Chapter 79: A New Approach to Learning Magic
Chapter 79: A New Approach to Learning Magic
“Hmm…”
Felix felt a mix of amusement and exasperation. Did Malfoy open the Chamber? He did, indeed.
As far as Felix knew, the Chamber had been opened four times this semester.
The first time was when Harry heard the eerie voice from the ceiling while serving detention in Lockhart’s office. The second and third times resulted in the petrification of Mrs. Norris and Colin Creevey. The fourth time was when Harry saved Justin.
Malfoy only took possession of the diary after Colin Creevey was attacked, so it wasn’t entirely unjust to suspect him.
However, Malfoy was not the Heir of Slytherin. The true culprit was currently trapped in a box under Felix’s watchful eye.
“Granger, I’ve had an in-depth conversation with Malfoy. I can assure you, he is not the Heir of Slytherin.”
“But, Professor…” the young witch protested, unwilling to give up.
Felix said, “The location of the Chamber has been found, and the monster inside has been dealt with. The only thing to worry about is the so-called Heir of Slytherin, but he won’t be causing any more trouble.”
“Please pass this information on to Potter and Weasley. As a professor, I believe it’s best for you to focus on your studies.”
Hermione, however, sensed something and couldn’t help but ask, “Professor, have you found any clues?”
Felix responded vaguely, “I’ve been keeping an eye on things. So, for you and the other young wizards in the castle, the danger is over, and the adventures should come to an end.”
Hermione took the professor’s words to heart and then turned to another question, “Professor, can I learn the light transfiguration you mentioned? I know it will be difficult…”
“You want to learn this spell?”
“Yes, Professor,” Hermione said seriously. “The holiday will be over in a few days, and I don’t want to miss any classes.”
If she hadn’t known about this spell, Hermione would have resigned herself to spending three weeks in the Hospital Wing, after all, she couldn’t attend classes with a cat’s face—that would be too embarrassing.
But after witnessing Professor Hup’s “light transfiguration,” her thoughts became more hopeful.
If she learned this spell, she could wear thick clothes and a hat to class, and simply remove the cat whiskers—compared to the pain of missing two or three weeks of classes, a little discomfort was nothing.
However, Professor Hup shook his head, “Hermione Granger, while light transfiguration is not as difficult as human transformation, it’s still beyond the capabilities of a second-year wizard.”
“But, Professor—” Hermione tried to argue, “We’ve already studied animal transfiguration, and I’ve mastered it well. Even Professor Mcgonagall is very satisfied.”
“That’s a different matter,” Felix explained. “Transfiguring ordinary animals is much simpler compared to transfiguring a wizard. Do you know why?”
“Is it because of magic?” Hermione thought for a moment and said.
“Exactly, magic can interfere with your spellcasting,” Felix elaborated. “The same applies to transfiguring magical creatures, which is equally challenging.”
“That’s a real shame,” Hermione sighed.
Felix said gently, “Hermione Granger, you are one of the most talented and hardworking young wizards I’ve ever seen. Magic may seem subjective, but it has a strict logic and requires a step-by-step approach, so—”
He suddenly paused, his eyes shifting, and his wand moving in small circles.
Hermione watched Felix, knowing this was his habit when deep in thought. A glimmer of hope rose in her heart.
Perhaps the professor could find a solution?
Felix ignored Hermione and pulled out a parchment from his ring, quickly jotting down his thoughts.
Hermione leaned forward, her eyes wide as she tried to read the content.
Professor Hup first wrote "Lightweight Transfiguration" in the center of the parchment, then drew several lines from these words, each leading to a term that was either familiar or unfamiliar to her—
Casting movements, incantations, gestures, spell comprehension, magic manipulation and shaping techniques... magical theory levels. She counted carefully, and there were seventeen entries in total.
Seeing this, Hermione began to understand. Was he breaking down the factors that influenced a spell? But what was the point?
Felix paused briefly, then added a few lines under the "Casting movements" entry: "Requires wand flick and wrist techniques, refer to first and second-year spell textbooks; requires wand movement, with angle diagrams attached."
Hermione looked at these notes, which were similar to what Professor Flitwick had taught in class. The only difference was that Professor Hup mentioned far too many influencing factors! Many of them she had never even heard of.
Moreover, he listed the necessary theoretical knowledge.
For example, under the "Magical theory levels" entry, he wrote "Prerequisite theories: Basic Transfiguration; Animagus transformation; Partial Human Transfiguration theory (attached)" and a series of complex topics.
Each entry was further detailed on another parchment.
For about the next half-hour, he continued this process.
Soon, two parchments were not enough, and he had to take out a third, a fourth...
By the time Professor Hup put down his quill, there were nine densely written parchments in front of her.
Hermione looked at them in disbelief. The amount of information written for just this one spell was longer than the essay she had written.
Felix, meanwhile, was reflecting on the process—
In simple terms, he had broken down all the theoretical knowledge and casting techniques required for a spell into multiple dimensions, listing the specific requirements and evaluation standards for each dimension.
Essentially, he had broken down a single overarching goal into hundreds of smaller, measurable objectives.
With this step completed, the remaining issues became straightforward. Young wizards could practice each small goal separately until they achieved them all. Finally, they could combine them to master the complete spell.
In this process, any obstacles young wizards encountered would no longer be barriers. They could follow the map, identify their shortcomings, and address them specifically.
For example, someone with a strong foundation, like Hermione, had already completed part of the goals in advance.
These nine pages of parchment revealed all the secrets of the spell.
Of course, his method was not suitable for "Intuition-type" wizards—often, they didn't even know how they learned a spell.
Felix nodded in satisfaction. Besides himself, who had experienced repeated "level-ups", how many others in the current British magical community could dissect a specific spell so thoroughly, breaking it down with such precision?
He couldn't forget the scene when his spell leveled up—after practicing the same spell hundreds of times, he finally reached a certain limit. In his mind, all the memories of practicing that spell surfaced.
Every wand movement, every magic manipulation, every power test, every hypothesis verification...
These seemingly insignificant insights burst forth in his mind all at once. Countless sparks of inspiration shone simultaneously, forming a series of steps that pushed his spell to a new height.
...
Felix looked at Hermione, "Hermione Granger, I think I've found a method", he said gently and calmly.
If his assistant could learn lightweight transfiguration through this method, he would be confident in teaching the upcoming dueling classes.
Felix couldn't wait to test this method.
(End of Chapter)
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