Chapter 38

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The last three found Lee hiding in an armor on the fifth floor.

"Filch went crazy. He chased me from the fourth floor to the eighth floor. I jumped into a secret passage and went back to the sixth floor. He caught up again," Lee said excitedly while eating a sandwich in the kitchen.

Escaping from Filch seemed as tough as surviving a sword fence battle. With unique talents, it was like listening to rap.

An elf thoughtfully prepared a large round table filled with food and drinks for them.

After finishing his sandwich, Lee said worriedly, "But I always feel that Filch might know it's me. What if he comes to trouble me in the future?"

Fred consoled him, "It's not a possibility, it's a certainty. You are the only person of your kind in the school and the most dishonest. Filch definitely knows that."

"Damn it," Lee said, trembling with anger. "Are you two deliberately trying to trick me?"

"Don't worry," Cedric said after drinking a glass of lemon juice. "As long as he doesn't catch you on the spot or have evidence, he can't punish you."

Fred curled his lips disdainfully. "It's just that you've been following us for so many years, and still don't know these rules."

"It's just because I followed you that I was caught so many times," Lee replied angrily. Then he asked about what he was most concerned with. "What is in that corridor? Did you see it?"

At this, the group became energetic.

"I'm telling you...you can't believe it..." Lee's mouth dropped open so wide, you could stuff a pear into it.

"Three-headed dog? Trap door?" He then looked at Wayne, who had been devouring his food. "You said it was Wayne who dealt with the three-headed dog?"

"Not dealt," Wayne corrected, "Just contained it for a while."

"That's why we stopped you," Cedric interrupted. "With your approach, you wouldn't stop until you beat the three-headed dog to death."

"How have you mastered your magical power to such a great extent?" George asked with envy. "Compared to you, I was a loser in my first year."

"We're still the same now," Fred added without mercy, even towards himself. "With just a few moves, he could turn the four of us into Muggles."

Cedric's mouth twitched. You can laugh at yourself, but why drag me into it? Isn't it something to be proud of, being the first in my grade?

"Do you have any tips?" Cedric couldn't help but ask.

"I really can't teach you this," Wayne shook his head. "Magic is an innate talent that can only be explored and is difficult to improve. If you want to become stronger, you need to master more spells and have a deeper understanding of magic."

He wasn't fooling them; it was the truth. The strength of Dumbledore and Grindelwald came from a mix of nature and nurture. They showed extraordinary talents in school and achieved such amazing feats with hard work. Talent is the foundation. With talent and hard work, one can see results. The most obvious example is Hermione. While Harry was busy playing and often acted recklessly, Hermione had already mastered many spells.

Later, Lupine gave some advice. By the third year, Harry's magical power had surpassed Hermione's and continued to grow stronger. This difference is due to the talent gap. Although Cedric's talent is good, it is only good among normal people. According to the system's grading, his overall evaluation is B-level. He is relatively average but hardworking, which allows him to stay at the top of his grade.

The twins were less focused, spending more time on having fun. 

"I just hate geniuses like you," Fred said, curling his lips.

They let the topic drop and concentrated on eating their supper. Half an hour later, Wayne and the others left the kitchen and went back to their homes. However, after watching Cedric enter the dormitory, Wayne walked out of the common room again.

He had already checked the fourth-floor corridor and earned fifty points. By shopping around that night, he earned more than a hundred points. But Wayne wasn't out just to score more points. He wanted to go to the restricted section of the library to find the books he needed. 

He had bought a book called "Elementary Alchemy" at Flourish and Blotts, which is also the alchemy textbook at Beauxbatons School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Because of Nicolas Flamel, Beauxbatons is far ahead in alchemy, and young wizards can take alchemy as an elective in the third grade. At Hogwarts, only those who pass the OWLs exam are eligible.

No matter how advanced the book is, it cannot be mass-produced. Alchemy has a high threshold and is not suitable for widespread promotion. Wayne could only try his luck in the forbidden section to see if he could find what he needed.

When he returned to the second floor, Dumbledore and Snape were already in the fourth-floor corridor. Snape put his wand on the handle of the oak door and sensed it.

"It seems your warning had no effect at all, Dumbledore," Snape said sadly.

"That's understandable, Severus," Dumbledore replied, unoffended by the violation of his warning. His tone was casual, as if talking to a friend about a naughty grandson. "Weren't you the same way back then? Oh, by the way, you were tricked once..."

"Shut up!" Snape interrupted irritably. "When you get old, you shouldn't always look back on the past. Wasn't that a pleasant experience? They should be expelled! And the little wizard who broke in here should be fired!"

"It's not that serious yet," Dumbledore said, blinking as he took out the key and opened the oak door. "Let's see how far they have gone."

Snape snorted coldly and did not enter first. The dog only recognized Hagrid and Dumbledore. Anyone else would be attacked. When Dumbledore entered, Snape followed behind.

The three-headed dog was about to get angry, but it calmed down immediately when it saw Dumbledore's familiar white beard, lying down with all three tongues sticking out and whimpering.

"This is..." Snape's eyes narrowed. His wand gave off a bright light, allowing them to see the injuries on the three-headed dog.

"It seems that our little wizard is really capable," Dumbledore said meaningfully.