Chapter 879: O.W.L. Exams
Chapter 879: O.W.L. Exams
As the exam date drew closer, the atmosphere within the castle grew increasingly tense. Even the most mischievous young wizards had to temporarily buckle down and focus on this important test that would determine their future paths.
Seamus and Neville, who shared the dormitory with Ivan, were particularly affected by exam anxiety. They even practiced spells from the Standard Book of Spells in their sleep.
What surprised Ivan, however, was that the relationship between Harry and Snape did not improve as much as he had expected. There was only a slight change.
Snape finally stopped deliberately belittling them in Potions and his attitude toward Harry shifted from hostility to indifference, as if Harry Potter didn't exist in the school at all.
Conversely, Harry was also unsure how to face the man who had once spoken harshly to him but was willing to risk his life to protect him in crucial moments...
Each time they met in the corridors, the atmosphere was especially awkward.
Ivan found their lack of honesty amusing but saw no way to change the situation. After all, the misunderstandings between them had already been resolved, and he had done all he could...
In this tense atmosphere of intense revision, the first O.W.L. exam arrived quickly.
On Monday morning, Ivan and his classmates ate a quick breakfast and gathered outside the entrance hall, waiting to be called into the Great Hall for their exams. Each O.W.L. exam was divided into a theory section and a practical section, usually held in the morning and afternoon, respectively. The exams took place in the spacious Great Hall.
Students were called in class by class and monitored closely by professors and Ministry officials as they completed fifty questions within the allotted time.
Ivan was probably the most composed of all the students. After finding his seat, he calmly opened his exam paper and began to read through it.
"Write the spell to make an object fly and describe the standard wand movements..."
"What is the common counter-curse for a Binding Spell?"
"If your companion is hit by Petrificus Totalus, how should you effectively respond..."
...
"This seems pretty simple", Ivan thought as he flipped through the exam paper. The difficulty of the O.W.L. exams was lower than he had anticipated, consisting mostly of basic theoretical questions that could be found in the spell textbooks from the past five years.
For Ivan, who possessed Ravenclaw's Diadem, these questions were like free points. He just needed to write down the answers!
Ivan wrote quickly and filled out the entire exam paper in less than half an hour after the exam started.
For the remaining time, Ivan pondered how the Hogwarts examination system could be improved.
Firstly, the content of the exams was too monotonous and not deep enough.
This was probably related to the usual course of study.
To graduate early, Ivan had already read through the textbooks for all seven years of study but found no mention of the exploration or research of magic itself.
Hogwarts' curriculum merely taught students the widely used spells and how to use magic.
This might be sufficient for the average wizard, but for Ivan, a true magical civilization required a large number of scholarly wizards with a spirit of inquiry!
Just as Muggles tirelessly explore scientific knowledge, wizards could also delve into the characteristics and essence of magic to create more practical spells to transform the world.
On this point, Ivan was very confident, as the deeper he delved into his studies, the more he understood the vast potential of Magic.
Even within the existing Magic system, there were numerous applications involving space and time. The Philosopher's Stone created by Nicolas Flamel could fundamentally alter the nature of matter, something that scientific research would struggle to achieve in centuries.
This was where Magic held its advantage!
What Ivan found incredibly regrettable was that due to most Wizards being overly protective of their knowledge and the scarcity of academically focused Wizards, many advanced spells had already been lost to time.
This was especially true in Alchemy. The Goblins of today were incapable of crafting a second Gryffindor's Sword, and Wizards were equally stumped in their research on Time-Turners.
If the Ministry of Magic's Department of Mysteries were ever to be reduced to ashes, time travel would become impossible.
This was not a situation Ivan was willing to accept; change was necessary!
And the school was the perfect environment for nurturing a spirit of inquiry!
For example, Snape, during his fifth year, was able to independently develop practical spells like "Sectumsempra" and "Levicorpus", and even improved the formulations of many potions.
Such a top-tier research talent was overlooked and remained unknown at Hogwarts, which Ivan found hard to understand. In Muggle universities, he would have been showered with honors and accolades!
Of course, part of the reason was the chaotic state of the Wizarding World at the time, and Snape’s preference for keeping a low profile. However, this also highlighted the shortcomings in Hogwarts’ educational system, which failed to identify and nurture these research geniuses.
Then there were George and Fred, who displayed exceptional talent in the creation of Magic Items. If Hogwarts had a course on Alchemy, they would have undoubtedly shone in class.
Ivan twirled his quill, racking his brain to think of what new courses he should propose for the next school year.
Professor Flitwick, who was overseeing the exam, watched him for a long time, thinking Ivan was struggling with a question. Curious, he took a few steps closer and realized that Ivan had already finished and was simply daydreaming.
Ten minutes later, the exam ended on time. Ivan submitted his paper and left the exam hall with Harry and the others, who were anxious about their performance.
Hermione, almost the moment they stepped out of the entrance hall, eagerly started comparing answers with Ivan. She was worried that her response to the Petrificus Totalus question was not comprehensive enough.
"Besides Finite Incantatum and a specific Reparo, there are three potions that can quickly reverse the petrified state. I can't believe I didn't think of that at the time", Hermione lamented, fearing that Flitwick would deduct points for her oversight.
"You answered perfectly, Hermione. This isn't a Potions exam, and I only wrote down the three potions as a precaution", Ivan said, exasperated by her continued fretting. "You need to have more confidence in yourself. No one will outperform you in theoretical subjects."
As they talked, Harry and Ron exchanged glances, too intimidated to interject. They had only written Finite Incantatum for that question and had secretly rejoiced, thinking they would get full marks for it.
(End of Chapter)
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