Hogwarts Raven's Claw

Chapter 326 Farewell Dinner
Fleur and the Beauxbatons students left.

They left in such a hurry that they didn't even attend the Hogwarts leaving dinner that they had originally planned to attend.

This action was undoubtedly rude, but Dumbledore and others had no intention of blaming them or Durmstrang who also left early, because everyone knew that this Triwizard Cup was a tragedy for them.

What's more, Voldemort has been resurrected, which means that Yingguo has become a dangerous place again.

Especially since Krum, a pure-blood, also died at the hands of Death Eaters, which means that even pure-bloods are no longer safe.

Their departure made many people in Hogwarts feel very lost. During this year of getting along, many girls from Beauxbatons established very deep friendships with the students of Hogwarts, and some even fell in love.

And this separation may very well be a farewell forever for everyone.

Hagrid was also very sad. The last time Maxim went to his cabin, he actually came to say goodbye to him.

As the headmaster of Beauxbatons School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Maxime couldn't stay in the Kingdom of Wailing for love, and Hagrid couldn't leave Hogwarts, so they both knew in their hearts that this relationship would probably end in vain.

Mike was also a little regretful about Fleur's departure. To be honest, he still liked Fleur very much (of course, any normal man would like Fleur), but new clothes are worse than old people, and in comparison, Mike cared more about Penelope's feelings.

A few days after everyone from Beauxbatons left, the annual Hogwarts leaving school dinner began.

The leaving school dinner has always been a regular event at Hogwarts. It is a festive banquet where the students, who have nothing to do, will eat and drink to their heart's content to vent the stress accumulated over the year and the anticipation for the upcoming summer vacation.

All the former headmasters of Hogwarts understood this tradition very well. During this annual festival, even the strictest headmaster would become amiable and kind, so that the students could have a good mood and face their parents with a smile when they returned home.

But tonight this tradition seemed to be broken.

The decoration of the auditorium has indeed changed, but the flags on the walls and ceiling of the auditorium have not turned into the colors of the Champion Academy as usual, but are instead pure black.

This made the entire auditorium and the students sitting inside feel depressed.

This is not surprising at all. Except for some mentally abnormal people, no one can be fast in today's 'dark cloud looming' environment.

At the long table of the four major colleges, many students were complaining about the terrible color.

They claimed that they had finally come out of the shadow of Krum's death and the departure of all the beauties at Beauxbatons, but the school not only did not intend to make them happier, but was also preparing to push them back to their low point again.

Some Gryffindor students even said that even Slytherin's ugly green looked much better than black.

Of course, they only dared to say these words in private. When Dumbledore on the stage rang the golden bell in his hand, the entire hall fell into silence as in previous years.

Mike, Penelope and others sat at the long table of Ravenclaw. As the bell rang, Mike turned his head to look at the stage like everyone else.

Today, Dumbledore was wearing a black robe, which was very rare. The people sitting in the faculty seats not far from him were also dressed in black. Among them, Hagrid's outfit was the most bizarre. Because his injuries had not yet healed, he still had a lot of bandages tied around his body.

However, as we all know, bandages are generally white.

So in order to match the main color of tonight, black, Hagrid had to dye all the straps on his body black.

Normally, he would be laughed at by everyone if he was dressed like this, but tonight no one made fun of him at all.

As everyone knows, Hagrid had just escaped with his life some time ago, but Bagman, who was impersonated by Barty the Younger like Hagrid, was not so lucky. Since Barty the Younger imprisoned him in a very remote place, he was already dead when the Aurors found him.

Not killed by little Batty.

Instead, he starved to death.

This was undoubtedly a huge tragedy, especially for Bagman's creditors.

"Another year," said Dumbledore, looking at everyone, "an end."

As Dumbledore's loud voice echoed in the hall, the students became more focused, because according to the practice in recent years, Dumbledore's next speech was bound to announce something extremely important.

"Tonight should have been a festive day. There were many things worth celebrating in the past year. For example, some of us have completed their studies and started their new lives, and we won the Triwizard Tournament." Dumbledore said, "But there were also many tragedies in the past year, and I think that we should remember those tragedies more than those things that make people celebrate."

Dumbledore paused, and the students in the audience became nervous.

"I think many people already know what I am going to say," Dumbledore continued. "In the recent Triwizard Tournament, we lost a good friend, Krum. Our school's Care of Magical Creatures professor was also attacked and nearly lost his life. I am sure you have heard about these things from newspapers or your classmates. But what I want to tell you is that it was indeed the Death Eaters who caused all this, but it was also Voldemort."

Hearing the three words "Voldemort", many people in the hall couldn't help but shudder, and a smile appeared on Mike's lips.

"Yes, Voldemort, he is back."

After he finished speaking, the auditorium fell into an eerie silence, and then dense whispers began to sound. At this point, no one cared about the principal's authority, and an emotion called uneasiness quickly spread in the auditorium.

"The Ministry of Magic doesn't want me to tell you about this." Dumbledore continued, "Some of your classmates' parents may be shocked by my actions. Perhaps it's because they can't believe that Voldemort is really back, or because they think I shouldn't tell you about this, after all, you are still young. However, I believe that telling the truth is always better than lying."

At this moment, shock and fear were written on every face in the hall, except for Slytherin. Most of the Slytherin students did not show any fear after hearing what Dumbledore said. On the contrary, many of them had excited smiles on their faces. They gathered in groups of three or four and whispered, as if they were discussing how to join the Dark Lord's camp, and the most active among them was Malfoy.

This action made many people's impression of Slytherin drop to the bottom, and many Gryffindor guys even rolled up their sleeves and prepared to fight.

Unfortunately, Dumbledore spoke again.

"Of course, when talking about these things, I must mention two other people." Dumbledore said, "Yes, I'm talking about Harry Potter and McTominay." Dumbledore's words made the Gryffindor boys, who had already left their seats, return to where they should be.

"Harry Potter and McTominay, the two of them faced Voldemort that night and escaped his clutches," said Dumbledore. "Especially McTominay, who risked his life to bring Harry back to Hogwarts safely. He showed great courage in all aspects. Few wizards could show such a spirit in the face of Voldemort's tyranny. For this, I pay tribute to him."

Dumbledore turned solemnly to Mac and raised his goblet.

Almost everyone in the auditorium did so, and they excitedly chanted Mike's name and toasted him.

Mike also stood up with a goblet filled with juice. He first bowed to the people standing up in the faculty seats, then bowed in the direction of his classmates to express his gratitude, and finally drank the juice in the goblet with everyone.

When he stood up and bowed, he also saw the situation in Slytherin.

At the Slytherin table, only a few people, including Chris, stood up to toast Mike, while the rest of the people sat stubbornly on their chairs, treating what Dumbledore had just said as bullshit.

At the same time, Mike also noticed that he had seen the Slytherins who stood up with Chris in the investigation report submitted by the Mutual Aid Association. These people had one thing in common, that is, they were all mixed-blood!

And all the purebloods, without exception, ignored their king!

Mike sat down slowly, the smile on his face growing wider.

"I really hope I am mistaken, but the truth has finally come to pass," said Dumbledore. "I am sure that we will all face dark and difficult times. Some of you have suffered directly at the hand of Voldemort in this hall. Many of your families have been torn apart.

Voldemort is very strong, I don't deny that. But I don't think he is so strong that no one can stop him. I hope everyone can unite. Only when we are united can we be strong. If we are divided, we will be vulnerable. Voldemort is very good at creating conflicts and hostility. "Dumbledore looked at the Slytherin table and said, "We can only fight him to the end if we show the same unbreakable friendship and trust. As long as we have the same goal, Voldemort will be defeated!"

Dumbledore's words were so powerful that many students, mainly Gryffindor students, were infected with their blood boiling and could not help but stand up and cheer.

But more people kept their heads down and said nothing, and the Slytherin purebloods sneered.

Dumbledore, who was standing high up, saw the entire scene, and a hint of gloom appeared in his bright eyes.

……

The leaving dinner was over. No one enjoyed the meal very much, especially the Slytherins.

Because Dumbledore did not mention the house cup until the end of the dinner, and according to the score on the jewel hourglass in the entrance hall, this year's cup should be theirs.

If Dumbledore had treated them like this in the past, they would have already mobilized their background to file a complaint, but now they had more important things to do, such as telling their parents about Voldemort's resurrection.

Mike, Franklin and other Masonic members did not return to the lounge like other students, but gathered in the Masonic secret realm.

After another round of expansion, the number of Freemasonry members increased again. Franklin's new girlfriend Clinton and Zhou Hong and others also joined the Freemasonry. At this moment, they are sitting in the Freemasonry meeting room.

Their presence made the originally empty conference room a little more crowded. However, despite the increase in the number of people, the atmosphere in the conference room did not become lively. Everyone sat in their seats with their heads down, in silence.

Even the Weasley brothers, who used to be the most eccentric, were no exception.

This is not surprising at all. Except for the Weasley brothers, all members of the Freemasonry are of Muggle descent. Even the Weasley brothers, who are pure-blooded, are pro-Muggle factions whom Voldemort hates.

It can be said that Freemasonry is naturally on the opposite side of Voldemort, and the two are bound to have a life-and-death battle in the future!
When facing the most powerful dark wizard in the world today, no one has any confidence at all.

Despair and anxiety are spreading in the conference room, and the only sound that can be heard in the auditorium now is the sound of soles hitting the floor.

This is Franklin shaking his legs, a way he used to relieve his tension.

This was obviously a bad habit. Such intensive noise could easily make people irritated, and many people in the conference room frowned.

Finally, Miss Clinton, who was sitting next to Franklin, took action. She reached out and pressed Franklin's leg, and the annoying sound finally disappeared.

But as Miss Clinton loosened her hand, Franklin began to shake his legs involuntarily again.

Franklin made an apologetic gesture to everyone, indicating that he could not control himself, so Miss Clinton could only keep her hand on Franklin's thigh.

Opposite them, Benjamin seemed unable to bear this weird atmosphere anymore. He stood up suddenly and slammed the table.

"Oh!"

The loud noise startled everyone. Everyone looked at Benjamin in surprise, but Benjamin's eyes fell on the tall figure at the first seat of the long table.

"Say something, Mike!"

Mike turned his emotionless eyes to Benjamin and asked calmly:
"What do you want to hear from me?"

Mike's look immediately upset Benjamin, who was furious just now. His throat moved violently, and after hesitating for a long time, he spoke in a much lower voice than before:
"Of course...it's what we should do next."

"Oh, you mean this." Mike stretched and said, "Next, we're going to rob a bank. Well, to be precise, we're going to rob a magic bank, that is, Gringotts."

Everyone: "?"

(End of this chapter)