Hogwarts: The Exemplary Wizard I Am Chapter 665: Harry's Painful Joy - Novel Cool

Chapter 665: Harry's Painful Joy

Chapter 665: Harry's Painful Joy

For the remainder of the holiday, Kyle didn't see Umbridge once, as if she were deliberately avoiding him.

Kyle was relieved, as he didn't want to see Umbridge constantly during the break.

However, others weren't as fortunate. Kyle often heard complaints from students about being reprimanded by Umbridge for the slightest of infractions.

They described her as an enhanced version of Filch, making the entire castle echo with grievances.

On the last day of the holiday, in the evening, students returning to school for Christmas filled the castle with life.

Fred and George demonstrated their latest product from the Weasley Joke Shop on a raised platform in the Great Hall.

It was a peculiar hat with pink feathers that looked silly, but when Fred put it on, his entire head, including the area below his eyebrows, disappeared.

This caused an uproar in the Great Hall, with screams and laughter.

Kyle was also surprised, as invisible products were rare.

He initially thought the Weasley brothers used Invisible Beast fur, similar to common Invisibility Cloaks, but when George announced the price of two Galleons, he dismissed the idea.

Two Galleons couldn't buy a hat-sized piece of Invisible Beast fur, not even close.

Moreover, their product differed from Invisibility Cloaks.

Invisibility Cloaks could only hide covered areas, and smaller objects might result in body parts being exposed.

But Fred's entire head, including the area below his eyebrows, had vanished, indicating a different principle from Invisibility Cloaks.

Kyle guessed they combined the Disillusionment Charm with Extended Runes.

"That's a brilliant idea," Cedric and others exclaimed, "If they enhance the effect, they might achieve full-body invisibility."

"That's not easy," Kyle said, "I doubt they'd spend much time on this."

"Makes sense," Cedric shrugged.

The Weasley Joke Shop, being newly established, needed a variety of novel products to attract customers. They wouldn't waste time on something a simple Disillusionment Charm could achieve.

As the Great Hall filled with students, Fred and George quickly amassed a substantial number of orders.

It wasn't until Professor McGonagall entered the Great Hall that they reluctantly descended from the platform.

Soon after, Snape arrived, but instead of joining Professor McGonagall at the staff table, he walked directly to the Hufflepuff table and stopped in front of Kyle.

"Come with me!" he said, then strode out of the Great Hall.

"What's up?" Cedric asked, "Did you offend Professor Snape again?"

"No," Kyle said, then followed him to the foyer outside the Great Hall.

"It's the last day of the holiday, but I haven't seen Potter, and no one in the school seems to have seen him..."

In the foyer, Snape said without expression, "I'm beginning to suspect whether you're teaching him Occlumency or sending him out of school.

"I hope it's not the latter, or you'll have to explain to the Headmaster."

Harry?

Kyle hesitated for a moment, then suddenly clapped his thigh and said, "Oh no, why didn't you tell me earlier!"

Snape watched Kyle's back, his face darkening as if he might burst into a tirade at any moment.

But Kyle didn't have time for that now. No wonder he had seen Hermione and Ron searching restlessly in the Great Hall earlier; they were looking for Harry! Kyle sprinted off, soon reaching the eighth floor.

As he pushed open the Room of Requirement, he spotted a splash in the distant lake.

Harry, drenched, stumbled to the shore and skillfully dried his clothes with magic.

Harry's Occlumency skills were unknown, but his Warming Charm was impressive; Kyle didn't even hear the incantation.

A few minutes later, Harry fell into the lake again... He repeated the process, drying his clothes at the shore.

Meanwhile, Fox stood on a nearby tree, eating Hog's Leg one by one, occasionally glancing at Kyle indifferently.

When it looked up again, it spotted Kyle and flew over.

The commotion naturally caught Harry's attention, and he turned around, muttering to himself, "Strange, I see Kyle, and there's a Phoenix too. I must be dreaming again.

"That's not right, that last hit hurt. Am I knocked out?"

It wasn't until the Cat-Panther bounded over to Kyle's side that Harry realized Kyle was really there this time.

Harry was so excited he almost cried, scrambling over.

"Is it over? Is the lesson over?" he asked eagerly, looking at Kyle, "I've mastered Occlumency, I swear!"

Kyle didn't doubt, even though he had only observed for a while. However, the Cat-Panther had hesitated several times when striking, indicating it couldn't see clearly.

The Cat-Panther confirmed this.

It growled, "Still visible, but blurrier, right?" Kyle asked.

The Cat-Panther nodded, glancing at Harry with some disdain.

Not only Harry, but the Cat-Panther was also tired these days. It had to beat people up while controlling its strength to avoid real harm, a skill that tested its patience.

Strictly speaking, the Cat-Panther was even more eager than Harry to end this lesson.

"You've worked hard, Nadali," Kyle said, opening the Room of Requirement, "I've prepared Hog's Leg and Dragon Blood Ham for you. Eat up."

The Cat-Panther jumped in without hesitation... Fox also flew in behind it. Kyle was about to leave the Room of Requirement, not wanting to appear before other students.

"Kyle... is that a Phoenix?" Harry asked, rubbing his eyes in disbelief.

"Yeah, Fox, you should have seen it in the Headmaster's Office." Kyle packed up his box and said, "It's like your supervisor, or your critical moment therapist. Come on, let's go outside. If you still want to stay here, that's fine too..."

Before Kyle could finish his sentence, Harry dashed towards the door.

He'd be crazy to want to stay here.

Harry had lost count of how many times he'd been beaten; all he knew was that he got beaten up daily, and the water he splashed could fill a whole new lake.

Compared to the past few days, the ten years he spent with the Dursleys could be considered warm and cozy... at least his uncle and aunt didn't beat him with a stick every few minutes, but the cat-panther did, and it hurt like hell.

Its tail was like an iron rod, each strike leaving a mark, yet it never hit the bones, causing pure pain. This left Harry without an excuse to give up.

For a while, Harry even thought that learning Occlumency from Snape was pretty good.

"I've been getting beaten up almost all day!"

On their way back to the Great Hall, Harry couldn't help but complain to Kyle, "Sometimes, even when I'm sleeping, my bed mysteriously flips over."

"That's because you're sleeping too much." Kyle said, "The cat-panther only enters that room during training time."

"Even if that's the case..." Harry scoffed, "But don't I need rest time? You threw me into the Room of Requirement and never took me out again!"

"That's also a necessity of training." Kyle explained, "Learning Occlumency requires shedding unnecessary emotions. Continuous training, though tough, also ensures you won't be disturbed by other matters, keeping your brain in a completely relaxed state.

"In fact, I was like you in the beginning, eating and living with the cat-panther. Almost every time I opened my eyes, I'd get beaten."

Hearing that Kyle was the same, Harry felt a little better, and now that he thought about it, he realized he had a pretty fulfilling time.

The Dark Lord, the Order of the Phoenix, Umbridge, and other bothersome matters seemed to have disappeared from his mind for a long time, and his sleep quality had improved significantly. He could fall asleep as soon as he touched the pillow, without any weird dreams, and would wake up with the sunrise.

"By the way, Kyle, how long did it take you to learn Occlumency?" Harry asked curiously.

"I forgot..." Kyle thought for a moment, "It should be about a week too. The cat-panther couldn't read my thoughts anymore. How about you?"

"Nothing." Harry shook his head, feeling secretly pleased.

If it took him a week to master Occlumency, and Kyle also took a week, doesn't that mean his talent in this spell is the same as Kyle's?

As a well-known good student at Hogwarts, no one would question Kyle's talent in magic.

Harry never thought he'd have the same talent as Kyle, just like how he felt excited when he found out his grades were on par with Hermione's after an exam...

Thinking of this, Harry wasn't as angry anymore. He joked, "I've been counting the days, thinking today was the last day of the holiday. I was sure you'd come to pick me up, but I didn't expect you to come only now. I thought you'd forgotten about it."

"Haha... How could I?" Kyle forced a laugh, "It's just that Umbridge returned to school early. You didn't sign the stay-at-school list, right? It wouldn't be good if she saw you."

Hearing Umbridge's name again, Harry's good mood instantly vanished.

"You're right. If she found out I returned to school early, she'd be excitedly jumping up and down. Luckily, you didn't come to pick me up in the morning... Compared to being questioned by Umbridge, I'd rather be beaten by the cat-panther's tail."

"Ah... It's nothing, it's what I should do." Kyle said, "Let's hurry, the banquet should have started."

"Banquet?" Harry's eyes lit up.

Although the house-elves had been delivering food on time these days, under the cat-panther's relentless torment, Harry had no mood to taste their flavors, only eating to survive.

Now that it's finally over, and with a banquet to attend, he subconsciously quickened his pace.

...

When the two returned to the Great Hall, it was already filled with people. Harry instinctively looked towards the staff table, and there sat Snape.

For some reason, he felt Snape's gaze was a bit strange, as if it was different from usual.

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However, Harry didn't pay much attention and just glanced before turning around and heading towards the Gryffindor table.

Snape was slightly stunned, his expression a bit surprised. He didn't expect Harry to actually learn Occlumency, even though it was only from a sieve to a fine mesh, it could still block those messy mental intrusions.

And to achieve this level in a week is an incredible progress.

But the more he thought about it, the more Snape felt uncomfortable. As a proper professor, he was outperformed by a sixth-year student in teaching. Snape couldn't accept this for a while.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Harry had just sat down at the Gryffindor table when Hermione and Ron approached him.

"Where have you been?"

"We've been looking for you for over half an hour, but everyone who stayed at school said they haven't seen you these days."

"I've been staying in the Room of Requirement." Harry lowered his voice, "You know, to learn Occlumency."

"How's it going?" Ron asked.

"Well...it's alright," Harry said. "I think I've got it."

"You've got it?" Hermione looked at Harry in disbelief and blurted out, "So fast!"

"Fast?" Ron was puzzled, "Harry wasted an entire vacation, isn't it normal to learn a spell?"

"It's not easy!" Hermione nodded solemnly, "Or rather, it's much more difficult than any spell we've encountered before, including Segment Transfiguration and the Patronus Charm."

In fact, after Harry returned to Hogwarts, Hermione also tried to learn Occlumency. She read a lot of related books, Giving Your Brain a Door, Controlling Your Thoughts, and Memory and Thought. She finished all three of the books recommended by Mr. Weasley and asked Bill and Tonks for help for several days in a row.

But how to put it, until this morning when she went to the station, she still hadn't learned the spell.

Bill said she had improved a lot compared to two weeks ago, but Hermione could tell he was just comforting her.

Hermione originally thought Harry was about the same, but she never expected him to have already learned it... This made Hermione feel a sense of defeat.

"How did you learn it?" she asked eagerly, "Can you tell me?"

Hearing Hermione ask this, Harry thought of the six-legged leopard cat and its swishing tail, and shuddered involuntarily.

"Trust me, Hermione, don't ask. You definitely won't like it."

Hearing Harry say this, Hermione became unconvinced. "As long as I can learn this spell, no matter how difficult it is, I can persist."

Hermione was entitled to say this; when it came to learning, she had always been very determined. For example, in her third year, she managed to get through all twelve subjects... Even if she hated Hogwarts, students who could do this were few and far between.

"It's not a difficult thing..." Harry said.

Seeing Hermione's disbelief, he hesitated for a moment, then rolled up his sleeve to reveal his arm. "You see for yourself."

Harry's arm was covered in green and purple bruises, as if someone had splashed paint all over him.

"Oh, Merlin's beard!"

"Wow!"

Seeing this, Hermione and Ron both exclaimed in surprise, instantly drawing the attention of those around them.

Harry quickly let go of his sleeve and put on an air of nonchalance.

"Is this Snape's doing?"

But Hermione ignored this and said angrily, "This is too much! How could he hit you? This is against school rules... No, it's against the Wizarding Law. I must tell the Headmaster!"

"Yes, that's right," Ron agreed angrily, "He doesn't deserve to be a professor!"

"Hey, calm down," Harry said in a low voice, "Although Snape's actions are excessive, this has nothing to do with him. It's Kyle."

"Kyle?" Hermione was taken aback and continued, "Even if it's Kyle, he can't hit you..."

"No, no, no. It's not Kyle hitting me, it's the leopard cat." Her sentence was cut short by Harry's interruption.

At this, Hermione was completely stunned.

Involving Kyle was already somewhat unbelievable, but now there's also a leopard cat? If she remembered correctly, this was a rare magical creature, and only a few could be found in the entire Wizarding World. How could it possibly appear in Hogwarts?

Harry quickly explained what had happened a few days ago.

Hermione and Ron listened as if they were hearing a story about a troll learning ballet, and they were astonished, unable to close their mouths.

Even if they racked their brains, they couldn't imagine Kyle finding a leopard cat to teach Harry... and that's how Harry learned Occlumency himself.

"That's how it is," Harry said, "These marks are just scary-looking, but they're all external injuries. Even if you ignore them, they'll be gone in a day or two. Don't worry."

"So you've been with the leopard cat these days?" Ron asked with a frown.

"A whole week," Harry said, his voice filled with unconcealed heartache.

"So the leopard cat's eyes seem to have Legilimency abilities."

Hermione nodded thoughtfully, "And when its eyes turn purple, the ability turns into hypnosis, which is the most frightening aspect of the leopard cat. Because in known defensive magic, there are few that can resist hypnosis."

"What? The leopard cat can hypnotize?" Harry tugged at his hair.

"Don't you know?" Hermione asked in return.

"No," Harry said, "The one I saw had blue eyes."

"Haven't you considered looking at books?" Hermione seemed annoyed, "You should know that the Room of Requirement provides books according to your needs. We did this during DA gatherings."

"But Hermione, I've been running for my life! Where's the time to read books?" Harry exclaimed.

"You don't sleep for a few hours?" Hermione frowned, "Can't you spare twenty minutes? It's always good to learn more about your opponent."

"Twenty minutes?" Harry sighed, "Do you know I've fallen asleep on the floor right at the door several times?"

"But..."

Hermione wanted to say something, but in the end, she shook her head, "After the banquet, I'll take you to the Hospital Wing. Madam Pomfrey should be able to help you recover quickly."

"No, I won't go," Harry refused firmly, "What I want most now is to get back to the dormitory and have a good sleep on a soft bed... As for these bruises, based on my experience, they'll be gone in a couple of days without any treatment."

"But Hermione, if you're not in a hurry, I think it's better not to learn Occlumency this way. It's really too painful."

This time, Hermione didn't argue, as Harry's crash course didn't seem suitable for this.

(End of Chapter)

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