Chapter 971: Lucius' Plan
Chapter 971: Lucius' Plan
"I can't say my Clearwater Charm was up to par, I just wrote down everything I knew."
"So there are only a few ways to break the Fear Charm, and I'm not sure if I wrote enough. I only remember five methods."
"And regarding the Patronus Charm..."
"Hermione!" Ron interrupted with a stern face, unable to hold back. "The exam is over, and we don't want to go through it all again after the exam. It's too torturous."
Harry nodded in agreement beside him.
The main reason was that Hermione's answers were indeed torturous. For instance, regarding the Fear Charm, he only remembered two methods, but Hermione had written down five...
If he listened further, his mental state might crumble.
"It's you, how are you?" Kyle arrived at the castle right on time and happened to meet the three of them.
Hermione's eyes lit up, and she quickly walked over.
But before she could even opened her mouth, Kyle turned and walked straight past the trio without saying a word.
"Professor Machinban, I heard from Hagrid that you were looking for me..."
Hermione stood there, her mouth slightly agape.
Harry walked up to Hermione and whispered, "I guess he was just greeting us... He didn't really want an answer."
"I... I... Hermione took a deep breath, holding back the words that were on the tip of her tongue.
"But thanks to Kyle, he told us last night how to use the Dreamless Sleep Potion, and the appropriate dosage."
Hermione turned around abruptly. "Kyle knows too..."
"Of course," Harry nodded, "That potion bottle almost got shattered by me, and Kyle helped."
"No wonder he suggested I drink a cup of hot cocoa. You guys shouldn't have given me the Dreamless Sleep Potion; otherwise, I could have read the book again..." Hermione tugged at her hair.
"And then come to the exam feeling drowsy?" Ron couldn't help but speak up.
"You haven't been sleeping well these past few days, and you don't sleep during class either. You're relying on the Vigorous Potion to stay awake, but now it's the N.E.W.T., the most stringent wizarding exam. If you do that, it will be considered cheating."
"Or do you want to take the exam with a tired mind?"
Hermione's mouth moved, but surprisingly, she didn't refute Ron.
She knew these words were true, and she had indeed been a bit too tense these past few days, and she couldn't quite accept that she hadn't reviewed before the exam.
"Yes, sorry..." Hermione's voice was small.
"What did you say?" Ron was startled, thinking he had misheard.
"I mean... thank you." Hermione said, "To be honest, today is the best I've felt in a while."
"You're welcome..." the trio said as they walked to the Great Hall for lunch... This place was originally an exam venue, but now it had magically transformed back into a dining hall.
...
The afternoon exam continued with a practical test.
Students lined up and entered the designated rooms.
Professor Machinban and another professor were seated inside, primarily responsible for the afternoon practical exam.
Additionally, Kyle was also present.
Due to Professor Snape's absence, Professor Sinistra and Professor Trelawney were still recovering from injuries sustained in the previous war at St. Mungo's, leaving Hogwarts a bit short on professors.
So Professor McGonagall brought Kyle in.
Fortunately, this task was relatively easy.
The Ministry of Magic's Examination Department would be in charge, their task was to handle unexpected situations, such as...
"Clearwater Charm!"
Kyle's wand moved slightly, and a spring of water descended from above, drenching Gryffindor seventh-year student Padma Patel and putting out the flames that had just ignited on her.
This was his job.
Some students always wanted to practice spells and wand movements until the last moment, but due to their nervousness, they would make all sorts of mistakes.
Just now, Padma Patel's wand movement was too large, and she accidentally poked herself.
"Put away your wands!" Kyle waved his wand again, and the water gathered into a ball and jumped off Padma, reminding her, "If entering this room is considered the official exam, you can go now."
Padma Patel's face turned red, and she repeatedly thanked Kyle.
Kyle waved, "Go find Professor Tofty, she's available now."
Padma hurried away.
The student behind her was Ron, who looked nervous as well, but fortunately, he didn't wave his wand randomly.
Kyle pointed to where Professor Machinban was, and he immediately ran over.
Perhaps influenced by the war between Voldemort and Hogwarts, almost all the remaining seventh-year students had suffered some injuries to varying degrees, so this year's N.E.W.T. was significantly easier than last year.
The practical Charms class only covered the Summoning Charm and the Color Change Charm. To be honest, the difficulty of these topics wouldn't even be considered challenging if they were part of the O.W.L. exams.
The following day's Transfiguration practical exam was also straightforward, focusing on the Bird Charm.
"In fact, when they decided to stay at Hogwarts and face the Death Eaters, the need for certificates became irrelevant," Professor Machinban explained to Kyle during dinner, addressing his concerns.
"So, in my opinion, this exam is merely a formality, and making it easier allows more students to obtain their certificates."
"But what about the students who didn't stay?" Kyle asked.
"They are, after all, a minority, aren't they?" Professor Machinban smiled and then cut a piece of steak, casually adding, "I've always felt that there were too many questions related to Dark Arts in the written exams, but Burns didn't see any issue with it."
Dark Arts...
Kyle blinked, understanding dawning on him.
Of course, the Hogwarts exams would never include questions involving the use of Dark Arts. They could only cover counter-curses for Dark Arts.
And during the recent war, Dark Arts were abundant. It could be said that those who participated in the war had already pre-studied for this N.E.W.T.
Moreover, it was memorable...
Kyle smiled and stopped talking.
All of this was his speculation; this exam wouldn't target anyone specifically...
...
The next exam was for Herbology, but this time, Kyle didn't offer to help. Instead, he accompanied Professor Machinban to the Hogwarts Astronomy Tower.
There, he saw someone—Draco Malfoy, with Professor McGonagall by his side.
After some time apart, Draco looked more haggard than before. His once-beautiful platinum-blonde hair now hung limply against his head, and if he persisted a little longer, he might just end up with a hairstyle similar to Snape's.
"Professor Machinban, I believe Burns should have spoken to you about this," Professor McGonagall approached and inquired.
"Mmm," Professor Machinban responded with a serious expression. "So, he's the student who can't take the exam with the others?"
"Yes," Professor McGonagall confirmed, her voice low. "He made some mistakes, but he corrected them in time. However, it's difficult for him to earn everyone's forgiveness in a short period."
"What does that have to do with the exam?" Professor Machinban frowned. "You should go find Burns and the Wizengamot."
"That's right," Professor McGonagall agreed. "But his father, Lucius Malfoy, believes he should take this N.E.W.T. Dumbledore once promised to let him return to Hogwarts.
"Regarding this, I've already discussed it with Amelia Burns."
Indeed, Professor McGonagall had consulted with Amelia Burns about this matter, right after the previous hearing.
Amelia Burns agreed.
It was said that Lucius Malfoy had donated a large sum of money, which conveniently solved the Ministry's current dilemma. His intention wasn't to escape punishment but to make amends, and he casually mentioned wanting Draco to take the exam.
It was just an exam, and Amelia Burns had no reason to refuse.
"Alright, I understand," Professor Machinban said, approaching Draco Malfoy and observing his frail state.
"Are you sure you can do this?" She furrowed her brow, "Or do you need more rest?"
"No, I'm fine," Draco Malfoy assured, patting his face and producing his wand.
The original text is in Chapter 69@9!
Due to not being able to take the exam with others, and also having to rest when others were taking the exam, Draco Malfoy had been here these days to take the written exam.
Including when others were resting.
Others had just finished two exams, and he had already completed all the written exams, with Professor McGonagall present as the invigilator.
Originally, Professor McGonagall suggested that Malfoy rest first before continuing with the practical exam, but Malfoy insisted on proceeding immediately.
So she brought Professor Machinban and Kyle over.
"I need to go to the Ministry of Magic immediately to prepare for Severus's second hearing," Professor McGonagall said to Kyle. "Can I trouble you to assist Professor Machinban here?"
"Yes, no problem," Kyle agreed without hesitation.
"That's wonderful," Professor McGonagall rubbed her forehead.
The Hogwarts exams and the hearing were happening at the same time, and her recent stress wasn't small.
Soon, Professor McGonagall left the Astronomy Tower, and after Professor Machinban understood the situation, she didn't say anything more and directly started the exam.
Because there was only Malfoy, there was no need to queue, and the efficiency suddenly became much faster.
In just a few hours, Malfoy had completed most of the exam content and started brewing potions.
Kyle casually transfigured a chair for himself and sat watching Malfoy grind the lionfish bone powder with force.
He wondered why Lucius insisted on Draco Malfoy taking this N.E.W.T. exam.
Did he really need those certificates? Although the Malfoy family had been cheated out of a lot of money by Voldemort, a skinny camel is still bigger than a horse. This was evident from the fact that he could still donate to the Ministry of Magic.
The Malfoy family still had savings, and the amount was not insignificant, enough for Draco to squander.
Could it be that Lucius felt it was too much of a loss to just donate, so he made a request? As soon as this thought appeared, Kyle shook his head.
It probably wasn't the case; Malfoy wouldn't do something so pointless.
"He should be the first..." Professor Machinban suddenly spoke, bringing Kyle back to his senses.
"The first what?" he asked.
"The first student to be expelled from Hogwarts and then take the N.E.W.T. exam." Professor Machinban's expression was a bit strange.
"There aren't many students expelled from Hogwarts, especially after Albus became the Headmaster. Only he was expelled by him.
"A real Death Eater could return to Hogwarts as a student and take the exam... Don't you think that's amazing?"
A student's identity...
Kyle suddenly raised his head.
He felt like he had guessed Lucius' idea.
Draco had been expelled, and even though he had returned to Hogwarts for a period of time, it didn't change the fact that he was a dropout.
But after taking the N.E.W.T. exam, it was different.
The certificate had the Hogwarts school emblem on it, and as long as Draco could get one, he could shake off the identity of a dropout.
This identity seemed useless, as there were plenty of them in Britain, but it could completely rid Draco of the Death Eater identity.
In the future, when others mentioned that Draco had been a Death Eater, he could show them the certificate and throw it in their faces.
"Look, even Hogwarts has accepted me again and let me take the graduation exam. Why are you still holding on?"
Thinking of this, Kyle tugged at the corner of his mouth.
What should he say? This was truly the cunning Malfoy...
However, letting Draco Malfoy return to school was also something Dumbledore had agreed to.
...
By noon, Malfoy finally completed his Potions exam and handed a bottle of Euphoria Potion to Professor Machinban.
... It should be Euphoria Potion, although the color was a bit off, but that was the question.
Then the two of them left the Astronomy Tower together.
Kyle followed behind.
Malfoy didn't stay with them for long. He seemed to have other things to do, and knowing that he wasn't welcome, he left the Astronomy Tower and departed from the school through another route.
Professor Machinban also had to take his exam paper back and pack it up, leaving Kyle alone to go to the Great Hall for lunch.
At this time, lunch should have already started, so Kyle couldn't help but quicken his pace.
But just as he reached the courtyard.
"Is this Hogwarts? An ancient castle, ugly decorations... It doesn't look very good."
An elderly witch stood in front of a stone statue, dressed in a dignified blue gown, her silver hair neatly done up in a bun, and her tone carried an unconcealed disdain.
Kyle stopped in his tracks.
"Vandar Rozier!"
"It's me," Rozier turned, laughing, "Don't look at me like that. If it weren't for his request, I wouldn't want to come to such a..."
She couldn't help but glance at the crack in the statue, slightly frowning, "Speaking of which, don't you guys at Hogwarts even have the money to change the decorations? I always thought you'd be similar to Beauxbatons."
"This is a thousand-year-old antique, a real treasure, not something you can buy with Galleons." Kyle shot back.
Although he didn't know when these statues appeared at Hogwarts, it didn't stop him from saying so.
After all, Vandar Rozier didn't know either.
...
(End of Chapter)
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