Chapter 477

After that, Zhang Qiu gradually reduced her visits to the embassy, as Zhang Mingyuan kept inventing excuses to give her time off. Clearly, if she couldn’t extract any intelligence from Harry, Zhang Qiu—the sole conservative disciple—lingering amid the radical factions old and new, made them deeply uneasy.

For Harry, who embraced Dogi’s views and advocated focusing solely on deepening the magical world, this was clearly a good thing. Bored at home, Zhang Qiu began visiting photo studios and offering minor help, and Harry accompanied her several times; Hogsmeade remained peaceful and tranquil, exactly as he had expected for this year.

Finally, the term was about to begin, and under Ron’s reminder, Harry finally spotted the OWL results sheet that Ivy had hidden for nearly two months.

“A, A, A, all A’s, then an E, then A, A, A, and a P?” Harry’s face flushed crimson. “Do you have any idea what this means? You can’t enroll in any advanced courses—you’ll be idle all year!”

“At least I passed,” Ivy said, twisting her fingers. “And I’m not idle—I have a career path.”

“What path? All passes? That won’t get you a good job.”

“I’m planning to become a lady of leisure,” she said. “So I put a lot of effort into trying to marry Ron.”

The crimson rage shattered his Occlumency; Harry even started growing a belt.

Zhang Qiu gently patted the nearly exploding Harry, trying to calm him, then softly suggested, “At least you passed, right? You could become a clerical worker at the Ministry, or a journalist—you’ll need a mouthpiece.”

In the end, amid the chaos, they packed their luggage and boarded the platform at King’s Cross Station. Harry watched Zhang Qiu whispering constantly to Ivy and handing her a thick notebook, filled with helplessness—though Zhang Qiu claimed to be a master of emotions, Harry believed she merely exploited fate and divination. He doubted the advice she gave about pursuing Ron would be worth much; it might even be less reliable than Tom’s, who at least had genuine emotional intelligence—he’d genuinely tricked his way into the Diadem, the Cup, and the Locket, with verifiable achievements.

Ron and Ginny were now the only two Weasleys boarding the train. Harry nostalgically recalled their first meeting on this platform, when a loud crowd of redheads had left a deep impression on him. But this year, only the two of them and Mrs. Weasley remained; the rest of the family had their own affairs to attend to.

“Oh, good boy,” Mrs. Weasley stepped forward and hugged Harry, then turned to hug Ivy. “One visit less each year—next year you won’t even be coming to school.”

“Yes, time flies, youth fades,” Harry nodded thoughtfully. “At least this year will be the quietest—no Dark Lord, no other nonsense. We can finally take a proper look at this school.”

“There’s another difficulty this year, Harry,” Ron said seriously. “We don’t have a Seeker anymore.”

Harry looked up, despairing, then shook his head. “We’ll see. Or…”

"I'll be the Seeker!" Ivy raised her hand high. She remembered Zhang Qiu's guide, where bold red letters screamed: "Quidditch, Quidditch, and again Quidditch."

“You fly too slow, turn poorly, land carelessly, react sluggishly, and none of your moves are decent,” Harry’s disapproving gaze swept from her to Zhang Qiu. “You want to be a Seeker? Dream on!”

Two disapproving stares turned back at Harry, but fortunately, the opposing players gave him covert support, so he huffed confidently, picked up his trunk, and boarded first.

Inside the compartment, Harry bought every snack available, expressing his nostalgia for first year. Ron chuckled, “Remember? Back then I was eating sandwiches, and just then Zhang Qiu suddenly opened the door and… barged into your life.”

“Yes, I remember I was unwrapping a Chocolate Frog when I got interrupted,” Harry said, picking up a Chocolate Frog. “Now she’s gone, I can finish it whole.”

“Let’s see whose card it is,” Ron leaned over.

Bright emerald eyes, messy black hair, and a deliberately exposed thin lightning-shaped scar.

On the back: Harry Potter, the Chosen One. Many wizards believe he will eventually become Minister for Magic, having defeated the Dark Lord, collected the Deathly Hallows, and acquired all the knowledge of Grindelwald and Dumbledore, possessing invincible wizarding power. He loves attending balls and Quidditch matches.

“Why doesn’t anyone make a card of me?” Ron muttered bitterly.

“There is one—I saw it last time,” Ginny said seriously. “But it said ‘Ron Bird Weasley.’ I suspect it’s a counterfeit.”

After all he’d been through, Harry had developed a stoic demeanor. He casually stuffed the card into his pocket and began chewing the Chocolate Frog.

At that moment, the compartment door opened. Neville scanned the interior and immediately spotted a Chocolate Frog leg bouncing against Harry’s mouth.

“Ah, there you are,” he leaned against the doorframe. “What’s the plan this year? Planning a challenge game?”

Harry suddenly remembered first year, when Neville had taken his place in that challenge game, also with a Chocolate Frog dangling from his mouth.

“Like Avalon?” Ron said casually. “By the way, Neville—what are your plans after graduation?”

“Before, I’d have said I wanted to be an Auror,” Neville replied. “But now, I think staying at Hogwarts is better—I just remembered Dumbledore’s will. He authorized me to use the Sword of Gryffindor until I leave Hogwarts.”

“Being a professor means you don’t have to leave Hogwarts—but what will you teach? Herbology?”

“Yes, that’s exactly how I imagined my post-war life. And Hannah will stay too—she’s planning to replace Madam Pomfrey.”

“By the way, where’s Hermione?” Ivy asked. “She’s a prefect too—why isn’t she with you?”

“She’s squeezing every second to read and prepare for exams,” Neville said sympathetically. “She’s studying something called A… something from the Muggle world.”

“A-Level,” Ivy said. “In that system, A is the highest grade.”

Harry clenched his fist again, but didn’t interrupt—only sighed and stared out the window. The countryside blurred past; forests and hills gradually replaced fields, just as they always had.

After Neville left, the next to open the compartment door was Draco. But unlike Neville’s easy cheer, his face was blank with confusion.

“Harry, I’m glad to see you here,” he said. “What’s going to happen next?”

“Nothing will happen next,” Harry said, surprised by Draco’s vacant expression. Then Pansy pressed up behind him, and Harry, with malicious delight, said, “Next, you can kiss the bride.”

Pansy blushed, but Draco’s expression remained blank. “I mean—what will happen to the magical world? What fight is left for those of us with power? What reason?”

“You can still come to the Room of Requirement on Saturdays,” Ron pretended to be serious, “and I’ll beat you up again.”

“No, no,” Draco ignored the jibe entirely, still staring blankly. “Our vast network after graduation… I suddenly wonder—what did I even do these past years? Why does everything feel meaningless?”

“Life doesn’t always demand meaning,” Harry smoothly delivered a platitude. “If you haven’t decided on your dream, cherish those around you now. As for Torchwood—aren’t there still elders? This year, just have them focus on recruiting a few new members.”

Ivy gazed enviously at Pansy—she always got Harry’s divine assists, while Ivy only got Harry’s tasks.

After seeing off another pair of old acquaintances, Harry sat quietly reminiscing, while Ivy began unpacking his snacks, occasionally handing Ron half a treat, until Ginny interrupted her, frowning.

“Can you not do that in front of me?” she sighed. “Ugh, I’m still worried about not finding a boy I like.”

“What about Dean Thomas?” Ron mumbled, mouth full of pumpkin pasty. “I saw you two chatting pretty well last time.”

“Just a reserve Chaser. Worst case, I’d have to pull him up and go after the Snitch myself,” Ginny sighed.

“What about Michael Corner?” Ivy asked. “Zhang Qiu’s divination for your love match.”

Ginny shook her head like a rattle drum. “Divination? Dogs don’t study that.”

“Maybe look at younger years,” Ron suggested. “What about Colin?”

“Or the Muggle world—you’ve seen plenty, at the balls,” Ivy added another suggestion.

Ginny stayed silent, saying nothing—clearly, she liked none of them.

“So these are the two big tasks this year,” Harry summarized. “Find a Seeker for the team, and find Ginny a boyfriend. And if we’re lucky, we can kill two birds with one stone.”

“And my job!” Ivy subtly hinted.

Right—your ideal, lady-of-leisure position, Harry sighed inwardly. One rival was buried in exam prep, the other was overseas—what a perfect opportunity to snatch it.