From Azkaban to Hogwarts.

"I think so too. How about meeting at the Room of Requirement?"

“Fantastic! Tell him we’ve found a territory they’ve never discovered before!”

The two high-fived to agree on this way of meeting.

"Right after that survey was finished?"

"Of course—but I'm quite looking forward to Professor McGonagall finding him, since I've always been curious about how professors punish graduates who break school rules."

"Are you really not planning to take the toilet seats off the school?"

"Don't you want to send it to Snape?"

George countered with a question.

"If Sirius is alright this time, I think I will—how about in Ron's name?"

"Well, he's getting old, it's time for our dear brother to know some of the darker side of school."

The two looked at each other and smiled, then stopped laughing together.

"Keep your voice down, Professor McGonagall is back!"

They saw the warning in each other's eyes, then smiled at each other.

Chapter 329 New School Year and Secrecy Law

A wand is an object used by wizards to transmit magic. It is made of wood and has a core of magical substance.

To be precise, it's a magical artifact that possesses a near-sensory quality, allowing wizards to channel their magical power and concentrate its effects for more complex purposes. Most spells require a wand, but magic can also be cast without one.

William wrote this sentence on the parchment with a quill, then thought for a moment and added another sentence.

'Of course, without the wand's aid, the power of magic is significantly reduced, and those unfamiliar spells are almost impossible to use.'

'Based on existing records, the earliest wands were made from a motley collection of woods and cores—it wasn't until generations of craftsmen selected the best materials that the wands we know today were gradually finalized…'

'...'

After writing down nearly three pages of information on parchment, William stared blankly at the known information.

"This is the history of wands, almost the most complete information I could get my hands on—it even includes a personal gift from Professor Binns. I doubt many people, aside from the wand manufacturers, could obtain a more comprehensive record."

But here's the problem—compared to the history of wands, William has almost nothing about the history of magic itself…

It's not the general history of magic that students usually read, but the history of the development of magic itself, which is a completely different thing.

How did the first magic come about? Different countries speak different languages, and magic spells also differ. How do they achieve nearly similar effects?

Students at Uganda's Waggadu College only came into contact with wands in the last century, and the magic they use is simply made up of hand gestures, which is really...intriguing.

'Tracing back to the source is also necessary when it comes to magic,'

He put down his quill and shook his head—he seemed to have hit a bottleneck in his magic; the benefits he would reap from even a slight breakthrough were beyond his wildest dreams.

'This small step is so difficult! Durmstrang's information was helpful, but it's still not enough...'

'If it weren't for this delay, I would have already dealt with Felix Felicis; why would Adams have to rush me?'

William used the idea that boasting was tax-free to dispel his frustration.

'Dumbledore could certainly handle my problem his way,' William leaned back in his chair, 'but no, I need my solution, not Dumbledore's—'

He had great confidence in the headmaster's abilities, but he was also well aware that Dumbledore's magic was not his own. This was not a simple matter of a spell, but rather a system of magic that belonged to him.

This is similar to brewing potions—he's currently stuck on making Felix Felicis. If he can figure out how to brew Felix Felicis on his own, then he can naturally master all the most advanced potions at an extremely fast pace.

However, if Professor Snape were to go blind and be hit by a Confusion Charm or something and come to teach him how to brew Felix Felicis step by step, then even if he managed to brew the potion, he would still be at the same level as before. In fact, when researching other potions, he would naturally tend to follow Professor Snape's style of brewing potions. Not to mention making any further progress, it would take him a long time to get rid of that style.

'But this isn't a magic potion…' William looked at his parchment, shook his head with a wry smile, 'Too much information has been hidden, due to the secrecy laws…'

Yes, the secrecy law—which is also a major reason why he couldn't gather enough information.

Crimes like smuggling, fraud, and tax evasion are nothing compared to violating the secrecy law.

To be precise, the full name of the Secrets Act is the International Wizarding Union Secrets Act, which means that it represents the will of all wizards and all ministries of magic. Before the Secrets Act, Azkaban, as a symbolic part of the legal entity of England, is nothing but a joke—English law does not have the death penalty, but the Secrets Act does.

Because of the secrecy laws, some crucial information was indiscriminately blocked, including information that William desperately needed about the living conditions of wizards and their use of magic before the laws were enacted.

'It's one thing to use a wand to skirt the line, but even Professor Binns, the ghost, refuses to reveal those details... We're really out of options...'

He leaned back in his chair, looking at the parchment, trying to add something more—he would never do anything to circumvent the secrecy law; skirting the rules was already the limit.

There was no way around it. The last person to openly defy the Secrets Act, also known as the International Wizarding Federation Secrets Act, was named Gellert Grindelwald, who is now in Nurmengard Prison. William knew the person who personally sent him there quite well; his name was Albus Dumbledore.

Trying to defy the Law of Secrecy within Hogwarts is truly suicidal...

'With most information blocked by secrecy laws, the only sources available are the Puritans and the Exterminators—enemies of the wizarding world.'

"And even this kind of information requires researching from North American sources... Unbelievable... I just wanted to study the life trajectories of past wizards to determine the history of magic's development and improve my understanding of magic. Why am I being blocked by the Secrecy Act?"

William was furious inside, but he had no choice but to give up for the time being.

'To circumvent the secrecy laws, I need more information to refine my knowledge base—all magic schools should be able to provide considerable assistance.'

Magic itself is something that is passed down in an orderly manner, and the older the school, the more traces of those original magics remain.

For example, in Durmstrang's war magic system, because war magic does not require such immediate killing power, it retains a large number of rituals, using casting time to gain greater power.

'The magic books from the Far East should also contain some remnants, perhaps the parts I haven't translated—or parts I've overlooked due to their inherent ambiguity.'

'No need to panic... This isn't a waste of time; it simply brings forward the work that would otherwise be done later.'

He optimistically opened a chocolate frog.

'How can someone become a potions master if they haven't even seen herbs from other magical worlds?'

-

"So, Bigfoot, what do you plan to do after you leave Hogwarts?"

In the hospital, seeing that Sirius was determined to pursue his own career, Lupin had no choice but to begin working with him on future career planning—something that should have been done more than a decade ago, but by then the war had already begun.

“I said I wanted to join Gringotts and go on adventures—” Sirius leaned against the headboard, “but James wasn’t too keen; he seemed to want to be a professor…”

"Later...later they never figured it out. After all, war came, and none of us liked Voldemort."

"So...you're planning to become a professor?"

Lupin hesitated before asking, knowing his friend was capable of such a thing.

"Of course not, the professor is just too boring for me..."

That's true—Lupin simply couldn't imagine what Sirius would be like as a professor, and it was precisely because he knew him that Lupin couldn't imagine it.

"Then, to Gringotts?"

“That’s too far,” Sirius shook his head. “The Gringotts expedition team wouldn’t be in England.”

"That is?"

Lupin couldn't figure it out.

“Detective agency—” Sirius announced cheerfully, “Yes, just like that!”

He pulled out a book, the one Harry had recommended to him—The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.

"This isn't a wizard's book, is it?"

“Yes, it’s a Muggle book. I was looking for something to read for fun, and Harry recommended this—he said he didn’t like the Lockhart series that was popular a while ago,” Sirius chuckled. “But I don’t even know who Lockhart is!”

He loved the book—if the idiots at the Ministry of Magic had half the brains of Sherlock Holmes, that bastard Wormtail wouldn't have been able to live in anonymity for so many years.

"You're planning to set up one of those detective agencies in the wizarding world?"

Lupin didn't really understand the word, so he had to be patient, take the Muggle book, and start reading.

-

"Filch, could you please tell me if the school has changed suppliers for the parchment they've been buying recently?"

"Of course not, Professor. The school has always purchased paper and pens from Wenrenju Feather Pen Shop. Although the purchase volume has increased recently, I am very strict about the quality."

Filch said proudly, "Are we ordering another batch of parchment? Shall we take a preliminary test?"

"Pre-test?"

"Professor William said that the assessment is used to check how well students have grasped the knowledge during the holidays, and the results will determine whether or not they need to review the knowledge they have learned before."

Because the school consistently refused to approve his suggestions regarding corporal punishment, he began to take a more enthusiastic stance on exams, a practice that students frequently complained about, while retaining his original opinions.

“The school doesn’t have that plan yet,” Professor McGonagall said calmly. “Are there any old parchments still kept? I’d like to see the quality of the parchments recently.”

"Of course, Professor, I'll go find it right away."

The biggest difference between parchment and ordinary paper is that parchment is a good medium for magic—unless it is a particularly skilled wizard, any magic of even moderate power will directly damage the paper.

Although parchment isn't as expensive in the magical world due to its production process, large-scale purchases still consume a considerable amount of money, so keeping copies is essential.

Is that all?

"Yes, Professor—this year, because we are more familiar with the situation, we have been purchasing in sufficient quantities each time, and the processing methods for the same batch of parchment are not too different."

He's a professional when it comes to these trivial matters.

"Please also find last year's papers, Mr. Filch."

Before long, a number of samples far exceeding this year's total were delivered. Professor McGonagall examined them, initially disappointed, then thoughtfully began to casually rummage through them.

Where on campus is the place that uses the least amount of paper?

"For flight lessons, Mrs. Hodge only needs a few notices a year."

After thinking for a moment, Filch replied, then added.

"Next is the hospital. Mrs. Pomfrey hardly ever uses parchment—prescriptions written on parchment are too easily altered, and it's only used occasionally in the wards."

-

"Are you crazy?"

Lupin understood what a detective agency was after reading just one story: "If you actually set one up, you probably wouldn't live more than a year before you died mysteriously!"

He wasn't Sirius Black. After graduating, he lived in the wizarding world for over a decade, navigating between the white and gray worlds, and had seen and heard far more of the darker aspects of the world than any normal wizard.

Pureblood families aren't exactly obedient, waiting to be investigated. Ancient curses, inherited magical artifacts, and unknown networks of relationships mean that killing a wizard isn't actually that difficult.