From Azkaban to Hogwarts.

"Alright, get ready for class!"

The other less common medicines were already in the classroom, but it was better for him to bring Felix Felicis himself.

-

"Harry, have you noticed that Hermione is acting strangely?"

On the way to the classroom, Ron whispered to Harry.

"Yes, she's being quite secretive lately, it's hard to figure out what she's doing..."

Harry was a little unsure—because this was the Year of Owls, and according to the other upperclassmen in the common room, many of them would actually develop all sorts of strange quirks this year.

"Hi! Harry!"

Just as Harry was about to explain to Ron, Angelina rushed over—she was Harry's new captain.

"Meeting on Saturday?"

“That’s right, we’ll meet on Saturday, and we’ll also be looking for our new goalkeeper and holding a goalkeeper selection,” Angelina nodded. “In addition, Professor McGonagall informed me that we might have to play a match.”

"A match? The team isn't even fully formed yet!"

Harry exclaimed – there's only one goalkeeper, and if a rookie is used as the goalkeeper, it's going to be a disaster.

“But the game waits for no one, we don’t have much time to waste, Harry.”

Angelina nodded and quickly left.

Her appearance successfully interrupted their conversation. Ron stared longingly in the direction she left and began to ponder.

Do you think it's possible for me?

"what?"

Harry was a little stunned, which made Ron blush.

"So, is it possible for me to become a goalkeeper...?"

His voice was dry and hoarse, completely unlike his own. He even glanced around after speaking to make sure no one was watching before continuing, "I told you, Mom rewarded me with a fairly decent flying broom..."

He had actually been planning this since the summer vacation—because Wood, the goalkeeper on the school team, had retired, he exchanged his reward for becoming a prefect for a broom that was barely up-to-date with the times.

He originally intended to keep it a secret from everyone, but his experience as a prefect during this period made it harder for him to hide his little secret. In particular, Harry's outstanding performance during this time made him feel completely at ease sharing some of his rather bold plans with Harry.

“Why not give it a try?” Harry asked cheerfully, for for a moment they even forgot it was the Year of OWLS. “How’s your skill?”

“Not so bad,” Ron said with a sigh of relief. “Charlie, Fred, and George always ask me to be the goalkeeper when they practice during the holidays.”

“Then let’s do it, Ron. I think we should go to the court to practice tonight, and I’ll help you get a feel for it.”

“Of course.” Ron laughed, then suddenly seemed to remember something. “It must be a secret, Harry, absolutely a secret! I don’t intend to let Fred and George know about this. They’ve been making fun of me ever since the shop didn’t open…”

Clearly, he got one thing wrong. It didn't matter whether he was mocked or not, he only had one sister, but the Weasleys had so many brothers that the twins would feel it was a serious waste of resources if they didn't mock him.

The two, who had made a pact with each other, were in high spirits and happily forgot about their previous topic. Only Hermione was left worried and fearful—she felt she would burst into tears if a student with extraordinary talent appeared in Potions class.

-

Good morning, students.

Slughorn tried to suppress his greedy gaze—he had found out that Harry wasn't the best student in this cohort!

Hermione Granger is widely considered the best student, not Harry Potter! Yet, even the Slytherin students thought Harry's performance in winning the Triwizard Tournament was flawless!

This is great news!

He's not picky; as long as the students are excellent, he doesn't care about their appearance, personality, or even bloodline!

After the students had all taken their seats in the classroom, he began his routine questioning with a smile.

"I've prepared a few potions to broaden your horizons, of course, just out of interest—now, can anyone tell me what they are?"

As soon as the question was raised, he saw the scene that was widely talked about among the professors: the know-it-all girl who could memorize the textbook.

The student named Hermione Granger answered all the questions perfectly, and even recognized the Felix Felicis on the podium at a glance.

Her intelligence even reminded Slughorn of Lily—who was just like that back then, even crushing Severus, whom he had always favored, in Potions class.

'If Harry had Severus's talent, that would be...too perfect...'

He looked encouragingly at Harry below the podium, hoping he would stand up and give him a surprise.

Whether it was because Miss Granger was better at answering questions first, or for some other reason, Harry still didn't stand up even after all the questions had been asked and Gryffindor had earned a huge score of twenty points from him.

'It's time to unleash the ultimate weapon.'

He was prepared to use his invincible trump card—no student had ever been able to resist the temptations he brought, never before.

“Felix Felicis,” he replied with a smile, “that’s it. It’s very complicated to make, and if you make it wrong, the consequences are unimaginable. But if you make it properly, like in this crucible, you’ll find that whatever you do will succeed… at least until the effects wear off.”

...

"You know, even good things can be harmful in excess... Too much of a dose can be highly toxic. However, if you take a small amount occasionally, cautiously, and in moderation..."

...

After a series of build-up, he unleashed the final temptation: "Well, I'll keep this as the prize for this class."

As he finished speaking, the entire classroom fell silent, and every bubbling and boiling sound of the surrounding potions seemed to be amplified tenfold.

“A tiny bottle of Felix Felicis,” Slughorn showed to the whole class, “a small glass bottle with a cork, “can bring you twelve hours of good luck. From dawn till dusk, whatever you do will be blessed with good fortune.”

"However, I must remind you that Felix Felicis is prohibited in organized competitions... such as sports contests, exams, or elections. Therefore, the winner can only use it on ordinary days... and then wait and see how extraordinary those ordinary days will become!"

He added—but now probably no one is listening.

……

Everything was correct, so why did it turn out this way?

Looking at pot after pot of finished products, Professor Slughorn asked himself—to his surprise, Harry had not inherited his mother's talent for potions at all.

Or rather, it was inherited, but not completely…

In short, the potion wasn't too bad, but it was far from perfect.

The reward ultimately went to Miss Hermione Granger, and the student was indeed extremely excited.

Slughorn was still somewhat disappointed—after the students left, he examined Harry's potion repeatedly with considerable dissatisfaction, as if unwilling to admit that this was the only result.

"It's not that good, but it's not bad either... So what's wrong with it?"

Perhaps out of resentment, or perhaps out of disbelief, he patiently began to examine the object.

He even carefully tasted the potion, recreating Harry's creation process bit by bit.

He quickly frowned. "Nonsense... He hasn't laid a solid foundation at all. What did he learn in his early years? Didn't anyone teach him even the basics of potion making?"

"This can't go on! We need extra lessons, we absolutely must have extra lessons!"

Chapter 519 The First Week: Peaceful and Unperturbed

"It's finally over!"

As the last class of Friday approached, every fifth-grader was praising Merlin.

Thank goodness—they survived the first week of the terrible OWLS year!

Before they actually entered fifth grade, no one knew how terrible this year would be, but now they understand just how terrifying that suffocating pressure really is.

Harry was no exception and became one of them. After Professor Flitwick announced the end of get out of class, he slumped onto the desk, briefly losing even the desire to leave the classroom.

However, when he tilted his head to look at Ron, he found that Ron looked as excited as if he was about to jump up.

what happened?

Everything was normal in class just now.

Harry paused for a moment before remembering something he had almost forgotten: he had promised Ron he would try out the ball!

So he got excited too—without the slightest bit of reluctance.

As an outstanding Seeker who joined the school team in his first year, he has an unparalleled passion for Quidditch.

'Wait... if we're going to try out the ball, we can call Qiu to come along, and then we can take turns attacking.'

Harry suddenly came up with this idea, which he considered incredibly brilliant, and even secretly cheered himself on.

"Go get the broom, Ron, we'll meet at the field! And remember to bring my fire bolt!"

He hurriedly spoke to Ron, then unceremoniously tossed his backpack to Ron, asking him to take it back for him, before dashing off to meet Qiu for ball practice.

-

"The weekend is coming, but drinking with that leaf in my mouth just feels weird..."

William tidied his desk in his office. "I wonder how Lupin's new report is going. I'll go check on it later..."

"The sunset is beautiful now. After I finish looking at the reports, I'll take a stroll along the way..."

"I wonder if Hufflepuff has any Friday dinners or anything like that at the greenhouse. Maybe I could snag a free dinner..."

He leisurely organized his upcoming itinerary, showing no sign of panic.

In just over a week, there will be another full moon. At that time, he can spit out the leaves to create the potion for Animagus transformation—although theoretically this thing cannot increase immediate combat power, it is at least a means of survival.

After confirming that the so-called 'system' was a scam, he developed a strong interest in all means of survival.

'But we can't throw the baby out with the bathwater... Let's go see how things are going in Lupin...'

He stretched, locked his office, and headed toward Lupin's office.

-

"Are you selling this?"

"Won't the professor kill me?"

"It definitely will. We might be strapped to the auditorium with bandages or something and be watched by all the students."

"That's really...just thinking about it makes me want to cry..."

"Then..."

The twins looked at the newly made product, exchanging words and hesitating for a long time. Then, as if they had made up their minds, they both nodded firmly at the same time.