The Silent Witch of Hogwarts

"I'm sorry, Miss Hamilton." In the tavern room, Lupin looked embarrassed, his tired face full of apology: "If only I had held on tighter."

"This...this isn't your fault...Mr. Lupin," Loila said softly, pursing her lips.

This is my first friend, how can I blame him so easily... Besides, if I hadn't gotten separated from Mr. Lupin, Miss Lovegood would have been in danger.

Therefore, Loila, who was prone to self-blame, said in a low voice, "It was because I wandered around aimlessly that I ended up in Knockturn Alley."

Yes, Knockturn Alley... It's hard to imagine that there's such a place, where many dark wizards and illegal transactions gather, right next to Diagon Alley, the heart of the British wizarding world.

The Ministry of Magic, which loves to meddle, has never done anything about it... What a strange bunch.

So what about Dumbledore? He loves to oppose Lord Grindelwald and claims to be righteous, yet he can't even handle Knockturn Alley?

Is this guy really getting old...?

Thinking this, Loila looked at Dumbledore, who had been silent all along. He was looking at the two of them with a smile on his face, but even so, Loila could sense that he was always on guard, and his arms were still gently gripping his wand.

I shouldn't underestimate Dumbledore... Hmm?

What is he laughing at?

Loila thought for a moment and opened her mouth slightly, wanting to ask Dumbledore the reason, but then subconsciously closed her mouth because she was a little scared.

Dumbledore saw right through her.

"Miss Hamilton, is there anything you'd like to say?"

"Ah... um..." Loila trembled as Dumbledore suddenly pointed at her, her pointed ears instinctively perking up and pushing up her hood.

"No...nothing." She couldn't very well tell Dumbledore that she thought he was old and useless...so she poked her finger and said, "I was just...just thinking about what's going to happen next..."

Making up any excuse to get by might be a good idea.

"What happens next?" Lupin paused, and Dumbledore paused as well.

Why are you all staring at me?

Loila felt a little flustered as the two of them stared at her strangely. She stammered, "Next... I... I need to... find something to do... right? There are still... two months until... school starts, aren't there?"

Lupin raised an eyebrow, subconsciously wanting to tell Loila that she could relax a bit, after all, she had just woken up from a fifty-year coma.

But Dumbledore smiled and spoke first, "Miss Hamilton, I happen to have something I'd like to ask you."

"Huh?!" Loila's blue eyes widened slightly. So... there really is something going on?

I was just saying, Dumbledore, don't take it seriously!

"I just..." Loila hurriedly tried to refuse, but when she met Dumbledore's gentle gaze, she stammered and couldn't bring herself to speak.

"It's a simple matter," Dumbledore said with a light laugh, then slowly sat down.

"It's related to the Ministry of Magic."

"The Magic Ministry?!" Loila shrank back, her pale face filled with even more fear.

Loila, who was already shy, didn't want to deal with strangers, let alone the annoying Ministry of Magic, who had not only imprisoned her once but also repeatedly disrupted Lord Grindelwald's grand plans...

"Don't worry," Dumbledore said gently, seemingly misunderstanding. "The era of Grindelwald is long gone, and the British Ministry of Magic is different from the German Ministry of Magic."

What do you mean by "the era of Lord Grindelwald is over"? Loila pursed her lips but couldn't refute it. However, no matter what the Ministry of Magic became, she shook her head desperately, trying to deny it.

"The Ministry of Magic recently wants to conduct a search for Dark Magic artifacts," Dumbledore said, seemingly oblivious to Royla's head-shaking. "They want Hogwarts to send a professor as an advisor."

"I think you'd be a good candidate, Miss Hamilton."

"I...I can't..." Loila whispered.

Lupin nodded slightly; clearly, he didn't think Loila was a suitable choice either.

"You're being a bit too modest, Miss Hamilton." Dumbledore chuckled. "If I'm not mistaken... you have a deep understanding of magic circles, don't you?"

"Magic arrays?" Upon hearing this term, Lupin paused for a moment, then looked at Dumbledore as if asking what it was.

Does Hogwarts offer this course?

"Ah... Remus." Dumbledore turned to Lupin and said patiently, "Magic arrays are a rather profound subject, but also a rather special one with a wide range of applications."

"For example, the Sorting Hat, the Pensieve, and even the Hogwarts house scoring hourglass that you have seen before are all inextricably linked to magic circles."

"But what exactly is magic array science..." Dumbledore looked at Loila: "Miss Hamilton probably knows better than I do."

Upon hearing this, Lupin looked at Loila and was surprised to find that the timid young lady seemed somewhat excited.

"Dumbledore, you actually know about magic circles!" Loila excitedly raised her head, her blue eyes filled with the joy of finding a kindred spirit, and she even stopped stuttering when she spoke.

"Then, Miss Hamilton..." Lupin pursed his lips and looked at Loira: "What is a magic circle..."

"In short, magic circle science is the study of engraving magic on objects using ancient magic runes and spells. These engraved magic circle items can be used as various practical magical items." Before Lupin could finish speaking, Loila excitedly began to speak, her tone more steady than ever before, without the slightest pause.

"Ah... I see..." Lupin looked a little confused, but Royla had no intention of explaining and continued to talk on and on: "For example, the Sorting Hat in Hogwarts, which can judge a person's inner good and evil and thoughts, is such a product."

"Furthermore, although there are many magic array tools, very few people understand this field. Most people simply use magic array tools but never pay attention to their underlying principles..."

"Please wait a moment, Miss Hamilton." Lupin, feeling a bit dizzy, had to interrupt Loila... He felt that if he didn't, she would talk on and on for a long time.

"Ah...ah, sorry..." Loila quickly covered her mouth after regaining her senses.

He started talking about those "boring" topics again, without even telling himself...

After all, most people have little interest in magic circles, except for Loila, who has had a great interest in magic circles since childhood. As she grew up, she even accidentally ended up in a wizard prison because of it.

Nevertheless, Loila still has a great deal of enthusiasm for magic arrays and always hopes to meet other people who understand magic arrays.

Unfortunately, aside from his own father, Dumbledore was probably the second person to talk about magic circles.

How could it be Dumbledore… Loira didn’t want to consider him a confidant… But magic arrays… She asked somewhat anxiously:

"Dumbledore...you know magic circles..."

"I'm sorry, Miss Hamilton, my understanding of magic arrays is only superficial," Dumbledore said with a helpless expression. "The reason I know so much is because during my battle with Grindelwald, there were many magic array traps in the castle called Nurmengard."

"We also suffered a lot back then."

"Ah...I see..." Loila lowered her head awkwardly. She didn't want Dumbledore to know that she was the one who set those traps, so she asked softly, "Then...what...what's the relationship between magic arrays and...the Ministry of Magic?"

"The Ministry of Magic's operation this time is to retrieve and destroy Dark Magic artifacts," Dumbledore said, lowering his voice slightly. "And the targets are mostly pure-blood wizards."

"Their family home, which has been passed down for thousands of years, contains many hidden magical arrays and mechanisms."

"To prevent them from secretly hoarding dark magic items, I think you are the most suitable advisor." Dumbledore said, bowing slightly closer to the still hesitant Loila: "It is said that many of those magic array mechanisms have long been lost... and there are even unique ones, the only ones in the world."

"Unique... one of a kind... long... long lost?" Loila's eyes widened, her face filled with barely suppressed excitement as she looked up.

Finally, she took a deep breath, mustered her courage, and said, "I...I'm willing to go!"

"That would be wonderful." Dumbledore gave a meaningful smile.

Lupin pursed his lips as he watched this scene... He wasn't sure if it was just his imagination, but he felt that Headmaster Dumbledore's words seemed a bit exaggerated... and Headmaster Dumbledore, you sound like a child trafficker who kidnaps little girls...