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"Ivan, do you know the essential difference between magical creatures and wizards?"
Ivan thought for a moment and replied, "Well... magical creatures can be used as materials for alchemy and potions. But wizards, no matter if it's their blood, hair, or bones, are no different from Muggles."
"Yes, wizards and Muggles are fundamentally the same."
This wasn't the kind of statement one would hear in the wizarding world, and Dumbledore wouldn't make such comments in public.
However, in this private conversation, he felt comfortable sharing it, knowing Ivan likely understood it as well.
Ivan nodded but was still puzzled.
"But wizards have magic, while Muggles don't."
"The key difference isn't simply having magic, but rather, understanding magic," Dumbledore said, giving Ivan a knowing smile.
"Understanding magic?" Ivan was still perplexed.
"Yes," Dumbledore continued. "What do you think magic really is, Ivan? What is it made of, and what form does it take?"
Ivan paused, considering the question. In other fantasy worlds—like Warcraft, Dungeons & Dragons, or similar realms—he might have said that magic is a form of energy or perhaps an elemental force that flows through the world, like an aura or mana. But this was Harry Potter, where magic didn't quite follow the same rules.
Finally, Ivan answered.
"It's indescribable... Magic is ethereal," Ivan said thoughtfully.
"You can't see it or touch it, but wizards can channel it, turning it into power that allows them to make their wishes come true."
"Yes, invisible and immensely powerful," Dumbledore agreed. "We can only witness the manifestations of magic, but we can't truly explore magic itself."
This leads to a higher level of Transfiguration beyond permanent transformation—magical transformation.
Magical transformation refers to the transformation of magical objects, or even living magical creatures. Wizards, however, are incapable of this.
While wizards can transform metals, plants, and animals, they cannot transform 'magic' itself.
"If the day ever comes when you, Ivan, can transform a stone or even a mere ball of air into a fire-breathing dragon that can not only exist forever but also reproduce, you will no longer be considered a wizard. Instead, you would be called a god."
Even Merlin, or the four founders of Hogwarts from a thousand years ago, couldn't achieve such a feat.
"I understand," Ivan nodded, taking Dumbledore's earlier warning to heart. "I won't meddle with those dangerous powers until I receive your approval."
Magical transformation essentially involves the creation of new materials and life, which is a divine realm.
For now, Ivan understood that it was enough to simply be aware of such a level of magic. Delving into it without proper understanding could result in irreversible damage—too dangerous to pursue carelessly.
Moreover, Ivan still trusted Dumbledore.
Outside of the complex plans surrounding Harry Potter, Dumbledore's character and wisdom were nearly impeccable.
Ivan didn't believe that, even with his system, he could just do whatever he wanted without caution.
"Thank you, professor."
It was getting late, so Ivan bid Dumbledore good night before making his way back to the Gryffindor common room.
The next morning, Gryffindor had Charms class together with Ravenclaw. Their teacher, Professor Flitwick, had some goblin blood, which required him to stand on a stack of books to reach the top of his desk.
Flitwick was incredibly approachable. As he called roll, he also took the time to chat with each student, quickly becoming familiar with all the young wizards.
After that, Professor Flitwick began the day's lesson.
He started by explaining some simple theoretical foundations of charms. Ivan could tell that Flitwick was a very skilled teacher.
Many complicated theories suddenly seemed easy to understand when he explained them.
Throughout the entire lesson, Flitwick's clear and detailed explanations benefited Ivan greatly. Many of his previous doubts were resolved during this class.
In the middle of the lecture, Flitwick posed a few questions on basic charm theory.
Hermione, with her quick responses, managed to outdo the Ravenclaw students and earn 3 house points for Gryffindor, which made the little witch incredibly happy.
"As expected of the Charms professor at Hogwarts," Ivan remarked to Hermione during the break. "Professor Flitwick's mastery of spells is clearly top-notch."
"Yeah!!" Hermione agreed enthusiastically, her eyes brimming with excitement and a thirst for knowledge.
"Um, Ivan..."
Neville, sitting on the other side of Ivan, scratched his head. "I... I didn't understand."
Unlike the two academic wizards, Neville felt as if he had been listening to a foreign language during Flitwick's lecture.
"Actually, we're the same," Ronald admitted, and Harry nodded in agreement.
The three of them hadn't understood much—not because Professor Flitwick wasn't clear, but simply because this style of teaching didn't suit them.
How to put it?
Some people excel at explanations, but when it comes to practical execution, they struggle.
Harry, on the other hand, was a person of action.
After observing for two days, Ivan realized that Harry was the type who relied more on "hands-on experience" than theory.
In short, Harry didn't need to hear complicated explanations. Just give him the spell and the wand, and his natural abilities would likely shine through and surprise everyone.
As for Ronald and Neville.. Ehm* their situations were different.
Ronald was more of an average student in the wizarding world. While he had potential, it was difficult to see him achieving extraordinary things in the future.
Neville, on the other hand, had a talent that was in no way inferior to Harry's.
The only problem with Neville was his lack of self-confidence.
As is well-known, magic in this world is deeply connected to one's thoughts, emotions, and willpower.
In Ivan's understanding, thinking influenced how quickly one could learn spells, mind determined the strength of the magic, and willpower governed how well one could control it.
Hermione has an exceptionally high thinking attribute, which allows her to grasp most spells instantly.
However, due to her relatively low mental attribute, it's difficult for her to cast powerful spells, and this is her major shortcoming.
Neville, on the other hand, is very slow—his thinking could almost be considered negative.
So no matter how high his mental or willpower attributes might be, he struggles to learn spells initially.
'The first step is hard for Neville, but once he gets going, everything else will be much easier,' Ivan thought to himself. 'If Neville can master just one spell, his performance might rival Harry's.'
Harry, however, has an incredibly high mental attribute and an astonishingly strong willpower, but his thinking is another story entirely.
Each attribute affects more than one aspect of magic.
For instance, thinking includes factors like memory, calculation, analysis, and reaction speed.
So, even if two people have the same level of thinking, their performance might differ depending on how the attribute is distributed.
For Hermione, her thinking is distributed roughly 5:4:1 across these aspects.
Her reaction speed is slightly above average but not extraordinary.
Harry, on the other hand, has a severely unbalanced thinking attribute, with nearly all of it focused on reaction speed—an astonishing ratio of 1:1:8.
In Ivan's terms, Harry is a natural-born combat wizard.
In battle, it would take three Hermiones to even stand a chance against one Harry, even if Harry only knew how to cast a simple Disarming Charm.
Of course, Ivan's system of point distribution focuses on maxing out all aspects of an attribute.
Once he upgrades his thinking, all related aspects—memory, calculation, and reaction speed—will reach optimal levels.
In terms of numbers, Ivan's data would be a balanced 10:10:10.
Yes, Ivan's total isn't just 10—it's a full 30.
The advantage of being in a "cheat mode" is obvious.