A Certain Scientific Harry Potter 29

Snape ground his teeth audibly, glared at Harry with intense hatred, and then drifted out of the headmaster's office like a ghost.

See? Snape's heart was still sealed within the scars of the past.

"Harry, I believe I have reached a decision, and I assume the other professors share the same sentiment." After Snape left, Dumbledore stepped forward and patted Harry on the shoulder. "Your behavior in the fight was undoubtedly wrong, and you deserve to be punished accordingly."

Nice~

Harry felt as if he could see the goddess of victory beckoning to him.

"But you did not let down Professor Flitwick's expectations, nor did you let down mine!" However, Dumbledore's tone shifted abruptly. "Just now, you proved to me and all the professors the responsibility and justice you uphold! So please rest assured, Hogwarts will be your backing, and I, along with all the professors, will certainly do our utmost to help you deal with the accountability from the pure-blood families!!"

"Wait... what did you say?!"

Looking at Dumbledore's kind yet cunning face, Harry felt his brain buzzing...

Had he actually been played by old Dumbledore?!

Without a doubt, Harry's second attempt to get expelled since the start of the term had ended in failure once again.

Dumbledore was truly a formidable figure; even setting aside his immense magical power, his deep-seated craftiness was something Harry found difficult to counter.

Soon enough, the results of Harry's punishment were announced, and as expected, it was another case of much thunder but little rain.

Because of the brawl, the Eagle, Snake, and Lion houses all suffered point deductions to varying degrees, and as the "prime culprit" who started it, Harry was assigned to replant the scorched lawn of the grounds with Filch.

Harry knew this was another trap set by Dumbledore, but he accepted the punishment readily.

He had indeed started the fire, and besides, if he refused, Filch would have to do the back-breaking labor all by himself.

Naturally, upon learning that Harry was being "punished," Hermione rushed over to help the moment her confinement was lifted... Harry had lost control of the situation because he was standing up for her, and she couldn't let him suffer the consequences alone.

Ron Weasley also came to help; upon hearing that Harry had lied about "forcibly stealing his wand" to clear his name, Ron felt he couldn't just stand on the sidelines.

In the end, even Neville, whose hand injury had just healed, showed up.

Neville had been kept in the school infirmary by Madam Hooch because he had broken his arm that day. When he found out that Harry had fought the Slytherin first-years, including Malfoy, on his behalf, he was so anxious he nearly cried.

Thus, he decisively joined the "volunteer punishment squad."

"It's all my fault... Harry, this is all my fault!" While planting the turf, Neville apologized to Harry incessantly. "If I hadn't been so clumsy, none of this would have happened..."

"It's not your fault at all; that bastard Malfoy just had a punchable face~" Harry shook his head, not wanting to continue the topic.

He was feeling quite gloomy now.

The fact that Hermione and the others got the news so quickly, right down to the exact timing of their confinement being lifted, meant Dumbledore had leaked it on purpose, just to give them a chance to get involved in Harry's labor.

Shouldering burdens together and suffering together was the best way to build mutual recognition. Dumbledore was pushing from behind, forcing Harry to forge bonds with students other than Hermione.

The more bonds that were established, the harder it would be for Harry to leave Hogwarts. The more people gathered around him, the more they would influence other students, leading to even more potential bonds...

It was a blatant open conspiracy, but for now, Harry had no choice but to follow the old man's pace.

In a corner of the grounds, the Malfoy trio, feeling emboldened again, were mocking Harry and his friends without restraint.

Of course, out of concern for their personal safety, the three who had all been hit by bricks dared not get too close to Harry.

Technically, the first fire in the chaotic brawl had been started by Crabbe, so he should have been helping with the turf as well, but because he was the first one Harry had knocked down with a brick, he had narrowly escaped punishment under the protection of school rules.

The guy was currently grinning mindlessly, his chubby face full of relief at having escaped punishment, without a shred of remorse.

However, Harry was in no mood to deal with those three right now. Even as Malfoy shouted from the sidelines that his father would definitely get Harry and Hermione expelled from Hogwarts and make Harry pay a heavy price, Harry just treated it like hot air.

Honestly, if that Mr. Lucius could actually pull it off, Harry would beat drums and gongs to express his gratitude... but frankly, that seemed highly unlikely~

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Chapter 53: How the First-Year God of War Was Forged

"So... Professor Snape, I have sufficient reason to suspect that you are using your position to settle a personal vendetta!"

On the day Lucius Malfoy gathered all the parents of the involved pure-blood families to demand an explanation at the school, Harry was in a hidden classroom, staring with dead fish eyes at Snape, who was guarding him.

Dumbledore would not let Harry meet with Lucius Malfoy and the other parents; that was a given.

On one hand, he wouldn't let Harry be berated by those parents; though the real reason was that Dumbledore wanted to prevent Harry from using the situation as an excuse to suddenly unleash an Obscurus and severely injure Lucius or someone else, thereby creating an even bigger incident.

But even so, having him send Snape to tail him was just too underhanded~

And this guy Snape had even used a Leg-Locker Curse to pin him to the chair; this was clearly petty retaliation!

"I am merely strictly executing Headmaster Dumbledore's orders," Snape said slowly from across the room. "Harry Granger's ability to cause trouble is far too great. On the day Lucius Malfoy and the other parents visit the school, it is imperative to ensure he does not come into contact with them. If necessary, I am authorized to restrict his movements directly!"

"So how exactly did you determine that it was necessary to restrict—mph! Mph!!"

Before Harry could finish, he found his mouth suddenly unresponsive, unable to make a sound.

The bat-like Snape knew he couldn't win an argument, so he had simply cast a Silencing Charm on him. I ** you, you @#¥%!

"Granger, you may struggle all you like, but it is merely a waste of effort."

Watching Harry struggle for a long time without being able to utter a word, Snape's perpetually gloomy mood cleared up for once.

Finally, he had a chance to discipline this sharp-tongued little brat; it felt great~

Lucius Malfoy and the other parents made a huge scene at the school, but thanks to the joint efforts of Dumbledore and the entire faculty, they ultimately couldn't achieve anything. They didn't even get to see Harry before they left Hogwarts in a huff.

Just like that, the opportunity Harry had worked so hard to find to cause trouble and get expelled ended in such a lackluster and anticlimactic fashion.

However, unlike Harry, who had been feeling quite depressed, this incident was a source of excitement for the vast majority of students at Hogwarts.

In truth, everyone had long suffered under the pure-blood fanatics of Slytherin House.

This group of extreme pure-blood proponents had been acting arrogant and domineering on campus for far too long, especially in recent years. Due to the blatant favoritism of a certain bat-like professor, Slytherin had suppressed the other three houses to the point of suffocation, whether in Quidditch matches or the race for the House Cup.

Now, Harry Granger had burst onto the scene.

Although he couldn't do much to help Ravenclaw win the House Cup, his combat power was off the charts. Being able to use thunderous methods to flatten nearly all the first-year boys of Slytherin in one go was absolutely a cause for public celebration!

Some busybodies even went as far as to give Harry a domineering title... the First-Year War God of Hogwarts!

Don't ask why—if you do, it's all the fault of the Weasley Brothers.

As for why it wasn't "Dueling Champion"... please, have you ever seen a wizard use a brick as a secondary weapon in a duel?

In short, Harry was now famous, and even those classmates who used to point fingers behind his back had started greeting him... though their attitudes were mostly very cautious. After all, anyone would worry about Harry pulling another brick out from his robes.

Regarding all this, while Harry wouldn't be so chuunibyou as to sigh, "So this is truly a world where the strong are respected," he had to admit that this was indeed reality.

And another thing he had to admit was that he had completely lost any chance of dropping out...

"Hmph, and they said they'd make Harry drop out, even threatening to send him to Azkaban. That Malfoy guy talks such a big game, he isn't even afraid of the sky falling on him!"

During dinner one day, when Ron saw the Malfoy trio walking away with their faces covered, a triumphant smile immediately appeared on his face.

After going through hardships together, the relationship between Ron, Neville, and the Granger siblings had grown much closer, and they began eating and chatting together more frequently.

Ron was quite happy to see Malfoy get humiliated, because in terms of family background, he and Malfoy were true arch-rivals.

Although the Weasley family was also pure-blood, they were particularly close to Muggles, and because there were so many children, Ron's life had always been quite frugal; one could even describe his family as poor.

In contrast, Malfoy was a rich young master born with a silver spoon in his mouth. He possessed a prominent family background, endless wealth, and a family network that spanned almost the entire pure-blood system.

The Malfoy family even had business dealings with the British Royal Family.

When he heard Ron complaining about this, Harry was indeed a bit surprised.

He felt that when he went home for the holidays, he should find an opportunity to probe the Crown Prince for information, at least to ensure that his rift with the Malfoy family wouldn't affect the royal business.

Of course, what Harry really wanted to confirm was the status of the Malfoy family in the eyes of the royal family.

Lucius Malfoy and Draco Malfoy, that father-son duo, might not let things go, and Harry had to plan ahead.

Besides, he hadn't intended to let things go either!

If there's a conflict between us, just come at me directly; what's the point of insulting Hermione?

And to dare say those kinds of things—did they really think a single brick would settle this?!

Malfoy and Crabbe, those two scoundrels, should be grateful that school rules protected them, allowing them to continue jumping around after the fact!

"But... Malfoy isn't just bragging. The things he and the students of Slytherin House have been spreading lately... are really nasty." Neville, sitting at the same table, looked at the Granger siblings apologetically. "I actually wanted to refute them, but I don't have a tongue as sharp as Harry's..."

"What are those Slytherin guys saying now..."

Clang!

Just as Ron was asking in confusion, Hermione suddenly dropped the fork in her hand.

"What else could they say? That group of bastards led by Malfoy, plus that gossip-monger Pansy Parkinson—those boring Slytherins are just full and have nothing better to do!"

Mentioning this, even the food in front of her couldn't suppress Hermione's anger.

The trio headed by Malfoy, along with Pansy Parkinson, who also hailed from Slytherin, didn't dare provoke Harry and Hermione directly, so they began fanning the flames and spreading "gossip" about the Granger siblings everywhere.

"They're saying that Harry and I are flirting every day and that our private relationship is abnormal! Hmph, they even make it sound so convincing, as if we've been sleeping in the same bed since we were kids..."

"Hey, hey, that's enough," Harry rolled his eyes helplessly and tapped the edge of Hermione's plate with his spoon.

This girl... didn't she see there were outsiders here? Why was she blurting out such nonsense?

Chapter 54: Rumors Can Cause Harm

To be honest, Harry understood why Hermione was suddenly so angry.

Being falsely rumored to be in a relationship when there was nothing between them was quite common in Harry's student days in his previous life, but as one of the parties involved, he couldn't tell Hermione to "just let it go" while standing on the sidelines.

However, those guys in Slytherin were indeed boring and despicable. Regardless, maliciously fabricating the relationship between an adopted brother and sister (Hermione: It's sister and brother!) could not be brushed off as a simple joke.

And they call themselves a pure-blood family? In Harry's view, there wasn't a single part of them that deserved the word "pure."

"Hmph, they are the ones who are excessive! It's just that there's no combat content in first-year Defense Against the Dark Arts, otherwise, I would definitely beat that gossip-monger Parkinson into a real Parkinson's patient!" Stopped by Harry from venting further, Hermione couldn't help but put her hands on her hips, fuming.

"Alright, alright, let's not talk about those unhappy things while we're eating, okay?" Harry comforted the bristling little lioness beside him helplessly. "Besides, our Defense Against the Dark Arts class is with Gryffindor; even if there were combat content, you wouldn't be paired against Pansy anyway."

Harry knew Hermione wasn't happy, but he didn't have a good solution for it. After all, he couldn't beat up Pansy and those girls the way he beat up Malfoy.

"With Professor Quirrell's weak-willed appearance, I doubt there will be any combat content in Defense Against the Dark Arts. And even if there were, Neville and I would definitely stay far away from you!" Ron said timidly from the side.

Just kidding, he had witnessed Hermione's combat power firsthand after she lost her temper. If he had to face her in class, he'd probably be beaten to the ground in a single round.

Such a fierce woman—probably only Harry could handle her...

Thinking this, a lingering fear prompted Ron to change the subject.

"But I think there's some truth to their rumors, after all, you two are always together, and you even use the same wand."

Regarding the matter between Harry and Hermione, Ron "I have many siblings" Weasley felt that he was definitely the most qualified to speak on the subject.

His family had seven children in total, but there was only one girl, the youngest sister Ginny, who could be said to be the most precious treasure of the entire family.

However, even so, Ron felt that the protectiveness he and his brothers felt toward Ginny was absolutely not as intense as Harry's protectiveness toward Hermione.

And this situation worked both ways; the protectiveness that Hermione, as the "older sister," felt toward Harry was equally extraordinary!

Just think about it: Hermione and Harry were an adopted pair of siblings. Although they shared the same surname and lived under the same roof, they ultimately had no blood relation.

Therefore, their overly intimate behavior was indeed very easy for people to misunderstand...

"I'm done eating!"

Ron had actually meant well by reminding Harry and Hermione to be mindful of their boundaries, but he never expected to inexplicably anger Hermione, causing her to slam down her plate and walk away, not even finishing her meal.

"Wait... did I say something wrong just now?" Watching Hermione's furious retreating figure, Ron was left completely bewildered.

"Weasley, you didn't actually say anything wrong... but if you truly want to be friends with me, please refrain from making any more presumptuous comments about me and Hermione in the future."

After sternly admonishing Ron, Harry hurriedly tidied up his cutlery and chased after Hermione.

Ron's words were indeed not wrong at all, but if Harry were in Hermione's shoes, he would have been just as angry to be judged like that.

Regarding the rumors spread by Malfoy and the others, Hermione had initially held the attitude that a clear conscience needed no defense; otherwise, she wouldn't have openly complained about that group from Slytherin House in front of Harry and the others.

But when she realized through Ron's attitude that people outside of Slytherin House were also starting to view the matter differently, her temper naturally became impossible to control.

Because this meant that these rumors were gaining more and more traction in the school and were truly beginning to interfere with the pure sibling relationship she shared with Harry!