The Suspicious Neighbors

As dusk falls and night descends, the city lights begin to twinkle.

The Parsons Family is enjoying their dinner.

"Doug, stop looking at that letter," Mr. Parsons said to his youngest son, wiping his mouth with a napkin.

His son Doug Parsons, is eleven years old and about to enter high school.

As a father and a company executive, he naturally wanted to find a good school for his son—however, his family received a strange acceptance letter.

The letter was addressed to his son, and it said that his son had been admitted to Durmstrang.

Mr. Parsons initially thought it was some unheard-of secondary school, so he asked someone to inquire about it. It turned out that there was no such name as Durmstrang in the secondary schools registered in the Germany education system.

The forms attached to the letter even listed items such as Wizard Robes, Cauldron, Astronomical Telescope, while the textbooks were strange Spell Book and Potion Book.

When Mr. Parsons got home, he read the letter carefully and came to the conclusion that it was some kind of prank by some kid.

Moreover, he already had a suspect in mind: his neighbors Lloyd Family.

Lloyd's child was a year older than Doug, but his grades were much worse.

The boy named Lonte Lloyd enrolled in a middle school last year, and the Lloyd Couple never mentioned it. When others asked, the couple always said that Lonte went to a middle school abroad.

Mr. Parsons scoffed at this.

He knew his neighbor all too well. Mr. Lloyd used to be a senior manager at a forklift company, but the company had been struggling in recent years, and Mr. Lloyd's income had plummeted.

Judging from the other party's salary, it can only cover the basic living expenses on this wealthy street. As for other major expenses, they may have to sell some items.

In such a situation, where did Lloyd Family get the money to send their child to study abroad?

Moreover, Longte's grades are only passing, so scholarships are out of the question.

Mr. Parsons suspected that his neighbor was lying to his neighbors to keep his reputation intact, as he was sending his child to that shabby public high school.

As for why he thought the prank was done by Lloyd's kid?

When he got home, he read the acceptance letter that Doug handed him in the yard.

"Durmstrang, is that the name of some kind of magic school?"

As he chuckled, Mr. Lloyd, who had overheard him, suddenly looked flustered and confused, and then hurriedly returned to the house.

Mr. Parsons keenly observed this scene and immediately felt that Lloyd must know the name "Durmstrang".

Moreover, half of the summer vacation has already passed, and I haven't seen Lonte Lloyd at all. Could it be that he's studying abroad and doesn't come home for the summer vacation?

Putting everything together, it's clear that this prank was definitely done by that kid, Lonte.

The boy was afraid that others would find out that he was going to a public high school, so he hid at home and refused to show himself. Then, he became Envy of his son Doug, who had excellent grades, so he made up this so-called acceptance letter to School of Magic.

The Lloyd Couple must have realized their child's prank, which is why they panicked so much when they heard Durmstrang's name—they were afraid of finding the real culprit, which would destroy the dignity the Lloyd Family were trying so hard to maintain.

Mr. Parsons was pleased with himself, believing that he had found the truth of the whole thing and discovered the mastermind behind the prank.

However, since we're still neighbors, there's no need to deliberately expose this little prank. Let's just let this poor neighbor maintain his dignity for a while longer.

The only problem was that his son Doug, although an excellent student, had been extremely enthusiastic about these fantasy stories since childhood.

Originally, Mr. Parsons didn't object to his son having such hobbies, as long as he could maintain his excellent grades.

However, Doug became almost obsessed after receiving the letter. He was convinced that he was a wizard and that a School of Magic called Durmstrang was ready to accept him.

"Dad! What I'm saying is true! What I feel is true too! When I was little, I was able to do things that other people couldn't! Look, the acceptance letter has arrived! Oh, I definitely want to go to school there!"

Mr. Parsons shook his head helplessly as he recalled his son's excited words; the little guy was completely mesmerized.

As for those amazing things, Mr. Parsons couldn't deny them. For example, no matter whether Doug's hair grew long or short, he always ended up with his favorite hairstyle. For example, Doug once accidentally fell into the monkey mountain at the zoo, but the monkeys and gorillas didn't attack him.

It is indeed amazing and interesting to talk about, but Mr. Parsons believes it is just a small coincidence.

He glanced at his son on the table, who was oblivious to his words and still engrossed in reading the acceptance letter he had read dozens of times.

"Doug, it's dinner time now. Can you put down what you're holding and talk to your mom and dad a little more?" He emphasized his words slightly.

Doug put away the acceptance letter with some regret, and finally nodded. "Okay, Dad, Mom."

"You child..." Mr. Parsons shook his head helplessly.

He didn't intend to discipline his son too often. After all, it was just a prank. There were no wizards, no magic, and no Durmstrang. Given time, a smart kid like Doug would discover the truth from his imagination.

Are you suggesting that a wizard will knock on the door, cast a spell, and tell Doug, "I'm the School of Magic Admissions Officer here to explain things to you?"

Parsons smiled and shook his head, preparing to ask his wife about her day.

Just then, the bell rang.

"Huh? Why is someone suddenly visiting at this hour?"

Mr. Parsons put down his knife and fork with a puzzled look, pulled out his chair, and went to the door to look through the peephole.

He was a very handsome young man, dressed in a well-made custom-made suit, and the watch on his wrist was worth more than Mr. Parsons' annual salary.

Um?

Mr. Parsons opened the door with a puzzled look.

"Oh, hello, does Doug Parsons live here?" The other person spoke fluent German, but it was clear they weren't Germany.

"Yes, I am his father. What do you need him for?"

"Here's the thing, my name is Sean Wallerup, I'm from England, and I'm the Admissions Officer for England School of Magic Hogwarts. I'm here to discuss Doug Parsons ' admission with your family."

"Wait... School of Magic? England? Hogwarts?"

"Yes, it's Hogwarts, sir." Sean smiled.

The sound of a chair being pulled out came from inside the room, and an excited boy ran out, staring intently at Sean.

"Hello! I am Doug Parsons! Did you send me from the School of Magic?"

"Indeed, it is. It's a pleasure to meet you, Doug." Sean shook hands with the excited boy.

Parsons was completely bewildered. "Wait a minute, isn't this one of Lonte Lloyd's pranks?"

"I'm sorry, sir, I don't know the child you're talking about—of course, I know your family has many questions right now. If you don't mind, would you like to come inside and discuss it in detail?"

Ten minutes later.

The Parsons Family sat on the sofa, dumbfounded.

Mr. Parsons stared at his tap-dancing record player and swallowed hard.

"Is everything you're saying true?"

Sean waved his wand slightly, making the record player dance even more wildly.

"I think that proves everything, doesn't it?"

"This is magic, this is magic..." Doug stared intently at the record player, his eyes practically glowing.

Mr. Parsons and his equally shocked wife exchanged a glance, and finally understood what the other was thinking—this was no magic trick to deceive the eyes!

After further discussion, the Parsons Family finally came to believe Sean completely.

"However, Mr. Wallop, I have a question. You said you were the Admissions Officer for Hogwarts, but Doug received an acceptance letter from Durmstrang."

Sean remained unfazed. "In fact, Durmstrang and Hogwarts are both School of Magic, but we are different. For people like you who don't know anything about magic before, we at Hogwarts believe that coming to your door to discuss things is the only way to show our sincerity—otherwise, you would all think it's just a prank, wouldn't you?"

This is the fourth time Sean has said this today. He has already "surprise-called" three prospective student families, all of whom are within Durmstrang's separate admissions area and will naturally only receive one acceptance letter.

You know what, after Sean gained three more new students, the thrill of poaching them was pretty good.

The fourth new student, whose admission is about to be confirmed, is excitedly talking to his parents.

Only after the other party finished speaking and confirmed their intention to enroll at Hogwarts did Sean hand over the acceptance letter.

"Very well, then we'll meet again at Hogwarts, Doug."

"Of course, sir!" The little guy shook hands with Sean excitedly.

"By the way, we'll send someone to pick you up when you go to Diagon Alley. Doug, your English is pretty good, but remember to study it more this summer, since most of the classes at Hogwarts will be taught in English."

"No problem!"

Parsons also stated, "I will hire a language tutor for Doug."

"Then I won't bother you any longer. Oh, right—" Sean turned back at the door, "In a few days, Durmstrang's Admissions Officer may come again. You just need to tell him that you have chosen Hogwarts, and that the magic has left its mark."

Mr. Parsons, who stood up to see him to the door, nodded repeatedly; he now completely believed in magic.

Moreover, whether it's sending someone to your door or delivering an acceptance letter, anyone who isn't blind can tell which school is more attentive to their son.

After Sean left, Mr. Parsons returned to the house. He looked at his excited son and shrugged. "Well, your dream is about to come true—but why does Mr. Lloyd look so strange? Has he also heard of Durmstrang?"

Doug's eyes widened. "Lonter, you didn't go to Durmstrang, did you?! Mr. Wallop said we can't tell anyone else!"

Mr. Parsons suddenly realized, "It seems that's really the case! Hmm, should I find an opportunity to hint at it? I just wonder if the preparations for going to Durmstrang are any different from those for going to Hogwarts..."

Under the cover of night, Sean, who was about to leave, frowned by the railing of Parsons' house.

To avoid being noticed by his neighbors, he used several small spells. Before the magic was completely over, he heard what Mr. Parsons said.

Sean turned to look at a nearby house.

Is this family's child a new student from Durmstrang last year?

How come I didn't notice anything at all?

Freshmen returning from vacation are not allowed to use magic, but the books, magical toys, and other items they bring back from school will carry very small magical fluctuations. This is not considered triggered magic, but a wizard like Sean, who is naturally perceptive and has the Obscurus, can sense it.

A junior wizard would obviously not use magic to conceal this slight magical fluctuation; he wouldn't, and there was no need for him to.

Could it be that the child hasn't come home yet?

Sean immediately connected this to Durmstrang's series of strange behaviors.

Max Dawson, who infiltrated Hogwarts to steal the Prophecy and caused a huge mess, graduated from Durmstrang. Durmstrang's headmaster, Karkaroff, is a Death Eaters in disguise. Today, we also encountered that strange wizard named Thomas. Even Dumbledore hinted to himself that there is something wrong with Durmstrang now.

Sean squinted at the family named Lloyd, his mind racing.

After thinking for a moment, he took out his wand and tapped it lightly on himself. His figure quickly faded away and then completely blended into the environment.

He was going to check on Lloyd's family.

The invisible Sean walked around Lloyd's house but found no magic. After looking around, he floated up and entered the house through an open window on the second floor.

The lights were on in the room, but strangely, Sean couldn't hear any conversation or the sound of the television.

"Something's not right..." Sean frowned and called out to Dave.

"Dave, can you smell how many people are in the house?"

"You're the only one next to me, there are two people downstairs. The pig brain tastes so-so, but the flavor is... well, very calming."

Calm? Sean's pupils contracted slightly.

He remained invisible, silently descending the stairs.

Upon entering the living room, the lights were on, and a middle-aged man and woman were sitting on the sofa. Opposite them was an unlit television and untouched desserts on the coffee table.

The Lloyd Couple sat there quietly, their eyes vacant.

Sean narrowed his eyes: Something's wrong...