Hogwarts: This professor is too Muggle.

Chapter 292 This one is still the easiest to fool.
Hogsmeade, the Screaming Shack.

The first rays of sunlight on Christmas Day slanted in through the broken glass window and fell on the mud-stained poster.

"The Firebolt, another great product from the Black Forest Company after the Released Arrow!"

The broom handle is made of ash wood and polished with diamond polish to give it a smooth, streamlined shape. There is a small note at the bottom reminding riders of the handle. The end can be made of birch or hazel wood according to the rider's preference, and each part has a unique hand-carved code.

Sirius stroked the poster, looking down at it quietly.

He didn't know Harry's preferences and didn't want to write to ask, so he chose birch wood when ordering by mail, as it looked more luxurious and cool.

The mail order list indicates today is the delivery date. There might be a delay on Christmas Day. The owl doesn't know when the delivery will be made either, but he can only guarantee that it will arrive on the same day. However, he is unsure whether the broom will be placed on his bedside table or delivered to the hall.

But none of that matters.

Sirius was overjoyed, imagining the surprised look on his face when he received the gift.

After staring at the poster for a long time, he finally put it away, stretched, and muttered excitedly as he stepped out the door, "I have to hide under the Whomping Willow; I want to see Harry riding his broomstick..."

……

Hogwarts, Muggle Research Office.

Melvin opened his eyes and woke up in his bedroom. The air was warm and dry, and a north wind was howling outside the window. A small gray-white snake was curled up beside his pillow.

After a quick wash, I put on my thick winter clothes.

While tidying up the wardrobe, I felt a gaze watching me from behind. When I turned around, the little snake had woken up and was coiled up, peeking out and yawning, its pink tongue flicking out.

"hiss……"

The snake returned after the snow fell in the Scottish Highlands.

It's freezing cold in the Forbidden Forest, and it's only slightly warmer inside the house. But Hagrid spends most of his time patrolling the Forbidden Forest, so his firewood reserves are limited, and the fireplace won't burn day and night.

Clinging to Ya Ya's body would be convenient for keeping warm, but Ya Ya is a hunting dog with plenty of energy, and needs to spend several hours outdoors every day.

The cold wind seeped into the gaps in its scales, and Yulm was drowsy all day long. But it couldn't bear to hibernate, so it pitifully returned to Melvin's side to enjoy the castle's 24-hour fireplace heating. Occasionally, it would go outside, where its wool coat was warmer and more effective at keeping out the cold than dog fur.

Thinking of this, Yorm looked up: "Hiss~"

"You want to wear clothes too?"

Melvin shook his head: "Don't even think about it. Tooth still has four legs, so it can wear smaller sizes. Snakes are all smooth and their scales are slippery, so how can they wear clothes? It'll be fine once winter is over and the temperature warms up. Until then, you can either stay in the Emerald Snake's nest or stay in my pocket."

"hiss……"

Yulm reached out to the hand extended in front of him, affectionately rubbed his palm against it, wrapped his arms around the wrist, and climbed all the way to the coat pocket.

Although the Emerald Serpent's Nest was comfortable, it still preferred the pocket; the young professor smelled wonderful.

Melvin weighed the heavy bag in his hand. When it first hatched, it was just a tiny thing, only as thick as a finger, but now it had some weight to it. If it weren't for the Unseen Stretching Charm, it would probably look like a bulging lump.

Jourm, jolted by the bumpy ride, poked his head out and protested.

Melvin seized the snake's head, pried open its mouth, and examined its teeth.

Its flesh is a tender pink color, and its two small teeth are retracted into its gums. They are sharp weapons capable of tearing through steel and are almost invisible when it doesn't bar its teeth.

The teeth are white, without any other strange colors, and it's impossible to tell if they are poisonous.

"I wonder if snakes need to brush their teeth?" Melvin pondered as he released his grip.

Yulm broke free and lightly bit his thumb to vent his dissatisfaction, but his eyes were lazy and lacked any intimidation.

“Don’t hide in your pocket, come out and play in your room by yourself. I still need to open my Christmas presents.” Melvin said, taking it out and placing it on the bedside table. “If you’re bored, go brush your teeth in the bathroom or help me tidy up the room.”

"Wang?"

The little snake's eyes were full of resistance.

A few minutes later, Melvin pushed open the door to the outer room, with the little snake following behind. Its eyes showed an extremely human-like look of confusion, and it kept spitting out words like a toothy tooth eating the wrong insect. If you smelled it carefully, you could also smell the mint.

The gifts on the table were piled up like a small mountain, and scattered all over the carpet. As a well-known figure in the magical world, Melvin received nearly a hundred Christmas greetings.

The gifts were incredibly diverse. School colleagues gave items related to their respective subjects, Dumbledore gave a travelogue of a bard, the tavern owners gave alcohol, members of the Magic Mirror Club and those from Budapest gave some quirky yet legal magical items, local trinkets and souvenirs, and some handmade pastries from students' parents.

Mrs. Weasley was still grateful for the performance fee and sent a box of cookies, a chocolate cake, and some nuts she had picked and roasted herself.

Mrs. Eckmore sent over the experimental records from the Department of Magical Transportation. Wright and his team had been trying to help the Shadow Mirror signals break free from the Floo Network of physical transmission, searching for a more convenient, efficient, and wider-coverage signal transmission method.

There are no results yet.

In addition, the Longbottoms, Frank and Alice, thanked him again in their letter and sent him a horn of a venomous unicorn, an illegal controlled item, which they said they had seized while handling a case.

The greeting cards were signed with almost all familiar names, and gifts had been given to them last year. Melvin unpacked and sorted them as he went, occasionally pulling Yulm out of the shredded cardboard box.

The furthest package came from the Pyrenees Mountains, and its contents were quite unique: handwritten lesson plans.

"...Beauxbatons, Defense Against the Dark Arts, a gift from Professor Rozier."

Melvin smiled faintly; he had given her a set of Muggle educational books.

Having received blessings from friends far away, he then greeted his friends nearby. He picked up his wand and tapped on the desk drawer, unlocking the reverse-lock spell, and the hardwood cabinet door quietly opened.

Inside was a small gold cup and a black ring stored in a glass dish.

Let's start with the gold cup.

He took out the memory-developing agent and dripped two drops into the golden cup. Silver clouds of memory surged, and Riddle's illusory figure appeared in mid-air.

He was pale but handsome, with light-colored eyes, a delicate hooked nose, and normal facial features.

Having graduated just two years ago, he works at the Burgin Burke store and studies dark magic in his spare time. Not long ago, he murdered Hepzba Smith and turned the golden cup into a Horcrux, which contains the first half of his memories stored in a fragment of his soul.

The young professor opened the seal and, through a combination of coaxing and deception, reached a cooperation agreement. In exchange for some research on dark magic, he obtained information related to Harry Potter. Everything went smoothly until summer vacation in Paris, when the young professor revealed his true colors and, with ill intentions, attempted to use magic to explore memories unknown to outsiders.

This is the latter half of the memory from the fragment of the soul.

"Long time no see, Tom, my friend," the young professor greeted with a smile.

The young professor, dressed in a Muggle-style long trench coat, brown wool sweater, and white shirt, sat behind his desk, his gaze calmly meeting the shadowy figure.

Melvin Levent.

Riddle hesitated for a moment, then quietly landed on the opposite side of the desk, sitting opposite the young professor. There was no physical contact; it was merely a polite gesture. His perception came from the golden cup.

"Melvin...can you be honest with me and tell me whether the history you've recounted is true or not?"

Riddle recounted that the information about Voldemort and the Death Eaters sweeping across the country and then rapidly declining was relayed by Melvin.

Looking back now, despite the many details that testify, he has no idea how much of it is true, what is credible, and what is not...

The information gleaned from conversations with the young wizards in class, all conducted under Melvin's watchful eye, could very well be a hoax.

“Does the truth really matter to you? In your perception, you're just a sealed-off memory, something you can think about. Those events are Voldemort's experiences, the past of this world.” Melvin shrugged. “But you're Tom Riddle, not Voldemort.” “But this concerns my future!”

"Perhaps... Tom, I'm not here to argue with you."

"Then why did you summon me?"

"To wish you a Merry Christmas."

Just as Melvin finished speaking, the potion in the golden cup ran out. Before Riddle could react, the illusory figure vanished silently.

Next up is 16-year-old Tom Riddle.

His face was equally handsome, and his expression was calm. He appeared mature and composed among his peers, but compared to the soul in the golden cup, he still retained some undisguised childishness.

Merry Christmas, Tom.

"Is it already Christmas? Well then, I wish you a Merry Christmas, Melvin."

"..."

Melvin couldn't help but smile; this one was much easier to fool.

……

We descended the spiral staircase and arrived at the entrance of the auditorium.

Before Melvin even entered the room, he saw a beautifully decorated and magnificent corridor with cascading ribbons of holly and mistletoe hanging on the walls, and twelve towering Christmas fir trees lining both sides of the hall.

Tiny, never-melting icicles hang upside down from the branches, sparkling brightly. Some trees are adorned with colorful candles, which are smokeless, odorless, and not hot to the touch.

Looking at the four long tables in the college, the breakfast was very lavish, with various sausages and peas mixed with butter, sweet and thick cranberry sauce, and various freshly baked breads... while only a few students were scattered around in the auditorium, all of whom stayed on campus.

On Christmas morning, the little wizards weren't very interested in breakfast, but they were happy to share their gifts with each other.

“Mom sent us sweaters again, with our initials embroidered on the chest. But Harry’s sweater is better embroidered than all four of ours. Mom is more attentive to those who aren’t family,” Ron chattered on, while Harry grinned beside him.

Hermione rubbed salt into the Weasley brothers' wounds: "I received it too. Mrs. Weasley also told me to keep an eye on you and write to her if you violate any school rules."

"..."

Professor Flitwick stood by the door, perched on a high stool, and used his wand to spray strings of golden bubbles, hanging the ornaments on the newly moved tree:

"Hey Melvin, come over here and take a look. Do these bubbles hang right in the middle? They look a bit off to the right."

"I think it's a bit too far to the left..."

Before Melvin could finish speaking, he caught a glimpse of Snape coming down from upstairs, expressionless and walking hurriedly. Behind him were the students, silent with fear, who all kept their distance from the Potions professor.

"Severus, come and take a look at us!" Flitwick was overjoyed.

"..."

Snape had originally planned to just walk past and ignore all this nonsense, but seeing Flitwick's efforts to stand on tiptoe, and glancing at Melvin beside him, he pursed his lips and moved closer.

"Move an inch to the right."

"It really is a bit to the left, look at my presbyopia..."

Flitwick muttered to himself as he adjusted, his high-pitched voice tinged with festive joy.

"Did you go up to deliver medicine to Remus again?" Melvin asked Snape with a smile.

"Ah."

Snape was expressionless; he was doing a good deed, yet he acted as if he were murdering and dismembering someone.

"You're talking about Black and Harry again, aren't you?"

"Yes."

"You forgot to put the truth serum in Remus's medicine again, didn't you?"

"..."

Snape gave him a cold glance; if eyes could cast spells, they would be filled with divine brilliance.

The Potions professor always boasts that he will drug his students and then have their friends cure them, but in his more than ten years of teaching, he has never heard of any actual cases. The only teaching incident in recent years was when Neville spilled his scabies medicine and was sent to the school clinic.

On the black market in Knockturn Alley, Snape's potions are also guaranteed to be of high quality.

This professor was exceptionally devoted to his profession, almost without any personal bias.

Melvin returned the smile.

"By Merlin! Firebolts! These are definitely Firebolts!" someone screamed in the hall.

Looking in the direction of the sound, almost all the students who stayed at school were gathered around the Gryffindor table, staring intently, not daring to look away for even a moment.

Harry hesitated, then reached out and touched the ornate broom, which was smooth and free of any splinters.

It glittered and trembled slightly, suspended in mid-air without any support. The height above the ground was just right for him to ride on. It was engraved with a golden serial number and had a streamlined body, like a wave that had been cut off directly.

"Am I dreaming?" Harry's face was filled with disbelief.

"Who sent this to you?" Hermione immediately became alert, rummaging through the package. "No card, nothing! Good heavens, who would spend so much money on you?"

"Well, the only thing I'm sure of is that it's definitely not the Dursleys."

"Could it be Dumbledore? Didn't he give you the Invisibility Cloak?" Ron whispered.

“That’s my father’s. Dumbledore just gave it to me. The headmaster would never give such a valuable thing to a student.”

"Could it be Professor Lupin?" Ron guessed again.

“Professor Lupin…” Harry couldn’t help but laugh. “If he had that much money, he would buy himself a few new robes so he wouldn’t always catch a cold.”

"..."

The students' chatter drifted over from under the fir trees at the entrance of the auditorium.

“Oh, a broom worth several thousand Galleons, that’s certainly a large sum,” Flitwick casually asked. “Who do you think sent it?”

“Who knows?” Melvin glanced at Snape out of the corner of his eye and answered casually, “Maybe it’s Sirius Black.”

"Why do you say that?"

"It's just a guess, no evidence is needed."

"..."

Snape frowned upon hearing this, staring at the small ice beads on the tree, a glint of light seemingly flickering in his eyes.

(End of this chapter)