Sorting Ceremony

"Welcome to Hogwarts,"

Professor McGonagall said.

"The start-of-term feast is about to begin, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you must first be assigned to your respective Houses.

The Sorting is a very important ceremony, because during your time at school, your House will be like your home at Hogwarts..."

Professor McGonagall explained the four Houses and the House Cup. Before leaving, she reminded the Young Wizards:

"In a few minutes, the Sorting Ceremony will be held before the entire school.

While you wait, I suggest you tidy yourselves up and look a little more presentable."

Her gaze paused on Sean for a moment, and her sternness vanished briefly.

It suited him rather well...

"The Sorting Ceremony—oh no, I heard we have to fight dragons!"

A Black-Haired Young Wizard tremblingly shared this with the companion beside him.

"Huh?! We have to fight dragons?!"

The blonde young witch beside him looked ready to cry.

"No! I've only learned Lumos."

His words swiftly threw the Young Wizards into an uproar.

"Dragons?! Adult ones or young ones?!"

"Anthony, why are you being so precise at a time like this?! I'm telling you, even a baby dragon could burn us to death in one breath!"

"We're doomed!"

The Young Wizards readily accepted the rumor. It seemed their families had done quite a bit to prepare them for it.

Amid the groans and sighs,

Sean continued reading Magical Theory with complete focus.

It was the only book he carried with him.

Although magic made no sense and followed no rules like the conservation of matter,

it had existed for far too long. Even if Wizards were all stupid pigs, they ought to have summarized at least a few patterns.

Among all the books that cost two Gold Galleons, this was the one that had left the deepest impression on Sean.

Whether it was spells, Transfiguration, or potions,

some explanation for every branch of magic could be found in this book.

Sean considered it the most underrated book on the first-year reading list.

He was now reading it for the third time, and each time, he gained something different.

Magic power

was something Wizards were born with.

The strength of one's magic power depended on a Wizard's emotions or mental strength,

but most Wizards could not consciously control their magic power on their own, so they needed spells and wands to guide it,

allowing it to be consciously manipulated to achieve a purpose.

Sean could understand this.

Harry was a perfect example.

Before learning magic, he could move himself from the ground onto a chimney and make glass vanish,

but first, he could only do it when emotionally agitated, and second, he did not know how to control his magic power.

But once they had wands and mastered spells,

Wizards could gain a great deal of control over their own magic power.

After two months of research, Sean had come to somewhat agree with a view from his previous life:

the Wizards in Harry Potter were actually bloodline Wizards, their power originating from some bloodline capable of casting magic.

Sean continued reading:

One fact of learning magic was to master as many spells as possible, including many ancient forms of magic. The more magic you knew, the more things you could accomplish;

another fact was that after mastering a spell, you needed to practice it constantly until you became proficient. There was obviously an enormous gap between proficient casting and clumsy casting;

however, once you had mastered a spell, you still needed sufficient mental strength to truly bring out its greatest power.

What a concise description.

No wonder Adalbert Waffling dared to call his book Magical Theory.

Just from the name, it was clear that this book held a status similar to "theoretical mathematics" and "fundamental physics" in his previous life.

Those books had robbed Sean of so much joy, like Dementors from the Magical World.

Read them once, and say goodbye to happiness.

"I'm starting to believe you."

Hermione's face was a little pale. The topics the Young Wizards were discussing were far too terrifying,

and the way they called out and answered one another made it all seem incredibly real,

leaving Hermione, who had only just entered the Magical World, uneasy.

Then she looked at Sean beside her. He seemed not to have heard a thing and was still reading intently.

"Why don't we ask Sean? He doesn't seem afraid at all."

Shivering, Justin recalled the equestrian test at Eton College.

Perhaps Wizards were supposed to defeat dragons?

Was that some kind of glorious tradition?

Wizards

were terrifying.

"Sean, I'm sorry to disturb you, but..."

Before Justin could finish asking for help, the doors of the Great Hall burst open with a thunderous crash.

The Sorting Ceremony had begun.

Sean also pulled himself away from Magical Theory.

While the Iron Helmet King was still on the throne, Sean began considering his Target House.

After all, the Sorting Hat seemed willing to heed a Young Wizard's wishes.

Gryffindor?

No. Absolutely not.

His top priority was getting a Scholarship.

If he wanted top marks in every subject, the closest examples were probably Hermione and Percy.

And in the original story, both of them had been rejected within Gryffindor.

In her first year, Hermione had merely performed well in class and pointed out what other students were doing wrong, yet she had been ostracized until she cried in the bathroom.

Most Gryffindors carried the mindset of, "No matter how capable I am, I can't stand being beneath others for long."

They were brave adventurers, but they always ended up hurting other people.

Just like during the Chamber of Secrets incident, when they had been stirred up by rumors and isolated and excluded Harry.

As for Slytherin,

Sean had no interest in scheming and fighting for advantage. With that time, he could grind the Levitation Charm up to the level of a Sile nce Spell.

That left Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff, both of which seemed pretty good.

But Sean leaned more toward Hufflepuff.

Walk out of the dorm and take two steps to get free food?

That was incredibly cool.

Hufflepuff was harmonious and cheerful. They never turned their fists on their own; instead, they stood united against outsiders.

Even Rowling had said she hoped every child would be a Hufflepuff.

Just imagine it: a warm fireplace, a Kitchen right outside your door, and a Head of House who would scold you harshly if you went out and got into trouble or a fight, but would still secretly bring you a box of coconut ice cream.

Sean only wanted to shout:

We come from the forest, we hold great love in our hearts, we are loyal to nature, we are upright and faithful, we are steadfast and honest, we fear no hardship—

—we are Hufflepuff!

"Harry Potter!"

In the center of the Great Hall,

the moment Professor McGonagall spoke, the noisy atmosphere died down considerably.

Sean heard the Young Wizards around him murmuring, "It's him," "It really is him," and "Harry Potter."

Harry ran over and put on the wrinkled Sorting Hat. The entire hall fell silent, waiting for the result.

They waited

for four or five minutes.

In Sean's mind, Sorting Hat's Song had already reached its second repetition.

"Gryffindor!"

At last, the result came.

The Gryffindors went wild with joy.

"Potter!"

"We have Potter!"

Sean could hear them even from far away.

Very soon—

"Sean Green!"