Chapter 92: Change and Learning
Chapter 92: Change and Learning
As Ved had anticipated, the Slytherins did not report the incident to the professors.
A group of seven or eight Slytherins had ambushed a Ravenclaw of the same age, but not only had they lost the fight, they had also been scared into wailing and crying. Even someone like Draco Malfoy, who always bragged about his father, would not want others to know about such a shameful incident.
After Ved left that day, the group had supported each other as they made their way to the hospital wing, claiming that they had accidentally caused an explosion while privately practicing potions. While it was common for students to make such mistakes, it was unusual for so many students to be injured at once. Madam Pomfrey thought that Professor Snape had neglected his duty to supervise the students and complained about it for over half an hour.
Hearing that many students from his house had been injured, Snape hurried to the hospital wing. Before he even entered, he could hear Madam Pomfrey's grumbling voice.
Snape, confused: "..."
Not knowing what had happened, he could only stand at the door with a gloomy expression as he bore the brunt of the scolding.
After all, when Snape was a student at Hogwarts, Madam Pomfrey had already been the school's nurse. He often clashed with James Potter and his group of friends, resulting in frequent injuries that required her care. Nowadays, while Snape could argue with Dumbledore, he would always hold back when facing this particular woman.
Although Snape remained silent, his cold gaze swept across the faces of the students. He immediately recognized that the large patches of redness on their bodies were caused by a failed scabbers potion. However, they had already been studying potions for over half a year—who would still make such a basic mistake?
If it had been Neville Longbottom from Gryffindor or "Explosion Expert" Seamus Finnigan, it would have been somewhat believable.
When Madam Pomfrey left to attend to other students, Snape approached and asked, "What happened?"
Draco Malfoy, his face covered in medicine, kept his head down, his expression unreadable. "It was my own carelessness, Professor," he mumbled.
Snape narrowed his eyes.
Draco Malfoy's posture reminded him of someone—himself, over a decade ago. Whenever he had ended up in the hospital wing, he would also make similar excuses.
But back then, he knew that even if he told the truth, no one would be able to help him, and it would only invite more ridicule and worse bullying... Why would Draco Malfoy, who was always spoiled by his parents, hide the truth and protect the bullies?
However, since they had all been beaten up together, Snape didn't feel like bothering to investigate further—he had always felt that with Draco Malfoy's arrogant and foul-mouthed attitude, it was only a matter of time before he got into a fight.
...
The next day at noon, Michael and Ved were on their way to the Great Hall for lunch when they encountered the Slytherins. Michael tensed up instinctively, but then he noticed that the two students—Mylison and Nott—had lowered their heads slightly. They continued on their way and only looked up again after Michael and Ved had passed by.
"What did you do to them?" Michael asked, incredulous.
"Well..." Ved thought for a moment. "You probably won't believe me, but they gave up without a fight even before I entered the classroom yesterday."
Michael looked at him skeptically but then nodded as if he understood. "If it's a secret you can't reveal, then pretend I never asked."
"It's not really a secret," Ved said slowly. "I can show you, but I hope you won't be too scared."
"How scary could it be?" Michael asked, initially skeptical but then remembered something that made him anxious. "Did you get your hands on a Boggart?"
Boggarts were shape-shifting creatures that could transform into a person's worst fear.
Ved shook his head. "No, I don't have one... But if the opportunity arises, I would like to experience it someday."
As they spoke, a group of Slytherin girls led by Pansy passed by. Upon seeing Ved, they nodded slightly, their expressions somewhat unnatural.
After several encounters, Ved noticed a subtle change in the attitude of the Slytherins, or at least some of the first-years. Instead of resentment, contempt, or a desire for revenge, they now regarded him with a mixture of fear, admiration, and adoration.
The Slytherins—it seemed they all had a tendency to admire strength...
The thought flitted through Ved's mind.
...
Without the Slytherins' targeting, Ved's school life was mostly occupied by his studies. He didn't even attend the Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff Quidditch match, only hearing later that Harry had caught the Golden Snitch in just five minutes, and that Snape, who was officiating the game, looked particularly displeased.
The Diffindo spell turned out to be more challenging than expected, especially since Ved wanted to create a storage container akin to Newt Scamander's, which functioned like a miniature world. Professor Flitwick advised him not to rush it.
In his free time, Ved also crafted two alchemical creations to practice his skills: a slowly rotating Mobius strip with a little man endlessly walking on it, and a small crab that could sweep and mop the floor automatically, occasionally spraying colorful bubbles that lifted the mood of onlookers. Both Hermione and Padma adored the little crab.
By the way, on Sunday afternoon, Ved brought his insect training partners to the dome, and they produced an unprecedentedly sharp and loud hissing sound. Harry knocked off the mantis's foreleg with a powerful Disarming Charm, Hermione successfully cast the Ferrous Spell for the first time, and Michael burned the spider with a fiery spell, causing it to squeal.
As it turned out, despite their ugly appearance, the insect training partners were highly effective teachers. Even Neville showed noticeable improvement by the end—when Padma was surrounded, he jumped onto the spider's back and thrust his wand into its large compound eye.
Lupin's magic lessons had also begun, and the first spell Ved wanted to learn was the memory-extracting curse.
[Lupin: May I ask why you want to learn this spell?]
Lupin's words on the friend page were filled with caution. He subtly advised: [According to the Ministry of Magic, any spell that tampers with another person's memory is illegal.]
[Ved: I'm only going to use it on myself.] Ved replied after a moment: [I've forgotten something important and must remember it. Also, I want to learn the Occlumency spell. Do you know it?]
[Lupin: Of course. During the Wizarding War, we all had to learn how to prevent enemies from extracting information directly from our brains. But to be honest, I'm not an expert in this field. The person who truly excels at this type of magic is Severus Snape.]
[Ved: I just want to know the conventional practice methods. At the very least, I don't want anyone to silently infiltrate my mind and take control of my will.]
Ved had no intention of learning Occlumency from Snape, as those skilled in sealing their minds often excelled at Legilimency as well. However, he couldn't allow anyone to see through his thoughts and memories.
Communicating through the friend page gave him a greater sense of security. Even if the learning effect was slightly diminished, Ved could make up for it through practice.
In the Room of Requirement, after Ved finished writing a line and was waiting for Lupin's reply, he glanced at a gray stone basin sitting on one of the pillars.
The basin was flat and wide, empty without a drop of water. Its outer rim, however, was inlaid with gems that sparkled brilliantly, making it quite ornate.
(End of Chapter)
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