Ding!
"Congratulations, Host. You've completed 100 consecutive draws through your own efforts. System upgrade initiated!"
"Upgrading... Upgrade complete!"
"New Feature: Diamond Tier Cards unlocked."
Alex blinked, eyebrows raising. A system upgrade? That was new. And now… Diamond-tier cards?
He immediately pulled up the description.
Diamond Tier Cards:
1% chance to draw cards beyond the current limits of the magical world.
Standard reward: Talent Breakthrough Cards.
Talent Breakthrough Card: Increases one talent level unconditionally, up to level 9.
Note: Diamond cards have no pity system.
As he read through the details, realization began to dawn.
So this was the system's answer to the ceiling of the current magical era — a way to shatter the world's limits. If he could draw enough Diamond-tier cards, he'd no longer be bound by the standards of this generation's wizards.
Even without insane luck, just spamming enough basic draws would eventually allow him to max out all his core talents.
Maxed talents. Unshackled power. A step into something beyond magic as they knew it.
Of course… that future was still far off. Right now, he had a more immediate issue.
Namely, being broke.
He'd just emptied every single coin he had. Drawing another hundred? Not happening again for at least three months, even with perfect task completion.
The only reason he managed it so quickly this time was because he was new to the magical world — easy achievements, easy milestones. But that golden stream was drying up fast. Going forward, most of his income would depend on daily quests alone.
Sighing, Alex rolled over in bed and decided to let it go for now.
No point overthinking what he couldn't reach yet.
...
Thursday. October 31st.
Halloween.
The last class before the evening feast was Charms.
"In today's lesson," said Professor Flitwick, standing on his usual precarious tower of books, "we will continue practicing the Levitation Charm — Wingardium Leviosa!"
The classroom was full of first-years from three houses. And absolutely none of them were focused. Minds had already drifted to thoughts of pumpkin pasties, floating candles, and chocolate frogs.
Alex, seated near the window, leaned his chin on his palm and gazed outside, bored to death.
For someone with his level of skill, this lesson was... kindergarten.
Flitwick noticed the fidgeting and paused. After a moment's thought, he decided to switch tactics.
"Pair up, everyone," he announced. "Practice the spell with a partner. I'll be walking around to offer help."
Then he waved Alex over and said with a smile, "Why don't you help me supervise, Mr. Gaunt?"
Alex nodded, stepping away from his seat.
Hermione, who had been sitting next to him, hesitated for a moment before turning to the only other person without a partner — Ron Weasley.
Ron, gripping his hand-me-down wand with far too much tension, jabbed it at the feather on his desk and shouted, "Wingardium LeviOsa!"
Both arms flailed around like a windmill having a seizure, as if yelling and waving harder would help the spell land.
Hermione, lips twitching, couldn't hold back.
"You're saying it wrong. It's LeviOsa, not Leviosaaah," she corrected sharply.
And just to prove it, she flicked her wand with a graceful wrist motion. The feather rose gently into the air and floated, twirling softly.
Professor Flitwick, from across the room, lit up like a firework.
"Marvelous, Miss Granger! Ten points to Gryffindor!"
Ron's face went several shades of red.
"Yeah, you're a bloody genius. No wonder even Snape calls you Miss Know-It-All," he muttered bitterly.
Harry opened his mouth as if to intervene but then thought better of it.
Hermione's eyes reddened instantly. She said nothing. Just picked up her things and moved to a table by herself.
Alex, busy helping Parvati Patil adjust her incantation, completely missed the drama.
...
After class, Alex made his way to the Great Hall.
The transformation was dazzling.
A thousand bats swirled across the vaulted ceiling like living shadows, their wings rustling faintly. Floating jack-o'-lanterns bobbed in the air, casting flickering candlelight in all directions. The atmosphere was eerie, enchanting, and festive all at once.
Alex sat next to Cho. Just as he was lifting a roast leg to his mouth, chaos erupted.
BANG!
Professor Quirrell stormed into the hall, turban askew, breath coming in gasps.
"TROLL!" he shouted. "In the dungeons... thought you ought to know..."
And then, as if on cue, the man crumpled to the ground.
Gasps. Screams.
But Alex's expression turned grim.
That scene — he knew that scene. This was the troll incident. The one from the original timeline.
Where Hermione had locked herself in the girls' lavatory.
Where Harry and Ron were supposed to save her.
But this isn't a book anymore.
This is real.
What if they were too slow? What if they failed?
No. He couldn't just sit here.
Turning to Cho, he murmured, "Stick with the others, alright? Don't go wandering. I've just remembered something important I have to handle."
Cho looked startled, but then nodded quickly. She knew Alex wasn't reckless.
He gave her a faint smile and slipped out through the side exit.
Up on the high table, Dumbledore's voice echoed through the hall, calmly commanding the prefects to escort students back to their dormitories.
But Alex wasn't heading to any dorm. He raced up the staircase to the second floor, following his instincts and… the stench.
Even before he reached the girls' bathroom corridor, he could smell it — a putrid, cloying odor that stung his nostrils and made his eyes water.
The troll was close.
Too close.
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