Harry and Ron stood with their mouths agape, their faces filled with terror.
However, they quickly blinked a few times.
"What are these things you're talking about?" they asked.
Dylan paused for a moment before explaining, "They're aggressive magical creatures, and they're not exactly pleasant to look at either."
*Hiss!*
Ron sucked in a sharp breath.
Dylan turned to him.
"So, do you still think learning spells is something to take lightly?" he said, enunciating each word clearly.
"Professor McGonagall was so harsh with you because she doesn't want you to be careless or lazy. A Transfiguration spell could cost you your life."
"Not only could it turn you into another creature permanently, but if something goes wrong during the transformation, you might not even make it to the next form. You could end up as a pile of mush."
"Oh my god!"
Dylan's explanation made everyone around him feel queasy.
As they glanced at the various pieces of meat laid out in front of them, several young wizards turned pale and covered their mouths.
Ron gulped, hesitated for a moment, and then muttered, "I get it now. I was wrong."
Dylan smiled. "As long as you understand that Transfiguration isn't simple—it's dangerous—that's enough."
Harry took a sip of water. "Dylan, I tried all class, but I couldn't even turn a matchstick into a tiny metal rod. I couldn't even make it metallic. How did you manage to turn it into a needle?"
Ron nodded in agreement and added, "And not just a needle—a brooch!"
The reason they were asking Dylan instead of Hermione, who had also successfully transformed the matchstick, was that while Hermione was knowledgeable and had a deeper understanding of spells, Dylan had a more approachable demeanor. Even though he had scored a perfect 10 in class, he didn't boast about it. Instead, he remained humble.
Unlike Hermione.
Whenever she achieved something, she acted as if she was better than everyone else, looking down her nose at them.
They didn't want to talk to her too much, let alone ask her for help.
This was a natural reaction to her arrogance and the instinctive resistance that arises when someone feels overshadowed.
In many ways, Hermione was the classic example of a child who, due to her exceptional abilities, ends up being isolated by her peers.
"How did I do it?" Dylan mused.
How else? He raised his wand, recited the spell, channeled his magic, and cast the spell.
And it just worked.
After a moment of thought, he said, "Why don't you tell me how you understand Transfiguration? Or rather, how you've been trying to use it?"
Harry was the first to speak. "I just recited the spell the professor taught us and tried to imagine the matchstick turning into a needle."
As soon as he finished, Ron nodded vigorously. "Yeah, that's what I did too."
Dylan scratched his head.
"Honestly, it's not surprising you'd think that way. I thought the same thing at first."
Hearing this, Ron suddenly felt a sense of connection with the prodigy.
But Dylan's next words made his heart sink.
"However, after trying it twice, I realized it wasn't going to work."
Ron stared at Dylan, speechless.
Dylan chuckled and began explaining the key points of Transfiguration to the group.
---
Lunchtime passed quickly, and the group soon found themselves in the Charms classroom.
The first spell they were learning was the Levitation Charm.
Dylan had already reached Level 6 in this spell, which earned him yet another round of praise from Professor Flitwick.
During class, after Flitwick finished his lecture, he opened the floor for questions.
Dylan's questions were particularly challenging and nuanced, which surprised the professor.
His understanding of the Levitation Charm far surpassed that of the other students.
Even Hermione couldn't keep up.
After answering Dylan's questions for nearly half an hour, Flitwick had to cut the conversation short.
He arranged to continue the discussion with Dylan at another time, as it wasn't fair to the other students to monopolize class time.
---
The day flew by.
The next day, during Herbology, Dylan's progress was on par with the other students.
Neville, who sat next to him, showed an extraordinary enthusiasm for the subject.
His notes were incredibly detailed, written at lightning speed.
His dedication was so intense that even Dylan was taken aback.
In the afternoon, they had History of Magic.
While Dylan wasn't as passionate about this subject as he was about Charms or Transfiguration, he still found it somewhat interesting.
At the very least, he didn't doze off like Ron and Harry.
However, Professor Binns' teaching style was painfully dull.
Dylan couldn't help but think back to his history teacher in his previous life, who had always been full of passion, weaving historical anecdotes into the lessons and making the material come alive.
In contrast, Binns simply read from the textbook, offering no insight or enthusiasm.
As a result, Dylan ended up teaching himself—reading the book, taking notes, and summarizing the key points.
In short, he decided to just learn it on his own.
---
Several days passed.
Apart from attending classes, Dylan spent most of his time in the professors' offices.
Soon, most of the faculty knew about the exceptionally diligent, intelligent, and hardworking first-year.
If only they knew, Dylan thought to himself, that his affinity for magic was only average.
If he were to study Dark Magic, now that would be a different story!
---
Time flew by, and soon it was Friday.
Dylan joined Harry and the others for breakfast in the Great Hall.
Ron looked surprised.
"Dylan, you didn't wake up early today?"
Dylan served himself a plate of spaghetti drenched in sauce.
"I didn't need to go see Luna this morning—she's delivering a letter for me. Plus, I've pretty much finished summarizing all the material, so I decided to take a break today."
Harry and Ron exchanged glances.
*Not waking up early counts as a break?*
Did Dylan have a different definition of "rest"?
Twirling a forkful of spaghetti, Dylan took a bite.
The noodles were firm and flavorful, with the tangy sweetness of the tomato sauce spreading across his tongue.
Having grown up in this world, he had become quite accustomed to using a fork.
"Dylan, what classes do we have today?" Ron asked, sitting next to Harry.
"Why don't you ask me?" Harry interjected.
"Alright, what classes do we have?"
"No idea."
Harry turned back to Dylan.
Dylan thought for a moment.
"I think it's a full day of Potions. And we're sharing the class with Slytherin."
(End of Chapter)