Hogwarts Raven

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He came and went. With a simple wave of his sleeve, Snape left behind Ian, who was still eager to learn new magic, a bag of gold coins that had mysteriously appeared, and a tidy living room, now free of the earlier chaos.

"Suppress your curiosity about dark magic. Don't let me catch you snooping around the village for things you shouldn't be, and if I find out you're trying to learn dark magic from someone, you're finished!" Before departing, Snape issued a blatant threat, perhaps concerned about the Acolytes of the Grindelwald faction who had been active in the village lately, or maybe worried that Ian might actually end up in Azkaban.

"I promise I won't snoop around!" Ian replied, his voice trembling. Whether or not it satisfied Snape, the professor certainly didn't expect that his threat would have a lasting "control" effect on Ian.

As soon as Snape left, Ian rushed to the toilet. In a few swift movements, he opened the water tank. There, wrapped in oilcloth, lay "Secrets of the Darkest Art," quietly resting beside the tank— since the commotion last night, Ian had hidden it there as a precaution. 

After all, with a series of pops, a group of corpses had emerged, creating quite a ruckus. Though he hadn't anticipated running into Snape, Ian was still anxious, preparing for the possibility that the unusual events in the cabin might attract the attention of other wizards.

Every day when he went out to forage, Ian often overheard the innkeeper Rosmerta gossiping about who in the village had been battling a wizard or multiple witches in the middle of the night. 

If even those sounds could be detected, how could Ian not worry about the noise he had made being noticed? Much of what he told Snape was true; he really hadn't slept at all last night, fearing that a wizard might come knocking. In such a state of anxiety, "Secrets of the Darkest Art" definitely needed to be hidden.

Initially, Ian had considered smashing the toilet, hiding "Secrets of the Darkest Art" in a secret pipe, and then using the [Repairing Charm] to restore the toilet to its original state, all without anyone noticing. 

However, he ultimately decided against it. Not only was he concerned that "Secrets of the Darkest Art" might be washed away, but he also feared that after being marinated in indescribable substances, the knowledge within would be desecrated. 

While the desecration of knowledge wasn't a huge deal, the thought of learning from such tainted material was unsettling. Ian didn't want to earn any "He smells like feces" comments after enrolling in Hogwarts.

[Wizard of Feces]

Just thinking about such a title was terrifying enough. Because of this, Ian made a second-best choice. Hiding "Secrets of the Darkest Art" in the toilet tank was indeed the correct choice as it made it hard for anyone to detect it. 

The fact proved that Snape had no idea Ian had obtained such a comprehensive work on dark magic and had hidden it in a corner of the room. With this book, why would he need to seek out dark magic from others?

"My precious~" Ian checked the seal of the oilcloth, then tucked "Secrets of the Darkest Art" back away. He now had something more pressing than studying dark magic.

[Successfully read Potions Book, Potions Mastery +1]

[Successfully read Potions Book, Potions Mastery +1]

[Successfully read Potions Book, Potions Mastery +1]

...

Yes. Copying rented books. This was the more urgent matter. Compared to knowledge that could be studied at any time, completely copying the Potions Books for seven years was what Ian needed to focus on. 

Professor Mara was a good teacher, but she didn't seem like a particularly powerful witch. Who knew if Professor Mara would continue to teach him more magic if he didn't complete what he promised, or if she might let him personally experience the taste of dark magic? 

Ian hadn't had much contact with the mysterious soul in this 'Twilight Zone' and couldn't make an accurate judgment yet. In any case, he'd rather endure a bit more with "Auto Quill" than take the risk. After all, "Auto Quill" didn't have much use at this age. Might as well use it to copy furiously.

"Swish swish~ swish swish~ swish swish~" In the quiet cabin, the sound of the quill scratching against the notebook filled the air.

[Successfully read Potions Book, Potions Mastery +1]

[Successfully read Potions Book, Potions Mastery +1]

[Successfully read Potions Book, Potions Mastery +1]

...

The steadily increasing proficiency became Ian's motivation for writing—quills that could automatically transcribe text were sold in the village, and Ian, having been "refed" by Snape, was once again flush with money. 

However, since last night, when he discovered that copying these textbooks could increase his [Potions Mastery] skill, Ian abandoned the idea of lazily using "technology." Being able to study intensely was a kind of joy for Ian. Letting knowledge flow through his mind as he copied, leaving traces of its passage— what a delightful experience!

"Once there was the Half-Blood Prince; who knows, Hogwarts might produce another Orphan Prince!" Ian felt that his potions talent probably wasn't too shabby either. 

After all, for most young wizards, potions knowledge, once it enters their minds, might even mean that when it flows out, it takes other knowledge with it. Just by passively reading while copying, he could gain proficiency and the Potion Mastery will continue to increase. 

Such a level of talent was basically second only to Ian's somewhat unreasonable dark magic talent. Well, as it stood, only his white magic talent was a bit lacking. It required several repeated practices to learn, and the interval for increasing proficiency when using it was also about ten minutes longer compared to [Potions Mastery].

"If I could get more teachings from Dumbledore, perhaps it could make up for my lack of white magic talent?" Ian was full of anticipation and longing for the learning life after school started. 

'What? Dumbledore doesn't teach magic classes? No way! Would the great headmaster refuse a student's eager request for learning? You need to have thick skin to ask for favours! That's what really gets you the meat!'

[Successfully read Potions Book, Potions Mastery +1]

Even though Ian occasionally got distracted while copying, the increase in proficiency only slowed down, which might be the hidden talent within the Prince family bloodline. 

The quill lightly touched the paper, the ink slowly solidifying. The sunlight outside was bright. Inside, only the soft sound of the quill against the paper could be heard, intertwined with the occasional rustle of turning pages, the air filled with a faint scent of ink and books. Ian gradually became absorbed. Focused.

...

(End of Chapter)