of the British magical world because he defeated the most powerful Dark Wizard, Grindelwald. So, to ensure a good future after leaving Hogwarts, it’s essential to study more and strengthen our power.”
“Moreover, in the magical world, if we want to pursue our interests, we need enough power. For example, if you’re interested in Herbology, you won’t have the opportunity to approach dangerous high-level plants without sufficient power.” Liam glanced at Neville below.
“Or if you want to discover magical creatures that no one has seen before, you won’t be able to venture into dangerous places without enough power.” Liam noticed that even Luna, who usually didn’t care much about anything, nodded in agreement.
“So,” Liam concluded, “the purpose of our Study Group is to help everyone learn and share their knowledge, ultimately transforming it into practical power to improve ourselves.”
The chapter ends here. (End of Chapter)
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