Chapter 351

Chapter 351: Chapter 351

After the Christmas break, it felt as though someone had pressed the fast-forward button on time. Before anyone could fully register its passage, March had already arrived.

No one could say for certain exactly how the days had slipped away.

Lynn remembered only one thing—he had been extremely busy.

During this period, Lynn strictly fulfilled his duties as an intern at the Ministry of Magic.

Aside from attending necessary classes and enjoying his leisure activities—namely, fishing—Lynn spent all his remaining time immersed in the Ministry’s storage vaults. Sometimes, when he encountered a Dark Arts item that genuinely interested him, he would even sleep inside the vault.

This level of professional dedication earned Lynn endless praise from Scrimgeour.

Whenever Scrimgeour encountered Lynn in the corridor, he would stop, pat him on the shoulder, and say in a "heartfelt" tone, "Lynn, you truly are the future star of the Ministry of Magic."

Lynn would nod, say, "Thank you, Director," and then continue walking.

The next time they met, Scrimgeour would say, "Lynn, you truly are a role model for the entire Auror community."

Lynn would nod again, say, "You flatter me, Director," and then continue walking.

The time after that, Scrimgeour still said, "Lynn, if you were a few years older, I would make you an Auror immediately."

This time, Lynn didn’t nod. He simply stared at Scrimgeour’s serious expression and thought:

Are you serious?

Scrimgeour was probably serious, but Lynn didn’t care.

He merely wanted to return to the storage vault.

And so, Lynn once again discovered a Dark Arts item in one of the Ministry’s vaults that piqued his interest.

It was an ancient-looking brass basin.

The basin wasn’t particularly large, measuring approximately one foot in diameter, and dark-green patina covered its edges. Extremely complex runes covered its bottom and inner walls.

Its appearance bore some resemblance to the Pensieve in the Headmaster’s office that Lynn remembered.

Lynn looked down at its registration form. The item had been catalogued shortly before the New Year.

The registrar had classified it as—Extremely Dangerous.

Lynn raised an eyebrow.

He had encountered many items with some variation of the "Dangerous" classification. There were "Dangerous," "Mildly Dangerous," and "Highly Dangerous."

However, this was his first time encountering something classified as "Extremely Dangerous."

He continued reading.

[Memory-Seeking Basin (Provisional Name): Identified as a suspected medieval Dark Arts item.

Usage: Similar to a Pensieve. By submerging one’s face in the basin, the user can draw upon their memories to locate a specific person they wish to find.

Location Found: An abandoned ancient stone fortress containing traces of werewolf activity.

Notes: After using the basin, the user will inevitably be plagued by misfortune, without exception. Thus far, the Ministry of Magic has lost three outstanding employees, while another seven have suffered serious injuries.]

Lynn’s gaze lingered for a long time on the phrases "lost three outstanding employees" and "seven have suffered serious injuries."

Ten well-trained, experienced wizards had used this object. Afterward, three died and seven suffered serious injuries?

Without exception?

Lynn withdrew his gaze and looked back at the object known as the Memory-Seeking Basin.

Was this thing truly that sinister?

"Should I... try it?" Lynn murmured.

He quickly shook his head.

"No, no." His voice was slightly louder than before, as though he were trying to convince himself. "[Only Eat the Sugar Coating] never said it could grant immunity to external negative effects. I’d better forget about it."

However... there was no harm in taking it back for further research.

After placing the Memory-Seeking Basin inside his trunk, Lynn pulled out his magic phone and checked the time.

It was Monday morning, shortly after five o’clock and nearly six.

He yawned and rubbed his eyes. Rather than using one of the Ministry of Magic’s fireplaces to return to Hogwarts, he called out:

"Levi!"

A flash of gold-and-red light streaked through the vault, and Levi appeared on Lynn’s shoulder.

"Master, are we returning to Hogwarts?"

"Yeah. The Hufflepuff dormitory."

Golden-red light enveloped Lynn and his trunk. In the next second, they vanished from the storage vault.

Back in the Hufflepuff dormitory, Lynn stepped out of the golden-red light with his trunk floating behind him.

He stood there and gazed at his roommates, who were still sleeping soundly, and was suddenly overcome with emotion.

"Wake up! Wake up!" Lynn’s voice boomed throughout the dormitory. "Don’t you know that today is Monday? Get up and go eat breakfast!"

The three people awakened by Lynn’s thunderous voice sat up in unison, their movements so synchronized that it seemed as if they had rehearsed them beforehand.

Their gazes were unfocused, their pupils vacant, and they were all still in a daze.

"No, what is wrong with you?!" all three shouted in unison.

Their faces were filled with anger. Edgar even grabbed his pillow and hurled it at Lynn.

The pillow struck Lynn in the face, but it was soft and didn’t hurt. He caught it and tossed it back onto Edgar’s bed.

...

In the end, Lynn successfully rescued all three of them from the seal of their blankets.

The three trudged toward the Great Hall, looking listless and dejected.

Their shoulders sagged, their backs were hunched, and they radiated a gloomy aura that plainly declared, I want to go back to sleep.

Lynn, on the other hand, was brimming with energy. His steps were light, his eyes were bright, and a smile played across his lips.

The other three looked at him with only one thought in their minds:

Is this guy on stimulants?

"Aren’t you tired after staying awake all night?" Edgar rubbed his eyes as he questioned Lynn, who was walking beside him.

Lynn shook his head. "I’m feeling very energetic right now. You guys simply don’t exercise enough. You’ll get used to it after doing this a few more times."

Ollie, who had been walking with his head lowered, suddenly snapped his head up, startling Edgar beside him.

Ollie stared directly at Lynn as his nose twitched slightly.

He could smell oranges.

He was all too familiar with this particular scent. Orange was Lynn’s favorite flavor whenever he brewed potions.

Whether it was an Invigoration Draught, a tonic, or a Wit-Sharpening Potion, Lynn would always add a little orange essence. It wasn’t because doing so improved the potion’s effects. He simply liked the flavor.

"What is it?" Lynn asked.

"You drank a potion," Ollie replied expressionlessly.

Edgar: (¬_¬)

"You really do have the nose of a dog!"

When the group slowly strolled into the Great Hall, only a handful of people were present.

The long tables were mostly empty, with only a few early risers sitting before their simple breakfasts.

However, once the group began eating, the number of students entering the Great Hall started increasing at a visibly rapid rate.

Just as Lynn was busy filling his stomach, the doors to the Great Hall were suddenly thrown open.

Everyone raised their heads and looked toward the entrance.

Snape strode inside, his face appearing even gloomier than usual.

He approached the staff table, sat down in his usual seat, and scanned the Great Hall from left to right, then from right to left.

Edgar scratched his head and whispered to Lynn, "What’s going on? Who provoked him so early in the morning?"

Lynn shook his head. It had nothing to do with them, so he simply continued eating.

Before long, more and more students began eating breakfast, and all four House tables were packed to capacity.

The aroma of food drifted through the air—roast beef, fish and chips, shepherd’s pie, pumpkin juice. The house-elves had made every dish look and smell delicious.

Just as breakfast was about to end, the doors to the Great Hall opened once more.

Dumbledore entered with a smile, accompanied by a middle-aged wizard.

The wizard’s face was extremely thin, with high cheekbones and a pointed chin that made him resemble an unsheathed blade.

He also carried a leather suitcase. It wasn’t particularly large, but it appeared very old, with heavily worn corners and several deep scratches across its surface.

Dumbledore walked to the front of the staff table and stopped. He cleared his throat, and the chatter throughout the Great Hall instantly died down as everyone looked up at him.

"Gentlemen and ladies," Dumbledore said in an exceptionally gentle voice, "please put down your food."

The students obediently did as they were told.

"Now, please allow me to introduce your new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor—Robin Ellis."

Dumbledore extended a hand and gestured toward the middle-aged wizard.

Robin Ellis stepped forward and stood beside Dumbledore.

The students below exchanged bewildered glances. None of them recognized the man.

A few scattered, lukewarm claps sounded throughout the Great Hall. Aside from the more enthusiastic first-year students, most students in the higher years showed little interest.

He was merely another professor who would remain for a single year. Why should they get excited?

They would simply applaud for Dumbledore’s sake and go through the motions.

Lynn set down his fork and turned toward Edgar.

Edgar was staring at the new professor with furrowed brows and pursed lips, seemingly trying to recall something.

"Who is this guy?" Lynn asked.

Edgar stared intently at Ellis for a while, his brow furrowing even more deeply.

"He seems to be an expert on magical creatures who is particularly interested in mysterious phenomena," he replied, his voice carrying a hint of uncertainty. "I think my father once fished him out of trouble while he was in South America."

Lynn fell silent.

Good grief. It seems your father is either fishing someone out of trouble or on his way to fish someone out of trouble.

For Edward, such matters were probably as commonplace as eating and drinking.

The Department of International Magical Cooperation handled precisely this sort of transnational affair. Whether it involved a wizard getting into trouble in another country, a magical creature crossing national borders, or a magical item being smuggled, it all fell under his jurisdiction.

Fishing people out of trouble was also part of his job.

Just as Edgar finished speaking, Dumbledore continued from the staff table, "I believe I just heard someone recognize Professor Ellis."

His gaze swept across the Great Hall.

"Yes, you are correct."

"Professor Ellis has spent many years traveling abroad and only recently returned to Britain. I had to put forth considerable effort to persuade him to come to Hogwarts."

A burst of enthusiastic applause instantly erupted from the students below as everyone applauded Professor Ellis’s courage.

The position of Defence Against the Dark Arts professor was cursed at Hogwarts. No one remained in the position for long, and no one left without encountering some kind of trouble.

Now, yet another person had come to fill the position.

Did he not know about the curse?

He probably did.

Yet he had come anyway.

That was courage.

It wasn’t a matter of "not being afraid of death," but rather "coming despite knowing that one might die."

The students applauded precisely that courage.

"Ahem." Ellis cleared his throat and stepped forward, leaning slightly toward the students. His gaze swept over the expectant faces below.

"I am very pleased to become your Defence Against the Dark Arts professor. I will do my utmost to pass on the knowledge I have acquired over the years."

"I have spent many years traveling abroad. I have witnessed countless magical creatures, encountered numerous dangers, and learned a great many things.

"I hope to teach those things to all of you—not for examinations or grades, but for survival. So that you may survive when confronted by the Dark Arts."

The applause from below grew even louder.

Only Snape remained seated alone at the staff table, his expression dark and somber.

---

Happy Reading. Be sure to leave a review!!!

Join my P@treon to receive extra updates daily and read up to 65+ Chapters.

P@treon: patreon.com/mrfanfiction140