Chapter 28
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Led by the Iron Hat King, several Hufflepuff girls were ready to make a move but had not yet decided what to do. As the time for class approached, it felt like Professor McGonagall would arrive soon. Not wanting to miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, Hannah gathered Bones, Juliet, and several other girls, each holding some snacks in their hands.
"Wayne's eyes widened. Damn it, Miranda. Where did you get the catnip?"
At that moment, the tabby cat surrounded by the girls suddenly showed a human smile, jumped back, and transformed into Professor McGonagall, as serious as ever.
"Miss Abbott, Miss Livingston, don't do such reckless things in the magical world, especially when you can't tell what the creature in front of you is."
After glancing at the catnip, Professor McGonagall's mouth twitched slightly. She really was dealing with Hufflepuff students, who could obtain all kinds of strange plants.
"Mai, Mai, Professor McGonagall." The little witches were obviously frightened and began to stutter.
"Okay, class is about to begin. Please sit back in your seats."
Hearing this, the girls ran back to their seats, looking scared. Even other students who had been watching the excitement were startled and sat upright, waiting for class to start. Professor McGonagall often used this trick. When the new wizards entered school, she would transform into her Animagus form to scare them once, establishing her authority. It worked every time.
Soon, the class bell rang, and Professor McGonagall shifted into teaching mode.
"Transfiguration is the most dangerous and complex magic you will learn at Hogwarts. If anyone dares to be naughty in my class, I will ask them to leave and never return."
The vice-principal's aura was imposing, and the entire room fell silent. Malfoy and his two followers even shrank in their seats. Even though Slytherin was protected by Snape, no one could shield them from an angry Professor McGonagall.
From the podium, McGonagall waved her hand, and dense words appeared on the blackboard. They were the Gamp's Law of Elemental Transfiguration, which were well known in the magical world. This was the basis, the unbreakable law, of all transfiguration. Everyone had to memorize this knowledge to avoid causing irreversible damage.
The little wizards took notes, and Wayne did the same but selectively. He already knew a lot, so he didn't want to waste ink. After they finished their notes, McGonagall took out her wand and tapped the table, turning it into a pig. This demonstration immediately caught the little wizards' attention. They exclaimed in surprise, changing from bored to excited.
As an experienced professor who had taught for decades, McGonagall's teaching skills were unquestionable. She knew exactly what the young wizards expected. Each person was given a match. The goal of this class, and even this month's classes, was to turn the match into a needle.
Transfiguration is classified by difficulty: from simple to difficult. Dead things turned into dead things, living things turned into dead things, dead things turned into living things, and living things turned into other living things. The further you go, the greater the difficulty gap becomes.
Well, let alone the future, just the first class stumped everyone.
Hannah almost broke the toothpick with her wand, but there was still no change in her toothpick.
Her deskmate Susan was a lot better. In five minutes, she successfully turned the matchstick green.
"Change, change, change for me!" Malfoy gritted his teeth and filled the barrel with wands.
Boom! A firework flew out from the top and nearly exploded on his table.
"Mr. Malfoy, I told you to focus. Anger serves no purpose," McGonagall frowned and criticized. "Because of your recklessness, one point will be deducted from Slytherin."
"Yes, Professor, I understand," Malfoy, who didn't dare to argue, could only bring another matchstick.
"This is too difficult," Toby said, letting his matchstick flash with silver light. At first, he thought it was a success, but later he discovered that the matchstick had not changed at all.
"It's okay. Just concentrate on the matchstick. Don't think about the consequences of success and failure," Wayne mentioned it casually. With a flick of the wand, the matchstick turned into a silver needle with a thick end and a thin end, adorned with delicate patterns on the thick end.
As McGonagall passed by, she was surprised and delighted to see his success.
"Perfect, Mr. Lawrence!" She praised. "This skill alone is something that many young wizards cannot do in a semester. You are very talented in transfiguration. Keep up your hard work, Mr. Lawrence. Five points for Hufflepuff."
"Thank you, Professor," Wayne thanked her obediently.
Toby and Norman at the front both looked at Wayne like he was a traitor.
"Didn't you say you have never been exposed to magic before? How did you succeed so quickly? Fraud!"
Wayne said confidently, "I previewed it when I was bored during the summer vacation. What's the problem?"
Toby muttered, "Who seriously previews? This is a huge distrust of the professor's teaching level!"
Many students also looked at Wayne with envy. Slytherin was even more jealous. What they had not yet accomplished with pure blood was actually accomplished by a little Muggle wizard. It felt like a slap in the face.
Until the end of class, no student succeeded. The closest one only made the matchstick change its shape slightly, but the material did not change at all.
However, since Wayne succeeded, Professor McGonagall was so surprised that she even exempted him from the Transfiguration homework this week. This made Toby and Norman's eyes turn red with jealousy.
But nothing could stop the little badgers from doing their job. After class, the little wizards rushed to the cafeteria with their schoolbags in hand. Wayne, who was unhurried, became an anomaly. He lowered his head and walked slowly towards the canteen, thinking about ways to make money.
Last night, he found out how much pocket money many young wizards had. Now that school had just started, their wallets were at their fullest. After a while, they would spend a lot of money. He needed to seize the time.
Because he was so absorbed in thinking while walking with his head down, Wayne didn't notice a girl coming towards him around the corner. The two collided.
"Ouch!" The crisp sound woke Wayne.
"Sorry, are you okay?"