A certain Hogwarts professor of runes.

……

When the day's studies came to an end, Harry heard Percy and Penelope whispering as they walked out of the classroom.

"Penelope, what's your decision?"

Penelope hesitated and said, "I want to do something meaningful. The future world you're talking about, is it just a newly established company, or maybe just a small shop?"

"Its ads are very tempting, aren't they?"

"Maybe he's just boasting..."

"No, look at its pay, fifty Galleons a month. That's much more than what a Ministry of Magic employee earns; I don't even make that much—"

“I didn’t choose this job for the money!” Penelope said angrily.

“I know, I know, but that also shows the company is very sincere and short-staffed,” Percy tried his best to persuade his girlfriend, “Don’t rush into a decision, Penelope. When we have time off, I’ll go check it out with you, it’s in Diagon Alley…”

In the evening, Harry went to Professor Lupin's office.

The Defense Against the Dark Arts professor's office was moved to the third floor. Harry had always suspected that the battle between Professor Lupin and Snape had destroyed the original room. On the day of the duel, he saw a fleeting image of the two confronting each other in Professor Hyp's eyes.

However, neither Professor Lupin nor Professor Hyp acknowledged it, and he simply didn't have the courage to ask Snape—the result was predictable: he would lose fifty points and be placed in solitary confinement for a week.

Lupin's office door was open. He had already packed most of his things. Grindelwald's empty water tank stood next to his worn-out trunk, which was open and almost full.

“I see you,” Lupin said with a smile, pointing to a piece of parchment on the table. Harry leaned closer and realized it was the Marauder's Map. This map had come full circle and returned to the hands of its creator.

Lupin said, "Professor Hyp gave it back to me a few days ago. He has cracked the secret on it, and Sirius and I both agree that it should belong to you."

"For me?" Harry said in surprise.

“You’re just like Jaime, a restless soul. I dare say you, Ron, and Hermione will find a use for this map. Jaime will be very disappointed if his son never discovers any secret passages in the castle.”

"But the secret passage has been sealed off..."

“That’s just the secret passage leading to Hogsmeade,” Lupin added. “There are many more secret passages in the castle.”

Harry smiled and picked up the map, examining it closely for a while, but he couldn't find Professor Hyp's name anywhere. He grinned, realizing that the professor had indeed cracked the Marauder's Map's secret.

He casually stuffed the map into his pocket, then noticed a newspaper with a folded corner sticking out beside it. A job posting on that page caught his attention, and he began to read it carefully—

The future world welcomes you to join us!

We are now recruiting from all walks of life, regardless of background, based solely on ability. Anyone who excels beyond the average person in any three of the following areas: ancient runes, alchemy, spells, transmutation, magical theory, or Muggle research may apply for a position. Once selected, you will receive excellent compensation and an immediate monthly stipend of fifty Galleons.

Our company is dedicated to practical research in magic, aiming to create a better life for all wizards.

Join the future world, join the future. We look forward to hearing from you.

Note: As our company involves the modification and transformation of numerous Muggle items, those with relevant experience are preferred.

Harry put down his newspaper and hesitated before saying, "Professor Lupin, you mean to..."

“Ah, you mean this?” Lupin tightened his old trunk, looked up and said, “After leaving Hogwarts, I didn’t know what to do for a while, and I happened to see this information… I thought that if I could get the job, even if I only worked for a few months and was kicked out, it would still be a considerable income.”

Harry felt sad for Professor Lupin, not from a sudden, intense emotion, but like an undercurrent beneath a calm surface, a gentle, irreversible sorrow pricking his heart again and again.

Professor Lupin carried the identity of a werewolf his entire life, constantly on the run, never staying in one place for more than six months. Moreover, after leaving Hogwarts, he would lose his stable source of wolfsbane potion.

“You’ll succeed!” Harry encouraged him loudly.

Lupin was surprised for a second or two, then smiled. "Don't worry about me, Harry." But he didn't give a reason, perhaps because there was no reason to give. He put the box in the corner, straightened his robes, and said, "Let's go."

Chapter 315 End of the School Year

In front of the faculty lounge, Ron waited quietly at the door. When he saw Harry and Lupin, he waved excitedly at them.

"Harry, Professor Lupin, you've finally arrived!"

"Where's Hermione?" Harry asked curiously. He looked around and saw Hermione around a corner. She was with Professor McGonagall, talking quietly about something.

A moment later, they came over, chatting and laughing, and went into the faculty lounge together. The place had been tidied up; the old black wooden chairs in the long, narrow room had been piled up to one side near the fireplace, and a long table had been placed in their place.

Flitwick cast a spell on the ceiling, causing colorful ribbons to hang down. Felix conjured a small white ball that floated to the ceiling, emitting a gentle light that made the room warm and bright. Hagrid carried a large barrel of mead, while Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall laughed as they transformed the ornaments on the table into miniature animals.

Harry temporarily forgot the sadness of parting and ate heartily. At Hagrid's recommendation, he even tasted a small glass of wine made by the house-elf. When Professor McGonagall cast a reproachful glance at him, Hagrid discreetly took the glass away: "You're still young, Harry..."

Besides the various hot dishes and sweet puddings, there were several novel dishes on the table. Ron forked a meatball drizzled with sauce and asked curiously, "What's this? I've never seen it before." He put the fork in his mouth, his eyes lighting up. "Harry, Hermione, you have to try this!"

Harry forked a yellow cube, tasted it sweet and sour, and said confidently, "It's pineapple."

What's this dish called?

A house-elf wearing a chef's hat said respectfully, "This is sweet and sour pineapple meat, a recent creation. Mr. Hyp gave Mr. Yun a cookbook for Christmas, which contains many amazing dishes."

Hermione hesitated before saying, "Are you a house-elf in the kitchen? Why don't you come and join us..."

The house-elf, Uncle Cloud, took a few steps back. "We'll be eating in the kitchen," he said, bowing. "The food is served, please enjoy." Then he vanished with a bang.

“You scared him, Hermione,” Ron said.

At this point, Professor McGonagall began to ask Lupin about his plans after leaving the school. Lupin mentioned the job posting he had seen in the newspaper, saying, "Except for my lack of ancient runes, I meet all the requirements. I'm going to submit a resume."

Professor McGonagall smiled and said warmly, "Which one is it? Perhaps I know one and can write you a letter of recommendation."

Lupin said gently, "A new company called Future World, the details are unclear yet—"

"The future world?" Felix repeated, giving Lupin a strange look that puzzled Lupin. After a while, Felix raised his glass: "You will succeed, Lupin."

"Thank you."

"Ding!"

Their wine glasses clinked together.

……

The next morning, Harry got out of bed early and hurriedly dressed. Ron was still fast asleep, muttering in his sleep, "This is delicious, Harry..."

He put on another robe, took a few steps out of the bedroom, and disturbed the fat lady's sweet dreams because he came out too early.

"Child, it's the end of the semester now," she said weakly, rotating away from her seat.

“I’m not confused, I have something important to do,” Harry explained. He walked down the spiral staircase and came out of the Great Hall’s main door, where he could see Professor Lupin carrying his suitcase in the distance.

He caught up, panting, "Professor, I've come to see you off!"

They strolled down the grass, bathed in the golden morning light, until they reached the main entrance of Hogwarts. They chatted and talked freely like true friends, and when it was time to part, Harry felt even more reluctant to leave.

Lupin smiled and said, "I left quietly because I didn't want to increase the sadness of parting, and besides, we'll be meeting again soon."

"You mean Sirius's funeral?"

Lupin nodded. "A respectable man..." He waved and left with a carefree air.

Harry watched him until he disappeared at the end of the road before returning to the castle. Time flew by, and he devoted all his energy to learning ancient magic, even neglecting Apparition for the time being. Apart from Hermione, some Club members had already learned the spell—Percy Weasley, with Geoffrey and Penelope following closely behind.

“They’re all seventh graders, their advantage is too obvious,” Ron said.

“Cedric has also grasped the basics,” Harry said perceptively. “I’m always just a little short.”

"Dude, he's two grades ahead of you, why are you comparing yourself to him?" Ron asked, puzzled.

Harry didn't say anything. He also felt that his thoughts were a bit boring, but he couldn't help but argue with himself.

Before they knew it, it was the last day before the holidays. On this day, the school announced the exam results. Harry, Ron, and Hermione all passed every subject.

Harry got an excellent grade in Defense Against the Dark Arts, and a good grade in Ancient Runes, Charms and Protection of Magical Creatures. Ron glanced at it and said, "I only missed a little in Defense Against the Dark Arts, everything else is the same."

He looked at Hermione's report card again, feeling depressed, and found the only "good" in the form filled with "excellent": "Defense Against the Dark Arts... I'm reminded of that Boggart you met during the exam."

During her practical exam, Hermione encountered a cunning Boggart who transformed into a professor and told her she had failed all her exams and would have to repeat a year. It took her quite a while to calm down, and the exam had to be interrupted for ten minutes.

Hermione glanced at Ron and reminded him, "I've learned Apparition."

Ron frowned and muttered under his breath, "I succeeded twice too..."

"Once I lost half an eyebrow, once I tore the hem of my clothes—yes, if you count those as successes."

"I should go find Fred and George; their bottoms are going to get a good spanking from Mom..."

When they appeared in the auditorium, they saw that Professor Hyp was already surrounded by excited students. Percy announced loudly, "Excellent everyone!"

Jeffrey reminded him, "You forgot about Marcus."

"Okay, there's one more good thing... I'm trying to ignore that."

Felix was surrounded and it took him a while to escape, but it was a happy problem. The seventh-year graduates were still celebrating enthusiastically, and even Snape hadn't deducted any points from them, which was unthinkable under normal circumstances.

“Severus, I need a stable source of wolfsbane medicine.”

"For that werewolf?" Snape said with disgust. Ever since the night of the Battle of the Covered Bridge, he had stopped saying Lupin's name in his conversations with Felix, always referring to him as "that werewolf."

“You don’t seem like the type to meddle,” he said.

Felix sighed. "He would be an excellent employee."

"Your company?" Snape said, not immediately refusing, but thinking seriously for a moment. "Are you still accepting investment?"

“If it were anyone else, I would refuse, but you are different, Severus.”

"Give me a title, one that must be higher than that werewolf's. I'll interview him myself." Snape cracked his knuckles, a sinister smile spreading across his face.

“You look terrible; that little wizard even dropped his fork.”

Snape glanced at it and said dismissively, "A stupid fellow who ate pies in my class and I made him deal with two huge buckets of longhorn toad livers."

"Really? No wonder you looked so familiar..."

Chapter 316 Fire Dragon Protection Area

The next day, the Hogwarts Express left the station and disappeared from Felix's sight.

Dumbledore stood beside him, gazing into the distance, his eyes glistening with tears: "It's truly moving... an empty head filled with knowledge, enjoying a wonderful holiday."

“Yes, and I still have a whole backpack full of homework,” Felix said. “Albus, why did you send me to Romania?”

“Since you are not one of the four Headmasters, we must avoid any appearance of impropriety. This year’s tournament is larger than ever before, with five schools participating,” Dumbledore said gently. “This is my job, but I’ve been too busy—”

"Five schools? Besides Iphamoni, which one is there?"

“It’s the work of Wagadu from Mount Moon in Africa—Fudge,” Dumbledore said. “He’s had a very difficult two months. The Dementors’ out-of-control behavior has caused his reputation to plummet. Parents have been sending letters condemning his incompetence, and the newspapers have been reporting on it extensively.”

"Didn't you say Fudge's methods were very—"