From Azkaban to Hogwarts.

“A summer vacation is a long time. Although I should advise a top student like you to do an internship at the Ministry of Magic, but—” William shrugged, which was unusual for him, “an internship at the Ministry of Magic is too early for you.”

“Go check out the caravans; I’ll write you a letter of introduction.” William ignored Percy’s rambling explanation. “You’ll also need some start-up capital—two hundred Galleons will be enough. Remember to pay me back…”

As he spoke, he pulled a small bag of Galleons from his pocket. "You should go and take a look around. Consider this money a loan until you find a job."

As he tossed the bag over, William scribbled a letter of introduction on the parchment: “It’s not a great job, but at least it’s a legitimate caravan. I’ve worked with them before; they don’t deal with smuggled goods.”

"Go over there and learn to duel, learn to swear, learn to see Galon and other things."

He signed the letter of introduction and handed it to Percy. "I'll help you with the Ministry of Magic assignment for top students when school starts next year. It's hard to say how many letters of recommendation you'll get, but I can easily get you five. That should be enough if you want to do an internship at the Ministry of Magic when school starts."

"Professor Ke—Fred and George's summer review..."

Percy, holding the letter of recommendation, was still unsure how to refuse, so he could only come up with an excuse on the spot.

"Oh, that doesn't matter. Just tell your mother about the plan, and she should be able to help resolve it."

William had complete trust in a mother who had repeatedly sent yelling letters to her child.

“Alright, that’s all. Enjoy your summer job—” William smiled at Percy. “By the way, I have three pieces of advice for you before you start.”

"First, never flaunt your wealth."

"Second, always hold your wand tightly and never drop it."

"Third, remember to stay away from anything that breaks the law!"

-

The train arrived at King's Cross Station smoothly.

After helping the train conductor check if any unlucky passengers had forgotten their luggage or tried to leave it on the train, William carefully got off the train.

'Ah, finally... a school year is over.'

William sighed as he gripped his wand tightly.

The students had all left the train and were blocking the station entrance—leaving too many people at once would be noticed, so they had to blend in with the crowds that squeezed out when the Muggle train stopped.

"They'll all be mine next year, right?"

Looking at the densely packed students, William felt both pressure and motivation.

'The curriculum covers seven grades. Luckily, we prepared a bunch of test papers this year, which we can use next year—but we need to be careful not to let them take too many papers with them in the future, otherwise it's easy for them to cheat, and then the training effect will be negligible…'

As he pondered this, he glanced at the students, trying to prevent any mishaps at this final moment.

Especially the Weasleys, after just receiving a huge summer tutoring schedule, it would be perfectly normal for something to go wrong.

Although William gave a very convincing explanation at the time, the two of them were definitely not fooled for that long.

As his gaze swept across the area, the students around him couldn't help but shiver in the summer heat.

What is Professor William doing?

Ron asked cautiously as he hugged Harry.

“God knows,” Harry couldn’t help but touch his leg. Although it was in good condition, he couldn’t control himself whenever he saw the professor, probably because of the aftereffects of that incident.

"You've all heard the legend, haven't you? That Professor William spent time in Azkaban."

Ginny cautiously chimed in from the side, "Is he really that cool?"

“Don’t talk nonsense,” Ron stared at his sister. “Azkaban is never cool. Don’t assume that everything in a story is true just because it’s said in the story.”

“For example, Professor Lockhart,” Harry added as he handed his phone to his friend, “I heard that Professor Lockhart is going to be sent there… well, to a big hospital.”

“Remember to call me, but don’t talk too much about magic, they won’t like it.” Harry quickly changed the subject. “I taught Mr. Arthur how to use it last year, Hermione, you don’t need to… You can’t let me listen to Dudley talking all summer!”

“No problem.” Ron grinned as he took the note.

What does it mean to feel that a story is true just by listening to it?

-

What a harmonious start to the summer vacation!

William watched the students gradually leave, and with a smile, he was the last to leave the station.

"Hello Professor, thank you for your hard work."

A Ministry of Magic official in charge of evacuating the crowd greeted him, and William responded with a smile, but the question of whose this person was involuntarily popped into his mind.

It wasn't until he was out of the passage that he remembered who that unlucky guy was...

'Time flies,' William remarked as he boarded the London Underground.

Ah, the long-awaited technological society...

Summer vacation, before the new school year

Chapter 241 A Good Start to the Holiday

At seven o'clock in the morning, William struggled to get out of bed.

Instead of seeing the ceiling of his office's lounge, he was greeted by a strange yet familiar roof, and only then did he realize that he was already at the Leaky Cauldron.

'Let me make sure—this isn't a dream I had after just leaving Azkaban.'

With this in mind, he drew his wand and experimented with a silent spell. If he were still at the level he had just been released from prison, he would never have been able to cast such a spell.

The spellcasting was smooth, as natural as breathing.

'It's not a dream,' William laughed, then yawned as he got dressed and prepared for class.

'Wait?'

He was stunned after he finished dressing—summer vacation was here, why would he still have classes!

I can't sleep...

William looked at the bed, which had been magically made, and felt a deep sadness in his heart…

The precious first morning of summer vacation has been wasted like this—even if I take off my clothes and lie down now, I won't be able to fall asleep.

"What an unpleasant start to the holiday..."

William sighed and began packing up the things he had left in the box yesterday because of laziness.

First, there's a complete set of textbooks. Although William is already very familiar with them, flipping through them from time to time still helps him review and learn something new.

Then there's a complete set of potion-making tools and several cauldrons. The best quality one, made from a fire crab shell, is placed on the other side and doesn't need to be taken out for now.

...

When William took out the last set of leisurely books to kill time from the box, he was surprised – without realizing it, he had accumulated such a fortune.

'I need to find a way to rent a house long-term. Buying one in a good location is unrealistic. Building my own is feasible, but it's incredibly difficult to find a professional craftsman in the wizarding world who specializes in this... and buying a piece of land permitted by the Ministry of Magic is quite expensive...'

Why doesn't Hogwarts have civil engineering courses? Building houses with magic doesn't even require mixing mortar, so there shouldn't be such fierce competition where everyone's just running away with buckets...

'What nonsense are you thinking...'

Shaking his head to clear his mind of the jumbled thoughts, William began to plan his summer vacation.

First, the curse must be brought out—it's been dragging on for too long, and the information Professor Snape has copied is already impatient.

This task should ideally be completed within two weeks, because William promised Adams that they would go to the Far East together during the summer. If it's not done by then, who knows when it will be delayed.

William calculated that in about two weeks, it would be a full year since he was cursed. If all the things that happened this year hadn't affected him with the curse, then he should have managed to get through the curse during these two weeks of hiding and researching. He didn't know what the curse would be like in the second year, but it was time for a new phase.

If you don't dare to go out back then, then there's really no time to run around freely. You can't just worry unnecessarily and scare yourself to death.

As for what to do after the trip to the Far East, we'll talk about that later. By then, the first month of summer vacation will have passed, and it would be perfect to either improve our potion-making skills or create some more practice tests to prepare for the start of the new school year.

-

“It’s summer vacation, Percy.”

The twins opened their eyes and spoke with serious expressions to Percy, who had woken them.

“Of course, of course,” Percy said with a hint of unspoken determination, “but I need to have a good start to the first day of summer vacation, as Professor William specifically instructed me to do.”

“Good heavens,” George said, his last bit of sleepiness vanishing upon hearing the name. “At least not today, Percy. We have to get up with the sun on the first day of summer vacation.”

He pointed to the window; the window in their room faced west, so they couldn't see the sun at all.

But the answer they received was a Clear Water Spell, from which clear water gushed forth from Percy's wand, soaking the twins' bed and luggage as if they had been soaked in water.

"what!"

"Ah! Percy!"

The two men's shouts immediately filled the entire room, then broke through the walls and spread throughout the hall, waking up the other children who were trying to sleep in.

"What are you two arguing about, Fred and George!"

Ron's dissatisfied voice came through the walls and ceiling, distorted considerably.

"You should ask Percy, he made our beds all wet!"

The two complained, their last vestiges of sleepiness vanished without a trace.

"what happened!"

Mrs. Weasley's voice came from afar, but it drew closer halfway through, which made the twins laugh—they were experts at telling accounts from the very beginning.

But to their disappointment, Percy cleaned up the water with his wand before Mrs. Weasley could arrive, making the two realize once again just how annoying it could be to have an adult brother in the house…

"What's wrong with you all?"

"It's nothing, Mom. I'm just waking them up. According to the summer training plan that Professor William assigned to them, they should be up and reviewing their textbooks now."

"Well, it's Professor William again..."

Mrs. Weasley shook her head. "While I think Professor William is quite good, Percy, you..."

Although she admired Professor William and had heard some parents praise him recently, she still occasionally grumbled about Azkaban—it was a mother's nature, she couldn't help it, she now had five children at Hogwarts…

“Percy…”

While Mrs. Weasley reiterated that she didn't distrust the professor, but rather hoped Percy wouldn't be so superstitious, the twins secretly tugged at Percy's sleeve.

Before going home yesterday, they agreed that Percy would oversee the plan, but he had to follow the professor's plan completely with their cooperation.