"Transfiguration, when mastered, grants boundless forms—blades, spears, and all weapons bow before it," Kasenhis said calmly, lounging on the sofa.
"Professor McGonagall says I've already reached my current limit in Transfiguration," Cedric shook his head. "It's hard to improve any further in a short time."
"Spellcraft, then. When mastered, its might returns to the caster—word and magic as one," Kasenhis continued.
"Professor Flitwick says I've learned every spell someone my age possibly could. The rest are dark magic and life-draining forbidden curses… I'm not learning those."
Kasenhis clicked his tongue. "You fool. You won't learn this, you won't learn that…"
"Professor, you sound weird today," Cedric muttered quietly.
Caught mid-speech, Kasenhis awkwardly sighed and straightened up. "Alright, what do you want to learn, then?"
"Professor, your mechanical arm—the mantis blades and all that! That's what I want!" Cedric said excitedly, the truth finally spilling out.
"That's not easy," Kasenhis said in a low tone. "Setting aside the complexity and the control required—once you attach such an arm, you'll never be an ordinary wizard again. Others might see you differently."
"Professor, I'm not afraid!" Cedric declared firmly.
"You should still talk to your parents first," Kasenhis said, his expression turning serious. "You're only seventeen. You can't take full responsibility for your own body yet… Besides, my kind of alchemical modification is genuinely dangerous."
"Hmm… I'll write to ask them," Cedric said after thinking for a moment. Then he muttered under his breath, "If my dad were in Gryffindor, I'd be doomed…"
"Mm-hm. Well, I hope your parents approve," Kasenhis nodded.
Cedric bowed slightly and was about to leave, when something suddenly occurred to him. "Professor, I noticed something on Harry Potter's wrist…"
"Oh, that," Kasenhis said, waving his hand dismissively. "That's a matter of… uncontrollable circumstances. Harry's wrist was modified by a wizarding group that's already been wiped out. What I did was just an emergency repair—without it, he wouldn't even be able to cast a basic Lumos properly."
"Alright then… goodbye, Professor," Cedric said, sounding oddly dejected.
"…He's dejected? About what?" Kasenhis muttered in confusion, watching him leave.
Well, that was settled… or maybe not quite yet.
After Cedric left, Kasenhis no longer felt like lazing around in his office. Casting an invisibility charm over himself, he strolled leisurely out of the room and headed toward the Forbidden Forest.
At Hogwarts, the housing system was always one-rabbit-one-hole—each person had their place. There were spare rooms, of course, but if you weren't officially part of Hogwarts, even the Minister for Magic couldn't just waltz in and stay there.
Of course, that all depended on favorability. And the one whose favor really mattered—naturally—was Dumbledore's.
As for the others: Durmstrang stayed aboard their Black Ship…
"'Black Ship'… seriously, who came up with that name?" Kasenhis muttered, rubbing his temple.
Beauxbatons, meanwhile, lodged in their grand carriage, and the dragon handlers from the reserve had set up camp in the Forbidden Forest.
Kasenhis made his way to the dragon reserve's encampment, where he found Lupin sitting by the campfire, playing cards with the others. Kasenhis lightly patted him on the shoulder.
Lupin, apparently unfazed, just rolled his shoulder a little.
Kasenhis sighed, then kicked him squarely on the backside.
This time, Lupin did feel it. Recognizing that familiar strength, he quickly scratched his head and said with an awkward grin, "Uh… right, I, uh… just remembered I need to use the restroom."
Saying that, he headed toward a small cabin nearby. Kasenhis followed close behind. Once they were both inside, he took a sip of milk, lifted his invisibility, and asked:
"So… where exactly did you get the plumbing and sewer system for this toilet?"
"You went through all that trouble just to ask that?" Lupin's expression twitched.
"Of course not," Kasenhis said flatly. "But I am curious. How's Neos? Any problems?"
Lupin shook his head. "Nothing unusual about him. No trace of dark magic, no Dark Mark, and no suspicious contacts. His only hobbies are, well… beating up dragons—and occasionally beating up more dragons. Sometimes he even plays a bit of poker."
"Mhm, that's good," Kasenhis nodded. "I'm no Gryffindor—I prefer fewer problems, not more."
"How about you all? How's Harry doing?" Lupin asked.
"Harry's fine. Eats well, sleeps well… though his scar's been hurting a lot lately—ah, right! His scar pain! I completely forgot to take him to Dumbledore about that!" Kasenhis widened his eyes and smacked his fist into his palm.
"Oh, you've really got nerves of steel," Lupin said, sighing as he slapped his own forehead.
"Can't help it," Kasenhis said awkwardly, rubbing his chin. "It's been a busy few days—one headache after another. Anyway, I'll go grab Harry and take him to Dumbledore now. Bye. As for Neos, I really hope he's not a Death Eater… but if he's just really good at hiding it, well…"
"Yeah. I'll keep spying on him," Lupin nodded.
"I trust you! Bye!" Kasenhis said, and in the next instant, he vanished with an Ender teleport.
Lupin straightened his clothes, adjusted his expression to look like someone who had just finished using the toilet, and walked out of the stall—only to find his coworkers staring at him strangely.
"As expected of a top Hogwarts graduate," one of them finally said, unable to hold back. "Even your bathroom breaks have special effects."
Lupin blinked, confused, then turned to look back—only to see faint purple Ender particles drifting out from under the bathroom door, slowly fading away.
"Bloody hell…" Lupin muttered under his breath, his face turning bright red—like a freshly boiled lobster.
Meanwhile, back inside Hogwarts Castle, Kasenhis found Hermione in the library, grinding away like crazy—her experience bar practically spamming +3 +3 +3 +3 +3 nonstop.
"Hello there. Do you know where Harry is right now?" Kasenhis asked as he sat down across from her.
"He should be in the common room, Professor. Did you need him for something?" Hermione asked.
Kasenhis tapped his temple with a finger. "Remember how Harry's scar's been hurting? I'm taking him to see Dumbledore."
Hermione nodded, closed her book, and put it back on the shelf. "I'll go find him for you, then."
"Thanks," Kasenhis said with a small grin.
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