"This sword is quite handy."
"Hoo? Hoo~" Basil turned her round head as if thinking about where John got the sword.
"Hoo~" She raised her wings to slap Tom's drooling mouth and flew to a place where Tom couldn't reach.
"Woof woof!"
The dog wooded and tried to reach for the quirky owl but couldn't reach Basil.
John gripped the large sword with both hands.
It was a weapon suited for a knight in medieval armor, reaching up to his shoulder in height. Perhaps when he grew older, the sword would fit him perfectly.
Grasping the hilt firmly, John exerted his strength to lift the heavy blade.
It was a common knight's sword, its blade a hand's width, made of steel. The weight was considerable, but for John, it was an excellent tool for strength training.
Using the sword as a weight, he began his workout. He found a rope, tied the blade securely to his back, and started doing push-ups.
"Tom stop licking my face! I'm trying to exercise!"
His efforts paid off, and the next morning, his magic power had increased by 10 points.
[Magic: Level 2 (20/500)]
[Spells: Alohomora (Level 3), Wingardium Leviosa (Level 1), Transfiguration Spell (Level 1)]
[Skills: Short Weapons Mastery (Level 7), Great Sword Mastery (Level 3), Firearms Mastery (Level 1)....]
[Blessings: Physical Fitness, Quick Attack, Precision, Academic Scholar, Pilot, Long-Distance Running...]
His skills had changed. Heavy Weapon Mastery and Long Weapon Mastery had disappeared, replaced by Great Sword Mastery.
"This weapon fits the requirements for both long and heavy weapons," John realized after carefully examining the great sword.
The combined mastery of two weapon skills into Great Sword Mastery gave him a sense of familiarity right away.
He performed basic slashes, thrusts, and parries with the great sword as if he had trained for years. His proficiency was at a level that would astonish even seasoned knights.
The skill levels were similar to those for spells:
- Level 1: Beginner, capable of basic maneuvers.
- Level 2: Basic proficiency, able to apply learned skills.
- Level 3: Intermediate, skilled enough to handle multiple opponents.
- Level 4: Professional, similar to a trained assassin, turning weapons into lethal tools.
- Level 5: Instructor, able to teach and have unique insights.
- Level 6: Master, developing a unique style and reaching peak proficiency.
- Level 7: Grandmaster, transcending form, capable of deadly precision even with small objects like pencils.
John, who has reached level 7 in short weapon proficiency, can be called a master. He can use a pencil to stab three flies in one second.
Despite losing two weapon skills, he felt no loss of technique; instead, his understanding of weapons deepened. Great Sword Mastery seemed to be a synthesis of the two weapon branches, making it feel natural.
However, he couldn't help but complain, "What use is this for a wizard like me?"
For John, [Blessings] were the most important, followed by [magic power], [spells], and finally [weapon mastery].
After practicing Transfiguration Spells for a while, John went to class. Activating his [Academic Scholar] Blessing, he absorbed knowledge quickly.
In the evening, after studying the library's layout with Hermione, he began his plan.
...
The third-floor corridor of Hogwarts at night was quiet.
The portrait oil paintings on the wall were drowsy, and the medieval armor without weapons took a stick from somewhere as a weapon.
"Lumos," John whispered.
"Hey," came a voice.
"Turn off that damned light," another grumbled.
"Sorry," John muttered, moving through the corridor towards the library.
The library closed at 8 o'clock in the evening, and now no one except night owls would appear.
Thousands of books filled hundreds of shelves, creating a labyrinth of narrow aisles. Deep within lay the Restricted Section, John's destination.
Turning off the light on his wand, John reached the door to the Restricted Section. The simple latch was more decorative than functional, designed to prevent gentlemen but not villains.
Unfortunately, Mr. John Wick was going to be a villain tonight.
Click.
With a soft click, the door opened easily.
John needed to be very careful. He didn't have Harry's invisibility cloak, so he could only be cautious.
Fortunately, his physical training played a big role. He stepped into the restricted area without making any sound and saw many sealed books.
These banned books are not impossible to learn, but they are sealed in the restricted area because they are too dangerous.
There are also some dark magic books that are not suitable for students to learn.
But it is not impossible to get books in the restricted area through formal methods.
If you can get a note from the head of the house, you can enter the restricted area to borrow. However, John thought about his stern-faced head of the house, who seemed to dislike him. Relying on himself seemed more reliable.
After confirming no one was around, John lit his wand.
He began searching the Restricted Section for the book he needed, specifically one that contained the Disillusionment Charm. However, finding it in this sea of books would take some time.
"Powerful Potions?" John said, pulling out a book out of curiosity.
It was a book about potion-making, listing numerous concoctions, including Veritaserum and Polyjuice Potion.
After taking a look, John put the book back.
Although it was amazing that the Polyjuice Potion could transform into another person's appearance, it was a bit disgusting to put someone else's hair into it.
Continuing his search, he noticed a black and silver book.
He hesitated to open it, suspecting it might contain dark magic curses. He decided to stick to his original goal.
After a round of searching, he finally found the record about the Disillusionment Charm.
After reading "The Secret of Advanced Black Magic", he found "Advanced Charms", which not only contains the Disillusionment Charm but also advanced spells such as Apparition.
Satisfied, John prepared to leave.
When he was about to leave the restricted area, he stopped.
Turning his head to look at the strange book, curiosity still got the better of him.
So he tentatively took out the book and opened it with curiosity...
"Ah--!"
John covered his ears and hurriedly closed the book, but it was too late.
The noise had alerted Filch.
Outside, patrolling the corridors for misbehaving little wizards, Filch sprinted towards the library. Despite being a Squib, he was fit from years of cleaning.
"I've got you now! Come out from wherever you are!"
Filch snarled, holding a lantern, his hooked nose twitching like a bloodhound's.
A distant cat's meow echoed from the shelves, bringing a grin to Filch's face. His bond with Mrs. Norris was almost telepathic, and he ran towards the sound.
He and Mrs. Norris were in sync and ran towards the distant bookshelves.
As soon as Filch got away from the library entrance, John emerged from the shadows of a nearby shelf and nonchalantly walked out.
On his way out, he gave a thumbs-up to Mrs. Norris who was licking her fur elegantly on the bookshelf.
Sure enough, Mrs Norris had never betrayed John, the previous time there were the Gryffindor students whom she was chasing, gladly no cat food was fed in vain.
This combination of making a feint to the east and attacking in the west was perfect.
...
After returning to the dormitory, John couldn't wait to start practicing. So much so that when he got up the next day, his eyes were like panda's.
Three days of practice finally paid off when he saw the Level 1 Disillusionment Charm appear in his skill set.
Hard work always pays off.
The next day, John saw six long-eared owls carrying a lengthy package to Harry Potter in the Great Hall. In their excitement, they knocked and made Harry's uneaten bacon have an intimate contact with the floor.
'Congratulations! Minerva McGonagall is throwing a Nimbus 2000 at you,' John thought, amused.
Mr. Savior is going to start his Quidditch career.
With the Nimbus 2000 came a letter from McGonagall, summoning Harry to Quidditch practice. Although Harry was new to the sport, he had a natural talent for flying.
Unable to contain his joy, Harry shared the letter with Ron. Ron, envious, remembered the best broom he had ever touched was his brother Charlie's, used during his Quidditch days. Compared to the Nimbus 2000, that broom was junk.
Harry and Ron hurriedly left the Great Hall, eager to unwrap the package before their first class.
Love was around the corner—ehm—Turning a corner, they ran into trouble.
The savior met his nemesis from Slytherin. Malfoy, as usual, teased.. no, taunted Harry, his lifelong enemy.
John was eating bacon patties and just glanced at it casually.
Compared with the feud between Slytherin and Gryffindor, he was more concerned about the hard taste of the bacon patties. He suspected that there were uncooked stones inside.
"Well, how long are you going to keep the cold war with them?"
John put down the bacon patties with regret. Opposite him was Hermione, who had peeked at Harry and Ron three times.
"Until they apologize to me," Hermione huffed, "otherwise, never."
"That might take a while," John said, suspecting Harry and Ron had already forgotten about Hermione.
Neville was struggling with his red Remembrall again, so John had to remind him that he'd better change his pants for the spells class, after all, this wasn't a pajama party.
...
In class, John earned points from Professor Flitwick, slightly boosting Slytherin's standings from their bottom position.
After a day of classes, John wandered around the castle. Each time he passed a large tapestry, he walked back and forth three times, mentally repeating his need for a training room.
This behavior might seem strange to some, but those familiar with the Harry Potter series would recognize it. He was searching for the Room of Requirement.
John's memory of the details was hazy. He recalled the entrance being opposite a large tapestry, though the exact appearance and location were unclear.
Fortunately, Hogwarts didn't have too many large tapestries. After his third pass by the tapestry on the seventh floor depicting Barnabas the Barmy being clubbed by trolls, a wooden door appeared across from it.
John pushed the door open and entered a room designed for spell practice. Several humanoid targets, looking quite old, filled the room. He frowned at the thick layer of dust covering everything, making it look as if it hadn't been cleaned in decades.
"Scourgify," John incanted, using a newly learned spell to clear the dust. He finally relaxed, examining the sturdy targets and a dark wooden training sword in the corner. Judging by the size of the sword, its original owner must have been quite strong.
John hefted the sword, finding it heavier than the medieval swords he was used to. With his current strength, he couldn't wield it effectively.
Despite that, the room was perfect for his spell training. All the equipment could also be used for physical exercise, making it doubly useful.
With no offensive spells yet, John could only practice basic ones. His relentless effort paid off when his Disillusionment Charm leveled up to 2.
"Disillusionment," he cast, his wand waving as a liquid-like substance coated him, gradually blending him with his surroundings.
He lifted his hand, noticing it looked like a mass of water. From a distance, he'd be nearly invisible, though up close, the distortion could still be noticed.
"It's like optical camouflage," John mused, satisfied with his explanation.
With the help of the Disillusionment Charm, his upcoming nocturnal explorations would be much easier.
After his training, John left the Room of Requirement. It was bedtime, so he headed to the trophy room to clean.
He took out some cat treats from his pocket as a reward for Mrs. Norris's previous assistance, carefully grooming her matted fur.
"Have you gained weight?" John asked, lifting Mrs. Norris and noticing she felt heavier.
Previously, it seemed Filch hadn't been feeding her well enough, leading to malnutrition. John even brought a bottle of hairball remedy, considering Mrs. Norris's habit of licking her fur.
Leaving the trophy room, he saw Filch looking more displeased than usual, with a lingering smell resembling rotten durian.
This was likely the work of the Weasley twins.
Not long after leaving the trophy room, John encountered two sneaky figures with red hair. Their identical faces and mischievous grins made it clear they were the infamous Weasley twins.
John's eyes twinkled as he cast the Disillusionment Charm on himself, stealthily following the Weasley twins and listening to their conversation.
"George, we could toss the dungbomb in there."
"Wait, Fred, John Wick is still in the trophy room. I don't want to get John Wick involved."
"Alright, we can throw it into Filch's office instead. What do you think?"
"Brilliant, George. It's about time that annoying git got a taste of his own medicine."
George and Fred Weasley, the infamous Weasley twins, were notorious troublemakers at Hogwarts. Their ongoing feud with Filch, the caretaker, was well-known, as their love for pranks naturally put them at odds with him.
The twins planned to give Filch a hard time, believing that a couple of dungbombs in his office would be the perfect revenge.
John, following closely behind them, shivered at their conversation and felt grateful for his decent rapport with people. If he had been hit by a dungbomb, it would have taken at least ten showers to get rid of the stench.
Unaware of John's presence, the twins reached Filch's office and tossed in the dungbombs. The resulting stench was so vile that John couldn't help but pity Filch, wondering where the poor man would sleep that night.
The smell was unbearable even for the Weasley twins, who quickly ran out after throwing the bombs.
John peeked into the office from the doorway. Filch's office was cluttered with various items, and one drawer labeled "Confiscated, Highly Dangerous" caught his attention. It seemed to contain numerous forbidden objects.
Before he could examine further, John heard Filch's furious shouts. The twins increased their speed, and as they dashed past John, a piece of parchment fell from their pockets.
Picking it up, John recognized the clean parchment and immediately thought of a specific item.
"The Marauder's Map?"
This wasn't the time to check it out, as Mrs. Norris's meowing could be heard nearby. Under the Disillusionment Charm, John ran in the opposite direction of the twins.
Filch, in a rage, chased after the twins. Back in his dormitory, John felt the lingering smell of dungbombs on him.
He took out the parchment and his wand.
"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good!"
The blank parchment began to transform, ink lines spreading across it like watercolors, forming words.
"Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs."
John remembered that one of these names belonged to Harry's father.
With the map now activated, John studied it, seeing the detailed layout of Hogwarts and the locations of everyone within. This invaluable tool would undoubtedly aid him in his nocturnal activities and avoid any unwanted encounters with Filch or other staff.
John opened the parchment, revealing a map that displayed the movements of people within Hogwarts, complete with their footprints.
"Filch is still wandering around there. If he turns the corner, he'll spot the Weasley twins."
The map was incredibly detailed, recording all the secret passages of Hogwarts and even showing the names of the individuals present. Possessing this map essentially meant having control over all the hidden routes in Hogwarts.
Filch, however, didn't turn the corner. Instead, he changed direction and headed in the opposite direction.
The Weasley twins started moving towards the Gryffindor common room, taking a shortcut on the fourth floor.
John studied the map and noticed a particular name: Quirinus Quirrell. Seeing Professor Quirrell active outside at night, John wanted to see if he could spot the one who must not be named.
Unfortunately, he failed.
"It seems the Marauder's Map doesn't show everything."
John felt a bit disappointed, but such instances were rare. He watched with amusement as his head of house, Professor Snape, approached a pair of unfortunate students out on a night stroll. John guessed that the couple would lose quite a few points.
"Mischief managed."
John tapped the parchment with his wand to close the Marauder's Map, then stashed it under his pillow. Now, he wouldn't have to worry about getting caught on his nocturnal adventures—a comforting thought.
...
There was good news and bad news.
The good news was that, besides attending classes and training, John found a new pastime: watching the savior Harry perform fancy flying at the Quidditch pitch.
It was remarkable how Harry seemed to have inherited his father's talent for Quidditch, though John couldn't fathom how a nearsighted kid with glasses had such impressive dynamic vision. The Golden Snitch was tiny, about the size of a walnut, and moved incredibly fast in a vast, three-dimensional space.
John was almost dizzy watching it, but Harry always managed to spot and lock onto it.
This didn't stop John from enjoying the show, as it was amusing to witness Harry's awkward training sessions. After Harry crashed into the stands for the third time, Hermione's voice sounded next to John.
"In 1269, Chief of the Wizard's Council, Barberus Bragge, introduced the Golden Snidget into Quidditch and offered 150 Galleons as a reward for catching it. Later, releasing the Golden Snidget became a common practice in Quidditch matches, and catching it earned the team 150 points.
As the hunting of the Golden Snidget became popular, the number of Golden Snidgets decreased sharply, and the Golden Snidgets was later replaced by only one Golden Snitch."
Hermione was showing off her knowledge, which John found exasperating.
It seemed Hermione was gradually viewing John as a rival.
As a genuine academic achiever, Hermione displayed a strong determination not to be outdone by John, who had been earning more points in class than she did.
This was bad news.
At least before John was really an academic master, this news was too bad.
It was like someone was holding a whip behind you, and you would be whipped as long as you slowed down.
______
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