Upon learning that Wayne's punishment for Astoria was depriving her of delicious food, Harry couldn't help but laugh.
Mainly because Astoria was so petite, she didn't seem like a foodie at all—more like someone suffering from malnutrition due to a picky eating habit.
Seeing the girl so serious, Harry considered going easy on her secretly.
After all, it was just an ordinary duel. He didn't care about winning, losing, or saving face—he'd treat it as doing a good deed.
Wayne saw right through him and warned:
"If you lose, your tuition fees will increase next term."
"Sorry, Greengrass." Harry's expression instantly turned solemn as he stared at the rich girl. "I have reasons I cannot lose this fight!"
The rich girl glared furiously at Wayne. As if things weren't hard enough already, he had to make it even more difficult for her.
What a big meanie.
"Potter, are you that short on money?" Astoria hinted desperately.
"I'm not short on money—I just don't have any." His reply left her dizzy. Before she could process it, Wayne pinched her cheek.
"Oh? Trying to bribe someone right in front of me, are we?"
"Mmmph, no no! I just wanted to help a classmate," Astoria hastily explained.
Harry shook his head with a smile.
More money was always welcome, but he'd never stoop to earning it this way.
"Malfoy, your opponent will be Daphne." Ignoring the mischievous girl, Wayne arranged the other match.
"I trust you won't go easy either, given this concerns the honour of the Malfoy Family."
Instantly, Malfoy became as fired up as if injected with adrenaline. Wayne had pinpointed Malfoy's weakness—mentioning nobility and honour worked even better than discussing money with him.
"Harry, you two begin first."
Wayne led Daphne and Malfoy to the edge of the classroom, with Malfoy turning back to taunt:
"Don't actually lose now, Potter."
"You worry about yourself," Harry snorted, ignoring him further.
After completing their duelist's salute, wands raised before them, the battle began the moment Wayne's countdown ended.
"Stupefy!"
"Densaugeo!"
A blue and red light collided, and from this single clash, Harry realised Astoria wasn't as frail as he'd imagined. Her spellcasting proficiency was remarkably high.
Almost simultaneously, both cast their next spells.
Their feet shifted positions as the spells missed each other this time, striking the ground and sending up sparks of flame.
After all, Astoria had trained with Moody for over a month. She'd committed basic combat principles and techniques to heart, using the brief respite to cast a Shield Charm upon herself.
In battle against an opponent, preserving one's health and life took precedence over hastily defeating the enemy.
Though Harry understood this principle too, unfortunately, his Shield Charm hadn't been mastered yet.
This wasn't some game where casting a Shield Charm simply added a protective layer to one's health bar – an impervious barrier that lasted indefinitely.
A normal Shield Charm typically only lasted mere seconds. To prolong its duration required continuous expenditure of magical power and mental focus to maintain it consciously.
Many couldn't even cast the Shield Charm properly, let alone multitask by maintaining defence while launching attacks.
Astoria could manage this precisely because it had been her primary spell to master during the summer holidays.
Wayne's requirement had been clear: attack spells could be practised casually, but life-preserving techniques must be perfected.
Crash!
Astoria flicked her wand, and the desks and chairs piled at the back of the classroom rattled before transforming into seven or eight rats, disrupting Harry's offensive rhythm.
Compared to Defence Against the Dark Arts, Astoria excelled most in Charms and Transfiguration.
Harry, thoroughly irritated by the rats scurrying around his feet, finally revealed his trump card.
Without hearing him incant, a red light shot towards Astoria.
The Shield Charm shattered violently, startling her.
It was a nonverbal spell—and quite proficiently cast at that.
Gritting her teeth, she decided to stop holding back, too. Her usually sweet eyes widened fiercely as her wand gleamed darkly.
"Silent Terror!"
In an instant, Harry's mind went blank. A woman's pleading screams and a mysterious man's maniacal laughter suddenly flooded his thoughts.
"Expelliarmus!"
Without any surprise, Astoria's spell struck Harry effortlessly, sending his wand spinning through the air into her grasp.
Even after the duel ended, Harry remained standing with his hands clutching his head, his expression twisted in agony.
"Potter, Potter—are you alright?" Astoria asked nervously.
Had she accidentally damaged his mind?
She never should have used that spell.
"I-I'm fine." Hearing Astoria's voice, Harry's focus snapped back to reality, and he shook his head.
"What was that spell?" he asked, still shaken.
The sensation had been like a Dementor's presence—sucking away all his happiness, leaving only his most painful memories.
"The Dread Charm. Wayne taught it to me."
With that, Astoria skipped over to Wayne, beaming. "I won!"
"Not bad." Wayne patted her head as a reward. "I'll have Gardevoir make you a feast tonight."
"Hehe, I want poached fish—but not too spicy."
"Just tell Gardevoir later."
Harry's loss delighted not the wealthy little girl, but Malfoy the most.
"Alright, Potter, how long are you going to stand there dazed?"
He strutted over to Harry, nose in the air. "Hurry up and clear the space. Don't waste my time."
"You think you can win? Don't come crying for your daddy later."
Harry didn't argue, stepping aside.
If her younger sister was this strong, Harry doubted Daphne—the elder sister—could be much weaker. As long as she was on par with Astoria, she'd wipe the floor with Malfoy.
After facing Malfoy so many times, no one understood his capabilities better than Harry.
Wayne's expression turned odd.
He couldn't tell if Malfoy was mocking Harry or helping him.
Harry, still reeling from the Dread Charm, instantly revived with full vigour the moment Malfoy provoked him.
Truly one of a kind.
"Go on, Daphne," Wayne signalled.
Daphne gave a slight nod and took her place opposite Malfoy.
The duel held no suspense whatsoever.
Aside from being a bit boy-crazy, Daphne was a quintessential Slytherin—ambitious and power-hungry.
In just two minutes, Malfoy was defeated, two thick pythons coiling tightly around his body as his wand clattered uselessly to the ground.
"Impossible," Malfoy muttered in disbelief, staring at the girl before him. "You were never this strong before!"
Daphne merely smiled wordlessly, her gaze flickering briefly to Wayne.
Indeed, without the Round Table Contract and Potential Elixir provided by Wayne, she likely wouldn't have been a match for Malfoy.
Seeing Daphne's movements, Malfoy understood something and clenched his teeth.
"Your offensive spells are quite good individually, but your Shield Charm and Banishing Charm are poor," Wayne instructed. "This term's main task is mastering these two spells."
...
Two hours later, the lesson ended, and Harry and Malfoy each handed their tuition fees to Wayne.
"I already said, losing means a price increase – one Galleon more next academic year," Wayne told Harry.
Hearing it was only a one-Galleon increase, Harry sighed in relief.
But soon he realised something was wrong.
Since when had he stopped considering one Galleon as money?
Even with the Weasleys' slightly improved living standards, Ron only got two Galleons a year as pocket money.
"Lawrence, could you stay a moment?"
As the others prepared to leave, Malfoy suddenly called out to Wayne.
"What is it?"
Only after everyone else had left the classroom did Malfoy ask: "The Greengrass sisters suddenly becoming so much stronger... that's connected to you, isn't it?"
Business opportunity.
The glint of Galleons flashed in Wayne's eyes.
He'd never sell Malfoy a Round Table Contract slot, but the Potential Elixir was harmless enough.
Upon learning the elixir's effects, Malfoy's eyes lit up.
"How much?"
"Two hundred Galleons."
Wayne didn't set an exorbitant price – while valuable, its usefulness was limited.
The Potential Elixir merely gave users a developmental head start during adolescence, granting slightly more magical power and stronger spell effects than their peers.
That's all.
These advantages would gradually diminish by adulthood.
Even at two hundred Galleons, most wizards wouldn't buy it during peacetime – sufficient magical power was enough.
This was already Wayne's 'friendship discount' for Malfoy.
Predictably, the price posed no burden for Malfoy with his five-hundred-Galleon allowance.
He immediately bought one bottle.
Had additional bottles been effective, Malfoy would have bought several more.
"You'll feel feverish for a while after drinking it – don't worry, that's normal. The effects should pass in about three hours," Wayne advised while handing over the goods.
Malfoy nodded excitedly.
...
At dinner, Wayne invited several girls to dine inside his enchanted suitcase.
Gardevoir prepared a feast of Astoria's favourite dishes.
Poached fish, kung pao chicken, ma la xiang guo, foie gras, bouillabaisse, beef bourguignon...
The eclectic mix of Eastern and Western dishes may have looked peculiar, but they tasted undeniably delicious.
Astoria savoured a silky slice of fish, closing her eyes in bliss. "Gardevoir, your cooking keeps improving."
"Gardevoir!" The Pokémon smiled sweetly.
Hermione and Penelope particularly loved the pan-seared foie gras – its rich fattiness lingered wonderfully on the palate, with pineapple cutting through the richness. Were it not for weight concerns, they'd have eaten more.
Cho preferred the Chinese dishes, which gave her the nostalgic feeling of banquet feasts back home.
When every delicacy had been devoured, everyone rubbed their satisfied stomachs.
"Let's go for a walk," Cho suggested, and the girls quickly agreed.
Fireflies glowed faintly in the forest, their light mingling with the moonlight to illuminate the path.
They strolled along the forest's edge, where the occasional proud Kneazle would dart past them, and a few plump Diricawls would appear, wobbling unsteadily on their feet.
Astoria cheered and picked up a fallen Diricawl, rubbing her cheek against it.
"You know, there are far fewer Hogsmeade weekends this year," Hermione said gloomily, sitting beside Wayne.
"The next one's probably the day before Halloween?" Penelope replied. "It can't be helped. With Sirius Black confirmed to be lurking around the school, it's for everyone's safety."
"I know."
Hermione had been looking forward to visiting Hogsmeade with Wayne for ages, so seeing the dates postponed again left her feeling rather dejected.
After walking for a while, Wayne escorted the girls back to the castle.
Cho discreetly winked at him, and he immediately understood her meaning.
Late that night, Gardevoir brought Cho back again.
The girls were shy—even if they'd reluctantly accepted this peculiar coexistence, they couldn't fully relax when others were around.
Only in their private world could they reveal their truest selves.
...
The next day, Cho returned to her dorm before dawn, while Wayne slept in until past nine, only rousing at the smell of breakfast.
Egg in his mouth, Wayne glanced at the points on his system panel.
After reclaiming tuition fees and selling Patronus badges and other trinkets since the term started, his points had once again surpassed the thirty-thousand mark.
Ordinary gold rewards weren't much use to him anymore—only the guaranteed legendary reward every third pull held any appeal.
He immediately spent two hundred draws, the card lights blending together until they were nearly indistinguishable.
Countless cards shattered—some turning into items, others dissolving into specks of light that vanished into his mind.
It was the first time Wayne had opened so many cards at once, and the sheer volume of information was overwhelming.
It took him a full quarter of an hour to sort through everything.
As expected, there wasn't much of value—only three runes, none particularly useful.
[Precision Rune—Haste: Increases the host's hand speed]
[Precision Rune—Tenacity: Enhances physical and magical resistance]
[Precision Rune—Bloodline: Restores health upon damaging or defeating a target]
These runes didn't synergise well with magic. If he were a warrior, they might have boosted his strength considerably.
Beyond that, the two gold cards left him utterly speechless.
"Gold cards can have duplicates, too?"
[Rewards in the card pool are not unique and may be obtained repeatedly.]
The system's robotic reply only deepened his frustration.
Both rewards were useless to him—they were template cards.
The first one, in particular, was painfully familiar—his very first template, the invincible Andros.
The second template wasn't any better.
[Character Card: Gormlaith Gaunt]
Magical Power: S-
Charms: S
Defence Against the Dark Arts: A+
Dark Magic: S+
Transfiguration: S
Potions: A
Alchemy: B
[Special Talent: Parseltongue]
[Overall Evaluation: S, descendant of Slytherin, aunt of Isolt Sayre (founder of Ilvermorny), a witch of formidable power.]
The wizarding world's chaos? The Gaunts have the final say.
From Slytherin onwards, the Gaunt family has periodically produced dangerous individuals.
Gormlaith Gaunt was one of them.
Wayne had read some records about Gormlaith Gaunt. Even after her niece stole her wand, she remained formidable, pursuing her to North America and nearly wiping out Ilvermorny single-handedly.
If not for a cowardly Muggle ambushing her with a crossbow, Ilvermorny might not exist today.
Had she reclaimed Slytherin's snakewood wand, the Gaunt family wouldn't have declined from its peak, fading into obscurity.
But this had nothing to do with Wayne!
Aside from Parseltongue, this card was utterly useless to him.
A hundred draws for Parseltongue?
What a rip-off!
Wayne was on a roll now, immediately going for another hundred draws. He didn't even glance at the purple-tier rewards, accepting them all outright.
Finally, he tapped the dazzling diamond card.
Light coalesced, and an item materialised before Wayne. Simultaneously, information about the item flooded his mind.
After processing it, Wayne's expression darkened.
He remained seated in his chair, lost in thought.
It wasn't until nearly noon that he activated a Zombie Ward.