It wasn't until Hermione's parents arrived to pick her up that everyone realized how late it was, and they reluctantly left.
They all shared a lot of stories.
Ron explained that his father had won the Daily Prophet's raffle, a grand prize of seven hundred Galleons—the Weasleys, with their noble character, hadn't planned to save the money for daily expenses, but had decided to spend most of it on travel. The family would soon be traveling to Ancient Egypt, and wouldn't be back until a week before school started.
Everyone was surprised to hear this, and Damon actually chuckled, though no one knew what he was laughing at, making Percy's election as Head Boy seem insignificant.
Hermione was also about to go on vacation to France with her family—in fact, she had delayed it until today specifically for Damon's birthday; otherwise, she would have left long ago.
Neville shared his worries—he wanted to visit the magical botanical gardens in northern England because he felt he had a talent for Herbology, and Professor Sprout had encouraged him, so he wanted to further his studies.
But his grandmother disagreed. She preferred that Neville focus on combat—she hoped he could become an Auror one day.
"That's easy. I'll write her a letter to convince her—her understanding of combat is too stubborn and narrow. Magical plants can also be used in many wonderful ways in combat, but we haven't fully understood them."
Of course, this had to come from Damon; no one else would have been able to convince Mrs. Longbottom.
Finally, Ginny blushed as she expressed her wish:
she hoped to join the Gryffindor team in the new semester.
Harry was thrilled by the news, but as he wasn't captain yet, he couldn't make the team appointments.
Ron's eyes flickered, and he hesitated for a moment, but he remained silent.
However, when they returned home, he suddenly said to Ginny,
"I'll also sign up for Quidditch trials next semester."
Ginny was surprised, then raised an eyebrow and said,
"Okay, let's have a match then."
Her previous shyness was completely gone.
"Sibling rivalry? I love the drama—"
"Come on, little Ronnie, you should have tried to join us last year—Ginny, don't write to Mom and tell her if you lose."
"How could that be! Who do you think I am!"
"Ron! Are you bullying Ginny again?!"
"Look at what you're saying, Mom! She's the only one who can bully us."
Damon watched the group leave in a lively atmosphere and waved to Mrs. Weasley in the distance. Seeing that they all carried the amulets he had given them, he felt a little relieved.
At least, none of these teammates were unreasonable.
Summer vacation was leisurely, and leisurely times start slowly but always pass quickly.
In the blink of an eye, Damon had already returned to school.
During this time, he finally completed the simplest substance conversion in alchemy, unlocked a new talent, and directly increased his points to level 4.
Alchemy - Level 4 (Expert) 1/1000000
[You can master complex magical structures and integrate them into the alchemical system to achieve the fusion of multiple magical effects.
High-level alchemical engineering is now within your reach. [This seems unrelated and likely a translation error.]
He was very satisfied, but also somewhat disappointed.
Damon had originally wanted to use alchemy to try to refine the legendary Philosopher's Stone, or at least some alchemical tools for himself. However, even with a fourth-level alchemy talent, he could only create a few magical mechanisms.
Not to mention that achieving this level would require a great deal of practice. Even if he did reach that level, the best he could do was become a Director of Magical Power Engineering at the Ministry of Magic, which was quite different from what he had expected.
Perhaps this is the reason for alchemy's decline.
It's difficult to learn, difficult to master, and difficult to reach its peak. It requires a vast amount of expensive materials to practice, and endures repeated, unsuccessful failures. Without a solid foundation and talent,
it's truly unsustainable. But perhaps Nicolas Flamel, who once forged the Philosopher's Stone, could offer some fresh
inspiration!!
"Be careful",
Damon said as he disembarked from the train and entered King's Cross Station, greeted by the driver and secretary. "Woooooo ...
The carriage was already occupied, a full-grown wizard.
He sat by the window, sound asleep. Damon sat silently across from the adult wizard, observing him. He wore extremely tattered wizard robes, patched in several places, suggesting he was struggling financially.
He looked young, but his light brown hair was streaked with gray, and his face was weary and unnaturally pale, as if he were ill.
Damon glanced at the luggage rack overhead. A suitcase sat on it, and in nearly peeling letters on one corner, it read: Professor R.J. Lupin.
Apparently, despite Snape's determination to take on the Defence Against the Dark Arts dual role, Dumbledore had found a new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor: 'Moon-faced', the werewolf Professor Lupin.
Knowing who this man was, Damon stopped observing him. A copy of Alchemical Dynamics flew out of his suitcase. .
He began to read to pass the time. After hearing the noise coming from outside, he waved his hand casually, and the sound outside was blocked by an invisible air membrane.
"Hmm - ha -"
Lupin, who was lying on his stomach, sighed and moved his arms slightly. His frowning brows unexpectedly relaxed at this moment.
The quiet environment lasted for a while, until Hermione and Neville came to this carriage together - they had more or less figured out Damon's routine and where he would meet. Damon also agreed with them that if possible, they would meet at the end of the carriage.
"Damon -"
Who is this? Hermione asked silently with her mouth, and stepped into the carriage with Neville carefully.
Damon smiled, indicating that they could be bolder.
Hermione raised her eyebrows and stepped on the ground slightly - there was no sound.
It seemed that the entire environment in the carriage was cast under a silencing spell - Hermione confirmed this instantly after both feet stepped into the carriage.
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(End of this chapter)