Chapter 243: Exam Week
Chapter 243: Exam Week
The magical creatures exam, which began on the morning of the second day, was the easiest exam Liam encountered during exam week. After all, the exam's content was simply to ensure that the Flobberworms they were given remained alive for at least an hour. It was well known that Flobberworms were extremely resilient magical creatures that could thrive even if left unattended.
The reason the exam was so simple was that Hagrid was preoccupied with his thoughts, his mind clearly not on the exam. After all, Buckbeak's final trial was scheduled for the day after tomorrow, and the Ministry of Magic officials, accompanied by the executioner, had made it abundantly clear what they expected the outcome to be.
When the exam ended, Liam patted Hagrid on the arm to show his support. Hagrid bent down and whispered, "Thanks for everything. We'll know the final result the day after tomorrow."
In the afternoon, it was the Potions exam. Fortunately, Harry drew most of Professor Snape's attention, which made the Gryffindor students feel a bit more at ease.
After mastering Alchemy, Liam felt his Potions skills had improved significantly. He discovered that he could deduce the effects of a potion by analyzing the components of its ingredients before even starting the brewing process.
So during this exam, he made slight adjustments to the procedures for making a few complex elixirs. The results showed that his potions were at least better than those he had made by strictly following the textbook.
It's worth noting that during the multiple Study Group meetings, Neville had demonstrated his talent in Herbology, earning him consistent praise from the group members. As a result, his confidence had grown significantly. Even with Harry attracting most of the attention during the exam, Neville successfully managed to brew an elixir, albeit a low-quality one, which was still a significant improvement over his previous explosive attempts.
After the Potions exam, Harry and the others returned directly to Gryffindor Tower, while Liam and Hermione headed to the Ancient Runes classroom for their final exam in that subject.
Few students opted for this elective, even fewer than those who chose Arithmancy. When Liam entered the classroom, he found that fewer than ten students were taking the exam. The exam content involved translating some ancient texts and combining them in simple ways. However, seeing most of the students biting their pens and deep in thought, Liam realized that it wasn't as easy as he had initially thought.
"Did I translate that rune wrong? Its meaning should be heat, not flame. Oh no, what am I going to do?" Hermione asked, visibly nervous as soon as they left the exam room.
"Come on, it's not that serious. Both runes can achieve the effect required by the exam question. There's no need to be so meticulous", Liam said, with a pained expression. Hermione's post-exam fretting reminded him of the bad memories of being overshadowed by top students after exams in his previous life.
Fortunately, they reached the Fat Lady's portrait just then, and Hermione quickly calmed down to prepare for the Astronomy exam later that evening.
The Astronomy exam took place on the Astronomy Tower at midnight. Liam could only say that even in the Scottish Highlands, the summer nights were bone-chillingly cold, forcing him to wrap himself tightly in his robes throughout the exam. The History of Magic exam the next day was the complete opposite, with the classroom being stiflingly hot, making Liam think of steamed buns in a steamer.
Of course, Liam used a bit of a trick for these two exams: before the tests, he went to the World of Radiance Academy to copy all the knowledge from the books into his mind. Since these subjects were purely about memorization, using special means to remember the information saved him a lot of time for other subjects. This was a form of resource optimization.
Liam performed flawlessly in his Herbology exam, as usual. However, during Thursday's Defense Against the Dark Arts exam, he ran into a bit of trouble: he went a bit overboard, forcing Lupin to bring in a new batch of creatures.
"Your methods are a bit too close to real combat, especially with the Grindylow. You really didn't need to knock it out and then bash its head with a branch you turned into an iron rod. Luckily, I had a few spares prepared, or the exam would have been interrupted", Lupin said with a hint of exasperation. "Of course, your performance was excellent, so naturally, you get full marks."
"Thank you, Professor." Liam then stood there, watching the others take their exams. Harry, as expected, passed smoothly. Ron, however, had a bit of trouble in the artificial swamp. Hermione also passed, though she took a bit longer than the others, mainly due to the Boggart. After the exam, no matter how much Liam pressed her, she refused to tell him what the Boggart had turned into.
For Liam and Hermione, their exams were now over. However, Harry and Ron still had their Divination class to take. As they headed to the Great Hall for dinner, Liam and Hermione looked quite relaxed, while Harry and Ron were still visibly tense.
On their way, they encountered the Ministry of Magic's trial officials, one of whom had a sharp axe at his belt, indicating that Buckbeak's chances of survival were slim.
To their surprise, the leader of the group was none other than Minister Fudge, though this time he wasn't here because of Sirius Black. Instead, he had come to discuss some important matters with Professor Dumbledore.
Just as Ron was about to speak, Liam pulled him toward the Great Hall. Using the Purple Mist Divine Art, Liam effortlessly dragged Ron along.
"Don't forget, he's your father's boss", Liam explained, noticing Ron's discontent.
"Maybe Buckbeak will be okay", Harry said, though his tone was uncertain. He knew the chances of Buckbeak being spared were slim.
Since they had no exams in the afternoon, Liam and Hermione decided to celebrate the end of their exams by sneaking out of the castle. They entered the Forbidden Forest from a different direction and made their way to the spirit plants. When they arrived at the meeting place with Wolf, they were surprised to find six unicorns already waiting for them.
"Yes, young unicorns are always curious. So, these young ones from the herd came along to see the world. After all, safe opportunities to venture out are rare", Wolf explained.
"It will be safe. I heard Professor Dumbledore will be present at the final trial. No one would dare harm you under his watch", Hermione added.
After a brief chat, the animals followed Liam and Hermione toward Hagrid's Hut. The path was usually unused, covered in dead leaves and tangled roots. It took them twenty minutes to navigate through the Forbidden Forest and reach Hagrid's hut.
"I'll go check the situation first", Liam said, casting a Disillusionment Charm on himself before heading alone toward Hagrid's Hut.
(End of Chapter)
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