From Azkaban to Hogwarts.

He's a professor of magical self-defense, not a professor of politics—

"So, you're planning to protest?"

William rested his arm on the podium, leaned forward, and asked with a smile.

The students below fell silent. The sixth-grade students weren't as aggressive as the graduating seventh-grade students. Without the seventh-grade students taking the lead, no one would have volunteered to come out and stage a protest.

'Hmm, no money, no goals, no demands, protest—why am I even thinking about that?'

"If you're not planning a protest, ladies and gentlemen, we should start class now. You're all way late. If we don't get to class soon, I'm afraid I'll have to double the homework."

I don’t know if it was that last sentence that had an effect, but the students’ attention suddenly focused and they stopped worrying about the confiscated books.

"Very good, this lesson is the key point: the use of silent spells."

William took out his wand and gave a demonstration—without him uttering any spells, the chalk began to write rapidly on the blackboard at the wand's command.

Although it felt a bit like learning on the fly, William was actually using the silent spell quite well at this point.

“Classmates,” he clapped his hands, drawing the students’ attention away from the chalk and towards him, “the theory in the book is a bit short, so I’m going to add a little more detail. Of course, this may be a bit tedious for you.”

“After all,” William said with a smile, “you guys practically taught yourselves to pass the OWLs exam.”

The students below chuckled—although some of them had gotten into the advanced class by William's leniency, passing the exam under the circumstances of professors who were only on leave for a year and whose terms were mostly incomplete was something to be proud of in every respect.

After quickly adding some information that might make it easier to understand, William observed the students' reactions while rapidly marking the lesson plan with his wand.

He doesn't only plan to teach this one class of students. He can't keep thinking that the students have amazing comprehension abilities and can understand the true meaning of the silent spell from the simple words in the textbook, can he?

“Mastering silent spells has always been a recognized challenge—in fact, in practice, you might even find silent spells to be nothing special, and they can even affect the performance of normal spells.”

Closing his lesson plan, William began to share his personal insights on the silent spell.

"As you should know, a standard spell consists of sufficient magic power, a standard incantation, a clear mind, and standard hand gestures."

"When beginners learn a spell, even a slight deviation can cause the spell to undergo a magical change, or even harm the caster. But a silent spell, which doesn't even use any words, can ensure that the spell doesn't deviate at all."

"Let's discuss why this happened. You don't need to stand up, just talk from your seats—we don't need the standard answers from the textbook, just briefly discuss other possibilities you think are possible."

William spread his hands, indicating that the students could speak.

"Is it a matter of proficiency with the spell?"

"Hmm, that makes sense. Anything else?"

"Understanding the effects of spellcasting?"

"That makes some sense."

……

"Could it be related to the tendency of the spell, Professor?"

"Interesting insight, Ravenclaw three points, explain your thoughts in detail."

'I hadn't thought of this one, but I'll write it down.'

William was quietly making notes on his lesson plan—among publicly available books, the content of the sixth-grade advanced class textbooks was relatively limited, and it was unclear whether this was because they thought the advanced class students could easily understand the textbook content or because of the problem of knowledge monopoly.

'Probably both, considering it's a country that includes Latin in its civil service exams.'

However, the library's restricted area is open to professors by default, so William doesn't need to worry about not finding reference books; the students' discussions are at most supplementary.

-

"Alright, get out of class dismissed."

The school bell interrupted the students' lively discussion and also awakened William's suppressed curiosity.

"One paper, on your insights into the Silent Spell. Although you have certainly encountered the Silent Spell in other subjects, unfortunately, this one is in my hands. Make sure it's well-written, or it will be sent back for a rewrite."

After dampening the students' enthusiasm for continuing the discussion, William strode towards the classroom door.

"By the way, don't bring your textbooks to the next class. We'll have two practical sessions directly. Remember to bring your paper."

William, having walked out of the classroom, made a feint and announced to the students inside.

Ignoring the cheers behind him, William suppressed the urge to run and strode quickly toward Filch's office.

'It's been a week. If nothing goes wrong, the culprit should have been found this time. Could it be a cult book or a ritualistic practice?'

With these guesses in mind, he began to consider the protective magic he would use later.

"By the way, we can prepare a course on protection against evil rituals based on this incident. It can be taught in the sixth and seventh grades, and the fifth grade can continue as previously planned."

He was in an exceptionally good mood—the problem that had been bothering him for a week was finally showing signs of resolution, making him feel incredibly relaxed.

Just as he was about to hum a little tune, a fiery red color appeared before his eyes.

'Weasley again?'

A beautiful day has come to an end.

Like a needle pricking a balloon, William's previous good mood vanished instantly.

Although the Weasley in front of him wasn't the one who caused trouble at his party, the fiery red hair made him unable to suppress his imagination.

'This is Professor McGonagall's office. What happened to her?'

"Ah! Professor!"

The moment he observed the little girl, the girl named Ginny bristled like a startled cat.

"What's wrong? What happened?"

"It's nothing, Professor, it's nothing—"

She tried to explain herself in a panic, which made William suspicious—that's how students usually act when they make mistakes.

William stopped abruptly and glanced at the room.

This is Professor McGonagall's office.

'Is she trying to sneak into Professor McGonagall's office?'

This strange idea popped into William's mind.

Although theoretically no Gryffindor has dared to do this so far, the Weasleys—not that William is discriminating against them, but they're all incredibly cunning.

Just as he was figuring out which rule of the school applied to the current situation, the office door opened and Professor McGonagall came out.

"Professor! I'm reporting Percy! He's having an affair with a Ravenclaw prefect!"

Chapter 137 The Proud Filch and the Soul-Stealing Curse

William was startled by the little girl's shrill voice.

Although he had personally caught Percy on a date, he truly hadn't expected the Weasleys to be so close and affectionate as siblings.

'Young lady, you're betraying your own family so ruthlessly, do your family members know?'

Not only William, but Professor McGonagall was also startled by the chattering little girl; her usually calm face became uncontrollably distorted.

Logically, he should say something now, but William was afraid he wouldn't be able to stop himself from laughing out loud.

Fortunately, Professor McGonagall's ability to control her emotions far surpassed William's. She pursed her lips and said with a barely perceptible smile, "Miss Weasley, there is no provision regarding romantic relationships in the school rules, and your brother Percy is almost an adult. The school has no right to punish him for who he dates."

"what?"

The little girl's face was filled with disappointment, like a child whose precious toy had been snatched away—this child was so clingy to her brother?

Even Professor McGonagall was touched by her pitiful appearance. The professor showed a rare gentle expression and reached out to ruffle her hair. "Alright, go back now, Miss Weasley. Make some friends in the common room. Maybe you can talk to your other brothers. They might really like the news."

Professor McGonagall's almost devilish suggestion nearly stunned William—"Headmaster, Percy is your prefect, are you just going to give up like this?"

Even such a terrifying suggestion failed to lift Miss Weasley's spirits. She visibly pouted, then absentmindedly looked around before slowly leaving the classroom, her entire action filled with protest.

William burst into laughter shortly after she turned away from the office, seeing her looking so wronged.

"Alright, Professor William, what brings you here?"

Professor McGonagall couldn't suppress her smile, but at least she didn't forget her business.

“It’s nothing important, Professor. I was just passing by on my way to Mr. Filch’s office when I saw Miss Weasley loitering around your office. I was curious and was about to ask her about it when I realized it was this.”

William laughed as he recounted the story.

“I was so upset about bringing this up,” Professor McGonagall shook her head easily. “I thought she had something she cherished that Filch had taken, and she was coming to me looking for it.”

"Searching even first graders? She's only a first grader, how could she—"

William casually questioned it, and then something popped into his mind—he seemed to have seen that red hair not long ago when he left the Forbidden Forest.

'It seems Adams was already questioning whether the little girl was going to steal a rooster back then—yes, a rooster!'

'She has two Weasley brothers; she could easily find out about the secret passage from them. This pure-blood girl likely already knows things like the Confusion Charm!'

"Professor William?"

Professor McGonagall's voice startled William from his reverie.

“I’ve been daydreaming, Professor. I’m having doubts about Miss Weasley.”

William directly voiced his doubts.

“Miss Weasley?” Professor McGonagall frowned. “She’s only a freshman.”

She thought about it again, and her tone changed.

"Go see Mr. Filch and see what he confiscated from Miss Weasley. Even a first-year Gryffindor shouldn't be so foolish as to complain about a relationship."

-

"Miss Weasley has been here?"

"Yes, and she admitted it."

Filch responded to William and the others with a proud expression.

"Admit? Admit what?"

"Of course, she killed the rooster; she's the culprit behind this whole series of upheavals."

The old administrator smiled smugly, with an expression that said, "As expected of me." He was clearly very pleased with himself for finding the real culprit with just one search.

recognition?