Neville's Inferiority Complex, Young Tu Xingsun

Hearing the message delivered by the owl, the young wizards were all a little stunned.

Their first lesson had turned into self-study just like that?

But thinking about how most of the new students had been welcomed by Professor McGonagall, and how she had put the most effort into yesterday's Sorting Ceremony, it was only normal for someone her age to be exhausted. Self-study it was, then.

Still, the three-inch essay assignment made the young wizards' scalps tingle.

Especially the young wizards from Muggle families.

Damn it, they had thought coming here to learn magic would free them from things like homework. Why was there even more homework in the wizarding world than in the Muggle world?

But when they thought of Rhine having to write an essay three times as long, they felt somewhat fortunate.

A nine-inch essay was nearly as long as a wand. Wasn't that deadly?

Rhine merely curled his lip.

Well, well. Professor McGonagall was clearly taking revenge through official channels, wasn't she?

Forget it. Since she had contributed the All Things Manifest talent to him, he would let it slide.

By then, the young wizards had already begun their self-study with great enthusiasm.

Having witnessed Rhine and Hermione's performance just now, their passion for Transfiguration had reached unprecedented heights.

Thinking that they too might be able to perform such magical feats, even the least studious young wizards opened their Transfiguration textbooks with sparkling eyes.

Wasn't it only the first lesson?

It was just introductory material. How hard could it be?

Wait...

What was a standard Transfiguration structure?

What was Gamp's Law of Elemental Transfiguration?

And what were the one hundred and thirty-seven little steps for introductory nonliving-object Transfiguration?

Why did the first lesson take up more than twenty bloody pages in the textbook, without even a single illustration?!

Just taking notes was enough to make them question their lives.

As for actually casting Transfiguration, nobody could do it.

In fact, in the original story, only Hermione, who had prepared in advance, could keep up with Professor McGonagall's teaching in this lesson and barely transform a match into a silver needle.

That alone had earned a rare smile from Professor McGonagall.

Later on, Harry had used all sorts of spells. He mastered the Patronus Charm early on, could cast Accio across extreme distances, and could even successfully use the Unforgivable Curses.

But he had never used Transfiguration even once.

This stuff was like mathematics. When pushed hard enough, you could do anything—except he genuinely couldn't do Transfiguration!

The boisterous enthusiasm gradually died down, and pair after pair of pleading eyes glanced toward Rhine and Hermione.

Harry and Ron were the first to crack.

"Boss, save us!"

"No, what does any of this mean?!"

"I don't understand any of it! We have to write a three-inch essay on this? Isn't that murder?"

Rhine smiled and turned his gaze toward Hermione.

He remembered that in the original story, when Hermione had first started school, her competitive nature and top-student habits had made the Gryffindor young wizards deeply dissatisfied with her, and she had even been ostracized for a time.

Now that he and Hermione shared a Life-and-Death Friendship, he naturally could not let that happen.

He said to Hermione, "Hermione, it seems you've already learned this material. Would you like to try teaching everyone?"

Hermione froze, her face flushing red as she became somewhat flustered.

"Teaching?"

"I-I've never tried it before. Besides, Rhine, your Transfiguration is far better than mine. How could I be the one teaching?"

Half-joking and half-serious, Rhine said, "Because I think you're capable of it, of course."

"Besides, an all-knowing queen commanding the stage is incredibly cool."

"Go ahead and teach. I'll be watching from below, and if anything happens, I'll help you."

Hermione's eyes met Rhine's encouraging gaze, and she immediately looked away as though shocked by electricity.

She took a deep breath before speaking in a trembling voice.

"All right. If there's anything you don't understand, I can explain it to you."

Harry, Ron, Neville, Seamus, and all the remaining young wizards looked at Hermione with clear, innocent eyes.

"We don't understand anything..."

Hermione was stunned for a moment before saying helplessly, "Then I'll start from the first paragraph."

Rhine added with a smile, "Hermione will also let everyone refer to her homework."

The classroom fell silent for a moment before deafening cheers erupted.

"Long live the all-knowing queen!"

"Hermione Granger, our savior!"

Hermione was at a loss in the face of such cheers. Only after a while did she organize her thoughts and, encouraged by Rhine, begin explaining her understanding of the first Transfiguration lesson to the young wizards in a trembling voice.

With an academic ace explaining it, the originally obscure material became much easier to understand.

By the end of the lesson, Hermione's throat was nearly smoking. Though nobody could turn a match into a silver needle, most of them could make their matches undergo slight changes.

Whether it was making the match head a little sharper or adding a faint touch of silver to the match, such tiny changes were enough to make them ecstatic.

Even Ron, using his old wand, managed to make his match just a little sharper.

Only Neville was still waving his wand in confusion, his face full of dejection even after class had ended.

The young wizards were celebrating their Transfiguration progress, and many of them went to ask Hermione for advice.

At that moment, nobody noticed Neville's expression except Rhine.

Walking over to Neville, who was still futilely waving his wand in an attempt to make the match change, Rhine said, "Hey, Neville, you don't look too good."

Neville nodded despondently.

"I'm too stupid. I can't do anything right."

"I didn't understand what Hermione said just now."

"Everyone else can make their matches change, but I can't."

"My grandmother says I have a bad memory, and my uncle suspects I'm a Squib... I think admitting me to Hogwarts was a mistake. Maybe the professors will soon discover that I can't use magic at all. I'm clumsy too. They'll make me leave school."

For a moment, Rhine did not know what to say.

Neville Longbottom was a prime example of someone who came into his own late in the original story.

When he had first started school, he had been a clumsy, awkward student who got bullied.

But as time went on, people discovered just how brave and reliable he was.

When Harry Potter was gone, it was Neville who led Dumbledore's Army in resisting injustice at Hogwarts.

It was he who rebuked Voldemort to his face, rejected Voldemort's offer, drew the Sword of Gryffindor, destroyed the final Horcrux, and was hailed by countless HP fans as the Gryffindor Sword Saint.

But right now, he was still an incredibly insecure young wizard.

Rhine patted Neville on the shoulder and said seriously, "Neville, believe in yourself. You were destined to come to Hogwarts."

"Believe in yourself. That is the best magic."

"What hobbies do you usually have?"

Neville thought for a moment, then said hesitantly, "Keeping pets, and... growing flowers and plants. I really like tending to the potted plants at home and things like that."

Rhine said decisively, "Then you must be very talented at Herbology."

"Really, I guarantee it. Perhaps you'll become Hogwarts' Herbology professor someday."

Neville stared blankly at Rhine, and his eyes suddenly reddened.

The Lombarton family had been loyal and righteous for generations. His parents had fought the Death Eaters to the very end, only to be tortured into madness by the Cruciatus Curse.

He had to, absolutely had to, live up to the Longbottom name. The elders in his family had extremely high expectations of him.

Thus, ever since childhood, all he had felt was pressure and reprimands.

He believed he could do nothing right.

This was the first time anyone had told him that he could become a professor at Hogwarts.

For a moment, it was as if a seed had been planted in Neville's heart.

At that moment, a line of information refreshed on Rhine's system screen.

While seeking the Dao at Jade Void Palace, you encountered the young Tu Xingsun, who felt inferior and despondent due to his short stature and poor talent.

Your encouragement made the young Tu Xingsun feel much better.

You have formed a casual acquaintance with the young Tu Xingsun.