Time flew by, and this school year had come to an end in the blink of an eye. The summer holiday the students had been looking forward to was about to begin.
In the Great Hall, Dumbledore gave a summary of the school year.
"Now, we will proceed with the House Cup award ceremony. The specific scores for each House are as follows..."
"Slytherin House stands firmly at the top with a massive lead of 618 points..."
"Therefore, this year's House Cup goes to—Slytherin!"
Dumbledore clapped his hands, and the decorations overhead changed to Slytherin green and silver. A huge green banner appeared on the wall behind the dais, bearing the emblem of a Slytherin serpent.
Thunderous cheers instantly erupted from the Slytherin table.
Matthew had not been present for last year's end-of-term awards, but because he had successfully stopped Lanlock, the Goblin elder who had infiltrated the castle, Dumbledore had awarded the House Cup to Slytherin even in Matthew's absence from Hogwarts.
As a result, Slytherin had never lost the House Cup during Matthew's time at school.
After the applause subsided, Dumbledore smiled and said, "In addition..."
"Because Matthew discovered and dismantled the Death Eaters' plot in time, preventing a tragedy."
"I will once again award Matthew the Special Contribution to School Award!"
"Throughout the entire School History, Matthew is the only person to have received the Special Contribution to School Award twice!"
The Great Hall immediately burst into thunderous applause.
Dumbledore continued, "Furthermore, I have submitted Matthew's nomination for the Order of Merlin. I believe that before long, Matthew will become a recipient of the First-Class Order of Merlin as well!"
Some students could not help crying out, "First-Class Order of Merlin!"
The Order of Merlin was divided into three classes—first, second, and third—based on the scale of