Quidditch Tryouts

Vizet slowly opened his eyes and caught the distinctive scent of sandalwood.

A small branch had appeared in his hand. It gave off a sandalwood fragrance and still had a mistletoe leaf attached to it.

There was no doubt that this was a thoroughly magical creation, with a rather haphazardly blended feel to it.

"Why do you have a branch in your hand?" Anthony asked curiously.

"Because I'm borrowing this book." Vizet smiled as he lightly tapped the branch with his Wand.

The branch rapidly shrank, becoming a mistletoe-leaf bookmark that carried the scent of sandalwood.

"Let's go!" He tucked the bookmark into the book.

Metamorphic Transfiguration Theory had benefited Vizet greatly. Even on the way to the Quidditch Pitch, he was still waving his Wand and trying out more applications of Transfiguration.

Whenever he gained some insight, he had to practice more. This was the study method he had summed up in his previous life, and now that he was in the Magical World, it still worked.

He walked across the grass, waving his Wand like a Symphony Conductor. Every time he took a step, the grass beneath his feet changed, transforming into a pale primrose.

Metamorphic Transfiguration Theory recorded a large number of structural diagrams, classified by difficulty from plants to animals.

The primrose was one of those diagrams. Its structure was not particularly complicated, making it very suitable for practice.

Vizet turned around and looked at the primroses disappearing behind him, a sense of accomplishment filling his heart.

A primrose appeared with every step, giving him the feeling of "lotuses blooming with every step."

As an important branch of magic, Transfiguration possessed a unique charm of its own.

Doing as one pleased and changing unpredictably were both special qualities of Transfiguration, drawing him in so deeply that he could not pull himself away.

Michael had actually noticed this long ago. He watched one primrose after another, his mouth hanging open, and finally could not resist plucking one.

The petals scattered, and the pale primrose lying in his hand transformed into a small blade of grass.

He tugged at Vizet's sleeve. "How did it turn into this?"

"It's the most basic Transfiguration. Turning grass into a flower isn't very difficult." Anthony explained from the side, "It's just that Vizet is exceptionally proficient at it... exceptionally, exceptionally proficient..."

"How can he be that proficient!" Anthony sighed somewhat dejectedly. "He casts Transfiguration far too quickly. For him, the first-year curriculum has probably already lost its meaning."

"It just comes with practice." Vizet put away his Wand. The petals behind him instantly scattered, and the primroses returned to their original form as grass. "I practice quite a lot in my spare time. It's nothing special."

"If you're interested, I can lend you my notes." He raised Metamorphic Transfiguration Theory and waved it slightly. "This book inspired me greatly. You can take a look."

Faced with Metamorphic Transfiguration Theory, which was more than ten centimeters thick, Anthony instinctively swallowed. "Let's talk about it when we get back... It's rare to have a weekend. We should balance work and rest!"

"That's right! That's right!" Michael immediately agreed. "Look! The tryouts seem to have started!"

Vizet's activities had still been confined to the castle. At most, he had looked out through his dormitory window and gazed at the Quidditch Pitch from afar.

The oval field looked much like an olive and was comparable in size to a football field. The starting area was located in the center and specially marked with a white ring pattern.

As a ball sport involving aerial combat, the stands had also been built high up. They resembled the pillars of an Ancient Greek temple, surrounding the field.

Three gold-painted goalposts towered at both ends of the field, with rings attached to their tops. The rings served a function similar to basketball hoops; to score during a match, one had to throw the ball through a hoop.

Facing Vizet, who knew nothing about Quidditch, his two dormmates proudly puffed out their chests. Seizing this rare opportunity, they explained the players' positions and scoring methods in Quidditch.

It was a sport with a long history, beloved by wizards all over the world. There was even a major event like the Quidditch World Cup.

The sport used four balls: one Quaffle, two Bludgers, and one Golden Snitch.

Each side sent out seven players: three Chasers, two Beaters, one Keeper, and one Seeker.

The Chasers were responsible for fighting over the Quaffle. Throwing it through a ring earned ten points, making this Quidditch's primary method of scoring;

The Bludgers contained magic and randomly attacked players. The Beaters were equipped with bats and had to prevent the Bludgers from injuring their teammates while batting them toward the opposing team to cause trouble;

The Keeper was responsible for guarding the goalposts and preventing opposing players from throwing the ball through the rings to score;

The Golden Snitch contained flight magic. It was about the size of a ping-pong ball, flew extremely fast, and made no sound whatsoever. The Seeker had to find the Golden Snitch as quickly as possible; catching it ended the match.

Vizet asked curiously, "One hundred and fifty points? If someone catches the Golden Snitch right at the start, does that mean they win immediately?"

"That's what makes Quidditch so thrilling!" Anthony gestured excitedly. "The team that was behind seizes the opportunity, catches the Golden Snitch, and turns the whole match around! How exciting is that?"

Vizet nodded in agreement. The appearance of the Golden Snitch could indeed fill a match with twists and turns, making it much more entertaining to watch.

As soon as they entered the field, they heard Cho Chang calling out, "Vizet! Come over here!"

Quite a few people were already seated on the benches on either side of the team's locker room.

Some, like Cho Chang, had brought their own Flying Broomsticks to the tryouts, while others were using the Flying Broomsticks provided by the school.

Cho Chang wiped her Flying Broomstick, her voice somewhat hurried. "I thought you had forgotten."

"Sorry, I really almost forgot." Vizet sat down on the bench. "Anthony reminded me."

Cho Chang waved her hand. "Hello, you two! Thanks for coming!"

"Hi... Ah... It's nothing, really..." Anthony's ears turned bright red. He lowered his head deeply, not daring to look at Cho Chang's face.

"Y-Yes... Anthony's right!" Michael was no better. His ears were as red as if they had been scalded by boiling water.

Vizet could not help laughing. The two had been gesturing animatedly and pontificating all the way there, but after merely greeting Cho Chang, they had turned into bashful mimosa plants.

The tryout for Cho Chang's preferred position had not yet arrived, and she still needed time to adjust.

To calm her somewhat nervous mood, she chatted with Vizet about the team's recent situation.

The Ravenclaw Quidditch Team had suffered serious personnel losses. There were vacancies everywhere, whether among the Seekers, Beaters, or Chasers.

Cho Chang sighed. "So the captain and the others are still in a great hurry. Before you came, twenty people had already been eliminated."

"How were they eliminated?" Vizet asked. He was quite interested in the Quidditch tryouts.

"Hovering, accelerating, weaving, sharp turns..." Cho Chang counted them off on her fingers. "The captain calls out movements at random. If you can't keep up, you're out..."