Hogwarts: Please, Just Graduate Already!

McGonagall said with a dark expression, but Ollivander merely laughed it off and changed the subject.

"Minerva, do you know? Seeing you every summer is always the happiest time of my year. When you, Filius, or Pomona show up, it means a wand is about to meet its owner."

With that, his deep blue eyes turned toward Wayne. "This young wizard, could you tell me your name?"

"Wayne Lawrence." Wayne gave his name, calmly moving a little farther away from a shelf.

He had just noticed that one of the shelf's legs was broken. Who knew when it would collapse?

"Ah, Mr. Lawrence. That's a rare surname. Could it be that your ancestors were from Rome or France?"

"France, I suppose. But my family has been in Britain for many years."

The Lawrence family was indeed an old noble family that had come from Normandy with William the Conqueror, and the surname Lawrence was more common in French.

"Looks like your ancestors made the right choice. Even French dogs won't go there." As Ollivander chatted with Wayne, the measuring tape flew automatically in front of the young wizard.

Wayne's lips twitched. Even the conflict between Britain and France had spread to the wizarding world. Whenever they got the chance, they had to take a jab at each other.

Ridiculous.

"Which is your dominant hand?" "My left."

"Good. Then try this."

After glancing at the measurements on the ruler, Ollivander disappeared for only a short while before returning with a large stack of wooden boxes in his arms.

"Remember, child, it is the wand that chooses the wizard. Only after a wizard and a wand produce a wondrous reaction can it display its full potential."

"Let's try this first. Some young wizards are very picky, like Minerva was back then."

Professor McGonagall's helpless voice rang out. "Fir, nine inches, Dragon Heartstring core. Suitable for Transfiguration."

"Garrick, you mention that every time you see me."

"Forgive an old man. I have to use this method to remember things." Ollivander smiled as he handed Wayne a wand.

As soon as he took it, Wayne suddenly wanted to shoot something. He followed his instincts. Bang!

A mass of white light burst from the wand's tip and shot toward the ceiling, punching a huge hole straight through it.

His ancestral home had been damaged, yet Ollivander was not angry. Instead, his face was filled with delight.

"Remarkable. Remarkable."

"This wand is somewhat unworthy of your future achievements, Mr. Lawrence. Cedar is suitable for clever people, but it is ultimately too gentle. How about trying this one? Dragon Heartstring paired with Yew."

The wand in Wayne's hand was snatched away, and another was immediately shoved into it. This time, a blazing ball of fire emerged. Wayne frowned.

He disliked the way his magic was behaving uncontrollably. The next second, the fireball inexplicably vanished.

Clap, clap, clap!

Ollivander was even more delighted. "Mr. Lawrence, your talent is truly obvious to the naked eye. Very few young wizards can control their magic when they first touch a wand."

"But I beg you not to do that. Only by letting things happen naturally can you find the wand that suits you best."

Wayne could only nod helplessly, indicating that he would not interfere again. Even Professor McGonagall revealed a faint smile.

It seemed that Hogwarts had welcomed another young prodigy. If he could be sorted into Gryffindor, that would be even better.

After all, Slytherin had won the House Cup six times in a row. It had been eating away at her for a long time.

One box after another was opened, and Wayne tried wands with all sorts of combinations.

From Fir to Walnut, from Dragon Heartstring to Thestral Hair.

Ollivander had completely entered the zone, constantly muttering to himself. He enjoyed this sort of picky customer.

The pickier they were, the more it proved that a wizard was extraordinary.

In the wizarding world, following the crowd would only make one indistinguishable from everyone else. Only wizards with distinctive traits and personalities could climb to the summit.

When Wayne became famous and successful, Ollivander would have something to brag about whenever he mentioned the wand. His grandfather had once sold a wand to Dumbledore and had boasted about it for decades, successfully suppressing the other two wandmaking families.

Ollivander wanted such a day for himself, too.

When that day came, the so-called three great wandmaking families would no longer exist. Whenever people mentioned wands, they would think only of Ollivander!

The process lasted a full half hour, and Wayne tried nearly a hundred wands. He remained quite calm.

So what if transmigrators are special? I only tried a few more wands than usual.

"Then try this one." Ollivander took out another box. "Sycamore, Unicorn Hair, eleven and a half inches."

Wayne accepted the wand indifferently. The next second, a feeling of sudden enlightenment welled up inside him.

Chapter Seven: Whose Patronus Is an Egg?!

After trying more than a hundred wands, Wayne could at least be considered a novice veteran. When the combination was unsuitable, his magic would repel it intensely, and the spells he cast would become highly volatile. If the feeling was merely average, or if he felt nothing at all, the wand would spray some water or set off a couple of fireworks to make its point.

When a wand was somewhat suitable, the spells it produced were mostly Transfiguration.

But no wand had ever felt like this one. The moment he took it in his hand, they seemed to merge perfectly.

It was like finding the most beautiful princess at a KTV. He could not wait to show off his prowess.

Wayne subconsciously raised the wand high.

Silvery-white mist spread out and drifted through the air, gradually condensing into shape. After her initial confusion, Professor McGonagall immediately realized what was happening and, in a rare loss of composure, exclaimed, "Impossible!"

Ollivander's lips trembled. "The Patronus Charm... It's actually the Patronus Charm."

Not to mention that the Patronus Charm was an extremely advanced Defense Against the Dark Arts spell, even many adult wizards could not master it.

But what young wizard would instinctively cast the Patronus Charm after picking up a wand?

The silvery-white Patronus finally took shape. McGonagall and Ollivander stared at it intently, their expressions eventually turning blank.

"What is that... an egg?"

Wayne was rendered speechless. What the hell?!

Whose proper Patronus would be an egg? Was he supposed to throw the egg at Dementors and smash them to death in the future? Hatch already! Hm?

Wayne's heart stirred. Hatch...

Could it be related to the Pokémon Egg currently incubating at home?

The wand lowered slightly, and the Patronus dissipated with it. Ollivander and McGonagall finally recovered from their shock.

"Perfect performance, Mr. Lawrence." Ollivander took a deep breath. "This scene will be permanently recorded in the history of the Ollivander family."

"Legend says that Sycamore was the tree Heracles used to honor his father, the god-king Zeus. In Ancient Greece, it was also known as the sacred tree."

"As for Unicorn Hair, it is one of the purest materials. It is extremely loyal and stable."

"I believe you will achieve remarkable accomplishments in Defense Against the Dark Arts in the future. You might even become the next Dumbledore."

Wayne laughed and teased him. "You don't say that to every young wizard, do you?"

Ollivander smiled without answering.

He did indeed say a few nice things when selling wands, but that was for KP. It did not count.

But this time, he was genuinely sincere to some extent.

After paying seven Galleons for the wand and another fifteen Galleons for a complete advanced wand-care kit, the two finally left Ollivander's shop.

What a rip-off.

Only now did Wayne understand why such an important weapon as a wand was sold for the absurdly low price of seven Galleons.

On the one hand, the Ministry of Magic subsidized every young wizard's first wand, and Ollivander could claim the difference back from them.

On the other hand, it was the after-sales service. It was just like the fourth son's shops in the Muggle world—the real money came later.

There was no time to celebrate getting his wand for long. Since they had wasted too much time earlier, they had to hurry now.

The bookstore, clothing shop, cauldron shop, and astronomy shop.

After making the rounds, Wayne finally bought everything Hogwarts required, along with quite a few other books that interested him.

Fortunately, Flourish and Blotts and the other shops all offered owl delivery. With a delivery fee of only three silver Sickles, Wayne could not help marveling at how affordable prices were in the magical world.

Three silver Sickles was practically the same as free shipping.

The only unfortunate thing was that, because Professor McGonagall was accompanying him, Wayne could not conveniently buy many interesting little items, such as itching powder and dung bombs.

Before they parted, McGonagall asked once again whether Wayne needed to buy a pet.

First-year students were allowed to bring owls, toads, and rats as pets.

Wayne had no interest in any of those three creatures. Even the adorable Scottish round-faced fat chicken did not seem necessary to him.

Owls were generally used to send letters, and he had no friends in the wizarding world he needed to contact at the moment.

If he ever needed an owl in the future, he could simply borrow one from a classmate or use one belonging to the school.

"Mr. Lawrence, my task is complete. The next time we meet will be at the start of term."

After using Apparition to send Wayne home once again, Professor McGonagall prepared to leave. She still had to visit another young wizard's home that afternoon.

Before leaving, McGonagall added, "Although the Ministry of Magic does not allow young wizards to perform magic outside school, there are exceptions to every rule."

McGonagall spoke meaningfully. "Over the next month, you can try previewing your lessons and learning some less dangerous spells. If there is anything you do not understand, you can send me a letter by owl from Diagon Alley."

After the shock at Ollivander's shop, McGonagall was now very optimistic about Wayne's talent and did not hesitate to offer whatever help she could. Hearing this, Wayne's eyes lit up. "Wouldn't that disturb you, Professor?"

Although his talent was now maxed out and he had a cheat, learning magic was not something that could be accomplished overnight.

Turning talent into actual ability required a great deal of knowledge and practice. With the help of a master like McGonagall, Wayne could avoid many detours. "Of course not. I would be delighted to answer questions for a young wizard who is eager to learn." After saying that, McGonagall waved again and used Apparition to leave. After watching her go, Wayne also turned and walked back into his house. He was grateful for McGonagall's kindness, but Gryffindor? That was not the House Wayne wanted to join.

Chapter Eight: Rapid Progress

At noon, Wayne ate a simple lunch. He did not continue studying magic, instead collapsing onto his bed and falling asleep.

After a whole night of excitement and half a day of walking around outside that morning, he had been tired for quite some time.

He slept exceptionally well. When he woke up, the clock on the wall had passed five.

Somewhat noisy sounds came from downstairs. Curious, Wayne walked out of his bedroom in his pajamas.

The two servants and one chef in his household had all been hired at high salaries and were highly professional. They had never caused such a commotion before.

"Young Master Wayne."

When Wayne came downstairs, one of the servants hurried over to him, still looking startled. "What happened, Linda?"

"Several owls suddenly flew in just now. They threw these things into the living room, flew around for a while, and then left."

Linda was still shaken as she spoke. Owls were nocturnal creatures and were rarely seen during the day, let alone flying into the house.

Several large parcels had been placed on the carpet in the sitting room. They had not been opened.

Wayne knew that these were the things he had bought that morning, sent over by the shops in Diagon Alley. As for why the owls had flown around for a while before leaving, recipients were generally expected to prepare some food to replenish the owls' strength after a delivery. This was Wayne's first time receiving one, and he had clearly forgotten about it. However...

Wayne glanced at Linda, another servant named Elena, and the chef, Bruce. He would inevitably conduct magic experiments at home in the future, which would certainly cause quite a commotion. It would be inconvenient to keep them in the house.

The same would be even more true after he went to Hogwarts. Every year, he would spend less time at home than at school.

He considered whether he should simply dismiss them.

It could not really be called dismissal. The Lawrence family had many businesses, and if they were willing, Wayne could provide them with positions offering the same salary, or even more.

"All right, it might be some kind of new technology. I bought all this stuff." Wayne casually made up an excuse and brushed it off.

"Linda, Elena, put these things in the study. Bruce, what are we having for dinner?"

"How about steak, Young Master Wayne?" "Add a serving of roasted ribs." "Yes, sir."

After dinner, Wayne went to the study and began opening the parcels.

He set aside the things he did not currently need, placed several first-year textbooks on the desk, and began reading Standard Spells, Grade 1.

Charms were the foundation of everything. Strictly speaking, Transfiguration, Defense Against the Dark Arts, and even the Dark Arts were all types of magic.

As long as he mastered Charms, it would actually help him quite a lot with the other subjects as well. With a casual wave, the cup on the desk shattered with a crack.

Wayne took out his wand and followed the instructions in the book. He concentrated, slightly raised his wrist, then pressed it downward while reciting the spell in a steady rhythm.