From Azkaban to Hogwarts.

The principle is actually very simple—the way each person inserts their wand represents their personal spellcasting preferences, and these preferences are directly related to the spells they are good at.

Wands that favor surprise attack spells are almost never placed in a defensive position, especially for professions like examiners, where even that can be practically eliminated.

Theoretical exams are still difficult to handle, but this method can help you guess at least 60% of the questions in practical exams.

He had previously studied the practical exams in the magical world. The questions were very independent, and the examiners would even conduct some special assessments. The ordinary questions were also quite related to the subjective opinions of those conscientious examiners.

"Trust them, and trust all the tests and exercises from this academic year."

William smiled and shook his head, setting aside the examiner observation plan that those fraudsters in Azkaban had devised.

It is absolutely unacceptable to teach students to cheat, not even to the point of being a professor—what kind of professor would you be if you sent someone to Azkaban after training them!

With a confidence that came from the bottom of his heart, William quickly turned the corner in the corridor, preparing to head to the auditorium to meet his opponent in this battle.

However, just as he rounded a new corner, a foul stench hit him, and William immediately took a step back and cast a bubbling spell on himself.

After taking a few steps forward, he immediately discovered the culprits—the fifth-year students from Slytherin and Gryffindor were throwing dung balls at each other.

Upon seeing William approach, the students on both sides immediately abandoned their fight and scattered without looking back.

"What happened?"

He stopped a Hufflepuff and asked him a question.

"They're still arguing about the last exam. Gryffindor is saying that Slytherin got zeros in their fifth year and only got in thanks to the other years. Slytherin is getting angry and saying that Gryffindor is dragging everyone down and that it will prevent you from getting your medals..."

Then, I don't know who started throwing dung balls at the other, and that's how it happened—didn't you say that to prevent hospitalization before exams, future conflicts should ideally use dung balls or similar props to avoid affecting grades?

I was joking when I saw you two groups almost come to blows, and I said it while I was scolding you in the hallway! That's called sarcasm!

William, who was originally full of confidence, suddenly began to doubt – could all these children really pass?

Chapter 359 The Medal Battle

Although Hogwarts is shrouded in magic and legend, its true nature is revealed when the examiners from the Wizarding Examinations Authority arrive—it is a school through and through.

Adventure and serendipitous encounters shroud it in layers of mystery and romance, but ultimately, its foundation lies in classes, homework, and grades.

The results of years of training at the school ultimately need to be verified by an official mechanism. While Hogwarts has captured all eligible students in the UK, it also means that it has become completely unrelated to elite education.

While using grades to measure a wizard's potential is somewhat inappropriate, it is the most accepted method in the entire magical world.

Those who are bad at herbs and potions will almost never be accepted by any hospital, and students who are not good at self-defense will not be selected for serious professions such as strikers. But how do you prove whether someone is good or not?

Of course, it's the highly credible OWLS exam. The Wizarding Examinations Authority remains aloof, and even the Ministry of Magic can't get involved, which fully guarantees the value of the OWLS certificate.

To be precise, an OWLS certificate is recognized throughout the entire magical society. Having an extra certificate means having dozens more opportunities. Even pure-blood families don't all get a large sum of money to do what they want right after graduation, let alone other ordinary wizards.

Even the most mischievous Gryffindor student wouldn't cause trouble during this most stressful time. The students preparing for the exam have been working on it for five whole years. If anyone dares to cause any trouble, it won't be acceptable to either the professors or their own classmates.

But this year's OWLS exam was a little different—unlike the previous ones which only brought tension, this time, they brought a brand new topic.

Merlin's Order Medal!

Moreover, this medal is directly linked to the student's academic performance!

If all fifth-grade students pass the self-defense exam, their professors will receive a second-class medal.

We must get it!

In the Ravenclaw common room, the prefect was looking at the materials for the upcoming Transfiguration test while speaking passionately.

"We've studied for a whole year, are we really going to be told that our grades aren't as good as the students from the previous year?"

"They didn't even have any extra lessons, while we all did, and then our exam scores weren't good enough, causing the professor to lose a medal? I bet those magazines and newspapers will be very happy to report all of this, maybe even in the Daily Prophet!"

"Think about it, how will the younger students view us? How will the sixth graders view us?"

"Even if everyone in our college passes, it won't work—if even one idiot from the other three colleges accidentally fails the exam, then we'll be labeled as inferior to the previous year!"

"They won't bother to distinguish us from the students of the other three colleges. To them, the fact that our year's students didn't perform as well as last year's students, resulting in the professor losing a Merlin medal, is already the best fodder for their drunken gossip!"

"Just think about it, because the guys from the other colleges aren't working hard enough, we'll become the talk of the town in the pub—oh, this year's students are really bad. I thought the professors were lying when we were in school, but it turns out there really are bad students!"

"Can you accept such remarks? Do you want to hear such criticism?"

The fifth-grade headmaster even stood on the table and reached out his hand to the other students.

"So, everyone, we need to get moving!"

“I know that people sometimes have a little bit of prejudice against the other three colleges, but now is not the time to dwell on that. I think everyone knows who those students who aren’t very confident are—find them, persuade them, and help them review!”

"I think everyone should understand which is more important: the little bit of time that's taken up or the potential humiliation!"

"It's time to take action and get Professor William that badge. Let's prove with our actions that we are the best class ever!"

-

"Professor, are you there?"

There was a knock on William's office door, and the students' voices came from outside.

"Please come in."

He held his wand in his hand, making sure he could react immediately, and casually disarmed a restrictive trap while shouting towards the door.

"What's wrong, Jack?"

William stopped what he was doing and asked with a kind expression.

He had done his best to help the fifth-grade students familiarize themselves with and master the knowledge over the past year. Although the promised medal surprised him for a moment, it did not stir any waves in his heart.

He had done everything he could, and although he had found many areas for improvement, starting over wouldn't have been much better, and he couldn't possibly do it all again with his memories intact.

Therefore, he didn't really care about that so-called medal—to put it bluntly, if even with his efforts, not all the students could pass, then this time, apart from cheating, there would definitely be students who failed.

"Don't be nervous. Although those examiners may look a bit fierce, they won't even put you in solitary confinement..."

William even had the leisure to joke, handing a small plate of cookies to the student as he spoke, “Have a taste. Don’t worry about the exam, your grades are very stable. If the exam questions are within your area of ​​expertise, getting an O is very possible.”

"Of course, this only applies to self-defense techniques."

He added a useless remark, and then brought over a plate of candied fruit.

"It's like this, Professor... I'm still a little unsure of myself..."

Jack tried his best to lie, but thank goodness, he was terrible at this—but today, for the sake of those idiots from the other three colleges…

Believe in yourself!

William patted him on the shoulder, then took out a bag of Chocolate Frogs and handed it to the boy.

Pre-exam anxiety and lack of confidence are not uncommon—several people came to his office crying last month, all because of exam pressure.

"Good things will happen if you eat a little chocolate."

William said earnestly, then popped a small chocolate bean into his mouth. "You have to believe in yourself. If you can't do it, then believe in me. I have high hopes for your results, and I even think you can get an O!"

"Um, Professor... I actually..."

Jack was still thinking of an excuse. He planned to get some more review materials from the professor—everyone knew that Professor William's exam papers would grow on their own, and some even speculated that he had a quill pen that could generate questions on its own!

"What, don't you have confidence in me either?"

"No, no way!"

Already nervous about lying, Jack felt he couldn't stand it for another minute. He thought it was already outrageous enough that he had come looking for the test paper himself. Who knew he couldn't even find it after actively seeking it out!

"That's good," William said, noticing that the boy's earlier anxiety had largely dissipated and that he was probably no longer troubled by the exam. He nodded in satisfaction. "Alright, go study for the other exams. Your self-defense score starts at E, I said it!"

"Don't worry about preparing for your other exams, good luck!"

He patted the student on the shoulder again, "Go on."

'Hehe... Starting with an E, at least an E, and with some effort, even an O! That's what the professor said!'

Although Professor William enjoys setting exams and frequently puts students in solitary confinement, he is one of the few professors who directly rewards students with gallons during exams. He also keeps his word and enjoys a very high level of credibility among students.

Moreover, the professor genuinely produced a full range of passing students last year, and the combination of these two factors makes the evaluation extremely credible.

'Go back and review it thoroughly!'

Jack walked with a touch of exhilaration, feeling a sudden lightness in his shoulders, until he rounded a corner. Then he suddenly remembered something important—he hadn't gone to the professor to inquire about his grades; he was there to find any possible information!

"Oh no... what should I do now? Should I just make a copy of the notes?"

Jack hesitated. Borrowing notes was really... and there was an even more serious problem: the best student in this year's class wasn't a Ravenclaw student, but Cedric from Hufflepuff. How could he possibly borrow notes from another house?

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"Well, these are my notes. I only recently organized them like this, and I've cut out a lot of repetitive content."

In Hufflepuff's common room, Cedric placed his thick notebook, which, though neatly organized, still looked a bit bulky, in the center of the room, and smiled brightly. "It's here for every subject. If you feel the need, you can take a copy."

“I hope everyone gets the scores they want on the upcoming OWLS exam,” he said, standing there looking at his classmates. “I hope this helps everyone!”

"You're so kind, Diggory!"

The students around him came over and hugged him, then tapped the notes with their wands and used a copying charm to create a completely new set of notes—these copies would basically deteriorate on their own in less than a week, could be destroyed with a simple spell, and could not be modified like normal paper, but as a temporary measure, it was sufficient.

One student after another came over and began copying the notebook. Occasionally, a student would not be able to master the copying spell, but the other students would immediately help him. Before long, everyone had a notebook.

"Let's go, let's go study hard! Those examiners aren't here for a meal!"

The child at the front hugged Cedric again. "Thanks, Diggory!"

He waved his notebook and then walked straight towards his dormitory.

"I'd rather they come over for dinner; at least I'm more confident about that..."

Another child joked and then left with the notebook. The crowd quickly dispersed, and the entire Hufflepuff House suddenly felt like Ravenclaw.

-

"Jeffrey, have you heard?"

At the Slytherin table, the fifth-year prefects were about to eat when they saw the fifth-year prefects from Ravenclaw squeeze into their table.

"Why aren't you eating at your own table? What are you doing here?"

Although they didn't have any conflicts with Ravenclaw, their relationship wasn't that good either. They would only exchange a few words during meetings, and otherwise they would deal with their own students in their respective houses and had virtually no interaction.

"It seems not—you really don't know what the Gryffindor twins said?"

"What does this have to do with me?"