A Professor of Magic at Hogwarts

Chapter 220: New Ventures and Recruitment List

The Ancient Runes class for the third year had found its rhythm. After delving into two sections of rather cryptic magical manuscripts, they were finally about to embark on their first genuinely intriguing lesson.

Felix Harp stood at the podium. "Put away your textbooks, for today we shall undertake a new endeavor."

The young wizards and witches grew excited. "I've been looking forward to this day!" Dean Thomas exclaimed. "Professor Harp's classes are always full of fascinating possibilities. I've heard that phrase for a whole year now!"

Felix had grown accustomed to the chatter of the young wizards. From his coat pocket, he withdrew a small wooden box about the size of his palm. He raised it towards the students and then placed the box on the lectern. "A little experiment of mine, initially meant to test my mastery of practical Ancient Runes. But then I thought, why not make more of it?"

He produced his wand, tapping the lid of the small wooden box. Circular patterns of golden-red magic woke from slumber, materializing on the surface of the box.

With a deft flick, Felix layered the magical patterns one upon the other—

"A snap!"

The box was now open.

"What's inside?"

"I'm curious too."

A chorus of noise erupted below.

Felix gazed sentimentally at the students. As a professor, he could easily distinguish the differences between the two houses. Gryffindor's students were more outwardly emotional, most of them craning their necks and leaning forward, eager to know what lay inside the box. On the other hand, Slytherin students were more reserved, their curiosity evident in their eyes, though many restrained themselves, except for a few who seemed a bit scatterbrained.

It wasn't a matter of superiority, just a reflection of two distinct traits.

In no time, a runic symbol leapt out of the box. Hermione recognized it at first glance; it was the runic representation of buffalo strength. She couldn't help puffing her cheeks in satisfaction. Thanks to the blabbermouth of Lee Jordan, her reputation had grown even more prominent lately, with the incidents of breaking the chair armrest and confronting Draco Malfoy being widely discussed.

Numerous students from other houses had come, intrigued and chattering, wanting to witness her skills.

Not many students could recognize this runic symbol at a glance like Hermione. Draco, for instance, felt a vague sense of familiarity with the symbol, as if he had seen it somewhere before.

The next moment, a second runic symbol flew out of the box, followed by the third, the fourth...

Hundreds of variously colored runic symbols soared out continuously before the box abruptly closed. The young wizards and witches stared with wide eyes at the runic symbols fluttering near the lectern, overwhelmed with awe.

They turned their gaze towards Professor Harp, who was admiring the multitude of runes before him. Suddenly, he extended his hand and gave a push. The hundreds of runic symbols, previously gathered, scattered in all directions, filling up nearly half the classroom in just a few seconds.

The young wizards and witches looked upward at the sparkling, multicolored magical symbols suspended in mid-air. They resembled the candles that floated in the air during hall banquets, yet these runes were much closer, easily graspable with a reach.

Seamus Finnigan couldn't resist tapping the fiery-red runic symbol in front of him with his wand, and it immediately emitted a burst of orange flames before drifting away. It startled Seamus quite a bit.

Felix cleared his throat and swung his wand in a sweeping arc, causing the runic symbols to freeze in an instant.

"Next, I shall teach you a little technique to sense magic. During this class, you need to select the five runic symbols that resonate with you the most and record their shapes on parchment."josei

"Here's a friendly tip: this is related to your final exam's practical component."

Other students looked at him with eager eyes. "What are we waiting for?" Seamus exclaimed loudly, followed by a chorus of soft laughter.

Felix Harp explained the technique, "It's actually quite simple. Touch the symbol with your hand and perceive the magic within it. The more you 'see,' the more it matches you... You may begin!"

Ron muttered to Harry, "Sounds like something Trelawney would say."

Harry couldn't help glancing at Hermione. She had a history of disagreements with Professor Trelawney and had often ridiculed terms like "Inner Eye" and "Second Sight" as unreliable - these were specialized terms used by Divination professors to describe whether a young wizard had a natural talent for Divination.

Similar terms included "the aura around one," and "receptivity to future resonance." Unfortunately, Hermione was classified as someone without Divination talent.

Normally, when this name was brought up, she'd have plenty to say, but this time, Hermione didn't respond. She discreetly leaned in to Professor Harp, asking something in a hushed voice.

Harry's interest was piqued, and he tugged Ron along to join them.

"—Is there a purpose behind this?" he just managed to catch the latter half of Hermione's sentence.

"It's in preparation for the Ancient Runes Club's first activity," Felix explained. "And also to explore a possibility - if wizards naturally have spells better suited to them, like Potter's Disarming Charm," he nodded towards Harry, "then could ancient runes have a similar phenomenon?"

Hermione understood. "So, you believe that everyone has their own perfectly-suited ancient rune? Our task now is to find it based on intuition?"

Felix said, "I'm only speculating, but it's worth a try."

Harry couldn't help interjecting, "Professor, have the results for the Runes Club come out yet? Ron and I..."

Felix looked at him. "Your essays...barely passed. You've been placed in the second category."

"Second category?" Harry heard this term for the first time. He planned to ask Hermione about it later - she would surely know. However, he understood the implication of "barely passed." Both he and Ron breathed a sigh of relief.

"Oh, and," he heard Professor Harp addressing him, "how's your essay on dueling systems coming along?"

"Uh...still working on it," Harry said sheepishly. He had taken lots of notes, but the essay was only about a third complete. Plus, his mind was now consumed with thoughts of first category, second category, and so on.

Back at their seats, Hermione naturally provided an explanation of the grading categories. "The professor has divided the assessment into three categories. The lowest one is straight elimination - as the professor puts it, those are the ones who are just trying their luck without any preparation."

"So, the second category is a pass, and the first category is outstanding?" Ron guessed, which made a lot of sense.

"No," Hermione sighed, "the first category is a pass. As for the second category, it retains the right to audit. Whether you attend or keep up with the club's lessons, the professor won't interfere."

Ron's mouth fell open, and he couldn't help raising his voice, "So you mean, we're just filling spots?"

"Professor Harp believes," Hermione's tone grew louder too, "that a minority among you might be able to keep up with the course. But most will fall behind and naturally drop out."

"At the moment, there are only seven students in the first category, which is quite low. That's why the professor intends to select a few more from the second category."

Harry couldn't help but feel uneasy. He had a strong feeling that he might fall behind. Perhaps he was just on a one-way trip?

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