The Prisoners of Hogwarts

Chapter 44 Magic Research Lesson 1 Part 2

Lynch's face broke into a bright smile: "Extremely meticulous observation and thinking! Hufflepuff, five points!"

Cedric Diggory's face immediately broke into the same radiant smile, a smile that was a mixture of the joy of being recognized and the pride of being the center of attention for the entire school.

A small, barely suppressed wave of cheers erupted from the Hufflepuff area around him. "Well done, Cedric!" "That was great!" Several classmates sitting in front of and behind him leaned over excitedly, patting his arms and back with such force that Cedric swayed slightly.

These affectionate gestures silently testified to the handsome young wizard's immense popularity among Hufflepuff students.

Good-natured applause and whistles also came from Ravenclaw and Gryffindor, while only Slytherin maintained its usual reserve and arrogance, but some female wizards still cast their gazes at Cedric's smiling face.

Cedric sat back down with a bright and satisfied smile, and the surrounding noise quickly subsided, with all eyes once again focusing on Professor Lynch in the center of the arena.

Lin Qi gracefully raised his right hand, his slender fingers pointing at the large silver characters "Magic" floating in mid-air.

As if guided by an invisible conductor's baton, the letters composed of silver light instantly disintegrated and reassembled, smoothly transforming into entirely new sentence structures, radiating a faint glow, clearly suspended in everyone's vision—

Magic = Wizard

Lin Qi withdrew his fingers, placed his hands naturally on either side of the lectern again, leaned forward slightly, and slowly swept his dark, deep gaze across every face in the stands—whether excited, thoughtful, or still bewildered.

His voice was steady and penetrating, clearly reaching everyone's ears:

"Through the courageous answers and keen observations of the previous students—Mr. Longbottom, Miss Crevatt, and Mr. Diggory—we have deduced this new conclusion step by step."

But clearly, this conclusion is not the end point we are looking for.

He paused for a moment, then said, "Because we wizards are a magical existence in this world," Lynch's voice rang out again, with a kind of thought-provoking magic, "we possess qualities that Muggles do not have."

However, this trait itself, this identity of "wizard," is not directly equivalent to "magic."

We can use magic; we are the users and guides of magic.

In other words, we are the medium through which magic happens in the world.

His gaze swept across the students in the stands: "So, the core question arises—how exactly do we wizards make magic happen? What mechanisms lie hidden behind this seemingly self-evident ability? Is there anyone…" He deliberately softened his tone, his eyes filled with encouragement, "...willing to make a deeper, bolder conjecture based on our current discussion?"

The entire oak grandstand fell into an even deeper silence.

The students frowned, trying hard to think about the question Lynch had posed.

The older students huddled together, exchanging ideas and trying to find inspiration in each other's thoughts; the younger students racked their brains, trying to recall the feelings they had when they cast spells each time.

The professors in the middle of the stands were also engrossed in their own thoughts.

Professor McGonagall pressed her lips tightly together, but a glimmer seemed to flicker deep within her brown eyes.

Professor Flitwick simply pulled out his wand and started waving it around unconsciously.

Snape's expression remained somber, but his slightly furrowed brows indicated that he was also deep in thought.

Dumbledore maintained his gentle smile, as if he had already seen through everything, stroking his beard with one hand, sitting upright in the very center of the stands.

Just then, in the front row of the Gryffindor seating area, a slender and straight arm was raised high and firmly into the air.

"That lady over there." Lin Qi's gaze accurately caught her, a smile of admiration curving his lips as he pointed at her from afar.

With her thick, messy brown hair, Hermione Granger practically jumped up from her seat immediately.

Her face was slightly flushed with excitement and focus, but her eyes showed no stage fright; instead, they sparkled with a bright light.

The entire school was jolted awake from their reverie, and all eyes instantly turned to her. But this invisible pressure did not seem to make her nervous; instead, it made her straighten her small back and raise her chin slightly, like a scholar about to deliver an important speech.

She cleared her throat lightly, making sure her voice was clear and loud enough, and then answered loudly and confidently, "It's thought! Professor! It's the wizard's will! When a wizard adds the specific intention he wants to use to cast a spell, magic happens!"

"Excellent!" Professor Lynch's voice was full of undisguised praise, and he raised his hand again to clap gently.

"Tell everyone your name, brave lady," Lynch said with a smile, looking at her encouragingly.

"My name is Hermione Granger, Professor!" Hermione answered loudly, her face beaming with the joy and pride of being recognized.

"So, because of Miss Granger's bold and accurate answer, Gryffindor gets another five points!" Lynch announced, his voice amplified by the amplification spell.

"Yeah!" A suppressed cheer erupted from the Gryffindor area.

The Weasley twins even whistled, though the sound quickly fell silent under Professor McGonagall's stern gaze.

The lion cubs have a very strong sense of collective honor.

In this highly anticipated class that brought together almost the entire school's faculty and students, students from several colleges took turns answering questions to earn extra points, resembling an invisible preliminary battle for the college cup.

Gryffindor, thanks to Neville and Hermione's answers, has already earned two bonus points totaling ten, putting them ahead of Hufflepuff (five points) and Ravenclaw (also five points).

Especially seeing that Slytherin House has yet to win any awards, the little lions' joy and pride were almost overflowing.

However, under Professor McGonagall's stern gaze and the prefects' quiet reprimands, they quickly regained their composure and quieted down.

During the brief celebration at Gryffindor Academy, the large silver words in the air behind Lynch, "Magic = Wizard," changed silently once again.

Beside the word "wizard," another new word, shimmering with light, quietly emerged—"will."

The large silver characters changed to—【Magic = Wizard + Willpower】

Lin Qi extended a slender finger and tapped the large characters that floated behind him, shimmering with a silver light, before gracefully flicking his wrist.

Following his finger's direction, the large characters floated forward lightly and slowly, expanding slightly as they flew, becoming even larger and clearer, finally coming to a steady stop directly above the open space between Lynch and the stands.

"Now," Lynch's voice once again drew everyone's attention back, "regarding the fundamental question of 'what is magic,' we have arrived at a preliminary answer through the contributions and joint deductions of several students."

He pointed to the large characters floating in the middle of the venue, "When a wizard, with his specific will, appears in the world, magic is revealed."

His gaze slowly swept across the stands, from the first-year students in the front row to the upperclassmen in the back, then to the professors in the middle, and finally lingered briefly on Dumbledore's calm face.

The entire venue was immersed in silence, with countless eyes gleaming with thoughtful intent as they stared intently at him.

"Well then," Professor Lynch's voice remained unhurried, "let's analyze this answer more carefully."

He held up two fingers, his gesture clear and forceful. "This answer clearly points to two indispensable components: first, the wizard; second, the wizard's will."

He slowly retracted one finger, leaving only his index finger standing upright in the air.

"Which of these two is more central and crucial?" He posed this thought-provoking question, scanning the room before giving the students and professors time to think.

Lynch's gaze deepened: "Let's consider a simple comparison. Muggles—those without magical abilities—do they possess thought? Do they possess will?"

He paused for a moment, then said, "The answer is yes."

Muggles can think just as well, and they also have strong desires and goals they want to achieve.

But when a Muggle waves, nothing happens.

Magic only works when a wizard waves their hand with a clear intention to do something!

Professor Lynch placed his hands on either side of the lectern again, leaned slightly forward, and his gaze, almost tangible, enveloped the entire room, firmly capturing everyone's attention.

"For thousands of years, ever since the emergence of the wizarding community, a huge chasm has separated us from the Muggle world."

Muggles are Muggles, and wizards are wizards.

This boundary seems self-evident.

Even wizards born into Muggle families—whom we call "Muggle-borns"—are seen as a lucky change or a return to their ancestral lineage, but few people really delve into the most fundamental question—”

He took a deep breath, his voice not loud, but like a resounding bell, clearly striking the hearts of everyone present:

"What exactly is the difference between wizards and Muggles? What fundamental difference determines that we are wizards, while they can only be Muggles?"

His gaze returned to the center of the stands, and this time, he took a deep look at the silver-haired, silver-bearded old man. Headmaster Dumbledore's azure eyes met his, his gaze no longer simply gentle, but filled with profound admiration.

Even though he already knew what Lynch was going to talk about from the detailed teaching plan he submitted, Dumbledore still couldn't help but admire Lynch's keen observation and profound thinking as he sat there and listened to him reveal the fundamental issues of the wizarding world over the past few centuries in clear and logical words.

Professor Lynch's gaze returned to the audience, and his voice was full of power:

"The spark of magic blooms only in the depths of a very few souls..."

This unique spark that quietly blooms deep within your, my, and his soul is the true source of that seemingly invisible yet insurmountable chasm between us and Muggles!

He pointed to his chest, as if an invisible flame was burning there.

"This spark deep within our souls not only defines us, but also brings us a... mysterious power."

His words carried an alluring magic: "This power flows in the blood of every true wizard, permeating our bones and our spirit."

It is formless and intangible, impossible to measure with conventional instruments, yet its existence is undeniably revealed in every wave of the wand and every incantation recited!

He paused, allowing this understanding to take root in the students' hearts like a seed, before decisively giving his final conclusion:

"It is one of the fundamental reasons why wizards can unleash flames, flowing water, and light by waving their wands!"

When we study Charms, practice Transfiguration, and delve into Potions, we are essentially learning how to more effectively and subtly guide and utilize this power hidden within us.

Lynch's eyes brightened as if trying to see the essence of magic, and he uttered the definition clearly and forcefully:

"I call this invisible power within my body—magic!"

Like a boulder thrown into a calm lake, a chorus of suppressed gasps erupted from the stands.

All the students who had previously learned about the common knowledge of the wizarding world—from clueless first-year students to those about to graduate seventh-year students—stared wide-eyed, their faces filled with unprecedented shock.

Even the professors in the middle area, except for Dumbledore who remained smiling, McGonagall, Flitwick, Sprout, and others all showed expressions of surprise and deep thought.

Snape's face remained gloomy. No one noticed that the corner of his mouth turned down almost imperceptibly, and a complex emotion flashed in the depths of his dark eyes. He sat up even straighter.

For a long time, the magical world has been accustomed to using magic, studying the effects of spells, potion recipes, and the characteristics of magical creatures, but very few people have thought about the primal power that drives all miracles—the power inherent in the wizards themselves! This concept is so basic, yet so awe-inspiring!

Professor Lynch's voice echoed clearly in the air above the venue:

"Therefore, let's return to our original question—what is magic?"

I believe that magic is simply the response of a wizard's inner magical power to their will!

As he spoke with resounding force, the large, floating silver characters in mid-air suddenly disintegrated and reformed, ultimately transforming into a single sentence—

Magic is the response of magical power to will.

These words floated in the air above the oak grandstand, radiating a dazzling silver light that was reflected in everyone's eyes.

It was as if someone had cast an explosion spell on the stands, and a wave of shocked discussion erupted throughout the stands.

Harry looked around in confusion. Many of the younger wizards, like himself, were still in a daze, only feeling that they had just heard something incredible.

The older students, however, seemed to have heard something earth-shattering, constantly exclaiming things like "Merlin's beard" and "Merlin's fat underpants."

Some people scratched their heads and started arguing loudly with the people next to them.

From the area where the professors were seated, there was also a lively discussion. Harry saw Professor Flitwick excitedly standing on his chair, gesturing wildly and shouting.

Harry couldn't understand why older wizards understood the astonishing nature of Professor Lynch's conclusion so well—no one had ever dissected magic so deeply and clearly before!

It was as if someone had cleared away the fog that had been shrouding their eyes, allowing them to clearly see the beautiful world!