At this moment, the Christmas banquet downstairs had already begun. On the snowy ground outside the castle, many wizards lit up their wands and sang in the snow.
Colorful fireworks bloomed in the air, forming the shapes of various animals.
It was gorgeous.
But in the dark corridor at the top of the castle, Hoffa walked slowly.
Moonlight shone through the gothic window lattice at the top of the castle, forming even spots of light. And the fireworks in the air from time to time lit up Hoffa's face, alternating between red and green.
He was separated from the world below the castle by an invisible aura. He remained vigilant, his meditation technique running all the time.
His mind was extremely sharp.
The short sword slowly turned into a katana as he walked, the tip of the katana leaving a small scratch on the ground.
After rounding the corner, Huo Fa suddenly stopped. He squinted his eyes and turned his head. A faintly discernible conversation entered his ears.
"Who did the Ministry of Magic send?"
The voice was somewhat familiar.
Someone was coming, it was the school teacher.
Hoffa put away his meditation technique, the katana in his hand turning back into a wand. He leaned against the corner of the wall and hid behind a suit of armor.
The conversation gradually grew louder.
Then, two figures in long robes slowly emerged from the darkness.
One was tall, the other thin.
Hoffa knew both of them, it was Dumbledore and Dippet.
Dippet asked as he walked, "Albert is here?"
Dumbledore said, "Yes, he's going to find Slughorn now. You know, they're classmates at school."
Dippet didn't say anything for a while.
Dumbledore pondered for a moment. "Do you want me to go over?"
"Go, Abusi. I feel that your worries aren't unfounded. Protect him, don't let anything happen to him in Hogwarts. The Ministry of Magic has been keeping a close eye on him recently. "
As they spoke, the two got closer and closer.
Hoffa understood, no wonder the masked man was hiding.
Facing the two headmasters of Hogwarts, Hoffa did not dare to hesitate. He immediately activated Ghost Walk and entered the Shadow World that was only gray and white.
The two of them walked past the armor.
Dumbledore asked worriedly, "Are you going out again in May?"
"It can't be helped. The situation this year is already very grim. Austria's Ministry of Magic has already collapsed. If we don't sign the agreement now, it will be too late."
Dumbledore: "Then I …"
Dippet: "I asked Adebayor to follow me. If you don't come with me, we don't have enough people. After I leave, you'll have to make arrangements for the school. "
As the two of them walked further and further away, their voices became softer and softer. Hoffa slowly exited the shadow state.
Dumbledore said, "If Violet and the others are still here, they definitely won't."
"This has nothing to do with you, Albus. Let's not talk about the past. Go to Slughorn first. "
"Alright."
With that, the Dippet in the distance opened a dripping monster-shaped stone door and disappeared inside.
Albus Dumbledore, on the other hand, stood there silently for a long time. He frowned and raised his head, as if he was sensing something.
Hoffa slowly retreated. He didn't expect the masked man to come to the principal's office.
No matter why the two principals of Hogwarts were talking here, this was definitely not something a first-year student like him could get involved in.
He had to leave this place as soon as possible.
Hoffa retreated to the end of the corridor, next to a set of steel armor, and let out a sigh of relief.
It would be good to leave this place.
But at this moment, the strange aura suddenly became stronger.
He looked up.
At the railing on the upper floor of the tower.
The masked man was staring at him coldly.
After a second of silence.
A mocking grin appeared on its face as it casually threw out a stone, which hit the head of the steel armor beside Huo Fa.
Clang.
The sound wasn't loud, but it was clear and loud in the corridor at night.
The masked man still wanted to frame him at this time.
Hoffa was stunned for a second, then he forcibly suppressed his desire to run. He stood still and stared at the figure upstairs. He didn't do anything wrong, so why run?
In the distance, Dumbledore suddenly turned his head.
He disappeared in the blink of an eye and then appeared next to Hoffa.
The two of them, one tall and one short, stared at the figure on the second floor at the same time.
Under Dumbledore's gaze, the strange figure calmly smiled at Hoffa and slowly left.
Dumbledore frowned, but he didn't stop him.
Looking at the dignified expression of the tall man beside him, Huo Fa had a bad premonition in his heart.
He finally knew what was wrong.
Except for himself.
No one could see that figure.
After a long time, Dumbledore lowered his head and looked at Hoffa. "Why are you here?"
His tone was calm, without any fluctuations.
"I'm lost, Sir."
Hoffa said with his head lowered.
Dumbledore grunted and didn't care. His gaze was still fixed on the second floor.
"I see. Have you eaten dinner?"
"No."
"Oh, come with me. I'll take you to eat something."
Dumbledore finally stopped paying attention upstairs. He patted Hoffa's shoulder and said naturally, without allowing any argument.
"Where are we going?"
Hoffa asked.
"To your potions teacher's place. Ask him for a glass of the house elf's aged wine."
Dumbledore showed a look of nostalgia.
After that, he led Hoffa and strode in front, leaving the area.
Hoffa followed behind Dumbledore, looking back every three steps. The masked man was long gone.
The two of them walked in silence for a while.
Finally, when they left the tower where the principal's office was.
Hoffa couldn't help but raise his head and ask, "Did you see anything unusual?"
Dumbledore's footsteps paused. He was slightly surprised.
"Oh, you felt it too?"
"Yes."
Hoffa nodded.
But Dumbledore didn't pursue the matter. He stroked his red beard and lamented, "Wizards with higher mental strength than ordinary people can always sense things that ordinary people can't see when they're young. That kind of unpredictable magical substance, the ghosts that wander the boundary between reality and illusion. This is a gift, but also a curse. "
"You saw it?" Hoffa asked. "That."
"I can't see it. Being able to feel it doesn't mean I can see it. I'm old."
Dumbledore shook his head and said lightly, "Sometimes, seeing something unusual isn't a good thing. Bach, you're still young. You should put your energy on your friends in the real world."
Couldn't see?
Even though Huo Fa was mentally prepared, he still felt a chill in his heart when he heard the news.
He recalled the three times he'd met the masked man.
The first time was in Violet's secret room. It directly came out of the painting, and he didn't suspect anything.
But now that he thought about it, that wasn't normal at all. Even Wizards couldn't come out of the painting directly. Dippet had to open the painting to enter.
Moreover, it was always alone. Even if it stood in a crowd, others would ignore it.
It was even more ghostly than a ghost.
Walking down the tower, he wanted to ask more questions, but Dumbledore had already walked forward and enthusiastically greeted a few Wizards.
They arrived at Slughorn's office.
Slughorn was the principal of Slytherin, but he was different from the previous principals of Slytherin. His office was not in the basement, but on the third floor of the castle. It was next to the office of the Defense against Dark Magic teacher, Mellors.
Perhaps Slughorn thought that this place was more suitable for gatherings.
After greeting them, Hoffa saw Slughorn after passing by two house elves who were receiving invitations.
He had a big belly and was wearing a purple smoking shirt. He was happily chatting with others at the door.
Seeing Dumbledore appear with Hoffa, his expression was slightly stunned. But he immediately put away his expression and quickly walked to Dumbledore's side.
Dumbledore, on the other hand, nudged Hoffa.
Hoffa understood and entered the office alone. He gave them a private space to chat.
Perhaps it was because of magic, or because of it, Slughorn's office was much bigger than a normal teacher's room.
The ceiling and walls were hung with green, crimson, and gold draperies, making it seem like they were in a large tent.
The room was crowded and hot, and was illuminated by a golden lantern hanging in the middle of the ceiling. There were real elves flickering in the lantern, and each elf was a bright spot of light.
A few old wizards who were chatting enthusiastically had green smoke from their pipes above their heads. Some house elves were carrying heavy silver plates and walking around, preparing the dining table.
There were already many people gathered here, men and women, young and old. They were all wearing ceremonial robes.
Hoffa quickly saw Miranda and Aglaia in the crowd. They were surrounded by a group of senior students.
They were all dressed up nicely in ceremonial robes. One was noble and beautiful, while the other was petite and cute.
This made Hoffa slightly uncomfortable, because he did not have a ceremonial robe, only a school robe.
Hoffa also saw Tom Riddle beside a pine tree hung with colorful balls.
At this moment, his opponent from the orphanage had become a male social butterfly. Although he wore ordinary clothes, his extraordinary temperament and handsome appearance attracted many elders to stop in their tracks.
Coupled with his courteous manner of speech, no one would associate him with the future Dark Devil King.
Aglaia saw Hoffa at a glance, and her expression was a little stunned. Then she intentionally or unintentionally whispered a few words in Miranda's ear.
Miranda immediately turned her head to look.
But she did not do anything special, and only nodded at Hoffa.
Hoffa nodded at her awkwardly.
She invited him to come, but he did not come.
In the end, he was brought here by Dumbledore on the way.
Thinking from Miranda's point of view.
Hoffa felt that he was very cheap.
Not long after, the dining table was prepared.
Unlike the auditorium below, this was probably a family banquet. Although it was not as grand and lively as the auditorium, it was more exquisite.
A dozen house elves shuttled back and forth under Hoffa's feet, each with a silver plate on their head.
Presumably, a person like Slughorn would not like to snap his fingers and have food appear, then snap his fingers again and the food would disappear. He liked ostentatious and traditional.
But this also gave Hoffa a chance to truly observe traditional Western festivals.
Turkey stuffed with truffles, neatly stacked roast quail. Stacks of thick meat sauce, roasted creamy corn porridge, and minced meat pies cut into a dozen pieces were placed on Zizi's plate with strawberry jam on top. A dozen almond puddings in small porcelain containers, probably one for each person.
Hoffa also saw a roasted suckling pig with a bright red apple in its mouth. It had to be said that the food was very good.
Looking at the variety of food in front of him, Hoffa suddenly realized that he was really hungry. When he chased the faceless man, he ran at least forty floors.
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