Chapter 17: 17: The Library

“Sean! Sean!”

A familiar voice made Sean pause.

In the corridor outside the greenhouse, the afterglow of the setting sun spilled in, making the wizard standing by the Gothic stained-glass window look even more handsome.

“Senior Bruce.”

Sean nodded as a greeting and prepared to continue toward the greenhouse.

“You’re going to visit Professor Sprout, aren't you? I suggest you head back. The Professor has gone to Greenhouse Three, and first-year wizards are forbidden from entering that area.”

After giving the warning, Senior Bruce held his book and waited for Sean's response.

“...Thanks for the heads-up.”

Sean stopped in his tracks, a look of confusion in his eyes. If Professor Sprout wasn't there, based on his current knowledge of Herbology, he would struggle not just to process herbs, but even to perform basic identification. Moreover, he didn't even know which herbs he was supposed to be processing.

“You really are obsessed with magical plants, aren't you...”

Watching Sean's admiring eyes dim, Bruce felt as though he had committed some heinous crime. He closed his book helplessly. “Generally speaking, Professor Sprout only stays in Greenhouse Three for a short while. You should still be able to find her in Greenhouse One after class tomorrow.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Sean's eyes lit up instantly. He nodded earnestly. “Thank you.”

“You're welcome. Oh, by the way, this is for you.”

Sean looked over in confusion, only to see a dark shadow flicker, and a piece of cheese appeared in his hand.

“Grandma Dragon Cheese. Although the instructions for making it have been revised in *Spells for Your Cheese*, I still think the original version tastes better. Many people feel the same way.”

Senior Bruce smiled with his arms crossed. “Exchanging snacks—it's a Hufflepuff tradition. Even if you are a Ravenclaw, who cares?”

While Sean was busy inspecting the cheese, Bruce strode away decisively.

Sean heard the sound of hushed conversation coming from the end of the corridor.

“I think the new version tastes better.”

“Agreed.”

“Pist, Leon! You two heretics! Don't make me get angry right after I just finished looking cool!”

“He thinks he's so handsome...”

“Leon, this time it seems...”

“Alright, Pist, you're right. I'll say, well done. That was very Hufflepuff. Bruce, I'll give you that.”

...

New version? Original version?

Sean wondered if this was like the debate between savory and sweet tofu pudding from his previous life. Fortunately, he liked spicy food.

Sean glanced at the sky and decided to first accomplish something he had been wanting to do: go to the Hogwarts Library. Just think—Hogwarts had thousands of books, and they were free! That alone was enough to make Sean, who usually spent a fortune on books, salivate. Not to mention, he could finish his homework there. Good academic performance should also be one of Headmaster Dumbledore's criteria for evaluation.

The Hogwarts Library was located on the second floor of Hogwarts Castle, housing thousands of bookshelves and tens of thousands of books. It was divided into three sections.

The first was the general area. Here, Sean saw countless bookshelves stretching out like a lush forest, extending in all directions as if it were only natural, until they vanished into the distant darkness. They weren't perfectly uniform; some areas were staggered in height, and some even required the use of creaking rolling ladders to reach the top levels. Around the heavy oak tables in the center, students sat scattered, buried in their studies. Their faces were illuminated by floating magical crystal balls, and the scratching sound of quills writing on parchment filled the air.

Sean peered into the distance but could not see the Restricted Section at the back. That was a legendary place; Voldemort had found *Secrets of the Darkest Arts* there and turned himself into a brainless psychopath. The Trio had found *Advanced Potion-Making* there to brew Polyjuice Potion. It was a literal treasure trove.

The third area was called the Invisible Section, which contained most of the books on Invisibility. He wasn't sure how one would even find them.

As Sean thought, he slung his small bag over his shoulder, preparing to find a seat, when he saw Justin shouting silently.

“Sean! Over here!” (Mouth movements)

Sean walked quickly toward Justin and Hermione.

“Where did you go? You disappear every time after we eat.” Hermione looked up, her tone sounding more like an interrogation than concern.

“The greenhouse,” Sean replied, completely unbothered.

“Oh, I mean... alright. Well, do you know how to distinguish mature Valerian?” Hermione seemed to realize her blunt tone and tried to make amends, but ended up instinctively asking her question.

“Valerian has a faint smell of goat. When it matures, that scent becomes much stronger.” Sean repeated what Senior Bruce had told him. It was a strange feeling, as if he had inherited some form of knowledge.

“You know it!” Hermione covered her mouth. She had only asked casually, not expecting Sean to actually know.

“So that's what you gained from the greenhouse?”

Sean nodded. More or less.

“I knew it!” Justin acted even more proud than Sean, which made Hermione blush slightly.

“But I've memorized all the first-year textbooks, and there's no description of it in there at all,” Hermione asked in a low voice, the tips of her ears turning pink.

“Yeah, I've memorized them too. There really isn't any description,” Sean agreed completely.

“Heavens, you've memorized them too!” Hermione covered her mouth again, cautiously peeking out from behind a thick brown book. She looked around and saw Madam Pince lecturing a young wizard, and only breathed a sigh of relief when she realized she hadn't been noticed. “Then how did you—?!” Her eyes sparkled as if she had found a kindred spirit.

“A Hufflepuff senior told me while I was helping Professor Sprout process herbs.” After saying this, Sean took out *A History of Magic* and some parchment. He decided to finish his History of Magic homework first.

Hermione and Justin exchanged a look, their expressions roughly saying, "Huh?"

If Professor Binns hadn't mistaken inches for feet, there wouldn't be much homework. Unfortunately, the professor was clearly a bit muddled, so Sean and the others had been assigned a task involving one foot. That was about thirty centimeters.

The young wizards, busy with the end of class, clearly hadn't realized the gravity of the situation. But soon, Sean caught sight of Michael and his group at the oak table in the second row of the library, wearing expressions of pure agony.

“Three feet! Even if I make the spacing and font size as large as possible, I can't finish this!” Sean heard a roar, and then the people in the library looked at Michael with pity.

Only then did Michael cover his mouth, but it was too late. Madam Pince marched over aggressively, her heels making a loud *click-clack* sound on the floor.

Sean propped his book up, silently offered a moment of silence for him, and went to collect books for his essay. The essay seemed like a lot of work, but for Sean, it was no problem.

“*A History of Modern Magic*, three Galleons; *Important Magical Events of the Twentieth Century*, four Galleons; *Directory of Famous Contemporary Wizards*, five Galleons...”

Sean tried his best to pick the more expensive books. Expensive books weren't necessarily better, but they were definitely expensive.

Once, Sean could never have afforded them. Now, they were free of charge.

(End of Chapter)