Hogwarts: This professor is too Muggle.

Chapter 115 Seraphina
Savannah, Georgia.

Graves Manor.

The mowed lawn exuded a unique fragrance of soil and grass juice. The goblins huddled in holes and under rocks, revealing their two eyes, which spun around, sizing up the heir of the Graves family not far away.

Pickley Graves, who was two months away from turning 15 and was about to enter fifth grade in the second half of the year, was dressed in a neat black suit and had his hair combed neatly, making it shiny and glossy. It was unclear how much mousse and hair oil he had put in it, but it looked like even a bowtruckle couldn't climb up to it.

He was frowning and looking serious at the moment.

The heir was worried about the Iron Armor Curse. He started practicing it during the summer vacation, and it has been almost a month and a half now, but there has been no progress. He can only succeed two or three times out of ten times, and when he releases it, it can only resist the minor evil curses of his peers.

You know, when senior Lewinter was in fifth grade, his dueling skills were already comparable to the professor, and he was invincible among the entire student body.

"Ugh……"

If this continues, how can he revive his family and make Graves' name shine again in the Magic Congress?

There was a slight vibration on the lawn, and another wizard was approaching. The goblin hiding in the pit shrank his head.

The gentle sound of twigs being trampled on came closer. It was a witch in a black and white suspender skirt, also a fifth-grader. She trotted over, panting slightly. "Pickley, why are you still daydreaming here?! Dinner is almost ready, and the principal and Mr. Lewinter will be arriving soon. Grandma wants you to hurry over and prepare to welcome the guests."

When Pickley heard the guest's name, his eyes lit up, but he was a little timid. He whispered, "I haven't practiced the armor charm yet, otherwise I won't attend the dinner tonight. How about just saying I have a stomachache, Nancy?"

Nancy laughed angrily, reached out and grabbed the man's arm, dragging him towards the castle. "If you really do this, I don't know if your stomach will hurt, but your legs will probably hurt a lot! It will hurt until school starts!"

Pickley was confused and asked blankly, "Why?"

Nancy kicked his shin lightly and said angrily, "Your grandma broke it!"

The sound of the young students playing around spread and drifted on the wind to the terrace of the second-floor living room. As the two students waited for them to come upstairs, a familiar voice immediately jokingly said, "Don't worry, Pikri. A broken leg isn't serious for a wizard. It will heal overnight and won't hurt until school starts."

The two students looked up suddenly and saw Melvin, no longer wearing the Gordian knot on his school uniform. They seemed a little unfamiliar and didn't recognize him at first. After a few glances, they opened their eyes wide and shouted in surprise, "Melvin! Aegir!"

As students of the Horned Hydra Academy, Melvin can be said to be their idol, the goal they strive for and pursue.

Before he dropped out of school, he firmly held the top spot in his grade. In addition to Quidditch matches, he had enough trophies for duels, transfiguration, and Defense Against the Dark Arts competitions to put a shelf of his own in the trophy display room.

In the two years since dropping out of school, the Horned Serpent Academy failed to maintain these honors, and they were soon taken away by the Thunderbird Academy.

Although they knew tonight's guests in advance, they couldn't help but feel excited when they actually saw this legendary senior again.

"haven't seen you for a long time."

Melvin nodded and smiled at the two of them. In fact, he didn't have a very deep impression of Pickley Graves. He only remembered that he was the son of the deputy director of the Auror Office. His main impression was of Nancy Boot next to him. She was a descendant of the Boot brothers, the Boot brothers who were the adopted sons of the founder, Isolt Thrall.

The Horned Water Snake often talks about the foolish things her ancestors did when they were learning magic.

Boot and Pickley had a close relationship, and within the American wizarding family community, this marriage was already a foregone conclusion. Any discerning wizard could foresee that the Graves family, weakened in recent years, would leverage Boot's vast resources to return to the center of power in MACUSA.

Poor Deputy Director of Auror, he worked hard for most of his life, but couldn't compare to his son having a relationship.

I wonder what Mr. Graves, who is working overtime, would think?
The two people at the door were hit on the head with a wand, one each. An old black witch with gray hair walked into the room and scolded in a low voice: "Greet them properly!"

The two of them responded obediently: "Principal Fontana, Mr. Lewinter."

Principal Fontana nodded with a smile and greeted the black witch: "Ms. Picquery."

Melvin nodded and said, "Ms. Picquery."

The loose skin on the lady's face drooped, forming many deep wrinkles, but there was still a sense of majesty between her dry and sunken forehead.

Seraphina Picquery, the last student to be recognized by four academy statues at the same time, joined the Magical Congress after graduation and served as the President of the Magical Congress of the United States of America in 1920 for an eight-year term. She once worked with Scamander to stop Grindelwald and the Witch Party and thwart their conspiracy to undermine the Statute of Secrecy.

Apart from this, there are some minor achievements, such as preventing the implementation of Prohibition and improving the Magical Creatures Protection Act.

British wizards' understanding of this foreign wizarding government leader basically comes from Rita Skeeter's biography of Newt Scamander, "Man or Beast? The True Face of Newt Scamander", which describes Newt as a heartbreaking love fraud who once had a fleeting affair with her, but later fell in love with someone else and left her.

Fortunately, this biography was only published in Britain, and Ms. Picquery probably has not read the relevant passages, otherwise Miss Beetle Reporter would probably have disappeared.

You should know that this black witch is not as kind as she looks. Her wand is made by Violetta Beauvais. It is made of wetland summer hawthorn wood and contains a wetland werewolf hair. Her thirst for black magic is like blood to a vampire.

Her extremely short term of office gives us a glimpse into her experience in governing. Despite her achievement of defeating Grindelwald, her politically shrewd and tough style offended many people. She was not very friendly to her colleagues and rarely showed her relaxed and friendly side, which led to most people not liking her very much.

The sudden visit before leaving Ilvermorny was mainly led by Principal Fontana. After all, the Graves family was one of his old friends.

After a brief greeting and a few minutes of chatting and reminiscing, the group moved to the restaurant and talked about business while enjoying dinner.

"Mr. Levent."

Seraphina sat at the head of the long table and spoke slowly, "I've heard of your name a long time ago. You were recognized by four statues upon admission. You have excellent grades and are very capable. We all thought you might be like me, joining the Magic Congress after graduation, or even becoming the next president. I never thought..."

“Life is like magic. Even the same spells and actions can produce completely different results.”

Melvin slowly cut the steak on his plate. "My ambition isn't to be in Congress. Compared to power and politics, the mystery of magic is more attractive."

Seraphina observed him carefully, her movements slow and reserved for an elderly person. After a long pause, she nodded thoughtfully, "Truly admirable..."

She turned her gaze to the headmaster beside her: "We've been investigating the Purifiers and New Salem for decades. The Barryborn name can be traced back to a 17th-century Purifier wizard who disguised himself and married several Muggles, fathering over a dozen children..." Grevis was one of the victims of the Barryborn family's decline, and Seraphim's short tenure, being replaced in her prime, were all influenced by Mary Barryborn of the New Salem Charitable Society.

When he was in office, he used the resources of the Magic Congress to investigate, and he did not relax after retiring. He used the power of his family to track down the case, and he has achieved some results over the years.

It was not known whether it was fate or a curse he received for murdering a wizard in his early years, but the bloodline of the Scourer Barebone was entirely composed of No-Maj's and Squibs.

Those second-generation Barebones saw the fantastic and magnificent magical world but were unable to touch it. The strong gap led to psychological distortion, and coupled with Barebone's deliberate guidance, they hated wizards and the Magic Congress.

No matter how much they hated it, the Magical Congress was just established during that period and they were purging dark wizards with a very tough attitude and methods, so these people had no choice but to lie dormant.

After the death of the first wizard Barebone, the Statute of Secrecy was gradually improved. The third and fourth generations of Barebones had never seen magic, and only a few inherited the twisted and extreme hatred of the second generation.

If all goes well, the descendants of the Barebone family will gradually forget magic, viewing it as a fantasy story left by their ancestors. However, at this time, Bartholomew Barebone met the witches Twelve Trees and obtained all the information about the wizarding world at that time, resulting in the largest leak in the Magical Congress.

The Magic Congress sent staff to cleanse the place with the Forgetfulness Spell. When erasing Bartholomew's memory, they encountered fierce resistance and even attempted to kill the memory cancellation staff. In the end, they were imprisoned for shooting in public.

Mary is Bartholomew's descendant and one of the omissions in the memory. She believes that Bartholomew's tragic death after imprisonment was murdered by a wizard, so she established the New Salem Charitable Association, which led to the subsequent events.

"Barebone, who stole the dragon egg, could be a descendant of Mary's hidden family, or a child she adopted. He's a No-Maj. Currently, all we know is that he's hiding in Mexico, adopting a group of children with magical powers. He also used the records left by his ancestors to trick an Ilvermorny graduate into teaching the children magic, while he secretly brainwashed and controlled them..."

Seraphina shook her head and sighed. "The No-Maj's methods of warfare, the twisted ideas instilled in them since childhood, are more powerful than the Imperius Curse."

No wonder it can make wizards guard unbreakable oaths at the cost of their lives. This level of mind control is even more powerful than Voldemort and Grindelwald.

Melvin's emotions were also complicated. He said softly, "To make wizards face Muggles and understand modern science, this is the meaning of Muggle Studies."

Principal Fontana lamented, "Ilvermorny lacks a Book of Admission and a Pen of Acceptance, making it impossible to accurately admit every wizarding child on this continent. This is why Barebone took advantage of this loophole."

There was a moment of silence at the table.

Pickley and Butt listened to their elders and big men talking about this topic, but they couldn't get a word in. They could only eat in silence, for fear of disturbing the conversation, and tried their best to avoid making any noise with the cutlery.

"Has MACUSA found out their location?" Melvin asked.

Seraphina shook her head. "In Mexico, the No-Maj community is even more chaotic than the wizarding world. Dark wizards can hide their wands and hide in residential areas, and even if all the Aurors were sent out, they wouldn't be able to track them down."

Melvin frowned. "So, we can only wait for them to show up later and then find a way to track them down?"

"They must regularly purchase magical materials. As long as we set up defenses at the wizard market near Mexico, we'll be able to pinpoint their location sooner or later." Seraphina's tone revealed a hint of ruthlessness. "As long as we can pinpoint their location..."

Pickley and Nancy, who were sitting at the end of the table, shivered, lowered their heads into their plates, and looked at each other.

Is this news we can hear?

The long table fell silent again. The truth had been investigated, but the arrest was at a standstill. Melvin had no good solution, and as a key target of surveillance by the Magic Congress, it was not easy for him to interfere in such matters.

I can only wish a certain deputy director good luck in his promotion.

The matter of Barrybon came to an end for the time being. The aperitifs and appetizers of the dinner came to an end, and the main course was next.

"Let's not talk about these scumbag things anymore."

Seraphina put away her fierceness, looked at the young professor, and said with a gentle smile, "Mr. Levent, I heard that you founded the Magic Mirror Club, and it's doing very well in Britain and Romania. Are you interested in expanding here?"

Melvin smiled immediately: "The Magic Mirror Club welcomes new partners."

The wider the coverage of the shadow mirror, the greater the benefits and the more far-reaching the influence.

Graves is a native American wizard family. Although it has weakened somewhat in recent decades, its foundation is still there and its financial resources are abundant. The man in front of him is the former Speaker of Congress. He has extensive connections and is well-informed. He is simply an excellent partner.

Of course, there are drawbacks. Compared with the loose alliance of tavern owners in Britain, it is difficult for the Graves family to negotiate terms.

Melvin took a sip of red wine, pondered, and then laid out the conditions for the Magic Mirror Club: "...If necessary, all Mirrors must cooperate with the club to promote and screen specific content... Anyone can produce a program, but the final review of the Mirror content must be my sole responsibility."

Seraphina frowned and looked at the young professor. According to the information she had collected so far, the benefits of Shadow Mirror were indeed lucrative. As the owner of the club, Mr. Levent was indeed qualified to make the conditions, but the Graves family, or rather, she, Picquery, was more accustomed to having complete control.

The club's conditions are a bit too strict.

After careful consideration, the old witch had come to a conclusion. Compared to short-term profits, dominant control was more important. "Mr. Lewinter, I hope you can reconsider. Graves is involved in tavern operations in 34 states. We can quickly promote Shadow Mirror to wizard settlements across the country. If the club's conditions are more relaxed, we are willing to cede a portion of the profits."

Melvin barely paused for a few seconds before smiling and shaking his head. "The club is a whole. The conditions are the same in Britain and Romania. If we back down in the face of Graves, we'd be betraying our former partners."

He actually doesn't care about wealth gains or anything like that.

No matter how you look at it, you'll make money, and content is the path to the ultimate secret of magic.

Seraphina lowered her eyes in displeasure, her old voice a little hoarse: "The help Graves brings to the club must be far greater than that of other wizards. Perhaps you can go back and reconsider this."

This is what a breakdown in negotiations means.

"I will." Melvin nodded slightly, but didn't say anything that didn't require consideration.

The candlelight flickered on the dining table, and Principal Fontana tasted the veal with a smile on his face.

(End of this chapter)