Everyday Life of a Top Student at Hogwarts

Chapter 318 Plans and Focus

It was another weekend morning, and a thin layer of morning mist still shrouded the Hogwarts Quidditch pitch. Cullen, Wesley, Fabian, and Ernesto arrived early. Wesley carried two old Meteor series brooms from the school, while Cullen had attached a thin, almost transparent mithril foil passive mark to the end of the handle of one of the brooms. The other broom served as a reference.

"Ready?" Karen looked towards the other end of the pitch, where Ernesto and Fabian were standing guard beside the receiver, which had undergone some modifications. The receiver was connected to a large crystal display unit, which could simulate the strength and direction of the detected signal.

"We can start anytime!" Fabian's voice came through the communication quill, clear and unmistakable.

"Alright, Wesley, let's take off. You ride the unmarked one first, fly around the court freely, and do some routine maneuvers," Karen instructed.

"Watch me!" Wesley pushed off the ground and soared into the sky on his broomstick, beginning to perform maneuvers such as circling, diving, and sudden changes of speed.

On the crystal display unit on the receiver side, there were only faint background noise fluctuations, and no stable signal appeared.

"No signal compared to the broom," Ernesto reported.

"Very good. Land now and switch to the marked one," Karen commanded.

Wesley did as instructed quickly. Shortly after he mounted the broomstick with the passive markings again and took to the air, the crystal on the receiver lit up immediately, and a clear dot of light appeared in the center of the display unit, moving steadily with Wesley's movements with almost no delay.

"Signal acquired! Strength stable, tracking accurate!" Fabian's voice was filled with excitement.

In subsequent tests, they gradually increased the difficulty. Karen made Wesley fly higher and farther, almost beyond the theoretical detection range of the current receiver. The point of light became slightly blurred, but it could still be identified and tracked. They also tested the simultaneous presence of multiple markers. Karen attached a marker to another broom, allowing Wesley to ride it alternately, or to launch both brooms simultaneously, with Ernesto controlling the other. The upgraded receiver successfully distinguished the two different signal sources without confusion.

"That's amazing!" After the test, Wesley jumped off the broom, his face flushed, whether from the cold or excitement, it was hard to tell. "This thing is incredible! I couldn't even feel its presence, it was like there was nothing inside!"

"The effective range and anti-interference capabilities still need further improvement, but the principle and basic feasibility are beyond doubt." Karen looked at the recorded data and nodded in satisfaction. Upgrading the receiver is key, but this is an engineering implementation issue that the Ministry of Magic's technical team should be able to resolve.

Upon returning to the Eagle's Nest, Karen immediately began drafting a reply to Director Kettleburn. He sat at his worktable, his quill pen moving fluently across the parchment: "Dear Director Kettleburn:

Hello. Thank you very much for your letter and your high regard for the "Hawthorne Hawk-Eye System". I am honored to learn that the system has played a positive role in professional leagues and will soon be applied to the Quidditch World Cup qualifiers. I also express my sincere gratitude for the nomination for the Order of Merlin, which is a great encouragement to me.

Regarding your request for optimization of the broom signal transmitter, my team and I have conducted in-depth research. We believe that continuing to make miniaturization improvements on the existing "active transmission" technology path may encounter bottlenecks and make it difficult to completely solve the problems of weight, power consumption, and potential impact on broom performance.

Therefore, we propose a completely new technical solution—a passive tag recognition system.

Next, Karen explained the principles of the new scheme in the clearest and easiest-to-understand language possible: an extremely miniature, energy-free passive tag, and a new type of receiver that requires a matching upgrade, featuring high-sensitivity directional detection and filtering capabilities. He detailed the advantages of the new scheme: the tag is virtually weightless, volumeless, and interference-free, requiring no maintenance or power source replacement; and after a one-time upgrade of the receiver, there are long-term benefits and significant potential for performance improvement.

He also frankly acknowledged the "drawbacks": the Ministry of Magic would need to invest resources to upgrade and replace all the receivers at all official match venues in one go.

Along with the letter, he included several different prototypes of the passive marker, a piece of mithril foil used for testing, a small piece of wood engraved with microscopic runes, and a piece of parchment with runes drawn in special magical ink. He also included a brief technical sketch outlining the functional modules that the new receiver might require.

At the end of the letter, he wrote: "—We have conducted preliminary field tests on campus, verifying the feasibility of the plan. The enclosed prototype sample can be submitted to the Ministry of Magic's technical team for testing and evaluation. We suggest that your company select one or two stadiums for pilot installation and testing, comparing it with the old system, and using the actual results as the basis for decision-making."

I believe this solution will fundamentally address your concerns and bring about a new leap forward in the fairness and technological development of Quidditch.

Thank you again for your support and trust. We look forward to your reply if there are any further questions.

Sincerely, Karen Hawthorne, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Ravenclaw House

He carefully sealed the letters, prototype samples, and suggestion sketches, then summoned the fastest owl in the owl shed, watching it clutch the thick package and flap its wings towards distant London.

After sending the letter, Karen felt a weight lifted from his shoulders. He knew that now it was time to await the evaluation results from the Ministry of Magic's technical team. Regardless of whether they fully understood the technical details, the tangible prototypes and clear advantages of the proposed solution should be enough to warrant attention.

His attention returned to the two most important things: the second exploration of the Slytherin Laboratory in May, which was drawing ever closer, and his daily magical studies. The secrets of the depths of the Black Lake and the vast knowledge of magic were what truly captivated him.

The atmosphere surrounding the upcoming OWLs (Overwatch League) is growing increasingly intense. Influenced by the upperclassmen's exam preparation, even the most undisciplined students are starting to bury themselves in their textbooks, and the professors are increasing the pressure. In Potions class, Professor Snape's gaze is colder, his words sharper, and he shows no mercy for any mistake. Professor McGonagall constantly emphasizes the theoretical depth and practical precision of Transfiguration. Professor Flitwick has assigned a mountain of complex papers on spell combinations and counterspell applications.

Karen had to dedicate some of his time to his studies. Often, he would even finish part of his assignments in class so that he could have more time for the Eagle's Nest in the evenings.

He and his roommates refocused their research on the Slytherin Laboratory data. Ernesto continued astronomical observations, precisely calibrating the window of opportunity in mid-May. Fabian practically lived in the library's restricted section, frantically searching through texts related to ancient aquatic magic and communication with magical creatures. Wesley was in charge of organizing and testing various possible expedition gear, from enhanced waterproof and spellproof gloves to new models of alchemical flares.

Cullen himself continued to refine his imitation of Parseltongue's magical fluctuations while repeatedly studying the complex access control arrays, hoping to find a loophole. He also took the time to give Harry two more "Parseltongue Comprehension Lessons," partly to fulfill his promise and partly to observe more closely how this talent's magic worked.

"It's like—an instinctive magic," Harry tried to describe to Cullen and the curious Ron and Hermione. "When you need it, the feeling just comes up naturally, your throat and tongue move on their own, a strange vibration—but I have absolutely no idea what I'm saying."

"It's a highly specialized talent, Harry," Cullen said in an objective, academic tone, while his True Sight carefully recorded the unique magical concentration in Harry's throat as he spoke. "In Muggle terms, it bypasses the usual language processing center and connects directly to the core of magic and the center of emotion. You don't need to understand it; you need to feel and control that intention."

Hermione listened in disbelief, frantically taking notes, trying to understand the phenomenon from the perspectives of biology and magical theory. Ron, on the other hand, had a look on his face that said, "This is so weird."

These lessons significantly boosted Harry's pride in his abilities, making him less awkward about them and increasing his trust in Cullen. Cullen, in turn, gained a wealth of valuable firsthand data, which greatly aided his ability to imitate Parsley and understand its essence.

The days flew by in their busyness. The waters of Black Lake grew increasingly clear under the spring sunshine, as if silently beckoning. Karen knew that the next time she would delve into those underwater secrets was approaching.