Weasley's Howler

After Gellert Grindelwald finished speaking, Tom nodded thoughtfully, his mind immediately turning to Voldemort.

After Voldemort was rejected for a job, he traveled to various countries, and no one knows what he went through.

But after returning, he became the King of the Century, capable of rivaling Albus Dumbledore.

Gellert Grindelwald was the same back then, wandering the world and appearing on the wanted lists of countless countries.

Albus Dumbledore somewhat normal; in his early years, he visited most of the magic schools in the world, humbly seeking knowledge, which is how he made friends all over the world.

But he turned to look at Andros, his face full of confusion:

"And what about you? I remember the furthest you've ever been was Egypt and Persia, right? How did you become the King of the Century?"

Andros grinned, his face arrogant. "You think my 'invincible' reputation is just for show? You think I've fought so many battles in my life for no reason?"

"The victor can plunder everything from the loser. Back then, magic hadn't yet formed a system, and every wizard with some skill had their own unique insights."

"Just absorbing the insights and unique skills of those who failed is enough for me to reach the top."

Gellert Grindelwald's gaze drifted into the distance, his face filled with longing. "What a free era..."

For a top-tier wizard like him, the naked law of the jungle actually makes him more comfortable living.

"So, should I go and learn some France, Germany, or Africa spells now?" Tom rubbed his hands together, eager to try.

"It's not just about learning," Gellert Grindelwald shook his head. "You have to treat yourself as a beginner, clumsily starting from scratch."

"You're not allowed to slack off using your current magical understanding, otherwise learning it will be a waste of time and meaningless."

"Andros can't teach you these things, so I'll be teaching you for now."

Tom didn't refuse. Now Gellert Grindelwald's approval rating for him is 85%, and he's incredibly dedicated to teaching him.

Gellert Grindelwald pulled out his wand. "Let's start with the simple things. Remember, you must do it exactly as I tell you, no cutting corners."

"My specialty is the Levitation Charm, so I'll start with the Levitation Charm— "

"No." Gellert Grindelwald stopped himself in his tracks before he could finish speaking.

"Your Levitation Charm is almost second nature to you; you're practically grasping the essence of magic. There's no need to learn other systems. Let's start with the Stunning Spell."

Before Tom could object, Gellert Grindelwald set the tone and began the lesson.

Tom felt like he was back in the day he first learned magic from Andros.

From the way you hold your wand and the clarity of your pronunciation to the pauses and rhythms of your spellcasting, everything had to be done strictly according to Gellert Grindelwald's requirements, making me feel extremely uncomfortable.

Now, he relies entirely on his strong will and emotions to drive his magic, and he no longer needs these tedious inductions.

For the first time in a long time, Tom experienced the taste of a failed spell, but Gellert Grindelwald was quite satisfied.

Because Tom truly listened, he completely abandoned his own background and treated himself as a genuine apprentice.

Two hours passed in a flash, and Tom left the Study Space.

Although he can no longer rely on his background and insights, his talent is now far greater than it was before.

He learned at a rapid pace, having already mastered Durmstrang's version of the Stunning Spell, and even discovered the differences between it and the Hogwarts version.

Durmstrang's version of the Stunning Spell focuses more on the stunning effect. It travels at high speed, but is too explosive and difficult to control its trajectory. The Non-verbal Spell is also more difficult to cast.

Moreover, the more he practiced, the more he discovered that this thing could actually cause irreversible damage to the brain—it was definitely Dark Magic.

Tom scratched his head: So Gellert Grindelwald taught him a dark version of the Stunning Spell?

Forget it, learn it if it's useful. In the end, we'll all have to merge them anyway. He's the one who controls the magic.

The next morning, Tom went to the Great Hall for breakfast, his mind mostly still in the Study Space, learning a new Disarming Charm from Gellert Grindelwald.

Multitasking is no longer a difficult task for him.

Inside the Great Hall, many students looked dejected, as if they had just stayed up all night studying.

Summer homework is, to put it bluntly, a useless thing: diligent students will do their own homework even if there isn't any.

Those who aren't serious will just make things up when doing homework, wasting their brain cells.

Tom even suspected that the professors wouldn't seriously grade the summer homework at all, and would at most just give it a perfunctory review.

At least that's how Snape was; during the Christmas holidays, he didn't touch anyone else's homework except for Harry's.

Daphne seemed to be in good spirits, having drunk two bottles of Wit-Sharpening Potion to keep going. Seeing Tom deep in thought, she didn't disturb him and quietly sipped her orange juice.

Suddenly, Mrs. Weasley's Howler exploded, causing dust to fall from the Great Hall ceiling.

"Stealing a car? I wouldn't be surprised if they fired you! You wait, I'll deal with you when I get back!"

"You never even considered how your father and I felt when we found the car was gone! Last night, he was almost ashamed to death!"

"Use your rusty brain to think! You almost got yourself and Harry killed."

"You almost made your dad lose his job! If you cause any more trouble, get back home right now!"

Tom was startled and quickly exited the Study Space.

At the Gryffindor table, Ron looked as if he wanted to bury his face in a bowl of milk, his ears so red they looked like they could bleed.

The other Weasley also looked utterly dejected, regretting having such a brother.

When Mrs. Weasley mentioned Ginny, Ginny's face turned as red as her hair, and she almost fainted.

After the Howler disappeared, the Great Hall was silent for a good ten seconds; you could hear a pin drop.

"Pfft--Hahahaha!"

Breaking the silence was the brave (and deserving of a beating) Malfoy.

He laughed so hard he almost fell off his chair, clutching his stomach with both hands.

"Weasley? Did I hear that right? Your father's job is under investigation?"

"If he really gets fired, why not let him talk to that Half-blood- Giant and ask him to take care of half of the hunting grounds?"

"You can build a small wooden house on the pasture, so you won't have to squeeze into that dilapidated house!"

The Slytherin table erupted in laughter, louder than the Howler from before.

Tom glanced at it and sighed inwardly: Putting everything else aside, Malfoy's mouth is absolutely the most venomous tongue of the King of the Century.

Several Weasley glared at him as if they wanted to tear him to pieces. Normally, Harry would have jumped in to stand up for Ron.

But this time, he was also singled out by the Howler, his mind went blank, and he was filled with guilt, not knowing how to refute it at all.

Tom curled his lip, inwardly sneering: He only got what he deserved.

Harry is Wizarding World idiot, and it's one thing that he doesn't understand the rules, but Ron has lived in wizarding society for twelve years.

If you can't find any other way to get to Hogwarts, you're either a complete loser or you think driving a car is cool.

He deceived himself by claiming he couldn't get onto the platform, and now he's being publicly humiliated—he deserves it!