The Mystery of History (Bonus Chapter)

It's the third week of school.

All the fourth-grade students noticed a significant increase in their homework this semester. When the students complained loudly about the excessive amount of Transfiguration homework assigned by Professor McGonagall explained the reason.

"You are entering a crucial period of your magical education!" she told them, her eyes gleaming authoritatively behind her square glasses. "Your O.W.L. Examination are approaching—"

"We don't take the O.W.L. Examination until fifth grade!" Blaise Zabini said angrily.

"Perhaps so, Mr. Zabini, but believe me, you need to be fully prepared! In this class, only two Mr. Malfoy have ever been able to turn a hedgehog into a satisfactory pincushion. I should remind you, your pincushion will still cower in fear when someone approaches it with a needle!"

On the other hand, Professor Binns finally finished recounting the Goblin Rebellion and began preparing for the fifth-year O.W.L. Examination, as well as incorporating and integrating the long history of the wizarding world.

The history of the wizarding world begins in the ancient Egypt and Greece civilizations, which is the earliest period in which written records of the wizarding world appeared, although most of these records have not survived, or rather, have not been completely preserved.

The period before the emergence of these two civilizations is collectively referred to as prehistoric times.

These are not within the scope of the O.W.L. Examination, so they will be omitted here.

The historical system of wizards did not gradually mature until the period from 500 BC to the 4th century AD. Historians collectively refer to this period as the "Ancient Age," which corresponds to the "Classical Age" in Muggle history.

At this time, the ancient Egypt and Greece civilizations were still glorious, and the Ollivander Family officially emerged in the Mediterranean Sea countries, establishing a family of wand makers. In ancient Greece, there were four extremely powerful wizards who were admired or revered by thousands: the Vile Herpo, Circe, the Invincible Andros, and the Prophet Mopsus.

After the end of the Paleolithic period came the so-called "Middle Ages," which generally refers to the period from the fifth to the fifteenth century.

It was particularly glorious in the tenth century, with the Four Founders of Hogwarts, the Founders Durmstrang, Merlin, Morgan le Fay, Cliodna, Morrigan, and King Ragnuk the First of the Goblin Kingdom all being influential figures who stirred up the era.

(Note: Cliodna is an Ireland female druid, an Animagus seabird, who discovered the uses of Moon-dew Herb and is skilled in Bird Language and healing magic. She comes from the Chocolate Frog Card.)

(Note: Morrigan is an Ireland witch, an Animagus, an ancestor of the Sayre Family, and an ancestor of Isolt Ilvermorny, from Pottermore Ilvermorny.)

Many figures who went down in history emerged in their later generations, such as Hengist, who founded Hogsmeade Village; Armand Malfoy, who founded the House of Malfoy; the Peverell brothers, who created the Deathly Hallows; and Uric the Oddball wore a jellyfish as a hat, among others.

(Note: Peverell's granddaughter married into the Potter Family in the 13th century. Going back two generations, the three brothers lived around the 11th century, around the same time the House of Malfoy landed in Great Britain.)

The period following the Middle Ages is referred to by historians as the "Early Modern Age," generally referring to the period from the 16th to the 18th centuries. Nicolas Flamel, Paracelsus, the Founders Ilvermorny, Ekrizdis and Azkaban, Gringott and Gringotts, and the Silver Spear are all products of the Early Modern Age.

From then on, history beginning in the nineteenth century is collectively referred to as "Modern Age".

Although Professor Binns' lectures were as monotonous and boring as ever, making the young wizards in the audience drowsy, many of them still managed to perk up and take notes when they learned that the content was related to the exam.

Skylar listened with great interest. For him, understanding magic was urgently needed, and the History of Magic was even more indispensable. The History of Magic was an interest to him; the adventurer's soul hidden within him loved hearing ancient tales and legends.

Another rare exception who could resist Professor Binns's hypnotic voice was Morrie MacDougal, who sat to Skylar's left, intently taking notes. To Skylar's right sat Daphne, who had fallen asleep within ten minutes of the lesson beginning.

As soon as the bell rang, the impatient freshmen immediately stormed out of the classroom. Professor Binns remained unmoved, standing quietly on the podium as he watched them leave.

Skylar stepped forward and asked Professor Binns, "Professor, may I ask about the origin of magic?"

"Oh, I can see you're a studious child." Professor Binns's stoic Ghost face twitched with surprise. He vaguely remembered this boy; he seemed to have once made an impressive statement regarding the Goblin Rebellion, though he still couldn't recall Skylar's name. "You are...?"

"I am Malfoy, Professor."

"Mr. Malfoy, this is a difficult question to answer. After all, ancient history hasn't left us with many written records, and wizards of that era rarely chose to become Ghost to guide future generations..."

"The generally accepted view is that magic originated in ancient times," Professor Binns said. "In ancient times, the world was not like it is now. The landscape was barren, the climate harsh, and only the most powerful species could survive. The creatures that dominated the world back then were not human wizards, but extremely powerful Ancient Divine Dragon and Ancient Giant..."

"The exact appearance of the Ancient Divine Dragon and Ancient Giant is unknown, but we can imagine what they looked like from their descendants— the Dragon and Giant that survive today. They are quite different from their descendants; their powerful bodies can adapt to extremely harsh environments, and they possess world-destroying power—the rudimentary form of magic..."

"In that world, there were of course other species, including the Ancient Elf, ancestors of the modern elves, and the Ancient Goblin, ancestors of the Goblin race, etc. However, these species were far less destructive than the two mentioned above. In addition, much archaeological evidence shows that they preferred peace and order and disliked chaos and war, so these species chose to live in seclusion. Thus, the two great races, the Ancient Divine Dragon and the Ancient Giant, waged a long and unprecedented war for the world's scarce resources..."

"Then, humans appeared, extremely small in size and strength. Although humans seemed insignificant in that environment, they possessed a powerful reproductive capacity and an indomitable will to survive. The mutations that occurred in some ancient humans can be considered the first magical upheaval in human history..."

"That power was later called 'the Chaos Power,' the first source of magic for humankind, passed down through bloodlines to future generations, forming the diverse wizarding families we know today... This information can be found in the documents of some Pure-blood wizard families with ancient lineages. Hmm... this is probably also the reason why some wizards insist on the idea of Pure-blood Supremacy."

So this is the source of the so-called power of bloodline. With many questions answered, Skylar continued to ask, "Professor, you said this is the first source of magic for humanity. Do we have other origins of magic?"

"Yes, child, you're right," Professor Binns said, pleased with his student's attentive attitude. He continued, "Although humanity still appears weak despite the Chaos Power, their astonishing numbers have reached a point where the Ancient Divine Dragon and Ancient Giant can no longer ignore them. Furthermore, prolonged warfare has dwindled their numbers, leading them to recruit humans into their ranks to fight in their place."

"To attract humans to submit, they are willing to bestow a portion of their innate bloodline power upon those who wish to submit to them. This is the origin of the magic of the second generation of humans— the Divine Dragon Power and the Titan Power bestowed upon them by the two great races. In general, these three types of magic are historically recognized as the origin of all magic power possessed by human wizards."

Skylar nodded frequently as he listened. Professor Binns finished speaking at length without showing any signs of fatigue, clearly enjoying himself, which was of course largely due to the fact that he was a Ghost.

"Do you understand this explanation?" Professor Binns asked kindly.

"Yes, thank you for your answer, Professor Binns," Skylar said hastily.

"If you have any questions about the History of Magic, feel free to come to me again. It's rare to see such a studious student these days." Professor Binns put away his illusory textbook with satisfaction and floated out of the classroom. "See you next time, Mr. Malfoy."

Professor Binns rarely remembered his students' names, but this inquiry clearly made him remember Skylar's name.