Returning the Sorting Hat

Just as the situation was getting a little tense, a hearty laugh rang out.

"Hahaha, Headmaster Dumbledore, it's been a long time!" Hafiz, dressed in Auror attire, led Lester quickly toward Dumbledore.

"Warden Hafiz," Dumbledore nodded in greeting, then looked at Hafiz and said, "It's quite a coincidence, really. When we met in Diagon Alley, the Ministry of Magic happened to send an envoy who took away our Hogwarts Sorting Hat."

"I don't know, is His Excellency Hafiz aware of this matter?"

Hafiz looked surprised. "Such a thing is true? I had no idea."

"But please rest assured Headmaster Dumbledore, I will definitely have the Ministry of Magic return your Sorting Hat."

Having said that, Hafiz ignored Professor McGonagall's angry glare and called out to Professor Dumbledore, "Headmaster, the corrupt Centaur tribe has now been eradicated by us, and we Auror must return to the Ministry of Magic to report!"

"Let's go!" Hafiz led the way, with Sang Biao and the others following closely behind.

Dumbledore remained silent, simply watching Hafiz and the others depart.

After Hafiz disappeared from sight, Dumbledore turned to Lester and said gently, "Child, can you tell us what happened today?"

Dumbledore would never believe the nonsense Hafiz and Sang Biao were spouting, and he could tell that Sang Biao Dumbledore definitely used the Polyjuice Potion.

It's highly suspicious that Auror would use Polyjuice Potion while enforcing the law.

In Dumbledore's mind, the identity of that Auror was now certain: it was Fudge's right-hand man, Umbridge.

Only this woman would take Polyjuice Potion upon entering Hogwarts.

Lester had no idea what Dumbledore was thinking, but he quickly told his lie anyway.

"Professor, it's like this, today I'm being punished by being confined in the Forbidden Forest..."

"The Centaur want to kill the Unicorn and offer their blood to a talking monster..."

"Malfoy and I accidentally witnessed everything... so, in the end, they were going to kill us. Harry can testify that he saw it too."

Harry nodded instinctively when Lester mentioned him. "Yes, Professor, those Centaur wanted to kill us!"

Dumbledore nodded. Lester and Harry's testimonies were exactly the same, but the Centaur gave a different version.

"I understand. You two go back and rest," Dumbledore said calmly, patting Harry and Lester on the shoulder.

Dumbledore trusted his students, especially Harry, more than the Centaur who were dependent on him.

Even so, Dumbledore would still report the Auror ' violent enforcement to the Ministry of Magic. After Fudge, Dumbledore wouldn't silently endure Fudge's disrespect without retaliating.

The next day, in the dining hall of Hogwarts.

"Have you heard? Yesterday, a large tree in the Forbidden Forest was struck by lightning, almost causing a fire."

"What lightning? That was caused by the Thunderbird's path; it wasn't natural lightning at all."

What happened in the Forbidden Forest yesterday could not escape the notice of the young wizards in the castle.

At the Slytherin dining table, Malfoy sat next to Lester and whispered, "Lester, how is it?"

Lester knew what Malfoy was worried about and whispered reassuringly, "Don't worry, it's all taken care of. That Unicorn is burned to a crisp."

"That's wonderful." Malfoy breathed a sigh of relief, took out a piece of parchment, and said, "I'll write to my father right away and tell him everything that happened yesterday."

As Malfoy scribbled furiously, he complained, "My father must be busy lately; he hasn't written to me for three days."

Malfoy was puzzled. Given his father's status, what could possibly be so important as to prompt him to write back to his beloved eldest son?

At this very moment, Malfoy's elderly father, Lucius Malfoy, dressed as Muggle, was mingling on the streets of London, looking around with a fearful expression.

"Damn it, how come the security in the Wizarding World is so bad?" Lucius carefully followed the flow of people on the street, constantly watching his surroundings, afraid that a few dark wizards might jump out from some corner.

For some reason, ever since he took Malfoy to school, Lucius has been targeted by a group of ruthless thugs.

They insisted on borrowing 100,000 Galleon from him, but Lucius's money didn't grow on trees, so of course he refused. As a result, he became the target of their attacks.

"Sigh, these dark wizards are really cruel these days. I only refused once, and you can ask me again if you want. Why are you so determined to capture me now?"

When Lucius realized the power of those dark wizards, he was actually willing to pay to avoid trouble.

However, the group of dark wizards changed their tactics and continued their attempt to kidnap him.

Of course, Lucius wasn't about to joke around with his own life, so he embarked on a journey of escape.

He had tried contacting the Ministry of Magic, but the Auror Ministry of Magic were often just going through the motions; the robbers would arrive before the Auror did.

And so, Lucius had no choice but to give up and begin his solitary escape.

"I really miss the days when Voldemort was still alive!" Lucius with great emotion.

Back when Voldemort was around, all the purebloods had powerful backers, and no one dared to provoke them easily.

Just like the Weasley family now, they have Dumbledore behind them. Although they are not very successful, no one dares to mess with them because of Dumbledore.

Unlike the Pure-blood families of today, who are like rootless duckweed, left to be trampled upon by others.

Inside the Headmaster's Office on the Seventh Floor.

On the wall adorned with portraits of past headmasters, all of them are indignantly denouncing the Ministry of Magic's misdeeds.

"Albus, the Ministry of Magic is too arrogant! What did they do to the Sorting Hat?!"

"If I were the headmaster, the Ministry of Magic would never dare to do this."

Phineas Nigellus Black, the headmaster of Slytherin, was deeply dissatisfied with the Ministry of Magic's handling of the Sorting Hat.

Other heads of departments also voiced their support and condemned the Ministry of Magic's actions.

On the table, the once dusty Sorting Hat was now spotless after being washed.

This should have been a good thing, but the Sorting Hat seems to be acting strangely.

"Don't wash me with water! I am the Sorting Hat, and I am the cleanest!"

"Devil, that's not a mouth! Don't put things in there! Are you blind?"

"Aba aba, I'm a dog, and I love food the most."

Dumbledore: "..."

His feelings were extremely complicated. If he could go back to yesterday, he would definitely not give Hafiz any face.

Even if it means mutual destruction, Dumbledore is determined to smash Hafiz's head in and see what's inside.

They managed to drive the Sorting Hat crazy in just a few days!