Newt noticed that his little apprentice seemed to be in low spirits ever since she came downstairs.
Was his cooking really that terrible?
The ninety-something-year-old man's fragile little heart, having already been struck by his wife, suffered another critical hit.
Newt, the current Magizoologist who was shy compared to his peers in his youth and hadn't improved much in his old age, curled up on the sofa, almost falling into a state of autistic withdrawal on the spot.
Kate, whose complexion was no better than his, brewed her emotions for a while before walking over and taking a deep breath.
"Teacher, I am ready."
The task given by the System really made one want to curse.
Whether in her past life or this one, physically and psychologically, she was a standard girl. She wouldn't say she was a germaphobe, but she at least loved cleanliness.
Suddenly being asked to shovel poop—without some mental preparation, she really might not be able to handle it.
But alas, it was just too fragrant!
Not the poop, but the reward.
Completing the daily quest allowed her to increase any attribute value. If this kind of quest came for a month, she could increase her attributes by thirty points!
If spread evenly across the seven basic attributes, each attribute could get an improvement of 4 points!
She had specifically asked the System before about how personal basic attributes were defined.
The answer was that for an ordinary student, having an average personal attribute break through 30 after graduation was already considered excellent. And for a representative of young wizards like the later-stage Harry Potter, some single attributes would break through 40.
As for boss-level figures like Old Man Voldemort and Old Man Dumbledore...
Although the System didn't say it explicitly, Kate estimated that their average ability values during their peak periods were over 50, with single abilities likely being unimaginably high.
Take Dumbledore, for example; even with his magic power discounted by half, it would still be 50. There was likely no one in the current age who could surpass him.
Not to mention that personal ability wasn't just simple basic attribute values, but also the exquisite application of magic and rich combat experience. These were things difficult to quantify with numbers.
With Old Man Dumbledore standing guard, even if he wasn't at his peak, it was enough to make Voldemort afraid to approach Hogwarts.
Since the System had put it this way, how could she not charge forward?
Don't talk about picking up poop; even if she had to sleep in the same nest as a Thunderbird every day, that would be fine too!
So, after building countless psychological defenses, she still chose to accept the quest, her body honest despite her reluctance.
Perhaps her expression looked too much like she was marching to her death, because even Newt, immersed in his frustration, finally noticed something was wrong.
He slightly straightened his aged back and looked at her with some confusion. "Child, what's wrong?"
"Nothing!" Kate revealed a smile, tightening her grip on the pure white wand in her hand. "I'm just too nervous."
Right, Newt had almost forgotten.
Since this child could remember, she probably hadn't even seen many people, let alone those animals possessing magical power.
He composed himself, stood up to greet his wife who was still busy in the kitchen, and then extended his hand to Kate.
"Come, you will like them."
The two arrived at the room on the first floor closest to the garden. Newt waved his wand in front of the door before slowly pushing it open.
The scene before her eyes changed instantly. Before Kate could even see the scenery inside clearly, a small black shadow lunged toward her—
Almost subconsciously, Kate closed her eyes and protected her head with her arms, but the imagined pain did not arrive.
She opened her eyes with lingering fear, only to find that Newt, hale and hearty as ever, had already swiftly blocked her front and controlled the black shadow.
Using 'controlled' to describe it wasn't quite appropriate. Because that intimidating-looking black shadow seemed to be... frantically licking his face.
"Is this a dog?" Kate's expression was a bit strange.
The creature currently lying in Newt's arms, licking frantically, looked extremely similar to a Jack Russell Terrier from the Muggle world.
She hadn't expected that the first creature she met upon opening the door would be man's best friend.
Newt struggled to withstand the dog's enthusiasm. He managed to pry it off with great difficulty, put it back, and closed the door again before using his wand to clean himself up.
"This is called a Crup. It was bred by wizards. The biggest difference in appearance from an ordinary dog is that its tail is forked."
"Crups are extremely loyal to wizards, but they are very fierce toward Muggles. There was once a precedent of a pack of Crups attacking No-Majs in the United States."
Kate asked thoughtfully, "Then, it lunged at me just now because it likes me?"
"Correct." Newt nodded, smiling as he rubbed her head. "It seems you are very popular with animals."
Ah, this... who knew that putting points into Affinity would have this kind of effect?
Kate was just about to be modest when she heard Newt speak again.
"Although you haven't started learning spells yet, you must always remember that you are a wizard, and the wand in your hand is your weapon."
His meaning was obvious; he wasn't quite satisfied with Kate's appearance just now, where she couldn't even dodge.
However, considering her special circumstances, Newt didn't say anything harsh. After the admonition, he added another sentence:
"But compared to other young wizards who would be scared to tears instantly, you did very well. You must continue to work hard."
This 'carrot and stick' teaching model was all too familiar to Kate; her family's old butler had already utilized this set of skills to perfection.
Mainly because, at the time, she completely didn't want to learn magic, so the old butler could only do this. Otherwise, she wouldn't have had a microwave to use, especially under the premise that she wasn't allowed in the kitchen.
It could be seen that Newt really didn't know how to teach students; even his teaching model was temporarily plagiarized from the old butler.
It was just that he could imitate the surface, but he didn't know the main reason the old butler could handle Kate—
As a modern person, losing modern appliances like air conditioning, refrigerators, and microwaves was truly hard to adapt to.
If it were the Kate of the past, she might not have bought his act.
But now...
She took a deep breath, actively grasped the doorknob, twisted it gently, and opened it.
The Crup enthusiastically lunged forward again. Kate forced herself to calm her mind, imitating Newt's appearance just now to grab its body, lifting it high with both hands and holding it a bit further away.
"Teacher, what is its name?" she asked quickly.
Newt was still surprised that she learned so fast and hurriedly said, "Her name is Blackie."
What a down-to-earth name!
"Blackie, be good, sit down!" She struggled to place the dog, which still wanted to lick her wildly, onto the ground.
As soon as she extended her index finger, Blackie shook her head and obediently sat down, though her eyes still looked at Kate eagerly.
Sure enough, it was a dog domesticated by humans; if it were another species, this probably wouldn't have worked.
Kate let out a long sigh of relief, raised her head, and said, "Teacher, look, did I do it right?"
"Mm... you did very well." Newt couldn't help wiping the sweat from his forehead.
Why did he feel that this child didn't need him to teach her at all?
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