After two days of searching documents in the library, Anthony had to admit with frustration that necromancy had been lost in the long history of magic. Even for the information found in the Hogwarts library, it was difficult for him to be sure whether it was unofficial history.
He also asked Professor Binns. The ghostly professor received him, but was unwilling to answer his questions about the necromancers.
"I study facts, not myths and legends," he said stiffly.
"But, Professor Binns, undead magic should still exist during your time." Anthony said. He clearly remembered the death of undead magic after the establishment of Hogwarts, and Professor Binns had been the history of magic professor since the beginning of Hogwarts.
Professor Binns retorted angrily: "Can you remember everything from this era, Professor Anthony? Don't you need to rely on records?"
He looked at Anthony sternly, as he would a student asking a stupid question. It was as if that question took him back to the past, when necromancy was still a branch of black magic. The "eloquent" quality recorded in the school history shines in the translucent body of this ancient ghost professor. Then he sighed suddenly and moved slowly again.
"I don't know. I'm not a necromancer." He said flatly.
…
Anthony had no choice but to put aside his questions about the history of magic for the time being and practice undead magic according to the notes.
Nowadays, except for preparing lessons and attending classes, he rarely goes out. But this morning he went to Honeydukes and bought some coconut sorbet. He arranged a quiz for the third grade in the afternoon, so he needed some prizes, so he remembered the sorbet that Professor Burbage had praised so much during the afternoon tea.
"If you come back in a few days, you can see our new Halloween products, sir." The clerk said casually while helping him put the ice cream into the bag.
"Halloween? Will there be something new now?" Anthony asked in surprise.
"It's getting late, it's October soon," the clerk said, "Your sorbet and receipts, sir. May your life be as sweet as Honeydukes' candies!"
Anthony stood on the streets of Hogsmeade and did the math. The first month of school was indeed coming to an end.
A month ago, he was wrestling with fifth-grade textbooks in the Leaky Cauldron, and now he was immersed in the Notes on Undead Magic without sleep or food. The new magical world suddenly appeared in his ordinary life, but now it has become a part of his daily life.
He shook the shimmering pink dessert in his hand, looked at the sunshine for a while, and then returned to school.
…
During the afternoon class, all the students found a bag of coconut sorbet on the podium.
"Don't look over there yet." Anthony said funnyly, "That's the prize. Let's do a test in class."
The students wailed, but not violently.
Anthony looked at them with a smile and handed out the test paper: "It's not difficult, just check your mastery."
This test was entirely on his whim. Recently, he was obsessed with studying undead magic and didn't have enough energy to prepare for classes, so he decided to take a test. In order to compensate the students, he made the test paper very simple, with all the basic content copied directly from the lesson plan.
There shouldn't be anyone who can't answer this right? Anthony thought uncertainly.
…
"Hey, George," Fred whispered, "Question three."
"Is there an elevator?" George said. "There is one in the Ministry of Magic. It shouldn't be a Muggle one. Where's the sixth question?"
"Okay." Fred drew a circle on the test paper neatly, "I think it's metal. I haven't seen any other options."
"Good job, brother," George said.
The classmate sitting in front of them leaned back unbearably, gritted his teeth and said, "The third question is about electric airplanes. This thing does not carry people. The sixth question is about rubber."
"Really? I remember we had a whole class talking about airplanes." George asked doubtfully.
His classmates rolled their eyes: "Forget it if you don't believe me. Keep your discussion down, it's affecting me."
Anthony leaned against the wall, not intending to remind them that he had heard it. He didn't mind too much if it reminded the Weasley brothers what rubber was.
"The eleventh question?" The twin brothers looked at each other and sighed. Fred nudged Angelina next to him with his elbow: "Angelina! Which one is the correct dress?"
Angelina pushed the paper towards him and complained softly: "You should be more serious in class!"
"Aren't we serious enough?" Fred exclaimed.
"We are working very hard to complete the exam papers," George affirmed.
After a while, Angelina asked in a low voice: "Hey, Fred, what's the fifteenth question?"
"It's a water gun," Fred said firmly.
Angelina hesitated, frowned and chose the water gun. "Okay," she said.
…
When Anthony announced that the time was over, everyone had finished answering. While collecting the test papers one by one, he said, "You know that there are anti-cheating quills in official exams, right?"
The student looked at him with a smile. Anthony shook his head.
"This is a short test, and it was not notified in advance, so I won't pursue it. You can't do this in a formal exam. The consequences will be serious." He said, spreading the papers on the podium.
They were all multiple-choice questions, and Anthony could tell right from wrong at a glance. It was just a simple and basic quiz, but the results were terrible. The students are very polarized. Of the dozen or so students, four or five got it all right, while six or seven failed.
"You copied it correctly. But don't you even have the ability to judge?" He said helplessly, "I have remembered the results. To save some face for you, I won't distribute the test paper. Come up and take the paper back." "
Anthony called out to the students who had perfect scores as they came to get their test papers: "Get some coconut sorbet, Stinson, good job. Full marks."
The girl who said she wanted to communicate with her grandma in the first class was so happy that she grabbed a big handful and returned to her seat to share with her classmates. The deskmate stuffed one into her mouth and snatched the test paper from her hand to check the answers.
After all the test papers were handed out, Anthony asked: "Is the test difficult?"
The student shook his head silently. Even if they can't answer the question, they can feel that the paper is not difficult.
"It's difficult." Fred said confidently.
Anthony shook his head: "Weasley, the elevator in the Ministry of Magic is a Muggle elevator modified by magic. Is it surprising?" He did not mention that this modification project needs to be approved by Mr. Weasley every year for maintenance.
The classmate sitting in front of them slammed the table loudly and said proudly: "I just said it!"
"After reading your answers, I feel that I only need to ask one question on the paper." Anthony sighed, "Am I a bad teacher?"
As soon as these words came out, the originally lively atmosphere suddenly condensed. The students who knew that their answers were not good were silent.
"No, Professor!" shouted a student. Anthony remembers that he also failed.
"Thank you, Toller." Anthony took a deep breath, "Forget it, let's talk about the test paper."