"Marietta Edgecombe."
A little girl walked over crying... or rather, she floated over. There was no help for it; her legs had long since turned to jelly.
"Ravenclaw."
The little eagles sitting at the long table on the left side of the aisle stood up one after another, applauding.
Then, they saw this child rush over, both crying and laughing.
Ah, this... are her emotions always this full?
"Shabi Allen."
The young lad, moving with both his left hand and left foot forward, stumbled over to put on the hat.
"Hufflepuff."
This time, cheers erupted from the long table on the right side of the aisle, and the Hufflepuffs waved enthusiastically to greet the new student.
Unexpectedly, the boy's response was even more enthusiastic; that joy was simply moving.
"Katie Bell."
The little girl, pale with fright, gritted her teeth and rushed toward the stool.
"Gryffindor."
The long table on the far left erupted with a boom of excitement. Among the laughing little lions, two redheads who were nearly jumping onto the table were exceptionally eye-catching.
And after discovering the seating arrangement of the four houses' tables this year, Karl almost couldn't keep a straight face.
Separating Gryffindor and Slytherin with the other two houses—was it to prevent them from fighting during meals?
But thinking about it, it made sense. After all, there were Professors watching during class, and at other times, students were scattered and couldn't gather together.
Only meal times were suitable for brawls, and there were plenty of weapons available.
"Stebbins Byron."
"Hufflepuff."
"Cho Chang."
Cho imitated the fearful appearance of the two little witches before her and put on the hat with trepidation.
Even if Merlin were resurrected, she and Nina would still be victims of the rumors about the dragon Smaug.
As for Karl, that guy had no intention of pretending at all, stating that he had other plans.
"Ravenclaw."
The Sorting Ceremony continued. Among the next few Little wizards, only Audrey Fosco was sorted into Hufflepuff.
While Eddie Carmichael and Julia Fawcett were both in Ravenclaw.
"Nina Goldstein."
Nina exchanged a glance with Karl and walked forward, carrying her brown leather suitcase.
"Ravenclaw."
Before the Sorting Hat had finished speaking, the little eagles were already celebrating wildly. Five in a row—who wouldn't laugh at that?
Even Dean Flitwick couldn't suppress the corners of his mouth from turning up!
If you subtract that guy, rounding up or down, it's basically all junior schoolgirls.
Eddie: (╯‵□′)╯
And the prettiest girl among the first-years was also in Ravenclaw.
We won! We won so hard! We can't win any harder!
Nina took off the Sorting Hat and winked at Karl; her playful manner caused another commotion.
Cat? What cat?
Karl pondered Nina's lip-reading, feeling a bit confused.
Could this girl also know Legilimency and have seen his Jungle Cat form?
After Cormac McLaggen was sorted into Gryffindor, Professor McGonagall looked at the next name, her serious expression softening imperceptibly.
"Karl Orolin."
Taking a deep breath, Karl walked up to Professor McGonagall, took the hat, sat down, and put it on in one smooth motion.
Then, a faint voice sounded in his ear:
"Let me see you... Hmm? Why is there another troublemaker!"
"Your wand is also made with a Pukwudgie hair core? Put it aside first, so I can decide which house to sort you into!"
Hearing the Sorting Hat's words, Karl finally understood what Nina meant by 'cat'.
Cat? No! It's a Wampus cat!
Karl knew about the magical creature called a Pukwudgie; its eyes possessed hypnotic and Legilimency abilities.
But he hadn't expected that a wand with a Pukwudgie hair core could actually defend against Legilimency.
What a surprise!
"How was Nina sorted just now?"
"She chose it herself. Wait... are you two together? But Dumbledore clearly only mentioned that little Witch."
Well! It seems Nina is a connection hire!
"The Principal is old, it's normal for him to forget half of what he's saying."
"Is... is that right?"
"Yes, yes! I can swear on the hat on my head!"
"Alright, where do you want to go?"
"I want to go to Hufflepuff!"
"Hmm? Why Hufflepuff? I thought you would go to Ravenclaw to find that little Witch named Nina."
"Because to recast the glory of Hufflepuff! It is my duty!"
"Alright, as you wish."
...
"Karl Orolin, Hufflepuff!"
Amidst the cheers of the Hufflepuffs, Karl stood up, took off the Sorting Hat, and placed it back on the stool.
His gaze met Professor McGonagall's, and he saw the lingering disappointment in her eyes.
"I'm sorry, Professor."
"No need to apologize, child. I respect your choice."
Professor McGonagall had actually been mentally prepared for a long time; after all, Karl had expressed his thoughts in his letter.
She just held onto a glimmer of hope, what if he changed his mind?
Now it seemed this child was as firm in his will as she was. This child is truly like me!
...
"Derian Pucey."
"Slytherin."
With this, the Sorting Ceremony officially concluded.
The first-year Little wizards sighed in relief, the method Karl Orolin mentioned was indeed effective; not a single person was eaten by the dragon.
Karl arrived at the Hufflepuff table, greeted the Hufflepuffs, and sat down.
Everyone watched as Professor McGonagall rolled up the parchment and left with the Sorting Hat.
Albus Dumbledore stood up, his face beaming as he spread his arms.
"Welcome everyone to Hogwarts for the new school year! Let the feast begin!"
As his voice fell, exquisite and sumptuous food instantly filled all the long tables.
Karl was tasting elegantly at first, but then he began to eat faster and faster.
Must say, the cooking of the House-elf is truly excellent!
In the eleven years since he was reborn in Britain, it had been truly difficult.
After all, as everyone knows, the four thinnest books in the world are: "British Cookbook," "American Almanac," "German Jokes," and "Italian War Heroes."
It wasn't just Karl eating vigorously; all the Little wizards were tired and hungry from the journey.
Thus, in the enthusiastic atmosphere, the feast drew to a close.
All the food and tableware disappeared, the tabletops became spotless again, and after Principal Dumbledore stood up, the Great Hall went quiet.
"Before the term begins, I must tell you all about some things strictly prohibited by the school."
"First, first-year students take note, no student is allowed to enter the Forbidden Forest; it is very dangerous inside."
Dumbledore's gaze swept over the entire hall before lingering for a long time on the Ravenclaw table.
"Furthermore, the caretaker, Mr. Filch, has asked me to remind you not to cast magic in the corridors."
"Finally, the tryouts for Quidditch players will be held in the second week. Students other than first-years who wish to join their house teams, please contact Madam Hooch."
Karl listened to the Principal's speech while trying to identify the various school Professors.
Then he discovered he could only recognize the four Deans and Hagrid, and that was only by their obvious characteristics of height, size, and greasy hair.
"Before you all go to bed, let us sing the school song together!"
Dumbledore pointed his wand into the air, and golden ribbons flew from the tip, twisting into lines of text.
"Everyone choose your favorite tune, sing out loud, ready, sing!"
And so, all the teachers and students began to sing loudly in a disjointed manner:
"Hogwarts, Hogwarts..."
Karl: (╬ ﾟ д ﾟ)
It's really awful!
Can't you let the Sorting Hat come back and sing!
If that doesn't work, spend some money! Even if you have to spend some money to get someone to compose a listenable tune!
This chaotic dancing and ghostly howling, my ears are going to go blind!
"Karl, why aren't you singing?"
"I'm mouth-deaf."
"Huh?"