— — — — — —

When the fireworks ended, the dreamlike city was swallowed by the night once more.

The banquet had concluded perfectly, yet many guests still lingered reluctantly, unwilling to leave the luxurious hall. They wanted to keep exploring the newly completed city a little longer.

Unfortunately for them, Tom wasn’t about to allow that.

...

"All Hogwarts students, over here! Line up according to your houses!"

Professor McGonagall, dressed in a dark emerald formal robe, raised her voice sharply.

Aside from the Hogwarts students, even some fully grown adult wizards instinctively twitched and nearly started walking toward her as well.

A few only realized halfway through that they had already graduated years ago. Their faces immediately turned bright red with embarrassment, though they desperately pretended nothing had happened before slipping away.

Terrifying...

Was this the true deterrence of Professor McGonagall?

Their own kids were already attending school, yet they still couldn’t resist the instinctive obedience.

The professors from the other schools also gathered their students together and led them back to Hogwarts in an orderly fashion through the public Floo fireplaces.

...

"Professor, I’d like to take two days off. Daphne too."

Tom found Dumbledore after the old man finished speaking with Fudge. He was still carrying the already sleeping little Gabrielle in his arms.

"Oh, right. Please inform Madame Maxime as well. I’ll be taking Gabrielle back with me too."

A helpless gleam flashed across Dumbledore’s half-moon glasses.

"You know, there’s actually no need to ask me. After all... my opinion on the matter isn’t particularly important."

"That’s different." Tom shook his head seriously. "If I forgot, that’d be one thing. But if I remembered, then I should at least follow the proper process. I’m actually a good student who likes following the rules, Professor."

"If you say so."

Dumbledore shrugged, not taking the matter seriously.

"But Tom, the fourth round of the tournament is about to begin," he reminded him. "Don’t let Miss Greengrass become too complacent."

"Don’t worry," Tom said with a grin. "She definitely won’t lose."

Dumbledore: "..."

What a confidently ridiculous statement.

But honestly, Dumbledore did find the situation rather strange.

Given how much Tom usually indulged Daphne, Dumbledore hadn’t seen him making any moves behind the scenes at all. Could it be that, for once, he actually intended to play fair?

After exchanging a few more words, the two separated.

The girls had already returned to the manor in Dorset through the fireplaces upstairs. Tom headed upward alone, but halfway there, a thin figure suddenly appeared beside him.

Barty Crouch Jr.

Barty stayed two steps behind Tom the entire way without speaking.

Only after they entered the manor’s study did Tom gesture toward an armchair, signaling for him to sit. Then he clapped his hands, summoning two glasses of milk.

Only after taking a slow sip did he casually ask, "Voldemort suspects you now?"

Barty briefly recounted his confrontation with Voldemort, earning repeated nods from Tom.

As expected of someone who’d achieved perfect scores on his N.E.W.T.s.

The man truly was intelligent, and more importantly, brave enough.

Most people, even with Grindelwald backing them, wouldn’t dare speak to Voldemort the way Barty had, staying so calm while knowing exactly the right words to say.

"You handled it well," Tom said approvingly. "Try directing his attention toward the Sun Chasers. To put it simply, I want him causing trouble in America and forcing out more hidden cards."

Barty immediately understood and nodded.

"Mr. Riddle, Voldemort already seems inclined toward that direction. The only issue is Bellatrix. That madwoman keeps getting in the way. Should we..."

"There’s no need to ask me about something that minor." Tom waved dismissively. "Go discuss it with Grindelwald instead. I called you here tonight because you’ve earned a reward."

As he spoke, Tom casually tossed over a bottle filled with crimson fluid.

"Dragon Bloodline Fusion Potion. Find somewhere safe before you drink it. You’ll need a full day where nobody can disturb you."

"Thank you, Mr. Riddle."

Excitement flashed through Barty’s eyes, though he forcibly kept himself calm as he bowed in thanks. Wisely, he didn’t linger any longer and quickly left the manor.

Tom sank deeper into the sofa, idly twirling his wand between his fingers. A moment later, he suddenly laughed to himself.

"Interesting... this Barty fellow is interesting. And old Grindy is even more interesting. How the hell did he train him into this?"

From beginning to end, Barty had only ever addressed Tom as "sir" or "Mr. Riddle."

But whenever he referred to Grindelwald, he always used the title "Lord."

What did that mean?

Grindelwald was his master, while Tom was merely his superior at work?

"Whatever." Tom shook his head. "As long as he works for me, why bother caring about the details?"

With a casual flick, his wand vanished from sight. He stood and walked out of the study.

...

..

The next morning, Daphne woke up bursting with energy.

With a little girl in one hand and Tom in the other, the three of them happily headed off toward the storage room to open presents.

Meanwhile, Hogwarts students gradually woke and gathered in small groups on their way to breakfast, conversations about Dalaran echoing all along the corridors.

"My father is planning to visit Tom soon to discuss purchasing property there." Draco Malfoy held his chin high, smugness practically radiating from him.

"He thinks Tom’s idea is revolutionary. Wizards should have cities of their own. Why should we live alongside filthy Muggles?" Draco said this while looking at the crowd gathered around him, "Naturally, the noble pure-blood families should establish themselves in Dalaran. The Malfoys, for example... and I suppose all of you as well."

At that, many of the pure-bloods nodded. That was exactly what they had been thinking yesterday.

And at that moment, Harry arrived downstairs with Ron, who was still suffering from indigestion after overeating at the banquet last night.

Draco Malfoy immediately brightened, his voice rising another notch. "Of course, property there definitely won’t come cheap... ordinary people probably won’t even qualify to live there."

As he spoke, he very deliberately glanced at Harry before finally fixing his gaze on Ron.

Ron immediately understood the implication. His nose started turning red with anger again, but he couldn’t think of anything to say back.

With his family’s finances... Forget buying a house in Dalaran. Even if the Weasleys sold every single one of the brothers, they probably still couldn’t afford a bathroom.

These rich bastards really deserved to die.

Harry, on the other hand, barely reacted. Instead, he tugged Ron’s sleeve, signaling for him not to start a fight with Malfoy, because Snape had just emerged from the dungeons nearby.

Besides, Sirius had attended the banquet yesterday too.

While chatting afterward, Sirius had also mentioned buying a house in Dalaran.

And the supervisor overseeing construction there was Professor Lupin. Other than Tom himself, nobody understood the city layout better than Lupin did.

There was no way they wouldn’t be able to secure a great location.

When the time came, they could slap Malfoy in the face properly and see whether he could still keep grinning then.

Just imagining Malfoy’s expression at that moment was enough to make Harry laugh first. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

But the instant he stepped into the Great Hall, Harry sharply sensed that something was wrong.

Outside, everyone had been chatting excitedly.

Inside the hall, however, it was dead silent.

What happened now?

After sitting down at the Gryffindor table, Harry picked up that morning’s copy of the Daily Prophet and immediately understood everything.

{Breaking News! A Man Equal to the Dark Lord?!! The Sun Chasers’ Strength Runs Deeper Than Anyone Imagined!}

{Are the Sun Chasers a Terrorist Organization? What Are Their Goals? Why Have They Appeared Only Now, and How Much Is Being Hidden?}

{From Africa to Europe: The Rapid Rise of the Mysterious "Sun Chasers" Movement}

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