Professor McGonagall made no attempt to downplay Draco's modesty, saying:
"I assure you, Mr. Malfoy, I never flatter anyone."
Her gaze held genuine approval.
Draco gave a wry smile and told the truth:
"Professor, several professors have said similar things to me. I'm afraid if I keep listening, I'll become restless and agitated."
Professor McGonagall paused for a moment upon hearing this, then smiled almost imperceptibly and nodded, saying:
"It's good that you thought of that, but your ability deserves this praise, so I have to."
"Alright then," Draco shrugged helplessly, "I'll try not to get too proud."
Professor McGonagall nodded in satisfaction, then turned to inspect and guide the other students who had not yet succeeded.
Hermione then turned to look at Draco, and said resentfully:
"The wear marks on your needle are exactly the same as the sewing needles my mother usually uses."
You've been hiding something again.
Draco shrugged and smiled wryly, "I really didn't hide it on purpose. I was trying to pass it off as a defective product, but it turned out to be a lucky accident."
"So in this Transfiguration, the bad can become good, and the good can become bad."
Olivia leaned over and tugged at Hermione's arm, saying urgently, " Hermione, quickly, let me see that needle too!"
Hermione handed Draco the needle, looked at him intently, and asked, "How do I train to reach your level?"
"How else can we practice? Just grind it out." Draco raised an eyebrow. " Miss Granger, the genius, must have already memorized every detail of that needle. Just master the basics perfectly first, and then delve into these details."
Upon hearing Hermione didn't hesitate at all. She immediately grabbed her wand and started practicing again, without even glancing at the screen.
Olivia held the needle for a couple of seconds, then suddenly muttered to Draco:
"That's outrageous! I can't even conjure a proper needle, and you've already gone to such lengths! Are you trying to kill me?!"
Draco, both amused and exasperated, comforted him, "Don't complain yet. Maybe your image of the needle is just too blurry in your mind."
"I've just reviewed the details. Let's strike while the iron is hot and give it a try; the success rate could double."
"Oh right!" Olivia slapped her forehead, quickly shoved the needle into Neville, and gripped her wand to cast a spell.
If I can't keep up in this class, I'll fall far behind these top students.
Neville took the needle and exclaimed softly, " Draco's amazing! Even Professor McGonagall praised you so highly, you're incredible!"
Well, my little fanboy is online again.
Lavender sighed, slumped over the table, and said, " Draco, can't you stop being so outstanding? How are we ordinary people supposed to cope?"
Draco shrugged, feigning helplessness. "I don't want to either, but my strength won't allow it."
Parvati feigned anger and said, "Damn it! I never expected you to act so ordinary all the time. Thinking about it now, I really want to strangle you!"
"I'm telling the truth, okay!" Draco said helplessly.
Lavender rolled her eyes. "Give me a break! Aside from Hermione, you never say a single honest word to anyone else!"
Hermione was practicing her needlework with her wand nearby, didn't even look up, and casually replied, "He didn't tell me the truth either."
Draco immediately protested his innocence. "Heaven and earth bear witness, when have I ever not been completely honest with you? That time I taught you Transfiguration techniques, I told you every single detail, didn't I?"
Hermione's spell light paused for a moment, then she glanced at him. "So, hiding nine-tenths and revealing only one-tenth is what you call being completely open and honest?"
Draco raised an eyebrow and smiled, "It's alright, you know way more than they do anyway!"
Lavender immediately nudged Parvati and said with a sneer, "Look at him, look at him, he's showing his true colors. I really want to punch him."
Parvati tugged at her sleeve and whispered, "You should save your breath. Draco has a lot of teachers protecting him now..."
"Ugh, I'm so upset!" Lavender muttered with a sullen face, Draco just smiled and shrugged, knowing full well they were joking.
Just then, Professor McGonagall's voice suddenly rang out. " Miss Brown, Miss Patil, if you waste any more time, you won't be dismissed until you've mastered it."
The two men's expressions changed instantly. They hurriedly grabbed their wands and pretended to cast a spell. Draco and Hermione also quickly turned around and sat up straight.
Draco had intended to use this commotion to slack off in class, Professor McGonagall, noticing his idleness, temporarily abandoned her guidance of the others.
When Draco saw Professor McGonagall approaching, he quickly grabbed his wand and started gesturing wildly.
"Since you can turn a match into a needle so perfectly, you really don't need to practice the basics anymore."
Professor McGonagall looked at Draco.
Then the tone shifted,
"But that doesn't mean you can stop moving forward. Now, transform a single match into a sewing needle, a knitting needle, and an embroidery needle."
Draco feigned difficulty. "This seems a bit too challenging, Professor."
"With this talent, you shouldn't be complacent. You should delve deeper into the fundamentals to achieve even greater success," Professor McGonagall said in an unquestionable tone.
Draco nodded in agreement. "That makes sense, Professor."
Professor McGonagall saw that Draco agreed and turned back to continue her inspection, leaving Draco alone, wand in hand, staring at the matches on the table.
He muttered to himself.
This professor didn't hold back at all; he added a new task right after praising her.
Hermione glanced at it sideways.
As Draco was struggling with his wand and staring at the match, he caught Hermione glancing at him out of the corner of his eye.
But her spell light was incredibly steady; she even gently weighed the needle as it landed in her palm, though the faint smile that she couldn't quite hide at the corner of her mouth wasn't entirely concealed.
A hint of smugness still shone in his eyes.
Seeing Draco look over, she immediately turned back, pretending to be focused on stroking the needle, but slowly tossed out a sentence:
"Someone who was idle got what they deserved."
Hermione's tone was slightly amused, and she deliberately moved her perfectly practiced needles closer to the edge of the table, just in front of Draco's eyes.
Draco clicked his tongue and said, "Watching the show and then kicking someone when they're down?"
Hermione said seriously, "I'm just stating the facts. Besides, the task the professor assigned wasn't easy for you, was it?"
Draco frowned, gripping his wand and glancing at her. "You call this easy?"
Hermione finally couldn't suppress the smile on her lips and chuckled, "What else? After all, he's Mr. Malfoy, whom even Professor McGonagall praised as 'superb.' It's just three needles."
"Please call me Draco!" Draco said, feigning seriousness.
Hermione's smile deepened, "Alright— Draco. Let's get started. Don't let the professor think she made a mistake in her judgment when praising someone."
Draco raised an eyebrow and held out his wand to her. "Why don't you try?"
She immediately raised her hand to block him, her finger lightly poking Draco's hand holding the match, her eyes practically overflowing with laughter, yet her mouth maintained the serious demeanor of a top student:
"Don't even think about slacking off. This is a task the professor assigned, not something for me."
As she spoke, she waved the sewing needle she had just transformed in front of Draco's eyes. The needle was thin and straight, and the eye of the needle was so neat that there was no mistake. She added:
"Besides, is it fair to ask someone else to do such a small thing? Is that worth the twenty points?"
Suddenly, Draco stopped joking and bantering with her, saying, "What if I could succeed instantly?"
Hermione paused for half a second, her hand holding the wand still holding a hint of a smile in her eyes.
She scoffed disbelievingly, "Oh? Then I'd like to see what Mr. Malfoy is planning to do in an instant."