Hogwarts: Me? Fight Voldemort?

The first day of work started with some bumps and ended with some arguments.

The card-making task had no time or location restrictions. Because the activity was so interesting, they still came to this abandoned classroom to discuss it, even though there was no mandatory overtime requirement in the afternoon.

The card game needs to produce five test sets, each with different characters, talents, skills, and items.

This was Jimmy's request. They would slowly try out these five decks, then write a summary report, pointing out the problems with each deck.

Finally, we summarize and analyze how to make up for the deficiencies and balance the changes, or what other interesting ideas can be added.

Because it's a trade secret, the card game's development is done in secrecy. If others find out, they'll want to join in, and Jimmy worries that the Golden Book is unreasonable and will passively dilute the final profits.

Chapter 56 Quirrell's Secret Lessons

The card game's development was progressing slowly, but something else was troubling Jimmy.

Another week passed, and Jimmy went to the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor's office to keep his appointment.

A meeting with Voldemort was a tough challenge, although Voldemort, who coveted the Philosopher's Stone, would most likely not do anything to him.

Crunch!

The office door opened quietly as Jimmy raised his hand, the smell of garlic still strong, and Quirrell was already standing behind the desk waiting.

"Jimmy, come in, come in."

Quirrell and Voldemort considered themselves close to Jimmy and stopped calling him by his surname.

With the thought of making money running through his mind, Jimmy walked into the office. After taking a few steps in, he heard the door slam shut behind him, like a drumstick striking his chest.

Before coming, Jimmy made a point of checking with the headmaster's office to confirm that Dumbledore was still at the school, which gave him confidence. "Dear Professor Quirrell, what reward are you going to give me?"

He also expected Quirrell to give him more Galleons, since Quirrell hadn't explicitly stated what kind of "reward" he was going to give.

Quirrell took out his wand and waved it lightly as if to test the waters.

Jimmy then noticed that clutter from all over the room was immediately piled up in the corner, and even the desk was shrunk and moved to the side, indicating that it was going to be quite large.

Professor Quirrell smiled strangely, then transformed a book in the corner into a mannequin and said, “Jimmy, you have great talent, but it’s dangerous for you to be around Potter. So, I’m going to teach you some magic to protect yourself.”

"A magic to protect yourself?" Jimmy wasn't too surprised, as he had considered this possibility before. "What kind of magic is Professor Quirrell going to teach me?"

Although it wasn't entirely compliant with regulations, he was still looking forward to the upcoming lessons, since some spells were really hard to learn in school.

Quirrell… or rather Voldemort, intended to proceed gradually; the first spell he planned to teach Jimmy was simply the ordinary Explosion Charm.

The Explosion Charm is a spell that can only be learned in higher grades. It is an offensive spell with great destructive power that can cause objects to explode and kill them.

Magic never favors the mediocre. Wizards in the magical world have varying levels of talent, and even the enforcers of the Ministry of Magic are not all capable of mastering the Explosion Charm.

In this world, mediocrity is the majority. If Jimmy cannot learn the Explosion Charm within two days, Voldemort, who has little time left, will not hesitate to abandon Jimmy and use him only as a consumable.

“I’ll demonstrate for you.” Having received his master’s command, Quirrell raised his wand and aimed it at the dummy. “Thunder Explosion!”

Without any obvious trajectory, the dummy suddenly exploded, and splinters of wood rained down on Jimmy. He raised his hand to shield himself, then exclaimed with excitement, "Amazing!"

His words were half pretense and half truth; the Explosion Curse had no flashy special effects, but it had a simple and unpretentious effect.

As a pseudo-foreigner from a country with a phobia of insufficient firepower per capita, Jimmy, who often feels insecure, always wants to increase his firepower, and the Explosion Curse is exactly what he wants.

You can choose not to use the Explosion Charm, but you can't be ignorant of it!

"The spell is Thunder Explosion, and its effect is very simple." Quirrell waved his wand, and the wood chips quickly retreated and glued back onto the wooden pole.

However, the restored dummy has undergone some subtle changes. Its originally very abstract facial features now look more human, and the details on its hands have become more abundant.

Quirrell gestured for Jimmy to face the mannequin, then walked behind him and said, "You can try not to swing your wand and imagine the mannequin in front of you cracking and burning. You can also imagine the mannequin as the person you hate most; that will help you even more... Come on, get into the feeling!"

Jimmy felt a little nervous with Quirrell standing behind him. He blinked, trying to clear his mind and focus entirely on practicing the Explosion Charm.

Jimmy raised his grapevine wand, aimed it at the mannequin, took a few deep breaths to get into the mood, and chanted, "Thunder Explosion."

Crack!

A slight popping sound came from the dummy's chest, even quieter than a firecracker.

However, Quirrell excitedly ran to the dummy and examined it closely. He saw the tiny cracks on the surface of the wood and exclaimed, "Fantastic! You will learn more and more powerful magic, Jimmy! You can become a powerful wizard and set yourself apart from others because you have exceptional talent."

This is no exaggeration; to be able to cast a spell successfully on the first try is something many young wizards cannot do.

It's no exaggeration to say that Jimmy has the potential to become the next Snape.

Snape was Voldemort's most outstanding subordinate, and training Jimmy was worthwhile; he should be made clear what kind of person could give him what he wanted.

"Come on, do it a few more times. Imagine that each time the power is greater than the last time. Add the arm-waving motion, and this will increase the power of your spell."

Quirrell, feigning excitement, returned to Jimmy's back, muttering about the key points of the Explosion Spell.

Under the tutelage of the beloved Professor Quirrell, Jimmy learned a fascinating fact: when a wizard swings his wand, the force of the swing is perceived to increase the power of the spell.

Body language plays a positive role in spellcasting suggestions. For example, picking up an eraser to wipe the writing on the blackboard, or tucking your elbow behind your back and punching a sandbag, will make the wizard realize that the power of the spell changes with the body's movements.

"Thunder Explosion!" Jimmy became more and more excited as he practiced, like someone who was handling a gun for the first time, his mind filled with the urge to use the Explosion Charm to blow up some cow dung or soda cans.

The power of the spells increased with each cast, eventually blowing off the dummy's head.

Whoosh!

As the wood chips were glued back onto the mannequin, Jimmy, recovering from his excitement, suddenly realized that the mannequin now even had eyes carved out, giving it a lifelike appearance.

That's enough for today.

Voldemort was very satisfied with today's instruction. He felt that Jimmy didn't need to be taught and could learn some of the more difficult spells just by reading the written materials. So he found a piece of parchment and wrote down three spells on it.

These are the Lightning Spell, the Cutting Spell, and the Divine Sharpness Spell. Except for the Divine Sharpness Spell, none of them are evil magic.

Voldemort only provided the method for casting the spell "Sword of Shadows," but not the method for counter-spells. This spell, created by his most loyal servant Snape, is full of ingenious design.

The wounds from being struck by an invisible blade will not heal without a counter-curse, which is enough to ignite Jimmy Blaine's thirst for power.

Voldemort was never short of patience, especially with those he particularly admired.

"You can take these spells back and learn them. Wait until you've learned them, then come back to me."

Jimmy left Quirrell's office with the parchment after finishing his studies. He hadn't gained any Galleons this time, but gaining knowledge was still a good thing.

He definitely has to learn these spells; there's no harm in not learning them!

Voldemort?

What Voldemort?

All I saw was the beloved Professor Quirrell imparting knowledge to his students whom he admired!

Chapter 57 Newtscamander's Reply

The first phase of the card game's production was completed in mid-December. Jimmy received the parchment from his beloved Professor Quirrell and was secretly practicing.

All five versions of cards have been completed. These basic cards do not have long descriptions copied on them; they only have the names of spells, items, and their effects written on them.

Several members of the game development team, including George and Fred who rushed over after hearing the news, now like to sneak around in the abandoned classroom to play cards after class.

They didn't just gamble on cards, they also gambled on snacks and homework!

Jimmy criticized them many times, but they just wouldn't listen. They dared to bet snacks and homework now, and he didn't even want to think about what they would bet on in the future.

However, this card game, temporarily named Duel Cards, is more of a skill-based competition, with luck playing a relatively minor role, and is not suitable for gambling.

Jimmy was playing too, but he was distracted because he was thinking about his Christmas holiday plans.

The Christmas holidays last a week, and he couldn't possibly stay at the Leaky Cauldron for the entire week; that would cost him several Galleons.

Is there a place where he can freeload, with food and lodging included?

"I need to use the item card 'Healing Potion' on myself to restore 5 health points." After some thought, Hermione drew two cards and threw them into the deck. "Fireball spell, 5 points of burn damage over three rounds."

Jimmy was playing cards with Hermione, while in the classroom were the boisterous George Fred and Harry, Ron, and Draco, who occasionally got into arguments.

Jimmy casually pulled back a piece of paper representing health points that was under the character card, and then it was his turn. "Clear Water Relief Cancels Burn Effect, and also, Explosive Curse deals 10 damage..."

Suddenly, he looked at the little witch in front of him and had a bold idea. He was even a little frightened by his own idea. It was too bold, but it was free!

Hermione drew two cards, then looked at her hand and her character card with only 20 health remaining, and sighed, "Ironclad Charm, then Revival Charm. Hmm?"

As she dropped her cards, she noticed Jimmy staring intently at her. Could he be trying to peek at her cards?

Hermione, her eyes wary, hid the card even deeper, covering the back with her hand, worried that there might be some markings on the back.

"Ahem!" Jimmy coughed awkwardly and asked sheepishly, "Hermione, are you going home for Christmas?"

When Hermione heard Jimmy ask this, she lowered her hand from the card and nodded, saying, "Yes, I've already talked to Mom and Dad, I can't stay this Christmas."

Jimmy considered himself to have a pretty good relationship with Hermione, so he made this somewhat impolite request: "Hermione, can I come to your house?"

"Would you like to come to my house as a guest?" Hermione's eyes lit up, showing no resistance whatsoever; on the contrary, she was quite happy.

"Well, actually I don't have a place to stay. During the Christmas holidays... I'd like to stay at your place."

Even with Jimmy's thick skin, he was still embarrassed when he bluntly said he wanted to move into Hermione's house.

"You're going to stay at my house for the whole holiday?" Hermione didn't seem embarrassed at all; on the contrary, she was even happier. "I'll write back and tell them, and my parents should agree."

Jimmy might be hiding his past because he's had an even worse life than Harry, and being able to help Jimmy makes her very happy.

“There won’t be time to prepare in a few days, I should go write the letter now!” She even stopped playing cards and got up to walk towards the owl’s hut.

"Hey..." Jimmy also dropped his cards and chased after them, leaving the five people inside still engrossed in playing cards.

The owl hut is outside the castle. In December, the Scottish Highlands are covered in snow, and the ground is covered with a blanket of white snow, making everything pure white.

Hermione paused at the castle gate for a while, then walked towards the Owl Shack with Jimmy, who had caught up with her.

"I think they'll agree that we won't eat turkey at home, but roast goose instead..."

On the way, Hermione talked a lot about things related to her family, implying that Jimmy would definitely be in trouble if he went there.

Jimmy was a little embarrassed by the excessive enthusiasm. He actually had a backup plan: to sleep in the lobby of the Leaky Cauldron and pay 1 Gallon for a nutritious diet.

But seeing how expectant Hermione is, it would be too hurtful to back out at the last minute.

The two chose a owl that they liked in the owl hut, wrote a letter on it, tied it up, and released it.

Just then, an owl so fat it could barely fly strolled over, placed a letter in front of Jimmy, and patted it with its claws.

Jimmy pointed to the letter, then to himself, "For me?"