Dumbledore Loses His Composure

"Then why didn't you notify us?" Professor McGonagall looked at Hermione and the others.

"Perhaps they were too worried to think clearly," Brook spoke up to explain for Hermione and the others.

"As my friends, they were so worried about me that they forgot the simplest solution and instead chose a brave path, one where they were willing to risk themselves for a friend. Isn't that very Gryffindor?"

Snape let out a soft snort through his nose.

He really wanted to call them reckless, foolish lions.

But with Professor McGonagall present, he decisively kept his mouth shut.

Still, the way he looked at Brook was full of admiration.

Should he suggest that Brook be sorted again?

He felt that if Brook let down his Occlumency, he would definitely be sorted into Slytherin.

Professor McGonagall's gaze toward the three of them softened noticeably, and there was now a trace of approval in her eyes.

"Though your actions are understandable, you did violate school rules. Five points will be deducted from each of you."

Harry and Ron: →_→←_←

Their eyes were full of delight. It was only a few deducted points—a trivial matter.

But Hermione felt rather uneasy.

It was not because this was the first time Gryffindor had lost points because of her.

She did not regret going to notify Brook.

It was just that, if she had not caused trouble, Brook would have been fine long ago.

That made her feel terrible.

Professor McGonagall looked at Brook again, a gentle smile appearing on her face.

It was a smile they had never seen on Professor McGonagall's face before.

"Brook, you were inadvertently caught up in the Troll invasion, and that was the responsibility of us professors. You also helped subdue the Troll, so Gryffindor will receive thirty points. This matter will also be recorded in the trophy room."

"Thank you, Professor." Brook silently gave Professor McGonagall a mental 666.

This combination of deducting and awarding points both upheld the fairness of the school rules and made it clear which behavior deserved encouragement.

"Hurry back to your common room. Brook, you haven't eaten yet, and there should still be something to eat there," Professor McGonagall said with concern.

"Goodbye, Professor McGonagall, Professor Snape, Professor Quirrell." Brook politely bid the three professors farewell.

Then the four little ones headed toward the Gryffindor common room.

"Thank you, Harry, Ron," Brook said.

Harry quickly waved his hands and said somewhat awkwardly, "We didn't help at all. We only caused trouble. Otherwise, you could have earned even more points for Gryffindor."

Ron stammered without saying anything, but his face instantly turned red.

"Being able to help and being willing to help are two different things. Besides, I already said it—your bravery and willingness to risk yourselves for a friend are exactly why I must thank you." Brook's tone was very earnest.

Harry and Ron became even more embarrassed, but they also felt very happy inside.

Only then did Brook learn from Hermione that she had originally come alone.

When Harry and Ron saw her leave the group, they had voluntarily come to help.

Brook did not want to get involved in the love-hate entanglement between Harry and Voldemort.

But this incident had shown him that Harry really was a friend worth having.

Never mind whether he was capable enough—when something happened, he truly stepped up.

Brook had no interest in the leftover scraps in the common room.

Hermione and the other two had not eaten their fill either.

So he brought them into the Ring Space and made hot pot.

Of course, he did not reveal the entire space to Harry and Ron without reservation.

Instead, he directly brought them into the house inside the space.

The outside area was concealed by a layer of thin mist.

Harry's jaw nearly dropped to the floor.

He had never expected Brook to possess such a magical space.

Though Ron was full of envy over Brook having his own separate house, he was much calmer.

He patiently explained the principles of the Undetectable Extension Charm to Harry.

Only then did Harry understand, exclaiming, "So wizards have such amazing methods! It's simply unbelievable!"

Before long, steaming hot pot was brought to the table, its rich fragrance instantly filling the room.

Everyone thoroughly enjoyed this little hot pot meal.

Ron especially.

He had practically put all his talent points into eating.

Hot pot naturally required chopsticks, but those stumped Harry and Ron.

They could only awkwardly hold one chopstick in each hand and carefully pick up ingredients from the hot pot.

They were incredibly, incredibly slow.

If you can't find the book by searching its title, try searching for the author instead. It may have simply been renamed!

If Brook had not deliberately slowed down a little, Ron would not have gotten a single slice of meat before it was gone.

As Ron ate, he suddenly gave up.

But he was not giving up on eating—he was giving up on using chopsticks.

He picked up his wand and cast a Levitation Charm on the lamb in the hot pot.

The slices of lamb obediently flew into his bowl.

Then he leisurely used a fork to feast away.

Brook, Hermione, and Harry were all dumbfounded.

It was simply astonishing.

Besides that, Ron had an unusual obsession with spicy food.

He had no interest whatsoever in the clear broth pot and only stared at the Spicy Pot.

His lips had been burned bright red by the spice, sweat pouring down like rain, while his red hair seemed even more vibrant.

Yet he kept hissing "Sss, ha!" while continuously stuffing food from the Spicy Pot into his mouth.

While Brook and the others were enjoying their meal, Dumbledore was feeling utterly miserable on the other side.

In his eyes, the Troll invasion was merely a minor incident and could not affect his mood at all.

He had even known long ago who was behind it.

He had merely kept that "chess piece" in order to cultivate Harry.

However, when the portraits relayed Brook's words to Hermione exactly as they had been spoken, without missing a single word,

his expression immediately turned grave.

He stared at the RPG-7 rocket launcher and Degtyaryov machine gun that Brook had either forgotten or deliberately left behind at the scene, and fell into deep silence.

Despite living in the Magical World, Dumbledore had always kept a close eye on technological developments in the Muggle world and never dared to slack off in the slightest.

Gellert Grindelwald's prophecy often surfaced in his mind.

Even if the entire world refused to believe Gellert, he had always believed him without doubt.

Because of that, he understood the power of these modern weapons very well.

Especially the two "Big Gudus" that had exploded in Japan—he had personally gone to inspect the site.

If Brook truly possessed weapons like those, then saying he could blow Hogwarts into the sky was absolutely not an empty threat.

Moreover, Brook clearly knew that the portraits would pass information on to him.

Yet he had openly displayed weapons that were clearly not meant for dealing with a Troll.

That made the matter even more thought-provoking.

He could not help muttering, "Are you making a show of force?"

"If there's nothing else, I'll be leaving."

Snape stood nearby, growing somewhat impatient from waiting.

He had not heard what Dumbledore was muttering.

He only knew that after handing those two strange-looking objects to Dumbledore, Dumbledore had sunk into thought.

And he had been waiting for five whole minutes.

Did Dumbledore really think his time was worthless?

Besides, his leg was injured.

If Professor McGonagall had not been busy dealing with the aftermath of the Troll incident, he would not have bothered coming to the headmaster's office to report the situation.

Dumbledore came back to his senses. "Severus, how is your leg?"

"It won't kill me."

"Cough, cough." Dumbledore looked a little embarrassed. "Has Mr. Lott made any unusual moves recently?"

"Does not attending Defense Against the Dark Arts count?" Snape looked at Dumbledore provocatively.

He had applied for the Defense Against the Dark Arts position countless times, only for that useless Quirrell to snatch it away.

"I already know about that. Anything else?"

Dumbledore's deep blue eyes fixed tightly on Snape.

Seeing Dumbledore's serious expression, Snape became serious as well.

"Lott obtained quite a few plants from Pomona, but no one knows where he planted them. He also supplies the kitchen with quite a few vegetables. I suspect he used an item enhanced with the Undetectable Extension Charm."

He paused, then added, "As for unusual behavior, Lott basically disappears the moment class ends these days. Miss Know-It-All has been going to the library alone recently. He's been slacking off in his studies."

"That is Miss Granger," Dumbledore corrected before falling into thought again.

"If there's nothing else, I'll be going."

"Keep an eye on Mr. Lott for me lately. I want to know what he has been doing."

"Hmph!" Snape snorted coldly. "Potter, Quirrell, and Lott—do you think I'm that free?"

Dumbledore's old face looked somewhat awkward. "Just do your best."

Snape ignored Dumbledore and turned to limp away.

Dumbledore looked at the two modern weapons on the table and once again fell into deep thought.

"It's time we met, little one. I suppose you think so too."