Unusual Dumbledore

"The Basilisk is no longer here."

Li Wei got to his feet and began assessing the situation.

He quickly found the target—on a torch bracket, a cat hung suspended there, its body stiff as a plank, its eyes wide open and staring blankly ahead.

"It's Mrs. Norris!"

Harry's voice rang out, and everyone's expression turned grim.

Just as Li Wei was about to do something, a low rumble of noise suddenly rose, like distant thunder.

He frowned slightly, stepped past the two assistants, and moved to the very front of Harry and the others.

Soon, the sound of hundreds of feet climbing the stairs came from both ends of the corridor.

First came the professors at the front, followed by a crowd of unruly troublemakers.

When those at the front saw the hanging cat, the lively chatter abruptly vanished. The students fell silent at once and crowded forward to witness the horrifying sight.

Li Wei stood alone in the middle of the corridor, facing the professors and students by himself, keeping the cold that seemed capable of draining every bit of heat from their bodies at bay.

"Professor Li Wei." Deputy Headmistress Professor McGonagall stepped to the front of everyone. "Can you explain what happened here earlier?"

Her expression was tense, and there was a trace of hostility in her tone—no one could harm her students under her watch.

Seeing Professor McGonagall's frighteningly stern expression, Harry and the others quietly swallowed, inwardly grateful that Li Wei had stepped forward at this moment.

Before one wave had settled, another rose.

Before Li Wei could speak, Filch's voice sounded again. He had probably been drawn here by the students' earlier noise.

"What happened here? What happened?"

He shouldered his way through the crowd. Then he saw Mrs. Norris. He staggered back several steps and grabbed his face in horror.

But the person standing before him was Li Wei. Even though he was furious to the extreme, Filch, who still needed something from Li Wei, did not dare vent even the slightest resentment on him.

"Calm down, Filch. She isn't dead. She's only been petrified. I guarantee she'll return to normal, all right?"

"You mean she isn't dead—but she's already like this—how can she be saved?"

Filch looked utterly terrified.

"A potion made from Mandrakes will do it. So calm down. We still need to find the culprit, don't we?"

Li Wei patted Filch on the shoulder to reassure him.

During this time, hushed discussion continued among the watching students, while Professor McGonagall and the other professors watched him with uncertain, suspicious eyes.

Li Wei frowned slightly and decided to take control of the situation directly—he disliked the current chaos and would not allow it to keep escalating.

"Prefects of every House, take your students back to their dormitories. Fulfill your responsibilities, immediately!"

"Yes, Professor!"

With Percy taking the lead, the prefects gradually came to their senses and began urging the students to leave under Li Wei's orders.

"Enemies of the Heir, beware! You'll be next! Mudblood—"

Draco Malfoy, mixed in among the crowd, shouted the slogan. His face was full of smug satisfaction, as though he took pride in knowing certain hidden secrets.

With all the professors present, he did not finish the word, but Professor McGonagall's expression still darkened further.

The students left amid the commotion. At that moment, Dumbledore finally arrived at the scene, fashionably late.

He stood between Li Wei and the professors, waved his wand, and removed Mrs. Norris from the torch bracket.

Li Wei watched his actions impassively without saying a word.

"Professor—"

Hermione and the other two peered out from behind Li Wei, looking at him uneasily.

They did not understand why this had happened—what it truly meant.

"You should go back as well. Take the other way."

Li Wei instructed them to leave, his gaze still fixed on Dumbledore.

He could not quite figure out what the old man was thinking.

"Dumbledore—you're here—those naughty students actually did this to my—"

Filch had originally calmed down, but after Dumbledore appeared, he could not help beginning his accusations again.

"Students could not have done this," Dumbledore firmly rejected his guess. "This requires the most advanced Dark Arts—"

His gaze turned toward Li Wei, deliberately ignoring Harry and the others as they left behind him.

His eyes looked perfectly calm, and the gaze he cast over held no emotional meaning, but anyone who saw his eyes would understand.

Cooperate with me for now. I will definitely give you an explanation afterward.

Li Wei read Dumbledore's meaning in his eyes, but he still did not understand what exactly he intended to do.

"Allow me to say something, Headmaster."

Snape suddenly emerged from the shadows.

"There is clearly something unusual about this matter. We need to judge it carefully."

"I'm glad you can be so reasonable, Severus."

Dumbledore gave Snape a somewhat strange look—he had thought Snape would seize the opportunity to attack Li Wei.

"Everyone, I will investigate what happened here thoroughly. Please return for now."

Dumbledore dismissed the professors.

Professor McGonagall left with a frown. It seemed she was extremely dissatisfied that Hogwarts' safety had been threatened.

But because she trusted Dumbledore, she ultimately left.

For a moment, only Li Wei and Dumbledore remained in the dim corridor.

"I thought you would handle this matter properly, Headmaster."

Li Wei looked at Dumbledore and struck first.

Just from Professor McGonagall and Snape's reactions, he knew that the two of them had clearly misunderstood something.

That fit the speculation as well. After all, he had originally been brought in as a professor because of his research into the Dark Arts.

Continuing that research at the school, accidentally causing a magical accident, or cruelly using a pet cat for an experiment—everything seemed perfectly plausible.

But that did not mean Li Wei enjoyed being blamed for nothing.

"I'm sorry, Li Wei. I bear the primary responsibility for things developing into this."

Dumbledore's attitude was extremely sincere from the start.

"I hope you can give this old man some time, so that I can explain the entire matter clearly, little by little."

He extended a hand, indicating that Li Wei should speak elsewhere.

"Of course. You also need to explain things clearly to Professor McGonagall. I don't want her to misunderstand me."

"I promise you, I will."

The two made their way to the gargoyle statue before the spiral staircase.

"Lemon Drops."

Dumbledore spoke the password and led Li Wei upward.

"This is the current password. I probably won't change it for quite some time. If anything urgent comes up, you can come directly to the Headmaster's office next time."

He was probably hinting at the letter Li Wei had sent him by owl last time.

But Li Wei had no mind to care about such things now.