Time was up, the bell rang, and everyone reluctantly put away their wands.
"When's the next session?"
A fifth-year Gryffindor student asked eagerly.
"Next Friday," Wade said.
"Can I bring my roommate?" Astoria from Slytherin raised her hand and asked, "She has to write a paper tonight, so she couldn't make it."
"Of course," Wade said. "Like I said before, the Spell Study Group is always open. You're free to come and go as you please."
"That's brilliant, Wade." A Ravenclaw male prefect ran over, patted Wade's arm, and said, "We'll definitely be back next time."
As they walked out of the activity room, some were still enthusiastically discussing:
"Did you see that? My spell actually worked!"
"Yeah, but you still couldn't block my Tarantallegra."
"I'm just out of practice! If I go back and practice a few more times, the spell's power will definitely increase!"
"So, should we keep practicing in the common room for a bit?"
"Yeah!"
The students walked back to their common rooms, arms slung over each other's shoulders, laughing and chatting animatedly, sharing their successful experiences and feelings.
Even after they had walked far away, Wade still heard someone exclaim, "I've never found learning a spell so easy! My mom always said I was talented!"
He smiled to himself, then with a flick of his wand, he made the messy items in the classroom return to their proper places.
"Hey, want to celebrate? For our first activity being such a success." Anthony finished tidying up and came over, smiling. "I put a few bottles of Butterbeer in the common room. I think everyone can have a couple of drinks when we get back."
"Don't even think about it," Michael said, putting an arm around his shoulder. "Wade's definitely going back to study Alchemy, right?"
Wade chuckled and said, "I still have some things to do. You guys go on ahead."
"Alright," Anthony said, not pushing it. "Don't miss curfew."
After everyone had left, the classroom quickly grew quiet, with only the candles still burning, casting flickering shadows on the walls.
Wade looked back at the empty podium, extinguished the candles, and closed the door as he left.
He looked back again at the wooden plaque hanging on the door. The corridor was already deserted, and quiet moonlight filtered through the windows, making the air seem to shimmer with a faint, pale blue mist.
In a daze, Wade felt as if he could sense that decades ago, a young Tom Riddle had likely done the same—walking alone down this corridor on countless nights.
He used fear and Pure-blood ideology to awaken the dark desires within underage students, giving them the power to bully the weak, and thus gathered his earliest followers.
But after graduating, Voldemort didn't continue this reign. Instead, he went to Borgin and Burkes and became a humble employee.
Perhaps in Voldemort's mind, pursuing immortality and seeking the relics of the four founders were more important. But in the eyes of those followers, wasn't this a betrayal?
Young Grindelwald and Dumbledore were quite similar; their exceptional talent naturally set them apart from their peers. Their pride also prevented them from lowering themselves to make friends, and they had no interest in cultivating mediocre people or engaging in pointless socializing.
It wasn't until Grindelwald found his purpose that he began gathering followers; Dumbledore, however, chose to remain solitary due to family and emotional changes.
—And me?
Wade asked himself in his mind: What do I want? What is my goal…?
…
The activity room was completely empty, with only the smoke from the candles curling upwards. A few seconds later, the candle suddenly flared up again with a "whoosh," and began burning quietly once more.
A ripple seemed to pass through the air, and in the corner, several figures materialized from invisibility.
"Do you think Wade noticed us just now?" Professor McGonagall asked.
"Haha, you'll have to ask Moody," Professor Flitwick said cheerfully. "I saw him deflect a student's spell! That move must have given us away! Luckily, Wade didn't expose us!"
"That was a Tarantallegra!" Moody grumbled. "You can't expect me to hop around the classroom on a prosthetic leg."
Flitwick paid no attention to what he said. He stood on a table, clapped his hands, and said, "What a brilliant lesson! I almost clapped for him several times!"
"It was indeed unexpected." Professor McGonagall had a smile of approval on her face. "Honestly, some of Wade's teaching methods are worth learning from—even though I've been teaching Transfiguration for decades."
She walked to the blackboard and looked at the wand trajectory analysis charts marked with colored chalk.
"These lads are getting excited," Moody said to Dumbledore. "Perhaps we should also add more content useful for the tournament in our teaching, like other schools are doing."
Dumbledore shook his head and said, "No, stick to the normal teaching plan. We all know that the vast majority of students won't have the chance to participate in the competition. The Wizarding Level Exam is what truly impacts their future."
"As for this current craze…" Dumbledore casually flipped through a student's notes that had been accidentally left behind, looking at the dense writing on them. "Once the Champion for the competition is selected, most students will probably lose this motivation."
"So, Wade's Spell Study Group…" Flitwick asked tentatively.
Dumbledore pondered for a moment before saying, "Let it continue… He's doing very well, and the students are learning a lot of useful things. Any interference from us would be superfluous."
"But Dumbledore, you know what Fudge thinks of you," Moody said in a low voice. "He's always worried you're training your own army in the school. If he finds out about this study group… he'll think you're actually doing it."
"Oh, don't worry," Dumbledore pulled a lemon drop from his pocket and popped it into his mouth, mumbling, "Cornelius and I have been getting along splendidly lately."
Moody rolled his eyes. He knew that even they couldn't get Dumbledore to reveal his true thoughts.
"In any case, the tournament will be starting soon," Dumbledore looked out the window. "This competition is no laughing matter. We must ensure the students' safety as much as possible; that's the most important thing."
"That idiot Fudge is desperate for you to win the trophy back!" Moody said. "That way he can write it all over his resume!"
"Oh, that… with Wade there… right?" Flitwick looked at the others.
Dumbledore was silent for a moment before saying, "If he doesn't genuinely want to participate, don't force him, Filius."
"Of course, I certainly won't," Professor Flitwick said. "But it's not just us who care about Hogwarts' honor, Albus."
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