Mysterious Journey
Chapter 777 Those People in the Shadows
With the ringing of the final bell, the first day of classes at Hogwarts had finally come to a complete end.
Clutching their books, young wizards walked out of the classrooms in twos and threes, their faces blank as they slowly shuffled towards their respective common rooms. After a day of being ravaged by lessons, the children, who hadn't fully readjusted to school life, were still somewhat dazed.
Compared to last year, both the intensity and density of Hogwarts' courses had significantly increased this year—simply put, it had largely transformed from "happy education" to the so-called "elite education."
At Hermione’s suggestion, each young wizard's timetable had an average of about two hours of extra classes added.
Even weekends would have an extra half-day of study time. However, according to Hogwarts' schedule, these were mainly some more interesting courses, such as flying lessons for the younger years or Defense Against the Dark Arts, Care of Magical Creatures…
In short, after a series of reasonable adjustments, the students' energy conversion rate was maximized.
Although the simple-minded students had not yet realized the hellish life that awaited them, after experiencing a more fulfilling day of learning than usual, most of the young wizards were now only thinking about returning to their soft beds as soon as possible.
Amidst the sparse and silent crowd, Draco Malfoy deliberately lagged behind, trailing at the very end.
The Slytherin common room was located on the first basement level of the castle. Dim magical torches illuminated the green stream of people, casting flickering shadows on the narrow stone walls. At the end of the stream was the half-open stone door of the common room entrance.
Draco narrowed his eyes, watching "Shadow Prefect" Hermione gradually disappear behind the door, surrounded by the new students.
In a daze, he seemed to see the figure of another girl with a different hair color—when he first received his Hogwarts acceptance letter a year ago, Draco also had such naive ideas of becoming the focus of the crowd in the school.
But later…
Draco Malfoy took a deep look and turned away, disappearing into the shadows in the opposite direction.
Passing through the deserted marble steps, Draco gently pushed open the door of the Great Hall. Before his vision could adjust to the suddenly dimmed environment, a gentle voice came from the Gryffindor table.
"You're slower than I expected, Mr. Malfoy. You're late."
Bill Weasley stood up, moonlight streaming through the windows and falling on his red hair, making him look somewhat dangerous.
Draco Malfoy took a deep breath and replied calmly.
"According to the task you relayed to me earlier, I needed to confirm that 'Miss Shadow' had safely returned to the common room before leaving the crowd and coming here to prepare for the Foundation's research work tonight—besides, you didn't specify a time."
Bill Weasley glanced at the boy standing at the door. "Do you know what you're going to face later?"
"I can guess a little…"
"Malfoy, you should know some of your parents' hidden past, right? Those not-so-good stances."
"Yes, Mr. Weasley. But that's all in the past."
"Just a past that the Ministry of Magic has promised to compromise on. As for the real situation… heh…"
Bill's lips curled into a slight smile, and he said softly with a sneer, "Once you officially participate in the Foundation's project, you have no possibility of leaving halfway. You are very likely to clash with your family at some point in the future, you know that, right?"
"Of course, that's why I'm here."
Draco replied neither humbly nor arrogantly, with no hint of wavering in his eyes.
A hint of a smile appeared on Bill Weasley's face. He walked forward, gently patted Draco Malfoy's shoulder, and handed a shimmering silver card to the boy. In the dim light, Draco could vaguely see the wing pattern on it.
Draco subconsciously reached out, ready to take the card from Bill's hand, but found that the B-level researcher was gripping the card tightly, with so much force that he almost thought the card was directly grown onto Bill Weasley's hand.
"This is a Gringotts Wizarding Bank payroll card issued to D-level members of the Foundation…"
Bill Weasley looked down at the blond boy in front of him and said softly.
"If you unfortunately die tonight, or in future activities—and the probability is not small—then all the wealth in it will be given to your parents as compensation. Now, you have one last chance to change your mind."
Draco Malfoy raised an eyebrow and stubbornly snatched the card away.
"Very well. Tonight's activity will take place next to the Gryffindor common room, opposite the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy being clubbed by trolls on the eighth floor of the castle. We'll go separately. I'll go first, and you follow me."
Bill Weasley nodded in satisfaction, turned around decisively, and walked towards the wooden door at the other end of the Great Hall.
In fact, there was one thing he didn't tell Draco Malfoy: although he was a B-level researcher, his previous work didn't involve directly contacting such high-risk items. For Bill Weasley, officially participating in the Foundation's research activities on containment objects like this was also a first in his life.
The previous passage was not something he saw in any manual, but something Professor Gilderoy Lockhart had secretly told him at the end of today's lesson.
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Goo ah~