Thought it was a leak, turned out to be sweat

"Toad?"

"It's my companion Neville's toad, named Trevor." Hermione had already asked in several compartments, but no one had been able to help her.

"Trevor? Didn't Changwei beat Trevor to death?" Harry scratched his head and blurted out.

"Changwei? Who's that?" Hermione took two steps back, feeling a bit dizzy.

If she brought this news back to Neville, that kid would probably cry his eyes out.

Smack!

Tom directly gave Harry a knock on the head, then smiled apologetically. "Just think of my friend as being lost in his chuunibyou phase. First, tell me where Trevor went missing."

"Alright." Hermione seemed to see a glimmer of hope and quickly recounted all the information she had gathered.

She didn't know the exact location, but it was definitely in one of the nearby carriages.

Unfortunately, with just her and Neville searching, it was too exhausting.

Tom thought for a moment, then nodded. "Simple. Leave it to me. I have connections."

"Connections?"

"Where did you get connections?"

Harry and Ron exchanged glances.

He was someone who had never even been exposed to the magical world before; his understanding of the wizarding world was only slightly richer than an average Muggle-born's. On this train belonging to the magical world, where else would he have acquaintances?

In another carriage.

Compared to the other carriages, this one was exceptionally quiet.

If someone looked through the compartment windows, they would see a bunch of glamorous boys and girls, elegantly chatting while nibbling on delicate snacks brought from home.

Clearly, this was a Pure-blood Carriage, with compartments occupied by the young masters and ladies of various pure-blood families.

But one compartment looked rather disheveled.

Three boys—one fat, two thin—had six tissues stuffed up their noses, all wearing expressions of extreme frustration.

"Damn it, when I get back, I'm definitely going to have my father use the Board of Governors Power to severely punish those two rude bastards!" Draco bit down hard on the pastry in his hand.

"But Malfoy, wouldn't using our parents' power to deal with a few little brats lower our pure-blood prestige?"

"Yeah, and besides Harry Potter, we don't even know the other guy's name."

Crabbe and Goyle chimed in one after another, voicing their concerns.

"To hell with prestige and style. I want those mongrels and inferior wizards to know that pure bloods cannot be humiliated!" Draco clenched his fists tightly.

In his eleven years of life, he had never suffered such humiliation.

"Is that so? How do you plan to get revenge?" A faint voice sounded from behind him.

"Simple. Just expel them both. I don't believe Dumbledore would stand up to a pure-blood family for some powerless little wizard, unless he doesn't want the Malfoy family's investment in Hogwarts next year!"

After saying this, Draco realized something.

Who had just spoken to him? Why did that voice sound so familiar?

As if sensing something, Draco slowly turned his head and locked eyes with the person he least wanted to see, who was followed by three others in a formidable procession.

"Um... sir, why are you here?" Cold sweat dripped down Draco's back.

"I need a favor from you."

"Whatever you command, sir."

Then, Tom recounted everything about the toad in detail.

Upon hearing this, Draco felt he had no choice but to comply. After all, the compartment was too small to escape anywhere else, so he could only slink off and follow Tom.

This scene was also noticed by the other pure-bloods in their compartments, and a few small heads poked out from their doors.

"Does anyone know what's going on?" A young pure-blood asked curiously.

Earlier, Draco had returned with a bloody face, and now he was being forcefully taken away by a few strange wizards—it was too intriguing to ignore.

"I know. When I came over from the back compartment earlier, I happened to see that scene. Let me tell you..."

A few minutes later...

The news that the esteemed young master of the great pure-blood Malfoy family had been knocked to the ground by a little wizard from the Muggle world—whether half-blood or Muggle-born—spread throughout the entire pure-blood community on the train.

At the same time, Tom's panel automatically popped up.

["Robust" +1 progress]

["Robust" +3...+1...+2...]

["Overbearing" +3 progress]

["Overbearing" +1...+2...+3...]

Parading through the streets—that was exactly the effect Tom wanted.

With this move, he had spread his name among the young pureblood circle.

From now on, if he wanted to pull off some false advertising or the like, it would be much more convenient. At the very least, people wouldn't ask with a confused expression who Tom was when they heard his latest news.

With three more people searching for the toad, the pace naturally picked up.

During the search, Hermione also learned from Ron and Harry about what had just happened, as well as Tom's subsequent understanding of the Leg-Locker Curse.

Although Tom's method of breaking the Leg-Locker Curse was absurd, his theoretical knowledge of the curse was very complete.

Even though the Leg-Locker Curse was a first-year beginner spell, according to the textbook schedule, it was something learned at the end of the first year. Yet Tom knew it so clearly before even enrolling.

If Tom were a native of the wizarding world, it would be understandable, but she later learned that Tom, like herself, had never been exposed to the magical world before.

This meant that all the knowledge Tom currently possessed had been mastered in just over a month.

She thought her own self-driven diligence was unmatched in the world, but she never expected someone else to be even more fierce than her!

As if sensing something, Hermione touched her forehead.

"I thought the train was leaking, but it's just sweat."

["Diligence" +1 progress]

["Robust" +1 progress]

Soon enough, the toad was found, and Hermione and Neville expressed their thanks to Tom and the other two before parting ways.

Just before they completely separated, Hermione glanced back at Tom's retreating figure and silently set him as her goal in her heart.

At the same time, Neville beside her could hear a series of murmurs from her mouth: "Peers are too amazing!" "A little wizard from the Muggle world is this impressive—how amazing must a genius little wizard born in the magical world be?" "I'm not working hard enough yet, I need to push harder!"

Time flew by.

A few hours passed quickly, and the train began to slow down gradually. The broadcast sounded: "Hogwarts has arrived. Please prepare to disembark, students!"

The cool night brought fresh air, making the group of young wizards who had been cooped up in the train for half a day feel their noses and mouths refreshed, much more comfortable.

"First-year students, don't follow the older students. Gather over here by me!"

A massive figure, 3.5 meters tall, holding a lantern, stood out conspicuously in the darkness.

Ron marveled at the man's size and curiously sidled up to Tom, whispering, "Brother Tom, compared to that Giant, who's stronger?"

"Hmm... for now, he's still a bit stronger." Tom didn't shy away from the question.

"For... for now?"