The students were delighted to discover that this year's Defence Against the Dark Arts exam had changed once again.
And this time, it was a change they genuinely welcomed.
The exam was still divided into theory and practical components, and they still had to spend half a day seated in a classroom completing the written portion.
But in another classroom, something entirely different was waiting for them.
A maze.
A maze filled with all kinds of magical creatures.
And that wasn't all. Inside were riddles laid out by a certain thoughtful professor, as well as barriers that could only be passed by casting the correct counter-spells.
That said, the students didn't need to clear every single challenge perfectly.
After all, there were differences in individual ability, and Tver had deliberately included some high-difficulty sections to distinguish truly outstanding students.
So if they ran into a problem they couldn't solve, they were allowed to take a detour. It would simply cost them more time.
In the end, their final grade would be determined by a combination of their performance inside the maze and the time they took to complete it.
What surprised Tver was that, even though he had designed the challenges strictly according to the course standards, the students performed even better than he had expected.
This was especially noticeable when they faced magical creatures.
Thanks to their dueling training, their spellcasting had become far more decisive.
The only issue was that, in emergency situations, they instinctively used a lot of offensive magic rather than the correct responses Lupin had hoped to see.
If Tver hadn't prepared plenty of healing potions in advance, some of the magical creatures in the maze might not have made it to the end of the exam.
Lupin could only look helpless about it, but as Tver said while trying to reassure him:
"The so-called correct method is just what we consider the optimal solution. But for students, and even for wizards, as long as they can get through safely, that's the optimal solution."
"Then why are you still docking points?!" Lupin shot Tver an annoyed look. He had just given an A (Acceptable) to the student who had knocked the Kappa away.
"But this isn't real life. It's an exam," Tver replied matter-of-factly.
"The optimal solution is always based on a creature's weaknesses. That Kappa could have been lured onto land and tricked into bowing. He would've passed without a scratch."
"But Thomas insisted on wasting magic and fighting it head-on in the water."
"If there'd been any other creatures in there, he probably would've died on the spot!"
"So if his Impediment Jinx hadn't been well cast, forget an A. I would've given him a P (Poor)."
Lupin nodded in understanding, but Dean Thomas, who had just emerged from the maze, did not look pleased at all.
He had thought that fight was impressive. Even if it didn't earn a high grade, surely an E should have been possible.
Instead, in the professor's eyes, it was only worth the next lower grade, an A.
After that, the students no longer dared to rely on clever tricks. They behaved properly and did their best to exploit the weaknesses of magical creatures.
And it was precisely because of this that they truly came to understand just how much this approach could help them.
"The dangers we face mostly come from other wizards, so I want you to apply the weakness analysis skills you've trained on magical creatures to wizards as well."
After the exam ended, Tver addressed the students solemnly.
"These weaknesses don't necessarily mean physical flaws. They could be casting habits, unfamiliarity with certain branches of magic, or similar issues."
"You need to analyze them and exploit them if you want to deal with potential threats more effectively."
It was essentially a lesson in adapting on the battlefield.
These students were nothing like their counterparts in the original story. Tver had taught them for three full years.
From laying foundations in their first year, to exposure to real combat in their second, and now, in their third year, they were already capable of holding their own in proper duels.
At the very least, their combat strength had improved in a very real, measurable way.
But without realizing it, a sense of arrogance and carelessness had begun to take root in their minds.
The creatures Lupin brought into class were all standard textbook examples. Their danger level was limited, so even charging in head-on didn't usually put the students at serious risk.
But looking ahead, the dangers they would face in the future would be far more complex than this.
By then, it would be far too late to start thinking things through.
Lupin didn't quite know why Tver was being so serious, but he understood his thinking.
Or rather, having experienced battles both large and small himself, he strongly agreed with this approach.
"To be honest, judged by third-year standards, your abilities are very good," Lupin said.
"But measured by the standards of real wizards, every single one of you is failing, no matter how you look at it."
He promptly poured cold water over them.
"You already have to go all out just to deal with these simple creatures. If you ran into something truly powerful, what then? Would you just stand there and wait to die?!"
At first, Lupin worried that his words might be too harsh and dampen the students' spirits.
To his surprise, not a single trace of discouragement appeared. Instead, the students became more and more excited.
It was as if the school's pumpkin juice had been spiked with a cheering potion.
They completely fell in love with this exam format. Even after finishing Defence Against the Dark Arts, they wanted to keep running the maze.
Some particularly strong students even set time limits for themselves and started competing in speed runs.
Unable to withstand their constant pleas, and after discussing it with Lupin, Tver removed some of the more dangerous magical creatures and left the maze in place for the time being.
Even so, this was only one subject, and it happened to be the fastest exam to finish. The students still had several more exams to prepare for.
Only after Tver repeatedly promised that the maze wouldn't be dismantled before they left school did they reluctantly shift their attention to their other subjects.
But Tver himself, like the students, still couldn't relax.
With Lupin's help, he finished the final tasks of the school year faster than ever before. However, because of the special exam format, he and Lupin still had to grade papers for five year groups.
Normally, professors would leave that work for the summer, sending results out together with the letters for the new school year.
But this summer, Tver and Lupin were destined to be far too busy, so they had no choice but to work overtime and get it done in advance.
Especially since certain people always seemed to enjoy adding a bit more work for the two of them at the busiest possible times…
...
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