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"Very good. He has a talent for Potions surpassed by very few wizards."
Snape's tone sounded a little impatient, as though he did not particularly want to discuss Dudley with Dumbledore.
"Perhaps he'll inherit everything I know about Potions. Perhaps he'll even go beyond that. Who knows, perhaps he might even become Minister for Magic... tch. Who can say?"
"But, Albus, don't spoil that boy too much. A potion like Veritaserum cannot be used freely even by Aurors, much less by a young wizard who hasn't even finished his first year."
Compared to Snape's stern tone, Dumbledore sounded much lighter. He popped two more sweets into his mouth and winked at Snape.
"Severus, as you yourself said, he's still only a child... no one would believe that a first-year student could brew a potion like that. And besides, I think he's right. Hogwarts really does need to change its current state a little."
"And speaking of not spoiling him, the real culprit here is you, isn't it?"
Snape did not answer Dumbledore. He merely let out a cold huff, gave the sleeve of his black robe a sharp flick, and said,
"If there's nothing else, then I'll be leaving."
After Snape left, Dumbledore remained seated, savoring Dudley's words in his mind.
"A very modern theory..."
Uniting the four Houses was not an idea without logic.
The problem was that he truly could not do it.
Then his thoughts returned to that phrase of Dudley's about teaching everyone without distinction...
"If it hadn't been for the atmosphere in Slytherin, perhaps Tom wouldn't have..."
But with that sort of thing... who could really say?
"What do you think, Headmasters?"
Dumbledore asked the portraits of the former Headmasters above his head.
"An impressive boy. He truly understands a great many things."
The old witch with long, curly silver hair opened her eyes at once and commented with admiration.
Dilys Derwent.
Besides having been a Headmistress of Hogwarts, she had also been a very famous Healer.
"Uniting the four Houses... what a bold idea."
This time, the speaker was a thin white-haired wizard, Armando Dippet, the Headmaster before Dumbledore.
"Albus, his ideas are bolder than yours, and he has more courage than you. That boy truly should have gone to Gryffindor. Sorting Hat, just how did you make that decision?"
His tone was full of admiration for Dudley.
"Hey, you just praised his idea. If the four Houses are united, then there won't be any Gryffindor left."
The moment that was said, another portrait immediately shot back.
"He is ambitious. I saw that in him. Truly worthy of Slytherin."
The one who spoke this time was an old man with a somewhat gloomy appearance, Phineas Nigellus Black, the only Slytherin Headmaster in Hogwarts history. He was also known as the most unpopular Headmaster Hogwarts had ever had.
"Shut up, Phineas!"
Poor Phineas had barely finished speaking before he was dragged off by the Headmasters in the neighboring portraits.
Even then, they could still hear him shouting something about the glory of Slytherin.
"He's right. I do think this disciplinary group should be created."
This time, the speaker was a pale-faced wizard with short black bangs.
Everard.
Even among all the former Headmasters of Hogwarts, he was a figure of enormous prestige. He carried great reputation throughout the wizarding world.
"Albus, he's right. You really ought to think this through carefully."
"I know, I know..."
Dumbledore nodded, though no one knew what he was really thinking at that moment.
"Oh dear. It's gotten so late already? I've no idea whether the skeleton band has arrived yet. It's time to begin the feast."
...
The entire Great Hall was filled with colorful Halloween decorations. A thousand bats were swooping around the walls and ceiling, while another thousand, like low black clouds, circled over the tables, making the candles inside the pumpkins flicker endlessly as they floated up and down in the air.
It was safe to say the festive atmosphere was incredibly strong.
That was, of course, if one ignored the fact that an entire section of first-years was missing from the Gryffindor table.
"Dudley, are you okay?"
When they saw Dudley walk into the Hall as though nothing had happened, Hermione and the others rushed over to him with delight written all over their faces.
They looked him up and down, trying to see whether some part of him had been torn off.
"Professor Dumbledore didn't make things difficult for you?"
Dudley gave Hermione a light pat on the head.
"Of course not. I already told you. We're on the side of reason."
When reason was on your side, you could go anywhere.
Of course, reason alone was not enough.
You also needed strength.
Then he gave Harry and Ron each two light pats on the shoulder.
"Hey, Ron, thanks for helping us back there."
"No, I... I didn't do anything..."
Ron became so embarrassed by the thanks that he barely knew where to look. Then, all of a sudden, he seemed to remember something and broke into a grin.
"Wait... Dursley, you actually said my name right."
Practically everyone, to one degree or another, got his name wrong. Before, only Harry and Hermione said it correctly.
But now it seemed there was going to be one more.
"You don't have to be so formal with me. If you want, you can call me D, like Harry and Draco do."
The moment he heard that, Harry felt a little, just a little, unhappy.
But it passed in an instant.
"All right, D."
Ron replied happily.
"D, I think my training needs to get tougher. I don't want to end up like I did today, unable to do anything."
"You really do need to get stronger. And not just physically."
"Starting tomorrow, I'll set aside some time to teach you all a few spells."
Dudley spoke in a way that carried another meaning beneath it. In terms of theory alone, teaching Harry and the others was more than easy enough for him.
As for the reason...
A disciplinary group couldn't consist of only him, could it?
"Really?"
Harry and Ron asked, their faces lighting up with joy.
After all, Dudley's Lumos, that nearly miniature sun of his, really had opened their eyes.
It was absurdly stylish.
Dudley suddenly turned his head and spoke to Neville, who was sitting alone on the bench.
"Mr. Longbottom, if you'd like to join us, we'll be at the main gate tomorrow at seven in the morning."
He extended the invitation to Neville with complete sincerity, and at the end, he added one more sentence.
"Your build is genuinely very well suited for training."
"R-Re-Really?"
Neville asked, completely incredulous, stumbling over his own words.
Dudley nodded.
"Of course. If you want to."
"I do."
Neville answered at once. He had wanted to join Dudley's little circle for a very long time already.
Dudley stayed at the Gryffindor table a little longer, and when the feast was just about to begin, he returned to the Slytherin table.
There, sitting beside Dudley, were only Malfoy and his two lackeys.
Or, more accurately, Malfoy insisted on sitting beside Dudley, while Crabbe and Goyle had been dragged over there by force. The two chubby boys sat next to Malfoy, trembling nonstop, their faces pale as paper, as though they were being marched to their deaths.
"Why are you two so afraid of me? I don't eat people."
Dudley ran a hand over his smooth chin and muttered to himself.
The instant he finished speaking, the two of them started trembling even harder.
Malfoy seemed to know something, so he leaned in discreetly to explain it to Dudley.
Whether Dudley actually ate people was another matter, but no one knew where it had started, and yet a rumor was already spreading that Dudley had used a single spell to make Gryffindor attack itself.
The empty stretch at the Gryffindor first-year bench was apparently proof of that.
That made the young Slytherins revere Dudley even more.
And naturally, those who were already afraid of him became even more frightened.
It did not take long after Dudley sat down for the professors to begin taking their seats as well. With Dumbledore's announcement, the feast officially began.
Dudley casually picked up a lamb chop and stripped it clean in one go, leaving only a polished bone behind. As he chewed, he said,
"The truth is, if you spend more time around me, you'll realize I'm extremely approachable. And also very cultured and easy to get along with."
"Isn't that right, Draco?"
When Dudley called on him, Malfoy answered with a sentence that even he himself did not believe.
"Uh... yes, D."
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