Chapter 115: Hermione’s Reprimand—Can Advanced Spell Refinement Be Done Like This?

Staring at the two clowns in front of him with their exaggerated, ugly crying faces, Dylan couldn't help but notice that despite their dramatic sobbing, not a single tear had fallen after all this time.

Dylan rolled his eyes.

Glancing around, he suddenly raised his wand and flicked it sharply.

The motion was so quick that the twins didn't even have time to react.

Assuming Dylan was about to hex them, they immediately shouted in panic—

"No! Dyl—!"

But the burst of magical light from Dylan's wand streaked past them, landing on the bed across the room.

"Huh?" The twins froze, their screams cutting off abruptly.

Dylan frowned. "What are you yelling for? You'll wake everyone up in a minute."

The twins scratched their heads, realizing Dylan hadn't aimed at them. Breathing a sigh of relief, they grinned sheepishly.

"There's a Silencing Charm on our room," they explained. "Mum refreshes it every day."

Dylan's mouth twitched.

So that's how it was.

No wonder he always thought this room had such great soundproofing!

He waved a hand dismissively. "Fine. I've put a Silencing Charm on your bed too. If you want to experiment, do it there. As long as the explosions don't go beyond that area, I won't hear a thing."

Fred and George blinked rapidly at his words, turning to eye their not-exactly-spacious bed.

Then they awkwardly turned back to him.

"Dylan—"

"Isn't this area a bit too small?"

"Explosions aren't exactly going to stay confined to such a tiny space."

"Why don't you just put a Silencing Charm on your bed too?"

Dylan took a deep breath.

With another flick of his wand, he cast the spell again.

This time, he couldn't even hear what the twins, kneeling beside their bed, were saying anymore.

"Alright, Harry, let's get some sleep," Dylan said.

He climbed into the inner side of the bed, closest to the wall.

Pulling the thin silk blanket over himself, Dylan quickly drifted back to sleep.

Harry scratched his head.

Glancing sideways at the twins—who had jumped up from the floor and resumed tinkering with their experiments—he tugged his own blanket up and flopped back down to sleep.

Happy times always pass quickly.

Otherwise, they wouldn't be called happy.

When Dylan woke up again, he found himself sitting at the breakfast table.

With two extra people, there weren't quite enough stools, so Percy, being older, usually came down a bit later.

Thus, Dylan, Harry, and the Weasleys finished breakfast quickly and were about to head outside with Ron to explore the Burrow's surroundings.

But Mrs. Weasley stopped them.

"Counting the days, it's not long until school starts," she said. "Around this time, Hogwarts owls might deliver your school letters. Want to wait and see?"

No sooner had Mrs. Weasley finished speaking than owls swooped in through the wide-open window nearby.

Dylan, Harry, and the others received their booklists for the new term, along with schedules for the upcoming school year.

Dylan casually opened his booklist and took a look.

He already owned most of the books.

Only a few others would need to be purchased anew.

"*Break with a Banshee*?" Fred tilted his head.

"*Travels with Trolls*?" George tilted his head the other way.

Ron frowned. "What kind of books are these? Why do we need to buy them?"

Dylan chuckled, glancing at the authors' names on the list.

Sure enough, every single one was by Gilderoy Lockhart.

Besides the two the twins mentioned, there were several others, all penned by this Lockhart fellow.

Harry looked at the part of the list specifying which professor required these books.

"These are all required by the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor," he said.

Ron pursed his lips, muttering under his breath, "Does this professor have a thing for Lockhart or something? These titles sound completely pointless!"

He looked up at Dylan and Harry.

"I bet when we get back to school, Hermione will have read all of these and then complain to us about how boring they are!"

Dylan pressed his lips together, smiling faintly.

"You might be wrong about that."

While all these books were authored by Lockhart, their contents were written in the first person, detailing how to interact with or fight creatures like trolls, ghouls, hags, and banshees.

They even included plenty of wilderness survival tips—real, practical knowledge.

—After all, the experiences were genuine.

Just not Lockhart's.

Careful study of these books could offer readers a wealth of useful insights.

Otherwise, they wouldn't have become bestsellers.

Even Dylan had bought a few of them himself.

Not many, though.

Especially since this time, the booklist Lockhart had provided for new students under the guise of required textbooks included several titles Dylan hadn't purchased before.

"You mean these books might actually be useful?" Ron looked up.

Dylan smacked his lips. "I've read some of Lockhart's books. The content's pretty solid, and the experiences feel vivid and engaging to read."

Fred and George widened their eyes. "But we've heard Lockhart's books… aren't exactly cheap, right?"

"And since the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor is making the whole school buy them, that means every single student has to get them—"

"We'll have to buy new books then—no way to get secondhand ones!"

Prompted by the twins, Ron realized this too and couldn't help but look up at his parents.

A lot of the stuff he used for school was hand-me-downs from his older brothers.

—Maybe even third- or fourth-hand.

Having to buy all new books at once would surely be a burden for his parents, right?

Mrs. Weasley pressed her lips together. "Well… since these are bestsellers, I imagine there should be plenty of secondhand copies out there."

Her gaze fell on Ginny.

—The girl was sitting between Dylan and Harry, a shy smile on her face.

"We have a lot of things at home that Ginny can use when school starts, so if we only need to buy these books for you all… I think it should be manageable."

Hearing this, Harry blinked and turned to the little girl beside him.

"Wow, you're starting school too? Hogwarts, right?"

Ginny's cheeks flushed red. Facing Harry's question, she instinctively pressed her lips tight, nodded slightly, and let out a tiny "mm" that sounded like a mosquito buzz.

"Cool! I wonder which house you'll be sorted into," Harry said, grinning.

"I bet it'll be Gryffindor."

At that moment, Percy came steadily down the stairs.

At home, Percy shed the formal attire he wore at school but still maintained a neat and orderly appearance.

He was dressed in a beige linen shirt, sleeves rolled up neatly to his forearms, collar buttoned properly, and a familiar prefect badge pinned to his chest.

Though Percy still seemed a bit stiff at home, he wasn't as serious as he was at school.

After coming downstairs, he sat in the now-vacant spot.

Mrs. Weasley served him a portion of breakfast.

"I think so too. After all, we're all Gryffindors!" Ron nodded.

"So when are we going to get the stuff we need?" Harry asked.

"No rush. We can wait a bit," Dylan said, shaking his head lightly.

"Or we could ask Hermione. If she's free, we might even get to meet up during the break."

"Great idea!" Ron nodded eagerly.

During the day, the group wandered around the Burrow.

The twins, as usual, fought over who got to ride the broomsticks.

Ron and Harry trailed after them, having a blast.

Dylan joined them to unwind for a bit before returning to the Burrow to read.

By evening, after dinner, Dylan, Harry, and Ron sat in the living room sipping tea.

The Burrow's living room was small, feeling cramped even with just the three of them.

But their spot was bathed in the warm, golden glow of the sunset, and the lingering aroma of dinner mingled with the scent of tea, making it hard not to feel relaxed and content.

Suddenly, a faint *flap-flap* of wings broke the quiet.

They looked up to see an owl with dull, messy feathers and a wobbly flight path swoop in through the half-open window.

"It's Errol!"

Exhausted, Errol headed straight for the table in front of Dylan.

With a loud *thud*, it crashed onto the surface, splashing a few drops of tea from the cups.

Ron quickly scooped the worn-out owl into his arms.

"Errol, don't go breaking yourself apart now."

Ron rubbed the owl's body gently before carefully removing the letter tied to its leg.

"It's a reply from Hermione," Ron said, opening the letter and scanning it before looking at the others.

"What'd she say?" Dylan and Harry both turned to Ron.

Ron's expression didn't look too happy.

"She's mad at me!"

"Huh?"

Harry blinked, confused.

Dylan, though, had seen it coming and smirked.

"She's not mad because you only invited me and Harry to your house, is she?"

"How'd you know?"

Ron blinked, placing the letter on the small table and sliding it toward them.

"Take a look. The stuff she said about me is brutal! It's not like I didn't think of inviting her—it just didn't seem quite right, you know?" Ron grumbled.

Dylan nodded. "You're not wrong. It would've been a bit awkward."

He reached out a finger, pulled the letter toward himself, and skimmed it quickly.

The letter opened with a full-on scolding aimed at Ron.

And it didn't stop there—Dylan and Harry got their share too.

---

To two unreliable guys and Dylan, who's unreliable by association:

First off, Ron, you're unbelievable! You, Harry, and Dylan have been hanging out together all this time and didn't even think to include me?

And here I thought you were my best friends!

I've nearly finished my holiday homework, so I've been studying new spells, thinking I'd share them with you. But you've just left me out like this!

And Harry and Dylan, you're no better. How could you go along with Ron and keep me in the dark? Especially you, Dylan! You haven't written me a single letter all break!

Fine, Ron's letter explained your situation, and since it's a special case, I won't hold it against you too much.

Hey, guess what? Yesterday, while practicing magic, I accidentally turned my mom's dinner plate into a sneezing toad—they were so startled!

How's life at Ron's place? Honestly, it's been so long since I've seen you all that I'm starting to feel a bit off without you.

I got my Hogwarts letter too, and your idea's a good one—finally remembering me! I was thinking the same thing!

So, when should we meet up at Diagon Alley to buy our books? How about two weeks from now? Or maybe Friday?

—No need to write back. Just come directly. This owl's too old, and I can't bear to make it fly another trip.

Promise me you won't torture this poor old messenger anymore, okay? So—see you at Diagon Alley!

Hermione

---

After reading the letter, Dylan couldn't help but chuckle.

Harry blinked up at the two of them. "Hermione says we should meet at Diagon Alley the Friday after next. Are we going?"

Dylan shrugged. "Sure, why not? We don't have much else going on, and Errol's honestly getting too old. Since Hermione told us not to write back, we can't really ditch her either."

"Plus, my family doesn't even have any pigeons to send," Ron added.

"…I know," Dylan said, his mouth twitching.

Ron grabbed the letter again, rereading it, and suddenly exclaimed, "Wait! What's this?"

Harry frowned. "What?"

"Homework!" Ron's eyes bulged. "Hermione says she's almost finished all her homework already??"

"Merlin's pants, there's still over two weeks until school starts!"

Dylan thought back. During the day, Ron and Harry had mostly been running around with the twins, messing about.

He'd join them sometimes, but most of his time was spent inside, reading alone.

Either way, he hadn't once seen Ron or Harry so much as touch their homework.

Blinking, he ventured, "Don't tell me you two haven't done a single word of it."

Harry scratched his head sheepishly. "I couldn't do it earlier, and now…"

"You don't really feel like it, huh?" Dylan raised an eyebrow.

Harry's head dipped even lower.

Ron put his hands on his hips. "Holidays are for fun, aren't they? Dylan, don't tell me you've finished your homework too!"

Harry nudged Ron's leg and whispered, "You forgot—Hermione said before that Dylan barely gets any homework."

Ron's face froze.

At that moment, it felt like something inside him shattered.

"Is that fair? Huh? They've got piles of homework, and Dylan doesn't even have any?"

Dylan, as if hearing Ron's breakdown, waved a hand and smiled. "Like you said, there's still over two weeks left. If you start now, you should be able to finish before the break's over."

Ron's expression soured.

Harry didn't look too thrilled about starting homework now either.

—Life at the Weasleys' was just too good.

They could hang out with friends all day, with kind adults looking after them.

Even sleeping meant sharing a bed with their best mates!

Judging by their faces, Dylan could pretty much guess what they were thinking.

Shaking his head, he stood up. "I'm going for a walk to check out the area—see if there are any interesting plants around. You two can talk to Mrs. Weasley about setting a date for Diagon Alley."

Leaving the Burrow, Dylan started exploring the nearby hills.

—The Weasleys lived in a remote spot, even claiming a whole hill for themselves where the kids could play.

Muggles couldn't sense the hill at all; anyone who got close would unconsciously veer off in another direction.

Riding his Nimbus 2000, Dylan zipped around the hilltop.

He caught a bunch of small creatures—cockroaches, crickets, ants, and the like.

He stashed them all in his pet-space suitcase.

During the summer, he could go after dark wizards to grind his Unforgivable Curse refinement tasks, but that was too much hassle and not entirely safe.

So, Dylan figured he'd catch some small bugs instead and see if he could use them to work on those tasks.

He thought it should work.

After all, he'd used Acromantulas for it before.

These little bugs were bugs too—shouldn't be any different.

"Other bugs reproduce too slowly, but cockroaches multiply fast. I'll grab more of those."

Recently, Dylan had started refining another Unforgivable Curse, only to find that completing it wasn't as simple as targeting the same thing over and over anymore.

If he relied solely on dark wizards, he'd probably have to wipe out every wizard in the area, and even that might not be enough.

Going back to the Forbidden Forest to slaughter Acromantulas again would be a pain too.

Sure, the forest had plenty of them, but their numbers weren't infinite. With how strong Dylan was now, one sweep could drive them to extinction.

So, he shifted his focus to smaller creatures for the spell refinement tasks.

—Like cockroaches.

These little guys were independent, tough, numerous, and bred like crazy.

Plus, they weren't tiny.

Much bigger than mites or something, which fit the system's kill requirements better.

"Those big-bellied black spiders could work too. They don't reproduce as fast as cockroaches, but they've got decent numbers and can pop out a bunch in one go."

He recalled a video from his past life—someone smashing a big black spider with a shovel, only for it to burst like a bomb, spewing a swarm of tiny spiders everywhere.

Dylan grabbed a few different types of spiders before calling it a day.

(End of Chapter)