Who let this Dementor into Hogwarts!

Chapter 66: Exams are an arms race about anxiety
Dumbledore's reminder didn't do much for Coin, but at least it was useful.

Because Cohen also knew this, otherwise Cohen would not have planned to become the Minister of Magic - this is the best way to deal with historical issues peacefully.

The biggest effect of Dumbledore's move was to show goodwill to Cohen.

What Dumbledore meant was that if the Ministry of Magic came to blows with Cohen because he was an evil dark creature, he would stand on Cohen's side.

Congratulations, Dumbledore's favorability with Coin increased by +10.

After being sent back to the dormitory by Phoenix Fox, Cohen stuffed the box under the bed and crawled into bed amid the sound of snoring.

Norbert can be thrown in tomorrow.

Maybe we could divide it up into sections, get some land to grow some real grass, raise sheep for Norbert to have a homegrown food chain, and raise some other interesting and valuable animals.

Cohen actually planned to steal the unicorns from the forest if they were willing - they were all made of gold, spoke sweetly, and tasted like ice cream, and Cohen loved them.

The next day, after the last Potions class, Cohen took the box to Hagrid, followed by Harry and Ron, who were curious about what was in the box, and Hermione, who was very interested in the magic on the box and wanted to study it very much.

"Haven't we seen a similar scene in the room on the eighth floor before?" Cohen was somewhat helpless about Harry and Ron's entanglement. "There's no need to be so anxious to see it..."

"A house in a box..." Harry said dreamily, "If I had one, I would stay in it every day after returning to the Dursleys' house."

"What a lofty ambition," Cohen complained.

"Ever since you mentioned the Traceless Extension Charm, I've looked up some information," Hermione reminded Cohen as she followed him. "The Ministry of Magic has strict regulations on this spell. Cohen, it's illegal to use this spell on personal items—"

"It's not even legal to keep a dragon, Hermione..."

Cohen lowered his voice and replied:
"As long as no one discovers it, it's not illegal. If all else fails, we still have Dumbledore. We can just say it was Dumbledore who did it. After all, we're still young. Who would think a little wizard could do such a thing?"

"..."

Hermione hesitated to speak, as if she also felt that what Cohen said made sense.

"Isn't this a very kind thing to do to Professor Dumbledore..." Harry's remaining conscience was taking over.

"But it's the truth." Cohen's conscience had gone to who knows where, or perhaps it had never existed. "Besides, he's Dumbledore. The Ministry of Magic won't arrest him just for casting a Stretch-Undetectable Charm on a box. That would make the Ministry of Magic a laughing stock."

"Don't worry, Hermione. We can say this is a Muggle item, and then it's my dad who'll arrest us," Ron comforted her. "You know, my dad is the director of the Office for the Prohibition of the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts - the most he can do is have my mom spank me and then take the box home."

They arrived outside Hagrid's door, and this time Norbert could even hear Cohen's footsteps - the moment Cohen arrived at the door, the room that was originally noisy suddenly became quiet.

As soon as Cohen pushed open the door, Norbert threw himself into Cohen's arms - and then was kicked away by Cohen.

"I almost thought you were going to murder me." Cohen explained to Norbert, who was folding his wings and looking aggrieved. "Don't be so excited next time you see me - I'm afraid I'll subconsciously do something more dangerous to you."

It's not a serious matter. What if this body is damaged?
After entering the house, Cohen opened the box in front of several people. Inside the box was a lighted staircase.

"This doesn't look like there's room for a person to walk in..." Harry said uncertainly.

"Just take the first step, and leave the rest to magic." Cohen pushed Harry as he looked inside the box.

The narrow staircase instantly enveloped Harry, and Hermione exclaimed in surprise. Hagrid was next—at least he didn't get stuck, because Coin and Dumbledore had made some convenient modifications to the entrance.

After everyone had gone down, Cohen took Norbert into the box.

After walking down the stairs, you will see the field created by magic.

The grass, the stream, and the sky seemed just like reality; there was even wind and dark clouds that were about to blow over.

"Is this a weather spell?" Hermione remembered seeing this kind of spell in 'Various Spells That Can Cause Natural Disasters'. "A weather spell that can cover such a large area must be very profound..."

"Dumbledore did it." Actually, Cohen had done it himself, but it was difficult to explain - Cohen didn't really want to teach.

"Merlin's beard, Norbert, look, now you can fly freely!" Hagrid said happily to Norbert, "I can help you build a nest here - no one will come here to hurt you -"

Cohen had originally planned to hand over the house-building task to Hagrid first, and then make some adjustments himself later.

Hagrid seemed very grateful after Cohen said he would leave the box with him for the second half of the semester.

"Can I come here often to see Norbert in the future?"

Hagrid wiped his tears and patted his chest to assure:
"That's great, Cohen, don't worry - I will definitely build a big house for you - and Norbert will also have a comfortable home..."

Cohen would wait until the end of the semester, when exams were over and he was about to leave school, to take the box with him.

"So Hagrid has five months to finish this massive project."

On the way back to the castle from Hagrid's hut, Harry calculated the time and said:
"And there's a dragon that's always causing trouble—if no one's watching, won't Norbert really burn down Hagrid's new house?"

Cohen was not too worried about this. Norbert was getting smarter and smarter. He knew the consequences of messing up such a big thing.

"Five months!" Hermione suddenly thought of something horrible.

"What's wrong, Hermione? What's going to happen in five months?" Harry asked, a little confused.

"Final exams! We only have five months left until finals!"

"Correction, it's not 'only five months left', it's 'even five months left'." Cohen is extremely resistant to this kind of anxiety-mongering behavior. "Just memorize it before the exam..."

"What happens if you fail the exam?" Ron asked Hermione with the same confusion.

"Have you forgotten what Professor McGonagall said? If anyone doesn't meet the standards in the final exam, there will be very severe punishment!" Hermione said anxiously, "I guess students who don't pass will be expelled - God, I should have started reviewing after returning from Christmas vacation, first for the Philosopher's Stone, then for dragons... It's crazy - I hope it's not too late..."

After muttering all this, Hermione hurried to the library.

"I feel like the Philosopher's Stone and the dragon aren't as crazy as she is," Ron commented. "Does she take the exam too seriously?"

"Be careful when you say this in front of Hermione," Coin warned sensibly, "if we want to copy her homework later."

(End of this chapter)