A certain Hogwarts professor of runes

Felix clearly noticed Hermione's gaze.

"Oh, those are indeed books on dark magic, but what's that saying again? If you want to defend against dark magic, you need to have some understanding of it. As far as I know, the Aurors in the Ministry of Magic specialize in teaching some dark magic."

"But I rarely see them..."

"Some wizards don't use black magic, but that doesn't mean they don't know black magic."

Felix smiled gently at her. "I once traveled the world for a year, and I must say that black magic is indeed more effective in solving certain problems."

Upon hearing Professor Hyp's explanation, she quickly considered it and found the reason barely acceptable, but still said with a stern face, "Professor, I still suggest you use black magic less in the future. I read in a book that black magic always subtly infiltrates your heart, corrupting you without you even realizing it—"

"—Many young wizards go astray because of this, especially underage wizards, for whom dark magic is an irreversible poison to the mind," Felix said, following Hermione's words.

Seeing the little witch's surprise, he blinked. "I've read this book too."

"However, I still want to thank you for your advice."

Hermione pursed her lips, her expression mirroring Professor McGonagall's.

Seeing his assistant looking somewhat sullen, Felix subtly changed the subject, praising, "I didn't expect you to have read so many books. For your age, that's quite an achievement."

Following the professor's gaze, Hermione then discovered that the other half of the room—the side closer to her, divided by a small table—had a completely different decorating style.

The warm sunlight cast large swaths of radiance, and the light brown carpet and pale yellow curtains created an extremely comfortable atmosphere. In the center was a small round table with two potted plants on it.

On the wall directly opposite is a floor-to-ceiling bookshelf. Inside are hundreds of neatly arranged books, and on the second shelf from the top, there are seven or eight photo frames, including family photos and photos of Hermione from childhood to adulthood.

Right next to the bookshelf was an ivory-colored door.

Hermione covered her mouth in surprise; this half of the space was seven or eight tenths similar to her room at home.

She turned to look at Professor Hep, her mind filled with doubts, for only this professor could answer her questions now.

Professor Hyp provided the answer: "This is a world of thought, a dwelling place of imagination, you can call it whatever you want. Of course, none of this is real; we are merely consciousness existing here."

Hermione clicked her tongue in amazement. Standing at the boundary between the two spaces, she stared wide-eyed, looking left and right. She waved her hand hesitantly. "So, this place was built by us together? Half of it represents your inner world, and half of it represents my inner world..."

Felix pointed to his head, "It's merely an external reflection and projection of a part of our inner world."

"And all our deepest secrets are behind the door." He glanced at the ivory door first, then waved his wand lightly, and the dark green curtain behind him rolled up high, revealing a tall doorway.

Hermione visibly relaxed; she had quite a few secrets she wasn't willing to reveal easily.

For example, Harry's Parseltongue.

"Professor, why did we come to this...world of thought?"

Felix didn't answer directly, but instead shared some of his experiences: "After graduating, I spent a year traveling around the world before settling in London to specialize in Muggle studies."

"Muggles are no less intelligent than wizards, and in many ways, such as logic, reasoning, and problem-solving methodologies, they are superior. And more importantly, they are more likely to pass on their knowledge."

"They will pass on their knowledge, accumulating it generation after generation, so that quantitative change leads to qualitative change."

"Wizards also have traditions, such as Hogwarts, but they are far behind in terms of inheritance and development."

"It was when I realized this that I started reading Muggle books. To be honest, I was used to animated photos, so reading Muggle books was quite a change."

"Their research on mind and brain has caught my attention. I've found that they've gotten ahead of us in this area—which should be a better area for wizards—after all, we have a range of memory spells like Oblivion, Legilimency, and Occlumency."

"But unfortunately, we only inherited the spell, not the idea."

"So, I combined Muggle knowledge to create a magic, which, although it is still quite different from what I originally envisioned, is perfectly suited for our teaching today."

"What's the use of this magic?" Hermione asked curiously.

"Your thinking speeds up," Felix explained. "Here—I call it the Mind Hut—your thinking speeds up, and through this place, we have the illusion that time is stretched out. I can only increase it three or four times at the moment; any higher and it becomes dangerous."

"Similar to this magic is the Baffy Mind-Awakening Potion, but the two do not work exactly the same. The latter can enhance the user's mental abilities."

Hermione's eyes widened. "Professor, this magic is absolutely amazing!"

Felix shook his head. "It's not perfect yet."

Seeing that the professor was unwilling to say more, Hermione began to practice inscribing ancient runes. She used chestnut wood chips that Felix had provided her—which was also one of the drawbacks of this magic: what you cannot understand cannot appear here.

For the rest of the time, Hermione practiced on her own, with Felix providing guidance every now and then.

Seven hours of thinking.

Felix noticed that Hermione's face was covered in sweat, and her figure was fading, making her look somewhat like a transparent ghost.

"Professor, I can't concentrate, I can't maintain... focus."

"Well, it's almost time. Let's call it a day." Felix snapped his fingers, and the next moment, the world spun around them, and their thoughts returned to the lounge.

Felix's wand was still resting on Hermione's head when he suddenly staggered and nearly fell to the ground.

He pressed one hand to his forehead and waved his wand with the other, and a bottle of potion flew out of his suitcase.

Under the wand's command, the potion bottle acted quite consciously, not only opening its lid by itself but also summoning two cups to pour out some of the potion.

On the other hand, Hermione was in a much worse state. She collapsed onto the sofa, her face contorted in pain, as if she were about to faint at any moment.

"Drink it, it will relieve your symptoms."

Hermione reluctantly drank the potion.

"Have a piece of chocolate." Felix handed her another piece of chocolate.

Seven or eight minutes later, Hermione finally came to her senses, muttering repeatedly, "That was horrible, that was horrible."