Level Classification

A Niffler that had appeared from who knew where burrowed out of a hole in the ground, drawing Ryan's attention and interrupting his drifting thoughts.

Not far away, Hagrid changed into rubber boots, picked up the crossbow by the door, and headed deeper into the Forbidden Forest. Fang followed timidly behind him, while the Thestrals gradually dispersed.

Ryan had no intention of showing himself. Though his current form looked no different from a real phoenix, he was unfamiliar with a phoenix's mannerisms and movements. In front of Hagrid, an expert in Care of Magical Creatures... well, better not. Today's objective had already been achieved.

"Was this fate? The Forbidden Forest had still welcomed its master's descendant."

Watching Hagrid enter the Forbidden Forest, Ryan could not help sighing inwardly.

Through Ryan's magical vision, the magical tide throughout the Forbidden Forest seemed to cheer for its new master as Hagrid entered.

Ryan abruptly vanished from where he stood. As he grew more accustomed to his phoenix form, Ryan no longer needed flames to spring up from nowhere whenever he teleported. Put simply, he no longer needed special effects, though it cost a little more magic.

Wizards could also eliminate the crackling sound of Apparition, but that spell was meant for travel in the first place. Why waste more magic? What if a moment of inattention caused Splinching?

When his consciousness returned to the castle, Ryan once again marveled at Hagrid's affinity with animals. Such a simple, seemingly ordinary skill could actually support a kingdom made up entirely of magical creatures.

Hagrid's Charmcraft skill was actually already at Lv. 4. Lv. 4 was no ordinary number, and that was his overall level.

Ordinary Ministry of Magic employees and weaker Aurors were roughly at this level. A small number did not even have a single Lv. 3 spell. Lv. 4 was already quite outstanding. As for Lv. 5, Ryan had only detected it on Scrimgeour, who had appeared briefly. No wonder he had taken over after Fudge stepped down. It seemed it was not merely his conduct, but his strength as well.

In Ryan's view, Charmcraft was the foundation of a wizard. It was the most direct skill. Wasn't Transfiguration also a spell? Defense Against the Dark Arts merely taught people how to use spells to fight Dark Magic.

Ryan had also summarized the data gained through his Detection skill and the spell levels displayed on his panel. However, things like Transfiguration and potions were too vague to compare properly.

Looking solely at mastery of spells:

Lv. 1 meant pronouncing the incantation correctly and barely being able to cast it, the level of a Hogwarts first-year student.

Lv. 2 meant being able to use spells proficiently, casting accurately and speaking clearly, the level of Hogwarts students from Second Year to Third Year.

Lv. 3 meant one's willpower was sufficient for Nonverbal Spellcasting, the level of Hogwarts students from Fourth Year to Fifth Year.

Lv. 4 meant having one's own understanding of a spell, the level of Hogwarts students from Sixth Year to Seventh Year.

Lv. 5 depended on talent. Ordinary wizards needed to study diligently for many years to reach it.

Lv. 6 was a realm only geniuses could enter. An ordinary wizard might need a lifetime of effort, plus luck and inspiration, just to brush against its edge.

However, the student levels mentioned above did not mean their entire Charmcraft or Transfiguration proficiency was at that level. It meant that the spells and transformations taught regularly in class and often practiced were at Lv. 3 or Lv. 4.

Most Hogwarts students would probably only reach Lv. 3 in Charmcraft even after graduating. Those at Lv. 4 would be as rare as phoenix feathers.

To raise one's overall level, one had to devote oneself to magical research. Otherwise, one could only rely on a few Lv. 4 spells to become a combat genius while still having Lv. 3 Charmcraft.

Still, it made sense. Hagrid had cast spells many times in the original story, and there was plenty of obvious evidence that his wand had always been hidden inside that pink umbrella full of girlish charm. (Of course, in the wizarding world, that color was not exclusive to witches as it was in the Muggle world.)

Although Hagrid's wand had been snapped after he was expelled in Third Year due to Voldemort's accusation—

A snapped wand should have been unusable, but Dumbledore possessed the Elder Wand, one of the three legendary Deathly Hallows.

It could wield tremendous power and accomplish unimaginable feats.

In the original story, Harry's holly wand had likewise been damaged, "dead," but Harry, as the Elder Wand's master, had revived it with a simple Reparo.

The secret behind Hagrid's wand and his repeated, obvious wand-casting was that Dumbledore had repaired it for him.

Hagrid's grades had been fairly good. On top of that, he had studied magic and continued living at Hogwarts after his expulsion, a place saturated with magical traces. When free, he could visit the library to borrow books, and Dumbledore might even have given him some private lessons.

If he had not reached Lv. 4, it was probably because his heart was not in it. For example, his Care of Magical Creatures was already Lv. 5.

As for why such an outstanding Hagrid had been expelled, it actually had little to do with Voldemort's accusation. He was simply an enhanced version of Newt Scamander. Even without that incident, he would sooner or later have bid Hogwarts farewell early, just like Newt.

From the moment he enrolled, he got into trouble once every week. He raised a werewolf cub beneath his bed and even sneaked into the Forbidden Forest to fight trolls.

Clumsy and troublemaking, he had given the Hogwarts headmaster of that time endless headaches.

After Third Year, he had even begun raising an Acromantula, a man-eating 5X magical creature.

The Ministry of Magic's Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures had classified all known beasts, beings, and spirits.

These classifications provided a guide, allowing one to see at a glance how dangerous a creature was.

The five classification levels were as follows:

XXXXX Known wizard killer/impossible to domesticate or tame

XXXX Dangerous/requires specialized knowledge/a skilled wizard to handle

XXX A competent wizard can cope with it

XX Harmless/can be domesticated

X Boring

It was clear just how bold Hagrid was. Raising an Acromantula alone was enough to get him expelled.

The headmaster at the time had not expelled him because he had killed Myrtle. Hagrid's actions alone were grounds enough for expulsion, and it also conveniently made others believe that the danger of Myrtle's death had disappeared with Hagrid's removal, killing two birds with one stone.

Seeing how Hagrid had reached Lv. 4 in Charmcraft simply by living at Hogwarts for many years, Ryan recalled a plan he had shelved long ago.

Go to Hogwarts and practice spells. According to Ryan's conclusions, compared to other places, Hogwarts, put simply, increased magical progress by 10% and reduced the difficulty of getting started by 10%.

Practicing spells there was practically a buff. For Ryan, who already had cheats, it would be even more incredible. The traces there might not be sufficient for Avada Kedavra.

But for common spells such as Incendio and Aguamenti, there were certainly many corresponding traces there.

The fact that Hogwarts never changed its textbooks might be related to this as well. They might not have realized it consciously, but when they switched to new Magic Books and found that students could no longer keep up with the pace, they would assume the new materials were unsuitable and switch back. In the end, they simply kept using the same set of textbooks, especially for Charms Class.

Since he could use phoenix-style Apparition, he only needed to find a secluded spot in the Forbidden Forest and practice in secret. With a phoenix's three-hundred-and-sixty-degree vision without blind spots, along with his Detection skill, he did not need to fear anyone approaching him. It was not as if Dumbledore would bring a phoenix over.