“Hey, is that magic?
And what about what your parents just did?
Was suddenly disappearing like that magic too?” Hermione was visibly excited by everything she was seeing, and her endless questions made it obvious how curious she was about the wizarding world.
Ternas didn’t mind answering her questions.
Hermione was intelligent and eager to learn, and having another friend at Hogwarts certainly wasn’t a bad thing.
“Mm.
That doesn’t really count as magic.
It’s just a simple application of magical power.
As for the way my parents moved earlier, that was magic.
It’s called Apparition, and it’s a very advanced form of magic.
We’ll be able to learn it later, when we’re in sixth or seventh year, though there will be a fee.” “Do you know any other magic?
Do children from wizarding families start learning magic from a very young age?
If so, doesn’t that mean that Muggle-born wizards like us are naturally a step behind you?” After Ternas answered one question, Hermione immediately fired off another string of questions, as though she would never run out of them.
Just as Hermione finished asking, Neville interrupted.
“Not really.
Ternas is very clever, so he’s learned a lot of things.
I’m pretty stupid, so from the time I was eight until now, I’ve only learned one spell.” As Neville spoke, he suddenly realized something was wrong.
He scratched his head and said somewhat blankly, “Huh?
Where’s Trevor?
Did he disappear again?
Accio Trevor!” The next moment, Neville deftly caught what appeared to be a transparent object flying over from the luggage rack.
However, because it was moving so quickly and the surroundings were changing rapidly, its presence was still faintly visible.
“This is him.
My Trevor is a toad with Invisible Beast blood, so he disappears all the time.
That’s why I had to learn this spell.
Thanks to Ternas, otherwise I still wouldn’t have been able to learn it.” Hermione stared at the astonishing scene, completely dumbfounded.
“All right, don’t be so surprised.
You’ve seen it yourself.
Children from wizarding families aren’t actually that far ahead of you.
We just know more about basic knowledge and common sense in the wizarding world.” As he spoke, Ternas noticed that Hermione was still looking somewhat nervous, so he continued explaining patiently.
After listening to him, Hermione gradually relaxed.
Her earlier nervousness disappeared, and she quickly became interested in the conversation again.
“Actually, children from wizarding families generally awaken their talents at around ten years old.
By that point, their bodies have developed enough to withstand an eruption of magical power, and they have also developed a basic understanding of the things around them.” “At that age, they’re most likely to experience emotional fluctuations, especially extremely intense ones.
That’s precisely when a wizard is most likely to awaken their talent.” Ternas explained carefully, “So, in truth, we’re all just children who have recently awakened our wizarding talents.
Once you include the time needed to stabilize our magical power, children from wizarding families basically don’t have any contact with the practical use of magic before starting school.” “Even if they do, it’s at most some basic knowledge about magic, basically just theory.
And because they’re children, there isn’t actually much theory for them to learn.
So the possibility that we’re significantly more knowledgeable about magic than you can practically be ignored.” After listening to Ternas’s careful explanation, Hermione’s anxiety about entering the unfamiliar wizarding world immediately relaxed.
The nervousness she had felt before disappeared.
“So that’s how it is.
That’s a relief.
I thought you started learning magic from childhood and had already reached a very advanced level of magical training.” Hermione adorably patted her chest, looking relieved.
Ternas couldn’t help but smile at her relieved reaction.
Neville did not interrupt while Ternas was explaining things, nor did he tell Hermione that Ternas had actually awakened his wizarding talent as early as five years old.
“So, Ternas, what magic can you use right now?
From what I just saw, you seem to know much more than everyone else.” Although Neville hadn’t said anything, Hermione could tell that Ternas knew more about magic than most children his age.
She was curious about what he had learned, but she didn’t think too much about it and simply took the opportunity to ask him more questions.
Ternas was somewhat surprised.
He pointed at himself and asked uncertainly, “Me?” “Of course.
You must know some magic, right?
You’re very skilled at controlling magical power!” Although Hermione quickly concealed it, the sly look in her eyes did not escape Ternas.
He did not mind, however.
He openly demonstrated several simple spells that they would not encounter in their upcoming studies but that were extremely practical.
These spells were not particularly difficult to learn, but they were very useful.
As one practical little spell after another appeared from Ternas’s pine wand, Hermione’s eyes practically sparkled.
The eagerness in her eyes was almost impossible to contain.
Ternas naturally noticed it, so he generously taught the spells to Hermione.
Since he was willing to demonstrate these spells in the first place, he had no intention of keeping them secret.
And so, with Hermione seriously studying and Ternas patiently teaching, time passed quickly.
Before they knew it, it was already past three in the afternoon.
By then, they had actually missed mealtime.
However, the two of them were so absorbed in studying and teaching that they had completely overlooked it.
Neville did not want to interrupt them either.
But by this point, even he could not hold out any longer.
No matter how much he wanted to avoid disturbing them, his stomach was beyond his control.
It let out a loud growl, clearly voicing its protest.
The two of them immediately emerged from their focused state and looked toward the source of the sound.