Time passed quickly.
On the first of September, Jeremy bid farewell to Grandpa Cora, set off carrying a suitcase and holding an owl cage.
Jeremy took a few steps out the door, turned back, and saw Grandpa Cora standing reluctantly in the same spot, and couldn't help but sigh.
Grandpa Cora had fortunately escaped Voldemort's persecution, but he was advanced in years, had no family or children by his side, and lived alone guarding the junk shop, quite lonely.
He had even thought that the entire Pringle family had passed away, and only kept bringing out the dividend each month to maintain the pretense of still having someone to care about, just to preserve a memory for himself.
Grandpa Cora said that day in Diagon Alley, when he saw Jeremy following Professor McGonagall inside, he was actually very excited, but afraid of frightening him, so he didn't dare say much.
These past two months, aside from going home to sleep and practice, Jeremy had spent all his time at the junk shop.
He brought his textbooks to the junk shop, previewing them while asking Grandpa Cora about knowledge of the wizarding world; Grandpa Cora was very happy and also very learned. The old man and the child communicated very pleasantly, and Jeremy could even learn and use spells under Grandpa Cora's guidance.
Jeremy was very satisfied with his progress over these two months; chakra extraction proceeded smoothly, reaching the level of an excellent genin, and his corresponding magical control was also very good; he could proficiently use all the spells first-years were supposed to learn.
When Grandpa Cora saw that Jeremy was also interested in Potions, he even dug out some potion ingredients from the junk shop and let Jeremy try brewing potions.
Seeing Jeremy's surprised expression, Grandpa Cora said somewhat proudly:
"My shop here is a junk shop, after all; what don't I have? Simple potion formulas and raw ingredients are quite common; with an old Ravenclaw like me here, giving you guidance is more than enough."
And Jeremy was pleasantly surprised to discover that his Byakugan could judge the quality of potion ingredients and the final brewed potion based on the brightness of the magical glow.
Most of the time, the light mass during potion brewing emitted a stable glow, but once a problem occurred during brewing, the light mass would flicker continuously; the more urgent and flustered the flickering, the greater the problem during brewing, and the quality of the final potion would naturally decline.
Furthermore, the brighter the light emitted by the finished potion, the better its quality.
Given Jeremy's current level, Grandpa Cora only allowed him to brew the first-year Cure for Boils potion.
Jeremy handled the ingredients perfectly and brewed smoothly, but the final product, which emitted a faint glow, left him somewhat dissatisfied. He had thought he had talent for Potions, yet the potion quality was only barely acceptable.
But Grandpa Cora was very satisfied; to be able to handle magic and brew a potion to a passing standard upon first contact already demonstrated Jeremy's exceptional talent.
Jeremy was not proud because of Grandpa Cora's praise.
The ingredient handling and brewing process for beginner potions were quite similar to chopping vegetables and simmering soup; besides, in the life before last, he had also studied diligently in school chemistry lab classes.
Snapping back to reality, Jeremy saw Grandpa Cora lowering his head to wipe away tears, and he himself felt somewhat reluctant. But time waited for no one; Jeremy took a deep breath, turned around, and left.
Regarding the portraits of Lawrence and Anne, Jeremy had originally wanted to ask Professor McGonagall to replicate them. However, Professor McGonagall had left rather hastily that day, and Jeremy forgot to mention it. Fortunately, Grandpa Cora's magical skill was also considerable; he helped replicate a copy, allowing Jeremy to take it with him at the start of term.
Grandpa Cora even kept a copy for himself.
"Oh, this old man only has Lawrence as a friend; I want them to keep me company."
Jeremy arrived smoothly at King's Cross Station, carrying his suitcase, walking like an ordinary Muggle to the outside of Platform Nine and Three-Quarters. Shielded by the station's Confundus Charm, he passed through the barrier without issue and arrived before the true magical world.
Ah, the magical world, truly it was...
Well, truly it was an old-fashioned, retro train.
Jeremy, coming from the twenty-first century, couldn't say this train was beautiful, but the magical power surging around the train excited him greatly.
With such intense magical fluctuations, Hogwarts should surely be even more intense; over seven years of schooling, his strength should be able to increase significantly.
Jeremy had arrived relatively early; he found an empty compartment, sat down, and took out a book titled "Basic Principles of Potion-Making" to read. This was a book Grandpa Cora had helped him buy, explaining the principles behind brewing potions and handling ingredients.
Jeremy read with great interest; the familiar learning style made him feel as if he had returned to a chemistry class.
Jeremy had always believed that the most important part of learning was building a solid foundation and studying principles.
Just as science has its own logical system, magic must certainly have its own logical system as well. Science cannot declare magic an illusory existence simply because it cannot explain it, because magic can explain itself.
He firmly believed that mastering the fundamental principles of magic would better help him learn advanced knowledge and also enable him to troubleshoot problems in a clear and orderly manner when encountering difficulties.
While he was reading, voices outside the compartment grew louder. With a swoosh sound, the compartment door slid open.
"Hello, may we sit in here?"
Two boys entered; the one with brown hair and a round face spoke, asking Jeremy.
"Of course, no problem." Jeremy nodded.
After the two had each put away their luggage and sat down to rest, Jeremy asked curiously:
"Are you first-years too?"
The round-faced young wizard exchanged a glance with his companion and replied:
"Yes, Jamie and I, oh, I'm Thomas Ellis, he's Jim Hardwick. We're neighbors and also good friends, and of course, we're also new students. We were overjoyed when we received the owl post; I mean, we thought Hogwarts was so severely damaged by You-Know-Who that it wouldn't be able to open for a while."
"Um, I said You-Know-Who, you understand what I mean, right?"
Thomas Ellis seemed to be a bit of a chatterbox; when Jeremy asked, he immediately rattled off a lot. Finally, Thomas glanced at Jeremy's appearance, which wasn't quite like a typical British, especially his rather unusual pupils, and tactfully probed with a hint.
Jeremy noticed Jim Hardwick quietly tug at Thomas's sleeve, and Thomas's face showed a hint of chagrin.
Before Thomas could start to salvage the situation, Jeremy calmly spoke:
"Of course, I understand. It was precisely because of the persecution by You-Know-Who and the Death Eaters that our family moved to live in the Muggle world. But my father always believed that Hogwarts was the safest place; here resides the greatest white wizard, our Headmaster."
"By the way, I'm Jeremy Pringle. You can call me Jeremy."
Thomas and Jim both sighed in relief and simultaneously broke into smiles.
Thomas continued, his tone much more relaxed this time.
"Right, yes, yes, Hogwarts is the safest. Sorry, looking at your appearance, I thought you were, um, a Muggle-born wizard."
Jeremy didn't mind; the hardest times had passed, and now being a Muggle-born wasn't something to be avoided.
"My father is Pure-blood, my mother was Muggle-born; she had ancestry from other countries, so I don't look quite like a typical British."
Jim remained silent, stealing a glance at Jeremy's eyes, looking a bit frightened.
Jeremy deliberately said bitterly:
"You find it frightening to look at too, right? When the Death Eater's curse hit me, my father's protective charm also struck me at the same time. No one knows what reaction occurred, but in the end, my pupils turned like this; from a distance, it looks like I have no eyeballs at all."
Jim and Thomas were startled, inwardly cursing their bad luck; they had clearly touched a sore spot for their new classmate.
Thomas quickly apologized:
"Sorry, sorry, we didn't mean it. Anything can happen with magical accidents. You've never been to St Mungo's, right? The patients in the Spell Damage ward there have problems far more serious than yours."
"Besides, this was caused by your father's protective charm; maybe it's actually your father's love for you."
After Thomas finished speaking, he exchanged a glance with Jim, and they both hummed in agreement.
Jeremy continued to feign sadness:
"But my father was seriously injured in the battle and passed away."
Thomas and Jim: …
Jim offered a dry consolation:
"It's okay, you still have your mother."
Jeremy sighed even more heavily and said:
"My mother, like my father, also passed away."
Thomas and Jim: …
Merlin's socks, they must have been hit by a jinx of bad luck.