Hogwarts: Proficiency Panel

Chapter 379 380: An Audacious Plan

The Room of Hope had undergone a magnificent transformation.

According to the Owl Gentleman, the room could shift its form at a moment's notice; whatever they required, the magic of the castle would provide. Consequently, Justin now had a fully functional kitchen and a vibrant interior garden, while Hermione was surrounded by rows of towering mahogany bookshelves.

Sean cast a knowing glance toward the left side of the room, where a small, inconspicuous door had been hidden within the paneling. He didn't enter his private workshop immediately. Instead, he sat at his wooden cabinet and began his daily review of his magical progress.

First, regarding Transfiguration: he had achieved the rank of Master, yet he was still in the "Combat Rating: 5" phase. He opened his system panel:

[Magical Transfiguration: Entry (Master) (50/900)]

[Material Transfiguration: Adept (Master) (10/3000)]

[Soul Transfiguration: Adept (Master) (50/3000)]

Magical Transfiguration, which had once been his leading discipline, was now falling behind the others. Sean didn't care for the imbalance. To reach the "Legendary" tier of Transfiguration, he knew the requirements were steep: two Master-level sub-skills and one Legendary sub-skill. He couldn't afford to neglect any of them.

On the bright side, reaching the [Adept] level in Soul Transfiguration felt significant. Sean intuitively sensed that his soul-craft had undergone a fundamental shift, though because he wasn't currently in the "soul-naked" environment of the Lands Between, he couldn't yet feel the full extent of the change.

Second, regarding Alchemy: he had successfully identified two out of the three required High-Tier Alchemical Constructs: the Wizard's Tome and the Fairy Tale Biscuits.

[High-Tier: Wizard's Tome: Apprentice (100/300)]

[High-Tier: Fairy Tale Biscuits: Expert (6700/9000)]

[Promotion: Three Master-level high-tier Alchemical creations required to unlock the 'Master Alchemist' title.]

Progress on the first two was slow but steady, but Sean was still searching for the third and final masterpiece.

He moved his gaze down the list, checking his proficiency in Potions, Herbology, Charms, and the Dark Arts. Through his relentless daily study, their progress remained firm. However, most were still sitting in the [Adept] tier.

The only outlier was Divination.

It was a maddeningly abstract branch of magic. Even after studying under Master Firenze for months, Sean hadn't been able to unlock the skill—he was perpetually three proficiency points away from the breakthrough.

Firenze, however, remained unruffled. "We define the infinite, shifting web of cause and effect as 'Destiny,'" the centaur had told him. "When studying such a force, finding that the unexpected is the only constant is to be expected."

And so, Sean remained stuck at the final hurdle.

The busy days flowed past like water in a stream.

Harry and Ron spent their time marveling at the Room of Hope's new layout, but they were even more staggered by the change in Justin and Hermione. In the past, the duo had always been studious, but now, they seemed to have abandoned all leisure entirely. They spent every waking hour in the room as if they were possessed, determined to realize every drop of their magical potential.

In the dead of night, usually minutes before the final chime of curfew, Sean would walk them back to their dormitories. Mr. Filch always seemed to conveniently look the other way when they passed. As the castle's caretaker, he was well aware of the "extraordinary and perplexing" changes in the two younger students. But he viewed it as a positive influence brought about by Mr. Green, so he let it slide.

On a crisp morning when a layer of hard frost crusted the stones of the corridors, Justin finally approached Sean.

"Sean, while we were home for the Christmas holidays, we spent our time investigating Lockhart's history. But..."

Hermione picked up the thread. "He's like Voldemort. He's a master of flattery and manipulation. It's nearly impossible to find a witness willing to testify against him."

Hermione flinched slightly at the name, but she forced herself to say it with a look of iron determination.

"What do you plan to do?" Sean asked. He set aside his copy of The Book of Ghosts and tucked his Two-Way Mirror and biscuits into his pouch.

"We're going to get the truth from his own mouth!" Hermione said firmly.

"Hermione wants to brew Veritaserum," Justin explained the plan. "Once it's ready, we'll subdue Lockhart and force a confession."

If Ron had been there to hear it, he would have likely said, "Have you ever heard of a plan with so many ways to go horribly wrong?"

But Sean merely offered a calm nod. "I see. No problem."

"Brilliant!" Justin and Hermione beamed with relief.

"What do you need from me?" Sean asked.

He spoke as though taking down a Hogwarts professor was a task as mundane as clearing a patch of weeds. His friends, for their part, never doubted for a second that Sean could do exactly what he said. If Sean ever announced he was going to duel Voldemort himself, they'd probably skip the worrying and start discussing how to stop the Dark Lord from fleeing.

"We need you for the hardest part," Justin said, his voice dropping to a low, serious tone.

"Stay at the castle. Just let us know you're there."

By the fourth week after the holiday break, Justin and Hermione were fully committed to their clandestine operation.

Justin took charge of the logistics for subduing Lockhart, while Hermione dedicated herself to the grueling process of brewing the Truth Potion. Sean was genuinely curious to see if a second-year could pull off a master-level potion, and just as curious to see how Justin planned to restrain a wizard who, while a fraud, was still an expert at Memory Charms.

The stakes prompted Sean to accelerate his own project: the Two-Way Mirrors. Compared to his Project Map, the mirrors would offer a vastly superior level of utility and communication. If anything went wrong with his friends' plan, he needed to be able to know and arrive instantly.

Meanwhile, his affinity with Iffa had officially reached the [Close] rank. Sean predicted he would have a working Wampus Biscuit within the week.

Aside from his alchemical work and spell-grinding, Sean was waiting for one specific moment: the recovery of the Soul Hallow.

It had been over a week since he had last entered the soul realm. His Soul Transfiguration was now at the [Adept] level, which meant he should have undergone a fundamental change—but without entering the Lands Between, that change remained a hidden, dormant instinct.

That evening, a biting wind cut through the grounds, nipping at fingers and cheeks. The sky and the enchanted ceiling of the Great Hall shifted into a cold, pale blue-grey. The mountains surrounding the school wore thick white caps of snow, and the temperature in the corridors had plummeted. Students hurried between classes, nearly all of them wearing thick dragon-hide gloves.

As Sean walked through the hallway, the Soul Hallow against his chest pulsed with a faint, rhythmic light.

Sean's calm eyes widened slightly. His pace quickened.

Night arrived on schedule.

Candlelight flickered in the windows of Ravenclaw Tower as students debated the day's lessons in hushed, excited tones. Sean walked through the common room, his gaze passing over the statue of Rowena Ravenclaw. The stone diadem sat upon her carved white curls...

The moment he stepped into his dormitory, the mist began to rise.

[End of Chapter 380]

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