Wade had thought that with proper guidance, most spells would be easy for them to pick up, but that wasn't the case. The mastery of magic ultimately still depended on individual talent.
With simple spells, such as the cleaning charm and the mending charm, there wasn wasn't much difference in how they performed them. However, as the difficulty of the spells increased, Theo struggled. He practiced the Levitation Charm over a dozen times, yet it was still hit-or-miss. Ryan and Michael were better, but their success was inconsistent. Hermione still succeeded on her first try, but she found it difficult to make heavy objects float.
Nevertheless, even successfully mastering a simple spell was thrilling for students just starting out at a magic school. As they headed to the Great Hall for dinner, Michael was still bragging to Theo: "Did you see my last Mending Charm? It was perfect! The chandelier on the ceiling instantly returned to normal! I bet it wasn't even that bright when it was first hung!"
Ryan, meanwhile, was still muttering and waving his wand, silently practicing spells. Without realizing it, a spark shot from the tip of his wand, nearly singeing Hermione's hair.
"Oh, please! Don't point your wand at people." Hermione immediately said, then enthusiastically asked, "What are you practicing?"
Her face seemed to say—Ask me! Quickly!
"The Levitation Charm," Ryan said. He had a good temper and could sense the earnest desire to help beneath the young girl's seemingly imperious attitude, so his demeanor remained calm throughout.
Hermione said in surprise, "But you already succeeded just now!"
Ryan shook his head. "I always feel like my spell is missing something."
They arrived at the Great Hall. The abundant dinner emanated tempting aromas, and only then did they seem to realize how hungry they were.
Theo murmured, "Merlin! I feel like I could eat a whole ox right now!"
The sense of accomplishment from learning a spell was wonderful, but the effort involved was simply too arduous. After dinner, Michael finally couldn't wait to break away from the study group and invited Terry, his dormmate, to play rock-rolling in the courtyard. Hermione and the others returned to their respective common rooms to do homework, while Wade, seizing the chance before the library closed, hurried to borrow the two books he had picked out earlier that afternoon.
They had already cleaned the practice room in the afternoon. After the tables and chairs were repaired, they were placed against the wall, and the empty cabinets nearby served as bookshelves. Wade turned on the light, set out his ink and quill. The shouts and laughter of young wizards drifted in from outside the window, while Wade opened his book and immersed himself in reading.
Magical Theory—To tamper with the deepest mysteries—the sources of life, the essence of the self—is to be prepared to bear the most extreme and dangerous consequences.
Analysis of the Operating Principles of Basic Spells—Magic is the manifestation of the wizard's will.
Young wizards, whether to show off among their peers or to gain powerful abilities, were often more attracted to dazzling and wondrous spells. They were willing to spend a lot of time practicing advanced incantations, yet they disdained obscure, clumsy, and tedious theories. Even though Magical Theory was a first-year textbook, young wizards would rather learn two nasty curses like "Hot Air Charm" than read such dull books.
But Wade was different. Perhaps it was because in his previous life, his teachers had repeatedly emphasized—understand the essence, grasp the principles, master the rules. Only then could one break free from ever-changing problem types, abandon rote memorization, achieve high scores without extensive practice, and smoothly solve novel problems. This was the essence of efficient learning.
In other words—know not just how, but why.
This study habit had made Wade a "study god" in the eyes of his teachers and classmates in his previous life—he went to bed early and woke up early every day, never pulled all-nighters, and still had time to play ball and games, yet his grades consistently ranked among the top, despite many of his peers studying till late.
In this life, Wade maintained the same habits. He believed that whether it was science or magic, and regardless of any "golden finger," a solid foundation would undoubtedly provide significant and remarkable help to his learning.
Defense Against the Dark Arts class was worse than expected.
Wade had heard that Professor Quirrell was an extremely intelligent Ravenclaw who had taught Muggle Studies at Hogwarts a year prior. He was young, handsome, knowledgeable, and very popular with students. Wade thought that even if he now had Voldemort attached to the back of his head, his knowledge hadn't disappeared, and his classes should at least cover something useful.
But the reality was that Quirrell lectured from the textbook, spoke incoherently, and his voice was so muffled that it was hard to hear him from a distance. Up close... his overwhelming garlic smell gave the nearby Slytherins agonized expressions.
Putting himself in Quirrell's shoes, Wade could understand his state—anyone with an extremely evil soul parasitic on their head wouldn't have the mind to prepare lessons. But understanding didn't mean acceptance. For the second Defense Against the Dark Arts class, Wade simply sat at the farthest point, reading and studying on his own.
"Transfiguration is the most complex and dangerous form of magic you will learn at Hogwarts. Anyone who plays pranks in my classroom will be thrown out and never allowed back in!"
In Transfiguration class, Professor McGonagall said sternly. With a flick of her wand, she turned the teacher's desk into a pig, then back again, leaving all the students wide-eyed with wonder.
"Transfiguration is the most elegant magic, but to learn Transfiguration, you first need to understand Gamp's Law of Elemental Transfiguration... Write it down, students! Don't be dull-witted."
"—Before using a Transfiguration spell, you must clearly visualize the desired transformed object in your mind—there can be no distractions. Confused thoughts will invariably lead to failure; history is full of such examples..."
"A firm and decisive wand movement is crucial... When first learning, you should clearly utter the incantation, but skilled wizards can perform Transfiguration without speaking the spell..."
"Incomplete Transfiguration is both irresponsible and dangerous, especially in animate Transfiguration. This involves three theories of Transfiguration Law... If Transfiguration fails, it can cause extremely serious consequences, such as a French wizard a few years ago... Therefore, if Transfiguration fails, you should immediately stop and restore the original form. The incantation is Reparo. Now, practice with me—"
Wade took at least thirteen inches of notes on parchment and practiced Reparo several times before Professor McGonagall finally allowed them to truly begin practicing Transfiguration. She gave each person a matchstick and instructed them to turn it into a needle. Some students loudly chanted the spell, poking at their matchsticks, but nothing changed.
Wade didn't immediately act. The sentence he had read in a book yesterday flashed through his mind—Magic is the manifestation of the wizard's will.
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