A Bad Feeling~
Dumbledore watched his old friend's utterly over-the-top performance, the corner of his mouth twitching almost imperceptibly.
(Dumbledore's thoughts: Don't think I don't know, Chu. Just last month, you complained in a letter that this child had demolished half the alchemy room, and strongly suggested that the Hogwarts Hospital Wing stock up on hair-growth potions and burn ointment... Do you even have any tears? Look at you, wiping away like that!)
Still, as a veteran headmaster well versed in dealing with all sorts of "problem" students (such as a certain pair of twins named Weasley), Dumbledore kept his expression calm and kindly.
He turned his gaze back to Chu Yao, as though that little test had never happened.
He raised a hand gracefully and snapped his fingers.
Snap!
A thick envelope made of heavy parchment appeared in his hand out of thin air.
The Hogwarts crest adorned the envelope.
A lion, an eagle, a badger, and a snake surrounded a capital "H." The address was written in vivid emerald-green ink, precisely reading "Chu Yao, Ten Thousand Swords Sect, Mount Kunlun."
Dumbledore handed the envelope to Chu Yao, his tone that of the kindest, most approachable grandfather. "Child, this is your Hogwarts acceptance letter. On behalf of the school, I warmly welcome you to study here."
Chu Yao took the envelope in a daze. It seemed to carry the warmth of the magical world, and her fingertips touched the parchment's distinctive rough texture.
Wow—oh—!
(Chu Yao's thoughts: This is incredible! It really is a Hogwarts acceptance letter! The dream I had as a kid in my first life, hiding under the covers and reading novels by flashlight, actually came true?! I knew it! There's no way I, Chu Yao, could be a Muggle! I'm going to become... uh, the number one under heaven—no, a woman who's a planar merchant! (╯°Д°)╯︵┻━┻)
A wild joy mixed with excitement, exhilaration, and disbelief exploded in her mind like fireworks, nearly making her take off on a flying sword and circle the ceiling beams three times on the spot.
She could almost see the moving staircases, the talking portraits, and the Great Hall filled with the aroma of Butterbeer...
But no matter how thrilled she was inside, or how badly she wanted to throw her head back and howl "By Merlin," Chu Yao's remaining reason made her hold the "well-behaved" mask firmly in place.
She clutched the acceptance letter tightly, as though holding some peerless treasure, then looked up and gave Dumbledore an incomparably "sincere" smile. The first words out of her mouth were, "Headmaster Dumbledore, your Chinese is so fluent! Your pronunciation is perfect! You don't have a foreign accent at all!"
The perfect, kindly, gentle smile on Dumbledore's face froze almost imperceptibly for a tenth of a second.
(Dumbledore's thoughts: ...Is this child's focus a little misplaced? And why did I hear a hint of something... unusual in that? The future of Hogwarts... may become even more "colorful.")
He coughed softly, his eyes flickering behind his half-moon spectacles. "Oh, thank you for the compliment, child. One is never too old to learn, and it's always useful to know another language."
Beside them, Chu Kuangren could no longer resist turning away, his shoulders shaking suspiciously.
Chu Yao's mouth stretched into a grin, revealing two neat rows of little white teeth. Paired with her big, blinking eyes, she looked utterly innocent and harmless, as if she could star in a promotional video for the "light of the righteous path."
(Chu Yao's thoughts: Well-behaved mode at MAX! For Martial Uncle Zhang's cooking, I can keep this act up for another five hundred years!)
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