Although Dumbledore merely sat in his chair behind his desk, quietly watching Lucius, the overwhelming sense of terrifying oppression was so heavy that it made him unable to breathe.
Though invisible, the imposing aura was like a raging, unstoppable, and irresistible tsunami.
The entire office was dead silent. Lucius, leaning against the wall, was covered in cold sweat, and the House-elf Dobby was curled up, trembling.
Snape, with his head bowed, remained silent, a flash of distant memory passing through his mind.
Lucius's fear reminded him of himself back then. How long had it been since he last saw Dumbledore like this?
"Sorry, Headmaster Dumbledore," a hoarse voice broke the silence. Lucius barely managed to control his panic and his body.
His gaze towards Dumbledore was filled with shock and dread, unable to believe what had just happened. This old man actually got angry?
Lucius knew he had failed. Coming to Hogwarts was just to vent some anger.
He had considered all possibilities, but he had never expected Dumbledore to react this way.
How could this be? It had been ten years. Why would such a drastic change suddenly occur?
"I—I—I just—"
"No need to explain, because I know what you're thinking. To quote a certain little fellow, good people often get guns pointed at them; it's quite normal."
Dumbledore slowly stood up and walked towards Lucius. "Although I, this 'good person,' am not entirely pure in reality."
"If it were before, I wouldn't mind using a gentler approach, countering your moves while teaching a certain little fellow not to be too violent."
"But now I have more important things to do, and I truly don't have that much time to waste, especially since I'm already an 'old man' in your words."
"So I have to resort to some cheating, at least to trick that little fellow first. Severus, you wouldn't go and tell, would you?"
Snape, whose shoulder Dumbledore had patted, stood up. "I didn't see any cheating. You persuaded Lucius to admit defeat and hand over the House-elf through normal means."
Lucius's mouth twitched as he looked at Snape, but he also understood that Dumbledore was truly not planning to play by the rules this time.
"Rules?"
Dumbledore walked up to Lucius and met his gaze. "I follow rules only because I believe them to be right, not because so-called rules can truly bind me. You should understand this principle."
Lucius nervously averted Dumbledore's deep eyes. He—he was actually using Legilimency without any concealment!
In that instant, Lucius even doubted whether he would be able to leave Hogwarts.
"Don't be afraid. If I truly had such intentions, you wouldn't have even made it here."
"But Lucius, remember to put away your unsavory little schemes and restless hands. Please don't make things difficult for me."
"If this continues, then before dangerous things happen, I and another old fellow will have no choice but to eliminate the hidden dangers."
"Believe me, you wouldn't want to see that, because it's a price you cannot afford."
As Dumbledore smiled, the atmosphere, which had been stretched to its breaking point, instantly relaxed, and the storm turned into a gentle breeze. "Dobby?"
The House-elf couldn't help but flinch, still not having recovered from the recent events.
"Yes, I—I'm here."
Looking at the frightened Dobby, Dumbledore's smile grew even gentler.
"There are many House-elves at Hogwarts. I believe you will like it here."
Under Dumbledore's gaze, Lucius gritted his teeth and took off his cloak. Although he wanted to throw it violently at Dobby, he—he no longer had the courage to be arrogant.
No one could imagine how terrifying a Dumbledore who didn't play by the rules could be.
"Master gave Dobby a cloak! Dobby got a cloak! Dobby is free!"
"Congratulations."
Dumbledore turned to Snape. "Severus, please escort Mr. Lucius Malfoy safely out of Hogwarts."
"Yes, Principal, sir."
Silent throughout, Snape and Lucius left Hogwarts Castle, only stopping at the school gates.
"Severus, can you tell me what exactly went wrong?"
Lucius, still shaken, recalled the scene in the office just now, still feeling the chilling cold spread throughout his body. "I don't know that either, but Headmaster Dumbledore's advice was serious."
Snape's heart was also filled with doubt, feeling that it wasn't just because of Karl.
"Advice? You call that advice?"
The fear that had accumulated in Lucius's heart now transformed into impotent rage. "He was clearly threatening me! That old—"
Before the vulgarity could escape his lips, Lucius froze.
Because a black-robed old Wizard was watching him from afar, his cold gaze like a sharp blade, carrying deadly danger.
"Professor Green!"
Snape steeled himself and stepped forward, blocking Grindelwald's view.
"Headmaster Dumbledore asked me to escort Lucius Malfoy safely out of Hogwarts."
He deliberately emphasized the latter half of the sentence, worried that this dangerous old Wizard would act directly.
"Hmph! Albus is truly merciful!"
Grindelwald chuckled. "A dog that doesn't know reverence, why not just put it down?"
"The Principal naturally has his reasons."
"Then you remember to make him learn not to bark casually. Albus doesn't care about these things, but I do, very much so."
Under Grindelwald's malicious gaze, Snape and Lucius felt as if they had fallen into an ice cellar.
"I understand."
"I hope so."
Only after Grindelwald, who looked somewhat regretful, walked away, did the two of them finally breathe a sigh of relief.
"That person—who was he?"
In a trance, Lucius felt as if he had just faced Lord Voldemort.
"Although I'm curious, I'm not suicidal."
Snape looked at Lucius seriously. "Go back and think carefully about what happened today. After all, there's still a long life ahead, and I don't want to attend your funeral. This is not a joke."
Lucius forced a strained smile. "Don't worry, I'm a smart man."
Summer vacation!
Karl, as usual, bid farewell to his friends, happy yet also a little sad.
After all, Senior Judy had graduated, and he wouldn't see her at school anymore.
"Don't think that just because I've graduated, you can procrastinate on your manuscripts! Coming back to Hogwarts is like coming home for me!"
Karl: (mouth)
Well, his joy was short-lived.
Nina was going back to North America this summer vacation, and Senior Newt's family was also going.
Oh! Right! And that kid Rolf!
To be honest, Karl almost forgot about such a person. Who told this ungrateful fellow not to come to Hufflepuff, but instead went to Ravenclaw?
He was always following the little Witch Luna, looking for some Crumple-Horned Snorkacks together.
Tsk! Look at that worthless appearance!
Just as Karl was complaining, Nina's voice came to his ear.
"Karl, we're leaving."
"Okay! Be careful on the road! Say hello to Queenie, Tina, Newt, Zou Wu, Hobby, Millie, and Moller for me!"
"Got it!"
"Senior Newt's Phoenix-engraved book is a waste just sitting there! You take it so we can chat!"
"Okay~"
The observing friends all couldn't bear to watch: Tsk! Look at that worthless appearance!
After seeing everyone onto the Thestral carriage, Karl happily ran back to the Castle.
"Minerva! I'm back!"
At this moment, in the Gryffindor Dean's office, Professor McGonagall, dressed in ordinary Muggle clothes, was already waiting, Karl's suitcase at her feet.
"Then hurry up and change."
"Alright!"
Karl dashed into the common room and quickly changed from his robes into sportswear.
"Minerva! I'm done!"
"Excellent, let's go."
Woohoo!
Cat Mom is taking her Kitten to travel the world!
2.
-------------------------
If you enjoy this story, you can read 70+ advanced chapters on Patreon!
Webnovel will keep getting 1 new chapter every day but Patreon readers can stay far ahead.
Maybe it's not a big deal now… maybe it will be later.
[email protected]/Greyhounds
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"