Hogwarts doesn't need a savior

On the first day of the new term, Cedric Diggory faithfully fulfilled his duties as a prefect.

Chapter 245: Ceremony and Dementors

Harry, who had just woken up from his coma, waited in a daze until the train stopped, and then walked into the castle in the dim sky.

Professor McGonagall, who had received the summons early, was waiting outside the hall and led him and Hermione to her office.

Ron had some complaints, but he had to stop in front of the majestic gaze of his dean.

On the way, they also saw Cedric being led by Professor Sprout.

"What's going on?" Hermione asked in a low voice. Cedric just smiled at her and said nothing, then followed Professor Sprout upstairs.

Turning the corner, Hermione saw a few adult wizards with ill intentions. They were looking at the two people who were slowly walking up the stairs as if they were criminals.

"Professor McGonagall, they..."

"It'll be okay, Granger, come to my office." Professor McGonagall pursed her lips, "I want to talk to you."

This blocked the two people's questions until they walked into the warm room and saw Madam Pomfrey waiting with a medical box.

"Professor Lupin owled me in advance, saying that you were affected by the Dementors on the train and felt unwell, so you need to have a physical examination before attending the dinner." McGonagall pointed to the sofa calmly, "Granger, perhaps you can tell me what happened before."

"Okay, professor, I was in the car..."

Hermione described clearly what happened in the car, which made Madam Pomfrey curl her lips.

As the school's doctor, she was extremely unhappy with the Ministry of Magic's decision to station Dementors near the school.

The fire was burning warmly, and Harry felt better - the chocolate he had eaten earlier also helped.

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After finishing the conversation in the office, Harry and Hermione were led by McGonagall down the marble stairs and back to the hall.

Amidst a sea of ​​pointed black hats, the Sorting ceremony had concluded, and each long table was filled with joyful little wizards.

Ron had reserved seats for them at the back, and the two people tiptoeing around didn't attract much attention.

"Where is Cedric? Why hasn't he come back yet?" Amid the noisy conversation, Hermione's eyes swept through the crowd, searching for the senior who had helped them on the train. She was sure that she didn't find him.

"Professor Sprout isn't back either," Harry whispered. "And Professor Eric, I haven't seen them."

He pointed to a few empty professors' seats, which were where Sprout and Lynn sat - and not far away was Flitwick, who had just left the hall carrying a three-legged stool and a sorting hat, and passed by them.

"What are you talking about? What happened—"

"Please be quiet, children."

Ron was about to ask a few questions when the headmaster stood up and spoke, drowning out his voice and causing the trio to stop talking.

The old man with white beard, who was old but full of energy, looked at all the students with a smile. A kind of confidence and joy from the inside out gradually calmed down the young wizards who had just come into contact with Dementors not long ago.

"Welcome!" Dumbledore said loudly, his tall figure looking even slimmer under the starry sky. "Welcome back to Hogwarts again! Before we start the delicious meal, I have a few things to tell you in advance as usual. One of them is the most important and the one you need to remember. I must tell you before you fill your stomachs with delicious food and become drowsy."

He cleared his throat, and the cheerful expression on his face seemed to fade a little. "Dementors from Azkaban Wizard Prison - quite a few of you may have seen them on your way to school - they are sent here by the Ministry of Magic to perform official duties."

Harry saw the displeasure hidden beneath the smile, and he remembered what Mr. Weasley had said, that Dumbledore was very unhappy with the Ministry's rather offensive decision.

"They will be stationed outside the school, including every road out of the school." He said calmly, "I don't want anyone to challenge them with their magic or other objects, because Dementors don't have human emotions and won't be as tolerant as professors. Of course, I won't allow them to enter the school. While they are at school, I hope that the prefects and our newly elected male and female student union presidents can work with the professors to protect everyone and avoid unnecessary conflicts."

Hermione noticed that he pronounced the word "conflict" very heavily, which gave her a bad feeling.

She subconsciously looked in the direction of Hufflepuff and Slytherin respectively, and met the gazes of Doris and Boyce. The former had a somewhat comforting expression, while the latter clearly expressed his dissatisfaction.

She, who always thought more and more deeply than anyone else, became so worried that she didn't even listen carefully when Dumbledore announced the appointment of new professors on the stage - it was not until Harry and Ron cheered Hagrid's name that she realized that this good friend had become a professor.

The enthusiastic applause, mainly from Gryffindor, temporarily dispelled the dark cloud hanging over the little witch's heart.

Looking at Hagrid, who was rarely dressed neatly but still wiping his tears with the tablecloth, looking a little different, she couldn't help but laugh.

"Okay, that's all the important things." Dumbledore was very satisfied with the audience's response. "Now let's start the banquet!"

Food and drinks appeared out of nowhere in the tableware on the long table, the aroma was so fragrant that it whetted your appetite.

The hall was then filled with laughter and no one noticed Dumbledore leaving in a hurry.

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The opening dinner was in full swing, but in an office on the other side, the atmosphere was cold and serious.

The Dementor was seriously injured by a student's Patronus Charm on the Hogwarts Express, and the news quickly spread back to the Ministry of Magic.

From Fudge to the Azkaban Administration, everyone who handled the matter felt ashamed. Fudge, who had been having a hard time recently, was even more annoyed by Umbridge's exaggeration. He ignored Amelia Bones's dissuasion and rushed over with several of his direct Aurors.

Facing the stern-faced Sprout, he looked like he was going to call him to account.

"They attacked the employees of the Ministry of Magic without any sense of propriety, Pomona. Is this the excellent student you and Hogwarts have taught?" Fudge felt confident as several Aurors who were usually drawn to him stood behind him. "Perhaps I should have a serious talk with Albus about your teaching philosophy."

"Excuse me, Minister, but it is the Ministry of Magic that should be held responsible for allowing such a dangerous monster to board the train without Hogwarts' permission. One of our students is unconscious as a result. Do you really want the student's parents to know about this?" Sprout stood in front of Cedric like an old hen protecting her cubs, without any sign of fear.

Fudge's face turned pale and blue, and even his raised hands were shaking slightly with anger.

"Cough cough!"

Umbridge, the professional lackey, saw her master's mood, cleared her throat artificially, and walked in front of Sprout with a sweet fake smile on her face, but her eyes were full of indifference.

"The Ministry of Magic never needs anyone's permission to send Dementors to search trains that may be hiding fugitives. This is the greatest responsibility for the safety of students, Professor Sprout, you should understand this." She said with a dagger in her smile, "Or do you think that even if Sirius Black hides among the students and sneaks into the school, it is a good way to protect them?"

Such far-fetched rhetoric completely aroused Sprout's anger. She glared at him immediately, and her fierce aura made the Aurors who followed behind Fudge to show their strength feel their scalps tingling, and they subconsciously took a few steps back.

A verbal battle was about to begin when there was a slight knock on the door.

"Excuse me, everyone. Are you discussing how to commend my student who has done something brave?"

Lynn's voice came clearly, and the next second, the door opened. He walked steadily to Cedric and looked down at Fudge and Umbridge.

In an instant, the temperature in the room dropped to freezing point and the air seemed to freeze.

Chapter 246: The Minister’s “Illusion”

There was still a fire burning in the stove, but Umbridge, who had been so arrogant just a moment ago, felt like she had run to the North Pole.

This is not a description of mood, but a literal meaning.

She vaguely felt that there was some special magical power lingering around her, not affecting anyone else, but acting only on her.

The complaining Toad Face looked at Fudge for help, but found that the other party didn't even look at him, but just frowned slightly, looking like he was in a dilemma.

"Percy and Boyce have told me everything that happened on the way. Well done, Cedric. You are indeed the pride of our Hufflepuff."

Lynn didn't even look at Fudge and Umbridge, but walked straight to Cedric, praised him loudly, and took out a heavy floater from his pocket.

With a casual throw, the valuable metal ball fell into the hands of the new class leader, making him feel confident.

To be exact, from the moment he heard Lynn's words, Cedric's heart fell into his stomach.

"Professor, I..."

"Don't be too modest, you deserve this, no one deserves it more than you."

Lin En smiled and said, "You should go back now. The food tonight is good. Eat a full stomach and enjoy the applause and cheers. This is your most important task today."

"That's right. You can go back to your friends now, Ced." Sprout understood. "As for how to commend your heroic actions, Lynn and I will discuss this with the Minister and others. Professor Dumbledore will also be here."

She looked at Umbridge provocatively, but was surprised to find that this hateful woman not only lost her arrogance, but began to tremble.

This was somewhat beyond her expectations, and did not quite fit in with her previous perception of this annoying Ministry official.

She glanced at Lin En calmly, and indeed found a barely perceptible smile in his eyes - this was a micro-expression that only someone as familiar as her could detect.

This made the straightforward professor feel refreshed, as if he had let out a breath of anger.

"What Professor Sprout means is what I mean. What do you think, Minister?"

Lynn waited until Cedric closed the door before speaking slowly, glancing past Fudge and over several Aurors.

Except for Kingsley who was standing farthest back, everyone felt cold sweats coming out of their bodies and they dared not look him in the eye.

"Lynn..." Fudge's face looked very ugly.

To be exact, it is very ugly.

He used all his self-restraint and reason to restrain his urge to get angry. "You have to know that Dementors are the guards of Azkaban, the Ministry of Magic—"

"You mean to say that they attacked students, causing hundreds of students to be severely frightened, dozens of students to suffer varying degrees of mental damage, and some even fainted. Was this terrible incident instigated by the Ministry of Magic?"

Lynn's voice was not loud, but once she opened her mouth, she could easily interrupt Fudge and make him speechless.

At this time, the minister, who was rarely impulsive, realized the rashness and misstep of his action.

Thinking of the unpleasantness he had previously had with Dumbledore over the Dementors, he suddenly realized that he seemed to no longer have enough support to check and balance Lynn.

At least no one supported him in this matter.

"Lynn, you know... Blake..." His facial muscles began to twitch unconsciously, and he spoke hesitantly, "You are also a member of the committee, you have to understand me."

"I understand you very well. That's why those filthy monsters roaming outside the castle are still alive." Lynn said as a matter of course, and no one thought there was anything wrong with it. "If I hadn't considered this, you would probably need to replenish the guards of Azkaban."

Professor Sprout resisted the urge to laugh out loud and hid behind Lynn, his whole body trembling slightly.

This made Fudge feel very embarrassed, but what he didn't notice was that Kingsley in the corner seemed to have a smile on his face as well.

"Okay, Minister, I think there are two things we need to discuss today. One is how to mitigate the negative impact of Dementors attacking students, and the other is how to capture Sirius Black more efficiently and avoid affecting teaching."

Lynn had no intention of giving Fudge any room to respond. He sat down on a small sofa and said, "First, my opinion is to publicize Cedric's bravery and to express a stance of strictly restraining the behavior of Dementors to reduce possible negative impacts. I think this is a good choice for the front page of tomorrow's Daily Prophet."

"Propaganda?!" Fudge stared. "Dementors are not fools without wisdom. They will be very dissatisfied. Azkaban still needs them to guard those villains!"

"Are they really guarding?" Lin En sneered, "You can fool others, but don't fool yourself."

"I...!" Fudge pursed his lips tightly, trying to suppress the urge to get angry. "Anyway, we can't just let the matter of the Dementor being seriously injured go like this."

"Can't we just let it go?" Lynn repeated his words sarcastically, looking Fudge in the face for the first time. "Mr. Minister, what gave you the illusion that I was discussing a solution to this matter with you?"

He stood up again and walked in front of Fudge in just two or three steps. His tall figure brought a huge sense of oppression.

"We can make a bet. Even if Hogwarts has anti-Apparition magic, in five minutes, at most, those Dementors you placed outside will be reduced to nothing but rags. I'm not kidding you."

"You don't--you're not going to do that, are you?"

Fudge subconsciously wanted to say "You can't", but he suddenly stopped halfway through the sentence and his tone suddenly became weak.

Having once fought openly and secretly with Millicent Barnold, he knew all too well Lynn's ability and determination, and once again realized that he was becoming increasingly tough and unstoppable.

Feeling the chill in Lynn's voice, he didn't even dare to mention breaking the law.

"If this matter can be handled properly, I certainly won't do this, Minister." After a brief outburst, he quickly gathered his magic power and smiled again on his face, "Can we finish discussing the first matter now?"

"……Can."

Fudge nearly broke his back teeth.

"The second matter is not something I should discuss with you. Perhaps it would be better for our beloved headmaster to discuss it with you directly after Professor Dumbledore finishes his speech at the dinner."

Lynn smiled with satisfaction, "I hope you have a good time at Hogwarts tonight, Minister. To be honest, after a busy day, Professor Sprout and I are feeling a little hungry."

"Of course... of course..." Fudge forced out a smile that was uglier than crying, "We'll go back first. We'll deal with the rest after the committee meeting or when Albus is free."

"Come on, Cornelius." Before he could finish his words, Dumbledore came in breathlessly, as if he had just finished his speech.

Only Lin En curled his lips imperceptibly. In his perception, the old man had been waiting for at least five minutes.

Just waiting for him to finish doing the bad things before coming out to pretend to be the good guy.

Grumbling in disgust, he turned to leave, but felt the gentle magic falling on both him and the magic he had cast on Umbridge.

Then the two magical powers were bounced away.

"?"

The old man looked surprised, while Lynn remained silent.

"Pomona, maybe you can go and take care of the Hufflepuff students. There are many good new students this year." Helplessly, Dumbledore could only speak up himself, "Lin, you should stay for a while. After all, you are also a member of the committee. Only an open and honest dialogue can truly solve the problem."

Sprout looked at the principal, then at Lynn, without moving.

“Okay, teacher, it looks like we can only have a drink together later.” Lynn shook his head and nodded his chin slightly towards the door.

At the same time, the magic that had tortured Umbridge to the point of near death dissipated quietly without leaving any trace.