Chapter 273: A Good Show

The good news is that Sean has started preparing his Christmas gifts.

The bad news is that he hasn't seen Professor Marcus Marcus Maige for two days, and Professor Sineipu has also vanished without a trace.

He guesses that Professor Marcus Marcus Maige must be busy with that matter, but what about Professor Sineipu?

For the first time, Sean went to the dungeon as agreed but did not see the professor.

Where did he go?

Only Sir Cadogan was still outside the dungeon, trying to mount his pony; he was bruised and battered, and Sean didn't even know when he had been injured.

"Oh! Little Green—how exciting. I imagine there will be good news this Christmas, right?

Of course, the even better news is that I once persuaded a foolish fellow to repent before the Gryffindor Tower, but now! Ha! At least he doesn't have to go to the Ravenclaw Tower."

Sir Cadogan walked away triumphantly.

Only the Fat Lady and Lady Violet knew what the knight was talking about.

It was a night just as filled with lightning and storms; a single "Mudblood" had destroyed all possibilities for the two wizards.

The knight was as furious as he had been the night before; he charged into the dungeon, roaring to wake that numb soul.

The waiting and the apology at the Gryffindor Tower were perhaps among the bravest things that numb man had ever done.

The Fat Lady bit into an apple and stuck out her foot to trip the knight, still feeling indignant:

"It's truly sad, how, how, how could he ever compare to little Marcus Marcus Maige..."

Seeing her angry appearance, Lady Violet could only echo:

"Don't worry, my lady, remember? That is also a person recognized by the knight..."

……

In many respects, the Ministry of Magic is like a makeshift operation, especially when it comes to Muggle-born wizard orphans.

After learning the news for a day, the next day, Minerva Marcus Marcus Maige discovered—they were actually determined according to Muggle rules.

For wizard orphans born in the Muggle world with unknown identities (especially Muggle-borns), before they are discovered by the Wizarding World, they are temporarily taken over by the Muggle social system.

And after they are discovered, they are still taken over by Muggle society; they are only responsible for enforcing the International Statute of Secrecy to prevent the wizarding society from being exposed.

If one is lucky, the young wizard might find some relatives in the Wizarding World; if one is unlucky, like young Tom, it is better to just stay honestly at Hogwarts.

There has almost never been a case of a wizard adopting a Muggle-born wizard orphan.

The trash-filled streets of the Croydon district.

Minerva Marcus Marcus Maige's often stern gaze carried an even deeper sense of oppression.

The headmistress of Wool's Orphanage broke into a cold sweat; the pressure from this "professor" in front of her was truly too strong.

Dressed in green robes, her eyes deep and captivating, at times she even felt as if her memories were being read.

"Are you saying this is a very long process?"

Professor Marcus Marcus Maige felt instinctively uneasy.

"Of course, madam, we would be happy to let him go with you today, but the application, the probationary period, and the final issuance of the adoption order will take at least a month."

Professor Marcus Marcus Maige left the place; she could not wait that long. If the Ministry of Magic did not pass her proposal, some harmless Confundus Charms would be her answer.

Snow had piled up again at Wool's Orphanage, and the children there had gathered together once more. There were not many logs burning in the fireplace, yet it flared up violently after the figure in green robes departed.

The sallow-faced boys and girls all crowded around.

"Oh, it was the Christmas wish I made!"

A little girl cried out in surprise,

"Santa Claus has been here; he lit the fireplace!"

The headmistress of Wool's Orphanage sneered outside the house, but she did not notice the gloomy, hook-nosed man appearing before her. This time, her memories really seemed to have been read.

And so, the figures rushing toward the Ministry of Magic went from one to two.

Leaving the headmistress of Wool's Orphanage standing there in a daze, wondering if her eyes had deceived her...

At this moment, by the fireplace.

"It's Santa Claus!"

In the room that always smelled of disinfectant, a stale atmosphere permeated. In this gray place, the appearance of an old man with a white beard was so amazing to the children.

"Oh—of course. Yes."

The wizard with the long white beard said with a smile.

"Can you grant our Christmas wish?"

A little boy leaned in, his eyes sparkling,

"I... I also want some charcoal..."

"Santa Claus" laughed:

"Of course, a very good Christmas wish, it should be granted..."

And so, charcoal was actually piled up at the edge of the fireplace.

"My goodness!"

"That's amazing!"

Amidst the excited shouts of the children, the smile of the old man with the long white beard became even kinder.

His deep blue eyes looked into the distance.

By rights, he shouldn't have appeared here, but forgive an old man's curiosity—

Ah—he hadn't seen such an interesting thing in decades...

It wasn't just this place that was lively.

In the last week of Christmas, the school became more lively and noisy day by day.

People were spreading rumors everywhere about the Christmas feast, but Sean didn't believe most of them—for instance, that Dumbledore had bought eight hundred barrels of spiced mead from Rosmerta at the Three Broomsticks.

Some teachers, like Professor Fuliwei, seeing that the students were clearly distracted, simply stopped teaching.

He allowed them to play games during his class on Wednesday, while he spent most of his time talking to Sean, discussing some details about spell theory.

At this time, he hoped everyone in the Hope Cabin could come over to listen; Harry and Luo En only now realized that Professor Fuliwei knew about the Hope Cabin.

Seeing everyone making progress, his eyes crinkled into slits with a smile.

As for the other teachers, they would still do their duty.

For example, nothing could distract Professor Binsi's attention; he continued to struggle through his pile of notes about eccentrics—the students speculated that since Binsi hadn't let his own death stop him from continuing his teaching career, a small matter like Christmas could never distract him.

In the Great Hall in the afternoon, Sean and the others heard the rumor about the spiced mead again. Perhaps because Headmaster Dumbledore was always dignified and kind, everyone was unwilling to let go of any opportunity to involve him, and the rumor was passed on and on.

Sean, thinking that he had to finish his Howler production practice that afternoon, kept pondering what his alchemy talent might be. He didn't pay much attention to it.

Luo En, on the contrary, turned red in the face:

"I could drink five cups!"

After leaving the Hope Cabin, he found that he could lie, and this feeling was not bad at all.

This feeling was just like playing Wizard's Chess with Xiang Hemin; Xiang Hemin only lost when playing chess, and Luo En and Harry agreed that this was very good for her.

If Xiang Hemin lost, she would hum and leave with her books, but if Sean lost, it was different; he would gently say:

"Luo En, you are really good at this."

Which made Luo En so excited his face turned red.

There is another update a little later; dear readers can read it tomorrow morning. ===== CHAPTER 274 =====