Chapter 328: New Timetable and Numerical Divination
Chapter 328: New Timetable and Numerical Divination
When Vold went to the Great Hall for breakfast in the morning, he received his new semester schedule.
The timetable was packed, a stark contrast to the relaxed schedules of the previous two years, with some class times even overlapping.
Just for this morning, starting at 9 am, he had Divination and Numerical Divination, followed by Transfiguration and Spellwork.
After a jam-packed morning, the afternoon included Care of Magical Creatures, Study of Muggles, and Defense Against the Dark Arts, with Astronomy in the evening.
In previous years, Divination, Numerical Divination, and Study of Muggles were all scheduled for 9 am due to the low overlap in student enrollment. The school could easily accommodate most students' class preferences with minor adjustments.
However, this year, due to the survey conducted by Vold and others, as well as the influence of Professor Abigail, the number of students choosing Divination and Study of Muggles had increased significantly.
Numerical Divination, despite its association with Divination, had become unpopular.
After all, few students genuinely loved mathematics and believed they excelled at it, and most young wizards had not received a comprehensive mathematical education. The Numerical Divination textbook was akin to a foreign language for them.
Ancient Runes was slightly better, partly because Vold, with his reputation as a "genius alchemist," had sparked several trends in the magic world, making many young wizards yearn for it.
Many top-performing students chose Ancient Runes; to ensure a backup, they also selected two elective courses with easier OWL exams.
As a result, Divination and the previously unpopular Study of Muggles suddenly became overcrowded, and Hogwarts couldn't provide Time Turners for everyone. The centuries-old timetable had to be rearranged.
"Oh my god, Vold!" Michael exclaimed as he peeked at Vold's schedule, "So many classes! Is this hell?"
He glanced at his own schedule, which he had been complaining about moments ago, and suddenly found it more bearable.
Vold looked at his schedule again and said, "It's not that bad... I don't have this many classes every day."
The lightest day had only four classes.
Even with eight classes a day, Vold, who used to have ten classes a day plus early morning study and evening self-study, felt it was manageable.
Previously, he had to attend cram schools and extracurricular classes on weekends, but Hogwarts' curriculum didn't occupy Saturdays and Sundays.
Considering that not every professor assigned homework for every class, and most strict subjects only required a paper submission once a week...
After this calculation, the pressure Vold had just felt vanished. He put away his schedule and asked Michael, "Are you done eating? We should leave early; the North Tower is quite a distance away."
"Right away!"
Michael said, quickly finishing the remaining boiled potatoes on his plate and taking a big gulp of almond juice before jumping up from his seat.
Michael and Vold had both enrolled in Numerical Divination, so they headed together towards the classroom on the seventh floor of the castle.
As they passed through the entrance hall, they saw Harry, Ron, and Hermione rushing in. Michael watched their backs disappear at the entrance of the Great Hall, then turned to Vold and asked,
"If I remember correctly, Hermione is also taking Numerical Divination, right?"
"Of course," Vold replied.
"Then she's eating now, and she'll definitely be late for class," Michael said sympathetically.
The classroom for Numerical Divination was located near the library, and to reach it, one had to go upstairs, navigate a long corridor, and climb several flights of stairs. Even without the castle's meandering staircases, it would still take a considerable amount of time to get there.
Vold smiled and assured, "Don't worry, she won't be late."
"Really?"
"Yes."
"How is that possible?" Michael asked, surprised.
"Sorry," Vold shrugged, "it's a secret I can't share with you."
Michael stroked his chin and narrowed his eyes slightly. "Is this secret related to why you can choose twelve subjects?" he probed.
Vold smiled but remained silent, his eyes confirming the truth of Michael's guess.
Michael didn't press further. He bowed his head and fell silent for a while. Just before they reached the classroom, he let out a long sigh.
"I regret it," he said.
"What?" Vold asked.
"I should have chosen all the subjects..."
Michael sighed in frustration. "I thought the school would schedule the classes at different times or let us make up the missed ones on weekends. I never imagined the reality might be even more interesting than I guessed..."
"Taking twelve subjects will take up so much time, and doing homework for all of them... I bet you'll give up after two weeks at most..." Vold said with a smile.
He understood Michael's personality well; the word 'diligent' was never associated with him.
Michael imagined himself attending eight or nine classes a day and shuddered, silently retracting his previous thoughts.
Not long after the two settled in the classroom, Hermione rushed in, her face still bearing an angry expression as she slammed her bag onto the desk.
Vold observed her and guessed that Hermione might have just finished her Divination class—
Just as he had chosen to attend this class with Michael first, Hermione had likely gone to Divination with Harry and the others, where she heard Trelawney's prophecy about death.
A glance between the two confirmed his thoughts.
Hermione smiled helplessly at him but said nothing, even deliberately sitting at the other end of the classroom to avoid inadvertently passing on information about the 'future Divination class' to Vold.
Vold, too, averted his gaze.
The classroom was sparsely filled, and even as class time approached, there weren't ten people present. Most were from Ravenclaw, with Hermione being the only Gryffindor and no Hufflepuffs in sight.
What surprised Vold was that Theodore Nott from Slytherin had also chosen this subject. He sat alone, flipping through the Numerical Divination textbook.
Soon, a professor entered the room.
The professor for Numerical Divination was Professor Setima Victor, a female professor with thick black hair and an elegant, commanding presence.
She wore a deep red wizard's robe and a tall, pointed hat resembling a cake tube. Her voice was soft and slow, and her face bore little expression.
"Numerical Divination is a rigorous discipline that has been in use for over two thousand years," she began. "In this class, you won't be gazing into crystal balls or interpreting moldy tea leaves. Our divination methods are based on precise mathematical calculations, using numbers to explore personalities and destinies..."
(End of Chapter)
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