The sound of an owl's wings echoed in the air.
Soon after, several letters adorned with elegant gold-embossed fonts fluttered down into Professor Sprout's hands.
She gave one a quick glance and smiled.
Turning to Char, she said warmly,
"The paper on Piranha Algae and the Frequency Light Spell has been accepted."
"It's scheduled for the front page of the Herbology Journal right after the Christmas holidays."
"Congratulations, Char."
She added, "Once it's published, your path as a Herbology Master officially begins."
Hearing this, Char felt a wave of emotions swell within him.
In his previous life, publishing even a single paper for graduation had been an exhausting, soul-crushing task.
But now, after transmigrating to this magical world, was it really this easy to publish in a top-tier journal?
Of course, he understood the real reason:
Professor Sprout was listed as the corresponding author.
Titles like Herbology Master, Dean of Hufflepuff, and Order of Merlin recipient—these weren't mere labels. In the Muggle world, they would be equivalent to top Nobel laureates.
She didn't just have prestige. She had an entire academic faction behind her.
With her name attached to the submission, even a blank sheet might have passed peer review.
Char, however, didn't feel any shame about it.
Why wouldn't he benefit from his aunt's influence?
Besides, the discovery of Piranha Algae genuinely deserved a front-page feature.
He had merely taken an express route.
More importantly, Char wasn't even interested in academic fame.
What truly mattered to him was the experimental field—actual resources, tangible results.
To be able to grow another type of magical plant in the Hogwarts Greenhouse? That was everything to him.
So he asked Professor Sprout about it directly.
Sprout's expression turned amused yet helpless.
When she had published her first top-tier paper, she had been too excited to sleep for days.
But her nephew? He didn't even smile.
All he cared about was expanding his experimental planting area.
He really was born for Herbology.
Sprout chuckled and reassured him,
"Don't worry. I've already reserved the experimental field quota for you."
"Once the paper is published, it's yours."
At those words, Char finally let out a breath of relief.
His eyes shone with anticipation.
Now, all he had to do was promote the Pruning Charm and await Margaret's harvest.
After the Christmas holidays, he could begin mass-planting Devil's Snare in the new field.
Including the Guardian Tree, he would be cultivating two silver-tier plants in bulk!
The thought sent excitement rushing through him.
He immediately dove into Pruning Charm practice once more.
Seeing this, Professor Sprout smiled and left the greenhouse quietly.
The Sprout family home fell into silence again.
So quiet, in fact, that even the faint buzzing of a beetle's wings could be heard fading into the distance.
But moments later, deep in the forest near the Sprout residence—
That very beetle, which shouldn't have appeared in this season, began to transform.
In an instant, it changed into a woman dressed in vibrant green, golden hair ornaments gleaming, and hair curled in stiff, dramatic waves.
Any wizard familiar with the journalism world would instantly recognize her:
Rita Skeeter—a rising star among magical reporters.
She was the same journalist who would one day write The Life and Lies of Dumbledore and who had fabricated scandalous stories during the Triwizard Tournament.
Right now, she wasn't that famous yet. But her ambition was already blazing.
Her eyes sparkled as she muttered to herself,
"This is huge."
"I only came here out of routine curiosity after hearing that the Sprouts had a new heir. I thought maybe I'd find a little gossip..."
"I never imagined I'd stumble upon a bombshell."
"Who would have thought the famously upright Professor Sprout would pull strings to help her nephew publish in a top journal?"
"An eleven-year-old wizard, getting published in a top-tier Herbology journal thanks to nepotism?"
"Scandalous. Absolutely scandalous."
She chuckled to herself.
"Tsk, tsk… People are going to love this kind of exposé—stripping away the noble masks of their so-called heroes."
"The Daily Prophet's front page tomorrow? Already decided."
Although she had only caught a snippet of the conversation between Char and Professor Sprout, she didn't need more.
Fabrication had always been her specialty.
With even one piece of overheard dialogue, she could spin ten tales of corruption and scandal.
As for facts?
"Please," she scoffed, "if news reporting were really about truth and objectivity, every newspaper—Muggle and Magical—would've gone bankrupt by now."
Meanwhile, back at the greenhouse—
Neither Char nor Professor Sprout had the faintest idea of the storm Rita was about to stir up.
Char had stopped all combat training temporarily.
All of his focus was now locked onto one thing:
Practicing the Pruning Charm.
And his subject of practice? None other than Devil's Snare.
Char had chosen it for a very specific reason.
The plant's resistance to the Pruning Charm was incredibly high.
Without Water Enhancement, even the best spell only left a white mark—healing in moments.
But this resistance made it perfect for practice.
The more resistant the subject, the more effective the training.
And as long as he avoided the plant's magical nodes, it wouldn't affect the quality of future cultivation.
There was still plenty of surface left to prune.
Char stared at the writhing Devil's Snare in front of him.
He raised his wand and cast a Pruning Charm.
Just like before, a faint white line appeared.
The plant didn't react. In fact, its magical aura almost seemed amused.
"Is that it?" it seemed to whisper.
"Didn't you eat today?"
Char simply smiled. He wasn't offended.
His attention shifted to the system panel—specifically, to the "Pruning Charm" skill.
He was so close to reaching Platinum-tier.
This promotion would be more difficult than any prior one—more difficult even than reaching Gold.
Earlier, after pruning Margaret meticulously for days, he had barely seen progress.
But now—just one attempt on the Devil's Snare, and there it was:
A small, yet visible improvement.
This was all the encouragement he needed.
He looked at the plant again.
To him, it wasn't just a Devil's Snare anymore.
It was a training amplifier.
A moment later, he licked his lips, lifted his wand, and began.
The Pruning Charm fell like torrential rain.
Again. And again.
At first, the Devil's Snare was full of disdain.
It mocked him. "You think this will work?"
"How long can you keep this up?"
But time passed. One hour. Two. Then three.
Char's hand never slowed. His eyes never lost focus.
To him, each charm wasn't a chore.
It was joy.
In just a few hours, his progress outpaced the gains of the previous three days.
He couldn't stop. Wouldn't stop.
Meanwhile, something changed in the Devil's Snare.
At first, it mocked.
Then it grew… confused.
"Why isn't he giving up?"
"Isn't he tired?"
But the truth was, Char wasn't tired.
It was.
Even small marks, repeated thousands of times, drained its nutrients.
Then, Char suddenly stopped.
The Devil's Snare felt a wave of relief.
"Finally… he's tired," it thought.
But a moment later, Char uncorked a small potion bottle.
Left by Professor Sprout, this potion helped restore nutrients lost during magical pruning.
He dropped a single bead of it onto the plant.
Its energy surged back. It felt lively again.
But then—
Char said softly,
"Rested up?"
"Then let's continue."
Once again, the Pruning Charm poured down.
The Devil's Snare writhed in despair.
"No… not again…"
"Please, I just got my energy back…"
"What do you want from me?!"
Char didn't care.
Why stop? One drop of potion was enough to restore it.
Besides, Devil's Snare didn't have any labor rights.
It was young. It could handle this much.
If it complained, it simply needed more training.
More intensity.
Meanwhile, the glow of the Pruning Charm on Char's system panel grew brighter.
Unknowingly, night had passed.
The morning sun crept into the greenhouse.
And at that moment—
The long-dormant glow of platinum erupted in brilliance before Char's eyes.
The text on his system panel shimmered.
Then:
[Pruning Charm (Platinum-tier)] – Promotion Successful!
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