"This sword feels pretty good."
Basil turned his round head, seemingly wondering where John had found a sword.
He lifted a wing to swat away Tom's drooling muzzle, then aloofly flew somewhere Tom couldn't reach.
John gripped the greatsword with both hands. It was the weapon of a medieval suit of armor, and stood nearly as tall as his shoulders.
Perhaps once he grew up, the sword would be just the right size.
Gripping the hilt tightly, John strained to lift the greatsword.
It was a common knight's sword, with a steel blade as wide as a palm.
It was heavy. At least for John as he was now, it made an excellent training weight.
Using the greatsword as a weight, he lifted it and began his workout.
He found a rope, secured the blade, and strapped it to his back before starting his push-ups.
Effort brought rewards. When John woke up the next morning, his magic had increased by ten points.
[Magic: Level 2 (20/500)] [Spells: Alohomora (Level 3), Levitation Charm (Level 1), Transfiguration Spell (Level 1)] [Skills: Short Weapon Mastery (Level 7), Greatsword Mastery (Level 3), Firearm Mastery (Level 1)] [Blessings: Strengthen the Body, Rapid Attack, Precision, Top Student, Pilot, Long-Distance Running]
His skills had changed. Heavy Weapon Mastery and Polearm Mastery had both disappeared, replaced by Greatsword Mastery.
"This weapon does meet the requirements for both a polearm and a heavy weapon."
After examining the greatsword carefully, John understood.
The Greatsword Mastery formed by combining the two weapon masteries gave him a sense of familiarity the moment he picked it up.
He ran through a basic sequence of chops, slashes, rising cuts, and thrusts with the greatsword.
Like a knight who had trained for years, he was now skilled enough to make even a knight cry out in astonishment.
Skill levels worked much like spell levels.
Level 1 was beginner level: someone who had just picked up a weapon and could perform a basic routine.
Level 2 was foundational proficiency, allowing someone to put what they had learned into practice.
Level 3 was intermediate. Someone at this level could already be considered skilled and could take on several opponents of the same size without trouble.
Level 4 was professional, comparable to a professional killer. It was no longer merely about fighting several opponents; the practitioner had become a true weapon.
Level 5 was instructor level, allowing someone to apply and teach what they had learned effectively, with unique insights of their own.
Level 6 was master level, where someone developed their own style. To put it in Chinese terms, they had reached the pinnacle.
Level 7 was grandmaster level, completely free of rigid forms and returned to the essence. Even a short pencil could unleash the killing power of a dagger.
With his Short Weapon Mastery at Level 7, John could rightfully be called a grandmaster. He could stab three flies out of the air with a pencil in a single second.
Despite the disappearance of the two weapon mastery skills, John did not feel that he had forgotten any techniques. On the contrary, his understanding of how to use weapons had deepened.
Greatsword Mastery was probably a fusion of the two weapon branches, which explained why he felt no loss of familiarity.
Still, he couldn't help complaining, "I'm a wizard. Giving me this isn't much use."
For John at present, blessings came first, magic second, spells third, and weapon mastery fourth.
After practicing the Transfiguration Spell for a while, John went to class.
With the Top Student blessing activated, he could always absorb knowledge quickly.
After surveying the library's layout again with Hermione, he would put his plan into action that night.
The fifth-floor corridor of Hogwarts at night.
The portraits on the walls were drowsy. The medieval suit of armor, now without its weapon, had found a stick somewhere to use instead.
"Lumos."
"Hey."
"Turn off that damned light."
"Ooh, ooh."
The sudden light made the portraits cry out in annoyance.
John passed through the corridor and reached the fifth-floor library.
The library closed at eight in the evening. Apart from night owls, no one would be around now.
Tens of thousands of books filled thousands of shelves, and hundreds of narrow aisles made the place an ocean of books.
Deep inside lay the Restricted Section, John's destination.
Extinguishing the light on his wand, John approached the entrance to the Restricted Section.
A crude latch was little more than decoration, keeping out the honest but not the dishonest.
Unfortunately, tonight Mr. John Wick intended to be one of the dishonest.
Click.
With a gentle tug, the door to the Restricted Section opened just like that.
John had to be very careful. He didn't have Harry's Invisibility Cloak and could only remain vigilant.
Fortunately, the body he had built through daily exercise proved very useful. He stepped into the Restricted Section without making a sound and saw the many books kept there.
These forbidden books were not impossible to study; they had been confined to the Restricted Section because they were too dangerous.
Some books on dark magic that were unsuitable for students were also kept here.
Still, there was a legitimate way to obtain books from the Restricted Section.
Anyone who secured a note from a professor could enter the Restricted Section and borrow books.
John thought of his head of house, whose brow furrowed so deeply whenever he saw him that he could practically crush a fly between his eyebrows. John decided doing it himself was more reliable.
After confirming that no one was around, John lit his wand.
He searched the Restricted Section for the book he needed.
He had come here to find a book containing the Disillusionment Charm.
It would take some time to find it in this ocean of books, though.
"Moste Potente Potions?"
Spotting a book, John curiously pulled it out for a look.
It was a book on potions, containing many different brews.
Among them were Veritaserum and Polyjuice Potion.
After a brief look, John put the book back.
Although Polyjuice Potion's ability to turn someone into another person was amazing, having to add hair taken from someone else's body was rather nauseating.
Continuing his search, he spotted a black-and-silver book.
After touching it, John thought for a moment and decided not to open it.
These books might contain dark curses or something of the sort. He should stick to finding what he needed.
After a round of searching, he finally found a description of the Disillusionment Charm.
After passing Secrets of the Darkest Art, he found Advanced Charms. It contained not only the Disillusionment Charm but also advanced spells such as Apparition.
Closing the book, John prepared to leave.
Just as he was about to leave the Restricted Section, he stopped.
He turned to look at that strange book, his curiosity getting the better of him.
So he cautiously took the book out and, brimming with curiosity, opened it...
"Aah-!!"
John covered his ears and hurriedly snapped the book shut, but it was already too late.
The sound carried outside and alerted Filch.
Filch, who had been patrolling outside to catch young wizards, broke into a run toward the library.
Though he was a Squib, years of cleaning had given him a strong physique.
"I've found you!"
Carrying a lamp, Filch sniffed through his hooked nose like a hunting dog.
A cat's meow came from a distant bookshelf, and excitement spread across Filch's face.
In perfect accord with Mrs. Norris, he ran toward the shelves.
No sooner had Filch left the library entrance than John emerged from behind a nearby bookshelf and strolled brazenly out.
As he left, he gave Mrs. Norris, who was elegantly grooming herself by the shelves, a thumbs-up.
Not a single piece of cat food had gone to waste. Their teamwork on that diversion had been perfect.
Once he returned to his dormitory, John eagerly began practicing.
So much so that when he got up the next morning, his eyes looked like a panda's.
After three straight days of practice, he finally saw the Level 1 Disillusionment Charm icon.
Hard work would pay off in the end.
The next day, John saw six long-eared owls carrying a long, slender package toward Harry Potter in the Great Hall. In the process, they also sent Harry's uneaten bacon into intimate contact with the floor.
Ding! Minerva McGonagall didn't want to talk to you and had thrown a Nimbus 2000 at you instead.
Mr. Chosen One was about to begin his Quidditch campaign.
Along with the Nimbus 2000 came a letter from the older cat lady, telling him to attend Quidditch training.
Although Harry didn't understand much about it, he had an almost instinctive gift for flying.
Unable to hide his delight, he shared the letter with Ron.
Ron was very envious. The best broomstick he had ever touched was the one his brother Charlie Weasley had used for Quidditch.
Compared with this one, that broom was rubbish.
Harry and Ron hurried out of the Great Hall, planning to unwrap the package before their first lesson.
Love awaited around the corner.
The Chosen One encountered the wicked Slytherin.
Overbearing boss Malfoy was, as usual, flirting with-no... provoking his lifelong nemesis.
Eating a bacon pie, John merely gave them a casual glance.
More than the feud between Slytherin and Gryffindor, he cared about how hard the bacon pie was. He suspected it contained uncooked stones.
"All right, how much longer are you going to give them the silent treatment?"
John regretfully set down his bacon pie. Across from him sat Hermione, who had already stolen three glances at Harry and Ron.
Hermione said angrily, "Unless they apologize to me, they can forget it."
"Then it'll probably be a while." John reckoned Harry and Ron had probably already forgotten about Hermione.
Neville was fretting over his Remembrall turning red again, so John had to remind him that he should change his trousers before Charms. After all, this wasn't a pajama party.
Before you continue