Hogwarts Summoning Guide

Nicholas then introduced the family elders attending the London gathering to all the guests. Because each name was so long and verbose, Bai Lin couldn't remember any of them. So he glanced at the elders' appearances and gave them nicknames in his mind: the bearded elder, the bald elder, the one-eyed elder, the senile elder (who looked to be about a hundred years old, and was already asleep while being introduced)... and so on.

After introducing the highly respected lady of the family, Nicholas introduced Fudge. Of course, everyone knew Fudge, and Fudge raised his glass in acknowledgment without any expression.

Then Nicholas introduced the young wizards who had just joined the Elders' Council this year. Fudge gestured for Bai Lin to stand up. Bai Lin straightened his collar and stood up with an air of grandeur. He then realized that there were four young wizards of the same age, two men and two women. Since they were all new members of the family, Bai Lin paid more attention to the other three. They were obviously also sizing him up.

The first girl was of average appearance, with Slavic features, and a slightly plump figure, but with gentle eyes. She blushed when she stood up. Her name was Polina.

The second girl was a movie star-like beauty from France, but with Scandinavian features. She had long red hair, and her demeanor and poise were impeccable. Her name was also easy to remember, Lulu. When she was introduced, many young wizards in the room gave her a thunderous round of applause, indicating that she was very popular.

When introducing Bai Lin, Bai Lin sensed that Nicholas didn't really like him. When he mentioned that he was a magical creature expert, Bai Lin heard some disdain in his tone. However, Bai Lin was too lazy to pay attention to him and returned the greeting with the Eastern fist salute. The last time he had done this was to Buckbeak.

The last young man was named Barnard. He had a burly body, a full beard, and looked very strong. Moreover, the way he looked at Bai Lin was quite unfriendly.

After introducing the main guests, Niklas announced the agenda for today's gathering:

The first item is that a few family members who are particularly eager to make money, with the support of some Muggle corporations, want to build two commercial streets like Diagon Alley in Paris and Istanbul, doing business with both wizards and Muggles. They cleverly disguised some magical items as mechanical devices and even showed them off at a gathering.

The proposal was discussed for almost an hour. Those who were interested listened attentively, while those who weren't chatted and ate and drank on their own. The elves would occasionally come over to refill the food and drinks.

Fudge scoffed at these money-grubbers' suggestions, but Bai Lin quickly took out his notebook and jotted down the information about these commercial streets, thinking to himself, "You idiots, I'm going to invest in shops. The next twenty years will be all about real estate!"

Secondly, a Muggle Antarctic expedition recently discovered an ancient site containing what appears to be a magical artifact. Some family members are considering forming a special team to investigate.

This caused quite a stir at the scene, and many young wizards were very interested. Bai Lin thought, "As expected of the family called the Explorers, their curiosity is really something. Could it be that the gene of the curious baby was left by that romantic ancestor?"

For the third item, Nicholas took a sip of black tea, cleared his throat, and waited until the room quieted down before saying, "The third item is a bit special, involving many positions within the British Ministry of Magic..." As he spoke, he looked at Fudge.

Fudge stood up, politely removed his fedora, and nodded slightly to Nicholas, saying, "Please explain as well, Butler."

Nicholas nodded and said, "In recent years, Azkaban Prison, which we have always trusted, has seen frequent prisoner escapes. At least three prisoners have successfully escaped." He said that it was Black, Bella, and Antonin, but Bai Lin knew that there was at least a fourth person, namely Barty Crouch Jr., who became Mad-Eye Moody in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and caused all the trouble.

Nicholas continued, "Our Elder Ross proposed that, given our respected Uncle Moritz's advanced age and lack of energy to serve as warden for an extended period, a new family member should be sent to Azkaban to serve as the administrator of the Dementors—the new warden." Elder Ross's full name was quite long; he was the old wizard whom Bai Lin had just renamed Elder One-Eyed Dragon.

These words immediately caused a commotion, with many wizards exclaiming in surprise. What kind of place was Azkaban? It wouldn't be an exaggeration to describe it as hell on earth. What were Dementors? They could terrify adult wizards, make criminals tremble with fear, and stop children from crying at night. The pampered family members, who lived a life of luxury like nobles, were all talking at once about which madman would be assigned to work in Azkaban.

“But, Your Excellency, besides Mr. Moritz, who else can be safe in Azkaban? There are thousands of Dementors there, my goodness!” said a middle-aged, fat wizard who was sitting very close to the central table.

Nicholas nodded and said, "Thank you for your question, Sir Ryan (wizards do not have royalty or titles, but some wizards are nobles in the Muggle world, such as the Malfoy family). I wonder if you have heard the recent news in the wizarding world that a young wizard successfully killed a Dementor."

These words were like a boulder thrown into a lake, instantly creating ripples in the square. Many people were hearing about this for the first time and exclaimed in surprise.

Sir Ryan, the portly man, said, "Your Excellency, I have heard about this, but I dismissed it as mere idle boasting. Could it be true?"

Niklas said, "Not only is it true, but he didn't just kill one or two Dementors, he killed a full twenty-four! And that young wizard was none other than our family's newly minted magical genius, Karin White, who recently joined the Council of Elders!"

Although it has just been introduced, many wizards obviously didn't pay much attention at the beginning, and were just eating, drinking and chatting on their own. At this moment, they were still looking around the arena, hoping to see a face that looked even more terrifying than a Dementor.

However, Nicholas didn't seem to move much before he appeared next to Bai Lin. Bai Lin quickly put down the half-eaten kiwi-flavored banana and stood up with Nicholas.

Nicholas pointed an arm at Bai Lin and said, "It was this young expert in magical creatures who successfully killed the Dementors, ending the centuries-old legend of their invincibility. Elder Ross has recommended him as the new Warden!"

"I refuse to accept this! Karin White couldn't have killed a Dementor alone; he's a fraud!" A gruff, loud voice rang out from the other end of the square. Everyone looked to see Barnard, the burly new member, pointing angrily at Bai Lin and shouting, "I challenge him to a wizarding duel! I'll prove I'm stronger than him!"

Bai Lin lowered his head and said to Fuji, "Uncle, that child probably had some serious illness when he was young, right? Why are you arguing about something so trivial?"