After the lunch break, Hufflepuff students began filing out of their common room, heading toward the afternoon's History of Magic class.
Charlie stretched with a yawn, joining Ernie and Justin on their way to the classroom.
"History of Magic, huh? I hear it's the most boring class in the whole school," Justin muttered, rubbing his eyes.
Charlie, on the other hand, was a bit excited.
He'd always wanted to dive deeper into the magical world's past. After all, as a transmigrator, his understanding of this world was still too shallow.
What better way to patch those knowledge gaps than a proper history lesson?
"I'm actually looking forward to it," Charlie said.
"It's important to understand the world we're living in, right?"
"You're this motivated?" Ernie was surprised. "I thought you'd be napping again."
"Not this time. I'm staying awake for this one."
Charlie said it with conviction. Even if this class didn't help him earn Tyrant Points, he still wanted to pay close attention.
When they arrived at the classroom, there weren't many students yet. Everyone looked a little sluggish.
To be fair, Hogwarts' schedule was pretty laid-back, only two or three classes per day.
The rest of the time was free. The bookworms would usually hole up in the library during their breaks.
But not Charlie. He was "allergic" to libraries. Couldn't stand the place.
Charlie took a seat near the front, pulled out his quill and parchment, and prepared to take notes seriously.
The class bell rang. A translucent figure drifted into the room.
It was Professor Binns, Hogwarts' only ghostly teacher.
He looked ancient, with a long white beard and dressed in old-fashioned wizard robes.
"Good afternoon, I am Professor Binns," he droned in a voice as flat as week-old soda.
"Today, we begin with the foundational chapters of magical history."
Charlie perked up and focused.
"First, let's discuss the story of Meric the Malevolent," Binns began.
"Meric lived during the Middle Ages. He was infamous for his misuse of magic…"
His voice was like static from an old radio, painfully monotonous.
No inflection, no rhythm, just a deadpan drone, like a high school principal reading a legal statement.
Charlie tried to stay focused, but it was harder than he'd expected.
Binns' teaching style was painfully dry, devoid of any passion or vivid description.
Not even ten minutes in, and Charlie already felt his eyelids growing heavy.
He glanced around, sure enough, several classmates were already nodding off.
"Next, we have the tale of Eulric the Odd," Binns continued in the same sleep-inducing tone.
"Eulric was known for his peculiar magical experiments…"
Charlie's eyes began to droop.
This wasn't a class, this was mass hypnosis!
"No way. If this keeps up, I'm gonna pass out," Charlie thought.
No wonder History of Magic was known as the most boring subject.
Eventually, Charlie couldn't take it anymore.
He raised his hand and called out loudly, "Professor!"
Binns paused. The entire classroom fell silent in shock.
Even the dozing students jerked awake, turning to stare at Charlie.
"Er… yes, young man?"
Professor Binns looked genuinely surprised. It had been ages since anyone voluntarily asked a question.
"Professor, could you tell us something exciting instead?" Charlie asked directly.
Whispers filled the room. Everyone was stunned by Charlie's audacity.
"Charlie, are you crazy?" Ernie whispered nervously.
"That's still a professor, even if he's a ghost!" Justin hissed.
Charlie ignored them.
Binns floated there, peering down at him with ghostly eyes.
"Something exciting? What would you like to hear?"
"Tell us about Voldemort!" Charlie said without hesitation.
The room went deathly still.
A collective gasp filled the air. Some students even slid off their chairs in fear.
"Oh my god!"
"Did he just say that name?!"
"He said the name! He actually said it!"
Panic spread like wildfire. Faces turned pale. A few students even started shaking.
Even Professor Binns, who was literally dead, looked terrified. His translucent form began to flicker violently, growing fainter and dimmer by the second.
"D-Don't say that name!" Binns stammered, his voice trembling.
Charlie blinked, confused.
He'd just wanted to learn more about Voldemort's history, why was everyone acting like he'd summoned the devil?
He'd always meant to ask about him. In his past life, the name "Voldemort" was legendary, but he never really knew what the Dark Lord had done.
All he'd learned since arriving at Hogwarts was that Voldemort was a dark wizard who killed a bunch of people and got defeated by Harry Potter.
But the details? Nobody seemed to know.
"Professor, I just wanted to learn about history…"
Charlie tried to explain.
"No. Absolutely not!" Binns' form flickered more violently, as if he were about to vanish.
A Gryffindor student shouted, "He's fading! Professor Binns is gonna vanish!"
"Someone get Professor McGonagall!"
Several students bolted from the room in panic.
[Congratulations, Your Majesty! You've frightened a teacher. Tyrant Points +5]
The system chimed in his mind, leaving Charlie even more baffled.
"What? I didn't mean to farm Tyrant Points this time!"
Soon, Professor McGonagall arrived in a hurry.
She went straight to the front and began consoling Binns, who looked slightly more solid but clearly shaken.
With most of class time gone, there wasn't much left to salvage.
After getting the full story, McGonagall shot Charlie a warning glare and docked Hufflepuff two points before storming off.
"Honestly…" she muttered as she left.
"If this keeps up, Hogwarts is going to send me to an early grave."
Students began filing out of the classroom. Many gave Charlie strange looks as they passed.
Time flew, and before long, it was dinner.
Charlie had just taken his seat at the Hufflepuff table when the Weasley twins approached, with Harry, Ron, and Hermione in tow.
"Charlie!" Fred clapped him on the shoulder excitedly.
"You're a genius!"
"Seriously, who would've thought to scare Binns out of his ghostly wits in History of Magic?" George gave a thumbs-up.
Charlie's face twitched. "I swear it wasn't on purpose…"
Harry stood nearby, looking at Charlie with mixed feelings.
He'd heard that Charlie had already managed to turn a matchstick into a needle during Transfiguration class, something not even Hermione had fully done yet.
Then in the afternoon, he spooked a ghost professor half to death.
Compared to that, Harry, the so-called "Chosen One", felt embarrassingly average.
Still, Harry didn't resent Charlie. He was just grateful to be safe, warm, well-fed, and surrounded by friends.
"Charlie, your Transfiguration is seriously impressive," Harry said sincerely.
Charlie shrugged modestly. "Guess I was born with it."
Just then, Hermione spoke up with a stern voice and clear disapproval.
"Charlie, you shouldn't frighten a professor like that. It's wrong."
"You should use your talent for learning, not troublemaking."
The mood immediately chilled.
Fred and George exchanged awkward looks. Harry didn't know what to say either.
Charlie set down his chicken leg and looked at Hermione.
"I just asked a question. How was I supposed to know Professor Binns was so easily spooked?"
"You know you're not supposed to say that name!" Hermione's voice rose.
"But I don't know why!" Charlie said, throwing up his hands. "I'm Muggle-born. I don't know all these wizarding taboos."
Hermione faltered. She was Muggle-born too, but she'd studied ahead using books.
"You should've learned about it first before asking!" she snapped.
"Learn what, exactly?" Charlie countered.
"I was trying to learn. That's why I asked."
Hermione opened her mouth but found herself at a loss.
He was right. Without context, what Charlie did was just a normal question.
"Whatever. I'm done talking to you," Hermione huffed and stormed off.
Ron leaned toward Charlie and whispered,
"Don't mind her. She's always like that. Thinks she knows everything."
"Gets on my nerves sometimes."
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200 P.S = 1 Extra Chapters