Hogwarts: Please, Just Graduate Already!

The teapot gently floated up and automatically poured tea for the two of them.

"Now, what about dessert? I recommend trying the Cockroach Cluster," Dumbledore said.

A silver serving plate floated into view, and Wayne's expression changed.

The plate was piled with Cockroach Clusters. Like Chocolate Frogs, the things were still moving.

Dumbledore picked one up and popped it into his mouth, narrowing his eyes in enjoyment. It even had a bloody gooey center.

Wayne's expression shifted. "Headmaster, do you have any sandwiches and macarons?" "Of course."

Although it was a pity that Wayne had no intention of eating the Cockroach Clusters, Dumbledore still waved his wand and conjured several sandwiches and colorful macarons.

"I don't think a dessert's appearance is important. What matters is its sugar content." Dumbledore blinked. "Are you sure you don't want some?"

Wayne did not answer. "Actually, according to Muggle scientists, attractive food can also increase people's appetites."

"Headmaster, would you rather eat shit shaped like chocolate or chocolate shaped like shit?"

Dumbledore froze for a moment. "Can I eat neither?" He had to admit that both options Wayne had mentioned were disgusting. "Of course." This time, it was Wayne's turn to laugh.

"You're the real boss."

Dumbledore laughed as well. It was a novel feeling, having a student joke around with him like this. He could tell that Wayne was genuinely relaxed and treated him as nothing more than an ordinary old man.

Wayne picked up his Ceylon black tea and took a sip, filling his mouth with a floral fragrance. Compared with traditional Eastern black tea, Ceylon black tea was darker in color and richer in floral fragrance, but it lacked the lingering sweetness and unique fresh aroma of tea leaves. Each had its strengths and weaknesses, depending entirely on personal taste.

Just as Dumbledore had said that morning, most of the conversation between him and Wayne

had revolved around the phoenix.

Aside from asking Wayne how he had encountered Ho-Oh at the beginning, Dumbledore spent the rest of the time passing on some advice about raising it.

Wayne patiently committed it all to memory.

After the system's so-called localization, Ho-Oh had also gained some of the abilities possessed by the phoenixes of this world.

For example, Apparition and tears that could heal injuries. In terms of taste and habits, it also had many similarities. Wayne took the opportunity to make his request: he wanted to raise Ho-Oh in the Forbidden Forest. Dumbledore readily agreed. "Unlike this old man, who has nothing to do but plenty of time to play with pets, you have better things to do. Letting it roam free is a good choice too."

Nothing to do, my ass. Wayne complained inwardly.

You old bee. Didn't you put most of your energy into the Mirror of Erised and Harry?

After finishing up the topic of phoenixes, Old Dumbledore began talking about wool socks.

"When it comes to protecting your feet, I don't think anything is more considerate than wool socks.

"I used to look down on them, but now I can't bear to part with them." Dumbledore blinked like an old child.

"I don't think any old person could refuse receiving a pair of wool socks as a Christmas gift.

"But unfortunately, it seems everyone thinks I prefer books." Hello, Ministry of Magic?

Someone is extorting a little witch here. Aren't you going to do something? Wayne laughed it off and promised that he would definitely satisfy Old Dumbledore at Christmas.

But what he knew was that Old Dumbledore did not like wool socks themselves, but rather what they represented.

In Britain, wool socks represented family affection.

Dumbledore truly was the greatest White Magic wizard of the century, but even with his immense magical power, he could not undo the mistakes he had made in his youth.

That pain, along with the man imprisoned in Nurmengard, had tormented him all this time.

It was already past five, and Wayne prepared to rise and take his leave, returning to the Great Hall to eat something that could actually fill his stomach. "Wait a moment, Mr. Lawrence."

Dumbledore took out a piece of parchment, scribbled across it in sweeping strokes, and finally handed it to Wayne.

Wayne took it and looked at it. It was actually a permit for the Restricted Section.

Generally speaking, a permit for the Restricted Section listed specific books.

But the one Old Dumbledore had given him only imposed a time limit. It placed no restrictions on what books he could borrow, and remained valid until before Christmas.

"You're still young and need to make sure you get enough sleep. Nighttime excursions should also be done in moderation."

Dumbledore smiled. "This is your reward for showing mercy to the Three-Headed Dog."

"Then thank you, Headmaster." Wayne showed not the slightest embarrassment at being caught violating school rules. "I also think going there every night isn't good. The Restricted Section doesn't have any lights, and my eyesight is almost getting nearsighted."

Dumbledore's smile stiffened.

This little wizard never played by the usual rules.

When other people were caught, they usually looked flustered and helpless. How was it that, when it came to Wayne, it seemed as though he was not the one who had done anything wrong?

After Wayne left, the Headmaster's office once again fell silent.

However, this silence lasted only a short while before the former headmasters became lively again.

Big-nosed Fosco laughed happily. "That little fellow is too interesting. He's not a Hufflepuff at all."

"He should have been sorted into Gryffindor!"

Headmistress Delice retorted, "Why not Ravenclaw? That little fellow must have known from the start that he couldn't hide his actions from the headmaster.

"With such keen insight, who else could he belong to besides the eagle, Ravenclaw?"

"What are you saying?" Headmaster Rost, who had come from Hufflepuff, angrily threw an apple into Fosco's portrait. "We Hufflepuffs can raise outstanding talents too!"

Dumbledore did not take part in the argument between the headmasters. Looking at the completely unmoved velvet cloth, he laughed wryly. "I didn't expect it. I'm not even as good as a child."

The flowers and monthly votes have gone up quite a bit. Thank you for supporting me, bosses. There'll be another chapter later.

Forty-Ninth Chapter: Rejecting Conspiracy Theories, Harmonious Hufflepuff

After leaving the Headmaster's office, Wayne felt no fear or anxiety over the fact that Dumbledore had noticed everything he had done.

Among the various theories from his previous life, many portrayed Dumbledore as an utterly unscrupulous conspirator, but most of those conclusions could not stand up to scrutiny.

If Dumbledore had truly been the sort of ruthless person who would kill anyone who failed to act according to his wishes,

Tom would never have grown into the future Dark Lord. Old Dumbledore would have eliminated him back at Hogwarts.

Perhaps Dumbledore had changed somewhat after the incident with Voldemort, but the principle he had always upheld was guidance.

He believed that as long as he gave his students more care and education, they would not repeat the same mistakes.

Even when Malfoy came with the intention of killing him, Dumbledore would still try to change him and awaken the last bit of kindness in his heart.

Wayne was nowhere near that bad.

When he went to the Restricted Section to read, he focused on White Magic, Alchemy, or knowledge of Potions.

There was certainly a great deal of dangerous information in there, but compared with true Dark Arts, it was nothing.

Who could blame him when Old Dumbledore was so ruthless that he had even placed a potion like Polyjuice Potion in the Restricted Section?

This couldn't all be Wayne's fault.

It was all Benzema's fault—no, Voldemort's!

Back in his dormitory, Wayne first planned to sort and store the materials he had bought from Diagon Alley, putting them into the little bag enchanted with the Undetectable Extension Charm.

It was not that he was worried his two roommates would steal from him. He was afraid those two idiots might mistake the contents for food and eat them by accident. That would be a serious problem.

As soon as he entered the changing room, he saw Cedric still holding the broom and examining it. Cedric saw him too and reluctantly returned the Nimbus 2000 to Wayne.

"As expected of the Nimbus 2000. The craftsmanship, the texture—they're incredible. I just wonder how it feels to use."

"You didn't go try it?" Wayne asked suspiciously as he took the broom. Cedric shook his head. "Didn't I say it already? We were only looking at it." "This is your newly bought broom. I wouldn't dare try it. If I damaged it, I couldn't afford to compensate you even if I sold myself."

Wayne patted him on the shoulder in satisfaction. "You think too little of yourself. With your identity as the only son of the Diggory family, you're worth that much money."

A burst of laughter erupted in the common room. Quite a few Hufflepuff students had parents working at the Ministry of Magic, so they naturally knew how much Mr. Amos treasured his son.

Cedric blushed and thumped Wayne's arm irritably. "Go on, go on. Stop teasing your senior student."

"All right." Under Cedric's puzzled gaze, Wayne tossed the broom back to Diggory.

"Play with it for two days and get familiar with it. You can borrow it for the Quidditch matches too."

Before Cedric could say anything, Quidditch captain Woodley was the first to leap up. "Really, Wayne?"

If Cedric, their Seeker, had a Nimbus 2000, their chances of winning the House Cup would increase dramatically!

"Why would I lie to you?" Wayne said indifferently. "Harry has already joined Gryffindor's Quidditch team, and Professor McGonagall even gave him a Nimbus 2000."

"What?!"

Woodley was stunned, then suddenly thought of something and realized. "I was wondering why that old rascal Wood had been as happy as if he'd found ten Galleons these past two days, and he's even been holding secret training sessions."

"That's too underhanded!"

Cedric gripped the broom, tears welling in his eyes. "I have nothing to say, Godfather!"

Another wave of laughter broke out, and Wayne was amused as well.

He enjoyed this harmonious atmosphere immensely. Compared with the other houses, Hufflepuff felt more like a home, and he felt very relaxed here.

However, the broom Wayne planned to lend Cedric was not this customized one.

Wayne planned to buy another and donate it directly to Hufflepuff.

He would not be a fool like Malfoy and donate six at once, but he was perfectly willing to give one to the house.

Money couldn't buy the pleasure of doing what he wanted. He would have plenty of opportunities to deduct points from Hufflepuff in the future. Although nobody cared, Wayne could not fail to show some consideration. He would treat it as compensation in advance.

Once permission was granted, Cedric did not even eat dinner. He grabbed the broom and rushed out of the common room to test it at the Quidditch pitch.

Several team members and little wizards who wanted to watch the excitement followed him. Wayne, meanwhile, went to the Great Hall to eat something before going to find Hermione. The moment he entered, he attracted numerous looks.

By now, the entire school knew that Wayne had a phoenix as a pet and had exploited a loophole in the school rules to buy a Nimbus 2000.

Either one of those things was enough to make people incredibly envious.

At the High Table, Snape cut off a piece of steak and stuffed it into his mouth, chewing fiercely as though he were biting Wayne.

That boy would rather lose points than make a deal with me. How annoying.

Second only to Potter!

"Wayne."

Hearing a soft, sweet voice from behind him, Wayne put down his knife and fork and turned around. "What's wrong, Cho?"

Since quite a few people had gone to the Quidditch pitch to watch the broom, plenty of seats had opened up at the Hufflepuff table. Cho simply sat down beside Wayne, her limpid eyes

full of curiosity.

"I heard you have a phoenix and bought a Nimbus 2000?"

She had arrived relatively late that morning and had only heard others talking about it. She had not seen what happened herself.

"Yes."

"Really?" Cho's eyes widened slightly. "I thought it was just a rumor."

"The phoenix was one I found, and I bought the broom after Flying lesson." Wayne smiled.

"Here's another piece of confidential information. I lent the broom to Cedric."

"What?!" Cho was shocked at first, then puffed out her cheeks like a little pufferfish. "Aren't you bullying people?"

Because she had joined the Quidditch team, Cho's family had sent her a Cleansweep Seven as a reward. It was also a decent broom.

But compared with the Nimbus 2000, it was one or two tiers worse.

"How can you call this bullying? I'm merely helping my house." Wayne defended himself.

"Hmph." Cho snorted angrily. "If you join the Quidditch team next year, I'll switch to being a Beater and knock you off your broom."

"Then just wait and see." Wayne shrugged.

He was not particularly interested in Quidditch. He had bought the broom simply to enjoy the feeling of flying.

Cho's wish was probably going to fall through.

"Where's your bird? Can I see it?" Cho blinked. She had grown this old without ever seeing a real phoenix.

"I don't know where it's off playing. I'll call it over later. Hermione wants to see it too."

"Why don't the two of us come together?"

"Sure."

Fiftieth Chapter: Watching Birds Beneath the Moon, the Marauder's Map's Poverty-Stricken Beggar Version

At the Gryffindor table, Hermione had been waiting impatiently for ages. Seeing Wayne chatting and laughing with Cho, she snorted angrily.

It was not until Wayne stood up and beckoned to her that the little witch immediately rose as well.

The two girls followed behind him as they left the castle and made their way to the Black Lake. Wayne first introduced them.

"This is Hermione Granger, a first-year in Gryffindor. You can also call her Miss Know-it-all."