At six in the morning, Ethan woke up right on time.
As his various attributes increased, he felt wonderful.
His mind was exceptionally clear, making it highly suitable for studying complex knowledge.
“Ron, Harry, wake up.” He hadn’t forgotten Professor McGonagall’s request.
He responsibly woke the two of them up.
Only after they were sitting up in bed, looking utterly dazed, did Ethan hurriedly leave.
Given Professor Quirrell’s useless slacker nature, Ethan had completely given up hope on him.
For this class, he might have to resort to self-study.
In an empty classroom, Ethan opened *Curses and Counter-Curses*.
This book had quite a few highly practical spells.
At least in his eyes, it was far more useful than Quirrell.
“With my current level, should I learn defensive spells first?
Or control spells?
Hmm, I’m very weak right now, so something good for a surprise attack would be best…” Over an hour later, Ethan raised his wand, waving it through the air: “Stupefy!” “Glacius!” “Obscuro!” “Petrificus Totalus!” “Incendio!” “Jelly-Legs Curse!” Ethan tried quite a few spells in succession.
His mind felt deeply drained, and exhaustion washed over him.
He pocketed his wand and let out a long sigh.
Magic power, I need magic power!
But there was no rush.
If all went well, he might run into some Hufflepuffs today.
Once he interacted with more people, his experience would skyrocket!
Ethan smiled, gathered his book and wand, left the empty classroom, and headed to the Great Hall for breakfast.
Luna sat across from him, looking back and forth at him.
In her ethereal voice, she said: “Ethan, you don’t look very well, though there are far fewer Wrackspurts around you than yesterday.
Has your worry been resolved?” “I didn’t pay attention to the time while practicing spells just now,” Ethan said vaguely.
“But I am indeed less anxious than yesterday.
I’ve found that everyone in Gryffindor is quite nice!” He glanced at her plate: an apple, a sandwich, a glass of milk, and a pudding.
“Luna, did you bring your acceptance letter to school?” “Of course.
My father was worried that the school’s Wrackspurts would attack outsiders, so he insisted I keep my acceptance letter with me to prove I’m a student here.” Luna pulled a piece of paper folded into a small triangle from her pocket, with her name right in the center.
“This is my amulet.
If you’d like, shall we exchange?” Ethan froze for a second, then quickly pulled out his own acceptance letter—to deal with young wizards who had similar requests, he had been carrying it around with him for the past two days.
He offered his letter with both hands, and Luna handed over her amulet.
Ethan took it and looked down.
It was indeed a pass, made out of Luna’s acceptance letter.
[Exchange Value: 1 (Magic)] Ethan’s eyes widened instantly, his breathing hitching, and his heart pounded.
“How lovely!” Luna looked at him in surprise.
Ethan smiled and pointed at the drawing of the little creature on it.
“This is drawn so well.” Luna nodded, delighted.
“That’s a Crumple-Horned Snorkack.
They usually hide in corners to sleep, but they often chat on nights with a full moon.
They can be quite noisy.” “I’ll keep it safe!” Ethan carefully tucked the triangular amulet away.
7 Magic now!
A house-elf brought his breakfast—a massive plate, at least three times the size of Luna’s.
Looking at the mountain of food, Luna said, “My father says that children who eat well grow fast.” “Yes, makes sense!” Starving, Ethan didn’t have time to talk and buried his head in his breakfast.
Luna quickly finished her breakfast and waved to him.
“Goodbye, Ethan.
For our morning class, we have Transfiguration with Hufflepuff.
Professor McGonagall hates tardiness.” “Goodbye, Luna.
If you ever have trouble with anything, feel free to ask me anytime!” Luna nodded, skipping away.
Ethan watched her go, suddenly realizing something.
It seemed both Hermione and Luna tended to keep to themselves.
A young girl with bushy brown hair sat down listlessly opposite him.
Ethan caught the scent of coffee.
He looked up in surprise and saw a very drowsy Miss Hermione Granger.
Ah, that’s right.
She had said yesterday that she would wake up at 5:30 today.
He swallowed his food, wiped his mouth, and asked curiously, “So, how does it feel to wake up early?” Hermione’s face stiffened, but she said casually, “I thought about it carefully, and 5:30 is still too early.
Starting tomorrow, I’ll wake up at 6:00 too.” As she spoke, she self-consciously wiped the corner of her mouth, where there seemed to be a trace of drool.
Ethan’s eyes widened slightly.
He could easily guess that because she had woken up too early, she must have fallen asleep at her desk.
Suppressing his laughter, he nodded.
“Sufficient sleep is the guarantee of everything.” “Then what are you laughing at?” Hermione glared at him in annoyance, turned away, pulled out a handkerchief, and carefully wiped the corners of her eyes.
“Good morning, Ethan, Granger.” Harry and Ron arrived, both looking rather sleepy as well.
Hermione immediately perked up and asked, “Did you wake up on time today?” “Yeah, Ethan woke us up really early.” Harry yawned, though he had gone right back to sleep after Ethan left.
Ron glanced at her, not wanting to be outdone.
“What about you, Granger?
Did you wake up on time?” “Of course!” Hermione raised her chin slightly.
“I woke up at five, got ready, and left the dorm at exactly 5:30!” As she spoke, she shot a quick glance at Ethan, seemingly worried he would expose her embarrassing moment.
Fortunately, Ethan had little interest in children’s bickering and had no intention of exposing her, focusing instead on his food.
Ron and Harry looked at Hermione as if she were a freak.
An awkward silence filled the air.
Hermione happily ate her breakfast.
Even though she was exhausted, she felt she had won!
Though she had no idea what the prize was.
“Actually,” Ethan swallowed his last strawberry and said, “starting tomorrow, I plan to wake up at 6:30.
We’re at an age where we’re still growing, so we should sleep a bit more to keep our energy up.” Ron and Harry’s spirits lifted, and they nodded in agreement.
Especially Harry.
The boy still firmly believed that Ethan must have suffered terrible abuse at home, far worse than anything he had endured at Uncle Vernon’s.
He said seriously to Ethan, “Ethan, no matter what happens in the future, at least it will be better than the past we’ve left behind.” The others looked at him in surprise.
Harry continued, “So, you can completely sleep in until eight.” Ethan and Ron exchanged a look and immediately burst into laughter, doubling over.
Even Hermione was amused.
She nearly spat milk all over Ethan’s face, though the young witch highly valued her manners and struggled to hold it in.
Ethan stood up and said loudly, “Why sleep so much when you’re alive?
There’ll be plenty of time to sleep once you’re dead!” “Pfft!” Hermione coughed violently.
A group of Gryffindors joined in the cheering, though they had no idea why they were shouting.
At this moment, they just felt incredibly happy.