Hogwarts starts with stealing power.

While Lin Xia was chatting with Neville, Draco approached Mikel and extended an invitation to him.

Mikel stared blankly at Draco and asked, "Lin Xia's lab has very strict entry standards. You invited me to join without even assessing me. Isn't that a bit too much..."

Draco chimed in, "That's too sloppy, isn't it?"

Mikel nodded.

Yes, that's what he thinks.

Draco smiled and said, "You passed the Hogwarts exam and became an outstanding student, albeit a combat-oriented one. I know you also wanted to try your hand at research before, but you didn't succeed."

But now that you're an outstanding student, you'll have access to some of Hogwarts' resources. With ample materials, you can easily create a product.

"You've become an outstanding student, and in our eyes, you're qualified to join the lab."

Mikel suddenly realized that the last sentence was the most crucial.

Because he became an outstanding student, he gained the right to engage in dialogue in the eyes of others.

Draco continued, "Of course, because this is a research-oriented lab, you need to report on your projects every month and produce certain results."

If you join Lin Xia's lab, we will also provide you with some resource assistance. The more outstanding and promising your research products are, the greater the support the lab will provide.

Mikel's thoughts drifted as a task suddenly popped up in front of him from the system.

Join Lin Xia's lab, gain 1000 experience points, and simultaneously embark on a series of research side quests.

A thought flashed through his mind, and he silently asked the system, "If I don't join Lin Xia's lab, but instead apply to the school for a dedicated research lab through my own efforts, will I be able to gain experience points?"

Regardless of how you acquire a laboratory, you will receive 1000 experience points.

The host's different choices will determine the development of subsequent side quests.

[Please consider this carefully, host!]

Mikel frowned slightly, then asked the system in his mind, "If I join Lin Xia's lab, will I get more missions?"

However, this question did not receive a systematic response.

So Mikel asked again, "If I ask the university for a separate laboratory, will I get more assignments?"

I still haven't received a response from the system.

Mikel's eyes flickered, two conflicting thoughts swirling in his mind.

He privately felt that having his own independent laboratory would give him more freedom and allow him to use the resources provided by the school to do what he wanted.

However, he also knew that each task in the system required certain conditions to be met before it could be triggered.

He used to hang out with Neville, which triggered all the quests related to Neville, but the experience points were very low.

Later, when I hung out with Ron and Harry, I triggered quests related to those two, and my experience points actually increased a bit.

However, the difficulty of the task is also increasing day by day.

Although his experience points were decent, the difficulty level always made Mikel hesitant to take on the task; the slightest mistake could expose him.

He hadn't had much contact with Lin Xia, and he didn't know if the mission triggered by Lin Xia would be any different.

Lin Xia frequently conducts research, so the tasks she triggers are likely research-related.

Research missions seem better than missions that involve fighting other people, at least your life won't be threatened.

"Mikel, what are you thinking about, Mikel?"

Draco's voice came from beside my ear.

Mikel snapped out of his daze and said apologetically, "Could you give me a few days to think about it?"

Draco's smile remained unchanged: "Of course."

Mikel added, "I had previously tried applying to schools for research-based honors programs, but I was rejected at the initial stage. Perhaps I don't have the talent for research."

Draco thought for a moment and said, "You can think of it this way: the reason I invited you to join Lin Xia's lab was simply to share resources with you."

“Here, it doesn’t matter whether you have research talent or not. What matters is that the school will invest a lot of resources in you. We hope that everyone can share in the fruits of this labor.”

He paused, then said meaningfully, "For that reason, we wouldn't mind putting your name on some research projects."

Mikel understood immediately.

He was somewhat tempted.

Unexpectedly, one day he actually managed to become a so-called "second author".

From this perspective, joining Lin Xia's lab would greatly reduce the difficulty for him to become an outstanding research student.

If you want to set up your own laboratory, you have to pass the school's assessment on your own.

This is actually a bit difficult for him.

He had previously wanted to change his wand into a magic sword to trigger magic, but this wild idea was not understood by the school.

Mikel sighed inwardly.

They all misunderstand my talent!!

After lunch, instead of returning to their respective common rooms, everyone went together to the Gryffindor common room to make their way to Ron and Harry's dormitory.

In the morning, Lin Xia promised Ron that she would personally go to his dormitory to check the magic rune array that might have lost its effectiveness.

Ron kept it in mind and couldn't wait even a day. He hoped Lin Xia could go and check on it at noon.

However, students from other colleges need to apply to the professor and explain their reasons for visiting a common room that is not their college's.

So Lin Xia and the others went to find Professor McGonagall first.

Professor McGonagall also happened to have something to discuss with Lin Xia, and the two briefly explained their purpose.

When McGonagall learned of Lin Xia's reason for going to the Gryffindor dormitory, she was somewhat surprised: "Just to check the rune array that has already stopped working?"

Lin Xia nodded: "It's not just about checking, but also about repairing. Ron wants to find his pet."

His pet went missing at the end of last semester. Ron stayed at school during winter break, and while his pet returned, it didn't come looking for him. He wanted to know what had happened.

McGonagall hesitated for a moment, "But..."

Lin Xia said, "If you're worried, you can send a professor to accompany us."

McGonagall shook her head: "It's not that I'm worried, but the common rooms in each house are not shared. This is to prevent intruders from capturing us all at once. Each house has a different way of entering and a different password."

If Lin Xia had made this request before, McGonagall would have agreed without hesitation.

But ever since she learned that some students at the school might be colluding with evil gods and perhaps creating another Tom Riddle, she has become wary of everything concerning the students.

Many policies that were previously relaxed are now being tightened again.

McGonagall thought for a moment, then shook her head and said, "Let Ron learn rune arrays on his own. Starting this semester, students from different houses will not be allowed to travel to other houses. They couldn't travel to other houses before, and now they can't visit each other's houses at will."

Lin Xia asked, "Professor, is it because of the martial law at the beginning of the semester that the school hasn't found the strange things hidden on campus yet?"

McGonagall said calmly, "It's not because of this. A long time ago, the common rooms of the four houses were not interconnected."

She changed the subject, took out a newly revised work schedule, and handed it to Lin Xia.

"This is Hufflepuff's duty roster. Starting tomorrow, you will patrol according to this roster." Lin Xia looked down and noticed that the duty roster had changed a lot.

Previously, schools were divided by grade level, with older students patrolling more dangerous areas and younger students having an easier time.

Now, the school is divided into four colleges.

Each college has upperclassmen and lowerclassmen, who rotate through the danger zones.

Of course, the school also takes care of younger students and will not let them go to dangerous areas.

While Lin Xia was talking with Professor McGonagall.

Outside the office, Mikel and Navee's eyes met.

These two friends, who used to be very close, met for the first time after the holiday, but the atmosphere was very awkward.

The two did not exchange letters or gifts during the winter break.

They're supposed to be good friends, but sometimes they're even colder than ordinary friends.

"Navie," Mikel spoke first, "how was your winter break?"

Nave: "It's great. I've taken care of my yard and learned a lot about herb cultivation."

He countered with, "And you?"

Mikel: "I'm doing pretty well. I'm helping with testing at school, and I'm busy every day."

Neville opened his mouth, curious about the contents of his test.

But he knew that everyone had signed a confidentiality agreement, and that no one outside the testing team could speak about it until the product was officially announced.

So he silently shut his mouth again.

As for the discussion about the restricted book zone, he knew nothing about it because he neither participated in the patrols nor signed the agreement.

Neville suddenly realized that he and Mikel had very little in common and had nothing to talk about.

Even Mikel noticed the awkwardness.

However, unlike Neville's disappointment.

Mikel, however, knew that once Neville entered his senior year, he would rise to prominence and demonstrate his magical talent.

When he read the original book and watched the movie, some netizens joked that the real hero was Neville Longbottom, not Harry Potter.

Voldemort was actually looking for Neville, but everyone's attention was focused on Harry, who was born that day.

Many people have overlooked the fact that Neville was also born on the same day.

It can only be said that his grandmother hid him too well; everyone intentionally or unintentionally overlooked Neville.

Compared to Harry, who quickly rose to prominence, Neville was quite unremarkable when he first entered Hogwarts; he was timid, cowardly, and afraid of trouble.

They entered Gryffindor, yet lacked the courage to carry on the school's legacy.

Timid and inconspicuous.

Mikel thought about Neville's subsequent display of power and sighed deeply in his heart, "This is truly the chosen one!"

Around them, Ron, Harry, Hermione, and Draco gathered together, discussing an experimental test.

Ron and Harry offer nonsensical suggestions, while Hermione and Draco refute their views based on practical considerations.

This is one of their usual ways of brainstorming.

Many researchers are limited by their own fixed mindset, and often need suggestions from non-researchers to have a flash of inspiration. Therefore, Ron and Harry play the role of "muse" in the laboratory.

This discussion method was proposed by Lin Xia.

She instructed Draco and Hermione to communicate with the two of them frequently and listen to their thoughts.

If they don't do this, Ron and Harry will become even more transparent in the lab, which is not what Lin Xia wants.

Dumbledore valued Harry highly.

Therefore, Lin Xia hopes that after Harry joins her laboratory, he can also find admirable qualities and grow.

As long as Harry grows up and is happy.

Dumbledore would then focus less on the laboratory.

The four were engrossed in their heated discussion and did not notice Mikel's pointless and dry conversation with Navina.

A short while later, Lin Xia came out of the professor's office.

This time, she brought everyone terrible news.

Lin Xia shook her head at Ron and said, "The professor doesn't allow me to enter Gryffindor's common room. He said that the school has never allowed students from the four houses to visit each other, and the method and password for entering each house's common room are kept secret within their respective houses."

Ron frowned. "But when you participated in patrols before, you also checked the common rooms of the various colleges. Why didn't the professors mention it then?"

Lin Xia said, "Starting this semester, everything has become stricter."

As she walked out, she said that she planned to go to the lab first.

What she didn't say was that before she left, Professor McGonagall suddenly asked her a question.

This very issue made Lin Xia wary, realizing the professor's distrust of her, and also the grim situation within the school.

"Lin Xia, if you could gain knowledge from the evil god and protect yourself from its incantations, would you cooperate with it?"

Lin Xia's answer at the time was: "No, Professor, I will never work with a bunch of devils."

Professor McGonagall must have suspected something!
It's unclear whether she only doubts herself or a large group of outstanding students.

Lin Xia had originally intended to open Tom's diary these past few days, talk to Tom, ask him some questions, and at the same time, separate Tom's soul from the diary.

But now, she decided to put the diary back into a box filled with sealing magic runes.

Let’s wait a little longer.

This semester, while at school, avoid contact with anything related to Voldemort, lest the school discover something.

In the laboratory.

Lin Xia shared her thoughts, suggesting that Ron learn the magic rune array on his own.

Ron, however, didn't want to, and had another idea: "How about this, I'll borrow an invisibility cloak for you, and you can sneak into Gryffindor's common room?"

Lin Xia asked, "What if we run into a professor when we go in?"

Ron hesitated and said, "The professor can't detect the invisibility cloak."

Hermione said, "Let's not do it. It's too dangerous. We know the school doesn't allow it, but we're still taking a huge risk to break the rules. If we get caught, we won't be able to explain ourselves no matter what."

Harry, on the other hand, wanted to support Ron.

He really wanted to find the rat, Spotted.

Draco, on the other hand, sided with Lin Xia: "Ron, you should hurry up and learn the rune array. You've already learned some basics over the winter break, so you should be able to learn something new faster this time."

As for Mikel and Navey, they hadn't officially joined the lab yet and had returned to their dormitories. (End of Chapter)