Bab 271: 271. Selection Contest and Oil Crisis
The first exam was a charms contest and the last was the quidditch, as the quidditch exam was the Inter-House cup which mainly takes place in the first week of November.
In the charms contest, the students were divided into groups. They were A, B, C and D. They were not divided according to houses, instead a random lottery was generated where students picked a chit with one of the four letters.
The competitions involved various rounds and with each round, the difficulty of the spells would increase. Everyone stood in long lines adjacent to each other's shoulders and Flitwick stood behind all the students. This way, he could see all of them and make sure none of them cheated. Though he had to use a high platform.
"I will say a spell name and each of you will have to cast it in under 30 seconds. All those who do, pass to the next level and all those who did not will silently leave." Flitwick read the simple rules.
"Disillusionment Charm!" Flitwick shouted for all to hear.
The Disillusionment Charm was a charm that disguises a target as its surroundings, not by making it invisible, but by making it take on the exact colour and texture of its environment, effectively turning it into a chameleon. The charm was a 5th-year level spell and even for them, it was hard.
The crowd was huge, the test itself was designed to choose only older students as only they could have the high-level knowledge.
But Magnus was the hope of the young ones. He was the GOAT when it came to Charms. Before anybody else, he cast the charm on the stone statue in front of him. As soon as he did it the statue lit in the green light, meaning he was successful.
All of the 3rd and 4th years failed the test. 30 seconds was not enough for them to cast it.
Out of 400 students, only 150 went to the next stage. Flitwick continued and named the next charm. "Vinegar to Wine spell". This charm was used to turn vinegar into wine. It was a spell taught to N.E.W.T. students. At first sight, this spell may seem to change one thing into another, rather than adding properties to it, technically making it a transfiguration spell. However, when one considers that vinegar was produced through the oxidation of ethanol it was simply that what this charm does is revert that naturally occurring mechanism and not transform one thing to another, effectively making it a charm spell.
However, this charm was hard, that was why it was taught to 6th-year students. The 6th and 7th were advanced classes and were mainly job oriented.
So, it was common for nearly all 5th years to not know it. Magnus however nailed it again. He changed the glass of vinegar into a fine glass of wine. ~Wait, can I also start making wine and sell it? Vinegar is cheap to buy after all.~ he wondered.
But then the next round started and now only 50 students were remaining. A few from the 5th year and the rest from the 6th and 7th. He was the only one from 3rd year and stood out like a sore thumb.
"The next charm is Blackboard Writing Spell!" The Blackboard Writing Spell was a charm used to cause words or pictures to appear on a blackboard. Many teachers would use this charm during their classes so they can remain free and still write on the blackboard. The caster needs to either flick his wand or touch the board to make words appear on them.
Magnus flicked his wand as it was an easy deal for him. He reckoned that this spell was heavily reliant on the caster's abilities. As some were able to cast it from a distance and some had to go to the board.
The round was cleared again and now only 16 students were left. 8 from the 7th year, 7 from the 6th year and Magnus from the 3rd year.
Flitwick jumped down from his platform and walked to them, "Good, all of you are well qualified as Charms experts. But, the next contest will select 5 students from among you. And the next test is duelling. To be a good duelist, being a good charm caster is important in most cases. Today, we will be selecting 3 duelists. The other two will be selected from other competitions. I will call two names one by one and you will fight."
Magnus, seeing what was to come next, showed a toothy smile. However, his rivals felt threatened by it.
"SIR! I QUIT!" one of them shouted.
"ME TOO!" another one.
One by one, only 12 were left now, all scared of fighting Magnus. It seemed being too good in something was also counterproductive.
...
1 Hour Later.
"I WON! Hahaha, it was very easy, Ragnar." Magnus sat in the great hall and ate lunch.
Ragnar seemed depressed, "Man, I want to participate in duelling too. Why did the Professor choose so many from charms?"
*PAT PAT* "Don't worry, he said he will select the next 2 from other competitions. You can show him your potions skills." Magnus cheered him on.
Not all days could be taken by these contests as studying was still important. So the tests would take place every once in a while between the classes. For example, a potions test was taken just after lunch, and as expected, Ragnar aced it, along with Severus, and Lily from Griffindor. Them being in 3rd year and still clearing the tests was a big thing.
After this, there was also the Transfiguration test. Magnus was good at it. He was able to turn a chair into a walking pig. Then in the finals, he turned the chair into a silver chair. This was a big achievement. Professor McGonagall had different ways of testing, as she just told them to show her their best work. So, in the end, Magnus aced again.
There was also a Divination contest, but Magnus had no idea about it and the patience required to do it was not his cup of his tea. Care of Magical Creatures was also a contest though, here, one needed to befriend as many animals as possible as fast as they could. But, sadly, only 4 students were there to participate. However, a level of expertise was needed. So the test still took place and only Magnus was cleared by Professor Kettlebern.
In the end, Magnus was selected for Charms, Transfiguration, Duelling, and Care of Magical Creatures. Ragnar was in Potions and Duelling too. Severus was in Potions only. Emma... she was yet to take part but she was focusing on quidditch.
...
This way, the 1st week of October passed amidst all these contests. The air was now much colder in the school. Thankfully, in most of the castle, magical heating was provided.
Magnus' office was the same. He was talking to his Prime Minister on the phone.
"Sir, what you did was a boon to this country. Without you, we would've been facing huge economic losses, but today, not only we aren't losing but we're making more since the world economy is down." the prime minister excitedly said.
Magnus sighed, "Well, I hope you don't waste this chance. Use the earned money wisely. Good night then."
He hung up the phone and called his assistant, Venessa "So, did you also invest in the Oil market?"
"Yes, sir. I put my life's savings into it. What should I do?" Venessa sounded very panicked.
He chuckled, "Sell everything the moment it hits near 50 dollars. But do not wait if you are nervous and sell as soon as it hits 45. Tell this to others too."
He hung up the phone and sighed. The Oil Crisis had begun. Arab-Israeli War had started and Arab members of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) imposed an embargo against the United States in retaliation for the U.S. decision to re-supply the Israeli military. Now, Embargo on the U.S. also meant an embargo on its allies. But thanks to him, Britain didn't face any issues from this embargo.
But Magnus felt pained. "Another war, Merlin. I wonder if humans were even made to be peaceful beings because from what I have read, we have been violent beings from the moment we learnt to walk and speak. Wizards, humans, we're all the same, violent and barbarian creatures."
"You should not lose hope, Magnus." Merlin voiced from a portrait in the room.
Magnus responded, "I've also heard that hope gets you killed. But, thankfully, I am a dreamer who does not dwell on hope. I instead use physical work to achieve the dream. Let's dream that one day I can end all this pointless bloodshed."
"You will, boy. I have a feeling. That tree must have seen something in you. After all, it was a thousand years old and knew a great deal of things. It chose you, and if even you can't do it, then nobody can." Merlin tried to reaffirm and motivate him. Perhaps this was the reason for his own existence as a portrait.
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