The wheelchair-bound warrior is speedrunning Hogwarts.

Although she is already an adult, the basic concept of respecting teachers and valuing their teachings is deeply ingrained in her, so of course she would feel embarrassed.

“I will, Professor,” she replied softly.

Professor McGonagall nodded, said to everyone, "Please practice on your own from now on," and then turned around to continue inspecting the other students' practice.

Vera had just breathed a sigh of relief when Harley gently tugged at her robe and asked in a low voice, "Vera, I still don't quite understand this rat."

She snapped out of her daze, and as soon as she turned her head, she met Harley's somewhat troubled gaze.

Well, a young wizard who has just mastered turning a match into a needle will indeed be a little lost when faced with the transformation of living things at first.

She even took a special look and noticed that even Hermione, who was always an excellent student, was having a rather difficult time practicing.

The others wore expressions of distress.

Vera thought for a moment, then simply pulled Hermione over and gave them a private lesson: "The principle is still the same, but you have to imagine that its essence is changing."

It's not just about the appearance, but also the internal structure. Otherwise, even if it conjured up a snuffbox, it could escape in the blink of an eye.

Harley frowned in confusion: "This concept is so abstract... It doesn't seem any different from what the professor said."

Hermione tapped her head lightly with her wand: "Vera means that we need to construct a complete image of a snuffbox in our minds."

Then, using incantations and magic as a medium, guide the rat's form to completely transform in that direction!

Vera nodded approvingly: "That's pretty much the idea."

While it's already quite idealistic to think about transformations based on imagination, magic is even more idealistic.

As long as the target of the spell and the spell itself do not exceed the wizard's own capabilities, it is indeed possible to achieve whatever the mind desires.

Harry blinked her emerald green eyes, looking at the mouse in front of her with a troubled expression: "But mice and snuffboxes have completely different structures, it's really hard to imagine how they could be transformed..."

Vera pondered for a moment, then, drawing on her own experience in building mental anchors, said, "You can try dividing it into several steps."

First, imagine the mouse's fur becoming metallic, then imagine its limbs contracting into the sharp edges of a box, and then its bones and internal organs…”

Harley suddenly realized: "It's like a jigsaw puzzle, you can do it piece by piece!"

Hermione seemed equally thoughtful: "This is indeed much easier than imagining the entire transformation all at once."

Breaking down complex things into smaller, relatively simple goals and then completing them step by step makes them easier to understand and master.

As Vera watched the two of them continue trying again and again, she gently curled her lips into a smile. Out of the corner of her eye, she met McGonagall's gaze, which had turned around at some point.

Her heart skipped a beat, but she quickly regained her composure and met Professor McGonagall's gaze calmly.

Professor McGonagall nodded slightly and then turned to instruct the other students.

After one class, Hermione was able to conjure up a snuffbox in front of her, though it looked rather cheap.

Even so, Professor McGonagall generously added five points to her score.

Harley's snuffbox always had a tail left behind, so she could only keep practicing with all her might.

As the bell rang and the students left the classroom in twos and threes, Vera had already told Harley and Hermione that she had a few questions and asked them to wait outside.

After most of the people in the classroom had left, he pushed his wheelchair to the front of the classroom and softly called out, "Professor."

“Miss Black?” Professor McGonagall looked up, her gaze much gentler than before. “Is there a problem?”

Vera considered her words carefully, but remembering that Harley Hermione was still waiting for her, she simply went straight to the point: "Professor, I would like to ask you some questions about the Animagus."

As soon as she finished speaking, McGonagall's expression turned serious: "Animagus? This is not a high level of Transfiguration that a first-year student should be able to access."

“Of course, I am well aware of that.” Vera had prepared her answer beforehand, and she looked directly at Professor McGonagall without the slightest hint of guilt.

"But today's metamorphosis class reminded me of some records about Animagus that I recently came across in the library."

I had some questions at the time that I couldn't answer, and I remembered them in class today, which is why I wanted to ask you for clarification.

Upon hearing that it was merely an academic discussion, Professor McGonagall adjusted her glasses, her expression softening slightly.

No teacher dislikes a student like Vera who excels academically and is good at thinking critically, especially a girl like Vera who has special circumstances and is even more endearing.

“Alright,” McGonagall thought for a moment and said, “I’m only teaching you theoretical questions; I won’t teach you specific practice methods.”

This suited Vera perfectly. She nodded obediently, "I understand, Professor. When I saw the relevant information before, I was thinking..."

Do the Animagus's transformed animal form possess all the memories and consciousness of its original owner? Or do they retain some animal instincts?

Professor McGonagall raised an eyebrow in slight surprise: “That’s a rather profound question, Miss Black.”

She put down her lesson plan and thought about it carefully. "Based on my experience, animals that have undergone metamorphosis retain their memories and thought patterns from their human days, but they are also influenced by their animal instincts."

However, whether it leans more towards animal instincts or human thought depends on the user's own will.

Vera nodded thoughtfully before posing the question she really wanted to ask: "So, is there a way to tell if an animal is an Animagus?"

Professor McGonagall was taken aback: "Why would you think of such a question?"

Vera explained without batting an eye, "It's just curiosity. If Animagus can perfectly disguise themselves as ordinary animals, wouldn't they be incredibly difficult to detect?"

“That’s true.” Professor McGonagall adjusted her glasses. “However, the Ministry of Magic has a comprehensive registration system; all legitimate Animagus are required to register. As for the testing methods…”

She hesitated for a moment. "Although in theory, Animagus and werewolves are not the same, both can be undoed with the Homorphus Charm."

"Manifestation in human form?" Vera repeated the somewhat unfamiliar spell name softly.

“Yes, this spell can force werewolves to temporarily revert to human form, and it can also make Animagus reveal human features,” Professor McGonagall explained.

“Then…” Vera silently repeated the spell twice in her mind, then looked up hesitantly: “Will this spell harm ordinary animals?”

“No.” Professor McGonagall shook her head decisively. “It only serves as a detection tool. Besides detecting werewolves and Animagus, it can also reveal people who are hiding nearby.”

Almost instantly, Vera breathed a sigh of relief.

She certainly didn't want to hurt Knox because of her momentary doubts, but if it was just a simple check-up to put her mind at ease, it should be fine, right?

“Thank you, Professor. This answers my question.” Vera looked up and thanked her sincerely.

Professor McGonagall nodded gently: “Transfiguration is a profound subject, Miss Black. Since you are interested in it, you are welcome to come to me anytime for answers to your questions.”

“I will, Professor.” Vera nodded earnestly and pushed her wheelchair out of the classroom.

After dinner, they had just returned to the common room when Harley was called away by Wood to discuss tactics for the next Quidditch game.

Hermione went to the library to continue looking for information about Nicolas Flamel.

Vera returned to her dorm room alone and found that Knox was already back, elegantly licking his paws.

"Knox," she called softly, pulling a prepared piece of meat from her pocket, "How was today?"

Knox hopped over lightly, nuzzled her palm, and then lowered his head to enjoy his food.

Vera gently stroked the cat's soft fur, her wand slipping quietly into her palm.

“Good boy… let me see you.” She whispered, gently lifting Knox’s chin with her other hand so that he looked directly into her eyes.

"Manifestation." Vera murmured the spell, a faint light flashing at the tip of her wand.

Vera held her breath, watching Knox's reaction intently.

The light at the tip of the wand shimmered slightly in the cat's pupils. Knox tilted his head in confusion, his amber eyes reflecting her image.

Knox maintained his cat-like posture, and even meowed in dissatisfaction at her pause, gently patting her wrist with his paw, as if urging her to continue petting him.

Apart from that, nothing unusual occurred.

Vera held her breath and tried a few more times. Only after confirming that the spell was indeed ineffective did she finally relax completely.

As expected, she was just overthinking things...

How many Animaguss are there in this world?

"I'm sorry I doubted you before." She ruffled Knox's hair guiltily. "As compensation, how about I open a new flavor of canned food for you?"

Knox seemed to understand her, nuzzling her palm affectionately with his head and purring contentedly.

Looking at it with a gentle expression, Vera couldn't resist picking up the cat and kissing it twice.

She's been so bored these past few days!

Since Knox is not an Animagus, its intelligence and its affection for Cerberus can only be attributed to its cat-like bloodline, right?

Having found a good reason for her cat, Vera opened an extra can of food for Knox and watched it jump down and devour it with gusto, her eyes crinkling slightly.

For the next few days, Vera did not go to see Lu Wei again.

The main reason, of course, was Dumbledore's reminder. In addition, having already gained a certain degree of confidence, she did not want to be caught by Quirrell just before success.

So, let's just be patient and wait for the weekend.

Author's Note: This chapter might seem a bit filler... but it's actually laying the groundwork for future plot developments. I'll try my best not to write too much filler.

Chapter 106 Old Fu's House Was Robbed

Harley went to practice Quidditch early in the morning on the weekend, because the Gryffindor vs. Hufflepuff match was coming up at the end of November.

Vera underwent a routine physical examination, accompanied by Hermione.

When Mrs. Pomfrey heard that Harley and Hermione were still diligently helping with massages every day, she greatly appreciated their willingness to help their classmates, so she taught Hermione a few new massage techniques.

Unsurprisingly, Vera once again became a teaching tool.

This has made her a bit traumatized by the school hospital.

“Then, I’ll leave the rest of the journey to you,” Mrs. Pomfrey said gently as she saw them to the door.

Hermione nodded repeatedly: "Yes! We'll finish it every day!"

Vera... Vera's face was flushed, and she didn't want to say another word.

Once Madam Pomfrey entered, Hermione eagerly lowered her head and asked, "Should we go watch Harley practice or go to the library to find some materials?"

Vera took a deep breath, trying to calm the heat on her face: "I think... I'll go and exercise on my own."

After being massaged for a long time, Harley and Hermione both realized that during the times she would disappear, she would secretly go somewhere to exercise.

As Vera's roommates who lived with her day and night, they all knew very well that Vera probably didn't want others to see her looking too embarrassed at this time.

Besides, even the closest friends need their own personal time.

As long as they confirm that Vera is safe enough, they won't interfere too much.

“Okay,” Hermione said understandingly, releasing the wheelchair. “I’ll go to the library to continue my research. See you at dinner?”

Vera responded softly, "Okay, see you at dinner."

After watching Hermione leave, Vera turned her wheelchair around. She was going to go to the Room of Requirement again; it was time to return the book she had borrowed, "Brain Anchors," to the library.

She had only gone halfway up the stairs when she suddenly felt a slight tremor in her magic circuit.

Vera stopped her wheelchair and looked around warily.

The corridor was filled with students passing by in twos and threes, and nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

But magic circuits don't issue warnings without reason.

She pushed her wheelchair forward slowly, constantly looking around.

Soon, she caught a faint anomaly—it was coming from the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom on the third floor.

Vera squinted, pushed her wheelchair, and moved in that direction as if she were just passing by.

As she drew closer, she heard a familiar voice—it was Quirrell, and he was talking to someone.

"Master, the dragon egg is in our hands." Quirrell's voice trembled, not with fear, but with an excitement at the impending success.

Vera immediately held her breath and quickly pushed her wheelchair backward, carefully trying not to make a sound.

Once she had retreated to a safe distance, she hid behind a pillar, channeling her magic and using the Source Stream to enhance her hearing to its maximum.

In an instant, countless noisy sounds from the surrounding corridor flooded into her brain.

Vera frowned suddenly, trying to suppress her discomfort and calm herself down.

Using the training method of Occlumency, she forced herself to calm down, quickly filtering out irrelevant noise in her mind and focusing on capturing Quirrell's conversation.

“I’ve already inquired beforehand, and Hagrid will be going to Hogsmeade for a drink today.”

“Very good.” A cold, grating voice responded to Quirrell. “You’ve finally found a way to deal with Cerberus, haven’t you?”

Quirrell immediately shivered and almost knelt on the ground.

"Of course, Master," he replied tremblingly, "With this dragon egg, there will be no problem!"

"Don't disappoint me again," the sinister voice said. "The Phoenix Tears have weakened me considerably; only the Philosopher's Stone can heal me."