NOVEL FROG Chapter 27: The Nature of the Soul
Tver looked at Hermione with some surprise.
He had simply assigned this task to prevent the first years from slacking off due to lack of homework.
But he hadn't expected someone to take it so seriously and execute it with such dedication.
While speaking, Tver took out a test paper.
"To be honest, I was worried that you might be too focused on theoretical knowledge and neglect practical application."
The first thing Hermione noticed wasn't the test paper but Tver's hand.
His fair and clearly articulated hand was as beautiful as a work of art, but on the long index finger, he wore a dark gold ring with a black gemstone engraved, captivating her eyes like a black hole.
Tver withdrew his hand, and Hermione came back to her senses.
She embarrassedly averted her gaze and focused on the test paper.
It was the test she had taken in her first class, untouched by any marks of correction, no different from the one she had turned in.
"You're the only one in the first year who got full marks. Even Malfoy, who came second, couldn't answer some of the knowledge from the back of the textbook."
Facing Tver's approving gaze, Hermione felt a bit shy and lowered her head.
"I've just read more books than others, and the test wasn't too difficult. Anyone who memorized the textbook knowledge could achieve this level."
Thinking of Harry, the savior with dismal grades, Tver laughed happily.
"You'd better keep that to yourself here. If those students who can't even pass know about it, they'll be upset. But there aren't many young wizards like you. Can I ask, did you memorize the whole book?"
Hermione immediately looked up with joy. "Yes, not only 'Dark Arts: A Self-Defense Guide,' but also the textbooks for Transfiguration and Charms. I've memorized them all! Professor, have you read many books? You must have memorized quite a few as well, right?"
This was something she took pride in.
Coming from a Muggle background, she was worried about falling behind her classmates in school progress. After buying the textbooks, she spent day and night reading them and memorizing them.
Tver threw cold water on her enthusiasm.
"As you read more and more, you'll stop memorizing books. Understanding is more important than memorization."
Memorizing without understanding is meaningless and will only consume time that he already has little of. So he never thought about memorizing things that were meaningless to him.
Of course, his memory was already good, but there was a subtle difference between memorization and understanding. He only memorized word for word the knowledge he urgently needed to understand.
Seeing Hermione's disappointed expression, Tver comforted her.
"Of course, your ability to memorize shows your effort, and as a professor, I always have a special fondness for hardworking students. But it's a bit crowded here, so I can't help you with practical practice. How about I help you with any learning difficulties you have?"
The girl's face immediately brightened, excitedly glowing with enthusiasm, showing no trace of her previous disappointment.
Tver was amazed at how girls' emotions could change faster than the book "Four Elements."
With Tver's permission, Hermione straightforwardly threw out the doubts she had accumulated in class, not only about Defence Against the Dark Arts but also about Transfiguration and other courses.
Even though Hermione was intelligent, she was still a first-year student who had only been in school for a week, so the questions she asked weren't overly complex.
So even if it was an astronomy question, Tver could answer it with his extensive knowledge.
Time passed gradually, and soon an hour had passed.
Tver took a sip of pumpkin juice and realized that the cup was already empty, only then noticing that it was already ten o'clock.
For him, it was just the beginning of a night of studying, but for the students, it was curfew time.
"Oh, it's already this late. Let's end it here for tonight. Hurry back to the common room. If you run into any other professors or caretakers like Filch, just say you were receiving tutoring from me."
Hermione nodded despondently and left Tver's office.
Tonight, she had learned a lot, not only from the textbooks but also from many unusual perspectives she had never heard of before.
For example, when ordinary spells were paired with advanced magical knowledge, they could unleash tremendous power.
This was something she had never seen in the textbooks!
Tver watched Hermione's figure leave, standing at the door lost in thought.
"Why, trying to use that little witch as your new... what's it called, tool?" an indifferent voice echoed in Tver's mind.
But he didn't answer, instead feeling the ring on his hand.
Tonight, he was actually studying Dark Arts, researching Dark Magic he had never touched before.
One of the Unforgivable Curses is the Imperius Curse.
Tver was proficient in many forms of magic: Transfiguration, Fiendfyre, Shield, and many other peculiar forms of Dark Magic.
But if there was one thing he excelled at, it was the study of souls.
This was because the ring on his hand housed a soul, one that had been intent on corrupting his own soul.
"Hey hey, don't casually slander souls. It's only been the first three years, okay?" Voldemort hurriedly retorted without digressing. "Since you learned Occlumency, you've been researching me in reverse!"
In any case, his research on souls had reached an unparalleled level.
But he had yet to delve into the Unforgivable Curses.
The Imperius Curse—controls souls;
The Cruciatus Curse—tortures souls;
The Killing Curse—destroys souls!
The deeper his study of souls, the deeper his fear of these three curses.
If it were simply a matter of usage, he could have effortlessly mastered them five years ago.
But from ancient times to the present, no one has been able to control these three curses.
Wizards had developed countless advanced applications of magic, but these three curses remained in their hands, used only sparingly.
"Nothing can't be solved by the Killing Curse, if anything, twice," Voldemort rambled on, "I really wonder what you've encountered to have your mind so heavily corrupted."
Indeed, before Hermione came here tonight, Tver had been studying the Imperius Curse.
Studying Dark Magic required safeguarding one's mind from being corrupted by evil thoughts, or else one would become a slave to Dark Magic.
So he habitually found a tool for himself, providing a channel for mental relaxation during breaks in his research on Dark Magic.
But while researching the Imperius Curse, he could keenly experience a sense of control, a thrill of manipulating a life at his whim.
This thrill was merely a low-level aspect amid the negative effects of Dark Magic, but for Tver, who naturally controlled the plot of this world, it was an innate notion.
So he almost lost his mind, but in that moment, he seemed to sense the essence of the soul.
It was also in that instant that his consciousness returned to his body, causing him to frantically run outside the office to soothe his mind.
"I've seen things you've never seen, Voldemort," Tver sneered as he watched the torches outside gradually extinguish, his figure also fading into the darkness. "That is the greatest secret of the soul."