Hogwarts: Harry Returns from Azeroth

Chapter 253, Section 252: Headmaster Potter Takes Office at Hogwarts!
It wasn't a war between wizards, but a counterattack against foreign invaders. Merlin's medals from Wizengamot were scattered like water, which was probably the result of Dumbledore's visits to his old friends these past two days.

But unlike the Merlin medals that Lockhart bought with money, at least these people's medals were well-deserved, and no one objected.

Anyone who objects will be sent to the front lines next time.

We can't let heroes bleed and weep, but for Harry, the more important issue now is taking over Hogwarts.

What does it mean to say that you've entrusted everything to me?

Standing on this, well, ruins, Harry looked at Dumbledore and said.

“It means exactly what it says, Harry,” Dumbledore said quite casually. “You’re the headmaster of Hogwarts, aren’t you? So it’s your job to fix this place up and decorate it the way you like.”

The two were currently in the headmaster's office on the eighth floor... or rather, the place that used to be the headmaster's office. The battle between Harry and the fragments of Voldemort's soul had destroyed this place. Even though the fel corruption that had been attached to the walls, ceiling, and floor had been cleansed, the place still looked messy and full of broken stones and damaged objects.

Given that Dumbledore's office might contain many important or dangerous items, Professor McGonagall did not clean it up, intending to let Dumbledore identify them himself when he returned. During this time, the Sorting Hat stayed in Professor McGonagall's office.

It is said that this hat has been bothering Professor McGonagall every day.

“Oh, I’m so glad Voldemort didn’t do anything to them,” Dumbledore said with a hint of relief. “It seems that Hogwarts still holds a certain place in his heart.”

"This is... the Book of Admission and the Pen of Acceptance?" Harry said after examining it.

A book with a black dragon skin cover, but some of the dragon scales on it have already peeled off. Just by looking at the exterior, you can feel the aura of antiquity. Next to the book is a small silver ink bottle with a faded quill pen inserted inside.

“Yes, those are it,” Dumbledore said with certainty. “When a child in England first shows signs of magical talent, the Pen of Acceptance flies out of its inkwell to try to write the child’s name in the Book of Admission—ah, like this.”

As Dumbledore spoke, the book suddenly opened by itself, and the tattered-looking quill flew out of the inkwell beside it. He tried to write a name on the open page—[Omi—]

It was a silvery, shimmering liquid. Harry glanced at it; the ink bottle was empty, but the quill pen did indeed leave a silvery mark, though only at the very beginning.

"Ah, it seems this child's talent is not yet obvious enough," Dumbledore said with some regret, while the name on the book slowly faded away until it disappeared completely.

"He was rejected?" Harry asked.

“I don’t know, Harry. Nobody knows what the Book of Admissions is thinking,” Dumbledore said with a chuckle. “From my observations over the years, all I know is that the criteria for the Pen of Acceptance are more lenient than those of the Book of Admissions. Only children who agree with both can become students of Hogwarts.”

"So that kid has to demonstrate his magical talent again, like a magical outburst or something, to get his name on it," Harry concluded.

“Yes, there will be no misjudgment due to residual magic from the child’s parents or other reasons. This is the real reason why Hogwarts has never admitted a single Squib in thousands of years,” Dumbledore said leisurely. “People always say that this castle is the soul of Hogwarts, the everything of this school, but that’s not true—it is.”

"As long as the Book of Admission and the Pen of Acceptance are there, a new Hogwarts can be rebuilt at any time, even if it's not in the Scottish Highlands." Dumbledore glanced longingly at the dragon-skinned books in his hands, then handed them to Harry without hesitation. "Now, it is your responsibility to take good care of them, Harry."

“I swear, I will.” Standing ramrod straight, Harry solemnly accepted the two treasures. “No one can destroy Hogwarts. The enemy can only find them on my corpse.”

“Oh, no need to be so serious, Harry,” Dumbledore said, waving his hands. “I think you have the ability to protect them. Just remember not to take them out of Britain.”

After handing over the most precious treasures of Hogwarts, Dumbledore seemed much more relaxed. He no longer had to worry about the ruins of the headmaster's office or those trivial official duties—now it was Harry who should be the one with a headache.

"...I regret that I cannot call you children as affectionately as Dumbledore. After all, let alone white beard, at my age, I haven't even grown black beard yet."

At the first dinner after the new headmaster took office, Harry, who was already sitting in the center of the main table in front of the restaurant, made the students below, who were originally a little nervous, laugh with just one sentence.

"Don't worry, I won't ban all your clubs, big or small, nor will I ban you from playing Quidditch, and I certainly won't ban upperclassmen from going to Hogsmeade every weekend," Harry said, and the students cheered louder as he spoke. "Yes, all the rules in the school are the same as when Headmaster Dumbledore was there. I think the rules he set are good and beneficial to your growth, so I don't intend to change them."

"Of course, I must also remind you on behalf of my apprentice Filch that the list of prohibited items in the castle is still in effect. You can't cast spells in the corridors or deliberately damage anything... You should know what I'm talking about, Fred, George."

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha."

The students loved the friendly atmosphere and laughed heartily.

"Oh no! Headmaster! We haven't even started yet!" Fred shouted playfully amidst the cheerful atmosphere.

“That’s right, you can’t punish us for things we haven’t done yet,” George chimed in. “Unless we actually did!” “Whatever,” Harry shrugged. “But I have to remind you, Professor McGonagall is still the Vice-Headmaster of Hogwarts. Come on if you dare.”

"Hahahahahahahahahaha!"

Seeing Professor McGonagall's face, which was brimming with anger, Fred and George immediately shrank back obediently by the bench, pretending to be well-behaved children.

And so, without any ups and downs or objections, Harry smoothly took over the duties of headmaster of Hogwarts. Dumbledore didn't even attend his inauguration banquet. According to the old man, a territory doesn't need two lords, and his presence might not be a good thing.

Even though he had relieved himself of a heavy burden, Dumbledore still couldn't stay idle. He wanted to find his old lover, since he and Grindelwald had disappeared together, but he had now returned to the real world while Grindelwald was nowhere to be found.

Moreover, the old man said that he seemed to have found a clue to a Horcrux, and in order to wipe Voldemort out, he had to investigate it carefully.

In short, he disappeared again, the only difference being that this time the owl was able to find Dumbledore.

Harry's appointment as headmaster of Hogwarts did not provoke any opposition from British wizards. When the Daily Prophet published the news, most British wizards were actually celebrating, or rather, showing off with pride.

No one questioned Harry's abilities. Although there were some who doubted whether Harry, at his age, could handle the various affairs of Hogwarts maturely and reliably, these doubts disappeared after it was learned that Professor McGonagall was still the vice-principal of Hogwarts.

In the end, it was the French wizards across the sea who questioned whether the British magical community was lacking in talent, to the point that a twelve-year-old child could become the headmaster of a thousand-year-old magic school. Naturally, the British wizards were not happy to be ridiculed by their old neighbors, especially by the French.

Well, in short, the Ministry of Magic's already busy work suddenly has an additional task: to arrest the wizards from both countries who have secretly arranged to duel over such matters at the border coast... The existence of magic makes the wizards' mobility a bit too high.

Harry was anything but idle after taking office. As the headmaster of Hogwarts, he immediately faced a dilemma that Dumbledore would have faced during his tenure—he had to find a new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor for the students.

After all, the current Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, Lockhart, was dead, leaving not even a trace of his soul. The students' class was now being taught by Snape, who had volunteered to take over. Snape had come to the Great Totem alone, made his request, and then stopped talking, just staring at Harry as if he wouldn't leave until Harry agreed.

After Harry learned about the history of the course's instructors, he discovered that whenever a new professor died halfway through the year, Snape would become the substitute instructor. Most importantly, Snape, who was only a substitute instructor, was still alive and well and had not suffered any torture or danger. So Harry agreed to his application.

But this still doesn't change the fact that Harry urgently needs to find a new professor for the course. After all, the Christmas holidays are already long over, and the school year is about to end. If he doesn't want Snape to be lost for no reason and then have to find a new Potions professor when the new semester starts, then he has to act quickly.

It was only at this point that Harry realized where he, as headmaster, was inferior to Dumbledore—over a century of experience had given Dumbledore countless connections, and if the old man used his clever mind, he could always find a suitable old friend from the corners of his memory to serve as professor.

Well, according to Dumbledore, after he had personally seen off more than a dozen old friends, the other old friends would disappear and avoid him every year before the start of the summer school term, once they learned that he was coming to visit.

No wonder the old man smiled so happily and easily when he advised Harry to find a new professor as soon as possible... He really got rid of a big problem.

Harry also wanted to find a senior Auror from the Ministry of Magic to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts. At first, when the Aurors heard that Harry wanted to invite them to teach at Hogwarts, they were all eager to sign up. However, when they heard that it was to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts, they all suddenly became sick, their stomachs ached all over, and they simply couldn't go.

“We’re all graduates of Hogwarts, Professor Potter,” one of the Aurors said candidly with an embarrassed expression. “No one knows better than us what it’s like to be a professor of this course—at the end of the year, it’s considered the best outcome if you leave with a serious injury; many people even die on the job.”

That's the downside of graduating from Hogwarts; you can't fool anyone if you want to.

By the time the students finished their final exams and the school year was completely over, and the Hogwarts Express was once again parked on the platform waiting for the students to leave, Harry still hadn't found a new water ghost... or rather, a new professor.

A real sense of anxiety had already set in. Harry couldn't allow himself to assume the responsibilities of headmaster, yet he couldn't provide the students with a qualified professor capable of imparting knowledge, to the point that the class eventually became vacant—to be honest, Harry even considered teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts himself.

His current knowledge of wizarding magic may not yet be comparable to that of veteran wizards like Dumbledore and Grindelwald, who have cultivated their expertise in the field for many years, but he is more than capable of teaching seven years of students.

Unfortunately, Professor McGonagall vehemently opposed this idea. Hogwarts could not afford the possibility of a young, newly appointed headmaster being cursed to death. Considering that professors had died tragically in the past three years, Professor McGonagall dared not gamble with her luck.

Harry became headmaster because he was strong enough to protect the students, but if something happened to Harry, Hogwarts might really have to close down.

So in the end, no one knows where Sirius got the news, but he ran right up to Harry and started jumping around trying to apply for the position.

"You don't believe in my magical abilities, Harry!" Sirius slammed his hand on Harry's desk, angrily saying, "A year ago, everyone thought I was a powerful dark wizard! The kind who could hold my own against Void!"

“Yes, I don’t believe you. You can sit back down now.” Without even a moment’s hesitation, Harry said without looking up, “I’ve already lost my parents. I don’t want to lose my godfather at such a young age.”

(End of this chapter)