Rumors Abound

For the time being, the five of them sat in the cramped compartment and introduced themselves to one another.

Ron looked at Kano strangely—not with the fear Neville had shown at first, but with the curiosity of someone trying to confirm something.

"Kano, are you related to our Weasley family?"

Harry looked at Ron in surprise. He still did not understand the tangled web of blood relations in the wizarding world and only felt that it was all too much of a coincidence.

Kano was surprised as well, because he had never mentioned his mother's identity, precisely because he feared bringing trouble to that family in the future.

But since it had been brought up, he had nothing to hide.

"That's right. My mother was Vivian, Mr. Arthur's cousin."

In fact, ever since Kano had appeared in Diagon Alley, his distinctive pale skin and handsome face had left a deep impression on many people.

The Black Family tradition was that anyone who was not pure-blood did not count as a family member, and now both his parents were dead. So when he appeared as the current head of the Black Family, the various pure-blood families began taking stock of their female relatives who had died young.

The most worked-up were fanatical supporters of pure-blood ideology like the Parkinson Family and the Macnair Family. Yet even after going through all their pure-blood relatives, they could not find anyone who might possibly be connected to him.

The Weasley family had been indifferent to such rumors, until Arthur remembered his cousin Vivian Weasley, whose body had never been found.

She had been pregnant at the time, but she had never revealed who the father of her child was.

But Kano's father was Regulus. If he had truly been a thoroughly evil Death Eater who was ultimately dealt with from within for his cowardice, then the Weasleys, who hated evil with a passion, could not possibly have had anything to do with him.

Arthur felt there had to be more to the matter, which in turn made him think of Sirius Black, who had been thrown into prison without trial.

For the sake of what little hair he had left, he finally decided not to speculate any further. He instructed Percy, the twins, and Ron that if they saw Kano, they should invite him to visit the Burrow when he had the time.

After Kano nodded in agreement, Harry and Ron took their leave. Hermione started chattering again about what she had learned in advance, and Kano sensed that she seemed somewhat anxious.

Perhaps it was the unease of arriving alone in the wizarding world at such a young age. The girl always wanted to appear composed.

In a few years, she would grow into a truly unflappable powerhouse, leading two useless men—Harry and Ron—across the world.

As they neared their stop, Neville suddenly asked, "Kano, which house are you going to join?"

"If I have a choice, I don't want to go to Slytherin." Kano spread his hands. "I admit that pure-bloods have a head start in magical studies, since they have family legacies."

"But this blind faith in bloodlines disgusts me. People aren't livestock, so why should we view ourselves like breeding pigs or cattle?"

Even in the Druid Order, there were no hereditary positions. Every post depended on one's knowledge.

Neville laughed so hard he nearly choked. The thought of the normally smug Malfoy family all turning into golden-haired breeding pigs made it hard for him to control himself.

"I don't oppose taking pride in your family's history, but a heroic father does not necessarily produce a heroic son. What is there to be proud of about living off your ancestors' achievements and idling your life away?"

Just look at Malfoy. Did he have any outstanding magical ability? His most practiced spell was probably, "I'm telling my father."

Hermione listened somewhat dazedly as the two wizarding-world natives discussed bloodline-related matters, somehow feeling that it had quite a lot to do with her.

Kano briefly explained the concepts of pure-bloods, half-bloods, and so-called "Mudbloods" to her.

Hermione's mouth fell slightly open. Paired with her two large front teeth, she looked so angry that she might bite someone.

"That's shameless! How can such a thing exist?"

"A lot of people are like that." Neville shook his head. "My memory is poor, and I'm not very clever either, so they laugh at me for being a Squib who can't cast magic."

"They've always been like this."

Seeing the sadness on Neville's face, Hermione seemed to ignite with fighting spirit.

"Then just become stronger than all of them. And if anyone calls you a Mudblood, beat them up hard." Kano comforted Hermione a little. "The headmaster and the others will stand on your side."

As night fell, the Hogwarts Express slowly came to a stop.

A large number of older students poured onto the small, dark platform and left with practiced ease.

The first-year students were still confusedly following the crowd when Hagrid's booming voice rang out in the distance.

"First-years! First-years, over here!"

Hagrid was even more conspicuous than the lantern in his hand, and the shivering children quickly gathered around him.

"All the new students here? Let's go."

Kano followed the crowd down a steep, narrow path and clearly sensed that this was a small opening in an enormous defensive ward.

After only a few steps, the view suddenly opened up. Before them lay a vast black lake, with an ancient castle glowing warmly on the opposite shore.

The lake was covered with little boats. Under Hagrid's direction, Kano, Hermione, and Neville climbed into one of them.

The young wizards had all their attention stolen by the fantastical sight, while Kano felt uneasy as they passed through layer after layer of magical defenses.

The little boats carried them through a tunnel and stopped at an underground dock. The young wizards silently climbed out, and ahead of them appeared a tall witch in a green cloak, her expression stern.

"First-year students, Professor McGonagall."

"Thank you, Hagrid."

McGonagall nodded and pushed open the doors behind her. The young wizards followed her through a vast entrance hall lined with torches and into a small room beside the Great Hall.

"Please straighten your appearance. In a moment, we will hold the Sorting Ceremony before the entire school."

She then briefly introduced the four houses and the rules for gaining and losing points in the House Cup.

"Get yourselves ready. I'll come and call you in shortly."

She turned and left to prepare the ceremony. The young wizards breathed a sigh of relief, then began eagerly discussing the so-called Sorting Ceremony.

"George and Fred said we'll have to fight dragons."

Ron trembled nervously, his red hair standing out even more starkly against his pale face.

Harry, meanwhile, worried that he would be expelled if he failed the Sorting.

Kano's eyes shifted as he leaned close to Neville. "Neville, do you think you might be sorted into Slytherin?"

Neville had always felt that he lacked courage and wasn't particularly clever, so Gryffindor and Ravenclaw were out of the question.

Slytherin valued bloodlines. Thinking about it that way, it really was possible.

At the thought of being bullied by those pure-blood families after entering Slytherin, Neville's face immediately drained of color as well. Kano had not expected him to be so frightened; this kid was simply too guileless.

He had only just offered a few words of comfort when McGonagall returned to the small room. Like ducks being herded along, the young wizards were driven to the center of the Great Hall.

A tattered pointed wizard's hat sat atop a four-legged stool.

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