Consumed by the Lust for Power

The Prefect' meeting ended an hour later.

The Prefect dispersed.

Skylar, Daphne, Morrie, and Susan went to the House of Malfoy's private box, only to find Draco, Goyle, Crabbe, and Pansy already inside.

Draco's skin was much darker than before, clearly a result of long hours of outdoor training.

It is said that during the summer vacation, he participated in professional-level Quidditch training with Puddlemere United. For safety, he even drank Polyjuice Potion beforehand to impersonate someone else. Judging from the confident look in his eyes, that experience undoubtedly benefited him greatly.

Pansy was not to be outdone. During her vacation, she joined the Holyhead Harpies for training and noticeably grew taller. Her once somewhat spoiled demeanor now exuded maturity and confidence.

She stood there, radiant, and her Quidditch tactical analysis was more precise than ever before.

As for Goyle and Crabbe, they still looked as Dazed as ever, as if the holiday hadn't brought them much of a change.

The only noticeable difference was that they were a bit stronger than before, but their blank expressions still made one wonder if they had spent the entire summer playing with the stone blocks.

The train smoothly pulled toward Hogwarts. Skylar leaned back in his seat, his long fingers casually fiddling with the rim of his teacup, his expression languid and indifferent.

Morrie and Daphne sat on either side of him, while Susan leaned quietly against the window, seemingly listening to the rhythm of the wheels hitting the rails.

Draco and Pansy across from them were enthusiastically discussing the Prefect of other houses, making sharp comments off the cuff. Goyle and Crabbe occasionally nodded in agreement, though they still looked somewhat Dazed.

"So..." Draco flipped through the list of Prefect in his hand, then looked up with a sneer, "The Prefect of Gryffindor are Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger?"

He deliberately dragged out his words, then chuckled lightly, tossed the list onto the table, leaned back lazily in his chair, and said with utter contempt, "Potter actually lost to a penniless wretch? Unbelievable."

"What a disastrous combination." Pansy chuckled, leaning back lazily in his chair. "A filthy Mudblood and a worthless pauper? I bet Weasley's Prefect Badge is the most valuable thing he's ever worn."

"Pansy," Draco said sternly, "Never use that word in front of my brother and me again. Refined speech is an essential quality for any nobleman."

Pansy was slightly taken aback, clearly not expecting Draco to reprimand her in public. Her smile froze on her lips, but she quickly composed herself, straightened her posture, lowered her head, and pursed her lips in annoyance.

"I'm sorry, Draco." Her tone was less harsh than usual, more submissive and introspective. "I spoke too casually; I won't do it again."

She slightly raised her eyes, her gaze carrying a hint of ingratiation, and her tone softened considerably. "You're right, nobility requires not only bloodline but also manners. I'll be mindful of my words."

It seems that Draco, having ventured out into the world, has begun to mature. Although Skylar's face remained impassive, he was genuinely pleased with Draco's growth.

"Speaking of Weasley, I wonder if he sleeps with that book, 'How to Gain Power as a Prefect,' every night?" Morrie asked casually, a hint of sarcasm in his voice.

"Maybe she'll even set up a little podium in her dorm room and practice her speech in front of Granger," Daphne added casually, though a slight smile played on her lips, clearly finding the image rather comical.

"It's amazing that Gryffindor could even choose Granger," Susan remarked, unusually calmly. "If it were just Weasley, I'd suspect their Prefect was chosen by Troll."

"Oh, and who knows, he might even try to get noticed by randomly deducting points all over school like his Percy Weasley," Pansy shrugged. "The Gryffindor students will definitely hate him then."

Skylar listened quietly to the jeers, and only after the discussion of Gryffindor did he casually ask, "What about the Hufflepuff Prefect? What do you all think?"

"Ernie Macmillan," Draco muttered, "An obnoxious conceited fellow who always thinks he's the Savior's best friend and wants everyone to know how important he is."

"I remember him as a Pure-blood," Morrie said thoughtfully, "But I've heard he particularly idolizes Dumbledore?"

"Yes, although the Macmillan Family are Pure-Blood Neutral Faction, they have always been very supportive of Dumbledore, and Ernie is no exception. Moreover, he likes to exaggerate his words." Daphne nodded, "He almost claims to be a full member of the Order of the Phoenix."

"That's Hufflepuff's level," Pansy shook her head dismissively. "Their Prefect don't sound much better Gryffindor."

However, amidst the dismissive jeers of the crowd, Skylar gave a soft hum and said calmly, "Don't underestimate the Macmillan Family."

Everyone was taken aback, and all eyes turned to him.

Skylar's gaze lowered slightly, his fingers still rhythmically tapping the table as he spoke unhurriedly, "The Macmillan Family is one of the Sacred Twenty-Eight. Although their power has seemingly declined, that's because they've chosen to operate with greater discretion. In my opinion, among the Pure-Blood Neutral Faction, the Macmillan Family should still be considered a top-tier force."

Key representatives of the Pure-Blood Neutral Faction include Greengrass, Crouch, Macmillan, Abbott, and others.

As is well known, the Crouch Family practically defunct because of a disloyal descendant (unless Barty Crouch Sr. Elder has another child later in life), and the Abbott Family is already Half-blood by Hannah Abbott's generation. Therefore, only the Greengrass and Macmillan families truly retain their bloodline and power, followed by the second tier of Flint, Bulstrode, Fawley, Slughorn, and Ollivander.

He paused, then chuckled softly. "As for him personally, his personality might be a bit flamboyant, but his abilities are quite impressive. As far as I know, in another Potions class, he has the best grades of everyone."

Although Skylar wasn't in that class, he knew from reading the original story that Ernie was the only one in Hufflepuff who had successfully entered the Potions Advanced Class.

Morrie and Susan were in that Potions class, and they nodded immediately, acknowledging Ernie's skill in Potions.

Pansy pursed her lips, clearly disagreeing with Skylar's opinion, but did not refute it.

"And what about Ravenclaw?" Skylar continued, his tone light, as if it were just a casual remark.

"Anthony Goldstein." Draco rolled his eyes. "Another annoying guy, always acting all high and mighty. If you ask me, he's a classic example of someone who's all talk and no action, and has an inflated ego."

"Goldstein, they must be from a Half-blood family," Daphne said.

"Yes, she's Half-blood," Pansy shrugged casually, "But her ancestors included several famous people."

"That's in line with Ravenclaw's tradition," Susan said casually. "They've always liked to use a little bit of history to prove their superiority."

Skylar narrowed his eyes slightly and said, "You'd better not underestimate the House of Goldstein."

Draco raised an eyebrow, looking at him with a hint of confusion.

Skylar chuckled softly, his gaze lowering slightly. "Don't forget, at the beginning of this century, their family produced Queenie Goldstein Goldstein —a natural-born Legilimens."

There was a brief moment of silence in the lounge.

"Legilimens?" Morrie frowned. "You mean—"

"She can read other people's minds directly," Skylar said casually. "That's not an ability everyone possesses."

Pansy chuckled, crossed her arms, and leaned back on the sofa. "But Anthony Goldstein isn't Legilimens."

"Of course not," Skylar smiled slightly, his tone relaxed, "But a special power flows in his blood, perhaps granting him talents we are unaware of... If you simply consider him an ordinary Ravenclaw Prefect, you are being far too naive."

Daphne chuckled softly, casually stroking her blond hair. "In fact, he's not as simple as he seems."

Skylar raised an eyebrow, signaling her to continue.

Daphne said casually, "At today's Prefect meeting, I noticed that he seemed to be very close to Rolf Scamander, the sixth-year Prefect of Hufflepuff. I suspect that the two of them are in cahoots."

"That's not surprising," Skylar said in a deep voice. "Don't forget, the wife of the famous Magizoologist Newton Scamander was from the House of Goldstein. The two families have a very deep connection, it's just unknown to outsiders."

Speaking of this, Skylar also had to take it to heart.

He hadn't forgotten the fear he'd seen in Rolf Scamander's eyes last semester; moreover, according to his intelligence, the Order of the Phoenix had re-enlisted its original members, including members from both the Scamander and Goldstein families.

He had a premonition that the two families' emergence at Dumbledore's invitation was not as simple as it seemed on the surface, and that there must be other motives behind it.

"How ridiculous." Draco, oblivious to this, simply scoffed. "No matter how much these people pretend, they can't change the fact that they're just pawns on a chessboard."

The same topic played out in Harry's box.

"I'm starving!" Ron yelled as he walked in, shoving the Pigwidgeon next to Hedwig, grabbing a Chocolate Frog from Harry's hand, and plopping down. He tore open the wrapper, bit off the frog's head, then slumped back in his chair, closing his eyes as if the morning had exhausted him.

"That's right, each house has two Prefect in the fifth year," Hermione began, her tone sounding rather unpleasant, "One male and one female."

"Guess who the Slytherin Prefect is?" Ron said mockingly, his eyes still closed.

"Skylar Malfoy." Harry blurted out almost without thinking, a vague sense of Grim creeping into his heart.

"That's right." Ron sighed, angrily stuffing the rest of the Chocolate Frog into his mouth, then tore off another piece, his face as ugly as if he had eaten Cauldron Cake.

Hermione pursed her lips, seemingly wanting to say something, but ultimately couldn't hold back and cautiously began, "Actually... Skylar's performance at the Prefect council was quite good. Compared to—" She paused, choosing her words carefully, "... compared to Percy's usual condescending attitude, he was at least more convincing."

Ron opened his eyes, staring at Hermione with disbelief. "You're taking his side?"

Harry frowned as well. "Hermione, have you forgotten what he did before?"

"I haven't forgotten," Hermione quickly defended herself, her face slightly flushed. "I mean... we can't deny he's excellent, can we? He's the Triwizard Tournament champion, the Potions Championship champion, and even—"

"Even doing well in Wizengamot?" Ron sneered. "Hermione, he's Malfoy! He's related to Lucius Malfoy! Do you really think he'd side with us?"

Hermione's lips pressed into a straight line, seemingly very dissatisfied with Ron's stereotypes, but knowing that arguing was useless, she could only angrily shut her mouth.

Seeing that Hermione remained silent, Ron snorted, then muttered to himself with a gloomy expression, "But it doesn't matter, it's my turn now."

"What do you mean?" Harry looked at him in confusion.

Ron raised his chin, a strange glint in his eyes. "This time, I'm going to make good use of my Prefect authority... and teach those Slytherin guys a lesson."

Hermione glared at him. "Ron! You can't abuse your power!"

"How is that an abuse?" Ron shrugged, a hint of excitement in his voice. "Prefect have the right to deduct points from students who break the rules, right? We should patrol the hallways from time to time—" He glanced at Harry and Neville, lowering his voice, "If someone's doing something wrong, we can punish them. I really want to catch Crabbe and Goyle doing something wrong right now..."

Hermione glared at Ron, but Ron nonchalantly chewed on his Chocolate Frog, clearly having made up his mind.

Harry didn't join the argument; he pretended to look out the window, but a slight smile unconsciously crept onto his lips. Weren't Ron's thoughts the same as his own?

If he could use his authority Prefect to severely punish the Slytherin, even just a small punishment, it would make him feel much better. Just thinking about Draco's arrogant face and Skylar's perpetually carefree demeanor, he couldn't help but hope to teach them a lesson.

He certainly wouldn't say it outright like Ron, but he also wouldn't stop Ron's actions—he might even secretly give him a push if given the chance.

The scene returns to Skylar.

Astoria, Luna, and Cho Chang hadn't shown up yet, Skylar frowned slightly, a sense of unease rising in his heart. Although they were unlikely to be in danger on the Hogwarts Express, they might still encounter some unexpected trouble.

Just as he was pondering whether he should go find the person himself, the door to the private room was pushed open, and Astoria strode in, her face not looking too good.

"Cho Chang is in trouble." She spoke calmly, but her eyes revealed worry.