A Tide Rising from the French Wizarding World

"That's something only super core members can access." Sean didn't refuse, giving the other party a vague answer.

Of course, he is the one who reviews the so-called super core members.

Hugo patted his chest and replied cheerfully, "Of course I know that, I will try my best, Chairman."

"I have high hopes for you. As the first member of Golden Dawn, your future is limitless." Sean patted the other person on the shoulder enthusiastically, already starting to paint a rosy picture.

However, the sight of a second-year student patting a tall, chubby fourth-year student looked somewhat comical, and Hermione and Daisy, standing nearby, unconsciously squinted their eyes.

Hugo, on the other hand, was a very easygoing person. After successfully joining the group, he found a chair, sat down, and pulled out a paper package from somewhere.

He carefully unwrapped the greasy wrapper, revealing a huge, well-preserved hamburger inside.

Sean and the other two unconsciously looked over.

Hugo and the others exchanged glances, looked down at their hamburgers, sighed, and then shakily pulled out a golden dinner knife.

"This is all I can give you... Breakfast has been over for a while, and I'm a little hungry..." He took a knife and cut the hamburger into eight equal pieces, then pushed three of them in front of the group.

Although it was almost lunchtime, Sean wasn't particularly hungry, but...

The glistening gravy dripped slowly from the cross-section of the hamburger, and the aroma of rich fat, slightly spicy sauce, and sweet and sour tomatoes wafted into everyone's noses.

It smells a bit good...

Sean took the hamburger, which, although divided into one-eighths, was already two-thirds of Sean usual portion size.

"Thanks, buddy," he said, then took a small bite.

The complex and rich aroma exploded in his mouth, and the slightly hot meat juices mixed with the secret sauce made Sean's taste buds almost dance with joy. After the greasiness of the meat patty, the sweet and sour taste of the vegetables and fruits cleansed his tongue, bringing a refreshing finish.

Hermione Daisy, like Sean, widened her eyes in surprise. Hamburgers were a rare sight on the tables of both Hogwarts and Nurmengard, so this hamburger was clearly Hugo's creation.

And the taste was far superior to the school food, or rather, many of the foods Sean had eaten in various upscale restaurants before could not compare to this burger.

"It's so delicious, Hugo, did you make this yourself?" Sean devoured the burger in no time.

Hugo's eyes narrowed into slits, whether from the excitement and pleasure of the fat or from contentment, it was hard to tell.

Despite his large size, he didn't wolf down his food. He would take a big bite each time, but never let any food or sauce spill out of his mouth.

Only after chewing thoroughly would Hugo sigh and swallow the food, just as he does now.

"Ha—" He swallowed a bite of his hamburger with satisfaction and replied, "Yes, I made it myself. The school food is okay, but it always lacks a bit of flavor. So, I cook for myself when I have time."

"You're a genius," Hermione exclaimed sincerely.

"That's what my grandfather said too," Hugo said, not at all surprised by their praise. He was clearly very confident in his skills. He took another small bite, chewed and swallowed, and said, "If I didn't have magic, maybe staying in Paris and being a chef would be a good choice."

"Why did you choose to come to Newmontgard? Beauxbatons should have sent you an acceptance letter by now, right?" After enjoying their meal, the group chatted and asked Hugo.

"Aspirations?" Hugo smiled, his chubby face jiggling. "Family background and some past stories, I suppose."

As they were talking, there was another knock on the classroom door.

Ian Teach, a second-year student who had teamed up with Hugo last time, walked in. This time he was wearing the same ornate top hat, and his eyes were blinking rapidly as always.

"Mr. Wallop!" He strode over excitedly and shook Sean's hand. "Am I late? I hesitated for a long time about which hat to wear to show how important I am, and now it seems I've taken a bit too long!"

Sean shook hands with the other person. "No, recruitment is open all day today, and you are the second one."

"Oh, that's great!" Ian kept shaking Sean's hand up and down. "How do I join? I can't wait!"

"Just pass the test..." Sean struggled to pull his hand away.

Ian seemed easily startled, and he always had an overwhelming enthusiasm when facing Sean.

His enthusiasm was clearly also channeled into the assessment, and before long, the Golden Dawn had its second member from Newmontgard.

"A day to celebrate!" Ian pulled out a deck of cards and shook it quickly. The gold-rimmed cards scattered in the air and then magically returned to his hand.

It seems like none of the members are proper students... This thought popped into Sean's head as he watched Ian and Hugo having a heated conversation.

I wonder what's so special about the four-person group Mr. Grindelwald arranged for him; now we're still missing the two girls...

As Sean had predicted, Patricia Delansal and Savannah Minsk joined the club almost one after the other. Both girls were equally talented and passed the assessment with ease.

Patricia is skilled in Transfiguration and always has something she can Transfiguration into. When she Transfiguration, she becomes as aggressive as her appearance, and the creatures she Transfiguration always pounce on people around her as soon as they appear.

Moreover, Patricia always remembered the chance encounter with Sean that night, and would always casually lean in and whisper a few questions in Sean's ear.

"Sean, tell me what kind of creature was transported to the castle that day?"

"Are they those Magical Creatures that failed to Transfiguration and became permanent beings, like Quintaped Sphinx?"

Do you remember the flow of magic?

Frustrated, Sean made a promise to Patricia, "I'll tell you once you become a core member."

Just find any Magical Creatures to observe how magic flows and tell her...

Savannah was probably the only normal person in the group of four. This third-year girl had a quiet face and was used to sitting on the edge of the table. When the others chatted, Sean noticed that this girl rarely expressed her opinions on things she didn't understand. She was more used to agreeing with other people's views and always had a slightly ingratiating tone when she was with others.

Furthermore, Savannah actually has an older sister, Samantha Minsk, who is in fourth year of Slytherin. Samantha Minsk didn't come to Newmontgard with the team this time, but Savannah didn't show any regret, suggesting that the two sisters don't have a very good relationship.

Savannah also brought Sean a message: someone was preventing other Newmontgard students from joining the Golden Dawn.

"Fabian Aiken ..." Sean murmured the name.

I haven't even gone to cause him any trouble yet, but I didn't expect him to make the first move.

Savannah glanced at the others and continued, "I do know a little about him. Fabian Aiken, his father has deep ties to the French Wizarding Rights Protection Association, Hugo should know quite a bit about that society."

When it came to serious matters, the fat Hugo immediately became serious. He nodded and said to Sean, "You may not know this from your time in England, but the France Wizarding Rights Protection Association is different from the Wizarding Reform Association founded by Professor Grindelwald. This organization's ideology is relatively more radical, and the French Ministry of Magic is about to change its minister. Its president is the strongest contender for minister, without exception."

"It can be said that the Wizarding Rights Protection Association is now the largest organization in France, and its influence comes from powerful sponsors and some events in recent years."

"An incident?" Sean asked, puzzled. This was something he didn't know about.

"That's right, it was about five years ago, before I started school. This organization did a few things in Paris. For example, a France wizard turned his Muggle neighbor into a brown hound because his neighbor always had a barbecue in his yard."

barbecue...?

Hugo shrugged at the puzzled group. "That wizard thought the smoke from the barbecue would damage the growth of the herbs in his backyard, and in his bad temper, he did just that."

"Originally, this kind of thing would have been a serious violation of the Statute of Secrecy and the law of abuse of magic, and that guy would have been imprisoned for at least three years. However, the people of the Wizarding Rights Protection Association hired a very famous defense wizard for him, and then persuaded several experienced jurors. In the end, the wizard was only fined fifty Galleon and sentenced to two months of community service."

"The Wizarding Rights Protection Association paid his fine. The so-called community service was originally just helping some single elderly wizards with housework, but that service turned into Potions brewing—which was originally that wizard's job."

Hugo curled his lip in disdain. "After that, the Wizarding Rights Protection Association did the same thing again, and several scoundrels who were originally going to jail only received minor punishments. In the eyes of those wizards who were already dissatisfied with the Statute of Secrecy, this organization was a true reformer."

Second-year student Ian blinked rapidly and said, "In fact, you can't see the true face of this Wizarding Rights Protection Association just from these few things. As I just mentioned, I come from a wizarding family. Although my parents are not Pure-blood Wizard, they are indeed dissatisfied with the current Statute of Secrecy. This organization's actions will certainly win over many people."

Hugo nodded. "That's what I thought too, because what they did was similar to Professor Grindelwald's Wizarding Reform Association, only a bit more radical. But just last year, I don't know if you've heard of the serial murders in Paris."

Sean frowned. He usually paid attention to current events, but he had never heard of this case.

The others also shook their heads.

"Several women were murdered in the streets of Paris one night. The Muggle police—equivalent to the Auror of wizards—investigated the case as usual, but they couldn't find the killer. Come to think of it—" Hugo frowned and curled his lip in disgust. "For a wizard, it couldn't be simpler if he didn't want to be discovered by Muggle."

"The real culprit in the serial murders is a wizard?" Hermione covered her mouth.

"That's right."

"No, even though we were in England at the time, the Daily Prophet should have reported on such a serious case," Hermione said, frowning.

Hugo sneered, "The Auror of the French Ministry of Magic have caught that pervert. Regardless of the crimes he committed or the serious violation of the Statute of Secrecy, sending him to the Soul-Devouring Tower should be his final destination."

The Soul-Devouring Tower is a form of execution used by the French Ministry of Magic. Prisoners are taken to the top of the tower and then pushed off, falling to the ground from the mist with only a robe remaining.

"But that guy not only escaped death, he was even put in a regular prison—a place where petty thieves or those who have minor violations of the Statute of Secrecy are kept."

"Because of that Wizarding Rights Protection Association?" Sean frowned.

"That's right. The murderer was the only son of an ancient Pure-blood families in France. In order to gain the support of that family and the huge Galleon sponsorship, the Wizarding Rights Protection Association used a lot of power to suppress the matter. Even the Muggle police in charge of the case were cursed - in the end they found a homeless man to be the scapegoat."

"You think that's all?" Hugo's face showed extreme disgust. "That damn organization actually used these cases for propaganda. They said that the murderer actually suffered from Muggle torture and therefore developed a mental illness. Under all this propaganda, the actions of that organization and that murderer were actually glorified as fighting for the legitimate rights of wizards—if it weren't for my grandfather knowing a lot of people, I would have been brainwashed like many ordinary France wizards because I didn't know the inside story."

"Is no one going to help...?" Daisy blinked and asked a timid, innocent question.

"The next Minister of French Ministry of Magic will most likely be the head of that organization. A large portion of the Pure-blood families are supporting him. Wizards who are unaware of the inside story are kept in the dark. Who can control it, and who dares to control it..." Hugo seemed to want to swear, but in the end he angrily held it back.

Sean, however, immediately thought of other aspects.

Do you know Dumbledore and Grindelwald?

They probably know, but they probably won't care.

Dumbledore, a England wizard, and he didn't have much influence over the French Wizarding World. Grindelwald's thoughts were hard to fathom; he probably didn't want to get involved at all...

Wait... Sean suddenly realized a crucial point.

Why is it that Hugo, who knows the inside story, happens to join the newly established Golden Dawn Club, while Fabian Aiken, who is associated with the Wizarding Rights Protection Association, happens to be his adversary...?

Sean's lips twitched. Grindelwald, you don't mean to get me involved, do you?

I feel like I've been swept up in some kind of wave...