Chapter 55: 55: The Quidditch Invitation

After circling a few times on his flying broom,

Sean still hovered tentatively in front of Madam Hooch

"Madam Hooch, may I fly a little higher?"

"For naughty little wizards, my answer is no, but..."

Madam Hooch raised her hand, and an equally old broom flew into her grasp.

"Go on, what are you waiting for?"

The wind was biting. Hovering ten feet above the ground, Sean could clearly see every indentation on the pitch lawn carved by the Bludgers.

The southwest stands, where the Golden Snitch usually appeared, were just ahead to the right; the gilded railings shimmered with a gentle luster in the morning light.

Below, a meticulously manicured stretch of grass swept past, and he could see several young wizards peeking out from the lawn, letting out gasps of surprise at the wizard flying accompanied by Madam Hooch.

Having received Madam Hooch's permission,

Sean ascended, embracing this long-awaited freedom. The broom trembled slightly under his control, but it obeyed his commands.

When his altitude exceeded fifty feet, the entire silhouette of Hogwarts suddenly unfolded before his eyes

The castle spires pierced the morning mist, the Black Lake looked like a dark mirror, and the distant Forbidden Forest was a vast ocean of deep green.

【You have practiced flying to a Proficient standard, Proficiency +10】

【You have practiced flying to an Expert standard, Proficiency +50】

...

【A new Flying Title has been unlocked】

Madam Hooch followed steadily behind Sean. Perhaps because she had been away from the Quidditch pitch for too long, she had forgotten the terrifying talent of top-tier players.

Consequently, she didn't mind that Sean was flying quite high; instead, she eagerly began imparting many practical techniques to him.

Under Madam Hooch's guidance, Sean felt his fatigue begin to recede,

Making the green eyes gazing into the distance appear even deeper.

Magic is generated within a wizard's body, yet descriptions of it remain vague.

The only certainty is that its total amount, or magic level, grows alongside the wizard's development.

So, when a wizard is exhausted and unable to cast spells, is their magic truly depleted?

If this were true,

Then where do emotions, or mental states, draw the power to trigger even more potent magic?

As he swept across the grass, Sean found his answer.

Just as a normal person cannot mobilize every single muscle in their body at once, the magic within a wizard works the same way.

And training known as "flying" allows the unactivated magic within a wizard to slowly awaken.

The pace is destined to be slow, but it is profoundly meaningful.

Of course, Sean believed that daily practices of charms, transfiguration, or even brewing potions were all doing the same thing, only at different speeds of progress.

In a room where a fireplace burned brightly, a pair of hands constantly grading homework suddenly paused.

Minerva McGonagall felt a sudden breeze. She lifted her stern eyes and immediately spotted the young wizard flying with fluid grace—

His robes snapped in the wind, as free as a bird.

"Quidditch..."

The corners of Professor McGonagall's mouth curled up involuntarily. Just as she lowered her head to continue working,

She suddenly snapped her head up and instinctively walked to the window, looking again in disbelief—

Yes, that was it. Not just a first-year student, but little Green.

The seed she had brought, that sickly little seed, how could he be flying in the sky?!

"Thank you, Madam Hooch."

With his limbs completely numb and aching, Sean descended slowly to the ground. He was drenched in sweat, but he had still reserved enough stamina for a Scouring Charm,

So that he could hand over a clean broom to the smoothly landing Madam Hooch.

"Are you interested in joining Quidditch?"

Madam Hooch nodded with even greater satisfaction. Disciplined enough, restrained enough, and talented enough—talented children like this were rare.

Sean froze. His memory of Quidditch was still confined to books

【The first Quidditch World Cup was held in 1473,

It recorded many fouls—such as transfiguring a Chaser into a skunk, or attempting to decapitate a Keeper with a cleaver;

And releasing a hundred vampire bats from under the robes of the Transylvanian captain.】

Sean silently shook his head.

"Even if you could become a wonderful Seeker?"

Madam Hooch was somewhat surprised.

【The position of Seeker possesses a considerable charm—because they have historically been the finest flyers on the pitch,

Therefore, "Kill the Seeker" is the first rule in Blute Skrimger's *The Beater's Bible*.】

Sean shook his head even more vigorously.

What kind of terrifying bible...

"I think you have a high chance of joining the national team; every team has good mascots and..."

Madam Hooch's words came to a sudden halt.

【The Bangles team captured a Hechshie Archipelago Black Dragon as their team mascot.】

Because Sean was currently shaking his head so fast it looked like a propeller.

He felt that compared to a Hechshie Archipelago Black Dragon, he might actually be more like a mascot.

Sean thought,

Let the Hechshie Archipelago Black Dragon be the Seeker.

He quickly fled the Quidditch pitch,

Walking with a light step to verify his hypothesis regarding his magical proficiency.

He did not notice the gaze of the tall witch in the dark green robes.

In the classroom,

Hermione and Justin were whispering about something.

As it turned out, when a topic involves a character everyone is interested in,

Ending the conversation becomes a difficult task.

Sean focused on practicing the *Aguamenti* spell; he needed to practice at least two spells until they reached the Novice level...

"...Eight, nine... one more!"

Sean muttered to himself with a hint of excitement. Although he couldn't be sure if this awakening of magic was permanent, it was still quite significant.

Sean had never seen such descriptions in any book.

"Or perhaps I just haven't read enough books..."

Sean thought rigorously.

Opening the panel again

【Aguamenti: Apprentice Level (45/300)】

The progress was growing slowly but steadily.

【Title: Junior Flyer】

【Slightly increases perception of magic in flying brooms; significantly increases flying talent】

Significantly increases flying talent?

Curious, Sean looked further down

【Wizard Sean, Flying Talent: Gold】

No change?

Perhaps this "significant" increase was based on a normal standard.

Sean thought,

Or perhaps it had increased, but had not broken through the limits of the "Gold" legend?

While waiting for his fatigue to fade, Sean opened *Advanced Potion-Making*.

He learned to fly to climb the Ravenclaw Tower when he was nearly unable to, he learned charms for the upcoming scholarship,

And he learned potions for a much longer-term goal—

That was to earn Galleons.

Sufficient material resources could provide more support for Sean's magical studies.

As a first-year student at Hogwarts and an orphan, Sean did not have many choices.

Especially after hearing Professor Snape's intentional or unintentional remarks, and after long periods of deep reflection, Sean had clarified his goal.

(End of Chapter)