The Rune Mage Starting at Hogwarts

You're a pretty nice person, Xiaolong.

Honestly, without Malfoy's assist, it wouldn't have been so easy for him to take the lead in scoring in Herbals Class.

Although it seemed like only two points, Sprout continued to call on students evenly in the next class, and in the end, Reiz tied for the top scorer of the class with five points.

As the red light from the raven circling in the air merged into his body, and the number of ravens collected on his character interface changed from 0 to 1, Ryze felt extremely happy.

Around him, a number of Ravenclaw's classmates had gathered.

Some wanted to see what that magical creature was all about.

Some wanted to get more detailed information about Ryze's identity.

Ryze didn't need to explain these things himself; his roommates took care of it for him.

Ryze is not an illegitimate child. His father had already left the family before Ryze was born, and he was also a very capable adventurer.

Aery was a defensive measure left to Ryze by the other side; it was a magical creature from some ancient ruin.

However, he mysteriously disappeared during an adventure, which led to Rizz being left in the wild and raised by Muggles.

"It sounds like a medieval hero's tale, with a prince who is beaten and protected by elves... I know how the story ends: the prince returns after many years, defeats all his enemies, and reclaims everything his father gave him."

A female student from a Muggle family was telling stories about princes in the Muggle world and found that she could completely identify with Ryze.

However, Ryze himself didn't pay attention to these rumors; anyway, these outrageous rumors would eventually die down on their own after a while.

After having Anthony take the textbooks back for her, Reese ran to the library to avoid the overly enthusiastic classmates.

The library at Hogwarts is indeed very large.

From the outside, it looks like the size of a few classrooms, but once you step inside, you'll find that it's much larger than the entire Quidditch stadium.

It wouldn't be a problem to accommodate all the students of Hogwarts here to study and complete their assignments.

Reese took Professor Flitwick's note and asked Mrs. Pince, who managed the library, about it.

Mrs. Pince was a thin, elderly woman who managed such a large library all by herself, yet she could easily remember the location of all the books.

With just a glance at Professor Flitwick's note, she told Raz the exact location of these books, down to which number on which bookshelf.

At the same time, she seriously reminded Raz that under normal circumstances, junior wizards could only borrow one book to take out of the library, but because of Professor Flitwick's note, he could take all the books out of the library, but he must not leave any trace on them, otherwise he would be severely punished.

Rizzi naturally couldn't offer any opinions.

After getting the books, he quickly found them in the library and then found a quiet spot.

Instead of immediately looking at the chapters Professor Flitwick had told him about, he took out some stationery and began writing a letter.

I said I would write letters to my two older cousins, and I definitely will.

If Malfoy hadn't provoked him, it would have been fine, but since the other party had taken the initiative to cause trouble, it would have been rather impolite not to respond.

This trick was taught to him by Andromeda before the start of the school year.

After all, pureblood families value their reputation the most.

Even if they looked down on Andromeda and Rizzi from the bottom of their hearts, Narcissa and the Malfoy family were not pure-blooded monsters like her older sister Bella.

In the current environment of the British wizarding community, before things officially break down, basic decorum still needs to be maintained.

This is why they were able to have a normal conversation when they met in Diagon Alley.

“Narcissa has always been proud, and now she's married to Lucius, who's equally proud. If—and I mean if—their son offends you at Hogwarts, you should write directly to Lucius and Narcissa… Although I know you'll be fine with Aery's protection, only by winning and writing a letter can you truly humiliate them. I'll teach you how to write a letter that will keep Narcissa up all night, and she might even have to write to thank you…”

Thinking of Andromeda's cheerful manner when she talked about these things, Rizz decided to listen to Andromeda's opinion.

In his letter to Narcissa, he used a formal tone, employing the elegant handwriting and sophisticated vocabulary favored by the nobility. He first expressed his "respect" for the Malfoy family, then gave a complete, unemotional account of the conflict that afternoon, and kindly inquired whether his cousin needed any help with her education.

“Ms. Narcissa, it doesn’t matter what you think of me. What I think is really important is that Draco, as an 11-year-old boy who has just started school, thinks of solving problems with his fists first. This is not good for his growth, nor does it seem like a qualified wizard who has received a wizarding education.”

"However, if this is Mr. Lucius and the Malfoy family's consistent educational policy, then due to differences in personal beliefs, I will avoid contact with Draco in the future. I hope Draco will also try not to approach me, so as not to cause any misunderstandings between us over these unimportant things."

In his letter to Andromeda, Rizzi gave a formal account of what happened that afternoon and briefly recounted the contents of his letter to Narcissa.

After writing about these uninteresting things, he also mentioned his dream from the previous night in the letter, suggesting that he might have awakened his talent for divination.

"Professor Babling found me some books on divination. If I make any progress when I come back after Christmas, I'll show you my divination techniques."

Chapter 27: Rewi Alley's Diplomacy

For the next few days, Rhett's life at Hogwarts went smoothly.

Andromeda replied to him the next day, saying that he had done a good job and that if he was still unhappy with Draco, he could find another opportunity to teach that disobedient cousin a lesson.

She also expressed her curiosity about Ryze's divination abilities, asking in her letter if he wanted her to buy some crystal balls or other divination tools and mail them to her.

As for Narcissa, she showed no intention of replying to him.

It seems I won't be able to hear the other person's thanks.

Narcissa was ultimately not that dignified.

However, this is not surprising.

According to some reliable rumors, Malfoy was not only ordered to stay in jail over the weekend, but also received several letters from his home.

Judging from Draco's extremely depressed and unpleasant expression these past few days, the contents of the letter must be quite severe.

Rizzi thought this was a good thing.

Kids really do need to receive some education from their elders.

Forget about being a cocky guy at Hogwarts. Instead, learn the Malfoy family's greatest weapon in modern times: the art of being a fence-sitter and hedging your bets. This skill is more reliable than mastering any kind of magic.

If Malfoy dares to cause trouble again in the future, he'll have to let Malfoy thank him in person.

In short, Rhett has been peacefully enjoying his Hogwarts life these past few days, gradually exploring this castle full of countless secrets.

As for ravens, they spawn randomly about once every one or two days.

The tasks given are mostly related to learning and knowledge.

Getting the highest score in a class, completing a thorough reading of a book within a specified time, and passing the eagle-head door knocker more than 5 times in a day are all challenging tasks, but with dedication, they can all be successfully completed.

Unfortunately, when he went to Hagrid's cabin on the second day, he only managed to absorb about 0.1 units of curse energy. According to subsequent tests, Hagrid's cabin produced about 0.1 units of curse energy per day, and this lasted for a maximum of three days.

So Ryze decided to visit the lonely giant Hagrid every two or three days.

As for the Ancient Rune Classroom, its output efficiency is much higher, producing about 0.25 curse energy per day. The duration also seems to be slightly longer. Basically, as long as you go to the Rune Classroom once a day, combine it with the curse on your body, and then walk around the castle a few times, you can accumulate 1 point of curse energy.

Professor Babling didn't seem to care much about Rizzi spending all his free time in the Spellbook classroom.

After all, there's Ariel who can research and guide Ryze on ancient runes, and teach him how to develop his divination talent.

To be fair, Ritz thinks that although Professor Barblin doesn't have a talent for divination, her research on divination is probably more professional than Professor Tirolauni's.

After all, divination itself has been passed down from the original era of magic to the present day, and it can be said to be one of the oldest known forms of magic. There is also a lot of content related to divination in ancient magic texts.

In Norse mythology, the ancient runes were created by King Grimm, who, in his quest for supreme wisdom, hung himself on the World Tree for nine days and nine nights, experiencing the mysteries of the universe.

In the wizarding world, many wizards believe that Odin (if such a wizard really existed) may have "seen" the runes, which contained powerful magic, through some special method of divination.

Because Ryze seems to have a talent for divination and an affinity for ancient runes, Professor Babling now seems to genuinely regard Ryze as a formal disciple.

Professor Babling hasn't brought this up yet, since she hasn't actually taken on any disciples yet, and such a formal matter needs to be observed for a while longer.

However, Professor Barbling also introduced several students who were talented in ancient runes to Rizzi, which expanded Rizzi's social network at Hogwarts.

The three prefects from Gryffindor and Ravenclaw, Penelope and Robert whom Percy Weasley and Ritz already knew, and several sixth and seventh year upperclassmen from Hufflepuff and Slytherin.

The upperclassman from Slytherin is a pure-blood wizard, but he doesn't have many of the stereotypical traits of a Slytherin student.

He also made no attempt to conceal his disdain for Malfoy regarding the conflict between Ritz and Malfoy, while stating that it was their own private matter and would not affect the relationship between the colleges.

Through the reactions of these upperclassmen, Rhett realized that he seemed to be starting to gain some fame at Hogwarts.

Of course, it wasn't because he made Malfoy suffer, but because he rode on Alley's coattails.

After all, powerful and convenient magical familiars like Ari are rare in the entire magical world.

Moreover, wizards who have come into contact with ancient runes can usually tell at a glance that the other person's power most likely comes from the mysterious rune above their head.

As a result, even the Daily Prophet has begun to pay attention to this magical rune creature, which is "supposedly" from a mysterious ancient ruin. They say that if the secret of this ancient rune can be unlocked, perhaps more wizards can enjoy the convenient services of magical familiars.

Fortunately, the Daily Prophet didn't mention his name as a first-year wizard, so not many people have sent him owl letters asking about the price of Ariel yet.

In short, thanks to Alley's diplomacy, Reese successfully built relationships with these upperclassmen, especially the female upperclassmen, and even obtained some notes from them from the lowerclassmen.

It can be said that he is making increasingly steady progress on his path to becoming a top student.

In addition, Ryze had also observed the situation of the herbal medicine class and the library.

The fertilizer and a few dangerous plants in the greenhouse carry a certain amount of curse energy. However, because he was worried that absorbing too much curse energy would cause these plants to become malnourished, Ryze usually only absorbed a little bit during class.

With three classes a week, Ryze only absorbs about 0.5 points of energy each week in herbalism class. It's currently just a backup plan, and he'll make a decision after he confirms the effect of the curse energy on the growth of these magical plants.

Libraries are a different case.

The area around the deepest forbidden book section is basically covered with strong curse energy.

The absorption rate is even faster there than elsewhere; it only takes two or three minutes to absorb 0.1 points.

Based on Ritz's conjecture and the descriptions he found in some books about curses in the general library section,

The curse energy in Hagrid's Hut and the Ancient Runes classroom are small curses without a specific target. Although they constantly emit curse energy, they are not very offensive. Even ordinary people with good health could live in that environment for ten days or half a month without much problem.

In the forbidden book section, a considerable number of the forbidden books are deliberately designed to lure passing wizards, and these curses are more intense and direct.

Even adult wizards who don't have a deep understanding of black magic need a lot of protective measures, such as wearing dragon skin gloves and special goggles to block the influence of these books.

Ryze was clearly tempted by this treasure trove that constantly radiated immense curse energy.

However, according to his findings, one must be within two meters to quickly absorb the curse energy. Once the distance exceeds three meters, the absorption efficiency drops sharply, and even if one stays in that area for a whole day, it is difficult to accumulate enough curse energy.

This essentially rules out the possibility that Ryze was staying around the forbidden area to farm curse energy.

Even if he could get his hands on a note from Professor Barbling about a forbidden book related to divination, Mrs. Pince was unwilling to let him into the forbidden book section. Instead, after repeatedly examining the authenticity of the note, she personally went to fetch the book for Raz.

In addition, whenever a young wizard approaches within two rows of the forbidden bookshelves without a note, Mrs. Pince will silently reappear beside them, confirm the book they are looking for, and then watch them until they find the book and leave the area.

So unless Ryze can learn the Disillusionment Charm as soon as possible and sneak over at night to soak up the curse's energy, he won't be able to take over the library for the time being.

Chapter 28: Poor Quirrell

Another surprise for Ryze regarding the collection of curse energy was Quirrell's Black Magic Defense class.

There are two large classes a week, one on Tuesday and one on Thursday.

He completely disregarded Quirona's poor teaching abilities, such as stammering and reciting from the textbook, and blushing and changing the subject when students pressed him for answers.

If he encounters any problems with the Defense Against the Dark Arts course, he can just ask Nymphadora—and if Nymphadora doesn't know the answer, she'll even ask Moody, the retired Auror, for him.

He came to absorb the curse energy.

As long as he sits in the front row of the classroom, with the curses inherent in the Defense Against the Dark Arts class itself, plus the constant curses emanating from the noseless bald man behind Quirrell's turban, his curse energy can easily be maxed out by the end of a long class.

Ryze felt that his daily curse energy limit of 1 point was completely insufficient for the Defense Against the Dark Arts class.

Even without classes, Ryze would take a study manual compiled according to the teaching progress of the Dark Arts Defense and go to Quirrell for advice. Watching Quirrell pretend to look at the study manual and then stammeringly praise him was also a way for him to quickly accumulate curse energy.

Absorbing curse energy near Quirrell is much easier than in the library, and currently even safer.

Because at this time, Quirrell just wanted people to think of him as a harmless good-for-nothing.

Voldemort will not allow Quirrell to do anything that could expose his identity until he obtains specific information about the Philosopher's Stone.

Rizz felt that he could at least breathe in comfortably until next spring.

By then, he should have found more sources of curses and could wait in peace to send Quirrell on his way.

As for how those sitting in the front row deal with the almost pervasive garlic smell emanating from Quirrell?

During the summer vacation, Rizz learned some little curses that were used as jokes among students from Nymphadora, including one called the "Nose Blockage Curse".

The effect is simple: this spell will keep your nose stuffy all day long.

Of course, Ryze also knew how to break the curse. Before attending Defense Against the Dark Arts class, he would give his nose a blow, and after class, he would break the curse in a place with fresh air. He would also clean himself up to prevent himself from getting garlic smelled on.

Rizz also secretly taught the spell to Ravenclaw's classmates, so they wouldn't discriminate against poor Quirrell—yes, Quirrell was Ravenclaw's student, and one of the best graduates of that year.

Not only Hagrid, but even Professor Barbling acknowledged Quirrell's excellence when they were in school.

Although he was mild-mannered and not particularly noticeable in his lower grades, Quirinas Quillow was consistently the top student in the entire school from his third year until graduation.

He has a solid theoretical foundation and a deep understanding of ancient magic runes, and is particularly skilled in defensive magic.

And because he is of mixed race, he is also very knowledgeable about the development of the Muggle world.