The Return to Hogwarts

Harry heard Seamus ask a question in a low voice, and then someone immediately answered it.

"There's definitely a dung beetle in it; he even uses it to attend classes!"

"--Also, I have some bad news to share: the Academy Cup Quidditch will not be held this year."

From above, Amosta clearly saw that the twin brothers, who had just been quite excited, suddenly froze, their mouths agape, speechless with astonishment. And their bewildered state wasn't unique; aside from younger wizards like Cedric and Draco who had already heard the news, most people wore expressions of surprise and distress.

"This is because a large event will begin in October and continue throughout the entire school year, taking up a lot of the professors' time and energy—but I believe you will all derive great enjoyment from it. I am very pleased to announce that this year at Hogwarts—"

Professor Blaine's raised voice was interrupted by a bolt of lightning that streaked across the ceiling. Thunder roared outside the castle, rattling the glass windows and slamming the doors of the auditorium open.

A man stood in the doorway, leaning on a long cane and wrapped in a black travel cloak. The young wizards, eagerly awaiting Professor Blaine's solution, all turned to look at the stranger at the Great Hall entrance. Suddenly, another bolt of lightning flashed across the ceiling, illuminating the stranger, who revealed a head of long, gray hair and began to walk towards the faculty desk.

"Who is he?"

The lightning illuminated the man's face with uncanny clarity; Hermione had never seen a face like it before. It looked as if it had been carved from a piece of rotten wood, and the sculptor had only a vague concept of what a human face should look like, and was not very skilled at using the carving knife. Every inch of the face was scarred, the mouth was a crooked gaping mouth, and the nose, which should have been prominent, was nowhere to be seen.

"No doubt about it, it's the new professor for Defense Against the Dark Arts!"

Ron gasped as he spoke.

"Look at that face—he's obviously an expert at dealing with dark magic!"

What was most frightening about the man who suddenly barged into the opening ceremony wasn't his face, but his eyes—one was very small; the other was large, round like a coin, and a bright, vivid blue. That blue eye moved incessantly, darting up, down, left, and right, completely unrelated to the normal eye—then, the blue eyeball rolled back and disappeared into the man's head, leaving everyone with only a large white eyeball.

As the man approached, Dumbledore stood up from his seat, smiling as he waited for him to come closer, while Amostella also cast a concerned glance at the stranger.

Aratos Moody.

He was said to be one of the most outstanding Aurors in the Ministry of Magic in recent years. After Voldemort's downfall, he and his men were the ones who took down some of the most stubborn resistance fighters. Amosta knew who this person was, but this was from a previous report by Dumbledore, not from his actual acquaintance with this retired Auror. By the time he graduated from Hogwarts and entered the workforce, the Head of the Auror Office was already Rufus Scrimgeour.

"Alastor ran into a bit of trouble, so he arrived a little late—"

Dumbledore exchanged a few words with Moody, then turned to Amostella, "Perhaps you could introduce the children to their new professor for the school year—"

"It would be my great honor--"

Amosta nodded and smiled, extending his hand to the 'legendary Auror' who had scanned him several times with his magic eye.

Chapter 505 Reaction

2023-09-29

"The renowned Amosta Blaine--"

Moody's blue demonic eye suddenly turned back, trembling wildly as it looked at Amosta. He reached out his rough, large hand, grasped Amosta's hand, shook it, and chuckled hoarsely.

"You took down the cunning werewolf leader and captured the dark witch who attacked the Quidditch match. The Daily Prophet has practically become your personal edition lately!"

Below, hundreds of young wizards craned their necks, curiously peering at the faculty and staff dining table. At this moment, it was clearly not the right time for much conversation.

After exchanging a few pleasantries with Moody, Amostella turned to face the young wizards and said with a smile,

"Please allow me to introduce our new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor—"

Amosta pretended not to hear, while Moody quietly questioned Dumbledore about why he smelled a familiar criminal aura on him, yet he continued cheerfully to the young wizards.

"Professor Moody--"

Normally, when a new teacher meets everyone, they applaud in welcome. However, now, apart from Professor Dumbledore, Professor Blaine, and Hagrid, not a single professor or student clapped. The few who did clapped noticed that their sparse applause sounded lonely in the silent Great Hall, so they tactfully lowered their hands. The others seemed stunned by Moody's strange appearance, staring intently at him.

"Moody--"

Harry whispered to Ron, "Mad-Eye Moody? The guy your dad sent to help today?"

“It’s definitely him!” Ron whispered fearfully.

"What's wrong with him?" Hermione asked in a low voice. "What's wrong with his face?"

The lukewarm atmosphere in the auditorium was clearly not what Professor Blaine wanted. He coughed twice and continued speaking with a smile.

"Professor Moody was an Auror before his retirement, and he is the most experienced Auror the Ministry of Magic has had in nearly fifty years. He has enough experience to deal with dark magic, and I believe this year's Defense Against the Dark Arts class will be very exciting!"

Regardless, Professor Blaine's face had to be respected, and scattered applause broke out at the four long tables. The young wizards whispered and murmured among themselves. The younger wizards were busy asking what an Auror was, while the older students, who had a good understanding of the wizarding world, were inquiring about Moody's great achievements.

Moody seemed unmoved by the curious stares. He went to the empty seat left for him, ignoring the large jar of pumpkin juice in front of him, and instead took out a curved bottle and took a big gulp. As he raised his arm to drink, his cloak, which dragged on the ground, was pulled up a few inches, and many of the young wizards saw Moody's claw-shaped wooden prosthetic legs.

"--Okay, let's get back to the main topic--"

Feeling he had fulfilled his duty, Amosta cleared his throat again.

"As I said before, Hogwarts will be honored to host a very exciting event in the coming months, an event that has not been held for over a century. I am very pleased to announce that the Triwizard Tournament will be held at Hogwarts this year."

“You must be joking!” Fred Weasley shouted.

The tense atmosphere that had hung over the auditorium since Moody entered was instantly broken. Almost everyone laughed, and Amosta gave Fred an approving look before continuing,

"Perhaps some people are not yet clear about what the Triwizard Tournament is all about, so I hope those who are familiar with it will forgive me for explaining it briefly here. I allow their minds to wander for a moment—the Triwizard Tournament is a competition with a long history, established more than seven hundred years ago. It is a friendly competition between the three largest magic schools in Europe: Hogwarts, Beauxbatons, and Durmstrang."

Each school selects one warrior, and then the three warriors compete in three magical events. The Triwizard Tournament is held every five years, with the three schools taking turns hosting. Everyone agrees that this is an excellent way for young wizards from different countries to build friendships.

By the way, I met a young witch earlier this year who might become a warrior at Beauxbatons School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Her skill level is exceptional among young wizards, and any aspiring Hogwarts wizard who intends to represent the school in this challenge must be fully prepared.

How can a young wizard gain Professor Blaine's approval?

Not to mention the young wizards from the four houses below the Great Hall, even the professors at the faculty and staff dining table turned their heads, showing a certain degree of curiosity.

"Of course, I need to explain something to everyone first--"

Seeing that the young wizards' emotions were gradually being stirred up, Professor Blaine timely poured cold water on their enthusiasm.

"The Triwizard Tournament was interrupted because of the high number of injuries and deaths among the young wizards participating. In the worst year, even the headmasters of the various schools serving as judges were seriously injured. Therefore, when the Department of International Magical Cooperation and the Department of Magical Sports of the Ministry of Magic submitted the proposal to restart the Triwizard Tournament to the International Wizarding Federation, all parties involved in the competition unanimously agreed to set an age limit for this year's competitors. Only young wizards who are seventeen years of age or older will be allowed to register for the selection—"

A collective sigh of disappointment and disgruntled protest filled the auditorium. Ron, holding a half-eaten chicken leg, shrugged dismissively and mumbled something indistinctly.

"What a pity, it seems we can only watch the show."

Harry nodded, glancing at Hermione. He suddenly wondered who was better between Beauxbatons, the little witch praised by Professor Blaine, and Hermione.

"--Once appointed as a representative of the three schools, it means you will be eligible to win the Triwizard Tournament trophy for your school, as well as a personal prize of one thousand Galleons!"

"This is not fair!"

Ron choked on the chicken and hiccuped, but he still managed to swallow it down, his face flushed as he cried out.

Professor Blaine didn't hear Ron's shout because at that moment, there were simply too many people protesting. Even the younger Slytherin wizards, who had always been very supportive of Professor Blaine, weren't entirely convinced by the decision. Meanwhile, on Hufflepuff's side, Harry saw some people even standing on stools, loudly protesting.

"Oh, do these people even understand the situation?"

Hermione frowned and glared angrily at the nosy young wizards.

"Professor Blaine has already emphasized the dangers of this competition. Just think, wizards like Professor Dumbledore got injured trying to stop some uncontrollable factors from getting out of control during the competition. Do they really think they can handle these events? I think the Ministry of Magic should, in addition to age restrictions, at least require them to have OWLS scores!"

"Oh, shut up, Miss Granger!"

George Weasley immediately turned to Hermione and snapped at her. He and Fred had suffered a lot this summer because of their OWLS grades, and hearing Hermione mention it made him furious.

But Hermione didn't back down; she raised her chin and glared at George with a fierce look.

“We need to figure out a way to overcome these obstacles, don’t we?” Fred winked at everyone around him, including Harry and Ron. “I mean, if we can think of a way, who would be willing to try and win glory for Hogwarts?”

Fred's call to action was met with considerable support, even Neville nodded hesitantly, before he was met with a surprised and angry glare from Hermione.

"My grandma will definitely want me to participate; she always nags me to uphold the family honor—"

Neville lowered his head, looking ashamed and begging Hermione for forgiveness.

Chapter 506 Letter of Introduction

2023-09-29

All sorts of things always happen on the first day of school.

Having gotten used to a carefree summer vacation, the little wizard, who was eager to discuss various topics with his classmates the night before, suddenly returned to the fast-paced and intense school life, and being late the next morning was a common occurrence.

First-year wizards who have just entered Hogwarts often get lost because they are unfamiliar with the castle. Even worse, due to nervousness and lack of experience, many of them get their feet stuck on suddenly disappearing steps or fall down the rotating staircases and end up in the school hospital.

All morning, the heads of the various houses, including Madam Pomfrey and Filch, were extremely busy, rushing up and down the stairs to deal with all sorts of unexpected events outside of class. Even Dumbledore, with a smile on his face, escorted two lost young wizards who had wandered to his office door back to their classrooms.

But none of this has anything to do with Amosta.

During the two-month summer vacation, he was busy running around dealing with all sorts of things and didn't have a single day of rest. However, once school started, he became more relaxed.

I woke up naturally in the morning, grabbed some food from the auditorium, then went to the restricted section of the library and picked up a couple of books. Finally, I returned to my office and leisurely enjoyed my delicious breakfast while reading.

He didn't begin to formally handle some matters until 9:30 a.m.

He wrote Hagrid a note, instructing him to purchase a batch of panoramic telescopes and alchemical materials. This was in preparation for the Triwizard Tournament. The security plan he had previously submitted to the tournament judging committee of the International Wizarding Federation mentioned that Hogwarts would adopt a brand-new method to ensure the safety of the participants and to present the tournament progress to the audience in a more intuitive and exciting way.

And all of this depends on his surveillance camera.

The batch he bought earlier has been installed and disassembled repeatedly over the past two years, and some of it has been damaged by Ginny, who was possessed by Riddle's soul fragments, so about half of it is no longer usable.

Aside from the specialized course materials used by professors, Hagrid was in charge of most of the purchasing for Hogwarts. It must be said that Dumbledore's vision was quite sharp; even if Filch had been in charge, the accounts would never have been clean.

Just like Dumbledore, who usually spends most of his time in his office, Amosta spends most of his daytime replying to all sorts of letters.

Since the beginning of this year, when he became famous for wiping out the werewolf tribe led by Greyback, the number of letters he received daily had increased dozens of times. In recent days, the speed of the letters has increased several times more. Most of these letters came from his admirers. Some were well-known wizards in academia who discussed academic problems with him. The rest came from various official organizations. For example, as he served as an honorary advisor for magic, Fudge would regularly send him some of the department's recent decisions, ostensibly to ask whether they were reasonable, but in reality, they were just reporting.

Amosta couldn't reply to every letter like Lockhart did, but there were some important ones he still had to respond to.

For example, that amusing old goblin at Gringotts headquarters in Paris sent him a letter asking if he could advertise at the Triwizard Tournament, offering generous compensation from Hogwarts and subtly conveying to Amostella that he would not forget his support.

Amos Tower was indeed seeking funding for Hogwarts, so Barna's offer did tempt him somewhat, but after some consideration, he declined the request in his reply.