Hogwarts Summoning Guide

The magnificent marble staircase of Hogwarts and the torches lit in the foyer offered the students a safe haven from the rain. They practically jumped out of their cars and ran toward the foyer.

"Good heavens," said Ron, shaking his head vigorously, rainwater everywhere. "If this rains again, the lake is going to flood... well, maybe a flood wouldn't be so bad. The Slytherin corridors will be the first to be submerged..."

"Then I'm afraid your Hufflepuff classmates will beat you up first..." Hermione ran past him, not forgetting to tease him.

A large red balloon filled with water fell from the ceiling and flew towards Ron's head.

"Wave bounce!" Ron drew his wand with lightning speed, pointed it at the balloon, and the balloon bounced back, flying up to the ceiling and soaking Peeves, who was in mid-air preparing to throw a second balloon.

"Hehe, if I can't beat Hermione, how could I not beat you, you little devil? You've been bullying me for years!" Ron said with the smugness of someone who had just become the master of the house.

When Peeves couldn't bully Ron, he tried to bully the girls instead. Hermione, who always loved peace, pointed her wand at him and stuffed him into a balloon before throwing him out.

Vice Principal Professor McGonagall came out of the gate and almost tripped at the door. Bai Lin stepped forward in time to help the old lady and nodded politely.

"Oh, thank you, Mr. White," the old lady said sternly to the mostly drenched children, "Alright, let's go into the hall!"

Bai Lin stepped into the auditorium first. The auditorium was as magnificent and grand as ever. In order to welcome the new students, the banquet hall was decorated. Thousands of bright candles floated above the tables. The gold plates, silver knives and forks, and transparent goblets were wiped spotless and sparkled in the candlelight.

The students who had arrived at the school earlier were sitting at their college's dining table, chatting and playing around. Bai Lin saw Professor Pomona waving at him, so he strode over with a smile and sat down at the Hufflepuff College faculty seat.

At first glance, he noticed that the older girls in Hufflepuff were all glancing at him, and even Cedric was smiling at him. He greeted Cedric in a friendly manner, and then nodded to Cho Chang at the Ravenclaw table. Cho Chang smiled and gestured with an empty glass, indicating that he wanted to toast him.

Hagrid led the freshmen, who were soaked to the bone, into the auditorium. He shook off the rain and sat down next to Bai Lin.

"I said," Hagrid said in a low voice, "I received notification that the habitat has been completed. Will those poor, sealed-away animals come back to life?"

Bai Lin said, "Actually, you can check the melee combat yourself. I've granted access to all the team members. The area is still a bit small and not big enough for large creatures to move around. You can go in and manage it when you have time. You can decide what to unblock first."

Hagrid chuckled and patted Bai Lin on the shoulder. Bai Lin rolled his eyes at him, "Don't you know you're strong? I've been shot in the shoulder before."

Bai Lin glanced at the faculty dining table but didn't see any new faces. He returned to continue teaching, partly because Fudge had written to him again, instructing him to ensure Dumbledore was fully committed to being a headmaster. What kind of order was that?

Bai Lin glanced back at Dumbledore at the chairman's table. The old man seemed not to have recovered from the devastating news of Grindelwald's "death." He lacked his former vigor. Bai Lin felt that even if you offered Dumbledore the position of Minister of Magic, he wouldn't accept it now. Perhaps it was only his sense of responsibility towards his students that allowed this centenarian to persevere.

The second reason was that Bai Lin wanted to confirm Voldemort's plan. If he intended to stick to the "original plan," Bai Lin felt he could trip him up a bit and give him a little surprise.

As usual, the first part was the welcoming of new students and the Sorting Ceremony. This time, Professor McGonagall spoke in place of the unwell Dumbledore, but her speech was a bit serious and lacked Dumbledore's humor. However, as soon as the Sorting Hat was placed on the table, the atmosphere in the room immediately became lively.

Every child chosen by the Sorting Hat to determine their house received a warm welcome from the upperclassmen. As always, the Hedgehog House had the most new students, creating a joyful atmosphere. Bai Lin particularly liked the atmosphere in Hedgehog House. Although they weren't known for their courage like Gryffindor, their bravery, inspired by kindness, was perhaps even more radiant when faced with life-or-death situations. Bai Lin thought that if Yu Qian had studied at Hogwarts, she would definitely have been sorted into Hedgehog House as well.

After the meal, Professor McGonagall tapped on the table on the podium, and the students gradually quieted down. Filch jogged over and handed the old lady a long list.

Professor McGonagall hesitated for a moment before saying, "Please pay attention, everyone, I have a few things to announce."

The old lady paused for a moment and said, "First of all, Mr. Filch, the administrator, would like me to read out the list of prohibited items added this year. There are about four hundred items in total, including screaming yo-yos, spiked darts, etc." The straightforward old lady actually read out all four hundred-plus toys.

At first, the students were a little discouraged because it meant they had fewer things to play with. However, as they read on, they completely stopped caring. Fred and George exchanged a glance, and Fred whispered at the Gryffindor table, "We can always get something new, right?"

George chuckled, "The Weasleys Magic Tricks Shop might be late, but they'll never be absent!" They went to the arena to earn money to open their quirky shop, and now, as Bai Lin's "disciple," they've already received angel investment from him.

After reading the long list, Professor McGonagall felt quite thirsty and returned to her seat to take a big gulp of liqueur.

Dumbledore mustered his spirits and walked up to the podium, saying, "I'll announce the next thing. I regret to inform you that the House Cup Quidditch match will not be held this year."

"What?!" The students erupted in disbelief. Not only Harry, and not only the players from various teams, but all the other students stared at Dumbledore with their mouths agape. For many, Quidditch was the only sport they enjoyed. (After all, wizards don't play football, basketball, tennis, baseball, table tennis... they just play this one complicated sport.)

"Because a large event will begin in October and last throughout the entire school year, it will take up a lot of the teachers' time and energy—but I believe you will all enjoy it and grow from it. I am very pleased to announce that this year at Hogwarts, the Triwizard Tournament will be held!"

Dumbledore gave the students about ten seconds to react, then continued, "The Triwizard Tournament originated over seven hundred years ago as a friendly competition between the three largest magic schools in Europe (Bai Lin: Friendly my foot!). These three schools are: Hogwarts, Beauxbatons, and Durmstrang!..."

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