Who let this Dementor into Hogwarts!

Chapter 276 Four! And they're all students from my academy!
Wernher von Braun, being a suspect, could not remain here, so Cohen and Edward let him leave first.

Then, Edward quickly wrote a letter.

Half an hour after the Earl sent the letter, a wizard whom Cohen knew well appeared in the basement with a loud popping sound.

"You mean... you just happened to be traveling with your son to a lakeside hotel a few miles from the city, you just happened to encounter this black wizard who was conducting evil experiments, you just happened to discover his secret, you just happened to fall into his trap, and in the end, you just happened to kill him."

Arnold calmly said to Edward.

“Isn’t it obvious?” Edward pointed to the old man lying on the ground. “He’s still a wanted criminal, the one with the silver key—but now it’s not me who defeated him, it’s you. You can use this to collect the bounty.”

"Merlin's underwear, oh, I'm just a memory eraser!"

Arnold scratched his head and roared.

"What do you take me for? The head of the Auror's office? I can't even handle those guys who sell aphrodisiacs to Muggles—"

“This is a great opportunity for your promotion,” Cohen comforted him. “You’ll be on the front page of the Daily Prophet with ‘The Auror’s Talent Hidden by His Position’—you can show it to your son then, he’ll be so proud—I’ve never seen Edward on the front page of any newspaper…”

“That’s because Edward is too lazy, but thank you—wait, shouldn’t you be in school right now?!” Arnold’s pupils contracted as he looked at Edward and then at Cohen.

“I asked Dumbledore for leave,” Cohen said. “My dad took me on this trip because I was feeling down.”

“Oh…” Arnold said, “I see. I thought you skipped school. I knew Edward, being such a law-abiding person, wouldn’t skip school with his son…”

Cohen glanced silently at Edward.

Does "obeying the law" mean secretly following someone with an illegal compound decoction and then casting a stun spell on a Muggle?

However, like father, like son, Edward is now following Cohen, which makes perfect sense.

At Arnold's request, Edward accompanied him through the "process of capturing the criminal".

“That’s right, you were right here,” Edward said. “Then, this old man threw a killing curse at you—don’t look so surprised, that’s how it is when you fight a dark wizard—and you rolled on the ground to dodge the curse and quickly cast a powerful stun spell.”

“Can my Stunning Curse really kill someone? This isn’t a mission report, it’s fiction.” Arnold sighed. “But thankfully, I know a few people in the Auror office, at least they’re easier to talk to than Moody did before.”

“Since I can’t vacation here, I’m going to stay at the Raffles Hotel for the remaining five days,” Cohen said loudly to Edward, seizing the opportunity. “You can see Churchill’s old table where he planned his World War II strategy—”

“You’re not getting any vacation time. Go back to school right now,” Edward said irritably. “Don’t think you can get away with relying on Arnold for a few more days. You don’t look like you’re in a bad mood at all.”

While Arnold was performing memory corrections on the Muggles, Edward left the hotel with Cohen.

Harry and his friends remained on the shore with the chimeras until Edward and Cohen appeared and the invisibility was removed.

“We’ll take them back to school,” the goat told Edward. “Don’t worry, it’s safe.”

"..." Edward covered his head and sighed.

There were no safety concerns—but considering that this chimera had taken Harry and the others out of the school…

"Wait a minute..." Before leaving, Edward pulled Cohen aside, as if he had something to say.

“I promise I won’t run around during the school term this semester,” Cohen assured him. “At least you won’t find out…”

“Not that,” Edward said, looking Cohen into the eyes. “Don’t worry about your mother and me. I have a plan—those people with the silver keys won’t be able to find our house anymore…”

“Hmm.” Cohen nodded. “For example, the 'Loyalty Curse,' that way I can feel more at ease, so that I won’t come home one day to find your corpses lying in the living room.”

“You underestimate your mother and me…” Edward chuckled dryly. “You must tell us if you’re going to dangerous places in the future.” “No way,” Cohen refused. “Considering you’d risk your life to follow me, I won’t let you do anything so stupid again.”

“You don’t need to tell me your location,” Edward said, gripping Cohen’s shoulder. “At least let me know your situation.”

“You said you couldn’t stand this torture,” Cohen repeated Edward’s words.

"It's better than being kept in the dark."

Edward said,

"Go to school, don't let that damn silver key affect your life."

"understood."
-
The journey back to Hogwarts was rather uneventful; the four of them almost fell asleep on the back of the chimera—Cohen, holding the goat's head, drooled all over it.

"Have we arrived?" Cohen was startled awake the moment he landed in the Forbidden Forest.

“I feel very uncomfortable,” said the goat-headed man.

“Who gave you permission to take Harry and the others out? This is punishment—” Cohen said vindictively, “What did I tell you before I came?”

“I accept.” The goat-headed man nodded.

"Whether we go or not, they'll go out," said the long-horned water snake. "That's the safest solution."

“We made it lead us to you…” Harry explained to the Myra Beast.

"Roar..." The lion rubbed against Cohen's arm.

It really hit Cohen's weak spot...

However, the water serpent has a point; having a chimera with them is at least better than Harry and the others coming out alone.

Moreover, without the Kemera to guide them, Harry and his friends might not have been able to find Cohen, and it would have been even more dangerous if they had encountered other dark wizards or Death Eaters who were still at large.

Cohen left it with Hagrid, intending to take it back when he brought the box out—but Hagrid didn't seem to want Cohen to take it back too soon.

“My lesson plans are all ready!” Hagrid said excitedly. “I was just about to borrow them from you—it’s next week—by the way, why haven’t I seen you guys at the banquet these past few days?”

"We...we took leave," Harry said evasively.

“That’s good. I thought you guys had skipped school,” Hagrid said. “Professor McGonagall hasn’t been in a good mood lately. At first, I thought it was a problem with the students…”

Harry and the others looked at each other in bewilderment.

“It seems Dumbledore didn’t receive your leave slips.” Cohen raised his eyebrows.

But Cohen soon found himself unable to gloat.

When they arrived at the castle gate, whether it was because Professor McGonagall was always waiting there or because she happened to be waiting there at that moment, they ran right into her.

Her lips were pressed into a thin line, and the air was filled with a cold feeling.

Cohen felt that this situation might be more terrifying for the students than being surrounded by a group of Dementors.

"It's you four again!" Professor McGonagall's eyes were practically spitting fire. "Four of you! And all of you are students from my house! Skipping school—how dare you—"

(End of this chapter)