The Silent Witch of Hogwarts

Chapter 699 The Cold, Torrential Rain

"Pat-pat-pat"

It was the morning of the twenty-seventh day since Dumbledore's death. Loila had just gotten up when she heard the sound of rain outside her window.

She rubbed her hands together slightly, then slowly stood up.

Even though she became the principal, to be honest, she still didn't really like sleeping in the principal's office. Her own magic array classroom was still more reassuring, wasn't it?

She yawned slightly, made herself a cup of coffee as usual, and then, unusually, sat down and looked out the window at the rain.

It was really heavy rain—in Loila's memory, this must have been the heaviest rain she had ever seen at Hogwarts.

"Bang bang bang." Just then, a knocking sound suddenly came from the door.

"Please come in—" Loila straightened her clothes slightly and then pursed her lips.

"Miss Hamilton, I have urgent news!" Mr. Parkinson burst through the door almost instantly, holding a report in his hand and looking extremely anxious.

"Hmm?" Seeing his expression, Loila realized that things were not going well.

"Early this morning, we received intelligence from the Aurors," Parkinson said succinctly: "Voldemort is coming!"

'

"Hmm."

Is Voldemort coming? So soon—although the magic array work has been progressing rapidly these past few days, it's only about 80% complete—

There's still a full 20% of the work left to be done!

Now Voldemort has arrived—

Loila gritted her teeth and said, "Have you notified anyone else?"

"I've already notified them!" Parkinson nodded seriously. "Minister Scrinker has already informed the Order of the Phoenix, and he wants you to immediately inform Miss Shiloh of the Mughal Party."

Upon hearing Parkinson's words, Loila immediately nodded. She picked up her necklace and tapped it slightly with her wand. As the necklace emitted a faint blue light, Loila knew that Miss Shiloh had received her message.

As soon as Loila sent the message, Parkinson immediately nodded: "Miss Hamilton, I'll go talk to Professor McGonagall about the defense now—we'll meet in the principal's office."

"Um."

Seeing Parkinson rushing out the door, Loila couldn't help but feel a little nervous.

This is different from the situation when the Ministry of Magic besieged Hogwarts. Back then, although Hogwarts was besieged by the Ministry of Magic, the Ministry did not dare to attack, and Dumbledore was hiding in the shadows plotting something—even the enemy was just the Aurors of the Ministry of Magic.

This time it's different—not only is there the so-called new Ministry of Magic, but also Voldemort himself and his Death Eaters.

Not only that—Hogwarts no longer holds the moral high ground in public opinion as it once did. Ever since Voldemort seized control of the Ministry of Magic, he has controlled public opinion throughout Britain.

And didn't he arrive way too fast?

Less than a month after Dumbledore's death, he had already completely taken control of the British wizarding world—and was even ready to launch an attack on Hogwarts.

Loila pursed her lips at this thought—this situation was definitely related to her, if only she hadn't been injured—if only she—

No—this is not the time to think about these things.

Walking down the corridors of Hogwarts, Loila encountered several students who were hurrying past her, carrying various materials for drawing magic circles.

"Principal Hamilton!" They were very happy to see Loila, waving and one student even saluted her.

Looking at them, Loila took a deep breath—yes, for their sake, she couldn't be guilty or afraid—Dumbledore had already entrusted the students to her care.

She, who was trusted by him, must not be cowardly—Loila looked at them and nodded slightly: "Good luck."

She said, "Voldemort is coming soon."

The students looked slightly surprised, then their surprise turned into seriousness.

"For Hogwarts, for Headmaster Hamilton, we will not back down!"

"That's right! For our lovely Headmaster Hamilton!"

"Hmm!"

What are you all talking about?! I was talking about something very serious! Loila pursed her lips, feeling her face burning hot. She quickly waved her wand and disappeared from the spot.

"I actually saw Principal Hamilton looking shy! What a steal!"

"I feel more motivated at work today!"

"I feel like I could take on Voldemort one-on-one!"

Excited students raised their wands and quills and rushed to the magic circle.

"call----"

"What are my students thinking?" Loila sighed softly as she sat in the principal's office chair.

Are they really aware of the danger?

Shouldn't that be okay?

"Clatter".

Loila had only been seated for a few seconds when the door to the room was pushed open, and the person who walked in made Loila pause slightly.

It is Mr. Lu Ping.

He was the first person to arrive at the principal's office.

"Loila." Upon seeing Loila, Lupin nodded slightly.

This was their first time meeting alone in a month, as they had been incredibly busy.

Seeing Loila sitting there alone, Lupin twitched his nose slightly, then slowly sat down opposite her.

"Loila—" he spoke softly, rubbing his hands together with a serious expression, "Are you alright?"

"I—I'm fine." Loila guessed it was probably because her face was a little red.

So she explained, "When I came here, I encountered some students—they were saying some very embarrassing things."

"That's not what I meant," Lupin coughed and said seriously, "I meant—do you feel a lot of pressure?"

Of course the pressure is immense—Loyal Zhuang hasn't been able to get enough rest for several days—after all, she now carries not only her own life in her hands—but also the Mafia, the Hamilton family, the Ministry of Magic, the Order of the Phoenix, and Hogwarts—

What if the magic circle fails?

What if I didn't do well enough in the past?

What if Voldemort breaks in before the magic circle is complete?

All of this could lead to an ending that Royla absolutely does not want to see—

But can it really succeed?

Loila didn't know either—because success isn't guaranteed simply by trying hard, something Loila had always known.

"Loila," Lupin gently placed his hand on Loila's shoulder, "I believe in you."

"It's not just me—we all believe in you." Lupin said, slowly rising to his feet. "So—let's use all our strength."

"Since we've decided to change the past—then let's treat us all as chess pieces." He said, looking at the Wizard's Chess set on the table.

"Just like Headmaster Dumbledore."