"Don't move, or if my hand slips, the Sorting Hat might get scratched!"

Because of the Sorting Hat's panicked screams, Erina had to raise her voice to make sure that Fawkes the phoenix, standing on the table in the center of the room, could hear her.

Without a doubt, Fawkes, who had been with Dumbledore for decades, knew very well the importance of this chattering hat to Hogwarts. Smart and loyal, it would inevitably be extra cautious when faced with such a decision.

In this way, neither the phoenix flames nor the sharp beak posed a threat to Erina.

Just as Erina had predicted, Fawkes hesitated when facing the Sorting Hat. Its beautiful eyes were full of confusion, and its golden beak remained motionless, allowing Erina to put the Sorting Hat on its head.

"You see, it's not that difficult!"

After successfully covering the phoenix's head with the Sorting Hat, Erina raised her eyebrows triumphantly. She hugged Fawkes' warm body with one hand and gently stroked the trembling phoenix wings with the other, comforting it softly, "Don't be afraid, I didn't prepare any cooking utensils today, so I won't eat you for the time being."

"Goo woo—"

With Erina's voice, Fawkes' body shook, emitting a begging whimper.

The gold and red bird, its beak bound in the Sorting Hat, quietly lay on the table, not daring to move, afraid that the silver-haired little devil on its back would prick the Sorting Hat with its beak if it was unhappy.

"Foolish, even if you can catch the phoenix, what can you do?"

Obviously, the people in the portraits had their own unique way of communicating. A young witch with long dark hair appeared in an empty picture frame near the bookshelf and snorted.

Another old antique looking for trouble? The silver-haired Veela shrugged helplessly, just about to retort when she suddenly heard the witch change her tone.

"Phoenixes are not afraid of flames or high temperatures. Although I haven't cooked a phoenix, I have proven that this path is not feasible when grilling Ashwinders. Have you thought carefully about how to cook it?"

Huh?

Grilled Ashwinders… it sounds like another delicious dish. Could it be that there was a friend with the same hobby among the former Hogwarts headmasters?

Erina did not answer. First, she curiously looked at the nameplate and introduction under the dark-haired young witch's portrait, and immediately stood in awe—[Phyllida Spore], who died in 1408 after mistakenly eating poisonous Tentacula, Headmistress of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, a famous herbologist, and the author of *One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi*.

She was simply the European magical world's female version of Shennong. Without such fearless herbologists, the level of potion-making in the entire magical world might have regressed for many years.

Thinking of this, she looked down at the trembling phoenix Fawkes, and the little guilt that Erina originally felt disappeared completely—in that case, she was doing it for a greater ideal.

"Headmistress Phyllida, you're right, the cooking methods I thought of before were indeed inappropriate. Magical creatures should not be considered in the same way as ordinary creatures."

Erina, who never admitted defeat, thought carefully for a while, nodded sincerely, and generously admitted her mistake.

As expected of a witch who could become the headmistress of Hogwarts, even the remaining wisdom in the portrait after hundreds of years was enough to give guidance to future generations.

Magical creatures in the magical world have their own characteristics. If one insists on the appearance of biological forms and forcibly imitates non-magical cooking methods, it would be too much of a waste.

For a long time, the reason why people are used to eating cooked food is nothing more than that cooked food, which has been sterilized by high temperature, not only lasts longer than raw meat, but is also healthier and easier to digest and absorb. In addition, cooked meat usually tastes better.

However, although the phoenix looks like a large gold and red turkey, it cannot be regarded as a bird in the same way.

As a magical creature that is reborn from the ashes, every piece of meat on the phoenix's body has been strictly sterilized at high temperatures from the very beginning, and is a top-quality ingredient in perfect condition, so there is no need to consider adding heat again.

"In that case, you can actually cut the phoenix meat into thin slices, prepare a bowl of ice water and a small dish of dipping sauce next to it, dip it in the ice water, coat it with a thick layer of seasoning, and put it in your mouth. The temperature difference between ice and fire, coupled with the explosive seasoning, is simply the most delicious enjoyment in the world."

Erina stroked Fawkes' soft feathers thoughtfully, swallowed her saliva, and frowned with some distress.

"But in this case, the freshness of the meat will be extremely demanding. I can't possibly have to catch one every time I want to eat phoenix meat, and if I accidentally kill it, I have to wait for it to grow up slowly."

Hearing the silver-haired loli's murmur, Fawkes' body trembled violently again, and the head bound in the Sorting Hat began to shake anxiously from side to side, as if trying to break free.

"Be good, don't make a fuss, I'm thinking."

Feeling the phoenix beneath her starting to become restless, Erina gently patted Fawkes' large wings, "Don't worry, I usually don't like sashimi - well, raw meat slices - that kind of eating method that doesn't require any skill."

"Indeed, if you eat it raw, it seems a little too barbaric. We are wizards after all."

Phyllida Spore in the portrait nodded in agreement, holding her arms in confusion, "But, apart from that, it is indeed difficult to find a suitable cooking method for the phoenix."

Unknowingly, all the portraits in the entire headmaster's office had woken up, and were holding their breath, looking back and forth nervously at this dangerous conversation between one person and one painting.

"Wait, Headmistress Phyllida, I seem to have thought of a way."

Erina's fingers unconsciously moved back and forth along the lines of Fawkes' wing muscles, and a flash of inspiration suddenly flashed in her mind, and she looked at Phyllida Spore happily and said, "Have you heard of the way fishermen in the non-magical world deal with those excess fish?"

"Hmm? You mean salted fish..."

The dark-haired young witch's eyes lit up, and she nodded approvingly, "That's indeed a good way. You only need to coat the phoenix wings and phoenix legs with thick salt, and place them in a cool and dry place to dry slowly, and they can be preserved for a long time."

Fawkes' struggle began to intensify, and the long beak poked out small bulges from the inside of the Sorting Hat.

"That's right, in this way, when it's cold in winter, you only need to cut a small piece of phoenix meat and put it in the soup to cook out the warm magic contained in the phoenix. Even a small bowl is enough to make the whole body warm up instantly."

Having finally met a confidant in the magical world, the silver-haired loli excitedly added to Phyllida's words.

After a moment of pause, Erina wiped the corner of her mouth and said with a slightly annoyed expression, "As expected of the great witch who wrote *One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi*, I really regret not being able to meet Headmistress Phyllida sooner."

"No, no, over the years, you are the little witch with the most courage to explore the unknown that I have ever seen." The dark-haired young witch waved her hands shyly, but she was obviously very fond of Erina's compliment.

Phyllida Spore glanced at the well-behaved silver-haired loli with satisfaction, thought for a while, and raised her finger slowly and said, "Regarding the cutting of magical substances, I can actually teach you a little trick..."

Goo woo—

Woo—

At this moment, Fawkes suddenly let out a series of unusually high-pitched calls, and the covered neck began to shake desperately, no longer worrying about whether the Sorting Hat would be pierced. The huge gold and red wings were directly spread out, and with a strong flap of its wings, it flew up directly.

"Hey? Hey hey hey??!"

Erina, who was pricking up her ears and listening carefully to Headmistress Phyllida imparting magical tips, leaned to the side, subconsciously grabbing the brim of the Sorting Hat with both hands, trying to pull Fawkes down - however, the silver-haired loli, who couldn't even compare to the strength of a fish, faced with a phoenix that could bear the weight of several adults, the difference in strength was even more disparate.

In the next second, Erina was effortlessly carried up by Fawkes, just like a light piece of paper, hardly producing any effective obstruction.

With her hands gripping the edge of the Sorting Hat, the silver-haired loli, who was circling in the office with the phoenix, suddenly thought of an idiom - riding a tiger is difficult to get off.

Because the entire head was covered by the Sorting Hat, the frightened phoenix Fawkes began to fly around Dumbledore's spacious and beautiful office like a headless fly. On its back, a silver-haired figure tried hard to grab a dark hat to avoid falling down accidentally.

"Left left left!! Ah, stupid bird, don't fly around, I won't eat you today!"

"Right, right, don't go over there, that's the bookshelf!"

Bang!

The tall wooden bookshelf let out a teeth-aching groan and slowly fell down, and various books were scattered all over the floor like a shower of flowers.

"Stop! Stop! Stop! If you go over there, you'll hit the chandelier—"

Duang!

Several light posts were directly broken by Fawkes and fell down crookedly.

"Don't come over! Don't come over!"

"Oh, my goodness, someone go and notify Dumbledore."

The gasps of the most respected male and female headmasters of Hogwarts echoed in Erina's ears as she barely avoided the impact.

"Wait, over there are the portraits of the headmasters..."

The girl raised her head, her pupils shrank slightly, and the next impact target was the headmasters' picture frames - some portraits were out of print, and it would be a pity if they were damaged, after all, she didn't know if Dumbledore could repair them.

"Forget it!"

Gritting her teeth, Erina grabbed the two sides of the Sorting Hat with both hands, swung her body along with the inertia, barely aligned the bird's head with the other direction of the room, and then curled up with a look of resignation to avoid being injured too badly.

Whirr whirr—

The completely frightened phoenix Fawkes rushed straight towards the wooden table it had stood on before like a crashing plane, knocking all kinds of snacks and desserts on it to the ground, and finally crashed heavily in front of Dumbledore's wooden desk, stopping.

The ink bottle on Dumbledore's desk rolled down with a *glug glug* sound, staining the letters spread out on it with a layer of ink.

Erina's small body, following the inertia, crashed into the wall where the headmasters' portraits were hanging. In a panic, the girl seemed to have grabbed the edge of a wooden frame, slightly cushioning the force, and then slowly slid down to the corner of the wall.

*Pa!*

A few seconds later, a large wooden picture frame swayed down from the wall, and the next moment, Erina heard Phineas's roar in her ear.

"I'm going to expel you! In my day, I would definitely expel you."

Okay, clearly, Erina already knew which headmaster's portrait she had accidentally knocked down.

"Sorry, it wasn't intentional."

Erina grinned, sitting on the ground and rubbing her somewhat red and swollen shoulders, patting the edge of the picture frame carelessly, "Besides, Headmaster Phineas, your painting is still very sturdy, relax, relax."

Just then, Erina suddenly noticed that behind Phineas's picture frame, there seemed to be a roll of somewhat old parchment, which seemed to be secretly recording a lot of things.

—Could it be a hidden magic spell, or a clue to a secret treasure left by the founders?

The silver-haired loli's eyes lit up slightly, looked around, raised the corner of her mouth, reached out and took the parchment from behind the picture frame leaning against the wall, and was about to open it to take a closer look.

Squeak.

There was a slight sound from the door, as if someone was pushing the door in.

—Dumbledore is back!

Erina's expression became serious, and she quickly stuffed the parchment into her clothes along the collar, and then started to pretend to be in pain on the ground.

————

Dumbledore opened the door and looked at the messy office in shock.

The entire headmaster's office looked as if it had just undergone a fierce battle.

One side of the giant chandelier on the ceiling was strangely twisted, candy, biscuits, and various snacks were scattered all over the floor, the huge wooden bookshelf was leaning diagonally in the center of the room, the ground was full of messy papers and books, and the ink from the ink bottle, which was still spinning, was spreading around.

The previously bright and moving phoenix Fawkes, with its feathers disheveled, lay weakly in front of his desk, next to it was the crumpled Sorting Hat, and the silver-haired Erina was cowering in the corner with a painful expression, and Headmaster Phineas's portrait, which had fallen to the ground, was blocking most of the little girl's body.

"Cough. So, what exactly happened?"

The headmaster who was rarely respected by all the teachers and students in the history of Hogwarts, the greatest wizard of the contemporary era, finally felt the taste of confusion again after many years.