Hog's Head

Using the Two-Way Mirror on Newt's body to determine his location, Xiwen opened the Dimensional Gate to the Hog's Head.

Stepping through the golden halo, Dumbledore, the Young Wizard Xiwen, and the Ghost Xiwen entered the bar one by one.

This was Xiwen's first time visiting this bar run by Dumbledore's brother, so he began to curiously look around the bar as soon as he entered.

The Hog's Head was cramped and filthy, filled with a strong, pungent smell, probably from goat. The glass was covered in grime, and almost no sunlight could penetrate the room; the only light source inside was a few candles placed on a rough wooden table.

The Young Wizard Xiwen looked at the stone floor, which was covered with a layer of dirt and looked like it had never been cleaned. He carefully stepped into the slightly cleaner gaps in the floor, feeling as if he had nowhere to step.

"Isn't the place cleaned up here?" he couldn't help but ask.

"Come if you want, leave if you don't!" a tall, thin man with a goatee shouted rudely.

Xiwen looked at the man with some annoyance, then noticed that he bore a resemblance to Dumbledore appearance and had the same sharp blue eyes.

"Are you Mr. Aberforth Mr. Dumbledore?" Xiwen, no longer bothered by his earlier rudeness and the dirt on the ground, simply looked him over with interest and asked.

"So you want me to praise your good eye?" Aberforth said gruffly, casually wiping his wine glass with a rag that hadn't been washed in ages.

"Xiwen, Aberforth is just like that. He doesn't mean any harm. I hope you can understand him," Dumbledore said to Xiwen as he approached.

Xiwen shook his head, about to say something, but was interrupted by Aberforth's rude voice.

"I don't need the forgiveness of a little kid!" he said in a deep voice.

Hearing his brother so bluntly expose him, even Dumbledore, with his composure, couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed. He had no choice but to remain silent and lead Xiwen into the back of the bar.

The two entered a room inside the bar and saw a table that wasn't very clean, where many people were already seated. Most of them were old members who had joined Dumbledore's plans earlier that winter— Newt, Theseus, and Yusuf Kama.

In addition, there was a beautiful witch in the crowd wearing a dark blue jacket.

"Albus, Strange, oh and Xiwen, you're here!" Newt stood up to greet the two men and the ghost who had arrived. "Quite a coincidence, I was just introducing Strange to Tina."

"That's quite a coincidence!" Ghost Xiwen nodded, then looked at Newt and asked, "Newt, this is your girlfriend Tina Goldstein, right?"

"That's right, she's my fiancée now," Newt said with a shy smile.

"Tina, this is the very powerful ghost I was just introducing to you, Doctor Strange."

Tina walked up to Xiwen with interest, extended her hand to him, and said, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Doctor Strange."

Ghost Xiwen looked at Tina's outstretched hand and glanced at her with some confusion.

"I almost forgot, I can't shake hands with ghosts." Tina laughed and nodded to Xiwen instead.

Xiwen nodded politely in response.

To be honest, Xiwen was quite curious about Tina. He wondered what kind of witch could attract someone like Newt, whose mind was entirely focused on Fantastic Beasts.

Moreover, there are quite a few well-known stories about her, such as Newt describing Tina's eyes as those of a "salamander"...

Unfortunately, Xiwen had never seen a fire lizard, so he didn't know just how romantic this unspoken metaphor between the two of them could be.

"Thank you for coming all this way today," Dumbledore smile. "Before we begin, I need to tell you that our task is still quite challenging!"

"Grindelwald and his followers have instigated riots around the world, making no attempt to conceal their activities from Muggle World. It seems they intend to expose the Wizarding World to Muggle society to the very end."

"Yes, the Magical Exposure Threat Level Meter of the Magical Congress of the United States of America is now pointing to orange, which means an extremely serious exposure threat!" Tina continued, picking up where Dumbledore, and addressed the group.

"Speaking of which, how does the Magical Congress of the United States of America operate?" Dumbledore asked with interest.

"The situation on our side is slightly better than in Europe, but it's still not optimistic," Tina explained seriously. "Grindelwald has quite a few followers in the America, and every riot is mainly led by a large number of lower- Wizarding World, which puts the Magical Congress in a difficult position."

"We cannot hastily imprison everyone, nor can we remain indifferent. However, the instigators of riots often escape quickly. The Auror Office has carried out several operations to capture the leaders, but few have been successful."

"Therefore, Congress sent me here to liaise with you, which is why I had time to come here." Tina glanced at Newt beside her, and the two smiled knowingly.

"Things are alright here in England, probably because Dumbledore is England," Theseus added. "Our Aurors even have the resources to support other countries, responding to the call of the International Confederation of Wizards."

"The situation in the England and the America seems alright, but it can't continue like this forever. Grindelwald won't be satisfied with this kind of small-scale skirmish," Dumbledore said to everyone present after listening to Tina and Theseus's words.

"Our most pressing problem now is that we can't keep up with the time difference. Because of his precognitive abilities, Grindelwald always leaves the event venue before me, so I haven't actually seen him once in the past few months."

"So you mean we should use Dimensional Gate to help you get to Grindelwald faster?" the Young Wizard Xiwen asked doubtfully. "But Grindelwald can foresee this kind of teleportation, can't he?"

"You're right, so that's the specific issue we need to discuss," Dumbledore nodded. "Of course, our plan will certainly be more difficult to implement this time."

"Grindelwald, having been deceived by us in the last election, won't completely trust what he sees now. He's not the kind of person who would make the same mistake twice!"

"So, is this another case of having no plan at all?" Ghost Xiwen couldn't help but ask.

"No, our purpose this time is to let him know our plan," Dumbledore chuckled, speaking mysteriously.