The End of March

The next morning, in the Great Hall Hogwarts, it was breakfast time.

The restaurant remained as noisy as ever until someone noticed the absence of a familiar yet annoying face from the professors' table— Professor Umbridge. Her striking pink coat was nowhere to be seen, and whispers quickly spread among the four long tables.

Soon, Professor McGonagall stood up and coughed lightly, drawing everyone's attention. Her expression remained as serious as ever, but her tone carried a rare hint of ease:

"Ladies and gentlemen, I have an announcement to make. Headmistress Umbridge will be going to St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries for a period of time due to illness. During her stay, I, Vice Headmistress Professor McGonagall Minerva McGonagall, will temporarily assume the duties of the school."

The moment the words left her lips, a deafening roar of cheers erupted in the Great Hall. Students put down their forks, banged on the tables, and some even stood up and whistled. The entire hall was filled with a liberating jubilation. Everyone was relieved to finally be free from the oppressive rule of that old witch.

However, amidst this joy, a small group of people had stiff expressions and gloomy looks.

That is -- McLaggen and his Justice Inquisitorial Squad.

Losing Umbridge's support means the Justice Inquisitorial Squad have lost their source of power. During Umbridge's time as headmaster, they've offended so many people within the school, and now they've become the target of everyone's anger. It's likely that things won't be easy for them in the days to come.

Meanwhile, news spread that Principal Umbridge had been injured while attempting to arrest Hagrid the previous night.

Harry, Harry, and Memphis become deeply worried after learning that Hagrid has been sent to Azkaban.

Azkaban is no good place; most people who go in are likely to go insane. This is only because they don't know that Sturgis died in prison; otherwise, their mood would probably be even heavier.

That said, after the defeat of the Dumbledore's Army, Harry, Harry, and Dumbledore were all depressed for a period of time.

Hermione, in particular, finally gave up on proving herself to Skylar. This time, she truly understood—her principles and her pride had caused her to miss too many opportunities.

More than once, in the dead of night, she recalled how, in her first year of high school, she was rescued from a terrifying Troll by the boy she admired... how she sought his help during Buckbeak's impending execution... and the boy's strong figure standing in front of her when she was being bullied by McLaggen...

Originally... all of this could have been different.

I was too stubborn...

Meanwhile, the Sleeping Dragon Society resumed full-speed operations once again.

All members refocused on combat training, cultivating magical plants, brewing Potions, conducting magical research, and gathering intelligence.

Before the end of the previous school year, Sarf and Daphne had a disagreement about the practical training of the Dragon Head wizards— Sarf believed that the wizards should undergo bloody combat exercises, while Daphne thought it was too early and would easily attract Dumbledore's attention.

Now that Dumbledore is gone, and Umbridge is gone, there's basically no one left in Hogwarts who can keep Skylar in check.

With Skylar's approval, the young wizards of the Dragon Head Group, led by Daphne and Sarf, ventured deep into the Forbidden Forest for more rigorous wilderness combat training.

As a result, the overall strength of the Dragon Head Group experienced another surge, growing rapidly at an astonishing pace.

In addition, the Forbidden Forest contains abundant natural resources, and wild treasures are everywhere. Without Hagrid, the gamekeeper, hindering them, Astoria's Dragon Tail team was not to be outdone and began to frequently organize personnel to enter the Forbidden Forest to mine various precious Potions ingredients.

(Note: The position of Hunting Grounds Keeper is currently vacant because McGonagall is only acting as Headmaster. Considering that Dumbledore will reinstate Hagrid upon his return, there is no need to go to the trouble of hiring a replacement.)

This would not only speed up the Dragon Tail Group's Potions -making efficiency but also save Skylar a considerable amount of money. After all, the Sleeping Dragon Society's maintenance of the Dragon Soul Group's magical research and the Dragon Eye Group's intelligence network consumed a staggering amount of funds, so saving Skylar some money would be very beneficial for the organization's long-term development.

Soon, the gloomy March ended, and Hogwarts entered the stormy month of April.

Harry Potter's life seems to have turned into a long string of troubles and annoyances once again.

During this time, the teachers and Hermione kept reminding them that the OWL exams were getting closer. The fifth-year students were under pressure to varying degrees. Hannah Abbott suddenly burst into tears in Herbology, sobbing that she was too stupid to take the exam and wanted to leave school right then and there. As a result, she was the first to receive Calming Draught from Madam Pomfrey.

The Justice Inquisitorial Squad was in an even worse situation.

Almost all members suffered various forms of retaliation from the students, both overt and covert.

Today, Stebbins' breakfast was laced with some unknown Potions, leaving him stuck in the toilet all day; tomorrow, Fawcett will grow a pair of ugly sheep horns on his head; and then Roger Davis will be sent to the Hospital Wing with a terrible skin disease that makes him look like he's covered in corn chips.

McLaggen suffered the most.

The Weasley brothers had been working as McLaggen's obedient lackeys for money, enduring humiliation and loss of dignity. But they had finally saved enough and had had enough. They decided to teach McLaggen a lesson he would never forget.

After knocking McLaggen unconscious in a secluded corner, they tied him up, stuffed his entire head into a filthy toilet, and then cast Permanent Sticking Charm on him so he couldn't pull his head out of the toilet on his own.

When McLaggen was found, it was three days later. His appearance was so miserable that even those who hated him the most felt a pang of pity.

Before the end of April, the Dragon Soul Team's "Black Bowtruckle" research project finally succeeded and came to an end.

After Cho Chang handed over the data and results to Luna, the leader of the Dragon Wing Group responsible for cultivating Fantastic Beasts, Luna immediately began to breed and propagate the Black Bowtruckle, hoping to achieve mass production before the end of the semester.

Once mass production is successful, all core members of the Sleeping Dragon Society will be able to obtain one as their pet. The Black Bowtruckle possesses extremely magical perception abilities, even capable of detecting Skylar's invisibility magic. Having it will greatly enhance the stealth and personal safety of the core members of the Sleeping Dragon Society.

["Black Bowtruckle" cultivation technique obtained!]

Meanwhile, in the Pure-blood families of Great Britain, after months of open and covert struggles, the power struggle between the Fawley Family and Slughorn Family finally came to an end.

Unsurprisingly, the final outcome was that Skylar's two servants, Claude Fawley and Squall Slughorn, successfully seized power and ascended to the position of Patriarchal position as victors.

The two former family heads were stripped of their status and expelled from the family in a sorry state. It is said that the Pure-Blood Traitor Faction poured considerable resources into them, but ultimately gained nothing, a classic case of trying to steal a chicken and losing the rice instead.

Claude and Squall, these two illegitimate sons of humble origins, also had their fortunes change, transforming from crows to Phoenix into powerful figures who controlled the family.

They knew that all of this was not due to their own talent or ability, but simply because they had followed the right master. Everything they had received was Skylar. Therefore, they were naturally grateful to Skylar and their loyalty grew even stronger.

On the very day the two ascended to the Patriarchal position, the Fawley Family and the Slughorn Family, under their leadership, swore allegiance to Skylar and became new vassal families under Skylar command.

[The "high-ranking vassal family" Fawley Family has been acquired!]

[The "High-Ranking Vassal Family" Slughorn Family Acquired!]

In the dormitory, the House Elf Dobby immediately after reporting, and the dormitory fell silent again. In the dim light, Skylar, whose face was half-hidden in shadow, stared at the spot where Dobby had Dobby disappeared, lost in thought for a long time.

With the situation having progressed to this point, he had essentially exhausted all the perks he could have from the original Fawley. And with two months left in the semester until the end of the academic year, aside from preparing for the O.W.L. Examination, there wasn't anything else of importance to do.

"Next..." Skylar rested his chin on his hand, his deep gaze flickering as if he were contemplating a crucial decision, "... we're just waiting for the Battle of the Department of Mysteries... should we find House Elf from Gryffindor dorms to keep an eye on Harry...?"