Hogwarts Study Panel.

Chapter 242: Year-End Banquet

The Weasley twins received good news from Sheehan.

Before the year-end banquet, they hummed little tunes and would occasionally peek half their heads out from behind the portraits, startling the students who were out at night.

The year-end banquet quickly became the most anticipated event for the young wizards, despite the various rumors that had been circulating beforehand, such as the Alchemy Conference, the Lucky Black Cat, and Snape's assassination attempt on Quirrell—

But as the school year came to an end, students were more concerned about the final results of the year.

There's nothing to discuss about personal honors. After all, no one can surpass Mr. Green unless you score 121 out of 120 on a test.

But the collective honor—the College Cup—became the most discussed topic.

The day before the year-end banquet.

The castle gradually came to life as the professors began decorating the auditorium.

Professor Flitwick himself took the stage, with his most outstanding student, Sean Green, behind him.

Everyone knows about this.

The Great Hall was newly decorated in Ravenclaw's blue and bronze colors to celebrate their College Cup victory. A huge banner depicting a Ravenclaw eagle hung on the wall behind the main seating area.

At that moment, Professor Flitwick was helping Sheehan to put some Ravenclaw decorations in the Great Hall.

"Dear Mr. Green, it's really not easy. Ravenclaw hasn't won the College Cup in a long time."

Professor Flitwick spoke in a high-pitched voice, wiping away tears.

The Ravenclaws behind him were somewhat embarrassed.

The Eagles weren't that concerned about team honor, so despite their considerable talent, the more competitive Gryffindors and the ruthless Slytherins always ended up winning the championship.

The Great Hall was quieter than usual today, and the Slytherins were keeping themselves as far away from it as possible; they were seething with anger.

Meanwhile, in Gryffindor, the atmosphere was quite strange.

After the exams, Ron never stopped describing the "great achievements" of himself, Harry, Hermione, and others.

In the past, the Gryffindors, led by Seamus, were quite happy to listen, after all, he told the story with great intonation, and in this Hogwarts where rumors were rampant, it was a good story.

But now—

Outside the auditorium, Sheen had just escaped.

Professor Flitwick was so pleased that he would even initiate conversations with Professor McGonagall.

"Yes, Minerva, you know we got a score of 511."

It's truly gratifying; it's a remarkable achievement even in the entire history of Hogwarts.

This is all thanks to dear Mr. Green—”

He would stop talking on his own as he spoke, because he noticed that his old friend beside him was forcing a smile.

Before anything happened, Sheen had already escaped.

He walked out of the auditorium, where Ravenclaws greeted him everywhere.

"Sheen, I told you you were Ravenclaw's savior."

Michael always exaggerates.

"Mr. Green, thank you for your contribution."

Prefect Penelope, looking quite pleased with herself, trotted past Sheehan.

Sheen nodded as a greeting, then casually glanced down the corridor and noticed that Ron and the others seemed to look rather unwell. Beside them were a group of Gryffindors who also looked pale.

"Weasley, stop lying! What Forbidden Forest story, trapdoor? I bet you're lucky you haven't been caught and penalized!"

Dean growled in a low voice.

"Gryffindor only got 250! Merlin's beard—we've never gotten such a low score before!"

Simo glared at the group.

Just think about it, Gryffindor should have originally had 550 points!

If they win the Quidditch match and don't lose 150 points to Harry and the others.

At this point, Ron was still spouting baseless nonsense about trapdoors, and they couldn't take it anymore.

"It's true—"

Ron could only mutter to himself.

He couldn't argue with that, because they had indeed lost a lot of points and had also failed at Quidditch.

Harry was so ashamed he wanted to disappear into the ground, and Hermione's expression wasn't much better.

In fact, she had already heard far too much gossip.

Even if she added more than fifty points herself, the Gryffindors wouldn't care.

Deductions always leave a more lasting impression on them than bonuses.

Sheen walked over from a distance, and Ximo and the others snorted and left, which relieved the pressure on the group.

"Don't worry about it, there might be a surprise."

Sheen comforted him.

"What other surprises could there be?"

Ron looked miserable.

The year-end banquet has begun.

As Harry and his friends cautiously entered the Great Hall, they bumped into the Slytherins.

They were initially annoyed, but upon seeing Harry and the others, they happily clapped their hands.

"Potter, thank you for making Gryffindor get such a low score, perhaps the lowest ever? Haha—"

"In a few weeks, they'll forget all about it. Fred and George have been losing points since they started school, but people still like them."

Ron looked grim, but still tried to comfort him.

"But they've never dropped 150 points all at once, have they?"

Harry said sadly.

"Hmm—no, not at all."

Ron admitted it.

The auditorium was noisy, with all sorts of food piled up together.

Justin was sharing some culinary magic tips with Sheen, who listened intently.

Hermione and her two companions then sneaked into the Great Hall.

Seeing them sitting at the Ravenclaw table, the Gryffindors, who never cared about such things, were unusually agitated today.

Fortunately, Dumbledore arrived shortly afterward, and the noise in the Great Hall gradually subsided.

Another year has passed!

Dumbledore said excitedly,

"Before you all fully enjoy these delicious dishes, I must ask you to listen to an old man's cliché. What a wonderful year this has been! Your little brains must be a bit more brimming with ideas than ever before—"

There's a whole summer ahead of you, giving you time to digest all that material and clear your minds before the next semester starts.

Now, as far as I know, we must first hold the College Cup awards ceremony, and the specific scores of each college are as follows:

Fourth place: Gryffindor, 250 points; Third place: Hufflepuff, 352 points; Second place: Slytherin, 452 points; First place: Ravenclaw, 511 points.

A restrained cheer and applause erupted at the Ravenclaw table.

But they didn't cause as much of a commotion as the Hufflepuffs.

Hufflepuffs don't care who wins the House Cup, as long as it's not Slytherin.

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