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Chapter 175 - Chapter 175: Be My Date for the Ball

With the virtual image of the entire graveyard constructed in her mind, Amanda once again strictly followed Peter Pettigrew's height and build to create a character model for him.

Based on probability calculations, she determined the most likely location for Apparition to arrive, and then, based on psychological analysis of Voldemort and Peter Pettigrew, she judged where they would walk.

Voldemort's personality was tyrannical and arrogant; he would want Harry to watch him resurrect with his own eyes, and he would want to see Harry—the person who caused him to die once—the very moment he was reborn.

And after capturing Harry, where in this graveyard would be most suitable for tying him up?

On the virtual model of the graveyard in Amanda's brain, various data points were instantly generated, representing the probabilities of Harry being tied up in corresponding locations.

Her gaze finally landed on the cross in front of Voldemort's father's grave; the probability reached eighty-one percent. If nothing went wrong, Harry would be tied there.

So, corresponding to that spot, Amanda turned around and began analyzing Peter Pettigrew again in her mind, as he would be the one physically carrying Voldemort.

Peter Pettigrew was as timid as a mouse; it was impossible for him to carry Voldemort without any qualms, and he would be impatient to put Voldemort down.

Yet he wouldn't dare let Voldemort see this. Therefore, starting from the cross in front of Voldemort's father's tombstone, she took a midpoint.

In the virtual graveyard, a virtual Peter Pettigrew suddenly appeared carrying something. He then walked forward a few steps and waved his wand, causing a large cauldron to appear on the ground.

Comparing the real graveyard with the location chosen by Peter Pettigrew in the virtual graveyard, Amanda confidently pointed her hand to a spot not far in front of her.

"Plant a remote-controlled bomb here. Please make sure the bomb's power isn't enough to kill, just enough to maim the person."

She hadn't forgotten what Headmaster Dumbledore had said before: to completely kill Voldemort, he must be allowed to resurrect first.

After finally getting Voldemort to resurrect according to their plan, Amanda didn't want all that effort to go to waste in a single instant.

Receiving Amanda's instructions, the leading woman nodded. These professionals immediately set to work digging holes and placing the remote-controlled bombs. For them, determining the quantity of explosives needed according to Amanda's requirements was simply too easy.

After all, this was what they did for a living.

Watching these people nimbly bury the remote-controlled bombs and restore the ground to its original state, Amanda nodded in satisfaction.

She then turned back and pointed to Voldemort's father's grave. "Around this grave, plant remote-controlled bombs. The explosive power needs to be enough to turn this grave and everything inside it to ashes."

Hearing these words, not only was the leading woman stunned, but the men under her were also taken aback.

Everyone looked at each other for a full two seconds. This... what kind of grudge was this, to want to blow up someone's grave? And to leave nothing behind?

However, obedience was their first duty. At the leading woman's signal, a sufficient amount of remote-controlled bombs were buried around Voldemort's father's grave, and then the surface soil was restored to its original state.

"This is the remote control. Press the red button, and the remote-controlled bombs will explode after ten seconds. The remote range is two hundred meters."

"Alright, thank you for your hard work." Amanda took the remote control and nodded her thanks to the leading woman and her team members.

"Uh, you're welcome." The leading woman looked at Amanda, feeling a bit dazed. Having dealt with old foxes too much, suddenly encountering such a sincere child... it was actually a bit hard to get used to.

But how was this child able to get Madam Prime Minister to mobilize them? And why was this child called a Wizard? Was her sudden appearance just now really magic?

The leading woman's heart was full of doubts, but she knew better than to ask what she shouldn't. In the end, she said nothing, only watching with wide eyes as Amanda picked up the stone she had thrown on the ground not long ago and vanished on the spot the moment she touched it.

"Commander, this..."

"Don't ask what you shouldn't ask." The leading woman looked back at the young man who had spoken.

"Yes." The young man nodded and made a zipping motion over his mouth.

What needs to be known will eventually be known. The leading woman gripped the butt of her gun; a child like this, already like this now, could not possibly remain unknown in the future.

Returning to the outskirts of Hogwarts Castle, Amanda threw the stone in her hand high into the air. Without even drawing her wand, she simply blinked at it, and the stone was instantly turned to dust by a Explosion Charm.

Entering Hogwarts Castle, Amanda walked quickly toward Ravenclaw Tower. As soon as she entered the Common Room, she saw Hermione sitting on the sofa waiting for her.

"Amanda, you're back!" Hermione looked up when she heard the sound. Her eyes lit up when she saw Amanda, and she stood up and called out excitedly.

"Yes, I'm back."

Amanda smiled slightly, walked over to Hermione, and let Hermione hug her arm.

"Good, you're not hurt." Hermione looked Amanda up and down, thoroughly relieved.

"How are things on Harry's side?" Amanda asked, her voice calm and steady.

"Sigh," Hermione sighed helplessly. "His performance was clearly the best, but Karkaroff gave him a low score. Surprisingly, though, Mr. Bagman actually gave him a perfect score."

Hermione frowned as she spoke. One had to remember that Harry was injured, after all; even Headmaster Dumbledore hadn't given him a perfect score.

"It's normal for Karkaroff to give Harry a low score." Along with Hermione's words, an image of Karkaroff instantly appeared in Amanda's mind. "Ego and utilitarianism are Karkaroff's personality traits. Therefore, it's normal for him to give Harry an unfairly low score for the sake of his own school's results."

"It's the same as when he gave Krum a perfect score before."

But Ludo Bagman—why did he ignore Harry's injury and give him a perfect score directly?

Logically, he hadn't had much contact with Harry, and the two shouldn't have any deep friendship.

So what exactly could be the reason for him to give Harry a perfect score?

Amanda's first suspicion was that he was in league with Barty Crouch Jr., and like Barty Crouch Jr., he was preparing to help Harry win the Triwizard Tournament.

However, she dismissed this guess in the next moment, because with Ludo Bagman's careless and lighthearted demeanor, it was impossible for him to participate in such a plan as a Death Eater.

More importantly, Amanda, who had only met him twice so far, didn't think he had the courage to join the Death Eaters and face Voldemort directly.

"Not only that," Hermione said, seeing Amanda sink into thought, and continued to provide her with information while trying not to disturb her, "Harry also said that before the competition, Mr. Bagman had asked him if he had a way to deal with the Dragon and if he needed help."

"Mr. Bagman doesn't look like someone who could become a Death Eater and execute the plan to take Harry away with Barty Crouch Jr., so why is this?"

Hermione's new information completely confirmed Amanda's thoughts.

"Based on what Hermione just said, Ludo Bagman is doing his absolute best to help Harry win the Triwizard Tournament."

Amanda spoke decisively. By now, Ludo Bagman's purpose didn't require any more guessing.

Harry's victory was his goal.

"But unlike Barty Crouch Jr., Ludo Bagman's goal isn't to harm Harry. So there's only one possibility: Harry's victory will bring him profit; it will bring him benefits."

Amanda thought further. "As Harry is one of the contestants in the Triwizard Tournament, there's only one way for his victory to bring Ludo Bagman profit: a bet."

"A bet?" Hermione lowered her eyes and thought for a moment, then immediately looked up at Amanda. "You mean, Mr. Bagman made a bet with someone that Harry would win the competition?"

"Yes, but as for exactly why the bet was made and with whom, there's insufficient information to analyze."

Amanda shook her head, indicating she was powerless there.

"It's okay," Hermione hugged Amanda's arm and snuggled contentedly. "It's already very impressive that you could analyze this much. And confirming that Mr. Bagman and Barty Crouch Jr. aren't together and don't want to harm Harry is enough."

"Mm." Amanda smiled softly, nodded, and sat down on the sofa with Hermione.

Just as the two girls were sitting on the sofa leaning against each other, the door to the Ravenclaw Common Room opened again.

This time, the person walking in was the Dean of Ravenclaw House, Professor Flitwick.

"Good afternoon, Professor Flitwick." ×2

Seeing Professor Flitwick walk in, Amanda and Hermione stood up instantly and nodded politely to greet him.

"Good afternoon, Miss Lin and Miss Granger," Professor Flitwick responded with a smile, while gently gesturing toward the girls' dormitories.

"Could you help me call the girls? I have something to announce to everyone. As you know, the girls' dormitories at Hogwarts do not allow males to approach; this was a precaution taken by the four founders themselves, and not even Professors or the Headmaster can be an exception."

"Of course, Professor Flitwick."

The two girls nodded in agreement and then turned to walk up the stairs to the girls' dormitories to call everyone.

Meanwhile, Professor Flitwick also went up the other staircase and called out all the Ravenclaw boys.

"I'm sorry to interrupt everyone's rest time." Looking at the Little Eagles standing before him, Professor Flitwick first apologized for disturbing them on a Saturday.

"No, no." The Little Eagles waved their hands politely, each one staring curiously at Professor Flitwick, guessing what he wanted to say.

Amanda and Hermione stood hand in hand in the front row of the eagles. Professor Flitwick looked at their joined hands and gave a knowing smile.

He stood slightly on his tiptoes so that the Young Wizards standing at the back could see him.

"What I want to say is that Christmas is coming soon, and on Christmas day, according to the tradition of the Triwizard Tournament, we will be holding a Christmas Ball."

"A ball?" The Little Eagles looked at each other, and many people clapped their hands in realization.

"No wonder my mom bought me Dress Robes in advance. I was wondering why she bought them for me."

Hearing the Young Wizards' discussions, Professor Flitwick wasn't angry at all. He waited with a smile for them to finish before continuing.

"The Christmas Ball is open to every student in the fourth year and above, including the fourth year."

"If you want to attend the ball, each of you will need to invite a partner. Someone you like, or someone who likes you—anyone is fine. Be brave, children."

Professor Flitwick gave his students a sly smile, then said to the younger students who seemed a bit disappointed, "Of course, if lower-year students have an upper-year student as a partner, they can also attend the ball."

"There's still over a week until the Christmas Ball. Everyone, hurry up and get moving."

After saying this, Professor Flitwick left the Ravenclaw Common Room, leaving a group of Little Eagles chirping and discussing matters related to the ball.

Professor Flitwick's words about inviting someone you like or someone who likes you made everyone's thoughts lively.

Many Little Eagles also secretly cast their gazes toward their Ravenclaw darling. Someone so cute, so well-behaved, and so powerful... how could they not be interested?

However, when they saw Hermione by Amanda's side, they silently withdrew their gazes.

Sigh... the boys and girls sighed in unison. Amanda certainly couldn't be their partner, after all, Miss Granger was right there.

Feeling the gazes of others, Hermione took a deep breath and looked at Amanda's profile.

Would this girl... take the initiative to invite her?

As if Hermione's gaze was too intense, Amanda also turned her head to look at her face. Seeing the eagerness and expectation in Hermione's eyes, and combining it with what Professor Flitwick had just said, Amanda instantly understood her meaning.

However, the fact was that even before her brain had fully finished thinking,

her instinct made her say a sentence with a speed faster than an instant and without any hesitation.

"Hermione, will you be my partner and attend the Christmas Ball with me?"

Hearing Amanda's words, Hermione clearly felt a sensation of blood rushing to the top of her head.

A deep crimson spread across her cheeks, ears, and even her neck. Excitedly, she reached out and hugged Amanda tightly, burying her face in Amanda's chest and letting out small cries to vent her excitement.

Amanda invited her! Amanda invited her to be her partner!

And she was the first person, the first choice she invited!

Then, could the time when she finally gets a real response from Amanda be far away?

"I will. Of course I'm willing to be your partner."

Once her emotions had calmed down slightly, Hermione couldn't wait to look up at Amanda and respond, completely ignoring her still-flushed cheeks.

"Mm." A brilliant smile blossomed on Amanda's face.

The surrounding Little Eagles also stopped their discussions and looked at the two of them with somewhat peculiar smiles.

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