The Rune Mage Starting at Hogwarts

"Is there another way to say that?" Michael asked curiously.

"But does that mean you're not good at herbs? I see you raise your hand the moment the professor asks anything... Hey, did you memorize the entire textbook before the semester started?"

Ryze shook his head: "How could that be? I don't have that much energy. I only read it two or three times at most and memorized the key points. I still have a lot to learn about the basics. It's just that Professor Sprout usually raises some key points as questions after explaining the basic knowledge, so it seems like I'm the one who keeps raising my hand."

What does it mean if you don't have a good grasp of the basics, only remember the key points, but the professor asks you questions that are exactly on those key points?

Michael felt that Ryze was lying to him, but he had no proof.

"Okay, keep it up and try to get a few more points for Ravenclaw."

As Michael was sighing, a mocking voice suddenly came from the side.

"He's just an orphan, raised by Muggles, and his bloodline can't even be confirmed as pure. No matter how smart he is, he'll still have to be mindful of the Malfoy family's wishes in the future. Otherwise, who would acknowledge his identity?"

The one speaking loudly was Malfoy. Sometime during the night, he had come over to Ritz with his two henchmen and started shouting these attention-grabbing words.

Michael didn't realize at first who Malfoy was talking about, until he saw Malfoy winking and gesturing in Ritz's direction, then he realized that he must be talking about Ritz.

“What are you saying over there!” Michael glared at Malford, who had come closer. “Slytherin is over there. If you want to make a fuss, go back to your side.”

Draco Malfoy arrogantly spread his hands and said nonchalantly, "We're just talking about an unfortunate and pitiful bastard, and we're not naming anyone. Is this your Ravenclaw territory? It's break time now. If you think we're being noisy, you're the ones who should leave."

Behind him, two burly boys with ugly faces stood out, looking like the other side's bodyguards.

"Do you have any opinions?" It was unclear whether the speaker was Crabbe or Goyle, but Ritz had no intention of remembering what these two idiots looked like.

Michael was somewhat wavering, after all, being able to assess the situation and protect oneself was a rather obvious characteristic of Ravenclaw students.

But the boy was still quite spirited at his age. After glancing at Ryze and some classmates who were watching, he snorted, "Is it right to disturb other people's rest? If you don't want to be warned by the professor, you'd better go back."

At the same time, the equally robust Anthony also came over and stood in front of Reiz along with Michael, as if to show his attitude.

Malfoy scoffed at their actions.

Then he shook his head and said, "But that bastard seems to have some sense. He knows who he shouldn't mess with at Hogwarts. That's good. As long as he behaves himself at Hogwarts and doesn't try to use his status for personal gain, I won't mind writing him a letter of recommendation after I graduate and helping him find a job at the Ministry of Magic."

"Let's go, Gore, Crabbe, there's nothing more to see here!"

As he said this, he became somewhat bored and prepared to go back.

But as soon as he turned around, Ryze's calm voice came over.

"Oh, it's Xiaolong. I thought it was someone else. Your mother, Narcissa, is my cousin. We should have met at the entrance of Madam Malkin's shop at the end of July. Were you talking about me just now?"

Malfoy froze in his tracks.

His name is Draco Malfoy, which comes from the constellation Draco, so his close family and elders sometimes call him Little Dragon.

But this was the first time that a lowly illegitimate child who had not yet been recognized dared to call him by his nickname in front of him.

The other party even dared to publicly reveal their blood relationship with his mother and even him!

Malfoy gritted his teeth and turned to look at Reiz.

Ryze had her back to him, so he didn't actually see her face.

Now that Ryze had turned around, he could clearly see the other person's expression.

He was very calm, and even had a faint smile on his face.

He didn't seem to take his provocation to heart at all.

"What did you just say? I'll give you a chance to take back what you just said!"

He and his two henchmen quickly took a few steps toward Ryze, appearing quite intimidating.

Ryze's current physique is barely up to the average level of his peers, not much better than Harry Potter's.

Compared to the towering figures of Gore and Crabbe, he certainly gave off a frail and delicate impression.

Ryze's smile faded slightly, and his expression became more serious.

He told Anthony and Michael not to worry about his affairs.

After all, it was said before that Malfoy didn't need to be worried; the other party would deliver it themselves if they were in a hurry.

He opened his mouth.

"Is this the upbringing of the elegant and noble Malfoy family? Shouting at their elders like this?"

"Regarding my matter, I think your cousin Andromeda already discussed it with your mother a month ago. If your Malfoy family still has any objections, please have your cousin Narcissa or cousin Lucius come and talk to me in person, instead of having you, a junior, gossip behind my back. That only makes me think that the Malfoy family's aristocratic education is a complete failure."

As Ryze spoke, he looked at the curious onlookers around him, casually waved his hand, and explained to them.

"It's nothing. I just had a little disagreement with my cousin who's just entered his rebellious phase. I'll write to my cousin later and ask her to strengthen her son's moral education. I'm sorry to have made you all laugh."

"—You despicable bastard, what are you saying, Crabbe? Teach him a lesson!!"

Calling him an elder on one side and a distant cousin on the other, Malfoy, who had never suffered such a loss before, was instantly enraged and ordered his underlings to take action.

Crabbe truly lives up to his reputation as having a monstrous brain; to put it simply, he has no brain at all.

Without hesitation, he swung his fist at Ritz after hearing Malfoy's angry words.

And then later.

"Bang!!"

A semi-transparent, sturdy barrier unsurprisingly blocked Crabbe's fist. The feeling of hitting steel made Crabbe immediately kneel down beside his swollen fist and wail in pain.

“How savage,” Rizz glanced at Crabbe with disdain. “Solving problems with your fists? Are you really wizards and not Muggles?”

His gaze shifted to the stunned Malfoy: "But you're quite clever, knowing to let your henchmen do the work instead of doing it yourself. In that respect, your parents have done a good job raising you. Congratulations."

Chapter 25: Slytherin Loses Points

Crabbe's attack triggered Aery's automatic defense, causing the young wizards watching nearby to gasp in surprise.

Although everyone was still in first grade, the young wizards who grew up in wizarding families had some understanding of common spells when playing the Auror Simulator game.

A young wizard who had asked Rhett for the Light Charm that morning screamed excitedly, his eyes filled with adoration for Rhett.

"Merlin's beard, am I seeing things? That's the Ironclad Charm! That's a defensive charm that you only learn in fourth grade, and Ryze can cast it without a wand!"

"What? Ryze has already mastered such advanced skills as wandless spellcasting? Is he really the same age as us? I think he could have graduated from Hogwarts by now?"

......

As Ravenclaw's place became increasingly lively, Professor Sprout finally noticed that something seemed to be going wrong during the break.

She quickly wiped the dirt off her hands, grabbed her wand, and rushed over to Ryze, asking him somewhat seriously what had happened.

“Mr. White, and Mr. Malfoy, what are you doing? And what’s wrong with Mr. Crabbe?”

Eleven-year-old Malfoy was still intimidated by the professor. He stammered, not daring to say that he had been broken down by Ryze's words, let alone that Crabbe was the one who ordered Ryze to attack.

But he's good at changing the subject.

He pointed to Ryze's chest: "There, this guy has a strange magical creature on him. That's the magical creature that crawled out of his chest and hurt Crabbe!"

Professor Sprout frowned and turned to look at Reiz, wondering what was going on.

In response, Ryze nodded to Professor Sprout and calmly summoned Ariel.

“Professor Sprout, this is the little dragon... Oh, I'm sorry, Draco doesn't seem to like me calling him that, and he doesn't want me to mention that he's my cousin. I think I'll be more careful in the future. Anyway, this is what he meant by magical creature.”

"Regarding Ellie's situation, I had already written to Professor McGonagall and obtained her consent before coming to Hogwarts. Ellie is also currently one of Professor Barbling's research projects."

Rizzi took out the two documents with the professor's signature from his person and handed them to Professor Sprout.

After entering Hogwarts, he always carried these documents with him, so that he could refute anyone who questioned why Ellie was at Hogwarts.

Unexpectedly, the first person to come knocking on their door was Malfoy.

He truly deserves to be called the number one hothead in Harry Potter, who never backs down despite repeated defeats.

Rizz raised his voice slightly so that those around him could hear his explanation.

"The protective magic I just used was actually a magical barrier that my familiar, Ellie, automatically created when she sensed that I was in danger. If no one was trying to attack me, Ellie wouldn't have reacted. How could a first-year student like me cast spells without a wand?"

Except for Arcane Comet.

As Ariel's figure hovered nimbly above Rizz's head, Ravenclaw's students finally showed expressions of realization.

It turns out that Rizzi wasn't casting spells without a wand; he simply had a magical familiar protecting him. Come to think of it, quite a few people have seen this little guy on the Hogwarts train, but they don't know who his owner is.

So this is Ryze's familiar. That makes sense.

Wait a minute, this seems pretty outrageous too!

Both Slytherin and Ravenclaw had students from pure-blood families present, including direct descendants like Draco Malfoy.

Even the future heir of the family is not so extravagant as to bring a magical familiar that looks extraordinary with him when he enters school; at most, he will only carry some magical amulets.

Judging from the conversation between Ritz and Malfoy just now, Ritz seems to be an unacknowledged illegitimate child in a pure-blood family, and has a certain kinship with Malfoy.

How could an illegitimate child possibly receive such a good thing from the family?

And look at Rez's calm demeanor and his complete dominance over Malfoy.

Comparing the two side by side, it's clear that Ryze is more like a true pure-blooded nobleman!

Looking at the scene before them, many Ravenclaw students began to imagine all sorts of chaotic family feuds.

Professor Sprout looked at the documents Ritz handed him while listening to the discussions among the students around him.

Even though she spends her days cultivating herbs in the greenhouse and doesn't pay much attention to gossip and news, and had never heard of Ridge's situation before, she could roughly understand the situation from these two documents and the reactions around her.

"Mr. Malfoy, wasn't it you who first provoked Mr. White and then had Mr. Crabbe attack Mr. White?"

Even covered in mud, he still taught with a friendly demeanor, displaying the dignity befitting a dean.

Malfoy's attempt to shift the topic failed, so he dared not say anything more and could only lower his head and pretend to be dead.

Seeing Malfoy's tacit approval, Sprout didn't hold back and directly pointed at Malfoy and Crabbe, announcing the outcome of the investigation.

"Spreading rumors about your classmates on the very first day, and even instructing others to beat up your classmates—you and Crabbe, you two will have 20 points deducted from Slytherin's record!"

“I will explain your situation to Severus after class and discuss specific disciplinary measures for you and Mr. Crabbe. Now go back to your seats, class is about to begin!”

Malfoy dared not object at all, and could only nod with his head hanging low. Then he slunk back to Slytherin's location with Goyle, feeling utterly miserable.

He had only heard about Ryze, the illegitimate son of the pureblood family, from his parents' occasional conversations, but he didn't know any details. He only knew that Ryze was now living with his aunt, a pureblood traitor.

Like his mother, he believed that Ryze, who grew up in an orphanage without any power or influence, was an easy target who would have to rely on the charity of pure-blood families like theirs in the future.

So, after being humiliated by Harry Potter yesterday, he was in a bad mood and decided to come over and give Rhett a hard time, while also boosting his reputation among his Slytherin classmates.

But who knew that Ryze would have such a stubborn temper, and that he also had a magical familiar that protected him.

He acted rashly and ordered Crabbe to take action, but he still had some sense of reason in his mind.

He thought that even if he lost some points, he could at least beat up that arrogant Rizzi and vent his anger.

Anyway, everyone knows that Headmaster Snape is protective of his own, and his father is a Hogwarts board member, so he can easily make up for it later.

In Slytherin, where strength reigns supreme and several Gryffindor students are sent to the school hospital every year, this is nothing.

But he failed.

Not only was Rizzi unharmed, but Crabbe was the one clutching his fist and groaning in pain.

They were even harshly mocked by Ryze for fighting like Muggles.

Back in Slytherin, Malfoy could feel the disdain in the eyes of his classmates.

He could only grit his teeth and endure the humiliation, preparing to find an opportunity to retaliate after he had fully figured out Ritz's background.

Chapter 26: Malfoy is still a kind man

The most unfortunate person in this incident is Crabbe, who is still kneeling on the ground.

Following Malfoy's instructions, he threw a punch and felt like his hand might have fractured. In the end, not only did he lose points, but when Malfoy and the others went back, no one remembered to help him up.

So much so that under Professor Sprout's watchful gaze, he could only awkwardly get up from the ground, clutching his injured fist, and chase after Malfoy with a gloomy expression.

Professor Sprout turned to look at Reiz and handed the document back to him.

“I am not clear about the specific relationship between you and Mr. Malfoy or the reason for the conflict, but this time he provoked you first and attacked you, and you controlled yourself, protecting yourself without retaliating. You did a good job in that regard.”

"Given your composure, I'll add two points to Ravenclaw's score, but I hope the same thing doesn't happen again. Otherwise, I'll contact your parents and ask them to come to the school to discuss why you came to Hogwarts to study."

Rizzi understood that Professor Sprout was reminding him not to bring the sordid matters between pure-blood families into the school or even the classroom.

“I understand, Professor Sprout, so after class today I will write to my two cousins ​​to explain what happened today, and I promise that this will not happen again in your class,” Rez said obediently, lowering her head.

At the same time, I mentally gave Malfoy a thumbs up.