The Return to Hogwarts

Feeling momentarily disheartened, Amosta closed the window and turned around, but the instant he lifted his foot, he stopped, his brows suddenly furrowing.

In the invisible world of magic, the magic that resides in space and flows leisurely like a sea of ​​clouds is suddenly attracted by an inexplicable force and rushes into Amosta's body, just as a dark pit suddenly appears under a calm lake, and eddies immediately rise on the surface.

Amosta's handsome face showed slight pain, and his pale purple eyes had turned into rapidly spinning vortexes as he tried his best to absorb magic power.

"What exactly are you plotting, Dumbledore?"

In the headmaster's office, Snape rested his hands on the desk, his dark eyes fixed on Dumbledore, who sat in a soft chair with his fingers touching, trying to find a clue in those unfathomable blue eyes.

“Oh, how interesting, Severus,”

Dumbledore, unperturbed, smiled in response to Snape's gaze.

"You actually tried to use Legilimency on me, but please forgive my lack of humility, even when I am old and toothless and can no longer eat candy, you probably will not succeed."

“Not only Amosta is puzzled, but I am also very curious about this question, Dumbledore!”

Snape's cheek twitched. He stepped back slightly, his gaze no longer as impolite, but his tone remained sinister.

"Based on my understanding of you, you would never agree to either Amosta's plan to monitor the young wizards in the school, or his suggestion to have the young wizards deal with things in class. But you agreed to both."

"Dumbledore, when did you become so lenient? Last year when Quirrell was at this school, you were much more wary of him than you were of Amosta!"

"Severus, do you want to discuss the difference between Quirrell and Amosta?"

"You're downplaying the important points, Dumbledore!"

The veins on the back of Snape's hands bulged, and a flush rose on his sallow cheeks.

"Your leniency towards Amosta is completely unlike your usual style. I can't think of any other possibility than that you're plotting something!"

Fox was very familiar with this cacophony that came every few days. It was fast asleep and hadn't even opened its eyes. It spread its wings, which were brimming with iridescent light, skillfully tucked its head into them, let out a soft chirp, and continued its sweet dream.

"Severus."

Dumbledore's silvery eyebrows and beard twitched on his aged face. His tone was somewhat helpless. He was about to explain something, but suddenly something caught his attention. So he shut his mouth and, under Snape's questioning gaze, quickly walked to the window. Through the framed, carved glass panes, he frowned slightly and stared into the boundless darkness.

Silence suddenly descended, enveloping the uniquely styled office; for a moment, no one spoke.

"amazing"

About ten minutes later, Dumbledore's slightly furrowed brows finally relaxed again, a light smile appearing in his azure eyes, as he muttered something only he could hear.

"Without a doubt, in the thousand years since the time of the four great founders, you are probably the most outstanding student at Hogwarts."

call.

The turbulent magic subsided, and Amostah breathed a long sigh of relief. When he finally came to his senses, he discovered that in just ten minutes, his inner wool shirt and outer wizard robe were completely soaked!

"What is this?" Amosta asked with an absurd grin.

"Have I had an epiphany?"

For wizards, after the initial magical surge in childhood, their magical power enters a state of steady growth with age. Unless they take some potions with severe side effects or undergo dangerous modifications to their bodies, ordinary magical power-enhancing potions can only increase their magical power slightly, and once the effect wears off, it will immediately return to its original state.

Perhaps it's because the wizarding tradition was interrupted, or perhaps no one has ever figured out the secret to artificially interfering with the growth of magic power. In any case, every opportunity to achieve a leap in magic power is something that can only be encountered by chance.

"Does this mean I can't stand being alone anymore and it's really time for me to find a partner?"

Amostella shook his head and chuckled as he recalled the rare surge of magical power he had experienced due to a change in his state of mind.

"No, women will only slow down my spellcasting speed!"

Amosta said to himself as he calmed down.

Suddenly, Amosta's eyelashes fluttered. With his heightened senses, he realized that someone was watching him from beneath the darkness. He stared out the dark window, his gaze pointing towards the source of the spying.

After a long while, Amostana's frozen gaze finally thawed. He took a teapot from the shelf above the fireplace, held the steaming teacup, and offered a respectful toast to the view outside the window.

To the Lone Wanderer--

Amosta chuckled softly, then downed the hot tea in his cup in one gulp.

Don't you guys think so?

On Monday afternoon, as the first and second year Defense Against the Dark Arts class began, Hermione squinted at Amostella, whose movements toward the platform were more agile than usual, a hint of suspicion in her eyes. She then spoke to Harry and Ron behind her...

"Professor Blaine's eyes are a bit darker than last night?"

"I've never been able to figure out why Professor Blaine's eye color is different from when he was in school—"

Even with glasses, Harry, whose eyesight wasn't as sharp as Hermione's, shrugged. Ron, however, nodded hesitantly.

"Maybe it's because he wrote too many replies to Lockhart's fans last night, which gave him nightmares and prevented him from getting a good night's sleep?"

Hermione glared at Ron, appalled by his absurd guess.

"Perhaps next weekend we can ask him. Professor Blaine is a very easy person to talk to, maybe he will tell us."

With the formal classes about to begin, Hermione noted this thought down, cleared her mind, and focused her attention intently on Professor Blaine, who was speaking eloquently.

Chapter 61 Unknown

"Just like I told you downstairs—"

To everyone's surprise, today's Defense Against the Dark Arts practical lesson was not held in the Great Hall. After Professor Blaine briefly explained what he was going to do, he led everyone in a grand procession to an abandoned classroom near Headmaster Dumbledore's office on the eighth floor of the castle.

Looking at the slightly excited young wizards standing in the corridor, Amosta smiled broadly.

“I used a complex spell to slightly expand the space in this classroom to house the dark creatures I’m preparing for you to deal with.”

"What is that, Professor Blaine!"

Wayne Hopkins, a second-year Hufflepuff boy, raised his hand and shouted, glancing with a hint of awe at Harry, who was also whispering with Hermione and Ron, and asked, "Could it be a troll?"

“I’m sorry, Hopkins, as I’ve already said, I don’t intend to let anyone know the name of that dark creature beforehand. If you want to see it for yourselves, you’ll have to see for yourselves. Now, I’m going to tell you the rules of this 'game'—”

Amosta leaned against the oak door, arms crossed, smiling.

"Second-year students work in pairs, and first-year students work in groups of three to deal with the creatures inside. Due to time constraints, each group has ten minutes. Exceeding the time limit or dying will result in failure."

The crowd began to stir. Many people noticed the unusual words in Professor Blaine's statement. Ron and Harry exchanged a glance, both noticing the unease in each other's eyes. Based on their understanding of Professor Blaine, the creature in the classroom was probably no longer in the category of 'interesting'.

Malfoy, standing in the crowd, began to tremble. He considered a possibility, but he refused to believe it.

"Death." Neville's voice trembled, as if he might faint at any moment. Fortunately, Hermione remained clear-headed. She glared at Neville, then spoke in a lecturing tone, her voice low and stern.

“Professor Blaine would never allow anyone to die. Neville, Headmaster Dumbledore, and the Ministry of Magic would not allow it!”

"That's hard to say, Miss Granger,"

Amosta's expression was amused upon hearing this, and the slight smile at the corner of his mouth sent chills down the spines of many.

"If I were to recount all the rule-breaking things I've done over the years, it would probably shock you all. All I can say is that I try my best not to see anyone 'sacrifice themselves' in this trial!"

Immediately afterward, Amostella waved his wand, and a parchment shimmering with crimson magical light appeared out of thin air before him. Amostella surveyed the crowd, and finally, he let the magical contract float into Hermione's hands.

"Therefore, before entering this classroom, everyone must sign their name on this magical contract. Miss Granger, would you please read the text aloud to everyone?"

Hermione took the parchment and eagerly began to read it. After only a few glances, her previous confidence that nothing would go wrong vanished, and her slightly pink cheeks gradually turned pale. Harry, Ron, and Neville, who were surrounding her, all looked as if someone had grabbed them by the throat after seeing the words on the paper, and even breathing became difficult.

Hermione stared blankly at Professor Blaine, trying to confirm if it was just an April Fool's joke. However, the seriousness in Professor Blaine's eyes gave her the answer. With several young wizards anxiously urging her on, Hermione had no choice but to fulfill her duty first.

"1. Those who enter the classroom to participate in the trial, whether they succeed or fail, must not reveal in any way what they see in the classroom, and those who do not participate in the trial are not allowed to inquire about it."

2. In this trial, each group member has two chances. If they fail in the first round, they are not allowed to ask anyone for help or consult any materials until the end of the second round. They are only allowed to discuss with each other how to pass the trial.

Amosta interrupted Hermione with a smile and addressed everyone.

"The purpose of these two rules is to enable everyone to rely on their own and their companions' wisdom to defeat the dark creatures inside in an absolutely unknown situation. Most importantly, there is the third rule, Miss Granger, please continue."

Hermione swallowed hard and recited the last rule in a stiff voice.

"3. Participation in this trial is not mandatory, but those who decide to participate must sign their name on this contract. By signing their name, they acknowledge that they are fully aware of the dangers of this trial. In the event of any personal injury or death during the trial, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and Professor Amostella Blaine of the Defense Against the Dark Arts shall not be held responsible!"

Wow!

When Hermione finished reading the rule in a heavily breathless voice, the seventy or eighty young wizards standing in the corridor immediately erupted in an uproar. Amid the chaos, Hermione managed to voice her opinion with difficulty.

"This is against the law, Professor. The Ministry of Magic will not recognize such a disclaimer!"

Amosta shrugged indifferently. "To hell with the Ministry of Magic, Miss Granger. I've already said it, I sometimes just love to go against the rules!"

“But Headmaster Dumbledore wouldn’t allow it!” Ravenclaw’s Sophie Roper screamed.

"Then let Headmaster Dumbledore go with him. Ahem,"

Amosta stopped talking in time and adopted a friendly expression.

“In fact, Miss Roper, Headmaster Dumbledore has already given his permission to my ‘teaching program.’ Of course, if you don’t think you have the courage to overcome your fear of the unknown, you can choose not to participate. As I said, it’s not mandatory.”

"Is this possible, Harry!" Ron murmured, just as everyone else was in utter shock. "Headmaster Dumbledore...how could he..."

“I can’t answer that question, Ron. I only know one thing!”

Harry's face flushed red from the pounding of his heart. He couldn't quite tell whether he felt fear or excitement at the prospect of facing an unknown challenge. In any case, it wasn't a bad feeling!

"Professor Blaine may be serious; we'd better take this seriously!"

Hermione was still staring wide-eyed at the parchment, trying to find clues between the lines. Judging from her trembling fingertips, Amosta's series of foreshadowing had been very successful.

You have only two minutes to make a decision.

After saying this, Amosta deliberately turned around and took a few steps forward, leaving the discussion to the bewildered young wizards.