Chapter 4: The Difference in Subject Difficulty

Huh?

Why is it Hermione?

What a coincidence.

On the train,

Sean’s voice mingled with the whistling wind.

Outside the window,

The vast wilderness had drifted away before he knew it, and the dappled sunlight became mottled; the train had entered a forest of yew trees.

The tips of Hermione’s ears slowly turned a pale red. She opened her mouth as if to say something, but her mind went blank.

This made Sean even more puzzled.

“Oh! She just said, you can actually perform Transfiguration—that’s incredible!”

A voice interjected; it was Justin. He quickly stepped in to answer for Hermione,

He pointed to the silver needle on the table, drawing Sean and Hermione’s attention to it.

“How did you do it? I heard from Hermione that this is a very difficult piece of magic.”

After saying this, he felt a bit nervous, praying that the young wizard opposite wouldn't hear that as an offensive remark.

“The incantation is *Transfiguration*. The break is between *Trans* and *figura*,

The stress is on *fi*... More importantly, when you wave your wand from left to right, the movement must be fast, without any hesitation.”

Sean reviewed the process of his own practice, identifying the potential keys—this was his usual method of learning.

“Um, of course, you need to clearly visualize the object’s intended form in your mind. You can see this on page five of *A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration*.”

Soon, the train emerged from the yew forest, and the compartment brightened again, illuminating Sean’s emerald eyes until they shone like jewels.

“So my failure was because of the hesitation... I mean, it’s nice to meet you.

You might not have heard my introduction earlier, so I’d be happy to say it again. I’m Justin, Justin Finch-Fletchley.”

Hearing Sean’s words, Justin breathed a sigh of relief.

“Hermione Granger.”

A blush still lingered on Hermione’s face, but her voice was full of spirit.

“Sean Green.”

Sean felt Hermione was a bit strange, but though puzzled, he decided not to dwell on it.

There were more important things waiting for him.

In the compartment,

Sean appeared to be continuing to flip through *A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration*, but in reality, his gaze had fallen upon his proficiency panel.

Let me see what kind of Transfiguration genius I am.

His gaze slowly moved downward, and Sean admitted he was a bit nervous—a hundred times more nervous than when he used to pull for cards in his past life!

The power in games was fake, but this was real talent that concerned his future.

【Title: Transfiguration Apprentice】

【Slightly increases perception of Transfiguration, slightly improves Transfiguration talent】

As expected. Sean held his breath and continued to look down.

【Wizard Sean, Transfiguration Talent: Light Purple (Transfiguration Apprentice title already applied). Note: Average wizards are Green】

【Evaluation: You are a true genius in this branch of magic. With guidance, you will become a master of significant influence in the path of Transfiguration.】

Purple Epic?!

I really am a Transfiguration genius?!

Sean felt as if someone were beating drums and gongs in his ears,

Even singing something about good fortune.

Those who have experienced white trash always cherish purple epics more.

With guidance, I can even become a Transfiguration master...

Suppressing the excitement in his heart, Sean decided he must cling to Hogwarts for these seven years.

At the same time, to achieve this goal, he began to think carefully

The difference between Transfiguration talent and Charms talent proved one thing

That in the Harry Potter world, magical talent is not a monolith; different wizards may have different strengths.

For example, Neville: average in other subjects but strongest in Herbology.

For example, Hermione: strong in the vast majority of magical branches, but her Defense Against the Dark Arts is not as good as Harry’s, and Divination was a total disaster.

And if Sean wants to achieve excellence in seven subjects, he must put in more effort in the subjects he is not good at.

At Hogwarts, the difficulty of different subjects also varies.

This is not just about the subjects themselves; more importantly, it is the professors. They play a crucial role in the courses.

Just like in university, the specific knowledge points are all there; whether you enjoy the class or find it easy to pass depends on the professor.

Following this logic,

The most difficult core subject should be Potions. Not only is there Professor Snape, but the knowledge points are detailed and numerous.

There is also a high-risk experimental component, and one must submit the potion brewed during class at the end of every lesson, plus the essays are quite long.

At the thought of Professor Snape’s gloomy face, Sean’s heart sank. Getting an 'Outstanding' in Potions under Professor Snape would not be an easy task.

He could only hope he had a bit of talent for Potions.

Um, just a little bit would be fine.

Next, Sean considered Defense Against the Dark Arts to be second.

High risk, and the teachers are a complicated bunch.

Two-faced people are not exactly rare.

Another difficult course...

Sean rubbed his brow, his gaze becoming sharper.

Nothing could stop him from learning, not even Voldemort!

With a rough plan in mind, Sean continued to think.

Below that, considering various factors, the third tier of difficulty should be Herbology, Transfiguration, and Charms.

None of these courses can be mastered without talent.

And the final tier should be History of Magic and Astronomy, which require memorizing specific knowledge points.

However, these courses were not tricky for Sean.

“Transfiguration and Charms... my current level should be sufficient.

Astronomy and History of Magic... just rote memorization, no special attention needed.

So, looking at it this way, the difficult parts are Potions, Defense Against the Dark Arts, and Herbology.”

With his goals set, just as Sean was thinking about how to execute them,

It had been noisy outside the compartment for quite a while.

From time to time, he could hear things like “Harry,” “Harry Potter,” and “Merlin’s beard.”

Immediately after, a loud bang rang out.

Startled, Sean slowly raised his head and once again locked eyes with Justin and Hermione.

Justin quickly lowered his head, acting as if he had done nothing, and said

“Sean, look, it’s the Levitation Charm! It’s truly magical!”

Sean followed his gaze; above Hermione’s wand, a feather was floating in the air.

The young girl lifted her chin

“Actually, this is just a simple piece of magic. I learned it from *The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 1*. It’s not very difficult; I learned it after practicing a few times.”

Her voice carried a hint of pride.

Sean, who had practiced five hundred times: Actually, that’s not the case.

“Justin, you should try it too. It’s just a small spell. *The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 1* says it’s often one of the first spells young wizards learn.”

Hermione looked at the eager Justin and spoke earnestly.

“You have to guide me.”

Justin didn’t decline, waving his wand with a sense of longing.

“Wingardium Leviosa!”

The feather didn’t move.

“You have to flick your wrist.”

Hermione corrected him.

“Wingardium Leviosa!”

The feather wobbled just a tiny bit.

“You’re wrong again! You have to say it firmly; if you hesitate, you’ll fail!”

Hermione instructed him somewhat sternly, while Justin became even more serious

“Wingardium Leviosa!”

...

“It worked! That’s great, Hermione, you really are a good teacher!”

Having succeeded, Justin looked very excited. He thanked her sincerely

“You were right, it doesn’t seem to be very difficult!”

(End of chapter)