The Return to Hogwarts

Amosta said, his tone tinged with curiosity.

"What did he do?"

"Freezing Spell—"

Remus shook his head.

"We almost caused a major disaster. I still can't forget the scene: hundreds of Muggles crammed into the turbulent cabin, screaming desperately. But James himself was terrified too—"

This was indeed an interesting anecdote, and Amosta chuckled.

The flight from London to New York was, of course, mostly filled with British people, but there were also some faces from other continents. Many of them, like Amosta and Remus, were visiting this city for the first time, a city that, like London, is respectfully called an international metropolis by Muggles. They looked out the glass windows at the city center, which was more than 20 kilometers away.

It boasts more modern buildings than London. As night falls, the rows of high-rises begin to twinkle with scattered lights, and an atmosphere of freedom washes over you across the open fields.

Airport Muggle security guards came over to drive away the sightseeing passengers, and Amosta and Remus moved with the flow of people.

I think we should--

Remus pulled a map from his trench coat, his brow furrowing slightly as the intricate network of passages and dense markings on the map puzzled him.

"The Magical Congress of the United States has an office here. We must obtain wand possession and entry permits from there before we are allowed entry, but..."

Remus squinted, searching for the right route among a pile of signs.

"Oh, I think I've found a clue--"

Instead of studying the map with Remus, Amosta's gaze wandered left and right, then suddenly settled on a sign hanging from the ceiling a few dozen feet away, serving Muggles.

A brass owl perched atop a metal sign, sizing up the Muggles jostling below while preening its non-existent feathers with its beak. None of the Muggles passing beneath the brass owl noticed this incredible scene; clearly, they couldn't see it at all.

As the crowd approached the owl, the owl locked its gaze on Amosta and Remus once they were within a certain distance. It nodded at the two of them, then spread its wings and pointed them in a direction.

"The entry instructions they sent me didn't mention this—"

Remus shoved the map into his pocket, a little annoyed, and followed the direction indicated by the brass owl.

Since taking over the workshop, Remus has had to supervise its production while also interacting with wizards of various statuses from different countries under the guidance of the fairies. As he did so, he gradually built up his confidence and became more willing to express himself. The harm caused by his werewolf identity was slowly fading away.

They entered an inconspicuous passageway, a narrow passageway with stark white painted walls on both sides.

There were silver-white metal doors embedded on both sides of the wall, but these rooms belonged to Muggles who worked at the airport, not to wizards.

At the end of the corridor was an elevator. A dusty maintenance sign was placed in front of the rusty lobby door, suggesting that the elevator had been out of service for many years.

"We should--"

From a Muggle's perspective, wizards are all somewhat neurotic. Remus pondered whether he should try pressing the elevator's summoning button, but before he could make a decision, Amosta had already done so. To Remus's confusion, Amosta stepped back after pressing the button and turned to face the stark white wall beside him.

Buzz--

The silence that lasted for a few seconds was suddenly broken. A straight crack appeared in the smooth wall, and then the walls on both sides of the crack receded like waves, revealing a bright and dazzling metal box that was not illuminated by any light source—it looked like an elevator car.

"How did you know?"

Remus asked with some surprise, knowing that Amosta had never visited the city either.

"There are always clues to magic."

Amosta blinked and smiled, speaking in a mysterious way.

There were no control buttons inside the elevator car. After the two people stepped inside, the door was blocked by the wall again. After a slight tremor, the elevator car began to descend.

Amos felt the car descend at least 150 feet before coming to a stop with a crisp, monotonous beeping sound.

This is an empty lobby with little furnishing. There are several closed rooms on the wall opposite the elevator entrance, and then there is an information desk on the side.

After stepping out of the elevator car, Remus discovered that there was more than one elevator car leading into this place; behind them, there were twelve elevator hall doors arranged side by side on the wall.

As they approached the inquiry desk, one of the hall doors opened, and a middle-aged wizard with an Asian face entered the hall one after the other. Apart from them, the only other person in the hall at that moment was an elderly wizard with curly hair and a thick, gray beard at the inquiry desk.

The unassuming, Asian-looking wizard, carrying a heavy black suitcase, looked exhausted, clearly having also endured a long journey. He appeared nonchalant, but was actually watching them warily. His gaze swept over Remus's face without any change, but when it settled on Amosta's face, he paused, then his eyes flashed with a sharp light. Clearly, he had recognized Amosta.

Asian faces always gave Amosta a sense of goodwill, and he smiled and nodded at the wizard.

"from where?"

Before they could even ask a question as they approached the information desk, the old wizard, who was reading a copy of the New York Ghost Newspaper, asked without looking up.

"London--"

Amostella glanced at the front page of the newspaper in the old wizard's hand, his brow twitching slightly.

"The second room on the left."

The old wizard said he turned the page and started reading the news on the second page.

The Asian-looking wizard at the elevator entrance was still staring at Amosta Blaine in astonishment, seemingly unsure if he had mistaken him for someone else. Amosta smiled gently at him again, and then led Remus to the room across the hall.

Chapter 880 Amelia and Mandy

2024-04-24

After knocking on the door, Amosta and Remus entered the room one after the other, summoned by a middle-aged woman's voice.

In an office roughly half the size of a classroom, two women sat behind two desks. The middle-aged woman with shoulder-length, wine-red hair, sitting directly opposite the door, was probably the one who had summoned the two women in. She sat in her seat, idly flipping through a Muggle magazine with many knitted patterns.

Behind another, much smaller desk, piled high with stacks of heavy materials, sat a much younger woman (who looked like she had just graduated from magic school).

She was very beautiful, with delicate and exquisite features and long, lustrous chestnut hair. Her fair skin was crystal clear, as if bathed in a layer of flawless moonlight. At this moment, she was slightly pursing her pink lips, focusing intently on organizing the wizard entry information for the day.

The only thing that wasn't pretty was that her neatly tied ponytail and solemn, focused expression slightly diminished her beauty.

Amos's unusual pause in his steps puzzled Remus. Standing beside him, Remus glanced at Amos quickly, and then a hint of surprise arose in his heart.

Amosta was watching the girl who seemed to be his assistant, her lips slightly parted, and a hint of confusion was faintly revealed in her usually calm eyes. Remus followed Amosta's gaze and then noticed the assistant's striking beauty.

For a moment, Remus suddenly felt an urge to burst out laughing.

He has known Amosta for quite some time.

Whether it's his unfathomable magical skills or his insightful wisdom, Amosta's shrewdness and competence inspire awe in many who meet him for the first time. Of course, once you get to know Amosta well, you'll find that he's a very easy wizard to get along with; he's always thoughtful and considerate of others' feelings.

Such an outstanding wizard would always make people subconsciously overlook his age. Just like Remus himself, most of the time he subconsciously regarded Amost as a wizard older than himself. Just like Albus, but in reality, he was just a young man in his early twenties!

Therefore, Amosta's expression as he sized up the pretty girl didn't seem so absurd or abrupt.

The windows of this underground office are clearly enchanted, projecting a view of an endless and dazzling starry sky, a forest undulating like a sea, and the soothing sound of the wind, occasionally punctuated by ethereal and distant birdsong.

Aside from these magical illusions, the only sound in the room was the young girl flipping through documents.

At one point, an unusual silence startled the middle-aged witch who was reading a magazine in the office and the young girl who was concentrating on organizing documents. They both put down what they were doing and looked at the two men behind the door.

Cough cough--

Remus stepped forward from Amosta's side, feeling it was time for him to step up.

"Hello, ladies, we've come from London and need to complete some procedures—"

Before Remus could finish speaking, he was interrupted by a high-pitched, excited scream.

"Oh, God!"

The middle-aged witch, who had been reading a magazine, jumped up from her chair, walked around the table, and quickly ran to the two of them. Without even glancing at Remus, who awkwardly stepped aside, she stared wide-eyed at Amostella's face, her voice trembling with excitement as she covered her mouth.

"I won't mistake you, absolutely not, oh my god, I couldn't possibly mistake you, you are..."

The middle-aged witch's eyes blazed with light as she stared intently at Amosta, speechless.

Amostella, who had been in a daze, finally snapped out of it. He pursed his lips, his expression returning to normal, and smiled gently at the middle-aged witch.

"Hello, ma'am, I am Amosta Blaine, and this is Remus Lupin. We are here to process your entry permits."

“I’m Mandy Hill, and of course, everyone here is here to get a permit!”

Ms. Hill's voice was still very sharp.

“I mean, it’s such an honor, Mr. Blaine, I never expected... Oh, I can’t believe it!”

The overwhelming sight left Ms. Hill speechless. She grabbed Amosta's hand and shook it vigorously a few times, then pulled back to wipe away the tears of excitement and emotion that streamed down her face.

"Do you remember, Mr. Blaine, that you saved our family's lives!"

This was completely unexpected. Remus looked at Amosta in surprise, only to find that Amosta's expression also showed confusion.

"Last year's Quidditch World Cup final!"

Ms. Hill sniffed; she knew Mr. Blaine was definitely confused, so she spoke up.

"That spectacular showdown of the century, me, Harmon, and Deacon—oh, they're my son and husband—were all there. You held off that dark witch. We all think you're the most outstanding wizard in the magical world today. Oh, Harmon's bedroom is covered in your posters, he has a whole stack of your Chocolate Frog pictures. Oh, I dare say he'd faint with excitement if he knew I met you. Could I get him your autograph?"

"hehe--"

Amosta smiled.

“If you would be willing to process my entry into the country, Ms. Hill, I will leave a signature for your son, how about that?”

Ms. Hill was overjoyed. She grabbed Amosta's sleeve and headed toward her desk. Turning around, she noticed that her assistant was also staring intently at Amosta Blaine.

"Oh, damn it, I forgot to introduce myself!"

Ms. Hill patted her forehead and said with a smile,

“That’s Amelia Det. She just graduated from Iphamoni last year. An outstanding young witch, she passed all her courses with excellent grades and was directly recruited. She’s currently interning with me, but I bet she won’t be here long before being transferred to a more crucial department. She dreams of becoming an Auror. Oh, and by the way, she also greatly admires you!”

Introduced in this way, Amelia blushed uncontrollably, a hint of shyness flashing in her brown eyes. However, aside from that, she didn't do anything particularly impolite.