Driven by her refusal to admit defeat and some indescribable state of mind, Hermione gritted her teeth and pushed herself harder, doubling her efforts and squeezing every last bit out of herself.
In just over a week, she had developed heavy dark circles under her eyes. Her hair was a mess, and she had no energy to tidy it. Even when she walked, she seemed to be floating.
She had thought that gaining the miraculous spell "Arcane Brilliance" would let her go further and narrow the gap between herself and Ted. Instead, the gap had grown even wider! Hermione could clearly sense that the things Ted was studying now were things she had never even heard of, much less understood.
She had even flipped through the second- and third-year textbooks, but there was no similar knowledge in them.
Even if she was more mature, studious, and hardworking than ordinary Little Wizards, she was still only a twelve-year-old girl. She simply could not withstand the immense pressure of something like risking her life to prepare for graduate school entrance exams or civil service exams.
In less than two weeks, her mindset had completely collapsed!
That day, she still insisted on staying in the library until the very end, even though her head was already spinning...
But on the way back, Hermione suddenly broke down. The books in her hands clattered all over the floor, and she went limp, dropping onto the ground in a duck-sitting posture as she burst into loud sobs. Later, she haphazardly gathered up her books and staggered back to the dormitory, crying all the way.
She was so tired. She wanted to go home! She wanted her mother~ Ted only learned about it after finishing detention with Professor McGonagall.
That evening, Hermione lay blankly on her bed