Chapter 55

After circling several times on his flying broom,

Wizard Sean still stood stiffly before Madam Hooch:

“Madam Hooch, could I fly a little higher?”

“For mischievous little witches and wizards, my answer is no—but…”

Madam Hooch raised her hand, and an equally old broom flew into her grasp,

“Come on, what are you waiting for?”

The wind howled sharply as Wizard Sean hovered ten feet above ground, clearly seeing every dent left by the Bludgers on the pitch.

To his right, the southwest grandstand—where the Golden Snitch usually appeared—glowed softly in the morning light, its gilded rails shimmering.

Below, a meticulously trimmed lawn passed by, and he spotted several young witches and wizards peering up, gasping at the wizard flying with Madam Hooch.

With Madam Hooch’s permission,

Wizard Sean ascended freely, responding to the long-missed liberty; his broom trembled slightly under his control but obeyed nonetheless.

When he rose above fifty feet, the entire silhouette of Hogwarts suddenly unfolded before him:

The castle’s spires pierced the morning mist, the Black Black Lake lay like a dark mirror, and the Forbidden Forest stretched beyond as a sea of deep green.

【You practiced flying to a proficient standard—Flying Proficiency +10】

【You practiced flying to an expert standard—Flying Proficiency +50】

…

【A new flying title has been unlocked】

Madam Hooch trailed behind Wizard Sean at a leisurely pace; perhaps having been away from the Quidditch pitch too long, she had forgotten the terrifying talent of top players.

So she didn’t notice how high Wizard Sean had flown, only delightedly imparting to him many practical techniques.

Under Madam Hooch’s guidance, Wizard Sean felt his fatigue fade,

making his emerald eyes, fixed on the distance, grow even deeper.

Magic is generated within a wizard’s body, yet further descriptions of it remain vague.

The only certainty is that its total quantity—or magical level—grows as the wizard matures.

Then, when exhausted and unable to cast spells, is a wizard’s magic truly depleted?

If this is true,

then where does emotion—or mental state—draw the power to unlock even greater magic?

As he skimmed over the grass, Wizard Sean found his answer.

Just as a normal person cannot summon all their muscle strength at once, so too is a wizard’s magic restrained.

Training in flight slowly awakens the dormant magic within a wizard,

a process destined to be slow, yet profoundly meaningful.

Of course, Wizard Sean believed, daily spell practice, Transfiguration drills, even potion-brewing all accomplish the same thing—only at different speeds.

In a room where the fireplace blazed brightly, a pair of hands constantly grading papers suddenly paused,

Professor McGonagall felt a gust of wind; she lifted her stern gaze and saw the young wizard flying smoothly—

his robes flapping like a bird in freedom.

“Quidditch…”

Professor McGonagall’s lips curled upward unconsciously as she bent back to her work.

Then she snapped her head up, instinctively stepping to the window, staring again in disbelief—

Yes, it was true: not just a first-year, but that little Green boy.

The seed she’d planted—the sickly, barely alive seed—how was it flying in the sky?!

“Thank you, Madam Hooch.”

Wizard Sean landed slowly on the ground, limbs utterly numb and drenched in sweat, yet he still had enough strength left for a Cleaning Charm,

to hand the spotless broom to Madam Hooch, who landed with fluid grace.

“Interested in joining Quidditch?”

Madam Hooch nodded more approvingly—disciplined, restrained, and gifted enough; such talented children were rare.

Wizard Sean froze; his memory of Quidditch remained confined to books:

【The first Quidditch World Cup was held in 1473,

with numerous fouls recorded—such as turning a Chaser into a weasel and attempting to cleave the Keeper’s head with a great axe;

and releasing a hundred vampire bats from beneath the Transylvanian team captain’s robe】

Wizard Sean silently shook his head.

“Even if you could become an excellent Seeker?”

Madam Hooch was surprised.

【The Seeker position holds considerable allure—historically, they are the finest flyers on the pitch,

hence “Eliminate the Seeker” is the first rule in Brutus Scrimgeour’s The Beater’s Bible】

Wizard Sean shook his head even harder.

What terrifying bible…

“I think you could very likely join the national team; every team has a decent mascot and…”

Madam Hooch’s words cut off abruptly.

【The Banchory Bats captured a dragon from the Hebrides as their team mascot】

Because Wizard Sean was now shaking his head like a spinning propeller.

He felt that compared to a Hebridean Heilong , he might be the real mascot.

Wizard Sean thought,

let the Hebridean Heilong be the Seeker.

He swiftly fled the Quidditch pitch,

walking with light steps to test his hypothesis about wizarding magical potential.

He didn’t notice the tall witch in the dark green robe watching him.

Inside the classroom,

Hermione and Jia Jia Siting whispered quietly about something.

It turned out that when a topic involved someone everyone found interesting,

ending the conversation became difficult.

Wizard Sean focused intently on practicing the Aguamenti Charm; at least two spells needed to reach beginner level…

“...eight, nine… one more!”

Wizard Sean murmured with quiet excitement; though he couldn’t be certain if this awakening of magic was permanent, it was still profoundly meaningful,

for he had never seen such descriptions in any book.

“Maybe I’ve just read too few books…”

Wizard Sean thought again, more rigorously.

He opened his panel again:

【Aguamenti Charm: Apprentice Level (45/300)】

Progress was growing slowly but steadily.

【Title: Novice Flyer】

【Slightly increases perception of broom magic, greatly enhances flying talent】

Greatly enhances flying talent?

Wizard Sean looked down curiously:

【Wizard Wizard Sean, Flying Talent: Gold】

No change?

Perhaps “greatly” is relative to the normal standard.

Wizard Sean thought,

or perhaps it improved—but didn’t break through the Gold Legendary limit?

While waiting for his fatigue to fade, Wizard Sean opened Advanced Potion-Making Making Guide.

Learning to fly was for the nearly inaccessible Ravenclaw Tower; learning spells was for the upcoming scholarship,

and learning potions was for a longer-term goal—

earning Jin Jin Jialong.

Sufficient material resources could provide greater support for Wizard Sean’s magical studies.

As a first-year student and orphan at Hogwarts, Wizard Sean had few options,

especially after hearing Professor Snape’s casual remarks and after long, careful consideration, Wizard Sean had clarified his goal.