Hogwarts: Harry Returns from Azeroth

Chapter 176, Section 175: Hero Hermione and the Shaman's Soul Power
“Don’t mention it,” Harry waved his hand and said, “No matter what others say, just do what you think is right—those who waver because of what others say will never achieve anything.”

“A hero only needs to acknowledge himself,” Hermione suddenly said, then quickly lowered her head under Harry’s gaze and explained, “That’s something I read in a book, uh, although it’s from a book… but the principle is right, right?”

“Of course,” Harry said softly, his gaze deep. “You will gradually understand this as you grow up… But let’s not talk about that. If you’d like, I can introduce you to a very nice old lady who is also a Squib.”

"Her?" Hermione tilted her head.

"Mrs. Figg," Harry said briefly, "lives on Privet Drive, just like my uncle's family. They're our neighbors. Before my relationship with my uncle's family improved, they would leave me with Mrs. Figg when they needed to go out."

"A Squib neighbor?" Ron said, somewhat puzzled. "What a coincidence."

“Actually, it’s not a coincidence. Mrs. Figg was probably sent by Dumbledore to protect me,” Harry suddenly laughed. “Looking back now, a lot of things were already exposed, since owls would fly into Mrs. Figg’s house all the time.”

"Dumbledore's person," Hermione said in surprise, "then this Mrs. Figg must be a very nice person, right?"

“I don’t want to lie to you,” Harry’s smile grew wider. “But actually, I didn’t like her back then. I thought she was crazy, had a bunch of cats at home, and smelled like cabbage. Every time I was forced to go to her house, I was asked to see pictures of her cats, which was incredibly boring.”

“Harry…”

"Why are you looking at me with such pity?" Harry said with a smile. "There's no need for that. Actually, to be honest, I miss the days when I lived with Mrs. Figg... At least it was safe there, I didn't have to worry about being killed in my sleep, and I could eat my fill."

Without saying a word, Hermione simply held Harry's hand, and Harry didn't pull away.

"Anyway, if you'd like, I can take you to meet her and see how a Squirrel who's already integrated into Muggle society lives, how the wizarding world treats her, how she views magic, and so on—you can ask her yourself," Harry said earnestly.

“I have to warn you in advance that even if Mrs. Figg isn’t as extreme as the Squibs you’ve met today, it doesn’t mean she’s normal. Don’t have too many illusions.”

“A less insane Squib in comparison,” Ron nodded beside him. “I understand.”

“Shut up, Ron,” Hermione glared at Ron before turning to Harry and saying, “I would be happy to meet Mrs. Figg, Harry, and I won’t get any ideas.”

"Wouldn't that be even better?"

With the comforting words of her friends, Hermione gradually calmed down... at least she wouldn't have trouble sleeping that night.

She is still the Hermione Harry remembers, full of energy when she decides to do something.

He searched through the library for historical records related to Squibs, personally asked the Squibs who had been chosen and temporarily placed in tents next to the giant totem some questions about their past lives—he even went to the edge of Hogwarts to ask the unchosen Squibs who were still guarding the roadside.

Even though they had cursed themselves viciously just yesterday.

Harry admired Hermione's initiative. It's valuable to see bad things, but even more valuable is her willingness to take action to make changes. This is far better than those who only talk the talk.

As long as Hermione hasn't given up on this path, even if she hasn't achieved any substantial success, Harry feels that she's already a hero compared to those Squibs who are often overlooked.

That's why Hermione didn't even sit next to the other apprentices who were just there to watch the fun. Instead, she sat as a classroom assistant next to the Squibs who were incredibly nervous because so many young wizards were watching them, constantly reassuring them.

The clever girl recounted her experience last year when she and others tried to establish a connection with the earth element—well, to be honest, there wasn't much experience involved; it was just a matter of calming down and being peaceful. But this story did manage to calm these Squibs who had long lost their confidence.

Filch, a legendary figure known to everyone in the Squib community, was among them. He proudly shared his story, praising Harry's greatness and the life-changing opportunity he had selflessly given him, almost like a missionary.

Speaking up.

A seasoned professor has a set procedure for dealing with each year. For example, when dealing with first-year students, Professor McGonagall would choose to give them a tough start, teaching the restless newcomers full of magic to be cautious.

As for the course content, the content taught to students in each grade is actually fixed every year. What content should be taught at what time has been clearly arranged. So from the professors' perspective, their work is actually quite boring - they need to teach the same things over and over again.

These were all tips and tricks that other professors had shared with Harry in private. As the youngest professor at the moment, Harry received a lot of care.

Based on these experiences, Harry didn't think about doing anything new or fancy in his class. Everything was the same as the first class at the Shaman Club last year, well, at least the venue was different.

Harry, dressed in his shamanic outfit, pushed open the door and came out, emitting a few firework-like explosions with his wand overhead, which quieted down the noisy students gathered together.

He introduced himself, explained the significance of the course, the duties and abilities of a shaman, shared his ideals, introduced the existence of the four elements, and once again summoned four colossal elemental giants, demonstrating this power amidst the cheers of the students and the fervent gazes of the duds…

Students who took their first Shaman Club class last year felt the scene looked familiar, but no one could resist seeing such a cool elemental giant again—well, hopefully they wouldn't need to see it seven times.

Seven times in a row... even the most ardent fan of elemental giants would be filled with anguish. As the class progressed to the middle, and many students were excitedly awaiting Harry to distribute the Earth Pact potion, Harry abruptly stopped talking and looked around at the students below.

After a pause, Harry said leisurely, “What an ancient term. The legend of shamans has been passed down in both wizarding and Muggle societies—it means a primitive polytheistic sect.”

"The initial impression of shamans was that they connected the ever-changing natural phenomena with human life itself, endowed them with subjective consciousness, and thus revered and prayed to them."

"It exists in various tribes, or in mythological and legendary sacrificial occasions, and the objects of worship have gradually increased from all things in nature to the ancestors of their own tribes - I think you are already very clear about this traditional concept of shaman priests."

“Yes, Professor Potter!” a student shouted, standing up after raising his hand and receiving permission. “The Daily Prophet clearly stated that you pioneered a new profession, invented new magic, and redefined the word shaman—the elemental shaman! The true shaman!”

Having received the information from Harry and done her own research, Rita had already satisfied people's curiosity in the Daily Prophet.

“Yes, the Daily Prophet has already made it clear enough,” Harry remarked, marveling at Rita’s dedication. “But do you guys remember what I said at the very beginning of this class?”

“Shamans, we are the coordinators between the elements and the protectors of the natural order. We also possess the power of the soul and are responsible for communicating with our ancestors and drawing upon the wisdom of all things,” Harry repeated what he had said at the beginning.

"Yes, we can indeed bring balance to turbulent elements, using their power to heal wounds or cause harm—but haven't you noticed that there's another part to the shaman's duties?"

“The power of the soul!!” Fred couldn’t help but exclaim, “Professor Potter, are you serious?! Communicating with ancestors—my God! This sounds unbelievable! And spirits really exist?!”

For a long time, the students thought that Harry's description of communicating with ancestors and spiritual power when introducing shamans was a description of a ritual—like all shamans, who, when needed, set up a suitable place to worship ancestors and ritually inform the dead of things concerning the living.

What matters is the ritual itself; they don't expect any response from the ritual.

But what does this mean now?
Judging from Harry's words, could it be that they can really communicate with their ancestors?!

Soul power—is it the kind of soul power they're thinking of?!

Sitting at the very front of the classroom, listening to the excited shouts and chatter of the students around him, Dumbledore couldn't help but let out a long sigh.

He knew it.

Although I agreed without much hesitation yesterday, I'm a little nervous thinking about the little pressure Dumbledore from the Ministry of Magic that Harry mentioned.

So he still came to audit the class today, and as soon as he heard Dumbledore's voice, he knew what Harry was planning to do—this wasn't just some minor pressure from the Ministry of Magic, it was pure pressure from the entire wizarding community.

And it's not small at all.

Dumbledore shook his head with a wry smile.

From the beginning, those close to Harry knew that he could summon back the souls of the dead. Here, a particular professor dressed in black is especially mentioned. He would often appear beside Harry, without saying a word, just staring at Harry until Lily's soul was summoned.

If such things circulate on a small scale, it's fine, but if they spread, it's very easy to be accused of manipulating the souls of the dead and be regarded as the most evil black wizard.

Wizards do possess magic related to the soul, but it is all classified as dark magic, the kind that would summon hordes of Aurors to arrest anyone who even notices a hint of it. If they were to enter Azkaban, they would be confined to the deepest, most prestigious cells.

But now Harry is directly claiming that shamans have mastered the power of the soul and can even communicate with their ancestors... Dumbledore gets a headache just thinking about how the wizarding world will react to this news.

“Yes, that is one of the duties of a shaman,” Harry continued. “I can tell you very clearly that in this world, all the souls of wizards have the same destination—the Enchanted Realm.”

Harry uttered a term that most wizards had never heard of.

"It is a unique world that is attached to the real world, and it is also like a state between life and death. It is a long and endless path, and it may even exist simply within the wizard's mind. Everyone sees different things - those dead wizards will continue to move forward along this path. It is an adventure that is different from reality."

"But if the soul of a dead wizard is filled with resentment and obsession, or fear, then he will not continue on this journey, but will return to the real world and become a ghost that you are already very familiar with."

The students were in an uproar. They had never imagined that the ghosts they saw every day could have come to be like this, while the Squibs looked enviously at the distant castle, having never seen a ghost before.

“Professor Potter!” a Hufflepuff student couldn’t help but raise his hand and ask, “Only wizards’ souls? Where do Muggle souls go?”

“I don’t know,” Harry answered honestly. “I am a wizard, and my ancestors were wizards, so I was able to communicate with their souls through the illusion. To answer your question, I’m afraid you would need someone who is a pure Muggle, along with their ancestors, to become a shaman.”

"However, as far as I know, there are currently no Muggle ghosts in this world."

Harry's words caused an even bigger uproar. The students excitedly discussed their thoughts and Harry's words with those around them, not only because Harry had clearly stated that he had successfully communicated with the Potter family's ancestors, but also because of his last sentence—can a pure Muggle become a shaman?!
(End of this chapter)