The Sorting Ceremony!!

"The Sorting Ceremony will take place in front of the entire school in a few minutes."

Professor McGonagall's gaze swept over the disheveled young wizards.

"I suggest you tidy yourselves up and look presentable while you wait."

Harry nervously pressed his hand against his unruly, sticking-up hair.

Devero remained calm and composed.

Although he felt a bit lethargic because he couldn't load any entries at the moment, he had just practiced a bit of meditation.

He felt refreshed and clear-headed in an instant.

As expected, the Wisdom of the Sages was truly effective!

"I shall return when they are ready for you," Professor McGonagall said.

"Please remain quiet while you wait."

With that, she left the room.

As soon as the professor was gone, the young wizards became restless.

They began to chatter incessantly about the upcoming Sorting Ceremony.

Devero, however, was not worried in the slightest.

Unlike these children who knew nothing, he was a veteran Harry Potter fan who had read the seven original books and watched all eleven movies.

A trivial matter like the Sorting was of no concern to him.

Going to Ravenclaw, where he had always wanted to go, would be nice.

Ending up in Gryffindor and hanging out with the main cast would also be acceptable.

At the very worst, if he went to Hufflepuff, he could frequently get free snacks from the house-elves.

Slytherin, however, was the last place he wanted to go.

After all, that was the house of his master, Snape.

It gave him a bit of a psychological shadow.

Moreover, he had already offended Malfoy and his cronies on the train, who were all but guaranteed to be sorted into Slytherin.

He had no desire to spend the next seven years stuck with those guys.

If the Sorting Hat deemed him suitable, he could simply imitate Harry's behavior from the original story.

He would just silently chant, "Not Slytherin! Not Slytherin! Not Slytherin..."

He figured that would work out just fine.

The Sorting Hat surely respected personal choice.

Otherwise, how could the cowardly and despicable Wormtail have ended up in Gryffindor?

Plan successful!

Come to think of it, just after getting off the train, Devero had spotted Malfoy and his group, whom he had tossed into another carriage earlier.

They were all bruised and battered.

He reckoned that last throw of his had caused them quite a painful landing.

As they walked, they were constantly being mocked by the other children.

It had reduced Malfoy, who was usually the most arrogant of them all, to keeping his head down to hide his injuries from others.

Watching their performance, Devero felt absolutely delighted.

He didn't know why, but it seemed the fear of being expelled had vanished entirely.

Devero took advantage of this moment.

He began to practice the Zen meditation technique.

The young wizards nearby had no heart for talking or playing around.

Everyone was extremely nervous.

Hermione was muttering under her breath.

She was rapidly reciting the spells she had learned.

Devero calmed his mind and adjusted his breathing.

The Zen meditation technique could also be practiced while standing.

Of course, the effect was not as good as when sitting.

As he adjusted the rhythm of his breathing.

Devero relaxed his entire body.

Suddenly, he felt as if the world was drifting further and further away from him.

Hermione's recitation grew quieter and quieter.

Until it could no longer be heard at all.

At this moment, even if a ghost were to send many of the young wizards scurrying away in terror.

It would not be able to disturb Devero.

Devero instantly entered a state of meditative absorption.

It was as if only he and the flow of his own magic existed in the entire world.

There was only a hazy gray mist all around.

Devero felt a sense of extreme tranquility.

Gradually.

He felt as if his control over his magic had grown stronger.

The direct reason Devero had this sensation was.

The gray mist surrounding his body was slowly receding.

Devero could now see the young wizards slipping past him.

Trying to avoid the ghosts that had suddenly intruded.

But this way of seeing felt like a third-person perspective.

He could even see himself!

It was not seen through his own eyes.

Devero found it hard to describe what kind of feeling this was.

It was like waking up in the morning and looking in a mirror.

Only for the mirror to suddenly reflect a completely different angle.

Suddenly discovering that he looked so strange compared to before.

Devero tried to continue circulating his magic.

He wanted to see if he could push the gray mist back even further.

But after trying.

It had no effect.

He guessed that his current level of magic was not yet high enough.

So, Devero returned to his regular practice.

After circulating his magic twice more.

He withdrew from his meditation.

He slowly opened his eyes.

He felt clear-headed and sharp-sighted, his mood incomparably calm.

It was as if nothing that happened in a moment could disturb his peace of mind.

Just then, the ghosts finished greeting the first-years.

They passed through the walls and vanished.

"Goodness! Devero, you can't imagine what you just missed!"

Although Neville came from a wizarding family.

He was likely encountering ghosts for the first time as well.

He was trembling all over from fright.

Devero smiled faintly.

They would be seeing plenty of these ghosts from now on.

"It's alright, Neville. I heard we even have a class taught by a ghost."

At these words, Neville's face turned even paler.

"Now, form a single line."

Professor McGonagall had returned. She spoke to the first-years, "Follow me."

Following Professor McGonagall, the young wizards walked into the Great Hall in an orderly fashion.

The Great Hall was brightly lit.

Four long tables represented the four houses: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin.

Each table was set with exquisite tableware and silver candlesticks.

The candlelight shimmered with a soft glow upon the polished tabletops.

The older students were already seated, their gazes turning in unison toward the newcomers.

Naturally, most of those gazes were drawn to Harry.

He felt incredibly awkward and avoided acknowledging the stares.

The most striking feature was the ceiling of the Great Hall.

Even Devero was stunned by the fantastical and magnificent sight.

It had been enchanted to resemble a starry night sky.

Stars twinkled in the darkness, as if the entire universe had been brought into this hall.

The moon hung in the sky, casting a faint silver glow that illuminated every corner.

Professor McGonagall led the first-years down the long red carpet toward the front of the hall.

There, resting on a high stool, was a tattered hat—the Sorting Hat.

Just as expected, the Sorting Hat was patched, worn, and extremely dirty.

For a moment, Devero felt a bit reluctant to place it on his head.

Before long, the hat began to sing its eccentric Sorting Hat's Song.

It provided a brief introduction to the four houses and was met with a round of applause from the entire hall.

Hoping to be sorted into a house he was satisfied with later, Devero gave the hat the courtesy of his applause, just like everyone else.

Next came the inevitable Hannah segment.

As expected, she was sorted into Hufflepuff.

Devero was positioned somewhere in the middle of the line, behind Malfoy but ahead of Harry.

One by one, the young wizards went up and were sorted into their respective houses.

Malfoy had barely sat down.

He began whispering to the Slytherin prefect.

Every now and then, he would point at Devero.

He was likely lodging a complaint.

Finally.

"Devero Alexander!"

This surname was not very common in England.

It drew side-glances from several people.

Devero strode forward with a confident gait.

He walked up the steps with great panache and picked up the Sorting Hat.

Just as he was about to place it on his head.

The Sorting Hat suddenly let out a shrill shout!

"Slytherin!!!"