Days at Hogwarts

Chapter 780 Going Home for Vacation

Saturday, October 12.

In the Gryffindor boys' dormitory, Loren and the others got up earlier than usual for class. After breakfast, they returned to their dormitory, tidied up their sheets and blankets, put them in the closet, and placed insect repellent and moth-proof sachets in the closet, waiting to take them out after the holiday. They could also put in a few caterpillars, as those little creatures could also prevent insects and moths.

Before leaving, I lowered the curtain to prevent the bed from accumulating dust, and tidied up everything, just waiting for the train to arrive at the station.

Loren was counting the Christmas gifts for the professors. In previous years, they were delivered by owls on Christmas Eve, but this year he planned to leave them at Hogwarts Castle and deliver them to the professors' offices early Christmas morning.

"Tsk tsk..."

Every time Loren imagined the professors' expressions when they received the gifts, he couldn't help but lean back and smile.

What is Merlin's Surprise?

This is called Merlin's Surprise!

For some reason, Ximo, who was a student staying on campus, got up early with them, went downstairs for breakfast, and instead of taking a nap back in the dorm, sat next to them and watched them pack their things.

He looked so longingly at me, like a left-behind child.

Loren didn't mind, patted the brown paper package in his hand, and said with a smile, "Seimor, this is my Christmas present for you. I will keep it hidden in the castle, and it will appear in front of you on Christmas Day."

"Then tell me what to do now?"

Simo frowned as he stared at the package, looking somewhat distressed: "It only piques my curiosity, making me eager to know what's inside."

Loren chuckled a few times: "That's the effect I wanted!"

His roommates, who were listening in, condemned his bad behavior and then told Seamus that the gifts they had prepared had been given to the house-elves and would be delivered on Christmas Day. They offered him a few clues to guess what the gifts were.

Simo: "..."

After a few laughs and jokes, and with most of their things packed up, they sat by the window sharing the snack gift box Neville had provided. They couldn't see Hogsmeade Station from here, but they could see the steam and white smoke billowing from the train chimneys.

"Harry, where are you planning to spend Christmas?" Loren turned to Harry. "The Burrow, Black's Old House, or maybe go back to the Dursleys'?"

Harry shook his head. "I'm going back to Godric's Hollow to clean up the house my parents left me. I'm graduating soon, and I need to find myself a place to live. I can't keep staying at Ron's or Sirius's house."

"What's wrong with that?"

Ron immediately exclaimed, "Our whole family welcomes you! I even told Mom you were coming to the Burrow for Christmas, and she was overjoyed!"

Harry just smiled and shook his head, offering no further explanation: "Of course I'd love to spend Christmas at the Burrow, and I'm sure it would be a wonderful holiday. I just need a little time to tidy up the house my parents left behind."

"Alright then, we can help you clean up."

"That would be perfect."

"..."

Loren listened to their conversation, then turned to look out the window. The howling wind and snow had frozen the ground, and the Forbidden Forest and distant mountains were covered in a layer of snow. The sky and the ground were almost the same color, a vast expanse of white.

It wasn't just him and Hermione; their friends all grew up without them even realizing it.

……

10:00 AM.

The biting north wind rushed into the hall from the doorway, while the torches on the walls flickered and swayed, stubbornly keeping the bitter cold out of the hall.

It was so cold that the young wizard had no interest in talking. Hogwarts students who were about to leave gathered at the entrance, their suitcases standing beside them. Their necks were wrapped tightly in the school's colored scarves, and their chins were buried in their collars and scarves, not allowing the cold any gaps to penetrate.

Loren and Hermione stood side by side on the inner side of the hall, watching several friends from other houses pass by. They simply nodded to each other without exchanging many pleasantries.

The melodious whistle of a train could be heard in the distance, and a few plumes of smoke rose from the sky above the station.

Suddenly, the students started chattering. A group of them put on their gloves, pulled up their hoods, tightened their scarves, and dragged their suitcases into the snowstorm.

"You're gone."

"goodbye!"

Their figures gradually disappeared into the vast white snow, leaving only a trail of footprints that were eventually covered by the footprints of the students behind them.

Stepping into the carriage, I untied my scarf and let out a long, satisfying breath.

Although seven years later the power and propulsion system of the Hogwarts Express are still unclear, Loren is certain that there are boilers burning on the train, as evidenced by the warm air in the carriages.

I found a quiet, empty cubicle, put my suitcase down, took off my gloves, sat down, stretched, and felt like going to sleep.

"..."

Hermione put away her suitcase and owl cage, then turned to look at Loren with a somewhat helpless expression: "Have you forgotten that Mr. Kohhausen is still waiting for you behind us?"

"I almost forgot."

Loren stood up again and muttered, "Then I'll go to the back to meet Mr. Kohauer. You wait here for me. If the witch selling snacks passes by, order me a glass of pumpkin juice."

"Um."

"It has to be hot."

"understood."

"Another box of chocolate frogs, please."

"..."

A few minutes later, Loren left the compartment and walked back along the aisle of the carriage.

At the very end of the carriage, in front of a quiet, enclosed compartment, Loren stopped, glanced at the number on it, and knocked on the door.

The next moment, a middle-aged male wizard with a full beard opened the door. His face had a rough and unrestrained look about him, and he smiled as he looked at the young wizard who had knocked on the door.

"Oh, dear Loren, it's been a long time. Come in."

"Long time no see, Mr. Kohauer." Loren walked into the cubicle.

The cubicle was spacious and bright, but the temperature difference between inside and outside caused a thin layer of fog to form on the windowpane, blurring the view outside into indistinct patches of color. Inside, two people sat facing each other, their faces showing little change from a few months ago.

Looking at the young wizard opposite him, who seemed to have grown taller, Kohauer felt no contempt despite the fact that he was still a child who was developing.

A few months ago, he had witnessed the epic duel, in which a young wizard, still a minor, defeated the most powerful dark wizard in history. The battle lasted less than ten minutes, and was decisive and swift.

It is foreseeable that this young wizard will grow into a great and legendary wizard like Dumbledore, influencing the world for a long time, or even an entire era.

Loren was also sizing up Mr. Kohauer across from him. He seemed to be having trouble adjusting to the lifestyle here lately, as his beard had grown even thicker, almost as thick as Haig's.

This was, in fact, their first meeting alone. With that thought, the atmosphere inexplicably became awkward, and they unconsciously adopted the etiquette of hospitality.

Loren quickly composed himself, a gentle smile appearing on his face, showing no trace of the drowsiness he had displayed just minutes before: "Mr. Kohauer, I never expected you to choose the Hogwarts Express as our meeting place."

Kouhauge laughed heartily twice: "I've been here for half a year, and Scrimgeour has taken me to many places, wizarding villages, Muggle cities... I've seen many different things, but I've never had the chance to visit Hogwarts, so I might as well take this opportunity to experience your train."

"How are you feeling?"

"Very smooth, much better than the school buses in Ifamoni."

"You also rode on Iphamoni's school bus?"

"I also went to school in Ifamoni when I was young. Back then, the school buses were old-fashioned diesel buses that shook constantly even when driving on flat ground, and they had a terrible smell of cooking oil... Oh, don't even mention it."

Kouhauge covered his nose and waved his hand, seemingly recalling the scent from years ago: "Enough of that, let's get down to business. I'd like to know, what could possibly warrant a meeting between me and a future legendary wizard?"

"Mr. Kohhausen, please don't make fun of me."

Loren smiled and shook his head, paused for a moment, and then said, "However, I do have an important matter I'd like to ask for your help with."

"you say."

"As the future president of the Magical Congress of the United States, what are your thoughts on the current mainstream methods of spatial teleportation in the magical world, or have you noticed their shortcomings?"

"Flaws? Could you be more specific?" Kouhauge asked curiously. His politician's intuition made him keenly aware that there was another meaning hidden in these words, like business, or something deeper, which piqued his interest.

Loren considered his words carefully before explaining slowly, "Apparition is only suitable for short-range teleportation, and the teleportation location is limited to places the caster has personally been to or seen. For example, Hermione and I spent the summer in New York, and Mr. Kohler has been in London for the past few months. Facing unfamiliar environments, we can only slowly explore, and it demands high levels of wizarding skill, making the entire teleportation process fraught with risk. Traditional fireplace teleportation has even more restrictions, requiring access to the Department of Transportation and only allowing teleportation to fireplaces connected to the Floo Network. Not to mention Portkeys..."

These are all clichés from books and materials. The aforementioned methods of spatial teleportation have existed for hundreds or even thousands of years. Countless wizards have already summarized their advantages and disadvantages, and they are also mentioned in student textbooks.

Kouhauge sat opposite him, listening quietly, a shrewdness flashing in his eyes that seemed incongruous with his appearance. He said thoughtfully, "It sounds like you already have a solution to these flaws?"

Loren nodded slightly, a smile appearing on his face: "Mr. Kohaug has been at the Ministry of Magic for almost half a year; he should already know Mr. Tykroth, right?"

"You mean they're optimizing and improving the Phantom Manifestation?"

Kouhauge pictured the pale face of the Director of Transportation in his mind. Lacking political experience, his academic background was a perfect fit for the Ministry of Magic's current situation. Recalling the materials he had come across over the past few months, he pondered and said, "Even the improved Apparition based on the new principles only reduces the risk of splitting and increases the safety of casting and teleportation. It can also increase the teleportation distance to some extent, but the original flaws still exist... I don't understand what you mean."

"No, I want to introduce you to a new type of spatial teleportation device."

Loren extended his wand and gently tapped it in mid-air. Countless shimmering runes appeared in the air, their illusory light and shadow converging and coalescing into a complex and obscure alchemical array:

"With the help of the legendary wizard Nicolas Flamel and many professors at Hogwarts, we have designed a new type of spatial teleportation device that greatly improves upon the shortcomings of traditional teleportation methods. It has the convenience and comfort of the FlooNet and the teleportation distance is comparable to or even exceeds that of a Portkey."

Kouhauge sketched out the eerie spatial array in his mind, trying to understand it by comparing it with the meager alchemical knowledge he had accumulated during his student days. However, he only found himself feeling dizzy and unable to comprehend anything.

He blinked, glancing past the spatial magic circle before him, and looked at the young wizard opposite him: "So, what is the purpose of your meeting with me today?"

Loren waved his wand to dispel the runes filling the compartment and chuckled softly, "As the future president of the Magical Congress of the United States, you are the most promising candidate to succeed Dumbledore as president of the International Confederation of Wizards after his retirement. I hope you can help us promote the new teleportation device to the whole world."

"A new device...all over the world..."

Kohler was clearly somewhat surprised by the request, and a certain intuition told him that there was a deeper meaning behind it, but he couldn't figure it out in a short time and could only repeat the words in a low voice.

From a purely political perspective, if the new device truly makes up for the shortcomings of the traditional device, it will naturally replace it over the next few decades. However, this attitude of rapidly promoting it to the world makes him subconsciously uneasy.

Kouhauge narrowed his eyes slightly as he stared at the young wizard opposite him. Loren's expression remained calm and composed, and he continued to maintain a smiling expression.

After pondering for a long time, Kohler still couldn't come up with an answer, so he simply gave up and leaned back in his chair: "I'm very sorry, dear Loren, I can't just agree to that."

"Why?" Loren didn't seem surprised.

"I don't understand what you get out of this?"

Kouhauge answered calmly, his tone even, revealing the demeanor of a mature official: "Since graduating, I have moved between various departments of the Magical Congress of the United States and frequently communicated and coordinated with the Muggle government. I have come into contact with tens of thousands of humans, whether wizards or Muggles. They all have their own pursuits and desires."

"Dumbledore often said that experience is wisdom." Loren nodded in deep agreement.

"So I'm even more puzzled. You want to promote this new space device to the whole world..." Kouhauge stared directly into his eyes, as if trying to read his thoughts through them, "What exactly is your purpose?"

"It could be wealth, it could be fame, either way is possible."

"If you truly sought these things, alchemy would have made your wealth limitless, and the public duel that night would have made your name known throughout the wizarding world... In fact, you did not seek these things."

The middle-aged wizard spoke with praise; Dumbledore's recommendation made him willing to believe in Loren, but decades of political experience had made him instinctively reject things he couldn't see through, and a faint wariness still lingered in his eyes.

Loren smiled gently and returned his praise: "With keen intuition and insightful wisdom, Mr. Kohauer will surely become a great Speaker of Congress in the future."

"You still haven't answered my question, Mr. Morgan."

Before answering that question, we need to talk about another topic.

"Another topic?"

"The conflict between wizards and Muggles, or rather, the conflict between technological civilization and magical civilization."

(End of this chapter)