Hogwarts: Voldemort, don't stop me from studying!

In his previous life, when Wade was less than ten years old, he could write at least three hundred words in an essay, and that was in Chinese, which is known as a "language compression package"; if it were in English, he could easily expand it to a thousand words. And after systematic training in high school, university, and graduate school, it wouldn't be impossible for him to write ten thousand words in two days.

After studying with Michael, Hermione, and others for a while, Wade finally understood the reason.

Among the first-year students, Hermione completed her essays with the least difficulty, except for Wade. At the very least, she didn't make mistakes in basic grammar, rarely encountered words she couldn't spell, and was able to quickly grasp the key points of the text and then clearly and logically paraphrase them.

The above points are difficult for the other three to achieve, even for Michael of Ravenclaw.

Because they were all from wizarding families.

Wizards live almost entirely isolated lives from ordinary people—even if one spouse is Muggle-born. Most wizarding families live in seclusion, never actively seeking contact with Muggles, and even placing "Muggle-repelling charms" around their homes to prevent Muggles from accidentally intruding into their lives. Therefore, wizards are unaware of Muggle clothing and technology, and they certainly wouldn't send their underage children to Muggle schools. In their eyes, this is no different than humans sending their children to be taught by monkeys living in trees.

In Britain, there is only one magic school, Hogwarts; there are no "magical primary schools" or "magical universities." In the wizarding world, children under eleven are primarily homeschooled—if parents have time, they will teach their children to read, write, and do simple arithmetic; but if they have irresponsible parents, their children may not even know how to spell "quill."

Michael and his friends basically started receiving education from their parents from the age of five or six, so they didn't have major problems with reading and writing. However, being able to read and write and having learning ability are two different things. Compared to the systematic education in Muggle schools, wizarding home education lacks many things. For example, when wizarding parents teach their children to read, they don't specifically cultivate logical reasoning and summarizing abilities—Wade suspects that many wizards may not even have this concept, after all, they have always disregarded Muggle theories.

Furthermore, the young wizards, including Hermione, generally lacked the ability to quickly extract key points from texts and comprehend them. For example, at most, they could only understand that "if objects A and B have the same temperature, and B and C have the same temperature, then A and C also have the same temperature"; however, their reference books stated that "if each of two thermodynamic systems is in thermal equilibrium with a third thermodynamic system, then they must also be in thermal equilibrium with each other. That is, if it can be confirmed that the physical properties of two systems will not change when they can exchange heat, then even if the two systems cannot exchange heat, they can still be assured of being in equilibrium."

The young wizards: ...?

A string of letters glides smoothly through the brain without leaving a trace.

Hermione can memorize everything by rote with her powerful memory and then slowly understand it by comparing it with different sources; but most junior wizards can only write down a bunch of notes that they can't understand themselves, scratch their heads and fumble their way through an assignment and hand it in, hoping that the professor will be lenient and give them an A (pass).

Furthermore, eleven-year-olds are away from their parents attending boarding school, and the house professors are not strict—even the notoriously strict Professor McGonagall or Professor Snape wouldn't interfere with whether young wizards without classes were sleeping in their dormitories or playing games in the common room. This relaxed environment naturally puts a great strain on the self-control of minors. Laziness and play are human nature, but learning is not; learning is only interesting to a very small number of people.

For example, Hermione.

For example, Wade.

In just half a month, the two stood out from the first-year students. The difference was that Hermione was strict with herself and others, and resolutely refused any copying of homework or violation of school rules; while Wade never minded others copying his homework. When he buried himself in his studies in the practice room and practiced spells repeatedly, he never forced others to work hard with him.

Vader understood perfectly well the laziness that teenagers often exhibit in their studies; he had been like that in his past life. In this life, he worked harder than anyone else, not because he loved studying, but because he loved magic—because for him, magic wasn't an innate, taken-for-granted ability, so he cherished this opportunity more than anyone else at school.

After practicing until nearly curfew, Vader hurried back to the Ravenclaw Tower. The corridors were eerily quiet, as if everyone were asleep. But upon entering the lounge, he realized it was still too early.

Hogwarts has a curfew, but no lights-out time. Students can stay in the brightly lit common room all night if they wish. At this moment, the Ravenclaw common room is filled with students from all years—couples in love are whispering sweet nothings on the sofa in the corner, bored young wizards are playing wizard chess at the round tea table, and older students are rushing to finish their homework.

Despite the large number of people, it wasn't noisy; the Ravenclaws all consciously lowered their voices when they talked.

Seven or eight people were gathered on the sofa in front of the fireplace, with occasional soft giggles from girls drifting over. Wade glanced at them, then casually found a secluded corner to sit down, starting to read and take notes.

Seeing this, Michael, who was in the crowd, smiled and said a few words to the girl next to him, then walked over and sat down next to Wade.

"Studying so late again?" Michael leaned against the table and said, "Wade, we've only been in school for less than a month, and you've almost finished all the first-year material. What are you doing with the rest of your time? I'm not saying this to be mean, but you're working a bit too hard. Sometimes you should relax. Wade, bro, do you know how many girls want to get to know you?"

He raised his eyebrows toward the fireplace, eliciting another burst of soft laughter from the girls.

Wade put down his quill, his grey eyes fixed silently on Michael, and asked, "I don't know. But Michael—do you know how long we can stay at Hogwarts?"

Chapter 16 Time waits for no one

"What?" Michael looked bewildered.

Hogwarts has a seven-year curriculum, but if a student fails any of the Ordinary Wizarding Level (OWL) exams, they must leave the school after graduating from their fifth year. Michael didn't understand why Wade would ask such an obvious question.

“Seven years,” Wade said with some sadness. “A year is only fifty-two weeks. Subtracting summer vacation and Christmas break, we can only spend about thirty-eight weeks a year at school. Seven years is only 266 weeks!”

“Uh…” Michael thought for a moment, “That’s right—so what?”

"So... even if I could master a book in a week, I'd only have 266 books in seven years! But how many books are there in Hogwarts' library? Thousands upon thousands! It's like a vault overflowing with treasure, open for anyone to take, but you come in, take a look around, and only leave with a small bag of Galleons. Don't you think that's a waste?"

Michael thought what he said made a lot of sense, and he suddenly felt a sense of urgency that "time waits for no one".

“And think about it,” Wade continued, “For only these seven years… no, 266 weeks, we can be in the safest place in the world, at any time, asking questions to the greatest wizards of our time. Our Transfiguration teacher is Professor McGonagall, one of only seven Animagus in the 20th century; our Charms teacher is Professor Flitwick, the tournament champion; our Potions teacher is Professor Snape, the Potions Master… Although our Defense Against the Dark Arts professor is a bit lacking, where else can you find such a good learning environment after leaving Hogwarts? After graduation, when you encounter advanced magic or potions problems, who will be so selfless in guiding you and teaching you step by step? When you want to learn powerful spells but can't find a way, won't it be too late to reminisce about the Hogwarts library?”

Not only Michael, but also the students around him who had quieted down at some point couldn't help but nod.

“So Michael—” Wade asked in a deep voice, “Do you still think that spending one-seventh of your time studying only eight books is enough?”

Completely convinced by Wade's theory, Michael shook his head vigorously, wanting to say something but unable to. However, the thought of the two weeks he had "wasted" made him feel a little anxious.

He stopped chatting with the girls and started studying from the "Beginner's Guide to Transformation" that he had thrown into a corner.

For a moment, the Ravenclaw common room became quiet, with only the sound of pages turning and quills writing. The two fifth-year students, who had rushed back just before curfew, thought Professor Snape had invaded the Ravenclaw common room. They didn't even dare to breathe loudly and tiptoed back to their dormitories.

…………

Dinner time, in the auditorium.

"Something's not right, Fred."

“Yes, something really is wrong, George.”

The red-haired twins exchanged a glance, then simultaneously reached out and grabbed a Ravenclaw student, slamming him onto their parent table before he could even yell.

"What are you two trying to do, Weasley?" the Ravenclaw boy, who was being held down, said irritably. "I don't have time for your pranks."

"Huh? What?" Ron, who was gnawing on a chicken leg, looked up in confusion.

“None of your business, Ronnie!” Fred pushed his brother’s head back, and the twins put their arms around the Ravenclaw boys’ necks on either side, asking, “Davis, what’s going on in Ravenclaw lately?”

"Taking a book with you while eating—"

"Carrying a book while walking—"

"You can hardly see any Ravenclaws in the courtyard during lunch break—"

"Even their Quidditch practice isn't as intense as it used to be—"

"I didn't even go on a date over the weekend!"

"You weren't always this fond of reading, were you?"

"Seriously, did Snape secretly drug you?"

"—For example, an aphrodisiac called 'Love of Learning' or something."

Roger Davis shuddered at the thought of Professor Snape's face being associated with something that smelled pink like aphrodisiacs. "Don't talk nonsense. Professor Snape would never use aphrodisiacs... No, I mean, there's no such thing as an aphrodisiac... No, we just suddenly realized that life is short, and the time available for learning is even shorter."

"Huh?" The two Weasleys looked at him with confusion.

Roger Davis took a deep breath and looked at the twins seriously: "Fred, George, do you know how long we can stay at Hogwarts?"

Fred silently reached out to feel the temperature of his forehead.

“I haven’t lost my mind!” Davis slapped his hand away and earnestly began to explain theories such as “266 weeks,” “tens of thousands of books,” and “not studying hard is like entering a treasure mountain and leaving empty-handed.”

After saying that, Davis took his book and went to the Ravenclaw table for dinner. The Weasley brothers looked at each other, and even Harry and Ron, who were originally focused on eating, stopped without realizing it.

A spirit of diligent study began to quietly spread throughout Hogwarts.

Of course, most people only have a short attention span. For example, Ron only managed to finish his paper on the history of magic before starting to play with his moving wizard chess pieces; the twins, for instance, still spend most of their time playing pranks and researching magical tricks. But there are also some who are secretly inspired to start working hard.

Michael is an intermittent worker. He's intelligent but not hardworking. Sometimes he'll be influenced by Wade and work hard for a while, but he'll soon be drawn to something more interesting, like using magic to manipulate paper dolls to fight, or discussing music or fashion with pretty girls.

In the practice room, it's mostly Wade, Hermione, Theo, and Ryan.

Sometimes Professor Sprout, who taught Herbalism, would come to check on them, probably worried that they were doing some dangerous practice. After seeing the setup of the practice room and the students' progress, she praised them highly, adding five points to each house's score, and said that students could ask her questions when she didn't have classes, and she would be happy to answer their questions.

Professor Sprout was a very gentle and kind witch. She almost never discriminated against students based on their house affiliation, but she favored those who showed exceptional talent in herbalism. Soon after, Professor Sprout recommended a Gryffindor student to their study group—Neville Longbottom.

The round-faced boy was honest and kind. He was quite clumsy in his studies and learned magic slower than anyone else, but he worked very hard and never caused trouble. He quickly integrated into their small group.

On a weekend evening, a notice posted on the lounge bulletin board caused a stir among all the first-year students—they would be taking flight lessons starting next week!

Chapter 17 Flying Lessons

Flying has always been humanity's greatest dream, and Vader was no exception. In his view, one of the greatest benefits of learning magic was the freedom to soar through the skies. Of course, one could also fly in an airplane, and it was far more comfortable than riding a broomstick or a winged horse. But without a doubt—the latter was much cooler.

Ravenclaw's flying lessons are with Hufflepuff, on Friday afternoons. Prior to that, Gryffindor and Slytherin flying lessons are on Thursday afternoons.

Starting Monday, all the freshmen were talking about flying, and Michael was no exception.

“You know what? My most thrilling experience was riding a broomstick down a cliff and racing an eagle!” Michael boasted, a sausage stuck on his fork. “We plunged down from 1,300 meters and hovered just 15 centimeters above the ground! The grass was practically touching my nose!”

"That's amazing!" Theo at the next table exclaimed, convinced. "Michael, you should play Quidditch. You're definitely good at the Lansky feint! Many famous players can't do that!"

Michael blushed slightly, but forced a smile and said, "Y-Of course! I have to say, after Professor Flitwick sees my amazing performance in flight class, he might invite me to join the Quidditch team ahead of time!"

"Absolutely! You're a genius!" Theo exclaimed in praise.

Michael's face turned even redder.

At the long table, some of the older Ravenclaw girls chuckled as they watched Michael, clearly seeing through his lie.

To cover his embarrassment, Michael turned around and said, "Wade, do you need me to give you some flying instructions beforehand? So you won't be nervous when you ride the broom. I'm an expert in this; I was already flying around the house on a broom when I couldn't even walk."

“Really? I think we need some guidance too.” Hermione pulled Neville over quickly and sat down next to her, carrying a pile of books in her arms—Quidditch Origins, The Miracle of the Wigton Tramp, He Flies Like a Madman, and the like.

"You borrowed so many books?" Wade asked in surprise.

“Yes, but it doesn’t help much.” Hermione put the book on the table and said impatiently, “These books are almost all about Quidditch, a barbaric sport, and they don’t say anything about how to fly more smoothly.”

The girl's words immediately provoked the Quidditch fans' displeasure. Michael raised an eyebrow and said, "Savage? Hermione, you probably don't know. Quidditch is the most popular and exciting sport. Everyone loves Quidditch! It has nothing to do with savage! No, I should say—you don't understand its wild charm at all!"

“Really?” Hermione retorted bluntly, “But it made Golden Flying Man a protected species! Endangered!”

“Quidditch is right!” Michael shouted first, then asked curiously, “...What’s Golden Flying Man? It sounds a bit like Golden Thief?”

“It’s a small, agile bird,” Wade said, having read this section before. “In the past, a Snitch would be released during Quidditch matches, and the match would end when the team’s hunter killed it. As a result, Snitches went from being as common as sparrows to extremely rare, necessitating the establishment of protected areas to prevent their complete extinction. Although the Snitch was later invented to replace the Snitch, some Quidditch teams in certain countries seem to have retained the old custom. So even now, Snitches remain a protected species.”

Hermione raised her head and said, "That's right. So Quidditch is a barbaric sport built on the lives of countless golden-throwing heroes. It's a pity that nowadays not many people care about the poor golden-throwing heroes, but only cheer for a sport that can cause death!"

The girl completely forgot why she was sitting at that table, and stormed off with her books in her arms, leaving the remaining boys looking at each other in bewilderment.