Chapter 453 ?Conversation

Chapter 453 Conversation

As soon as Dumbledore finished speaking, countless delicacies suddenly appeared on the empty long table in front of everyone.

Now the auditorium became lively. The students who had been on the train all afternoon immediately started to eat. Especially the freshmen, perhaps because it was their first time to see such a scene, they became special. excited.

To be honest, Mike couldn't understand their behavior. After all, there is almost unlimited food on the table within the specified time, because the house elves in the kitchen will continuously replenish it, so there is no need for this.

But even if he doesn’t understand, Mike is still quite happy, because such a lively scene is really very happy to see, and now the auditorium is even completely filled with laughter.

After watching the excitement for a while, Mike turned his attention to the faculty and staff seats again.

Mike had been paying attention to Dumbledore's arm while he was speaking.

But unfortunately, there seemed to be some powerful shielding spell attached to it, preventing even Mike from detecting Dumbledore's true condition.

However, judging from what Mike observed with the naked eye, Dumbledore's injuries were frighteningly serious.

After making this conclusion, the corners of Mike's mouth finally turned up, and he immersed himself in the feast with peace of mind.

Happy time is always short-lived, and this buffet feast only lasted about half an hour and ended.

This time is a bit short for old students like Mike who have a strong social desire, but it is enough for freshmen and junior students. After all, their meals are really just eating, and some freshmen have small appetites. I was full within ten minutes of the feast.

After all the food on the plate disappeared in front of everyone, Dumbledore slowly stood up from the chair, came to the podium and said:

"Okay, this feast is finally over. Now I really have a lot to say to you. First of all, it is still Mr. Filch's request. His 404th request asked me to tell you that no one is allowed in the corridor. Nonsense. Besides..."

Dumbledore began to talk about the same precautions as in previous years. Mike was not interested in this, so he looked away.

In a corner of the faculty seat, Professor Slughorn was pulling Professor Flitwick and talking continuously, seemingly reminiscing about old times, but Professor Flitwick looked a little impatient and obviously displeased. Why would you want to talk to Slughorn?

Hagrid on the other side was sitting with Professor Trelawney from the Divination class. This was really a strange thing, because Trelawny, a eccentric witch, usually would not leave her small attic. Even classes would be held in the classroom under her attic.

But this is understandable. After all, she was tortured quite badly by Umbridge last year and was almost kicked out of Hogwarts, so now it is understandable that she wants to show her face a few more times and brush up her presence. of.

"...Today, we are very happy to welcome a new professor—Professor Slughorn!" Dumbledore's voice suddenly became louder. "He is a former colleague. After some discussion, he decided to return to his old job and become the Potions Professor at Hogwarts this year!"

After hearing this, Mike immediately heard the sound and saw Professor Slughorn, whose name was called, smiling and waving to the students in the auditorium. He was responding to the enthusiastic cheers of the students.

But what is embarrassing is that there is not even a little applause from the audience, let alone cheers.

Nowadays, there is only one thing that everyone is concerned about, and that is, since Slughorn's arrival has taken away the position of Potions Professor, where should Snape go?

Originally, the boy in Slytherin who was invited to the lunch was about to applaud, but was forcibly stopped by Draco on the side.

Gradually, the muscles on Slughorn's face became stiff, and a rich red color slowly appeared on his earlobes.

Mike smiled slightly when he saw this, then stood up and started applauding.

His move stunned the Ravenclaws around him, and they almost reflexively stood up and began to applaud along with Mike.

Then came Hufflepuff, then Gryffindor, and finally sparse applause came from the Slytherin table.

The expression on Slughorn's face became slightly better. He glanced at Mike gratefully, and then glared viciously at Draco on the Slytherin side - he was shocked by their little actions below. But I saw them all.

Dumbledore was still smiling. Looking at the auditorium filled with thunderous applause, he suddenly raised his voice and said at a high volume that overwhelmed all the applause present:

"In the meantime, Professor Snape will be the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts for the next year!"

As soon as these words were spoken, an extremely dramatic scene occurred.

The auditorium, which had been filled with thunderous applause, suddenly fell silent. Everyone stared at Dumbledore with wide eyes and a look of disbelief.

Snape moved. He did not stand up and greet everyone like Slughorn, but sat lazily on his seat and waved expressionlessly.

At this moment, the Slytherin table was in a commotion. They slapped the table wildly and cheered loudly. Draco was the most excited. He climbed onto the table excitedly and kept waving his arms to the staff seats.

At this time, students from other colleges finally reacted. Everyone gathered together and whispered, and the auditorium suddenly became as noisy as a vegetable market.

"Why are they so happy?" Franklin looked at the Slytherin table with a puzzled expression. "I don't understand. Does the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor have a higher status than the Potions professor?"

A Ravenclaw fraternity member replied:

"You know, Snape's dream is to become a Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, and now, he finally got his wish."

"That's it?"

"I guess so, maybe they think Snape will give them more preferential treatment after becoming the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, otherwise they can't explain their behavior." Another Ravenclaw said, "But that's okay. No big deal, after all, Snape's Defense Against the Dark Arts professor won't last long. You must know that this position is cursed, and no one can hold this position for more than a year.

But to be honest, this is quite ironic. A Death Eater actually became the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts, hahaha! "

As soon as these words came out, there was a mocking chuckle from the Ravenclaw table.

At this moment, Mike was staring at Snape without saying a word. For some reason, he always felt that instead of feeling happy at this moment, Snape seemed a little irritable.

After letting the students go for a while, Dumbledore finally spoke up again. This time, he first used an explosive spell to attract all kinds of attention, and then said slowly:

"I believe that everyone in this hall is well aware that Voldemort and his followers are making trouble everywhere and growing.

I need to emphasize that the current situation is very dangerous, and everyone at Hogwarts needs to be extremely cautious to ensure our own safety.

The castle's magical defenses have been strengthened over the summer holidays, giving us even greater protection.

But each of our students still needs to be vigilant at all times. Here, I sincerely implore you to strictly abide by every safety rule set by the teachers, no matter how annoying those rules are, especially those who can't sleep at night and like to wander around. student. "

When Dumbledore said this, he paused and glanced at the Harry trio, Mike and others.

"Okay, your bed is waiting for you, and it is as comfortable and warm as you expected." Dumbledore continued, "I know your top priority now is to get a good rest and prepare for class tomorrow, so let us say Say good night."

After saying this, Dumbledore raised his wand with his good arm, and then the four long tables in the auditorium were neatly stacked on both sides, leaving a large open space.

Everyone who lost their seats said goodbye to Dumbledore, and then walked neatly and slowly towards their respective college lounges, led by their respective grade prefects.

This year's opening dinner has come to an end. Many students have already begun to yawn, especially some of the first and second grade students who have been playing all day long and can barely keep their eyes open now.

The professors also started to leave. They must prepare for tomorrow's classes when they go back tonight.

Dumbledore continued to stand motionless on the podium, smiling as he watched the students slowly leave the auditorium.

It wasn't until the last student disappeared that he extinguished the candles in the auditorium, turned around and walked upstairs.

"Dumbledore, I think we need to talk."

Suddenly an old voice came from the darkness. Dumbledore's brows jumped and he was stunned for a moment before saying:

"Horace, is there anything we can't talk about tomorrow? You have morning classes to attend tomorrow."

Professor Slughorn came out of the darkness and said with a serious expression:

"No, I have to talk to you now!"

Dumbledore was silent. He stared at Slughorn. The two looked at each other for a long time before Dumbledore sighed:

"If that's what you insist on, fine. Let's go to my office."

After saying that, Dumbledore turned around and continued walking upstairs, while Slughorn followed him.

The two of them remained silent all the way, and Dumbledore walked very fast, which made Slughorn have to jog to keep up with him.

Soon, Slughorn's breathing began to become rapid.

Perhaps to ease the embarrassment caused by silence, or simply to slow down Dumbledore's attention, Slughorn said:

"Hey, Dumbledore, are your hands okay? Do you want me to take a look at them? You know, I'm not only a potion master, but I'm also pretty good at healing."

Hearing this, Dumbledore's body stiffened, and he instinctively put the injured hand wrapped in silk ties into the sleeve of his robe.

"Thank you, Horace, but no need. Severus has already treated me. I believe I will be cured in a short time."

"Okay...but...can you walk slower? Huh~ I can't keep up."

Dumbledore didn't reply, but calmly slowed down, which made Slughorn sigh in relief.

After a long journey, the two finally arrived at the principal's office.

Slughorn collapsed on the sofa chair and gasped, while Dumbledore poured him a glass of water, then sat behind the desk and whispered:

"Tell me, Horace, what do you want to talk to me about?"

"Thank you! Phew~ This really saved my life." Slughorn drank all the water in the glass and then said, "McTownley, Dumbledore, I want to talk to you about Mike Townley. "

Upon hearing this name, Dumbledore's expression froze, and after a while he asked:

"What do you want to know?"

"Do you know anything about the whereabouts of the Ever family? Why does Mike Townley's Los Santos Group publicly sell exclusive merchandise of the Ever family? What is the connection between the two?"

Dumbledore was silent. Slughorn waited for a long time without receiving a reply, and finally murmured in a daze:

"They...can't come back, right?"

"That's right."

"Mike killed them all?"

silence……

"Okay, I think I know." Slughorn said excitedly, and at the same time he reached out to pick up the refilled water glass and took a sip, but his hand was trembling slightly, causing the water in the glass to tremble. There were ripples, "So Mike is really strong!"

Seeing Slughorn's excited look, Dumbledore frowned and said:

"Horace, I'll give you a piece of advice, don't get too close to Mike, he's very dangerous!"

"You mean he's a bad guy with a history of evil?"

"Of course not. Even what happened to the Avery family has a reason. He can't be blamed entirely."

"Isn't that great? I think Mike is a good boy." Slughorn said with a smile, "Do you know how embarrassed I was on the stage just now? There were so many people, but no one was alone. I'm welcome back to Hogwarts, even Slytherin, where I was once Head of House!

And that's when Mike stepped up and gave me his support, which was such a tender gesture, wasn't it? Dumbledore. "

Dumbledore didn't reply. He frowned, and his deep eyes seemed to be staring at Slughorn in front of him, or at the unknown existence in the darkness.

Slughorn's expression looked very relaxed. He stood up and straightened his appearance before slowly walking out of the principal's office, saying as he walked:

"Just take good care of yourself, Dumbledore, and don't worry too much about me. I won't make the same mistakes again."

With the creak of the door cup closing, the entire office fell into complete silence. Dumbledore slowly leaned back, leaned his entire body on the back of the chair, and sighed deeply.

"Alas~"