Hogwarts Wasteland: The Witch from the Borderlands

Chapter 91 The Battle to Reclaim the New Life

The professors didn't stay on Cliff Street for long. After bringing the children back, they went to Hogwarts via the fireplace to discuss the upcoming battle to protect the new students.

Hermione used the excuse of going back to school to check on the stability of the Brilliant Stones to follow along, while Harry and the others stayed behind at Cliff Street to help settle the new orphans.

The fates of these children will take a turn for the worse. Those who are accepted into Hogwarts will be taken to the school once the list in the Book of Admission is released, while Squib will have to stay on Cliffstreet and attend Muggle classes with Dudley and the others. It has to be said that this is also a kind of cruelty, that their friends who have gone through life and death together will face different fates because of their innate differences.

Thinking about it this way, Hermione could understand why Aunt Petunia was always so neurotic and rambling.

Returning to Hogwarts, it was still the same as before, but it had been rather deserted for the past two months. There weren't many students assigned to Professor Sprout, and you could hardly see anyone scattered around the castle.

Hermione first went to the Hall of Brilliant Stone, but didn't see Hagrid in his room outside. He was probably out doing errands for Dumbledore again. However, there were two large eight-eyed spiders guarding the place. They recognized Hermione and had seen her thick and long Calia sword. They obediently came over to let Hermione pet their heads, but their eight legs were trembling.

After a summer vacation, the hall has been restored to its former state. Wizard chess statues stand on the left and right, various magical plants quietly stay in the flower beds, and there are many hidden doors in the walls to allow spiders to suddenly appear. Hermione believes that Lily's Tanker ritual is also hidden behind this.

After confirming that everything was normal at the pyroxene, she rushed to the 8th floor and happened to catch the professors who were about to enter the principal's office for a meeting.

Originally, they hadn't planned to bring the children to the meeting, but unable to resist Hermione's pitiful eyes, McGonagall subtly scooped her up and pulled her in.

The principal's office has been completely transformed. The originally dim environment is now fully lit. The original magic circle, ritual candles, and the Mirror of Eris have all been removed. What used to look like a haunted house is now brightly lit and a proper, magnificent principal's office.

Dumbledore stood before the round table, surrounded by professors and some members of the Order of the Phoenix.

Sprout, Flitwick, Lily, Lockhart, McGonagall, as well as James, Sirius, Lupin, and many others, and many others Hermione didn't recognize.

Not all Hogwarts professors are good fighters. Quirrell, for example, is good at teaching and has strong theoretical knowledge, but he turns pale and gets extremely nervous when facing Death Eaters. As for Frenzer the centaur, he doesn't have much spellcasting ability and is easily bullied in one-on-one combat. Therefore, in addition to professors, most of those who participate in the annual freshman defense battle are members of the Order of the Phoenix.

Hermione also spotted Mundungus in the crowd. After two more months of recuperation, he had finally recovered, but his face was still frighteningly pale and his lips were bluish-black, as if he were about to die. He was leaning against the window, looking very weak, yet his eyes were still darting around, staring at the golden magical instruments in the headmaster's office, seemingly plotting something. This was completely different from the heroic image of a spies infiltrating enemy territory that Hermione had imagined.

The professors exchanged tips on raising children during the holidays, while members of the Order of the Phoenix whispered amongst themselves.

"Hey, why did you let the student in?" A deep, husky voice sounded beside her. Hermione looked up and saw a tall, dark figure looming over her.

"Moody, this is Hermione, I brought her in," McGonagall explained.

Hermione then saw the person standing behind her clearly: messy gray hair, a face full of scars, and most conspicuously, a prosthetic eye embedded in its socket, emitting a bright blue light, which was blinking and staring at Hermione.

A feeling of being seen through swept over her, but the next moment, her own third eye reacted spontaneously, and an indescribable sense of resistance repelled the spying.

"? The Demon Eye can't see through her? Is this the little girl who defeated Lucius? How interesting." Moody revealed a frightening smile, walked with a limp to Mundungus's side, and forcefully slapped away his hand that was secretly reaching for the silver ornament.

Hermione then noticed that one of his legs was made of wood, and she wondered why he didn't have a living silver prosthetic leg like Professor Flitwick had.

"Not only that, Hermione was a great help when dealing with the basilisk." Lockhart nodded to Moody as he said, "Ordinary spells are no match for the basilisk's scales. I'm afraid I'll have to ask her for advice on sapphire magic."

"Renowned Ranger Wizard, it's an honor to fight alongside you this year." Moody nodded amicably to him. Lockhart replied modestly, "Just some empty titles. It's my honor to exchange ideas with a senior like you who participated in a world war."

Moody is quite old, and his scars are probably medals from war. He was also one of the first to follow Dumbledore, and was probably a classmate of Voldemort.

As everyone was chatting, Professor McGonagall walked over carrying a huge, thick book.

The Book of Acceptance has a black dragon skin cover, and inside are pages of parchment covered with names. After Voldemort stole the Pen of Acceptance, Dumbledore made a new one as a replacement, but it was not as sensitive as the original Pen of Acceptance and sometimes missed children who were truly gifted in magic.

The large book was laid out on the table so that everyone could see it.

Dumbledore stood before the round table: "The annual day has come again, and our struggle against Voldemort is about to begin once more."

"Because of my mistake, my colleagues and I have to face this danger every year, but thankfully this year, I am able to fight alongside you all." He nodded to Hermione.

"Even more fortunately, Professor Lockhart joined us this year, and just recently, we dealt a heavy blow to Voldemort's basilisk, which greatly reduced the danger level this year."

Lockhart bowed his head modestly. Among the wizards present, there were quite a few who could match him, and several who were stronger than him.

"As in previous years, this year we will work in pairs to search for children in their respective areas according to the assigned list and routes."

He pointed to a small round mirror on the table: "The new Malfoy Fortress compensation, the Beauxbatons mass-produced two-way mirror, each group carries one, the back of the mirror has different contact methods for different groups, you can switch between different mirrors by tapping the frame."

He stroked Fawkes, who was perched on the bird perch: "This year, I will personally go to Albania. Voldemort will have no chance of leaving that forest!"

"The new life of Hogwarts cannot be taken away from him again!"

Dumbledore, back at his peak, is indeed doing things differently than before. Perhaps it's also due to the Brilliant Stone. With the castle in the rear stable and the strongest force on his side returning to power, Professor McGonagall is also excited. The number of new students this year will probably break previous records!

Only Hermes felt resentful and automatically bypassed her during the group assignments. Even though she had tried her best to sneak in, the professors still didn't intend to send a second-year student to the battlefield, even though her abilities were enough to help everyone!