Teaching Hermione

"All you need to do is use magic to control this rag doll and make it move as if it were alive."

As he spoke, Bell used his magic to make the rag doll float up from Hermione's hands.

The doll faced Hermione, clasped its hands over its abdomen, and bowed to Hermione.

"Hello, Master. Could you give me a nice name?"

"Ah—! So cute!"

Hermione couldn't help but gasp in surprise.

"..."

Bell looked at Hermione speechlessly. He admitted the doll was indeed very cute; otherwise, he wouldn't have bought it to give to Shanna. But was that the point? We're talking about magic control, okay?

"Ahem... I, I mean, that's amazing. Wow~ Bell, you're so amazing~"

Hermione tried her best to salvage the situation.

Bell said he could understand Hermione's seemingly irrational behavior. After all, they say love lowers one's IQ, so Bell figured Hermione was just temporarily under a negative state of reduced intelligence.

"You give it a try."

Bell controlled the doll to fall back into Hermione's hands and gestured to her.

"No problem!"

Hermione confidently drew her Wand and aimed it at the rag doll in her hand.

She decided to name the adorable rag doll "Betty".

One second passed, ten seconds passed, one minute passed...

"Bell, what should I do?"

Hermione asked, a little embarrassed. She had been so excited that she hadn't thought things through.

"..."

(_)

What could Bell say? He could only choose to forgive Hermione! After all, she was currently under a negative status effect.

"Imagine the feeling of casting, um... Transfiguration, the feeling of magic flowing out."

Faced with Hermione's question, Bell was also somewhat unsure how to answer. After all, both he and Shanna had been able to instinctively channel their magic when they were young.

Little Wizard like Hermione, who grow up in Muggle families, are unaware that they are wizards and even believe that magic is merely a figment of people's imaginations. In this situation, their instinctive ability to manipulate magic gradually diminishes.

This is why ancient wizards' spellcasting abilities were far weaker than those of modern wizards.

Wizards who do not receive magical education may become aware of their extraordinary powers upon reaching adulthood, but the long period of neglect can cause their magical energy to become inert, making it difficult to activate.

Following Bell's instructions, Hermione tried hard to recall the feeling of casting the Transfiguration in Transfiguration Class. Her eyes were fixed on "Betty," and her little face gradually turned red.

Bang!

A shallow pit appeared at Hermione's feet.

She accidentally used too much force and released too much magic power.

"Phew~"

Bell wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.

That was close!

He was so close, so very close, to missing Hermione's magic in time. He didn't have another doll to give Hermione, let alone such an adorable one.

"Bell~"

Hermione looked at her boyfriend through teary eyes.

She had never felt so lost before.

Whether it's Transfiguration Class or Charms Class, Hermione is always the first to complete the professors' requirements in any course that requires actual spellcasting (Bell doesn't want to attract attention, so he always goes easy on her).

Gradually, even though she never said it aloud, Hermione actually felt a little proud inside. That's why she liked the feeling of holding the Wand.

But just now, Hermione realized for the first time that her Wand wasn't so obedient after all.

She tried hard to attach magic to Betty. But as soon as the magic left the tip of the wand, she would lose her sense of and control over it, and then the magic would quickly dissipate.

"Don't be discouraged, you've already done a great job."

Bell affectionately patted Hermione's head and comforted her.

"Real?"

"Um... okay, actually it's fake..."

There's no way around it, Bell is just that honest.

"... Am I stupid? Will you hate me?"

Tears quickly filled her eyes, and Hermione looked at Bell timidly, afraid that she would hear an affirmative answer from her boyfriend at any moment.

"How could that be! How could I possibly hate you? Besides, you're not stupid at all; you're the top student in the grade! If you were stupid, then everyone else would be worse than Troll!"

"And what you just did wasn't bad at all. Most underage wizards can only do this much."

Bell hurriedly tried to comfort him.

He can't stand seeing others cry. Whenever he sees someone else cry, he feels like crying too.

"Real?"

"Really, really, this time it's for real!"

"Um."

(ノへ￣,)

Hermione wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes and decided to believe Bell's words for the time being.

"But Bell, if you say this is the most basic of basics, then why don't the professors teach us about it?"

Hermione suddenly discovered the blind spot.

"Because for most wizards, magical control is of little use."

Seeing Hermione's puzzled look, Bell paused for a moment before continuing to explain.

"With the widespread use of Wand, the danger of magical backlash that wizards face when casting spells has been greatly reduced."

"At the same time, modern Curses are characterized by their simplicity and speed. Because they consume less magic power, they don't require a high degree of control over magic. And even if the spell fails, it won't have much of an impact on the wizard."

"The combination of these two factors makes it very safe for wizards to cast most Curses. Therefore, for most wizards, training their control over magic can only slightly increase the power of Curses; they would rather spend that time learning more powerful Curses."

"But!"

Bell stopped Hermione from asking a question and continued.

"To continue advancing on the path of magic, a strong control over magical power is essential. While the widespread use of Wand and modern Curses has greatly enhanced the power of wizards, it has also inevitably limited the heights they can reach."

"To give a simple example, the powerful Curses and magical artifacts that exist today are all passed down from ancient times. Curses like the ' Fiendfyre Curse,' the ' Killing Curse,' and the ' Patronus Charm ' are examples, while magical artifacts include the ' Philosopher's Stone,' the ' Deathly Hallows,' and the ' Time-Turner.' In the last one or two hundred years, most of the new things created by the wizarding world are functional and do not possess great power."

"Do you remember the question I asked you before? Did you want to be an ordinary wizard, or a great, outstanding wizard?"

"I understand, Bell!"

Hermione's eyes regained their firmness.

"But... is there really no shortcut?"

"..."