Bad Taste

Bad Taste

Unfortunately, most of the young witches and wizards on the boats had no time to admire Hogwarts Castle through the curtain of rain. The icy rainwater had them shivering uncontrollably.

"Why do First Years have to cross the lake by boat?" Albert withdrew his gaze and looked at the three others in the boat, whose teeth were chattering from the cold.

"No, I don't know, and I don't want to know."

"Me neither. It's freezing." The Twins chimed in as well. They were nearly frozen to death; who had the mood to care about such things?

Albert could not help shaking his head. He knew a little about the boat-crossing ritual. It was meant to have new students arriving at Hogwarts follow the same route the four founders had taken when they first came to Hogwarts Castle. The boats carried four people each, representing the four founders. It was a kind of inheritance ceremony, allowing students to feel the founders' excitement and joy while remembering the hardships they had endured in creating the school.

But by now, how many people truly understood that? Even Hagrid, who was guiding them across the lake, probably did not know.

Still, few students cared about such things anymore.

"Watch out, duck!" Hagrid shouted.

The new students hurriedly lowered their heads.

The little boats carried them beneath the cliff and toward the Boat Dock below the castle.

"This is awful. I hate rain." One of the Twins hugged his shoulders and sneezed.

Everyone was soaked through, trembling like leaves.

"How did you do that?" Lee Jordan asked in surprise. He had noticed that the rain had not soaked Albert's robes or Pointed Hat.

"A simple spell." Noticing the others looking at him, Albert explained softly.

"Alright, everyone, follow me." Carrying a lantern, Hagrid led the new students up a gravel path to the lawn below the castle. Ahead of them was a flight of Stone Steps leading to the castle's oak doors.

A Witch in emerald-green robes stood before the oak doors. Albert recognized her. She was Professor McGonagall, who had visited Albert's home once.

"Thank you, Hagrid. I'll take the new students from here." Professor McGonagall surveyed the bedraggled students, and Albert thought he saw the corner of her mouth twitch.

It was hardly surprising. "Bedraggled" was no longer enough to describe the new students. Nearly everyone was drenched like a drowned rat, with mud splattered all over them.

"First Years, follow me."

Professor McGonagall led the new students into the castle. Albert followed at the back of the group, looking around at the castle that had stood for a thousand years.

"That's Professor McGonagall, Gryffindor's Head of House. Percy said she's very strict," George whispered.

"Oh, I've met her once. My sister loved the trick where Professor McGonagall turned a teacup into a mouse." Albert's attention was on the stone walls. He had always wondered whether those blazing torches were fueled by eternal fire.

He had heard there was some kind of faerie fire that could burn forever. It fit the scene before him perfectly.

"Come on, what are you looking at?" Fred gave Albert a light shove and urged him quietly.

"I was wondering what kind of magical fire that is. It shouldn't be ordinary flames." There was no smoke, which meant it was not normal fire.

Fred opened his mouth, but for a moment, he had no idea what to say.

Albert decided he would figure it out later. This castle held many secrets worth exploring.

The moment Albert formed the intention to explore the castle, a quest suddenly appeared on his panel: Millennial Ancient School: Hogwarts.

Hogwarts is an ancient and mysterious school of magic that has existed for a thousand years. Countless unknown secrets are hidden within this old castle. As a curious explorer of secrets, you should not let such an opportunity slip away. Explore Hogwarts Castle before graduation and uncover its hidden secrets.

Current Progress: 1%.

Reward: 1000-100000 experience, 1-10 Skill Points.

Holy shit! Albert could not help swearing inwardly. This was utterly mind-blowing.

This was definitely the most impressive quest he had ever seen.

Is this forcing me to become a nighttime wandering addict? Looks like learning the Disillusionment Charm has to be moved up the schedule. Albert began considering how to get hold of the Disillusionment Charm's incantation.

Professor McGonagall led the new students into the Sorting Ceremony waiting room. The space was not large, and everyone was crowded tightly together.

"Welcome to Hogwarts," Professor McGonagall began with the customary opening speech given every year. "The start-of-term feast is about to begin, but before you take your seats in the dining hall, you must first determine which House you will enter..."

It was like a leader's speech in his previous life: I'll just say a few words, then they would ramble on for over half an hour. Professor McGonagall was not quite that excessive, but she still spoke for a full ten-odd minutes.

Albert summed up Professor McGonagall's lengthy speech in three points: accommodation, Sorting Ceremony, and the House Cup.

After finishing the customary Hogwarts instructions, Professor McGonagall had all the new students line up so she could clean away the water and mud on them.

As the school's deputy headmistress, Professor McGonagall could never tolerate the new students entering the Great Hall like this. Their disheveled appearance would utterly disgrace Hogwarts.

The new students jostled in the line, hoping to dry their clothes as quickly as possible. The damp chill made them miserable.

"Are they packing sardines?" Albert watched the new students with interest, taking a step back and deliberately remaining at the end of the line. The rain had not affected him much.

Professor McGonagall worked quickly. Skillfully using the Scouring Charm and Drying Charm, she took only a few minutes before it was Albert's turn.

She gave Albert an extra, slightly surprised look, then cast the spells on him as well. His clothes immediately became dry and warm, while the mud splashed onto his boots and trousers vanished.

"Now, please remain quiet," Professor McGonagall said loudly. "Once they are ready over there, I will come and collect you."

After Professor McGonagall left the room, everyone began whispering about the Sorting Ceremony.

"How are we going to be sorted?"

"How can they accurately put everyone into the right House?"

"Maybe there'll be some kind of test."

The mention of a test made everyone nervous.

Seeing this, Albert suddenly wanted to laugh. He was beginning to understand why no one wanted to tell the new students how the Sorting Ceremony worked.

They really were a bunch with a twisted sense of humor!

"You're not nervous at all? I'm Alicia Spinnet." A girl came over to speak with him. Earlier, Albert had given her a hand.

Of course, the girl had probably come over because of Albert's calmness. No matter how one looked at it, he seemed like someone who knew the secret of the Sorting Ceremony.

In fact, she had guessed correctly.

"As long as I don't end up in Slytherin, I can accept anything." Albert shrugged. He had no intention of revealing how the Sorting Ceremony worked. Watching the new students' nervous faces was actually quite amusing.

Alright, Albert admitted that he did have something of a twisted sense of humor.