The Return to Hogwarts

Amosta's eyes gleamed, and before anyone could react, he had already drawn his wand and unleashed a spell that struck the desk. Under the distorted space, the desk instantly transformed into a wall with a simply designed fireplace embedded in it, and with a whoosh, flames burst into flames inside the fireplace.

Hermione was a little dumbfounded when she saw the fireplace that had suddenly appeared.

"Fortunately, finding a fireplace isn't complicated. The problem lies in connecting to the Floo Network. However, if you've left a fireplace in a safe place and marked it, smuggling yourself in won't be a problem. Of course, this assumes your location isn't like Hogwarts, constantly monitored by the Department of Magical Transportation."

Neville fidgeted nervously. He desperately wanted someone to realize that what Professor Blaine was saying could not only send them to Azkaban, but he himself might also be doomed. But Neville glanced around and saw that everyone was listening intently to Professor Blaine's lecture, even Hermione, though her brow was furrowed quite a bit.

"Professor Blaine!"

After Amosta finished speaking, Draco immediately raised his hand.

We don't know.

Draco, with an enthusiastic expression, spoke in a light, airy tone,

"We don't know how to make a door key, or how to mark a fireplace for smuggling. Would you tell us?"

"What are you thinking about, Mr. Malfoy—"

Amosta rolled her eyes and said with an annoyed expression,

"How could I teach students these things? It's against the law!"

Chapter 736 Tricks and New Training

2024-02-07

Professor Blaine's self-deprecating humor elicited a burst of lighthearted laughter, effectively alleviating the fear of the mostly underage students about breaking the law.

Amidst soft laughter, Amosta addressed the students.

"What I want to tell you is that if you expose yourself to a dangerous environment without any preparation, the chances of you escaping safely are very small. Risk avoidance means that before you do anything that might involve danger, you should anticipate what dangers you might encounter and prepare corresponding measures."

Professor Blaine's words were truly profound, and even Harry, who was known for acting impulsively without regard for danger, nodded thoughtfully.

"--When I had just graduated from Hogwarts."

Amosta continued.

"Back then, I lacked understanding of the vast magical world and confidence in my own abilities. I always fantasized about how I would escape if I encountered a truly formidable wizard—"

Amosta rummaged in his pocket for a while, and then, under the curious gazes of everyone, took out two items. One was a sealed glass bottle filled with solidified purplish-black paste, and the other was a fruit about the size of a green apple with a hard shell.

He first showed the fruit to everyone, asking, "Can anyone tell me what this is?"

"It's Finnish citrus, Professor Breen!"

Hermione squinted and examined it carefully, but couldn't recognize it. It was Cedric, a sixth-year student, who stood up and said...

"Professor Sprout told us that ripe Finnish cherries can be used as a catalyst for making blood tonics. The one in your hand was picked when it was unripe. If a cherries in this state are subjected to a violent impact, they will secrete a large amount of gas that can cause dizziness in a short period of time!"

“Excellent, Mr. Diggory, Hufflepuff +5 points—”

Amosta smiled and Cedric nodded, then sat down under Cho Chang's eager gaze.

"This is what I told you before, and if anyone has forgotten, I can repeat it again."

Amosta spoke carefully to the students.

"You must take every magical subject at Hogwarts seriously: Charms, Potions, Herbalism, Transfiguration, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Protection Against Magical Creatures, and even Astronomy and Runes. Your mastery of these fundamental magical subjects will determine how high you can go."

Harry subtly pursed his lips; he agreed with Professor Blaine's assessment but simply wanted to exclude Potions from the professor's examples.

"--The potion in my hand is a poison I invented myself, with similar effects to an unripe Finnish berry. When isolated from air, it is solid, but once exposed to air, it will release a large amount of highly toxic gas in a short time."

Clang clang

The desks shook, and the students stared in horror at the glass bottle in Professor Blaine's hand, their bodies involuntarily leaning back.

"Hehe, you obviously understand how to use these two things when facing danger, right—"

Amosta said with a smile,

“Yes, in certain situations—I mean, when you're entangled with a tough opponent—you can try these things. Of course, it's not impossible to use these methods to gain an advantage in a duel. But I must remind you that if the one causing you trouble is a wizard whose magical skills surpass yours, then you can't expect these things to defeat your opponent. At most, they can create some breathing space to escape—”

"How many lives do you think Professor Blaine has on his hands?"

Bressa Binni of Slytherin, his eyes gleaming, tilted his head slightly and asked Theodore in a low voice.

I bet—

Theodore's face remained expressionless, his lips moving rapidly.

"It won't be less than your father's --"

"In the next theoretical lesson, I'll share many similar tips and tricks with you. Oh, like how to make a door key, I won't teach you how to actually make these little tools, just to inspire your thinking—"

Amosta clapped his hands, reminding the students to bring their wandering thoughts back to reality.

"Next, we will enter my mental world for practice, so please pay close attention—"

Generally, on Fridays, Amosta usually has the young wizards practice dodging or practicing their spells against armor; they rarely engage in duels.

Harry felt a wave of dizziness, his body feeling light as if it had lost its gravity.

He was already very familiar with this experience, and the moment his feet unexpectedly touched solid ground, he regained his balance in the blink of an eye.

He glanced around aimlessly, but one look made his expression turn to astonishment.

The world around us is not an endless expanse of pure white, but rather as colorful and diverse as the real world.

He stood on a rocky mountain range that stretched to the horizon, with a setting, crimson sun hanging a dozen feet above the horizon. The terrain was somewhat similar to the arena where the warriors had fought the fire dragon in their first match, with strangely shaped stone spikes emerging at intervals along the undulating ground.

"what happened?"

After appearing in Professor Blaine's mental world, the team members quickly gathered. Hermione, Neville, and Ginny all came to Harry's side. Ginny glanced at Harry, her eyes much colder than usual, while Neville stared wide-eyed around, looking extremely uneasy.

"Another new training session?"

The students emerged from beams of white light, all of them astonished by their surroundings.

Hannah Abbott crouched down, scooped up a bit of dust from the ground with her hand, and rubbed it between her fingertips.

"It's so realistic! If we hadn't known beforehand, we wouldn't have been able to tell the difference between here and outside!"

While the young wizards were marveling at their surroundings, Amosta had already quietly appeared on a flat rock.

"The specific training for the final stage will be as follows--"

Amosta raised his voice to attract everyone's attention. A white smoke ring floated out of the large wand, growing larger as it caught the wind, quickly becoming a circle that could enclose half the size of a Quidditch pitch, with the rock he was standing on at its center.

Amosta nimbly leaped down from the rock and spoke to the bewildered students.

"I will not participate in this phase of training; you will be entirely on your own."

"But what exactly should we do?"

A student asked.

"This new phase of training is designed to test your ability to withstand attacks and escape danger. The group accepting the test will first come to the center of the smoke ring. At the same time, three other groups will be selected to occupy three different locations on the edge of the smoke ring. These three groups can choose their own locations. You are free to enter and exit the smoke ring. Your only objective is to prevent the group accepting the test from leaving the smoke ring. The group accepting the test will be considered to have successfully escaped by escaping the encirclement and leaving the smoke ring."

Looking at the group of students with furrowed brows, deep in thought, Amosta chuckled.

"Who would like to volunteer to demonstrate for everyone?"

Chapter 737 Cunning

2024-02-08

As Amosta had predicted, the first escape drill went horribly wrong. If one word could describe it, it would be: a complete mess.

Faced with an enemy force outnumbering them three to one, the only strategy the tested teams could think of was for the three of them to break out in one direction, only to be overwhelmed by the relentless barrage in the ensuing chaos. Some teams attempted to break out in three different directions, but the outcome remained largely the same.

The three groups that were surrounding the enemy also performed poorly.

Their attack seemed to have reverted to its initial stage, completely disorganized and lacking any tacit understanding between team members. They were simply fighting individually, relying solely on their overwhelming numerical advantage to achieve victory.

As it approached eleven o'clock, Amosta looked at the group of students with dazed eyes and dejected expressions, and smiled gently.

"Today's assignment is for everyone to write a twelve-inch essay discussing what tactics should be used to quickly achieve one's strategic objectives in a situation of encirclement and counter-encirclement. Submit it to me next Wednesday evening—"

A twelve-inch paper—that's a lot of work, and the students were even more demoralized.

Amostella ignored the students' wails. He packed his things, smiling as he prepared to leave the professor, but Draco suddenly called out to him as he turned to leave.

"Please wait a moment, Professor Blaine!"

"Is there something you need, Mr. Malfoy?" Amosta turned and stopped, his expression gentle.

"Oh, is that so, Professor—"

A sly glint flashed in Draco's gray eyes, and he displayed just the right amount of humility in a polite tone.

"Your lecture today was very profound, and the topic of the paper is quite challenging. I may need to go to the library to find some materials—"

Amostella raised an eyebrow, while Draco, under the watchful eyes of his classmates, continued speaking slowly.

"Could you please write me a note so I can easily check it?"

Amosta looked down at Draco, who had an obedient look in his eyes, though the light in his eyes flickered uncertainly.

"No problem, Mr. Malfoy, your request is very reasonable--"

Amostella smiled, gave Draco a deep look, and quickly wrote a note on the parchment Draco eagerly handed her.