Farming and Professor Oren (Seeking Collection, Seeking Recommendation)

Like a child who had found a favorite new toy, Kyle was having the time of his life in the Room of Requirement.

He flicked his finger, and the rain instantly turned into a heavy snowfall; another flick, and it transformed into hail the size of eggs.

Honestly, the feeling of being able to alter the surrounding environment with a mere wave of his hand was simply exhilarating.

It wasn't until he had his fill that Kyle suddenly remembered he had actual business to attend to, and only then did he reluctantly change the room back to a sunny day.

Forget it, there would be plenty of time for that later.

Kyle crouched on the ground and carefully fished two seeds the size of fava beans from his pocket, terrified that he might accidentally crush them.

The main reason was that these seeds were incredibly precious, and they weren't even his—he had "found" them during Herbology class.

He really did just find them.

As it happened, during the Herbology lesson earlier, a young Gryffindor wizard had been so excited about successfully answering Professor Sprout's question that he had accidentally flung his trowel onto the Biting Cabbage opposite him.

Without any surprise, the trowel was bitten into a scrap of iron on the spot, and the young wizard was docked a point for his trouble.

The matter should have ended there, but Kyle had inadvertently noticed that not long after the Biting Cabbage spat out the remains of the trowel, it had actually spat out two more seeds.

Professor Sprout had been busy looking for a new trowel at the time and hadn't seen this happen.

As an excellent Hufflepuff, Kyle naturally had to help his Head of House alleviate her worries, so he had taken it upon himself to pick them up for her.

It was just that he had become so obsessed with Dittany afterward that he had completely forgotten about it.

Kyle dug two holes of appropriate size, placed the seeds inside, and covered them with a thin layer of soil.

After finishing all this, Kyle nodded with satisfaction.

"Very good, I'll keep them safe for now and bring them to Professor Sprout during the next class."

After leaving the Room of Requirement, Kyle returned to the common room, and when afternoon classes began, he headed to the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom with the other Hufflepuff first-years.

On the way, everyone appeared quite excited; it was unclear whether they were looking forward to the Defense Against the Dark Arts course or simply interested in the legendary "one-year-tenure" professor.

Perhaps it was both.

The Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom was on the second floor.

When they pushed the door open and walked in, they found that the desks, which were usually neatly arranged, had all been moved to the walls, making the room look very spacious.

Professor Oren had already arrived and was currently standing behind the podium, fiddling with a covered cage.

Seeing this scene, Kyle was somewhat surprised; he hadn't expected their year's Defense Against the Dark Arts professor to be a practitioner of field experience, just like Lupin.

"Good afternoon, everyone."

Once everyone had arrived, Professor Oren looked at the crowd and said gently, "Put your books away. We won't be needing them—not just for this lesson, but for every lesson from here on out."

With just one sentence, Professor Oren won the favor of the young wizards.

What could be more delightful than not having to bring books to class? If there was anything better, it would be not having to bring them to any class at all.

As it happened, Professor Oren had managed to do both.

"This professor must have real skills," a young wizard said immediately. "He's sure to be reappointed!"

"I'll take your word for it, Mr. Bogg, though I'm afraid I can't award Gryffindor points for that."

Professor Oren smiled and continued, "In my view, theoretical knowledge is always the simplest part of this subject. You are perfectly capable of self-study, and there is no need to occupy precious class time with it.

In the classroom, I would rather teach you how to protect yourselves when facing danger.

This danger might come from unknown Dark Arts, or it might be some kind of dangerous magical creature. But regardless of which it is, either could cost you your life."

Seeing that the atmosphere had grown significantly more solemn, Professor Oren continued, "However, for your age, it is still too early to come into contact with the Dark Arts, and the Headmaster would not allow me to do so.

So, we shall start with something simple: magical creatures."

Having said that, Professor Oren gave the cage a gentle nudge. A dull "buzzing" sound immediately came from within, and the cloth covering the cage was knocked left and right, appearing as if it might fall off at any moment.

Some of the young wizards standing in the front were so frightened that they retreated repeatedly.

"Don't worry. Although this little fellow is dangerous, as long as I am here, you will not come to any harm," Professor Oren said earnestly. "I only ask that you remain calm and carefully remember every word I say."

With that, Oren lifted the cloth cover, revealing what was inside the cage.

...A blue insect, only about an inch in size; the buzzing sound from earlier was the noise of it flapping its wings.

But unlike other insects, its wings grew out of the top of its head. When it flew, it looked just like a bamboo-copter, and its body would spin along with it.

It actually looked quite cute.

Katie Bell couldn't help but let out a scoff, saying, "Professor, it looks like it isn't... dangerous, as you said."

In her view, the words Professor Oren had just spoken were clearly exaggerated. She wouldn't even need a wand for such a tiny thing; she could swat it dead with one hand. How could it possibly be dangerous?

"Is that so... I hope you can remain just as confident in a moment, Miss Bell." Professor Oren smiled slightly and asked, "So, does anyone know what this is? The first one to say it can earn five points for their house."

In the crowd, Mikel suddenly heard a faint sound, which seemed to be a name.

Tempted by the points, he didn't even think about it and blurted out, "Billywig!"

"Splendid, Mr. Mikel," Professor Oren said happily. "Five points to Hufflepuff!"

"That's right, a Billywig, a XXX-rated magical creature." Professor Oren explained, "Everyone, take note: at the base of its body, there is a long, thin stinger. Anyone stung by a Billywig will feel dizzy, followed by the sensation of floating uncontrollably into the air."

"If one is stung multiple times, they may even find themselves drifting helplessly in mid-air for several days."

Professor Oren turned his gaze toward Katie Bell: "Now, do you still think it isn't dangerous?"

Katie Bell turned her head away and said nothing. Judging by her expression, however, she did not seem particularly convinced.

"Professor..." At this moment, a young wizard asked, eager to try, "So, are we going to deal with this Billywig in today's lesson?"

"Not exactly." Professor Oren shook his head and said, "Before that, you must first learn the spell to counter it. Only when I am certain there will be no issues will we proceed to practical application."