Waiting for Umbridge to Investigate Snape...

To be honest, even when Umbridge strikes poses that she thinks are photogenic and cute, she can't seem to evoke any positive feelings from people.

In fact, it could be said to have had the opposite effect.

"Look at her, oh Merlin— " Ron muttered, making a S.P.E.W. face. "I really don't know what this toad is thinking. Does she think she's a fifteen-year-old girl? No,

She's at most a fifty-year-old clam!

Harry looked up and silently gave Ron a thumbs-up for his sharp tongue.

"He truly is my good buddy," he thought to himself. "He's definitely an authority when it comes to sharp tongues."

He leaned over to look at the newspaper, the contents of which were somewhat difficult to evaluate.

It seems that Fudge really wants to have a showdown with Dumbledore face to face.

No, do you have the ability to fight Dumbledore?

"Let me see." Hermione dusted off the newspaper and read aloud, "In a last-minute operation last night, the Ministry of Magic passed a new decree that gives it unprecedented control over Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

"For some time now, the Minister has been increasingly uneasy about the current state of Hogwarts," said Minister's Assistant Percy Weasley.

"He took action after listening to the concerns of the parents, who felt that the school seemed to be developing in a direction they strongly disapproved of."

In recent weeks, Minister Cornelius Fudge has used new legislation to improve magic schools. Just recently, on August 30th Educational Decree Number Twenty-Two was passed, ensuring that if the current Headmaster cannot provide a candidate for a teaching position, the Ministry of Magic will recommend a suitable one.

"That's how Dolores Umbridge was appointed as a teacher at Hogwarts," Weasley said last night. "Dumbledore couldn't find anyone, so the Minister assigned Umbridge, and needless to say, she immediately became a great success—"

Upon hearing this, everyone around burst into laughter.

"A resounding success?" Seamus exclaimed dramatically. "Does this 'resounding success' mean she was ousted from the stage by a group of fifth graders, or that she was Levicorpus by the fifth graders and turned into a real toad?"

Upon hearing Seamus's words, a burst of noisy laughter erupted in the Great Hall.

Seamus's voice was loud, and Umbridge, sitting in the front row, heard it clearly.

Her previously smug expression instantly darkened, almost matching the gloom of a face smeared with ink.

It was clear that the fifth-year students were not afraid of Professor Umbridge, because Harry had already broken her "professor" status in the first Defense Against the Dark Arts.

"It's not over yet!" Hermione continued reading impatiently, "It was an immediate success, bringing about a breakthrough in the Defense Against the Dark Arts Class, and providing the Minister with timely on-site feedback on the actual situation at Hogwarts."

This recent temporary operation officially came into effect with the passage of the Ministry of Magic's Educational Decree Number Twenty-Three, which also created the new position of Hogwarts High Inquisitor.

"This is an exciting new initiative in the Minister's plan to try to control the so-called decline in Hogwarts' educational standards," Weasley said. "The Investigator will have the power to review her fellow faculty members to ensure they all meet the standards. We are pleased to announce that Professor Umbridge has been granted this position outside of her teaching duties, and we are happy to tell you that she has gladly accepted."

These new measures by the Ministry of Magic have received enthusiastic support from Hogwarts students' parents.

"I'm much more relieved to know that Dumbledore will receive a fair and objective evaluation," said Mr. Lucius Malfoy, 41, at his Wiltshire mansion last night. "Many of us who care about the well-being of our children have been worried about Dumbledore's eccentric decisions in recent years, and now we know that the Ministry of Magic is closely monitoring the situation."

I feel very gratified.

When this sentence was read, everyone looked at Draco with strange expressions.

Draco's face flushed red; he suddenly felt ashamed.

No, Dad?

Your son is leading the charge against Umbridge, and you, as my father, are siding with him?

"Oh, look at your father, Malfoy!" Blaise Zabini chuckled. "To think he'd teamed up with the Ministry of Ministry of Magic, Merlin's stinky socks! I really can't believe there's a traitor among us!"

"You're the traitor!" Draco said, his face flushed. "There must be some wrong interview involved. My father would never do something like that!"

Hermione's voice rang out again.

"Mrs. Zabini, now 39, also claimed that handing her children over to Hogwarts under Dumbledore's rule was not a good idea, and that if the Ministry of Magic hadn't intervened in time, she would have had to reassess whether the school was qualified to educate her children."

Blaise, who had been mocking Draco, immediately shut up.

No, Mom?

You betrayed your son?

"Of course, Parkinson's father, Herdo Parkinson, also expressed his support for his two old friends, and he also believed that handing the children over to Dumbledore's Hogwarts was an intolerable mistake," Hermione continued reading.

Now it was Pansy Parkinson's turn to blush and turn red.

She wished she could rush home right now and confront her father.

The daughter is fighting to the death, why did the father surrender first?!

"Of course," Hermione said again. "Many wizarding families have expressed their support for the Ministry of Magic, such as the Greengrass family and the Farley family. They all believe that Dumbledore's strange decisions were harmful decisions that harmed the students."

At this point, Draco stopped joking and suddenly looked up, puzzled.

The Farley family?

As is widely known, Gemma Phally of the Farley family is now a confidante of Ms. Grindelwald, the Minister of Greater German Ministry of Magic.

At the same time, they firmly stand on Potter's side.

Is it true that her family supports the British Ministry of Magic?

Draco suddenly had a flash of inspiration; he felt there must be some deal he didn't know about involved.

Could it be...?

Was it organized, planned, and premeditated?

Draco decided to wait and see for the time being, and when he had some free time, he would write home to ask if his guesses were correct.

Hermione was still playing on the long bench in Gryffindor.

"Those bizarre decisions undoubtedly included the appointment of controversial faculty members, as this newspaper has already commented on, including hiring the Werewolf Remus Lupin, the half- Half-giant Rubeus Hagrid, and the imposter former Auror ' Mad-Eye ' Moody— "

"Is he crazy?" Ron said immediately, displeased. "Both Professor Lupin and Hagrid are professors that everyone likes very much. Why does she have to go against them? Or is there something wrong with her intelligence? Is her brain not fully developed?"

Is the cerebellum completely undeveloped?

"Perhaps," Seamus shrugged. "It's also possible that she simply sees everyone who's on good terms with Professor Dumbledore as an enemy—of course, I think Harry is in that danger too."

"No," Neville corrected, "Harry isn't in that danger; she's already an enemy of Umbridge."

That makes sense, after all, Harry is a hardcore ruthless guy who can hang a pink toad up in the air.

"Of course, people also spread rumors that Albus Dumbledore, who was once the president of the International Confederation of Wizards and the Chief Warlock of Wizengamot, is no longer able to shoulder the heavy responsibility of managing the prestigious Hogwarts School."

"I believe that appointing an investigator is the first step in ensuring that Hogwarts has a Headmaster we can all trust," a Ministry of Magic insider said last night.

The Old Grindelwald of Wizengamot, Griselda Markbans and Tiberius Ogden, resigned in protest against the appointment of investigators to Hogwarts.

"Hogwarts is a school, not an outpost of Cornelius Fudge's office," Mrs. Marchbanks said. "This is an attempt to further tarnish Albus Dumbledore's reputation, and it is a despicable act."

(For a detailed report on the allegations that Mrs. Marchbanks secretly colluded with Goblin to subvert the group, please see page 17 of this newspaper.)

This concludes the article.

"I simply can't fathom where Fudge got the courage from," Hermione exclaimed with a 'wtf' expression. "Did he get kicked in the head by the Hebridean Black Dragon?"

"This is part of his grand plan," Seamus said passionately. "A grand vision, isn't it?"

However, Ron suddenly revealed a Peeves smile.

"What's wrong?" Hermione asked curiously when she saw his expression.

"Ah," Ron said, arms crossed, "An investigator? I'm more curious what would happen if Snape were investigated by her."

After thinking for a moment, everyone showed an expectant expression.

This is definitely something to look forward to! Umbridge and Snape clashing? This could easily be the most anticipated event of the year at Hogwarts!

Even with so many Slytherin families supporting the Ministry of Magic and Umbridge, not a single student believed that someone like Snape would stoop to Umbridge's level.

They just thought that Snape would definitely use his venom to give Umbridge a good eye-opening experience.

"Of course," Hermione said, stroking her hair. "I don't really think Professor Snape will clash with Umbridge, or rather, Umbridge might not even target Snape. Think about it."

"That's not impossible," Ron nodded. "But then again, Professor McGonagall might not tolerate Professor Umbridge harassing her."

"You'd better hope Professor McGonagall is alright," Hermione said, shaking her head. "Professor McGonagall is too old; she can't endure this kind of torment."

They didn't take the investigator's matter to heart; after all, there are always tall people to hold up the sky if it falls.

Harry finally finished writing his lesson plan, and he planned to give everyone a unique presentation on some dueling techniques in the first Defense Against the Dark Arts.

Looking at Harry's lesson plan, Ron suddenly had a brilliant idea.

"No?" he suddenly said. "Logically speaking, Harry is also part of the professors, even though he's currently the acting professor for the fifth year. Umbridge still has the right to investigate him. What if Umbridge wants to cause trouble in class?"

"What should we do?" Harry chuckled, pulling out his wand. "You'll have to ask my wand."

"Fine." Ron shrugged. "If she doesn't want to get herself killed, then she can come after you—"

Monday's classes arrived again, and Professor Binns's classes were as dull and boring as ever, just as perfect for taking a nap. Ron leaned on the table with one hand, his face resting on his hand, his head tilted back and his mouth open as he slept, occasionally nodding off.

He was really tired.

"It seems Umbridge didn't check Professor Binns's ideas," Hermione said in a low voice.

"Everyone knows Professor Binns is the undisputed professor of the History of Magic, having taught it since the days of the Four Founders," Harry said with a shrug. "If she wants to investigate whether the professor of the History of Magic History of Magic qualified, then she's the one who's really out of her mind."

"That's true." Hermione nodded in agreement. "Time has proven that Professor Binns is the perfect candidate for Professor of the History of Magic. Besides, he's just a ghost and poses no threat to the Ministry of Magic whatsoever—he could never be one of Dumbledore's men."

"Dumbledore's ghost," Harry added. "Professor Binns is no longer human."

"Oh, thank you for reminding me," Hermione said, rolling her eyes.

"Do you think she'll go investigate Professor Snape later?" Harry asked again in a low voice. "Maybe we can bet on Sickle; I don't think she'll go."

"I think so," Hermione said firmly. "Believe me, Harry —she'll harass every human professor at Hogwarts on equal terms."

"Not necessarily," Harry said with a chuckle. "Believe me, Umbridge would never bother Newt Scamander, but Professor Snape is another story. I think she'll at least not attend this class."

"I'm betting," Hermione said seriously. "She'll definitely be eager to give Professor Snape a hard time—"

Potions Class class.

"One Sickle." Harry held out his hand to Hermione.

Hermione reluctantly took out a silver coin and handed it to Harry.

She was a little frustrated. Why didn't Umbridge come to Potions Class and bother Professor Snape?

Or do you think you're so great that you can engage in shady dealings in my class?

Snape's sinister voice rang out beside them.

"Potter," Snape said with a sneer, "Don't think you can look down on the professor just because you got a zero on your paper. What were you and Miss Know-it-all doing just now?"

"I didn't do anything, Professor." Harry looked up, trying to open his eyes as wide as possible to look at Snape.

Snape showed a look of disgust, clearly disgusted to the extreme.

Still think of yourself as a first grader? Look at your face, just like your deadbeat father!