Daily News: The Prophet of Hogwarts

Chapter 55 Popular Professor

"Ryan." Hermione approached Ryan, lowering her voice so her teammates wouldn't hear, "I observed the Red Hats that our group and the nearby groups were dealing with, and I discovered that the Red Hats' abilities are different from what's described in the books."

She looked at Ryan as if asking if he had taken precautions in advance.

"Hermione, do you think I'd dare give you the un-weakened Red Hat for class?" Ryan shrugged. "Even you, with your spellcasting skills far exceeding those of other junior wizards, only managed to cast the spell on your third attempt, didn't you?"

"Young wizards without real combat experience need the courage and feeling of facing an enemy for the first time, rather than the realism of the opponent," he said.

Hermione nodded and led her team to bring the first Red Hat they had knocked down out of the tunnel, where they were going to put the Red Hat into the iron cage.

She and the other three had just left the tunnel wearing red hats when they saw four figures coming towards them.

"Navie!" she exclaimed in surprise.

Especially after seeing the awe and respect that the other two members of her group showed to Neville and Hannah, she was certain that Neville and Hannah had contributed the most to the team's victory over the Red Hats.

"Hermione, keep it up, you're still a long way off." Neville was still as reserved and shy as ever. After greeting Hermione, he went back into the tunnel.

Hermione was both surprised and delighted. She was surprised because she didn't think Neville could successfully cast a spell to knock out Red Hat, but delighted because, besides her, there were other people working hard to earn points for Gryffindor, and they had already succeeded!

"Quick, let's put the red hat in there," she said, eager to return to the tunnel to rack up points.

After they put the red hat inside, a piece of white paper suddenly appeared hanging outside the iron cage, with the names of the four people in the group written on it, along with the sentence: Gryffindor and Hufflepuff each get one point.

Before returning to undefined, Hermione glanced around and confirmed that only two groups had managed to bring out the red hats, while the other groups were still struggling.

Deep inside the tunnel, Lane arrived behind Harry's group. Because Ron had demonstrated excellent spellcasting skills the night before, he hadn't teamed up with Harry.

Before entering the arena, Hermione and the others formed groups in order to gain more House Points, and because they thought the Red Hats were easy prey, they adopted a "one-to-three" or "one-to-two" grouping method.

At this moment, Harry's group consisted of Harry and Seamus Finnigan from Gryffindor, and two other Hufflepuffs.

"Seymour, stop Red Hat!" Harry shouted.

At this moment, Red Hat charged left and right, incredibly brave, moving through the four young wizards as if they were nothing, forcing them to retreat repeatedly.

The four-man formation was repeatedly crumbling and they were about to be driven out of the area that Ryan had set for Red Hat's activities.

The two Hufflepuff students were trying their best to deal damage, but their skills needed improvement, and they were no match for Red Hat.

In that critical moment, Seamus heard Harry's shout, stepped forward, gritted his teeth, pointed his wand at the red hat, and without bothering with any spellcasting, yelled, "Yugardim Leviosa!"

The next instant, flames erupted, shaking and roaring, illuminating Ryan's bewildered face and drowning out the helpless and desperate cries of Harry and the other two young wizards.

Ryan had almost instinctively activated the Ironclad Charm, instantly providing protection for himself and the others.

Then, a light drizzle covered the explosion site, clearing away the smoke and haze.

The scene revealed Seamus's three teammates, who were celebrating their miraculous survival, and the smoky black ground and walls.

There was also the red hat that was on its last legs.

"Mr. Fenigan, excellent Explosion Charm, excellent practical adaptability, and the ability to use deceptive spells to bewitch your opponent," Ryan said sincerely. "If this really wasn't a spellcasting mistake on your part, I'll add five points to Gryffindor for it."

Simo stammered, "The Levitation Spell... a mistake, I don't know how it exploded..."

"I think you'll become quite adept at the Explosion Charm in the future," Lane said. "But I personally strongly advise against Mr. Finnigan using unskilled magic in confined spaces."

He pointed to the red hat on the ground, noting that it was mostly air and not much air coming in. "An explosion in a confined space would cause even more serious injuries."

"You don't want to end up like this red hat, do you?"

Sweat beaded on Simo's forehead.

Harry and his two companions were not only covered in sweat on their foreheads, but their backs were also soaked.

In other areas of the tunnel, many young wizards heard the loud noise, and those who were able to get away wanted to go and find out what was going on.

Ryan chased the young wizards away. "There's nothing to do here. Everyone has fifty minutes left, so hurry up."

Ryan spent the rest of the time looking at all the little wizards.

When the practice session ended, he waved his hand, and all the young wizards flew out of the abandoned tunnel.

"Let's tally it up," he said. "Gryffindor and Hufflepuff teamed up to capture twenty-nine Red Hats and seriously wound one. I'll add thirty points to each of their houses."

Ryan's words caused the young wizards to whisper among themselves, and they immediately connected the serious injury to a Red Hat with the violent explosion they had heard in the tunnel earlier.

"That's great, isn't it? Through this lesson, the schools have become closer, and the students have gotten to know each other better," he said. Most importantly, all the young wizards who participated in the course felt that they had contributed to the school, which boosted their confidence and sense of accomplishment.

Ryan once again silenced the young wizards with magic, saying, "And through today's lesson, I've come to realize that everyone here possesses extraordinary skills."

"Here, I would like to give special praise to Mr. Neville Longbottom and Miss Hannah Abbott. These two, with excellent teamwork, used efficient methods to capture the five red hats."

He noticed that the two people he had called out blushed. "I believe that as long as it doesn't go against one's conscience or the ways of the world, any means necessary to achieve the goal is a good method. Please stay after class; I have something to say to you both."

"Thank you... Professor Wells," Neville said softly. This was the first time he had received praise from the professor outside of herb class.

"Yes, Professor." Without the pressure, Hannah was in much better shape than Neville.

"To defeat thirty red hats in an hour and a half during the first real-world exercise is a very good result, I think," Ryan said. In the remaining time, he pointed out the problems he had found and urged the young wizard to correct them.

For example, when Seamus casts the Levitation Blast, Ryan requires him to strictly adhere to his casting gestures and absolutely avoid any deviations.

After class, the rest of the students returned to the classroom to pack up their textbooks, talking as they walked:

"I bet even upperclassmen haven't had a Defense Against the Dark Arts class like this!"

"The very first lesson was practical. This is the most daring professor I've ever heard of!"

"I think Defense Against the Dark Arts will definitely become the most popular class from now on."

Neville and Hannah remained in the tunnel. Ryan planned to talk to them about topics concerning adult wizards, but the first time couldn't be too intense; he'd keep it light and guide them gradually...

Researching magical versions of martial arts.

Abbreviation: Demonic Power.