A certain Hogwarts professor of runes

Chapter 178 Test

Felix smiled. "Anytime is fine, Potter. I'll move in and keep you company temporarily. But I need to go back to school first to take care of some things. You can also think about your own schedule."

He stood up. "The training will be tough, Potter. Be prepared. In my experience, the period after a magical upheaval is the perfect time to learn spells. You'll improve rapidly."

Harry agreed without hesitation.

Felix found Tom, the owner of the Leaky Cauldron, a hunched-over, wrinkled wizard. On Tom's advice, Felix chose room number twelve, right next to Harry's.

He waved to Harry, who was standing at the top of the stairs, turned and walked out of the bar, using the communal fireplace to return to his office.

He reviewed his recent work, and besides trying to incorporate spies into the curriculum, he had come up with some other good ideas. He rolled up these half-finished plans and tucked them into his ring.

Next, he looked at the observation record of the wand tree, which was something he and Professor Flitwick did every day, but for the time being, this task would be handed over to Flitwick alone.

So he went to Professor Flitwick's office and told him about his time conflict. The short professor quickly agreed, clicking his tongue and saying, "A magical upheaval... I wonder what happened to Potter. With you by the child's side, Minerva will feel at ease."

Felix later spotted Snape at school, striding along with his black robes billowing behind him.

"Severus?" He went up to him. "You're back so early?" He knew that Snape would go home for summer vacation every year and usually return to school on the first day of the new term.

Snape, his face stern and suppressing his displeasure, said, "You should ask our esteemed Headmaster Dumbledore. He's the one who summoned me back to brew a disgusting potion."

He was in a bad mood at the moment, so he threw off his cloak and quickly slid away.

What kind of disgusting potion could it be? Felix watched his retreating figure with curiosity.

A dozen minutes later, Felix returned to Diagon Alley. He knocked on room eleven and saw Harry's bed piled high with miscellaneous items: textbooks, parchment, ink bottles, and a broom repair kit.

"Professor, I'm checking my assignments. Hmm, I still have three papers on the history of magic, two papers on potions, and one paper on spells to finish."

"History of Magic..."

Harry clearly heard Professor Hyp grunt in disapproval, but the professor didn't say anything more and sat down opposite him.

"Time is precious, Potter," Felix said. "I'll guide you through your homework—in your spare time."

……

The owner of the Leaky Cauldron provided an empty basement, which, according to him, had been abandoned for a long time.

Old Tom, hunched over, revealed a toothless grin: "I remember there are some protective spells here, but they might be worn out. You'll have to deal with them yourselves."

He snapped his fingers a few times, and the torches stuck in the wall lit up. Then he bowed, backed away, and left.

Felix waved his wand, cleaning away the accumulated dust and cobwebs in the room. He also smoothed out several broken floorboards. As his wand touched the floor, the ground rippled like waves, making Harry feel as if he were on a small boat, reminding him of Hagrid's first time taking him on a boat trip.

Once everything quieted down, the wooden floor transformed into an exotic carpet.

Harry paced back and forth a few steps, finding it not as soft as he had imagined. Professor Hyp explained, "I can't just provide a few mats so you can practice magic comfortably."

Under his gaze, some small, fragmented objects flew out of Professor Hyp's ring, leaping and transforming into a small square table, two armchairs, and some human-shaped targets.

At that moment, Felix was sitting in a chair, watching him from behind the square table.

"Now, Potter, let's practice your best spell a hundred times."

Harry's hand holding the wand trembled slightly, as if this was not quite what he expected...

He thought he would be scrambling to dodge the professor's attacks, like a chipmunk constantly jumping around, while Professor Hyp calmly cast spells and displayed his power.

But now, Professor Hyp behaves like a scholar, sitting quietly in his chair, and if he wore a pair of gold-rimmed glasses, he would look even more like a teacher he had seen in Muggle schools.

Harry looked at the target, which was seven or eight meters away from him, waved his wand, and shouted, "Expelliarmus!" A red beam of light shot out from the tip of the wand and hit the wall, but it was a full two feet away from the human-shaped target.

"Uh, sorry, I missed."

"It's okay, continue."

So Harry waved his wand repeatedly, and streaks of red light flew out. After about half an hour, he shouted weakly in a hoarse voice, "Expelliarmus..." but his wand only produced a string of sparks.

"Alright, let's stop for now and come sit over here," Felix said.

Harry wearily walked to the other side of the table and sat down. He looked at Professor Hyp across from him, who was scribbling on parchment. After a while, he looked up. "I understand your spell well enough now. Very well, we've completed the first step of the test."

"That was just a test?" Harry exclaimed in surprise. He was exhausted; every cell in his body was screaming in agony.

Felix curled the corners of his lips into a smile and said softly in a seductive tone, "Potter, at your age, my understanding of disarming spells was already comparable to that of an average adult wizard, and you certainly have the potential to do so."

"Besides the Disarming Charm, you yourself have also mentioned that you're not very proficient with the Armor Charm."

"And the tongue-locking spell, I can even teach you one or two simple and useful spells..."

Harry swallowed hard, and in the bright firelight of the basement, though it was somewhat disrespectful, he felt he saw the devil's smile.

But he had to admit that he was tempted.

Professor Hyp didn't say what would happen if he learned these spells, but he couldn't help but start imagining things: the admiration of his classmates, extra points in class, and perhaps even a chance to show off his abilities to the girl he liked...

He said in a slightly trembling voice, "Professor, I will follow your arrangements." He felt that his tone was full of tragic solemnity, as if he was about to go to the execution ground.

Felix took out a piece of chocolate and handed it to him: "Eat something first, then we'll do the second test."

Ten minutes later.

Felix and Harry stood facing each other, about seven or eight meters apart.

"Potter, we're here to test the full power of your spells. You need to get your emotions into full play. Remember what we talked about in dueling class? Determination, confidence, and most importantly, the Disarming Charm is for protecting yourself and preventing your enemy from harming you."

Harry nodded, took a deep breath, and imagined Malfoy standing opposite him, who had suddenly transformed into a troll with perkin hair, waving a club and walking towards him...

"Pfft!" He suddenly burst out laughing. "Uh, sorry."

I spent quite a while building up my emotions—

"Disarm you!"

Harry screamed at the top of his lungs, and a red beam the thickness of a finger shot straight toward Felix, only to be stopped by an invisible barrier.

"Not enough, Potter, let me see your potential!" Felix encouraged.

Harry gritted his teeth and channeled his magic with all his might. For a moment, he truly felt the difference—it was the "active magic" Professor Hyp had spoken of. He silently chanted in his mind: Disarm, render the enemy incapable of harming me…

He thought of his real enemies: Professor Quirrell, the Basilisk, and... Voldemort!

After trembling a few times, the red light became as thin as a hair. Felix almost thought he had failed, but the next second, a scorching beam of light flew out from Harry's wand, spanning seven or eight meters, and instantly struck Felix's Ironclad Charm.

The two spells clashed in mid-air, their deep rumbles echoing through the basement.

(End of this chapter)