"Phew!"
Link took a deep breath while staring at the phoenix Fawkes, who was preening its feathers in front of him.
"I really envy you, Professor Dumbledore, for having a magical creature like Fawkes," Link said with a smile. "Every time I'm transported by Fawkes, I can't help but feel this is the smoothest teleportation I've ever experienced."
Fawkes seemed to understand Link's praise and happily stretched its wings.
Dumbledore, however, spread his hands and said, "If I remember correctly, you've already learned Apparition, and you're quite good at it too, right?"
"That's right, I have learned it," Link said, spreading his hands. "But learning Apparition doesn't mean you can reduce the discomfort during the process. In fact, I've just gotten used to it."
Dumbledore nodded in agreement, then quickly put Fawkes away.
That move left Link speechless.
He hadn't expected Dumbledore to be so stingy.
The moment he heard Link showing interest in Fawkes, he immediately dismissed the phoenix, not even letting him look any longer.
Shaking his head helplessly, Link began observing the surroundings.
The place where he and Dumbledore were standing now looked like the courtyard of an abandoned village. In the middle stood an old war memorial, with a few benches nearby.
Farther away, there was an empty little tavern and several houses.
Because they had spent too much time waiting for Dumbledore to finish his work at Hogwarts, it was now completely dark.
From the clock on a nearby church, it was already close to ten at night.
As they walked outward, Link asked, "Where is this place?"
"A charming village called Budleigh Babberton, Link, and also where Professor Slughorn lives."
Dumbledore spoke lightly, turning a corner with Link as he did so.
Looking at the pitch-black village ahead, Link sighed, "He really knows how to pick a place."
He had already scanned the area with his mental power.
The result was that the entire town had fewer than 300 people.
Not only that, more than half of those people were elderly.
A town with such severe population loss might be easy to find in later years, but in this era, it was quite rare.
"But I still have a question," Link added. "Since you already know the exact location of his house, why didn't you have Fawkes take us directly inside?"
"Because that would be as rude as kicking open someone else's door," Dumbledore said calmly. "And his residence is protected by anti-Apparition charms."
"Oh, come on. I don't believe ordinary anti-Apparition charms would work against a phoenix, and no one would go out of their way to set up one specifically to guard against phoenixes. As for what you said about being rude, I think with our..."
Link suddenly stopped mid-sentence.
In truth, his memories about Professor Slughorn from his previous life had already become somewhat vague.
He only remembered general information about Slughorn. Details like his residence or personality were mostly a blur.
After hearing Dumbledore's obviously odd explanation, he realized something.
"You mean, this Horace Slughorn doesn't welcome us?", Link said expressionlessly.
"To be precise, he doesn't welcome me," Dumbledore said with a wry smile. "He believes nothing good ever comes from me appearing in front of him."
Link said nothing, but a hint of agreement flashed in his eyes.
Dumbledore was indeed ruthless when it came to setting people up.
The key was that he could make you accept it without complaint.
Because he was usually doing it not for himself, but for the wizarding world.
Just recognizing that already showed Horace Slughorn was quite wise.
If Dumbledore had noticed Link's thoughts at that moment, he would probably have fainted from anger.
But right now, all of Dumbledore's attention was focused on a lone villa not far away.
He led Link forward a bit more before stopping in front of the villa.
"Well then, we've arrived."
"Lumos."
Link lit his wand.
Under the pale white glow, the entire villa became clearly visible.
It was a neat little stone house set within a garden.
The overall feeling it gave was warmth and tranquility, and also, ordinary.
So ordinary that it was almost no different from a typical Muggle house.
In the wizarding world, that kind of normalcy was the greatest oddity.
Because most wizards liked to add something special to their homes to show their identity.
It was like a kind of code, one that only wizards could recognize.
But this villa had nothing special at all.
If there was anything strange, it was that at this hour of the night, the front door's hinges were broken, and the door hung crookedly.
Dumbledore glanced at the empty street, drew his wand, pushed open the front door, and quietly strode along the garden path before entering the villa.
The light from Lumos revealed a narrow hallway.
There was also an open door on the left.
Without a word, Link held up his wand and walked in first.
What he saw was complete chaos.
In the large living room, a grandfather clock lay shattered at their feet. Its face was cracked, and the pendulum lay farther away, like an abandoned sword.
On the other side, a piano was overturned, its keys scattered everywhere. Nearby, fragments of a shattered chandelier glittered faintly.
Cushions were thrown about in disarray, flattened, with feathers sticking out from tears. Broken glass and porcelain were scattered across the floor like powder.
Dumbledore raised his wand higher, illuminating the walls, where dark red, sticky splatters stained the wallpaper.
Stepping over the debris with crunching sounds, Link walked to the center of the room.
The level of destruction made it seem as if a fierce wizard battle had just taken place, and Horace Slughorn had been abducted.
But the problem was, it was far too ridiculous.
"Professor Dumbledore, it seems what you said earlier was an understatement," Link said with a grin. "This Professor Slughorn doesn't just not welcome you. He practically fears you like the plague."
Faced with Link's teasing, Dumbledore pursed his lips and said nothing. Instead, he suddenly jabbed his wand into the cushion of a plump armchair.
"Ah!"
The chair suddenly let out a scream.
Dumbledore straightened up and said, "Good evening, Horace."
As he spoke, the chair rapidly began to transform, and in the blink of an eye, it turned into a bald, fat old man.
He crouched there, rubbing his belly, squinting one teary, pained eye at Dumbledore.
"You didn't have to be so rough," he said angrily as he struggled to stand. "That hurt like hell!"
The old man didn't look particularly good.
The light from Lumos shone on him, making his bald head gleam harshly.
The poor lighting cast heavy bags under his bulging eyes and made his silvery-white beard look especially messy.
The only thing worth praising was his brownish-purple velvet robe.
The horn buttons on it gleamed like gemstones.
"How did I give myself away?"
he asked gruffly, not embarrassed at all by what he had just done.
"My dear Horace," Dumbledore said with amusement, "I'd love to say I saw through everything with my powerful mind and magic, but in fact…"
Link naturally picked up the sentence, "But in fact, that's not the case. The moment we walked in, we already knew this scene was staged."
Slughorn's brows twisted tightly together, clearly not believing it.
Seeing this, Link chuckled and pointed at the dark red sticky "blood" on the wall.
"Take this for example. Honestly, unless someone was instantly decapitated or something similar, there's no way blood would spray this high."
"And with all the furniture smashed like this, it suggests an extremely brutal and desperate battle."
"But the problem is, Professor Slughorn, you're probably not that strong."
"If someone really broke in, the most likely scenario is that they would have taken you away effortlessly."
"Not that there was a bloody fight here, and you even managed to decapitate one of them midway. Haha!"
Link couldn't help laughing. "I understand you wanted to show that you put up a fierce resistance before being taken. But this… isn't it a bit too ridiculous?"
As Link spoke, Slughorn's expression kept changing until it turned completely dark.
He glared at Link and roared, "Shut up! You rude boy! You're still a Hogwarts student, aren't you?"
"It's hard to imagine that the standard of teaching at Hogwarts has fallen this low, to the point that you don't even understand basic manners! Dumbledore, you really should reflect on this!"
At this, Link laughed even harder.
He found Slughorn's furious, flailing behavior quite amusing.
Meanwhile, Dumbledore waved his wand, restoring the living room that Slughorn had disguised as ruins.
He set the piano upright, stood the clock back in place, and after putting everything back in order, he turned on the lights and said to the sulking Slughorn, "Yes, in fact, I have been reflecting, and you are the result of that reflection. Horace, return to Hogwarts and resume your position as the Potions professor. We need you now."
Hearing this, Slughorn's expression changed instantly, like a candle being snuffed out.
He stared at Dumbledore for a long time before forcing an awkward smile.
"Ha! Dumbledore, you must be joking, right? At my age, how could I possibly go back to teaching at Hogwarts? I..."
"No, I'm not joking," Dumbledore interrupted seriously. "I'm sincerely inviting you."
The forced smile on Slughorn's face froze.
He sat back down on the restored sofa, his expression gloomy.
"That's impossible. The Death Eaters are running rampant now. The entire British Ministry of Magic has entered a state of war."
"No, not just Britain, things aren't peaceful elsewhere either. Haven't you seen the news? Beauxbatons was attacked and suffered heavy losses."
"At a time like this, I don't want to get involved. I'm just a retired old man. Please let me enjoy my later years in peace. Besides, I'm already fed up with being harassed!"
"Harassed? Who's harassing you?" Link narrowed his eyes.
"The Death Eaters? They should welcome you, shouldn't they? After all, your knowledge of potions could greatly help their cause. For example, brewing poisons that could kill countless people."
Slughorn glared at Link for a moment, then said in a low voice, "I didn't give them the chance. For the past two years, I've been constantly on the move."
"Never staying in one place for more than a week, moving from one Muggle house to another. You were just lucky."
"Recently, the Ministry finally did something right and beat the Dark Lord badly, suppressing most of the Death Eaters."
"That's why I've had some peace and stayed here a bit longer. Otherwise, you would never have found me!"
Dumbledore smiled.
"A clever plan. But for a helpless old man who just wants a quiet life, isn't this constant hiding and running too exhausting? Think about it. If you returned to Hogwarts..."
"If you're going to tell me that I'd live more peacefully at that dreadful school, Dumbledore, save your breath," Slughorn said firmly.
"I have a feeling that this world is about to undergo a huge change. And this time, it might be even more terrifying than when Grindelwald was around. Compared to getting caught up in that, I'd rather endure a bit of hardship!"
"Also…"
Slughorn pointed at Link.
"Who exactly is this boy? If he really is a Hogwarts student, I suggest you deduct his house points. I was once a professor there, and head of Slytherin House. He's shown me far too little respect!"
Dumbledore and Link exchanged a glance, both wearing slightly strange smiles.
"Ahem..."
Dumbledore cleared his throat.
"Let me introduce him. This is one of Hogwarts' board governors, Link..."
"Link? A governor? That name sounds familiar…"
Slughorn muttered, his pupils suddenly widening.
"Merlin's beard, you wouldn't happen to be Link Flamel, would you?"
Link said nothing, simply standing there quietly.
Slughorn suddenly jumped up from the sofa, grabbed Link's arm, and asked eagerly, "You're really that Link Flamel? The one who reformed Hogwarts and the Ministry, and led the Aurors to defeat the Dark Lord?"
Link raised an eyebrow and smiled.
"I didn't expect your information network to still be so sharp, Professor Slughorn. These aren't things ordinary people would know."
"Of course! I was vice president of the Potions Association and a Hogwarts professor for many years. I still have connections! No, forget that!"
Slughorn's proud expression was instantly replaced by excitement.
"If that's the case, then you're admitting it! Merlin, to meet you here is truly my honor!"
"Well, I think that's a bit much, Horace..."
"No, not at all!" Slughorn waved his hands at Dumbledore.
"You have no idea how astonishing Mr. Link Flamel's achievements are! Setting aside how he took Hogwarts back from Umbridge, just look at how he reformed the Ministry and dismantled the Wizengamot."
"How many people in history have accomplished that? Maybe you think it's nothing special, but don't forget his age. He isn't even twenty yet! I'd say even you didn't have such power and talent at his age!"
Dumbledore was left speechless, though the smile in his eyes grew stronger.
Link was also smiling.
Slughorn's dramatic shift in attitude was quite amusing.
After Slughorn finished speaking, Dumbledore smiled and continued, "In that case, you have even more reason to return to Hogwarts. After all, Link hasn't graduated yet. If you come back, you could be his professor."
As he spoke, Dumbledore gave Link a meaningful look.
At this, Slughorn's eyes lit up instantly.
He pointed at Link, then at himself, stammering, "Re… really? If I return to Hogwarts, you'd truly be willing… willing to acknowledge me as your professor?"
Link rolled his eyes at Dumbledore.
By now, he understood Dumbledore's plan.
Dumbledore wanted to use him, a famous student, to draw Slughorn back.
This kind of thing wasn't uncommon in the academic world.
When someone became exceptional enough, it was no longer teachers choosing them, but them choosing teachers.
And clearly, Link was that kind of student.
Being his professor, and being acknowledged by him, was extremely attractive to someone like Slughorn.
Under Slughorn's eager gaze, Link finally nodded.
"Of course, Professor Slughorn. I respect every professor at Hogwarts."
"Then that settles it! You've convinced me!"
Slughorn suddenly became serious.
"I accept! I'll get involved in this mess, return to Hogwarts, and continue contributing!"
"Wonderful," Dumbledore said, visibly pleased. "Then, Horace, we'll see you on September first."
Slughorn rubbed his hands together and agreed repeatedly, still clearly excited.
That excitement would probably last a long time.
Because even as Link and Dumbledore left the villa and walked down the garden path, they could still hear Slughorn shouting behind them, "I'm going to ask for a raise, Dumbledore!"
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