American Iaijutsu

Ron stumbled through his recitation: "Cornish Pixies... uh... small in size, entirely blue... fond of pranks..."

He froze, sweat beading on his forehead. "They... they..."

"They can fly and have some resistance to simple banishing charms," Lin Du continued calmly. "It seems Mr. Weasley has mastered less than half the content. Gryffindor loses five points."

Ron sat down red-faced, wishing he could bury himself in a crack in the floor.

"Mr. Potter," Lin Du's gaze shifted to Harry. "Please continue."

Harry's heart lurched. Under Ron's sympathetic look, he slowly rose to his feet.

He felt like a prisoner about to walk to the gallows.

"Red Caps... dwell on battlefields... dye their caps with victims' blood..." Harry struggled to recall, but found his mind a tangled mess.

He was worse than Ron—barely managed two traits and missed the most crucial attack method.

"Two." Lin Du's voice remained unreadable. "Gryffindor loses another two points."

His gaze swept over Neville, curled up in the corner, the boy nearly burying his face in his textbook, clearly lacking the courage to even stand and recite.

Lin Du shook his head slightly and let him off.

Just as everyone thought this ordeal was over, Lin Du's eyes locked onto the Slytherin direction. "Mr. Malfoy."

Draco Malfoy, who had been wearing a smug grin, felt his expression freeze instantly.

He rose slowly, adjusting his robes with feigned composure.

"Red Caps, key traits as follows:" He deliberately slowed his pace, reciting the first five smoothly, even shooting a smug glance at Harry.

But the further he went, the harder it got. He stumbled on the eighth trait and ultimately failed to recall the last two.

"Eight." Lin Du announced flatly. "Slytherin loses one point."

Malfoy's face flushed crimson. He argued indignantly, "Professor, I almost got them all..."

"'Almost' isn't 'all,'" Lin Du cut him off. "If you encounter a Red Cap on the battlefield, would 'almost' knowing its traits be enough?"

The entire classroom fell into dead silence. In that suffocating stillness, a hand rose firmly.

"Miss Granger." Lin Du finally called on Hermione.

Hermione stood, reciting all ten traits fluently and accurately, even adding two details not in the textbook.

"Perfect." Lin Du showed rare approval. "Gryffindor gains ten points."

He swept his gaze across the room. Wherever his eyes landed, students lowered their heads.

"I am disappointed."

His voice rang clear in the silent classroom. "A full week, and most of you haven't mastered even the most basic ten traits. If a real Red Cap stood before you now, you wouldn't even know what it fears most."

The subsequent spot checks turned into a disaster.

Aside from Hermione Granger, who answered every question perfectly and earned Gryffindor a precious ten points, the other students called on performed miserably.

That week, Hogwarts' House Cup points experienced unprecedented turmoil.

The hourglasses of all four houses dropped at a visible rate, and the culprit was, without exception, Defense Against the Dark Arts class.

Surprisingly, the other Heads of Houses raised no objections.

"Mastering the fundamentals is indeed important," Professor McGonagall remarked in the staff room. "I'm considering strengthening regular spot checks in Transfiguration as well."

Professor Flitwick nodded in agreement. "Casting spells relies on theoretical support. Professor Lin Du's methods, though strict, are necessary."

Professor Sprout added gently, "After all, none of us want our students to face danger unprepared."

In no time, Lin Du became the professor with the harshest point deductions since Hogwarts' founding, even surpassing the notoriously strict Snape.

But Lin Du soon realized that for younger students, an overemphasis on punishment was indeed too demoralizing.

Especially during Friday's second-year class, when he saw Neville Longbottom's eyes redden from consecutive deductions, and even the usually fearless Ron hanging his head, he knew he needed to adjust his approach.

"Given the recent learning situation," Lin Du stood at the podium, his gaze sweeping over the anxious students, "I've decided to adjust my teaching strategy. In the upcoming Monthly Exam, the student with the highest score in Defense Against the Dark Arts will receive this—"

He pulled a strangely shaped metal object from inside his robes.

The object was silver-gray, with sleek lines and fine magical runes carved into the grip, completely different from the wands wizards were familiar with.

Murmurs broke out across the classroom.

"What is that?" a Ravenclaw student couldn't help asking.

"Looks like a Muggle weapon," another Slytherin muttered.

Hermione studied the object closely, frowning slightly. "Professor, is that... a gun?"

Lin Du shot Hermione an approving look. "To be precise, it's a magical weapon modified through alchemy. No incantation needed—just press here—"

His finger rested lightly on the trigger. "And it fires a powerful stunning spell. During my travels in America, I saw Muggle firearms and found the design quite efficient."

Ron's eyes went wide. "Merlin's beard! A Muggle weapon? Can this thing really use magic?"

"Of course," Lin Du's lips curled slightly. "I made some improvements. In my homeland, people call this weapon 'American Iaijutsu.'"

"American... what?" Harry repeated the unfamiliar term, confused.

"To put it simply," Lin Du said, his fingers lightly stroking the gun's body, "beyond ten paces, the gun is faster; within ten paces, the gun is both faster and more accurate. Compared to worrying about whether your pronunciation is correct or your gestures are precise when chanting a spell, this method can buy you precious time in any situation."

He swept his gaze across the classroom full of puzzled yet curious faces and continued explaining: "Imagine this—when you're facing a vicious dark wizard, and they've already started the first syllable of the Killing Curse, while you're still trying to remember how to pronounce 'Expelliarmus'—"

Lin Du suddenly raised his hand. A silver flash streaked through the air, and no one even saw how he moved—

A dummy target at the back of the classroom crashed to the ground, a blue glow spreading over it, signaling the effect of a Stunning Spell.

"—at that moment, you'll understand what it means to say, 'within ten paces, the gun is both fast and accurate.'"

The classroom instantly erupted into chaos.

Hermione's eyes sparkled, clearly fascinated by this invention that combined Muggle technology with magic.

Ron and Harry stood dumbfounded, staring at the unprecedented alchemical weapon, their faces brimming with longing.

"This is way cooler than a wand!" Ron tugged excitedly at Harry's sleeve. "If we had one of these, next time we're in danger, we wouldn't have to chant those tongue-twisting spells!"

Even the usually composed Malfoy couldn't help leaning forward to get a better look, though his mouth still put up a front: "Hmph, a true wizard doesn't need to rely on Muggle gadgets."

Lin Du surveyed the suddenly lively atmosphere in the classroom and gave a slight nod. "It seems someone has finally taken an interest in learning Defense Against the Dark Arts."