Hogwarts: What are the four great masters doing?

At least from Ryan's perspective, he didn't notice anything else hidden in old Batty's actions.

What surprised him even more was that behind old Barty Crouch, there was actually a small figure following him.

It was a female house-elf with very white skin.

She followed old Barty Crouch closely, and if she accidentally bumped into the little wizard on the road, she would apologize repeatedly, "Oh, sorry, wizard," "Winky didn't mean it."

She was carrying a suitcase in her hands.

And soon, old Batty walked to the carriage where Ryan was.

Of course he noticed Ryan immediately.

Then, Ryan saw that there seemed to be a subtle change in his expression.

But it wasn't anger or hostility, it was more like avoidance.

"Mr. Elias."

But he obviously quickly calmed down and became expressionless again.

"Hello, Professor Crouch."

And Ryan was also very polite.

"Um..."

Old Barty was obviously unfamiliar with the title of 'Professor'. He was stunned for a moment, then said dryly, "I heard about your experience in Diagon Alley - you caught those dark wizard bastards, which is good... I couldn't catch them before, and many innocent people died..."

He was halfway through his words when he seemed to feel that it was not appropriate to say this in front of a group of young wizards, so he stopped awkwardly.

"I don't think it's your fault, Mr. Crouch."

Ryan, on the other hand, came to his rescue: "What are you doing? Checking the carriage?"

"Yes."

Old Barty said softly, "I will be one of the professors of the Defense Against the Dark Arts class at Hogwarts this year, and I believe caution is the first key to fighting against dark wizards."

As he spoke, he casually cast a detection spell: "Sirius, or other dark wizards - if they want to enter Hogwarts, then inspection is necessary... not only this train, but also all the entrances of the school."

"I want this to be the first lesson I teach my young wizards."

he said softly.

"Great course, professor."

Ryan nodded sincerely.

Don’t say anything else.

But as the former Director of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, he was the immediate superior of all Aurors.

The professional level displayed by old Barty Crouch in dealing with dark wizards was indeed extremely high - this could be seen from the complex spell he just cast.

If the spell had not been used thousands of times, its stability would not have been that high.

Ryan had no doubt that the other party would be an excellent professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts.

"This little elf is..."

Then, Ryan looked at the elf behind old Batty.

"Her name is Winky, and she's our family's elf."

Crouch Sr. said calmly, "I'm old now, so I have to come to Hogwarts to be a professor. But at the same time, I can't leave all the affairs of the Department of International Magical Cooperation to Amos. She can take care of my daily life and make it convenient for me to return to the Ministry of Magic at any time."

"Of course, the magic of the house elves is indeed very convenient."

Ryan nodded - although old Batty looked very capable, he was already quite old after all.

But his eyes were slightly focused on the house-elf named Winky.

The latter's eyes shrank, and he slightly hid the box in his hand behind him.

"Regarding the course you just mentioned..."

So Ryan continued to speak casually.

"It would be best if you could add a little sense of humor."

He made a joke.

So, old Batty nodded stiffly.

"I have to continue investigating."

He didn't say much, but just continued walking towards the next car.

And after he and Shanshan walked away.

Ryan sat back in his seat.

There was a look of thought in his eyes.

Again, Barty Crouch Sr. gave him a very strange feeling.

Dumbledore said that he had no sympathy for evil and would never serve Voldemort.

Ryan saw the same situation from repeated contacts - including the sudden train inspection conducted by old Barty Crouch today. This was obviously not done by a dark wizard. Instead, it seemed like he really wanted to catch some dark wizards with ulterior motives.

But Ryan was certain of it.

There was a secret about Crouch Sr., about his son, Barty Crouch Jr. - and so far, not even Dumbledore had found out.

And that house-elf...

"Are you really just here to take care of his life?"

Ryan murmured in his heart, unusually unsure of the situation.

And now...

"Lyan, how's it going?"

The twins, who had heard Ryan talk about the Department of Mysteries incident before, also came over and asked with a serious expression.

"I don't see any problem with that."

Ryan also gave a direct conclusion.

"Well... no rush, we can play with him next school year!"

"That's right—last term we were able to get Quirrell to reveal his true identity, so this term taking down Crouch shouldn't be a problem!"

The twins said with a smile.

Of course, they were just joking.

But Ryan agreed with what they said - there was still a school year left, and he would be able to figure out the truth about old Barty Crouch.

"But then again—do you think the curse will come true this year?"

"...curse?"

Ryan was a little unresponsive for a moment.

But Cedric reacted instead: "Are you talking about the legendary curse taught by the Defense Against the Dark Arts class?"

"That's right!"

Fred nodded.

"Every year, something happens to the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor—and this year, Headmaster Dumbledore innovatively chose two professors to share the curse... Do you think the curse will come true?!"

George said curiously.

After hearing what they said, Ryan naturally reacted.

They were talking about the legend about the curse cast by the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor.

So, Ryan said helplessly.

"You're overthinking it. The curse might be directed at a certain person, but how could it be cast on an entire position?"

He shook his head.

"But it is what it is."

The twins were clearly unconvinced: "It's been going on for many years now, and every Defense Against the Dark Arts class has always yielded poor results... I bet this time will be no different!"

George was even more imaginative, saying, "Maybe it's some kind of special curse... Well, for example, someone cast a curse on Hogwarts Castle, and anyone working in the Defense Against the Dark Arts office will be affected?"

Casting a spell on the castle was even more impossible.

Ryan wanted to say this, but he paused when the words came to his lips.

Because he suddenly thought of the authority left to him by Hufflepuff - the authority of the Forbidden Forest allowed him to clearly perceive the situation of life in the Forbidden Forest even after leaving Hogwarts.

He can also Apparate at will within the Forbidden Forest...and he still hasn't figured out the nature of this authority.

But he could at least be sure that this authority was definitely related to the castle.

Ryan still has many uncertainties about Hogwarts, the ancient castle he built himself.

So, he didn't say anything too final.

However, at this time, the conversation between Gemini and Cedric obviously changed the topic - they didn't know much about curses, so they turned from the way the curse was released to the topic of whether the two Defense Against the Dark Arts professors in the next semester would get into trouble.

And on this point, they all had the same opinion - something was bound to happen!

"It's the castle's 'tradition'."

Gemini said seriously: "The only difference is how many professors will have problems, one or two?"

After discussing this, they finally decided to add a bet.

"What are you gambling?"

Cedric asked.

"The Quidditch World Cup next year—"

"Whoever loses has to take the winner... well, Ryan along to the game!"

The twins replied.

"Uh... I'm not into Quidditch..."