Entry is in Hand!
Devereux leisurely ate his breakfast in the Hogwarts dining hall while organizing his attribute panel.
He had finally asked the system about it—and had figured some things out.
To his surprise, the Potion Spirit Body entry turned out to be classified as a magic-type entry. Even more shocking, his Magical Prodigy entry was its absolute superior!
All spellcasting-related entries were subordinate to Magical Prodigy and would automatically merge when loaded. So there was no need to regret missing out on copying the Potion Spirit Body entry earlier. In fact, everything in his current body had already been optimized for spellcasting.
Still...
Devereux couldn't help but feel that Potion Spirit Body sounded a little more intimidating as a name.
But that wasn't the point.
The real problem was that this red-grade entry had a cooldown period of a full month!
Heavens!
Dumbledore's other red-grade entry was just sitting there, ready to be claimed, and Devereux had to wait an entire month to get it? It was nothing short of torture.
Fortunately, his purple-grade entry cooldown had just refreshed.
His primary target now?
Hermione's Exam Genius (Purple) entry.
Even though he had confirmed with Dumbledore yesterday that he had received significant privileges, he still needed to go through the school's standard testing procedures—both to claim the end-of-year first-place reward and to enjoy a more comfortable academic life.
This entry was essential.
So, Devereux deliberately woke up early that morning to wait for Hermione to show up in the dining hall.
But instead...
An uninvited guest arrived.
"What! He's still here?!"
It was Malfoy, flanked as usual by his two loyal cronies.
They walked into the hall chatting and laughing, only to freeze mid-step at the sight of Devereux calmly eating in a corner.
They looked as if they had seen a ghost.
"Impossible, right? He didn't come back all night!"
"Yeah! Wasn't he called away by the Head of House? He wasn't expelled?"
They muttered among themselves, baffled.
Devereux offered a wry smile at their antics.
Honestly...
These three were really slow.
He had returned to the dormitory late last night. Sure, he didn't turn on the lights, but he'd made enough noise. How could they not have noticed?
Goyle and Crabbe were excusable—they clearly weren't the brightest.
But Malfoy?
Devereux had thought he at least had some intelligence behind those thick eyebrows and flashy sneers.
Guess not.
While he finished up his breakfast, he even took out the toad-specific feed he had bought in Diagon Alley to feed Ayr, his pet Mochou Toad.
Yesterday, when he'd gone to the Great Hall for the Sorting Ceremony and later showcased his spellcasting talent to Snape and the others, he hadn't brought Ayr along.
The groundskeeper had taken Ayr, along with his luggage, to the dormitory.
Devereux had made that choice deliberately.
After all, he had predicted that the Great Hall would be swarming with students.
And Ayr... well, it wasn't exactly a cute pet by human standards.
It had stayed on the train instead.
Now it was time to properly reward his companion.
He sighed slightly, glancing at Malfoy and his gang who still hadn't stopped whispering while casting wary glances at him.
Even Malfoy had made it to the dining hall.
But where was Hermione?
Devereux frowned.
He glanced at his watch—it was getting close to class time.
No more waiting.
He shoveled down the last of his breakfast and stood.
He would talk to Hermione later, maybe after class.
Thanks to his Magical Prodigy entry, Devereux didn't get lost navigating Hogwarts, unlike Harry and Ron in the original book.
He could feel the emotional "aura" of the moving staircases—some had calm emotions, others were chaotic.
He instinctively took the more stable ones and arrived smoothly at his first class.
Transfiguration!
The classroom was bathed in the gentle glow of morning sunlight.
Leaves outside swayed in the breeze, their shadows dancing across the windows.
On the podium table lay a tabby cat.
Devereux recognized it immediately.
It was Professor McGonagall in her Animagus form!
Ah—he really wanted to pet it!
But he resisted.
She was, after all, the Head of House.
Better not get on her bad side.
As he entered the classroom, Devereux's eyes found Hermione.
She had arrived even earlier.
Clearly, she'd finished breakfast and come straight here to prepare.
As expected of someone with the Exam Genius entry.
Devereux almost felt ashamed in comparison.
She was sitting by the window, sunlight casting a golden halo over her curly hair.
She was intently focused on her Transfiguration textbook—probably reviewing.
Actually, with Hermione, it was more likely she had already memorized the whole book and was now reviewing it for the third or fourth time.
Around her, most students still looked half-asleep.
The contrast was almost laughable.
Just as Devereux was observing her, Hermione stretched slightly and lifted her gaze—only to meet his.
She smiled warmly and waved at him.
The sunlight streamed in through the window behind her, making her smile seem almost ethereal.
Devereux felt a subtle warmth rise in his chest.
For the first time, he felt an unexpected sense of intimacy.
"Good morning, Devereux!"
Her voice was light and cheerful.
The fatigue he felt from waking up early instantly vanished.
Before class began, he walked toward her with a casual air.
"I didn't expect you to be sorted into Gryffindor," he said conversationally. "I thought you'd end up in Ravenclaw for sure."
Hermione laughed lightly.
"Yeah, the Sorting Hat was really conflicted. But speaking of which—you! I thought you'd end up in Ravenclaw. You seemed so confident about it at first. I didn't expect... Slytherin."
She looked a little disappointed.
"You said the Hat respects students' choices, so why'd you end up in Slytherin?"
By now, Devereux had stepped within three meters of Hermione.
[Ding!]
[Entry loading!]
Devereux smiled.
"I asked the headmaster about that yesterday."
Hermione's eyes widened in surprise.
"You talked to the headmaster? What did he say?"
Devereux leaned back slightly against the nearby wall.
[Entry copied!]
Success!
Immediately, he felt his mind sharpen.
It was like all the textbooks he'd memorized during his previous life's senior year of high school came flooding back.
Still, he gave Hermione a sheepish smile.
"He said I was a natural Slytherin."
Hermione twisted a strand of hair around her finger, pouting slightly.
"Huh? But you don't seem like the other Slytherins at all…"
Clearly, Malfoy's behavior had already biased her against the house.
Devereux gave her a thumbs-up in his mind.
He agreed wholeheartedly.
He didn't fit in with most of them either.