The First Dream After Returning to School

However, there is no way for Allen Wallerup to achieve his dream of becoming School Governor, even if he is willing to donate a large sum of Galleon to Hogwarts.

Sean consulted Dumbledore, and the old man seemed quite interested.

"Your father wants to join the Board of School Governor? Oh, oh, that sounds great! There hasn't been a single Muggle on the School Board of School Governor since Hogwarts was founded!"

Sean initially thought there was a chance, but Dumbledore only expressed interest in certain aspects.

As the headmaster, he wouldn't mind Hogwarts having another generous and wealthy School Governor, but the main problem was that the other School Governor would never agree.

The Hogwarts School Board is almost entirely composed of Pure-blood Wizard. For these "nobles," being on the same School Governor as a Muggle is probably worse than being killed.

Upon hearing the news, Sean's father expressed his deep disappointment and then turned to Lupin, asking him to inquire about the situation in Austria.

He planned to take a roundabout approach, trying his luck with a position on the School Governor at Newmontgard...

My daughter will definitely attend Hogwarts in the future, but if she can't get a position on the Hogwarts School Governor, a position on the School Governor at another school of the same caliber might be useful, right?

It's easy to imagine how much effort Allen Wallerup has put into his daughter.

Although Sean felt his father's worries were somewhat unnecessary—with him around, with so many of his friends, and with the professors and teaching assistants at Hogwarts — Ayla wouldn't be bullied when she enrolled; if she didn't bully others, the Wallop family would have to be praised for their excellent upbringing...

However, since my father is so enthusiastic about this, let him do it; there's no harm in it anyway.

The noise in the Great Hall was almost the loudest it had been that evening. Everyone was extremely curious about the unnamed generous gentleman, and of course, the huge prize money for the winner of the Four-School Tournament was also very tempting.

At the long tables in each house, Sean could see many students staring fervently at Dumbledore, especially the older students.

"I know you all long to win the Four-School Tournament trophy for Hogwarts," Dumbledore said after a moment of silence. "However, when the Four-School Tournament was restarted, the participating schools and the Ministry of Magic agreed to set an age limit for the competitors from the four schools. Only students who are seventeen years of age or older—that is, seventeen years and older—are allowed to register for consideration."

Dumbledore's words caused a stir among many people. A number of students, especially those in the fifth and sixth years, stood up angrily and stared at Dumbledore as if the headmaster had said something extremely offensive.

Dumbledore raised his voice slightly because of the angry protests from the audience.

"This measure is necessary because the Triwizard Tournament events are still very difficult and dangerous. No matter how many precautions we take, students below the sixth or seventh year simply cannot handle them. I personally guarantee that no student under the age will be able to deceive our fair referees and become a Hogwarts Champion."

Fred and George nodded vigorously over there—they both met the age requirement and were clearly ready to give it a try.

"I think the professor is right. It's too dangerous for underage wizards."

"That's right, let's leave such a difficult task to adults like us."

The twin brothers' back-and-forth banter drew considerable discontent from many passionate students. One senior student, who had not yet met the requirements for the competition, stood up in protest. "Professor, shouldn't the selection of Champion be based on individual ability?"

Dumbledore pushed up his glasses, his blue eyes gleaming with a meaningful light.

"You're right. Age can effectively differentiate abilities in many situations, especially during the student years. But this difference doesn't exist for those who work harder and have more talent in magic. And a wizard is indeed judged by ability, not age."

"However, with the tournament about to begin, we don't have that much time to sift through Champion one by one. The Age Line still applies, but—" Dumbledore's gaze swept over everyone, Sean could clearly see his eyes linger on him for a moment, "In order to give those outstanding but underage students a chance, we have made this decision..."

"If a student is over fifteen years old and has Special Contribution Award from Hogwarts, a Hogwarts position certificate, and can prove their strength and contributions, the school will issue a personal certificate—this certificate can be used to remove the Trace, to legally own dangerous Magical Creatures, and of course, to participate in the Triwizard Cup at a younger age."

"The issuance of this certificate has a complete set of points calculation methods, which will be published in the new announcement. If anyone thinks you are good enough but is hindered by age restrictions, you can refer to it. Hogwarts will personally issue the certificate to those who meet all the conditions and have enough points. Of course, those who have this certificate can also register for this Four-School Tournament if they are between the ages of fifteen and seventeen."

The question caused a huge stir. Even the students who asked the question indignantly did not expect that Dumbledore would actually provide a solution—although the method seemed very strict.

It's difficult enough just to obtain the Hogwarts Special Contribution Award and a Hogwarts position certificate.

After Dumbledore speaking, many people immediately turned their attention to Sean. Among the current students, it seemed that only Sean met these requirements...

Many clever people have already figured out Dumbledore's intention—this certificate was specifically awarded to Sean so that he could directly apply for the Triwizard Cup.

In the principal's eyes, was Sean already comparable to, or even surpassed, a seventh-grader?... Such thoughts popped into many people's minds.

Sean awkwardly touched his nose. He hadn't expected Dumbledore to say it so directly, which felt like he was being given special treatment in public...

Hermione whispered from the side, "Anyone with eyes can see that this was specially prepared for you."

However, Dumbledore seemed oblivious to everyone's gaze and said seriously, "The Four-School Tournament is not an ordinary competition, so the conditions for obtaining this certificate are very strict. You can refer to the announcement for details and then judge whether you meet the conditions. I must remind those under the age of seventeen not to try to deceive anyone. I urge you not to waste your time applying."

"The delegations from Newmontgard, Beauxbatons, and Durmstrang will arrive in October and spend most of the school year with us. I know you will all be warm and friendly during our stay, and that you will all wholeheartedly support the chosen Hogwarts Champion once he or she is finally selected. Well, it's getting late, and it's important that you enter class refreshed and clear-headed tomorrow morning. Go to bed! Now!"

Dumbledore sat down and spoke to the other professors, while the students stood up, and the sound of tables and chairs being pushed around filled the Great Hall.

"Professor Dumbledore didn't say what the testing method would be, maybe it's not that strict?" Sean heard Harry say this at the entrance of the Great Hall.

"I asked Fred and George, but those two bastards wouldn't say anything. They clearly watched the last Triwizard Cup back then." Ron looked a little annoyed.

Neville, who had just become Gryffindor Prefect, was greeting the new students while also taking a moment to remind his two restless friends, "Promise me you won't challenge Professor Dumbledore's rules."

"Hey Neville, what a great opportunity this is! Not only can you participate in the competition to improve yourself, but you can also do many things that you can't usually do. Oh, and there's a huge prize money too—and didn't Professor Dumbledore also give a chance to students under seventeen?"

"To be honest, I think it was made especially for Sean." Ron shrugged, saw Sean not far away, and the two waved and greeted each other with smiles.

"Hey buddy, cheer up. Sean is really strong, so he deserves to participate, but we're no weaker than some seventh-year students, are we?" Harry was a little unconvinced. What he was unconvinced about was that some seventh-year students, who he didn't think were strong, had the right to choose whether or not to participate, while he didn't even have the qualification to participate.

The Weasley family' youngest daughter Ginny, walked past the two of them. The now poised and elegant young lady shrugged at them and said, "I think you two should make sure you can successfully complete your OWLs at the end of the fifth year."

"But the focus now is on the Triwizard Cup —come on, man, maybe we can get some kind of Ageing Potion or something."

Harry, focused solely on participating in the competition, barely paid attention to what Ginny was saying. He pulled Ron aside, and the two of them, unsure of where to go, discussed a solution.

Sean, who had been watching this scene, smiled helplessly. Even without any girls in their group, Harry and his friends hadn't been able to suppress their recklessness and impulsiveness at all.

However, this is not something you need to worry about; Dumbledore's magic cannot be hidden by the Ageing Potion.

Sean turned around and, together with Hermione, greeted the new Ravenclaw students. Today, they were responsible for showing these kids around the Ravenclaw bulletin board Common Room.

Of course, Hermione did most of the explanations.

"Everyone line up in two rows, one following Sean Wallerup, the other following me—come on, get together quickly, or one of you might get lost, which is not good news, especially for freshmen."

Watching Hermione, who already possessed the demeanor of a strict teacher, methodically direct all the new Ravenclaw students.

Once she was sure no unfortunate soul had been swept away by the crowd, she clapped her hands and said, "Come on, come with us."

Sean, who was walking at the front and hadn't done much work, yawned— Hermione was doing most of the work, so why was he so sleepy?

After settling all the new students in, Sean finally lay back down on his familiar four-poster soft bed.

Despite feeling sleepy, the roommates, who hadn't seen each other all summer, were still excitedly discussing the upcoming Four-School Tournament.

"Hey, Sean, did you hear what Professor Dumbledore said?" Terry Boot tossed over a bag of Creature Shriek Sweets, sounding a little excited.

"Of course, oh, awooo—" Sean casually tossed a gummy into his mouth and howled like a wolf, "This tastes really exciting—hmm, do you guys want to try signing up too?"

Another roommate, Michael Corner, spread his hands exaggeratedly. "Don't be silly, Sean. That must have been prepared by Dumbledore specifically for you. Currently, only you and Stephanie Ollivander in seventh grade have received the Special Contribution Award among the students. Ollivander looks like a first-year student, but she is definitely an adult. This award is useless for her to sign up for the competition. It is obviously for you."

Sean took off his clothes and lay down on the bed. "Hmm, do you guys think I should sign up?"

Anton Goldstein exclaimed, "Of course, Sean, the Four-School Tournament is the highest honor for students, and everyone knows your ability is already comparable to that of a graduate—or even stronger!"

Everyone laughed, their gazes toward Sean growing even more intense.

Sean adjusted the position of his pillow. "Oh, it's hard to say about his ability, but I am indeed a little interested."

"Go for it, Sean! We'll bring all the girls in the grade to cheer you on!" Terry said excitedly.

"Stop pretending, Terry. You can't possibly persuade the girls—and they'll spontaneously form a cheering squad as soon as Sean steps on stage."

"I can design encouraging words for them!"

"I'm not so sure about your literary skills..."

The noisy and excited conversation continued until midnight. Finally, everyone succumbed to the overwhelming drowsiness and fell into a deep sleep.

Sean was the last one to go to bed. Although he was lazy, he was always in good spirits.

He'd already decided he absolutely had to participate in the Four-School Tournament, but he didn't know who his other two teammates would be...

Names flashed through his mind, and amidst various imaginary Triwizard Tournament, Sean drifted into a deep sleep.

"Sean, aren't we leaving yet? Didn't they say the Prefect was going to prepare in advance?" his roommate called out early in the morning.

"Let's go right away, don't wait for me." Sean replied with a frown, then walked to the mirror.

I had another dream...

Everything in the dream was blurry, so blurry that Sean couldn't see anything clearly. But he could feel an immense sense of oppression; he could feel warm liquid on the corner of his mouth; he could feel the increasingly faint breaths of the creatures around him...

In the dream, only the moon is clear. In the dream, you look up and see a huge, blurry black shadow sweeping across the sky, above which is a clear, bright, and gentle full moon.

This wasn't the first time Sean had a similar dream. He always felt like he wasn't the real person in the dream, and there was one thing in common in all of them: the moon in the sky was unusually clear.

"Is this a coincidence or some kind of omen?" Sean, who couldn't interpret dreams, was somewhat troubled.