For example, the professor of Arithmancy.
That somewhat overly plump middle-aged woman now seemed to take on the air of Link's high school math teacher from his previous life, always pulling out a thick stack of complicated math problems for Link and the others to solve.
And whenever someone got a question wrong, she would immediately fly into a rage, hurling a torrent of scolding at them.
Then with a dark face she would painstakingly explain the problem again and again to the crying student she had just berated, only when the student finally said they understood would she stop.
Of course, many students pretended to understand just to avoid her nagging and scolding.
The result of this was that the next time they did problems, they still made mistakes, then got scolded again, and so the cycle continued almost endlessly.
As for Professor McGonagall, who was strict even in ordinary times, there was no need to say more.
Unlike the pitiful Arithmancy professor, nobody dared try to fool Professor McGonagall.
The habits ingrained by years of "oppression" meant that the moment Professor McGonagall stood at the podium, even the naughtiest of students instantly transformed into obedient little angels.
Professor McGonagall took all this for granted. She was now teaching Link and the others the Vanishing Spell.
This was a spell that could make objects disappear, effective on both inanimate objects and living creatures.
Link didn't really understand why such a spell was classified under Transfiguration.
But what was undeniable was that the Vanishing Spell was extremely difficult.
Its difficulty rose in steps, the more complex the structure of the object you wanted to vanish, the harder the spell became.
To make something as intricate as a human being disappear, Link estimated it would take at least a level 5 Vanishing Spell.
Theoretically, this wasn't something fifth-year students like them should even be studying. But Professor McGonagall was practically mad, forcing everyone to learn it.
The reason was simple, Link and the others were about to face the O.W.L. exams.
And the Vanishing Spell was the hardest, most heavily weighted question on the O.W.L. exams.
The O.W.L. exams were also known as the Ordinary Wizarding Levels.
After carefully learning about this exam, organized and overseen by the Ministry of Magic, from Hogwarts.
A History, Link naturally came to understand the O.W.L.s as the magical world's equivalent of the college entrance exams.
At Hogwarts, besides the surface level of year divisions, the actual teaching system also had two tiers, one lower, one higher.
These were the ordinary courses of years 1–5 (O.W.L. courses), and the advanced courses of years 5–7 (N.E.W.T. courses).
The ordinary courses only taught the basic spells and general knowledge a wizard needed to survive. But the advanced courses imparted the true core knowledge of the magical world.
Such as advanced alchemy, potions, and spells meant for real combat.
Of course, due to limited resources and high talent requirements, professors would screen students who wanted to take the advanced courses.
And the O.W.L. exams were the tool for selecting capable students.
Every professor would set a passing line.
Only students who scored above that line in their O.W.L.s would be allowed to continue studying the N.E.W.T. courses under them.
If your grades were so bad that no professor was willing to keep teaching you, then what awaited you was expulsion.
Naturally, ever since Dumbledore became headmaster, the professors had all softened quite a bit.
Many professors set their pass lines extremely low, for example, Muggle Studies and Divination.
So even the worst students could at least cling to a few useless subjects and muddle along at Hogwarts until graduation.
The direct result of this leniency was that a small number of students began deliberately scoring low in order to drop subjects they didn't want.
Potions was the disaster zone for this phenomenon.
After all, a professor like Snape was really impossible to like.
But Snape himself was more than happy with this outcome.
He had long grown sick of teaching idiots.
So unlike other professors who suddenly ramped up teaching intensity in fifth year, Snape didn't.
In fact, since the start of this term, Snape was probably the most lenient professor of them all.
Sometimes he didn't even assign homework, and in class he often just scrawled the brewing process of some potion on the board, then let the students work it out themselves.
Link understood him.
Because he knew Snape's mind was completely occupied these days with the Phoenix's Tears and the Slytherin Codex.
But what Link hadn't expected was that some people actually interpreted Snape's hands-off attitude as a kind of disguised flattery.
A few Gryffindor boys even openly claimed Snape was afraid no one would choose his N.E.W.T. courses, so he was deliberately trying to win them over.
They even said if Snape would kneel down, lick their shoes, and apologize, then maybe they would consider continuing with Potions.
Whenever they discussed this in the Great Hall, it always drew plenty of agreement.
Their faces shone with smug grins, as if they were victors on some battlefield.
At such times, many sharp-eyed students just hid in the shadows, casting scornful sneers at them, then lowered their heads again to eat and study.
Because anyone with eyes could see these people's fleeting triumph was really just buying short-term pride at the cost of their futures.
They were just like Muggle students deceived by the idea that "studying is useless," about to walk into an even harsher road ahead.
The only difference was that Muggles at least had some chance of success, of achieving their dreams.
But for these wizards, there was basically no hope for the rest of their lives.
Knowledge is power.
In the wizarding world, this was the truest of truths.
Originally, Link should have been one of those who hid in the shadows sneering at this group.
After all, even someone like him, a wealthy heir to countless assets and fortunes, was working hard here, all so he could one day survive Voldemort's return and later make the Flamel family flourish.
In his eyes, the actions of those people were simply ridiculous.
But right now, Link couldn't even bring himself to laugh. Instead, his face was clouded with worry.
"Phew~"
Staring at John, who was grinning ear to ear while joining the Gryffindor boys' nonsense, Link let out a heavy sigh.
From John, Link finally began to understand why so many parents opposed early romance.
This guy and Lilian seemed to have entered the honeymoon phase of their relationship, finding chances to stick together practically every moment since term began.
Unlike Link and Emily, who at least finished homework before thinking about dates, John and Lilian had no such self-control.
For them, skipping homework and even cutting classes to date had become the norm.
They even relied on Link's ties with Filch to openly sneak out at night, having secret meetings in the darkened halls of Hogwarts.
As a result, John's grades plummeted. He was even planning to give up Potions entirely, just to free up more time to spend with Lilian.
"Ha! Snape finally got what he deserves! This feels so damn good! Starting next class, I won't be doing Potions homework either. Lilian's been telling me to do this for ages, this way we'll have more time together!"
John suddenly turned, speaking excitedly to Link.
But hearing this, Link's expression grew even more complicated.
To be honest, John's grades weren't bad. At least he wouldn't end up one of those students who only clung to garbage subjects like Muggle Studies just to graduate.
But if he kept on like this, his career prospects after graduation wouldn't be much better than those slackers.
Because good jobs in the wizarding world were few, and they had strict requirements on N.E.W.T. grades and subjects.
With John's pure Muggle background, if he couldn't truly excel, the most likely outcome was working as a shop clerk in some Diagon Alley store after graduation.
From a rational point of view, Link shouldn't meddle in John's private life, it was John's own choice.
And given John's somewhat extreme temperament, if Link said something too harsh, John might easily get angry and sulk.
But as a friend, doing nothing didn't feel right either.
After hesitating a while, Link finally spoke up, "John, let me tell you a story."
"Huh? Go ahead." John replied cheerfully.
"Once there was a woodcutter and a shepherd. One day they met and sat chatting on the grass, talking all afternoon, very happily."
"When evening came, the shepherd led his well-fed sheep home. But the woodcutter's basket was empty. This made him despair, because he relied on chopping wood for a living. Without firewood, it meant he'd go hungry tomorrow."
John wasn't stupid. At first he listened with a grin, treating it as just a story.
But by the end, the grin had vanished.
Silence took its place.
Looking at him, Link quietly continued, "Lilian's father is a lawyer, and her mother is the sole heir of a small wizarding family."
"Whether she returns to the Muggle world or stays in the wizarding world after graduation, she'll have a bright future."
"She's like that shepherd, while you're the woodcutter. You chatted with her all afternoon, her sheep got full, but what about your firewood?"
With that, Link let out a long breath, relaxing his body.
He felt that saying this was already fulfilling his duty as a friend. Whether John listened or not was beyond his control.
He was even prepared for John to get angry and storm off.
But none of that happened.
After hearing the story, John just sat there like a wooden doll, head bowed, silent.
After a long time, his hoarse voice finally came out.
"I actually knew all this already… it's just… I really can't bear to let go. Thank you, Link."
John lifted his head, giving Link a bitter smile, then left the Great Hall.
Link said nothing, only silently watching his back.
"What's wrong? Did you two fight?"
At some point Emily had come up behind him, speaking as she wrapped her arms around his head.
"Maybe. Who knows?" Link muttered vaguely.
It sounded perfunctory, but in truth, he really didn't understand John.
Because John's words had sounded like he was ready to repent, but judging from the direction he left, he had clearly gone up to the Ravenclaw tower.
Shaking his head, Link decided he'd have to tell Cedric about this, and let him talk to John as well.
"Forget it, I'm not bothering with this stuff."
Emily giggled. "I came to tell you some good news."
"Oh?"
"Beauxbatons and Durmstrang's delegations will arrive at Hogwarts on October 30th, next Friday!"
"How do you know that?"
Link asked, puzzled. The Flamel family's information network was far stronger than Victoria's. There was no reason Emily would know something he didn't.
But Emily only smiled again and said, "It's simple. Filch already put up the notice in the entrance hall this morning."
As she spoke, she gently turned Link's head.
Sure enough, Link saw a huge crowd gathered in the hall, cheering and buzzing with excitement.
"How wonderful, Beauxbatons and Durmstrang! When I was little, my father always described these schools to me."
"He said Durmstrang was the strictest school in the world, and graduates always had broad minds and strong bodies, able to carve out great achievements."
"For a long time, his dream was to send me to Durmstrang… until my mother passed away."
Emily continued, "Link, what do you think their students will be like? Are their schools better than Hogwarts?"
"Hogwarts is the best wizarding school in Europe!" Link said firmly.
Emily stopped stroking his face and lowered her head under his puzzled gaze.
Meeting her eyes, Link explained, "Durmstrang's glory disappeared completely after Grindelwald's defeat. To prevent Durmstrang from producing another Dark Lord, the International Confederation of Wizards has been interfering in its affairs for years."
"Under their schemes, Durmstrang is already hollowed out. As for Beauxbatons, over the summer, we met Madam Maxime, their headmistress. From her alone, you can imagine what kind of place Beauxbatons is."
Hearing this, Emily burst into laughter.
Just thinking about Beauxbatons being headed by a half-giantess made her want to laugh.
Emily still held the standard pure-blood aristocratic values.
Though under Mrs. Flamel's and Link's influence she didn't outright discriminate against non-pure-bloods, she definitely looked down on them.
Especially those born of cross-species unions like giant half-breeds or veela half-breeds.
To her, having a half-giant as Beauxbatons' headmistress was utterly degrading.
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