Hogwarts: Lacus doesn't want to be a witch who destroys nations.

"Damn Tom, damn Dumbledore, damn confinement..." Lux mumbled incoherently as she leaned against the warm fireplace in the common room, her chin resting on a thick textbook on Defense Against Magic. In front of her lay her densely written notes from her Charms class.

To make up for the points deducted, she has been like a completely different person in the past two weeks. Even Professor Horace, who has always been somewhat prejudiced against Lux, privately expressed a hint of surprise at her change of heart.

"Lux, aren't you really going to the hall for dinner? They have Yorkshire pudding with steak today!" Roommate Anna Weasley leaned over, looking at the blonde girl who seemed to have been marinated in knowledge with surprise.

"I'm not going!" Lux said without looking up, her voice muffled. "Knowledge is my sustenance! The Charms professor said that if I get an excellent score on next week's basic Charms test, he'll give Gryffindor five extra points!"

Although Lux can easily learn any spell with the system's help, the effectiveness of its casting depends on her own practice, which is why she is studying so hard here.

Her eyes gleamed with an almost obsessive light in the firelight. "Five points! Anna, we're only thirty points away from closing that huge hole!"

Another roommate, Phoebe Longbottom, looked at her with awe: "Lacus, Merlin's Beard, you've gained more points than all of us in the first year combined. Although you've also lost more points than the entire first year, even when the headmaster praised you as 'the brightest rising star of the first year' in class yesterday, Professor Slughorn's face almost fell to the ground. He must be heartbroken that his prized student Tom didn't get that title."

Mia Brown added with a grin, "And since you've been helping Alphad and the others with their spells, the entire first-year class calls you 'Gryffindor's walking library,' and even Ravenclaw students are sneaking over to ask you questions!"

Even Tom Riddle has been looking at her with a strange curiosity these past two weeks. After that night in the Forbidden Forest, he became even more curious about the mysterious "Crownguard family" and the ancestral holy medicine that Lux had mentioned.

Tom occasionally ran into Lux in the corridor. He maintained the elegant mask of a Slytherin heir, merely nodding in acknowledgment. But Lux knew perfectly well that this kid was definitely up to no good, just waiting for the right opportunity.

However, the shining image of the model student faced an unprecedented and severe challenge during Thursday afternoon's flight lesson.

The Quidditch pitch looked particularly empty in the cold wind; the grass was withered and yellow, and the cold wind howled across the stands, stirring up clouds of dust.

A group of first-year students, wrapped in thick robes, stood nervously at the edge of the court, each with a well-worn-looking broom provided by the school at their feet.

The flight instructor was a tall witch, Ms. Roland Dutch, who wore smart leather trousers and high boots, with a shiny whistle hanging from her waist. She exuded competence and unquestionable authority. She was a senior Quidditch referee and flight instructor at Hogwarts.

"Alright, you little rascals!" Madam Dutch's voice boomed, drowning out the wind. "Stand up straight! Put your brooms on the ground to your right! Although I've only just returned to Hogwarts because of some things, and it's almost Christmas before I give you your first flying lesson, I believe you can all learn!"

"Today, we're going to learn the first lesson in flying: how to properly command your brooms and how to get them to obediently lift off the ground by one foot."

She demonstrated cleanly and efficiently: extending her right hand, palm down, and commanding in a clear and decisive voice, "Up!" The gleaming Comet series broom beside her feet rose up in response and landed steadily in her hand.

"See that? Don't treat it like a flying log, treat it like your partner, and show respect to the broom!" Ms. Dutch's gaze swept across the room like a searchlight, causing several already nervous freshmen to instinctively shrink back.

"Now, it's your turn. One by one, don't rush, and don't be afraid. Remember, falling down might hurt for a moment, but if you fly out of control, no one can catch you!"

The new students began to try, and the court was filled with shouts of "Up!" The brooms reacted in different ways: some lazily rolled on the ground, while others sprang up so high they almost poked their owners' noses…

A few, like Tom, were exceptionally gifted; their brooms would almost instantly and obediently leap into their hands with fluid, elegant movements, eliciting quiet admiration from the Slytherins nearby.

Abraxas Malfoy also easily completed the summoning, his platinum-gold hair flying in the wind. He glanced at Tom, a reserved smile on his lips, as if silently exchanging the superiority of purebloods.

Lux's turn. She took a deep breath, mimicking Ms. Dutch, and extended her right hand, her voice trembling slightly: "Up!"

Her broom jerked violently on the ground, and then... stopped moving again.

"Willpower, Miss Lux," Mrs. Dutch warned, frowning. "You have a fear of the sky, and there's fear in your voice. The broom can sense it."

Lux looked a little embarrassed. A fear of heights? Are you kidding me?!

But standing on the empty field, looking at that broom handle, the dizziness she felt when looking down from a high building in her past life flashed uncontrollably through her mind.

Lux steadied herself and tried again, this time much louder, almost shouting, "Up!"

This time, the broom finally rose up, albeit shakily, but it only reached her knees and nearly hit her leg, leaving her in a very awkward position.

"Ha ha..." A sneer, undisguised and full of superiority, came from the Slytherin team. Abraxas Malfoy crossed his arms, his face full of undisguised mockery. His voice was neither too loud nor too soft, just loud enough for the entire stadium to hear clearly.

"Look at our Gryffindor mobile library. It seems book knowledge can't make brooms fly. What's wrong, Miss Lux? Can your magical little orbs help you overcome your fear of heights? Or is it that your mysterious 'Crownguard Family' hasn't even taught you basic skills like riding a broom?"

Abraxas has disliked Lux ​​for a long time, ever since the first "mutual aid group" when Tom helped Lux ​​escape points in order to show his leadership, but that doesn't mean others won't have opinions.

Abraxas was the most vocal in his opinion. He had never heard of the Crownguard family before. Although Tom was convinced of their existence, he believed that they were mostly fabricated by Muggles. Today, he was going to take this opportunity to expose this guy who was pretending to be a pure-blood family.

A suppressed, malicious chuckle escaped from the Slytherin students around him. Tom Riddle didn't laugh; he just stared coldly at Lux, his eyes filled with assessment and barely perceptible pleasure. He was happy to see this "madwoman" who always humiliated him make a fool of herself in front of everyone, especially in one of his areas of expertise.

It wouldn't be a bad thing to have Abraxas test Lux on his behalf.

The Gryffindor students looked at Lux with some embarrassment and worry. Anna walked over and whispered, "Lux, ignore him..."

Lux stared at the useless broom at her feet, then glanced at the arrogant Abraxas. A familiar urge to "go crazy" that had been suppressed for a long time by the pressure of the Academy Cup and her status as an outstanding student suddenly surged up!

Fear of heights? Insufficient movement speed? Heh... Lux sneered inwardly, her thoughts instantly diving into the system interface in her mind. The gold coin bar displayed [310] - in the past few months, apart from frantically learning spells to earn gold coins, she had basically not spent money recklessly.

The 【Shop】 interface unfolded before her eyes, with a dazzling array of equipment icons shimmering. Lux's gaze instantly locked onto the footwear items.

[Shoes: Slightly increases movement speed; Adjustment: Provides better control over vehicles and brooms, and the speed boost also applies; 300 gold coins]

"I'm not holding back on big purchases anymore, just give me a pair of shoes, I can't take it anymore!"

Lux wanted to slap those Slytherins in the face right now, and without hesitation, Lux used her mind to click the "Buy Shoes" button.

[Ding! Purchase successful! 300 gold coins consumed, shoes now equipped]

An indescribable sense of ease instantly surged from the soles of her feet throughout her body. Lux felt as if her body had become much lighter and more transparent, as if the constraints of gravity on her had been greatly reduced.

Her sense of the surrounding airflow became exceptionally acute; she could clearly perceive even the slightest resistance as the wind brushed against the hem of her robe. More importantly, when she looked again at the old, defiant broom on the ground, which seemed to have its own ideas, a strange sense of control welled up within her.

She bent down, this time not with nervous hesitation, but with a natural, almost casual confidence, and extended her right hand again: "Up!"

The broom that had just been twitching in a zigzag pattern at her knees, like a wild horse tamed by its master's majesty, leaped into her palm with a soft whooshing sound.

This sudden, 180-degree turn of events left Abraxas Malfoy, who was about to escalate his taunts, completely speechless, his mocking expression frozen in place.

Even Mrs. Dutch's sharp eyes revealed undisguised approval: "Very good, your will is there, and the broom will naturally obey. That's more like it."

"Now, everyone try lifting yourself one foot off the ground. Remember, maintain your balance, lean forward slightly, and feel the buoyancy of the broom. Don't stand still like a rock!"

The students hopped on their brooms and cautiously tried to lift themselves off the ground. Tom and Abraxas seemed particularly relaxed, hovering steadily a foot off the ground almost instantly upon receiving the command, their movements textbook perfect.

Abraxas seemed to want to save face, deliberately making his broom hover higher than the others, and slightly raising his chin, trying to regain that sense of superiority.

Lux took a deep breath, hopped on her broom, and the amazing sense of balance provided by her shoes quickly dispelled her instinctive fear of heights.

Following Ms. Dutch's instructions, Lux leaned forward slightly, clamping her legs tightly around the broom handle, her movements so fluid and natural as if she had practiced them a thousand times.

"rise!"

The broom responded instantly to the sound, lifting her lightly off the ground, and the one-foot height beneath her feet became more stable than ever before.

That feeling of being on the verge of collapse completely disappeared, replaced by a sense of security and groundedness. She could even clearly feel the wind passing by her ears and the subtle, breathing-like feedback from the slight vibrations of the broom.

"Very good! Keep it up!" Ms. Dutch's voice was encouraging.

"Hmph, just a foot? Even my little elf can do that." Abraxas's suppressed displeasure came from the side. He and Tom were hovering not far in front of Lux. Abraxas seemed extremely annoyed by Lux's sudden enlightenment and couldn't stand her focused and calm demeanor at the moment.

His eyes darted around, and he deliberately spurred the broom, trying to get in front of Lux with a flashy side slide, and to harass her with the wind generated by the broom's tail.

Lux's lips curled up a few pixels. The opportunity had come; she had brought it upon herself.

She pretended to be completely focused on maintaining her balance, but her right hand, holding the wand, was subtly raised under the perfect cover of her wide robe sleeves. The tip of the wand was precisely aimed at the airspace ahead where Abraxas was about to pass, and with her mind locked on it, magic quietly gathered in the wand.

"Eat one of my translucent singularities!"

A ball the size of a billiard ball, emitting a soft yet exceptionally bright light, appeared silently directly in front of Abraxas's intended gliding trajectory.

The light wasn't blinding from a distance, but this sudden, intense light source, appearing out of nowhere and right up close, caused Abraxas's pupils to contract abruptly as he focused intently on maneuvering his broom and preparing to execute a difficult side slide.

"What?!" Abraxas was blinded by the sudden, intense light that burst out almost to his face, leaving his vision completely blank. The strong visual interference made his mind go blank, and he instinctively tried to turn his head to avoid it, while his hand holding the broom twisted violently involuntarily.

In those fractions of a second of his distraction, his nimble comet broom suddenly darted out of control to the upper left, precisely where Tom was hovering.

Tom was hovering steadily, watching the farce instigated by Abraxas with a detached eye. He had no idea that Abraxas would suddenly rush over like a headless fly.

"Watch out!" a student exclaimed in alarm.

But it all happened in the blink of an eye!

boom!

A dull thud resounded!

The end of Abraxas's broom, which had spiraled out of control, slammed solidly and violently into the middle of Tom's broom. The enormous impact caused both brooms to creak and groan, shaking violently and spinning uncontrollably.