Punishment

Hoffa could not bear to listen any longer.

Argeleia's wild fantasies were largely just her wanting to show off and grab attention; they were hardly rigorous. But they still made Hoffa's heart tighten. If anyone discovered that he had sneaked off to Hogsmeade, who knew what punishment awaited him?

He pushed away his tray and silently left the Great Hall.

Outside stood clusters of terrified upperclassmen.

Most of them had gone to Hogsmeade yesterday. The terrorist attack had brushed right past them, leaving them deeply shaken.

When Hoffa reached the entrance to the hall, a one-eyed old man carrying a bow was posting flyers on the school notice board.

He was Hogwarts' gamekeeper.

Hoffa stepped closer and looked.

Emergency Notice

In light of the large-scale disturbance that occurred in Hogsmeade yesterday, all students are strictly forbidden from entering or leaving Hogsmeade for the remainder of this term. Students who went to Hogsmeade yesterday must report to the Transfiguration classroom on the fifth-floor corridor at three o'clock this afternoon for a security inspection.

Additionally: From September 23 to September 30, school staff will travel to Hogsmeade to assist the Ministry of Magic's Aurors with search and security operations. All classes and Quidditch matches scheduled for this week are cancelled.

—Armando Dippet

After reading the notice twice, Hoffa felt a heavy weight in his heart. He came from a time of peace. In his previous life, the closest he had ever come to war was watching exaggerated anti-Japanese war dramas on television.

But now, the shadow of war hung directly above his head. Hearing about a terrorist incident and actually taking part in one were two entirely different things.

Yinduo remained silent in his arms.

Hoffa said quietly, "Two people died because of you, and more than forty were injured."

"Shut up!" Yinduo snapped. "This is war, not ordinary times. All I can do is do my own job well!"

Hoffa pressed his lips together and said nothing. It did not make him feel any better.

Decisive in killing?

Cold and heartless?

Putting profit above all else?

It seemed he did not possess any of those fine qualities. He was just an ordinary person.

After stewing in anger for a while, Yinduo frowned again. "Take me to your school's teleportation point. I need to determine what caused Hogwarts to stop providing aid."

He did not refuse Yinduo's request. When Hoffa left the castle, the sky was gray and a light rain had begun to fall, turning the lawn muddy.

The last time Hoffa had come to the grounds had been for flying class. Back then, many upperclassmen had gathered here.

Now, all the students were in the Great Hall discussing yesterday's attack in Hogsmeade. The grounds were completely deserted.

Blue runes remained engraved across the grass as always.

Yinduo jumped down from Hoffa's chest and quickly darted through the grass, inspecting the runes one by one.

Before long, Yinduo poked his head out of the lawn like a marmot and cried sharply, "Hoffa, come look!"

Hoffa hurried over.

Pointing at the ground with his tiny paw, Yinduo said angrily, "The teleportation point has been destroyed. Why is no one at Hogwarts doing anything about it?"

Hoffa's eyes widened. Beneath the torn turf, countless runes had been smashed to pieces. The ground was covered in scorch marks and signs of explosions.

Someone had deliberately wreaked havoc here.

He could not help crouching down to touch the damaged grass.

The traces were very fresh. Juice still seeped from the torn blades, which meant the damage had been done recently—less than a day ago.

Hoffa's expression turned grave. Without saying a word, he walked a few more steps to the spot where he had stood during his flying lesson.

The damage here had already been repaired. Though blue runes were once again firmly etched into the ground, the bare brown earth looked like scars, speaking silently of the violence it had suffered.

In less than a week, this place had been destroyed more than twice.

Yinduo jumped onto Hoffa's shoulder and said quietly, "These marks were left only a few hours ago. The magical residue has not faded yet. The culprit may not have gone far. We should go back."

Hoffa looked around. There was no sign of anyone else on the rain-shrouded grounds, only the dark silhouettes of the Forbidden Forest in the distance.

The sky hung oppressively low, and even the distant mountaintops were tightly shrouded by clouds. He felt as though he were trapped inside a gigantic eggshell.

Standing alone on the grounds, Hoffa felt oppressed by the emptiness, isolated as though cut off from the world.

A strange feeling lingered in the air, and it reminded him of something. What was it? It lay in some corner of his memory—something important that he had forgotten. But he could not recall it.

"Let's go."

He gave the damaged teleportation array one last look before returning to the castle.

Back in an empty classroom, Hoffa locked the door behind him and took Yinduo from his robes, setting him on the desk.

Yinduo immediately asked, "Who did this? Do you have any clues?"

Hoffa shook his head.

To be honest, the first person who had come to mind upon seeing those traces of destruction was the future Voldemort, Tom Marvolo Riddle.

After all, that guy had been the mastermind behind every Harry Potter story, and the violent spells at the scene could not have been cast without considerable magical skill.

But that suspicion quickly fell apart, because there was no motive.

Tom was currently keeping a low profile and winning favor wherever he went. Hoffa could not think of any reason why he would destroy the school's teleportation array.

But if it was not Tom, then who was it?

The array had been sabotaged several times in a row without anyone ever being caught. It had to be someone inside the school.

Suddenly, Hoffa thought of the flickering phantom he had seen in the moonlit corridor last night.

Had it destroyed the school's teleportation array?

While Hoffa was deep in thought, Yinduo paced restlessly back and forth across the desk.

After thinking for a long time, Hoffa asked, "So, what are you planning to do?"

Yinduo pulled a miserable face. "No, you have to take me to see Headmaster Dippet quickly."

The moment he said it, the air gradually turned cold.

Hoffa stared expressionlessly at Yinduo. His attitude was unmistakable.

He now felt that this goblin behaved like the scumbags from his previous life: I'm just having a meal. I'm just staying one night. I'm just rubbing against it; I'm not going in. Hoffa had already done everything he could, even risking Argeleia discovering him.

And now Yinduo still insisted on his original plan, asking Hoffa to take him to see Armando Dippet.

Did he not know Hoffa was only a first-year?

Even the future Dark Lord Tom Riddle was quietly building himself up in his first year. Asking Hoffa to stir up trouble now was practically asking him to die.

"You said that I only care about myself." Hoffa's voice was soft. "But I don't think you have considered things from my position, Yinduo. There is an old saying in the East: when poor, cultivate yourself; when successful, help the world. Right now, I'm poor."

Yinduo froze, then fell silent.

At last, he looked up awkwardly. "Can't you just take me to see Dippet? Just once. I guarantee he won't expel you."

"I don't understand why you can't go yourself."

Hoffa spoke coldly.

"Phew."

The black-and-white badger plopped down onto the chair and covered his face with his paws.

"I'm sorry. Something that happened before has made me afraid to meet Headmaster Dippet alone."

"What happened?"

Yinduo hesitated, then shook his head.

"Forget it. You should go back. I'll continue on my own from here. Thank you for your help, Hoffa."

This time, Hoffa did not hesitate. He nodded.

"Take care of yourself, Yinduo."

When he reached the door, he pulled open the classroom door.

But the moment it opened, Hoffa froze. Someone was blocking his way.

An old man well past fifty stood outside. His gray hair was meticulously combed, and he wore a teal-blue robe with his hands behind his back. It was his Head of House.

"Professor Gorshak?"

Hoffa gave a slight shudder and discreetly stepped in front of Yinduo. He had no idea why Gorshak was here. Shouldn't he have been in Hogsmeade, assisting the Ministry of Magic's Aurors with their patrols?

Gorshak wore a rigidly stern expression. "Bach, someone sent me a report claiming that you have been privately keeping an illegal creature. Is that true?"

Someone had reported him...?

The sudden blow caught Hoffa completely off guard. He felt as if he had been thrown into a toilet and was spiraling endlessly downward.

The situation had taken a sharp turn for the worse. He did not even know what to say.

Gorshak's gaze was extremely sharp. He tilted his head slightly.

"What is that behind you?"

"A badger, sir," Hoffa said hoarsely.

"I grew up on Heligoland, and I am very familiar with the scent of goblins. Bach, when did you bring a goblin in?"

It was like missing a step while walking downstairs. Hoffa's face went pale, and his breathing became uneven. The old man had sensed Yinduo before even seeing him. Did he have a dog's nose?

His plans had now been completely ruined. Would he be expelled for breaking school rules?

Yet the instant Yinduo saw Gorshak, he looked as though he had seen a mortal enemy, his eyes blazing with hatred.

With a thud, he leaped off the desk and reverted to his original form in an instant.

"What do you want, Adbe Gorshak?"

Yinduo stood in front of Hoffa. For some reason, Hoffa could hear hatred and murderous intent in his voice.

"Yinduo? What are you doing at Hogwarts?" Gorshak asked, somewhat surprised.

"What am I doing here?!" The goblin glared furiously at Gorshak. "I raised ten thousand Galleons and fulfilled my contract, but Hogwarts has repeatedly broken its agreement! For an entire month, not a single guard wizard was sent to the island!"

"Enough!"

Gorshak cut Yinduo off sternly.

"You do not need to say such things in front of a student."

"I said it. What are you going to do? Use that spell you're so good at on him...?"

"Shut up."

There was no change in Gorshak's gray eyes. He turned and said flatly, "Bach, you have been privately keeping an illegal creature. You have violated school rules. For the rest of this month, after classes end each day, you must report to the Hogwarts gamekeeper's camp and assist him with work in the Forbidden Forest. Do you understand?"

Yinduo shrieked, "How dare you?"

For some reason, he was so furious that he tried to grab Gorshak by the collar, only to be shoved away by the Head of House.

"I do not need you to teach me how to treat students, Yinduo."

Gorshak looked at Hoffa and said blandly, "Leave, Bach. Someone will deliver a letter to you tonight."

Hoffa remained expressionless as he turned to leave.

Yinduo's chest heaved violently with rage. He shouted, "Stop, Hoffa! You did nothing wrong. This old bastard has no right to punish you!"

Hoffa turned around. He looked at the furious Yinduo, then at the cold-faced Gorshak.

After a pause, Hoffa muttered in confusion, "I don't know who you are. I only picked up a badger."

Yinduo was dumbfounded.

"You're very clever, Bach," Head Gorshak said. But his next sentence made Hoffa's heart sink to the bottom of his stomach.

"But if you do it again, you will be expelled."

Hoffa nodded silently, opened the door, closed it behind him, and left.

Behind the door came Yinduo's furious roar. "If you want me to stay away from your school, then fix that damned teleportation array and send the wizards over!"