The next morning arrived with a pale grey sky.
The castle woke up slowly.
Edward went to his morning classes.
He sat with Justin and Ernie.
They took notes and listened to the teachers.
“We have Potions after lunch,” Justin said as they walked down the hallway.
He looked very worried.
“We share it with the Ravenclaws.
I heard Professor Snape is terrifying.” “He is,” Ernie agreed, nodding his head.
“Fred and George Weasley told me Snape hates everyone who is not in Slytherin.
They said he bullied Harry Potter and Ron all through their class yesterday.” Edward looked at them both.
“Just do not talk.
Follow the instructions on the board.
Do not draw attention to yourself.
We will be fine.” After lunch, they walked down into the dungeons.
The dungeon room felt very cold.
It smelled like pickled roots and old stone.
Glass jars lined the walls, filled with strange things floating in dark water.
The Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw students sat at the long wooden tables.
Edward took a seat next to Justin.
Terry Boot and Padma Patil sat a few tables away.
The door opened with a loud bang.
Professor Snape swept into the room.
His long black cloak billowed behind him.
Snape stood at the front of the class.
He had cold, dark eyes.
He did not yell.
He spoke in a very quiet voice.
He told them he could teach them how to brew glory and stopper death, as long as they were not a bunch of dunderheads.
“Boot,” Snape said suddenly.
His voice snapped like a whip.
“What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?” Terry Boot jumped in his seat.
He looked completely panicked.
“I…
I do not know, sir.” “Pity,” Snape sneered softly.
“Clearly, fame is not everything.
Oh wait, you are not famous at all.
Just unprepared.
One point from Ravenclaw.” Edward listened calmly.
He did not say anything.
He pulled his brass scales toward him and set up his small cauldron.
He opened his book and read the instructions on the board.
The class began.
They had to brew a simple cure for boils.
Edward focused entirely on his hands.
He crushed his snake fangs with the flat side of his silver knife.
He measured his ingredients.
He kept his workspace clean.
When it was time to add the porcupine quills, he remembered the instructions on the board.
He took his cauldron completely off the fire before dropping the quills inside.
Snape walked down the aisles, looking at the cauldrons.
He criticized almost everyone.
He told Justin his potion was too watery.
He told a Ravenclaw girl her roots were cut poorly.
Snape stopped by Edward’s table.
He looked into Edward’s cauldron.
The potion was a perfect, clear blue color.
Snape stared at it.
He looked up at Edward.
Edward just looked back, keeping his face entirely blank.
“An acceptable brew, Brooks,” Snape said quietly.
His tone sounded like he swallowed a lemon.
“Thank you, sir,” Edward replied simply.
Snape turned around and walked away.
When the bell rang, they packed their bags and left the dungeon.
Justin breathed a sigh of relief.
“I cannot believe you got a compliment,” Justin whispered as they walked up the stairs.
“He is scary.” “He just likes perfection,” Edward said.
He felt perfectly fine.
Potions was not a bad class at all.
It could easily be a nightmare if your name was Harry Potter, or if you wore a Gryffindor tie.
But for a quiet Hufflepuff who simply followed instructions, it was easy.
Night arrived.
The common room emptied.
The younger boys went to sleep.
Edward lay in his bed.
He waited until the castle settled into total silence.
He quietly pushed his yellow blankets aside.
He stood up and left the room.
He walked through the quiet dirt tunnel.
He stepped out of the hidden door and into the basement hallway.
He walked up the grand marble staircase.
He went up to the seventh floor.
The hallway here looked empty and dusty.
Edward walked down the corridor.
He found a large, old tapestry hanging on the stone wall.
It showed a foolish man named Barnabas the Barmy trying to teach trolls how to do ballet.
Edward stopped across from the tapestry.
He looked at the blank stretch of stone wall.
He closed his eyes.
He thought about exactly what he needed.
I need a place to train, Edward thought clearly.
I need a room where I can push my body.
He walked past the blank wall.
He turned around.
He walked past it again, keeping the thought in his mind.
He turned around one more time.
He walked past the wall for the third time.
He stopped and opened his eyes.
A polished wooden door now stood in the middle of the solid stone wall.
“Perfect,” Edward whispered.
He opened the door and stepped inside.
The room was massive.
Thick mats covered the floor.
Heavy wooden striking dummies stood in a row against the far wall.
A large track ran around the edge of the room.
Edward opened his hidden space.
He pulled out his heavy training bands.
He strapped them around his wrists and his ankles.
He adjusted the dials, making them incredibly heavy.
He started moving.
He dropped to the floor and did pushups.
He went down and pushed up.
He did this until his arms shook.
He flipped onto his back and did situps.
He stood up, feeling the massive weight pulling him down.
He walked over to a thick wooden dummy.
He raised his fists.
“Let’s see how hard I can hit,” Edward said to himself.
He punched the wood.
The loud smacks echoed in the room.
He threw punches and kicks.
He pushed past the pain in his knuckles.
He kicked until his shins throbbed.
He stepped away and started running on the track.
Sweat poured down his face.
His lungs burned.
He gasped for air.
He pushed his body until it simply broke down.
Edward stumbled.
His legs gave out.
He collapsed onto the soft padding, completely exhausted.
He lay on his back, staring at the high ceiling.
Every single muscle in his body burned.
A blue screen popped up in his vision.
KILLUA ZOLDYCK TEMPLATE SYNCHRONIZATION INCREASED.
CURRENT SYNCHRONIZATION: 25%.
Edward smiled tiredly.
“A quarter of the way there,” he panted.
“I can feel the speed difference already.” He lay there for twenty minutes to recover.
He unstrapped the heavy weights and put them away.
He walked out of the room.
The wooden door vanished into the stone wall behind him.
He snuck back down to the basement and climbed into his bed.
September passed by in a quiet, steady rhythm.
Edward attended his classes during the day.
He helped his friends with their homework.
At night, he snuck up to the seventh floor and beat himself into total exhaustion.
Then, October 1st arrived.
Edward woke up early in the dark dorm room.
He lay in his bed and stared at the top of his yellow canopy.
“System,” Edward whispered.
“Roll.” The large wheel appeared in the air above his bed.
It spun with a blur of colors.
Ten glowing orbs popped out and floated in a line.
He had seven bronze orbs, two silver orbs, and one gold orb.
“Let’s check the bronze first,” Edward muttered.
“Open bronze.” The seven brown orbs popped open with small, dusty sounds.
A TEN-POUND NOTE.
Crisp, real paper money.
A RUBBER CHICKEN.
It was bright yellow and had a wide open beak.
A FRESH SANDWICH.
Ham, cheese, and lettuce on white bread.
A PAIR OF GREY SOCKS.
Thick, warm wool socks.
A BAG OF PLAIN DIRT.
A PLAIN WHITE T-SHIRT.
A normal, comfortable cotton shirt.
A SINGLE PINK SLIPPER.
Just the left one.
Edward stared at the pile of items resting on his blanket.
“Well,” Edward whispered to himself.
“The money is always useful.
The sandwich is a nice breakfast.
The socks and shirt are fine.
But a single slipper?
A bag of dirt?
The gacha is mocking me.” He picked up the bright yellow rubber chicken.
He gave it a tight squeeze.
SQWEEEEEEAAK!
The chicken let out a loud, highly annoying scream that echoed in the quiet dorm room.
Justin jumped in the bed next to him.
Justin rubbed his eyes and looked through the gap in his curtains.
“What was that noise, Ed?” Justin mumbled sleepily.
“Did you hear a scream?” Edward quickly hid the chicken under his blanket.
“Just an owl outside, Justin.
Go back to sleep.” “Stupid birds,” Justin yawned, falling right back onto his pillow.
Edward let out a breath.
“Into the trash you go,” he whispered to the chicken and the dirt.
He tossed the waste items into a dark corner of his hidden space.
He ate the sandwich happily.
“Open the silver,” Edward commanded.
The two grey orbs shattered brightly.
A SELF-CLEANING TOWEL.
A soft, white gym towel that removes all sweat and dirt instantly.
5,000 POUNDS.
Fresh paper cash bundled neatly together.
“Excellent,” Edward said.
“The towel is perfect for my night training.” He stored them away safely.
He looked at the final orb.
It glowed with a warm, steady yellow light.
“Open gold,” Edward said.
The gold orb chimed like a bell and shattered.
A small object dropped onto his blanket.
It was a pair of glasses.
They had thin silver frames and clear, rectangular lenses.
GOLD REWARD: SCHOLAR’S GLASSES (PERSONA SERIES).
Item Description: While wearing these glasses, the user reads at ten times their normal speed.
The user also gains perfect memory of anything they read while looking through the lenses.
Edward picked up the glasses.
A genuine smile spread across his face.
“Now this,” Edward said quietly, “is incredible.” He opened his hidden space and pulled out his thick History of Magic textbook.
He usually ignored this book because Professor Binns was so boring.
Edward put the glasses on his face.
The world looked incredibly sharp and clear.
He opened the heavy book.
His eyes flew across the words.
The words simply poured into his brain and locked firmly into place.
He turned the pages rapidly.
In fifteen minutes, he closed the back cover.
He took the glasses off.
He closed his eyes and thought about the Goblin Rebellion of 1612.
The exact names and dates appeared perfectly in his mind.
He possessed a perfect memory tool.
He could learn spells and potions recipes without ever having to study them twice.
Edward climbed out of bed.
He felt fantastic.
October was going to be a very productive month.
He put his uniform on, ready to go eat breakfast and face the day.