Hogwarts: Don't call me the Staff Maker

Chapter 784 Aberforth

Froome was conflicted.

He never expected that Sir Ren Ollivander had come to seek help on behalf of Hogwarts. He also never imagined that so many Death Eaters were lurking around him.

More than a hundred! Did the Mystic send all of them here to prepare for an attack on Hogwarts?

Froome was unwilling to believe this terrible fact, but reason told him that Minerva McGonagall could not possibly lie about something like this.

"We'll help."

While Froome was still hesitating about whether to cooperate with Minerva, his wife immediately nodded in agreement.

Faced with her husband's questioning gaze, the elderly witch simply shook her head and said softly, "I don't want to never see those candy-loving children again, Ambrose. Besides, this is our home; we should help."

"But this is dangerous."

"Compared to what Minerva is facing, this is nothing. Even he—Sirlen Ollivander, a student who hasn't graduated yet—is doing something far more dangerous than finding a few Death Eaters."

Xiren hadn't expected to have anything to do here. He noticed that Ambrose Froome was silent, opened his mouth, but ultimately didn't say anything more and nodded in agreement.

"When you get back, you can tell Minerva that we will set off in an hour to find where the Death Eaters might be hiding."

"That might take a while, I need to contact more people." Xilun took out another piece of parchment with the shop's name written on it.

"Finding over a hundred Death Eaters won't be easy; we need more help."

"Are you going out again?"

"No, that's too dangerous! We can help you!"

"It's alright, I have a way." Celen refused the couple's offer and, in front of them, transformed into a titmouse and flew into the chimney.

"Oh, Merlin's beard." Ambrose Froome stared in disbelief at the spot where Siren had disappeared, and couldn't help but exclaim, "Such superb shapeshifting skills, no wonder he was wanted along with the Savior."

Just as Krum can transform himself into half a shark, Siron can also use shapeshifting to transform himself into a titmouse or some other animal.

However, this kind of transformation is unstable and cannot hide its magic. Once it encounters a powerful wizard or those special viewing mirrors, it will be exposed immediately.

Xiren did this simply to cover up the fact that he was an Animagus.

Although the shop owners were people Professor McGonagall trusted, there are some things that are safer if fewer people know them.

After leaving the chimney of Honeydukes Candy Shop, Celen transformed back into a black cat and arrived at the nearby Wenrenju Quill Shop.

This place is also on Professor McGonagall's list; it's located opposite the candy store, between the post office and the clothing store.

The shopkeeper here was a wizard named Patel Delaney, who agreed almost without hesitation after figuring out why Siron had come.

He also wanted to find other shop owners willing to help on behalf of Xilun, but Xilun rejected him in the same way.

If someone were to appear on the main street at this time, it would certainly arouse the suspicion of the Death Eaters. It would be safer to act in his own way.

And so, Celen went to the Three Brooms, the Devils-Bans Magic Item Shop, and finally, Lady Patif's Tea House.

The whole process went smoothly. The Death Eaters hiding nearby had no idea that Siren Ollivander, whom they had been searching for, had just made his way through the entirety of Hogsmeade right under their noses. He had also managed to win over a group of shopkeepers who opposed the Voidman and the Death Eaters.

Professor McGonagall's list is not long; Lady Patiffe's Tea House is the last one.

However, after leaving, Xilun did not rush back to school. Instead, after hesitating for a moment, he turned around and walked into the Pig Head Bar not far away.

All the shops in Hogsmeade were closed, except for the Hog's Head Pub, which remained open as usual and was quite busy with customers.

On a table near the door, a witch wearing a black hood was talking to herself. Her exposed fingers were as dry as twigs, completely devoid of any color, just a layer of skin covering her bones.

Moreover, one of her hands had seven fingers. Xilen glanced at it only once before quickly looking away.

Near the bar were two vampires, with pale skin and blood-red eyes, who had ordered two glasses of what looked like a sticky red liquid—exactly as described in the textbook. Even though Xiren had never seen a real vampire before, he recognized them at a glance.

Apart from them, everyone else looked much more normal—of course, only seemingly normal.

In fact, the wizards who don't disguise themselves or dress up in any special way at the Pighead Bar are the most abnormal ones.

Siren suspected that there were Death Eaters among them, and more than one.

However, apart from the bar owner, none of these people noticed that a black cat had just wandered into the bar.

The moment Xilun jumped in from outside, the pair of blue eyes behind the bar immediately fell on him.

Those familiar blue eyes were exactly like Dumbledore's. Only they didn't sparkle with joy and humor; instead, they appeared cold, irritable, and suspicious.

Aberforth Dumbledore, Albus's younger brother. But unlike his brother, he was short and stout, far less slender and tall than Albus, and his attire was also sloppy.

His filthy, tattered robe hadn't been washed in ages, and his unkempt, graying beard made him look like a house-elf with a wizard-like appearance.

Yet this same person saw through his Animagus the moment Xiren entered.

Dumbledore's characteristic vigilance and keen insight?

As he thought this, Siron jumped onto the bar and looked up at Aberforth.

But what greeted him was a dirty rag that hadn't been washed for who knows how many years.

Xilun was certain that even if you threw a piece of cloth into the swamp and soaked it for ten minutes, it would come out much cleaner than this rag.

He immediately jumped to the side, dodging the terrifying weapon.

"If you look at me with those eyes again, it won't just be a piece of cloth flying past you!" Aberforth said in a low voice, just loud enough for Siron to hear.

Sure enough, he knew him.

Xiren raised his head again, but this time, he deliberately closed his orange-yellow eye.

"You're smart to know what's good for you," Abufus snorted coldly.

He then looked at the two people on the other side of the bar.

"The Flame Whisky you wanted is sold out. Wait, I'll go get it from the warehouse. — Also, a word of caution: if you don't want to die here for no reason, don't touch anything in the bar."

He pushed open a small door behind the bar, bent down, and crawled inside. However, he seemed to have forgotten to close the door properly, leaving a small crack.

Without hesitation, Xilun jumped off the bar and crawled inside.