The Dark Lord's Guide to Employment at Hogwarts

……

On the Hogwarts Express.

Li Weide was sitting by the window reading a book.

Next to him, there was an insulated box, and Nagini was hibernating inside...

Tom Cat was sleeping soundly in a makeshift nest nearby.

It’s just that...Tom Cat is becoming more and more like a human now...

It used to sleep curled up in its nest, but now... it sleeps with its legs spread out in the nest...

Tom had been watching the cat's behavior for a long time.

"So... what did you do to it?" Tom broke the silence.

"A small experiment... However, this small experiment had a little accident."

"A little accident?" Tom sneered. "Compared to humans, the only thing missing now is the ability to speak!"

Li Weide put down the book and said helplessly, "This is a coincidence that is hard to replicate. Otherwise, I would have given it a few more companions."

He looked at Tom and continued, "After all, most of the time, animals are much more trustworthy than humans..."

Hearing this, Tom put down his quill and said dissatisfiedly, "When will you ever speak without thorns?"

"Can you blame me for this? Not only did you write a letter to report me, but you also wrote it right in front of me... I was just reading a book, I'm not blind." Li Weide said calmly.

"You are slandering me." Tom silently crumpled a piece of letter paper on the table into a small ball and then lit it with his wand.

"No, I'm really not blind..."

Before Li Weide could finish his words, the carriage door was opened.

Anne walked in quickly, "I have something to tell you."

"What?" Li Weide asked.

Anne hurriedly sat down beside him. "Aren't you worried at all?"

Li Weide and Tom looked at each other and asked, "What are you worried about?"

"Didn't you write to me before and tell me that you received a gift from... that man? That gift is what we've been searching for!"

"Indeed..." Li Weide nodded, "Although I don't know where he got it from..."

"I suspect he got it from the Forbidden Forest!" Annie said anxiously. "We searched several locations before, but only found that 'thing' in one place, right? Is it possible... that the man took everything away before us, leaving only a few places?"

"Well... it's very possible, but... compared to whether he took everything away, I'm more curious about how he knew we were looking for this kind of thing." Li Weide said calmly.

Annie's eager face suddenly froze when she heard this...

"Could it be...that he doesn't know we are looking for this kind of thing, but because he knows that you are longing for power, and...that's why he plans to give it to you?" Annie said guiltily.

"Well, that's a possibility." Li Weide nodded. "If that's the case, it's such a pity. It seems that we are not destined to have such things."

"Ah? This..." Annie was a little stunned, "You're just...giving up like this?"

"What else? Just attack Nurmengard, kill Grindelwald, and then steal this thing?" Tom sneered. "I'd like to do that... but do you think we're capable of it? Are we worthy?"

"This……"

"Tom is right. Now that he has taken away this power, we have lost our chance," said Li Weide.

Annie quickly said, "Then...we can actually..."

Li Weide interrupted her, "We can't just go to Nurmengard and seek refuge with him, right? What if he doesn't accept us and instead kills us? Even if he does, what if he never gives us that power again? Wouldn't our trip be in vain then? Forget it... We have a stable life now and can slowly grow stronger. Why bother going to Nurmengard and taking risks? If we miss it, we miss it. Life is always full of regrets."

Anne was choked by Li Weide and was speechless.

According to Grindelwald's instructions, she needed to use that magical power to lure these two power-hungry boys into Grindelwald's service...

However, before she could even begin to persuade him, Li Weide and Tom joined forces to block her...

Then Annie no longer had any other chance to persuade... She couldn't just reveal her cards directly.

If his identity is exposed, what if these two guys send him directly to Dumbledore?

Anne doesn't want to be thrown into Azkaban...

……

Hogwarts Castle.

A visitor came to Dumbledore's office.

"My name is Achilles Tolliver, and I'm an Auror from MACUSA."

The man said as he stared at the strange drink in front of him.

"Hello, Mr. Tolliver." Dumbledore smiled and said, "This is a drink I made according to a recipe given to me by one of my students. He called it milk tea... Well, I thought you could try it. It tastes really good."

"Um...thank you..."

Mr. Tolliver politely took a sip of his drink, and then felt as if his mouth had been punched hard by an excess of sugar… Even as an American with a sweet tooth, he almost couldn't handle it…

"Ahem..." He quickly put the drink back on the table and said, "I'm here for something important."

Dumbledore also put down his drink and his expression became serious.

"Is it...he's making a move again?"

In fact, getting an Auror to travel all the way from the United States to England to find him was probably not an easy task...

And now, apart from that man, there is no other thing that can make the Ministry of Magic of a country feel difficult.

"That's exactly what we've determined so far..." Mr. Tolliver took a deep breath. "Since Christmas Eve, we've had a lot of disappearances..."

"Missing persons? Who are missing?" asked Dumbledore.

"Among those who have gone missing are high-ranking officials of the Magic Congress, ordinary Aurors, and ordinary clerks... but without exception, they are all members of the Magic Congress... Chairman Picquery is certain that this was done by Grindelwald! Now... all of us in the Magic Congress have gathered in the Capitol and dared not go home... for fear that we will be the next to go missing!"

Mr. Tolliver paused, then continued, "Right now, I'm the only one in the entire Magic Congress still outside... So, Chairman Picquery asked me to come to you, hoping you can come to the United States... If it really is that man..."

He looked at Dumbledore with hope, "I hope you can help us. After all, everyone knows that you are the only person he still fears."

Mr. Tolliver lowered his head in pleading, not noticing the slight tremor in Dumbledore's lip.

After a long while, he finally let out a long sigh, "Okay, I'll go over. But... I need to take care of my work first."

"Of course, Professor Dumbledore! But please hurry up... According to the latest news, the staff hiding in the Magic Congress... have disappeared again!" Mr. Tolliver said excitedly.

Dumbledore frowned, "That means... there are still his people hiding in the Magic Congress!"

"That should be the case! You know what happened with Director Graves back then..."

Dumbledore nodded. Grindelwald had killed Graves, then assumed his identity and infiltrated the Magical Congress of the United States of America...

And this time, he is very likely to use the same trick again!

But what is his purpose in doing this again?

Dumbledore frowned deeply, thinking.

"Professor, I need to rush back to Congress now. You must come quickly."

Dumbledore said quickly, "For safety reasons, you should stay in the UK. The British Ministry of Magic will arrange temporary accommodation for you."

"No, Chairman Picquery is still waiting for news from me...Now that the Magic Congress has been blocked, the news delivered by owls is no longer credible."

Chapter 135 Are you serious about taking a half step back?

night.

The Hogwarts Great Hall was as bright as day.

Principal Dippet stood at the front podium and began his pre-dinner speech.

"I never like to talk too much before dinner, but... please allow me to say a few more words today. Yes... perhaps some of you have noticed that Professor Dumbledore is not in the classroom. Yes, he has some matters to attend to and needs to go on a business trip to the United States temporarily. During his absence, Professor Hicks will temporarily teach the Defense Against the Dark Arts class."

Principal Dippet looked back at Hicks and said, "Thank you for your hard work, Professor Hicks."

"It's okay, Armando. Albus told me before he left." Professor Hicks smiled.

In the audience, students began to buzz about the reasons for Dumbledore's departure.

These discussions were quickly amplified after Principal Dippet announced that dinner was ready.

Tom and Li Weide looked at each other.

Tom used the Whispering Charm and said, "It seems that your plan is starting to work. Grindelwald has successfully transferred Dumbledore out of Hogwarts... Could you please not look at me when you use the Whispering Charm? It looks so strange!"

Levid had no choice but to turn his head and pretend to concentrate on the lamb ribs in front of him. "America... It seems that Grindelwald still has some obsession with the Magical Congress of the United States of America. After all, I heard that Chairman Picquery of the Magical Congress of the United States of America had him imprisoned for a full six months."

"Is there such a thing?" asked Tom in surprise.

In his opinion, someone as powerful as Grindelwald should not be captured so easily.

"Of course."

"Since he was caught, why was he only locked up for six months? If he had been locked up all the time, wouldn't there have been so many troubles?" Tom asked puzzledly.

"Only six months? Of course not! Grindelwald turned against the Aurors who were holding him in prison, and then he escaped while being transported to Europe for trial."

"He's quite patient," Tom said. "If it were me... hmph... I would have killed everyone and left them all over the place long ago. Why would I wait until today to seek revenge?"

"He wants to do great things, how can he be so petty as you? After just a few years, he ran for the election of President of the International Confederation of Wizards. If he wanted revenge right away, what's the point of running for election? And... there won't be a scene of corpses everywhere, because he won't kill too many wizards unless it's necessary."

"Why do you always say I'm small-minded?"

"Then why don't you ask yourself why your vision is always so small?"

"What the hell..."

……

Dumbledore's departure did not seem to have much impact on the teaching work at Hogwarts.

Even Professor Hicks, who temporarily holds two teaching positions, is still able to maintain his form.

It wasn't long before news of what happened in the Magical Congress of the United States reached Britain.

Because the Daily Prophet finally received the news and reported the incident.

A series of disappearances...

Moreover, after Dumbledore arrived, the situation was not resolved quickly.

Instead, the number of missing people spread from MACUS staff to ordinary wizards...

Just by looking at the news brought by the Daily Prophet, Levid could guess how anxious Dumbledore was at the moment.

Not only Dumbledore, the Magical Congress of the United States also sent requests for assistance to the Ministries of Magic in other countries.

Suddenly, Aurors from various countries, as well as some powerful wizards with a strong sense of justice, began to gather in the United States...

Unlike the bustling Magical Congress of the United States, Hogwarts remains as peaceful as ever.

"This is the calm before the storm! Are you really ready?"

Tom asked while being forced to help Levid take notes in the History of Magic class with gritted teeth.

"Don't worry, he won't take action so quickly."

"How dare you be so sure?"

"Haven't you noticed Annie's recent whereabouts?"

"She's been acting a bit mysterious lately. Could it be that... Grindelwald hasn't yet determined the exact location and wants her to explore the way?"

"Tom! You're being clever again! That's right! If Grindelwald had already confirmed the location, why did he let Anne snoop around?"

"What if... Annie never finds a location? Then your plan will never be realized, right?"

"Don't worry, Annie is a very capable girl. She will find a position soon."

"I haven't the slightest idea what it is," said Tom, frowning.

There's no clue at all, only that it's underground...

There are so many secret passages in Hogwarts. Tom put himself in their shoes and had no idea where to start.

"If it were you...how would you find it?"

Li Weide smiled and said, "I just praised you for becoming smart. I really can't help but praise you."