Halloween Special

Chapter 51 Halloween Special

"Has Andy already been able to cast spells without a staff?"

The young wizards stared at Andy in astonishment, as if they were looking at Dumbledore's successor.

Although they are all young wizards of the same age, some have already mastered the skill of wandless spellcasting, while others... seem to be a dud!

Just how big is this difference?

Professor Flitwick was speechless.

Is this considered a levitation spell? Maybe!

Does this count as casting spells without a staff? Of course not!

The Levitation Charm makes objects float in the air, and from this perspective, Andy's situation could be considered a levitation charm.

However, casting spells without a staff is a very sophisticated spellcasting technique.

Even if the effect is the same, "casting a spell" and "direct application of magic power" are two completely different things.

Andy's approach can only be considered a use of magic; in essence, it doesn't even qualify as "spellcasting," let alone "spellcasting without a wand."

"Ravenclaw gets two points."

Professor Flitwick was delighted; he had secured the minimum four points for each class—a bonus for successful spellcasting.

If he asks more questions in class, Hermione can earn even more points for Ravenclaw.

The Academy Cup is beckoning to him!

Two months into the semester, the current house rankings are: Ravenclaw first, Slytherin second, and Gryffindor last, having also set a new record for points deducted.

Professor Flitwick clenched his fist in encouragement. As long as they maintained their current momentum, this year's College Cup would surely belong to Ravenclaw.

After the spell was successfully cast, it was time for the Q&A session.

With Hermione pointing out the young wizard's spellcasting mistakes, Professor Flitwick was relieved of a lot of trouble.

Of course, this is also related to the fact that Ravenclaw's young wizards are studious and good-natured.

If this were Gryffindor, you'd see.

It's already a good thing if they don't give you a hard time.

As for Gryffindor…

As long as no accidents occur, the teaching is considered successful.

Lion cubs always have their own learning methods. Their brains may not be strong enough, but their muscle memory is pretty good.

Therefore, Professor Flitwick was happy to give Andy some extra guidance in his spare time.

"It seems you honed your magic skills quite a bit when you were young."

Professor Flitwick said, "Of course, this is also a manifestation of talent. Not all young wizards can use their magic skillfully before entering school."

Andy asked curiously, "Professor, is this kind of exercise useful?"

"Hmm...it's hard to say."

Professor Flitwick said thoughtfully, "It's hard to say whether it's useful or not; the magical world hasn't done any statistics on this."

"Once you reach adulthood, your magic will stabilize completely, and then it will be much harder for you to do this."

Andy knew this, of course.

If this training were effective, wizards wouldn't need to use wands.

Professor Flitwick continued, "However, ancient wizards used this method to train their offspring, I mean—before the invention of the wand."

Andy nodded knowingly.

Ancient magic and modern magic are two different things.

The former is powerful but difficult to control; while the latter is easy to master and simpler to cast.

Andy then asked many more questions about spells, which Professor Flitwick answered one by one.

Soon, the time for one class period had passed.

Andy was still somewhat unsatisfied, but unfortunately, Professor Flitwick didn't belong to Andy alone.

Ravenclaw will have a Defense Against the Dark Arts class next, followed by a Transfiguration class and a History of Magic class in the afternoon.

The new Professor Don is quite competent, while Professor McGonagall is a veteran professor who has been teaching for decades.

You can learn a lot from both of these lessons.

After three consecutive classes, I'll take a nice nap during my History of Magic class...

Today's schedule was absolutely perfect!

In the evening, a Halloween dinner will be held in the castle.

Giant pumpkin lanterns floated in the air above the hall, with small bats perched on them. Occasionally, they would take flight in groups, eliciting gasps of surprise from the young wizards.

The ceiling was covered with layers of dark clouds, making the auditorium somewhat dim, further enhanced by the eerie candlelight burning in the jack-o'-lanterns…

It has to be said that the festive atmosphere is already there.

Dumbledore rose, gave a brief blessing, and then told a joke that had been buried for half a century. So much so that no one in the entire Great Hall, except Dumbledore himself, found it funny.

However, everyone still gave them a warm round of applause.

Because applause signifies the end of a speech.

The banquet finally began, and various delicious dishes appeared on the long table, all of which were traditional Halloween foods.

House-elves are incredibly skilled cooks, better than even the best chefs in the Muggle world—after all, they're professionals at it.

Andy enjoyed his meal.

"Shall we go to Hogsmeade tonight?"

Andy leaned closer to Hermione and whispered, "Halloween in the wizarding world is really fun!"

Hermione was somewhat tempted, but she firmly rejected Andy's offer. "If you dare to sneak off to Hogsmeade on your own, I'll tell the professor!"

"If you're not going, what's the point of me going alone?" Andy knew Hermione would never go, but that was the routine!

The little witch smiled sweetly, and even her appetite seemed to improve.

Andy smiled again; tonight's plan had been a success.

As the old saying goes: true feelings are hard to retain, but tricks win people's hearts.

Halfway through the banquet, the hall doors suddenly burst open, and Filch rushed in, panicked. "Headmaster Dumbledore... a young wizard has been attacked, right... in the basement!"

After saying that, Filch was breathing heavily, as if he had been greatly frightened.

"ah--"

A scream came from Slytherin. The little witch named Pansy Parkinson cried out, "It's Draco! He hasn't come to the dinner party. I thought... I thought..."

Andy quickly looked over at Harry and Ron, only to find that they were also completely bewildered.

At that moment, many people looked at Harry and Ron.

After all, it was common knowledge that they had a conflict with Malfoy, and they had even put a sack over Malfoy's head—although Harry and Ron never admitted it.

"It's them!"

Pansy Parkinson pointed at Harry and Ron and screamed, "Potter and Weasley attacked Draco!"

"No! It wasn't us!" Harry quickly denied.

Ron shouted, "We haven't seen Malfoy all day!"

"Quiet--"

Dumbledore used the Amplification Charm to shout, then said in a deep voice, "Miss Parkinson, we never accuse others without evidence."

After saying that, Dumbledore turned his gaze to Filch, "Argus, was the person attacked Malfoy?"

"Yes, yes!" Filch replied meekly.

"Prefect!"

Dumbledore said sternly, "Lead your students back to the common room immediately."

"Professors, come with me to the basement!"

(End of this chapter)