The next morning, Will leisurely left his dormitory with a small book trunk; the lantern hanging in the common room was gone, and he didn’t know who had taken it down.
Some Slytherin students stared at Will with hostile eyes, but Will acted as if he didn’t notice them.
Ignoring them, Will followed the long, self-moving, and sometimes suddenly disappearing staircases to the Hogwarts dining hall.
Will preferred slightly burnt sausages for breakfast, paired with toast and ketchup, partly because they tasted good, and partly because they were quick to prepare.
However, at Hogwarts, he didn’t have to cook at all.
Hogwarts’ breakfast was lavish, with House-elves preparing a large variety of dishes.
Will was reading “Transfiguration Guidelines—A Detailed Explanation of Gamp’s Law of Elemental Transfiguration” and munching on a tender roasted chicken leg when a young Wizard suddenly sat next to him.
Will wasn’t completely engrossed in his book during mealtime, and he eyed Sylvia, who had sat down, with a strange look.
“What do you want?”
“The whole of Slytherin is saying you hung Selwyn and them on the lantern,” Sylvia whispered.
“It was me. What about it?” Will said indifferently.
“You’re looking for trouble!” Sylvia explained.
“Behrens, I know you’re a genius, but you need to understand that most Slytherin students come from Wizarding families in the magic world. What you’re doing is undoubtedly making enemies for yourself. And haven’t you noticed, you’re already a bit isolated.”
Around Will, besides Sylvia, there wasn’t a single young Wizard.
“I don’t care,” Will said nonchalantly, as if Sylvia had just been telling him that eating too many chicken legs would make him fat.
He truly didn’t care.
No one would dare to truly harm him during his time studying at Hogwarts.
This was Dumbledore’s territory, after all, and no family would be so foolish as to extend their claws in here.
And most importantly, he had his golden finger.
He just wanted to continuously level up during his time at Hogwarts.
Before Lord Voldemort returned, he needed to at least gain the power to protect himself.
Under the mighty power of ‘One Proof, Eternal Proof,’ Will couldn’t be bothered to waste time playing house with those little snakes.
Once he mastered his skills and became the number one of his generation, would these pure-blood families still dare to be hostile towards him?
Sorry, Will wasn’t an easygoing person like Old Dumbledore.
“You—” Sylvia’s small face flushed.
Why was this guy so stubborn?
“Alright, let’s not waste any more time on this. After breakfast, we still have Transfiguration Class. Miss Lestrange, you don’t want to be late on the first day, do you?” Will wasn’t interested in the little girl.
How many years could he stay at Hogwarts?
Seven years!
Excluding the last year when Lord Voldemort controlled Hogwarts, Will could only study here for six years.
How many days were there in those six years, excluding holidays?
Even if Will studied during Christmas and on weekends, it would only be about 1500 days!
About 1500 days!
How many magic books were there at Hogwarts?
Thousands!
How much experience did Will need to grind?
Thousands!
Even endless.
He had no time to play childish mind games with Slytherin.
Sylvia stared speechlessly at Will, who was reading, cursing inwardly, “Oh my god, that damned Sorting Hat, why would it put such an obvious Ravenclaw bookworm into Slytherin!”
Will exuded a Ravenclaw-like style from head to toe.
Ten minutes later, “Ravenclaw first-year Will” and Sylvia left the dining hall together, heading to the Transfiguration classroom.
The moving and disappearing staircases of Hogwarts caused Sylvia a lot of trouble; she had almost fallen because of a disappearing step.
“I really don’t know why Hogwarts has these kinds of staircases!”
“I thought you knew. Hogwarts’ strange staircases are a product of the Wizard hunts. It’s said they were to defend against Muggle hunters back then. If they chased Wizards into the Castle, the Wizards could use these staircases to counterattack. Of course, the Wizard hunts ended with the Muggle-Repelling Charm. These staircases didn’t help at all; instead, they became a nuisance for most Hogwarts students,” Will explained while holding Sylvia back.
“Hey, Ravenclaw over there, can you help us? We’re lost, and we’re going to be late for our Transfiguration Class!” A young Wizard with red hair, not far from Will, called out for help.
The black-haired, spectacled boy next to him tugged the red-haired Wizard’s sleeve: “Ron, how do you know he’s a Ravenclaw?”
Indeed, these two were Harry and Ron, who had gotten lost because of the staircases.
“Harry, that guy might as well have ‘Ravenclaw’ written on his forehead. Think about it, besides those Ravenclaws, who else would memorize so many boring things?” Ron said confidently; he was very good at judging people.
“Oh, of course. Follow me.”
[Someone is curious about you, Charm experience +1]
[Someone is curious about you, Charm experience +1]
Will smiled happily and led the group to the Transfiguration classroom.
“Oh, thank you, both of you. Thank you very much. If it weren’t for you, we might have been late,” Harry said gratefully to Will.
[Someone is grateful to you, Charm experience +1]
“You’re welcome, we have Transfiguration Class too,” Will waved his hand.
Ron didn’t remember seeing this silver-eyed boy at the long table last night, but it was possible he had been too engrossed in eating.
“Are you two Gryffindors too? What’s your na—”
“You few, please find a seat quickly,” Professor McGonagall, with a serious expression, interrupted Ron from the podium.
Ron and Harry sheepishly walked to the back row, while Sylvia followed Will and sat in the first row of the classroom.
Professor McGonagall glanced at the two of them and nodded slightly with satisfaction.
[Someone is curious about you, Charm experience +1]
“Oh my god, how dare someone sit right under Professor McGonagall’s nose? He should be in Ravenclaw, why is he in Gryffindor?” Ron muttered to Harry next to him, while pulling out a pumpkin pasty from his pocket and munching on it.
“Maybe he just loves to learn,” Harry didn’t pay much attention; he had attended six years of primary school and seen many good students.
Soon, the two saw a messy-haired girl and a chubby boy sit next to them.
“Harry, look, that’s Longbottom. My parents and his grandmother chatted for a while in Diagon Alley before.” At this, Ron was convinced that Will was definitely a Gryffindor.
The students soon all arrived, and Professor McGonagall began her lesson.
“Transfiguration is the most complex and dangerous magic among your Hogwarts courses. Anyone who misbehaves in my class will be asked to leave and never allowed back in. I have warned you.”
“Oh my, our Dean is truly terrifying,” Ron said.
Harry felt Ron was still emitting that pumpkin smell, making him a little hungry again.
“I will demonstrate something to you.”
Professor McGonagall said, waving her wand, and transformed the desk into a pig.
Will, sitting in the first row, stared intently at the pig.
It grunted and walked around the podium twice, indistinguishable from a real pig.
Will confirmed that he couldn’t clearly differentiate this pig from a real one in this situation.
However, very quickly, Will’s silver-grey pupils flickered dimly.
He activated his “Wizard’s Eye,” and he clearly saw the flow of magic on the pig’s body, as well as mysterious, strange, and complex patterns.
He was eager to start systematically learning Transfiguration.
The students were all captivated by Professor McGonagall’s demonstration, wishing they could start learning immediately.
Some were already imagining themselves waving their wands to conjure a giant dragon.
But they soon realized that it would take a long time to transform furniture into animals.
“Everyone, before we begin learning, I think you should first firmly remember Gamp’s Law of Transfiguration. Alright, now, which student can tell us what Gamp’s Law of Transfiguration is?” Professor McGonagall’s gaze swept across the room, and most of the students present buried their heads in their textbooks.
“What citrus law?” Ron felt a bit dizzy.
Hermione raised her hand high, and Will and Sylvia also raised their hands.
“Miss Granger,” Professor McGonagall could see Hermione was practically standing up.
“Gamp’s Law of Elemental Transfiguration was established by the Transfiguration master and first Minister for Magic, Ulick Gamp. This law defines the basic boundaries of Transfiguration, clarifies areas where magic cannot be achieved, and also provides guiding principles for Wizards using Transfiguration.”
“Excellent. I can tell you’ve diligently prepared for class, Miss Granger. Five points to Gryffindor.” Professor McGonagall showed a hint of approval on her face.
Hermione Granger, a good child.
“Yay!” Some Gryffindor young Wizards showed their delight.
“Then who can tell us the specific tenets of Gamp’s Law of Transfiguration?” Professor McGonagall stared at the delighted young Wizards.
Those few young Wizards immediately lowered their heads.
Hermione’s hand remained raised high.
Professor McGonagall’s gaze swept around: “Hmm, Mr. Behrens, you answer.”
She didn’t want to appear overly biased; that was something Snape would do.
“1. The Impossibility of Food Creation; 2. The Unsustainability of Biological Forms; 3. The Unalterability of Magical Items; 4. The Principle of Absolute Conservation of Quantity; 5. The Impossibility of Creating Matter from Nothing. These are the basic tenets of Gamp’s Law of Transfiguration. Their detailed explanations are too vast, with each tenet having several or even dozens of academic explanatory papers. Please forgive my ignorance.”
Harry felt a wave of dizziness.
He had never even heard of these things.
Could Will’s knowledge be called ‘ignorance’?
“Hey, this guy is really amazing. I seriously suspect the Sorting Hat must be senile, putting a Ravenclaw into Gryffindor,” Ron nudged Harry.
But the next moment, both of them were stunned.
“Excellent, Mr. Behrens, your answer is very precise. As for those detailed explanations, that is far beyond what someone your age should know. Ten points to Slytherin!” Professor McGonagall was very satisfied.
Will’s attitude towards learning was very proper.
She would not openly favor any house; strict impartiality was her style.
Then…
Harry and Ron’s jaws almost dropped.
Professor McGonagall continued teaching in her serious style, “Very good, you now know Gamp’s Law of Transfiguration. In your future studies and use of Transfiguration, you must firmly remember these Transfiguration laws. You must know that behind every Transfiguration law are countless accidents. Now, you are to attempt to transform this match into a needle.”
The first Transfiguration Class was easy, and Will had already mastered Transfiguration, so transforming a match into a needle was just repetitive work.
“Excellent Transfiguration, Mr. Behrens, five points to Slytherin.”
Sylvia and Hermione, under Will’s guidance, also successfully transformed their matches into needles by the end of class.
Even Neville managed to thin his match.
“I did it, I did it! Thank you, Will.”
“Helping a classmate, five points to Slytherin.” Professor McGonagall nodded with satisfaction.
Will Behrens was indeed different from the other Slytherins.
In the end, Will alone added 20 points to Slytherin, and Hermione added 10 points to Gryffindor.
“Oh my god, that guy must be Slytherin’s secret weapon, and he’s deliberately trying to get close to you, Harry, you need to be careful,” Ron whispered to Harry as class ended.