After finishing that sleep-inducing History of Magic class in the morning, his "serious business" for the day was done, leaving him with a large amount of free time.
History of Magic was taught by a ghost named Professor Binns.
This Professor… how to put it, Lynn seriously suspected he was getting senile.
When taking attendance, he looked at the students sitting below with empty eyes, as if identifying prehistoric creatures, and couldn't even clearly remember the students from his own house.
But miraculously, once he started narrating the History of Magic, it was like opening a dusty historical scroll; he knew every era and every event inside out, and didn't even need to look at the textbook.
Ghosts, in essence, are also a type of specter, usually lingering in the mortal world because of some strong, unresolved obsession.
Lynn watched Professor Binns floating back and forth on the podium and couldn't help but fall into contemplation:
What was this Professor's obsession? Lynn had no idea.
But the school definitely didn't need to pay him a salary, social security, or even year-end bonuses because he was a ghost right?
"This Hogwarts… doesn't seem very proper," Lynn concluded.
The History of Magic class finally ended amidst Professor Binns's narration, which was comparable to a top-tier sleeping charm.
Lynn almost dragged his feet, drowsy and sleepy, as he shuffled out of the classroom, while his three roommates behind him were all full of energy.
You ask why they were so energetic?
Simple—they had slept enough.
Professor Binns's class was universally acknowledged as the best time for catching up on sleep…
While eating lunch in the Great Hall, Lynn pondered what to do with his free time in the afternoon.
He glanced out the window. The weather was clear, with a gentle breeze.
Excellent—perfect for fishing!
After the group ate and drank their fill, they returned to the warm, homely Hufflepuff Common Room.
Lynn eagerly pulled out his beloved fishing rods, line, hooks, and a whole set of professional equipment from his undetectable extension trunk.
"Are you going fishing?"
Edgar looked at the fully armed, bright-eyed Lynn and asked suspiciously.
"Wizards know about fishing too?"
Lynn blurted out instinctively and immediately regretted it.
The question was as stupid as asking if British people eat potatoes.
Sure enough, Edgar looked at him with a gaze reserved for idiots.
"Ahem~"
Lynn cleared his throat awkwardly and quickly changed the subject. "Are you coming? I have plenty of fishing rods here; I can lend you one."
"Really? But I don't know how."
Edgar seemed hesitant but also full of curiosity.
"No problem, I'll teach you until you get it!" Lynn patted his chest, brimming with confidence.
"Really? That sounds very interesting!"
This was said by William. He pushed up his glasses, an interested expression appearing on his face.
"Well… I'll go too."
Even Ollie, who was usually quieter and seemed less enthusiastic about most things, was drawn to this group activity and expressed his desire to join.
And so, on this afternoon, a strange sight appeared in the Hufflepuff Common Room:
Four first-year Wizards, each carrying an empty keepnet and holding fishing rods of varying lengths, marched out of the common room with great spirit, crossed the corridors, and headed outside the Castle…
They passed through the wide lawn and arrived at the shore of the Black Lake.
"First, let's choose our fishing spots!"
"Look, this spot is great—the water flow is gentle, there's aquatic grass…"
"Then we do it like this… then like this… watch the float carefully… when you feel a pull, don't yank immediately…"
Lynn blabbered on with a bunch of theories, imparting all his knowledge.
"Did you all understand?" Finally, he looked at the three "apprentices" expectantly.
Although the three were a bit confused, they nodded as if they somewhat understood.
Seeing that they all indicated they got it, Lynn didn't waste more words. He picked a "prime spot" for himself, deftly prepared his equipment, and cast his first line of the day.
And just as his hook hit the water, the system prompt in his mind rang out in a timely manner:
[Ding! Task issued: Catch a fish. Reward: Torrential Impact]
[Effect: Upon use, the wand tip will shoot out a highly compressed, internally high-speed rotating powerful water stream, with enough force to knock down a Troll.]
[You'll probably use it to put out fires, right? Probably… right?]
Seeing a system task, Lynn got even more excited.
He remembered that golden rule: "Fishing without baiting—even if you catch something, it won't be much."
So he grabbed another handful of the bait he had prepared in advance and scattered it near his float.
Lynn held his breath and concentrated, his gaze fixed tightly on the float on the water's surface, as if waiting for a world to open up.
However, the opening of a world seemed to have descended upon someone else first.
"It moved! It moved!"
Edgar beside him suddenly shouted excitedly, his fishing rod shaking continuously.
He clumsily grabbed his rod, imitating what Lynn had taught, and began playing the fish rather unskillfully. With some effort, he finally managed to reel it in.
A rather plump-looking cod, estimated to be about three pounds, successfully landed!
As if some strange switch had been flipped, after Edgar caught one, William's and Ollie's rods also started getting action one after another.
William and Ollie each caught a decent-sized cod as well…
Time passed slowly amidst Lynn's long and motionless wait.
His float seemed welded to the water's surface, without even the slightest tremor.
He looked at the gradually increasing "spoils" in his three roommates' keepnets, then looked at his own completely empty one. (￣へ￣)
He even considered swapping fishing spots with Edgar and the others, but his dignity as a "fishing master" wouldn't let him stoop to that.
"Lynn, haven't you caught a fish yet?"
Just then, Edgar, who was already quite successful, walked over and "concernedly" asked.
Lynn's face flushed, and he stubbornly said, "What do you know? I'm waiting for a big one! The ones you guys are catching are too small; I don't care for them!"
He absolutely would not admit that he might, perhaps, maybe… be about to come back empty-handed again.
"Oh, I see."
Edgar nodded, seeming to understand, but not fully.
"Alright then, the few of us plan to head back to the common room first, to take these to the kitchen for the house-elves to help prepare dinner. You should head back early too."
After saying that, Edgar, William, and Ollie picked up their "spoils" and headed toward the Castle.
Watching his roommates' retreating backs, Lynn let out a long sigh. Gazing at the calm lake surface, he muttered to himself, "Is this the legendary newbie protection period? Why does it specifically avoid me?"
Disbelieving, he waited for a long while longer, until the setting sun began to gild the lake surface with gold, yet his float remained utterly unresponsive.
With his patience almost completely exhausted, Lynn had already started packing up his auxiliary equipment, preparing to accept the reality of coming back empty-handed yet again today.
Just then, a large, fat carp, estimated to be over ten pounds, of all things, slowly meandered into the shallow waters near the shore.
Right under Lynn's very eyes, it began leisurely nibbling on the grass by the water's edge.
Its leisurely posture silently mocked Lynn, who had been sitting fruitlessly all afternoon.
Lynn looked at this grass carp before him, then lowered his head to look at his still-empty keepnet.
Good grief! A blatant provocation! (▽д▽)
Lynn didn't care about any "fishing ethics" anymore. He casually picked up a handy stone from the shore, aimed at that oblivious carp, and hurled it with force!
"Thud!"
The stone accurately hit the fish's head. The carp didn't even have time to struggle before it turned belly up, floating motionless on the water.
Almost simultaneously, the crisp system prompt sounded:
[Ding! Task completed! Obtained "Torrential Impact"!]
Lynn was stunned for a moment, then waded into the water, retrieved the carp that had been "physically transcended," and threw it into his keepnet.
And so, Lynn returned to the Hufflepuff Common Room "with a full harvest," delivering that huge carp to the kitchen.
"We must have extra for dinner tonight!"
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Happy Reading. Be sure to leave a review. Thank you.
Read my other novel: Naruto: Multiverse Adventures.