William's Magical Talent

Tywin deeply regretted it. He had only been the Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor for a few days, yet he had already faced a life-or-death crisis.

Twice!

These damned little wizards!

He straightened up and tried to pick up his wand.

But someone had kicked the wand away with a world-class strike. It landed squarely on a Grindylow's head, bounced up, and fell near the shattered tank.

Merlin's uncle!

England's national team was saved! Did Madam Hooch know? The talent was right here in this classroom!

Professor Tywin wanted to call for help. He opened his mouth, but didn't know what to say.

Everyone was crowding toward the door, and soon more than half the classroom had emptied.

Some Ravenclaw students remained in the classroom, not because their Gryffindor traits had suddenly awakened, but because someone had locked the door on their way out.

William's roommate Bradley pounded on the door and shouted, "Damn it! The door's locked. It won't open!"

Marcus Belby yelled, "William, what's the unlocking spell?"

William stood calmly where he was and answered, "Alohomora. Remember, wave your wand twice, then give your wrist a gentle flick."

Marcus pointed his wand at the lock, but failed.

"William, hurry over here! We can't open it," Bradley shouted.

All the young Ravenclaw wizards moved aside, anxiously waiting for William to open the wooden door so they could escape the terrifying classroom.

William remained where he was, with Cho standing behind him.

Marietta was trapped against the opposite wall by Grindylows, looking as though she might faint at any moment.

Two Grindylows were closing in on her, licking their bright green claws as they walked and grinned wickedly. No matter how one looked at them, they were thoroughly sleazy.

"Come here! Run, run!" Cho shouted to Marietta.

But the girl couldn't move. She remained pressed tightly against the wall, her mouth wide open in terror.

Cho pulled out her wand and prepared to rush forward.

Marietta was her roommate!

William reached out and stopped her.

If anything happened to Cho, Cedric would surely kill him.

Without any visible movement from William, his wand spun into his right hand.

"Hasek!"

A beam as thick as a thumb shot out and struck a Grindylow squarely on the head.

Its green horns were sliced clean through by the beam, and under the effect of the Extraction Charm, the top of the Grindylow's skull was instantly pulled away.

Without its skull to support it, the Grindylow's little head rapidly shriveled like a leaking balloon.

Its two yellow eyes fell from their sockets like overripe persimmons hitting the ground. With a splat, they burst apart.

Green blood sprayed all over Marietta's robes.

Marietta was stunned with fright and collapsed onto the floor with a thud.

The remaining Grindylows all turned their attention to William.

That had drawn plenty of aggro.

The loud bang also drew the attention of all the Ravenclaw wizards, and everyone stared at William in shock.

The same spell was nothing but a useless beam of light when some people cast it. Others could give someone a nosebleed, while others could sever a Grindylow's tentacles.

But someone else

could kill a Grindylow outright.

It was a difference in talent, nothing else. With that single move, William had undoubtedly demonstrated magical talent far beyond that of his peers.

But the most important thing wasn't that. It was his composure.

William stood before all the young Ravenclaw wizards, raised his cherrywood wand, and waved it again.

"Ah~ Puncture!"

The spell he cast this time was the one Professor Tywin had used against Peeves.

William didn't cast it on a balloon, but aimed it at the shards of the tank.

The large shards burst apart again, turning into sharp, slender spikes. Guided by William's wand, they whirled like a tornado, gathered into an arc, and hurtled toward the heads of the remaining Grindylows.

The Grindylows backed away in terror.

William had taken control of the situation. Like a professor, he called out, "Stay calm! Everyone, come over here!"

The Ravenclaw students obediently crowded behind him, both excited and awestruck.

"Two people to a Grindylow. Any problems?!" William seemed to be the Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor.

"No!" everyone shouted in unison.

William nodded in satisfaction, reassured as he left the remaining Grindylows to his classmates.

Grindylows weren't hard to deal with. They were only dark creatures with a Ministry of Magic classification of XX.

That meant they were harmless or could be domesticated.

After all, Magical Creatures in the same classification as Grindylows included Bowtruckles and Gnomes.

Even Nifflers were classified XXX, let alone particularly dangerous creatures like Trolls.

Therefore, several young wizards were more than enough to deal with a few Grindylows.

The situation had descended into such chaos only because the children were inexperienced and easily panicked, and Professor Tywin had happened to be hit by the Extraction Charm, leaving him unable to fight...

Fortunately, there hadn't been too many problems.

William walked slowly over to Marietta. Cho was already standing beside her, comforting her.

William asked, "Is Marietta hurt?"

A little color returned to Cho's pale face, and she shook her head.

"No, she was just terrified."

"Stay here and keep an eye on her."

Cho shook her head, picked up her wand from the floor, and stood, ready to join the force dealing with the Grindylows.

A faint smile appeared on William's lips.

He had just noticed that Cho was the only young wizard besides him who hadn't retreated in fear and had wanted to save Marietta.

Cho was brave enough. Otherwise, William really would have had to question Cedric's taste.

As for Marietta, she was still crouched in the corner, trembling. William paid her no mind.

Mental health counseling wasn't his job, and he hadn't installed that particular skill pack.

Of course, if there were a pretty older witch who could provide counseling, he wouldn't mind becoming a patient who had suffered from depression for ten years.

William picked up the ebony wand and walked toward Professor Tywin.

"Professor, can you still stand?" William crouched down and asked cheerfully.

Professor Tywin struggled for a moment and managed a faint smile.

"The bone in my thigh is gone. Even if I drink Skele-Gro, I probably won't be healed until tomorrow morning.

"But just now... well done!"

"I only put what you taught us into practice. When it comes down to it, it's because you taught us well."

A faint smile appeared on William's face as well, and he handed the wand over.

Professor Tywin made no comment. He took the wand and narrowed his eyes, lost in recollection.

"Your magical talent really does surprise me. You remind me of a few people. Back then, they were just as outstanding and gifted as you."

"Your classmates, Professor?"

"Yes, though they were in Gryffindor House... Unfortunately, one of them is dead, and another has been sent to Azkaban."

"Oh, right." Tywin placed one hand on his robe and braced himself against the floor. "If you're tired of crouching, you could help me to the Hospital Wing, and we could have a long, heart-to-heart talk there."

"It's fine, I'm not tired. Squats are good for a man's body."

"..."

----I'm the squatting divider----

(Brothers and sisters, squats aren't the only thing good for your health. Casting recommendation votes for this book is too, so hurry up and do it!)