The Professor Who Was Knocked Out

After learning that Little Cat only ate cooked food, Professor Kettleburn looked at Xiwen speechlessly and asked, "So what do you usually feed her?"

Xiwen thought for a moment and counted on his fingers. "Usually stewed chicken, steamed fish with the bones removed, cooked chicken liver, and occasionally a bowl of goat's milk. Oh, and I secretly ordered some special cat food from the Muggle-side Spratt Company, but Little Cat doesn't really like it!"

As Professor Kettleburn listened to him describe Little Cat's diet, his expression darkened more and more. Finally, he could not help saying, "Are you trying to feed your cat into becoming useless? You should know that she's a magical creature with magical power!"

"A pet cat doesn't need to be that powerful. Isn't being cute enough?" Xiwen said indifferently. "Besides, I'm the one raising her."

The professor said bitterly, "You're letting her waste the abilities she has as a magical creature. You're squandering her talent! And what if she gets lost someday? How would a useless cat survive in the wild? What if something happens to you, or you have to travel far away someday..."

Professor Kettleburn lectured Xiwen for nearly half an hour. Seemingly feeling a little thirsty, he finally stopped and used his only remaining right hand to lift the large cauldron made from a Fire Crab shell on the table, taking a gulp from it.

"...In short, you shouldn't bury Little Cat's talents like this!" he added after drinking.

Xiwen had been thoroughly confused by the lecture and nodded dazedly.

"So, next we'll begin training her hunting abilities." Professor Kettleburn picked up his battered notebook again, drew his wand to levitate it in the air, then took out a quill to continue recording.

"Huh, where's the rat?" Just as he was preparing to watch how Little Cat would deal with the rat, he suddenly realized it was gone.

"If you mean that rat from earlier, it's already crawled under your bed," Xiwen said quietly.

"No need to panic." Professor Kettleburn waved his hand grandly, set down the quill, switched back to his wand, and used a Summoning Charm to bring the rat flying back.

Watching him constantly switch items with one hand, Xiwen felt inconvenienced on his behalf. He asked, "Professor, isn't it troublesome using only one hand? I remember there are many ways in the Wizarding World to regrow limbs, and the side effects aren't serious."

"What do you know? The arm and leg I lost are symbols of merit and honor!" the professor said proudly.

"See how half my right leg is gone? A Welsh Green Dragon accidentally bit it off when I was taming it in my youth, but I subdued that dragon soon afterward. As for my left arm, a Chimera bit it off when I was traveling through Greece. That monster was ferocious! Luckily, I managed to shove my sleeping potion into its mouth and eventually knocked it unconscious..."

Xiwen watched Professor Kettleburn's excited expression and proud tone, feeling utterly baffled. He certainly could not risk his life merely to study something.

Maybe this was what passion meant!

"Nearly got off topic." The professor suddenly snapped out of his self-indulgence, then tossed the rat in front of Little Cat. "Go on, Little Cat, catch this rat!"

The professor's seamless shift nearly left Xiwen unable to react. He did not dare stop him again and could only watch Little Cat, hoping she would not be tricked by the professor into eating raw food. That was far too unhygienic.

While the two were talking, Little Cat had been lying on her side atop the table, idly swishing her tail. It tapped against the tabletop with crisp sounds, making her look extremely impatient.

When Professor Kettleburn threw the rat before her, she was startled at first and sprang up from the table. Then she cautiously moved closer and glanced at the rat.

Under the professor's expectant gaze and Xiwen's nervous watch, she revealed a disgusted expression and slapped the rat to the floor with one paw.

Professor Kettleburn: "..."

Xiwen: "..."

After swatting the rat away, Little Cat looked as though the air had finally been cleared. She leisurely lay back down on the table and stared out the window with nothing to do.

"That shouldn't be possible. Even if she bit it to death without eating it, she should at least have confronted it for a long time or fled in fear. This behavior makes no sense..." Professor Kettleburn could not understand it at all and began thinking with a furrowed brow.

"Professor, she seems to dislike that rat," Xiwen said.

"No, I think we need another try!" Professor Kettleburn did not hear a word Xiwen said. Decisively, he picked up the rat that had been tossed around senselessly and threw it in front of Little Cat once more.

How could she tolerate that? Seeing the little thing she had already swatted away tossed before her again, Little Cat felt challenged. She bared her fangs and glared at the professor with her yellow eyes.

Professor Kettleburn instinctively looked into her eyes and found them exceptionally strange, as though they were drawing his entire mind deep inside.

With a "clatter" and a "crash," the quill in the professor's hand and the notebook floating in the air fell to the floor.

That was followed by a "thud" as Professor Kettleburn collapsed face-first onto the table.

Xiwen froze for a moment, then abruptly drew his wand and swiftly swept his gaze across the room's blind spots and the concealed areas outside the window.

"Who did this?!" he shouted. "Attacking a Hogwarts professor is a serious crime! Come out and turn yourself in, and perhaps your punishment can be reduced!"

No one answered.

A bead of cold sweat ran down Xiwen's temple. Even with his mental power, he had detected no suspicious person. That only proved how powerful the opponent was!

"Little Cat, hide quickly!" Even in a crisis, Xiwen still remembered his pet and feared she might be in danger.

Little Cat sat on the table, tilting her little head as she looked at him.

"...Don't tell me you did this?" Xiwen looked at her suspiciously.

Little Cat looked at him with an innocent expression.

"So you were the culprit who made me skip class for an entire afternoon last time?" Xiwen suddenly realized. "I knew it. Besides you, who else could those yellow eyes in the cat cage have belonged to?"

Little Cat continued looking at him innocently.

Xiwen: "..."

Knowing full well that Little Cat could not speak, Xiwen covered his face in frustration and sighed. "What kind of sin did I commit..."

He rolled up his sleeves, picked up Professor Kettleburn, and moved him onto the messy bed. Then he picked up the fallen quill and notebook and placed them on the table.

After thinking briefly, Xiwen unfolded the thing beside the professor's bed that looked like a rag and draped it over him.

"It's the right size. It really does seem to be the professor's blanket," Xiwen muttered to himself.

After making sure there were no problems, he picked up the innocent-looking culprit from the table, walked out of Professor Kettleburn's hut, and carefully shut the door.

"Forget it. It's almost bedtime anyway, so I'll let the professor get some sleep early."

Xiwen sighed and carried the cat down the path back to the dormitory.