For those gentlemen living in Britain and the United States, the last day of August was no different from any other.

But in the eyes of people in the former Soviet Union, this day was like a dividing line, clearly separating the past and the future into two worlds—a sentiment shared by both Muggles and wizards living on this land.

At ten o'clock in the morning on this day, the governments of Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, and other CIS countries unanimously announced the "temporary" suspension of the old ruble.

Dozens of large grain supply companies and small and medium-sized banks went bankrupt and were reorganized, merging with the original central banks of each country to form semi-independent financial institutions, which in turn began to issue "potato vouchers" guaranteed by their respective national tax credits as a transition.

Immediately afterward, most of the securities trading markets were suspended.

Before the new currency was fully implemented, the "cash" on this land was reduced to its most primitive function—serving as a general equivalent to exchange basic goods in the physical market.

Meanwhile, in places invisible to non-magical eyes, the Russian Ministry of Magic, the Ukrainian Ministry of Magic, the British Ministry of Magic... more than a dozen authoritative magical departments, including the International Confederation of Wizards, simultaneously announced:

The Dark Wizard who calls himself the Dark Lord - Tom Riddle, has returned, and this time his range of activities has spread from the original British Isles to the entire European continent. In view of the horrific acts he has committed, the international magical community has defined him as an "international terrorist."

According to current intelligence, during the past decade of dormancy, this "most terrible Dark Wizard in history" has most likely re-developed a group of followers in places including but not limited to the United States, Britain, Russia, and Ukraine.

The Ministry of Magic and the International Confederation of Wizards call on all members of the magical community to remain vigilant, and the Aurors of various countries will conduct a second investigation into those suspected of being "Death Eaters."

These shocking news, like a blizzard accompanied by newspapers and radio stations, quickly swept through every corner of the magical and non-magical worlds—however, the storm it stirred would take several months to gradually spread and affect the entire human society.

However, in contrast, for some people living on the edge of the world...

The long blizzard season was finally coming to an end.

...

Novosibirsk, the capital of the Siberian region.

A quiet street located in the suburbs.

Alexei held the documents in his arms, hurrying towards his rented apartment.

As the former deputy director of the Budker Institute of Nuclear Physics, every second he lingered on this land increased the risk of being arrested by the Russian secret police.

He, who used to be responsible for security information coordination at the Institute, never thought that one day he would become the very thing he hated most—under the introduction of those wizards, the house where his family originally lived had been sold in advance, exchanged for stacks of pounds.

In fact, according to Alexei's rank, he should have been among the first batch of researchers to be transferred to Hogwarts, including his family, all of whom were on the A-list.

However, due to some special reasons, he voluntarily chose to evacuate in the last batch.

"It's still too rushed. After the institute was closed, even the archives of the same project were torn apart... However, with these materials, at least 70% of the research content can be restored, no, if there is magic, maybe..."

Alexei's eyes flickered, and he thought again of the steel-cast sky city he had seen above the castle before—magic? It's really enviable...

As an ordinary "Muggle", Alexei knew very well that no matter how hard he tried to understand, he might never be able to touch the truth of this world with his own hands.

But fortunately...

Alexei walked out of the alley and looked up at the somewhat old apartment not far away. A plump and tall woman was checking luggage, and on the steps beside her, a blonde, blue-eyed little girl was engrossed in reading a thick book.

Alexei's eyes softened instantly.

That was his wife, Natasha, and daughter, Danilova. Since the Soviet Motherland no longer existed, protecting these two most important women in his life had become his only wish.

And unlike him and his wife, Danilova's future was destined to be longer than any of them, because she was a witch, or, more accurately, Danilova possessed the special talent necessary to become a wizard.

About a month ago, a barn owl visited Alexei's house.

A magical school called Koldovstoretz Academy of Magic, located somewhere outside Moscow, extended an invitation to Danilova. After consulting Mr. Frank, who was also a wizard, Alexei's family quickly gave their answer.

"Dad, you're back? So... are we finally leaving?"

Noticing the movement across the street, Danilova looked up in surprise at Alexei, who was walking quickly towards her, quickly closed the thick book in her arms, stood up, and stretched.

Even though she had just turned eleven the month before last, the inherent charm of Russian blood was already beginning to take shape. Whether it was her height or figure, she looked like a girl of thirteen or fourteen.

It's just that from the girl's immature little face, and her childlike, curious, and excited expression, one could still see—this was still a child who hadn't grown up.

"Yes, it's time to go—but, Dani, are you ready?"

Alexei nodded and looked at his daughter seriously.

"Tomorrow is the first day of school. If you fail the basic entrance exam, then you may only be able to attend classes as an auditor. This is not a joke. According to that lady, you may not even be able to have your own wand."

"Don't worry, Dad—those are much simpler than your homework."

Danilova stuck out her tongue and answered proudly.

"You've seen it too. It's mainly some language tests, as well as simple math, physics, biology knowledge, and a small part of magic knowledge tests. In a month, I've memorized everything—now it's time to rest and relax..."

And on the steps beside her, was the leisure reading she had read back and forth several times.

*Hogwarts, A History*

Since learning about some of the courses at the wizarding school from Frank, as well as the differences between the two or various schools, Danilova almost unhesitatingly rejected the invitation from Koldovstoretz Academy of Magic and instead submitted an application to Hogwarts.

Even if entering Hogwarts required passing an additional pre-school exam and participating in fixed work-study activities every weekend, it did not shake Danilova's determination.

"Speaking of which, you really don't consider staying in Russia and going to that magical school called Koldovstoretz to study? Dani, if you just want to accompany..."

Alexei sighed helplessly and said hesitantly.

Even if the person in charge on the surface was just a little girl who was shorter and flatter than his own daughter, it would not reduce Alexei's vigilance in the slightest.

You know, this is a mysterious force that silently controls the lifeblood of the former Soviet Union, easily destroys all foreign capital in a few words, and possesses at least a flying nuclear-powered aircraft carrier and hundreds or thousands of "elite agent-level" wizard operatives.

Alexei wouldn't naively believe that this was a peaceful, science-loving, harmless, and friendly "non-governmental organization" or some "international charity."

Although from his personal point of view, teaching at that Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry would be a good choice under the current situation. But if his family was all under the control of those mysterious wizards, it still made Alexei feel a little uneasy.

"I'm not a ten-year-old child anymore, Dad, I know what I want..."

Danilova shook her head, a slight look of disdain flashed across her small face.

"Just as I told Uncle Frank before, if the courses of a famous wizarding school don't even have the most basic Fourier transform, Cauchy transform, Lagrange transform, and Euler transform, how can people believe that the transfiguration magic they teach in class has no hidden dangers?"

The girl pointed to the *Hogwarts, A History (1992 Edition)* by her hand.

In the last part of the book, the course arrangements for Hogwarts' first to seventh grades, the faction tasks of each house, the irregularly issued daily activities, the final exams, and so on are described in detail.

"And Hogwarts' curriculum will learn this in the second grade..."

"Speaking of which... that's indeed the case..."

Alexei was stunned for a moment and sighed helplessly.

Just like the vast technological gap between countries in the non-magical world, there are obviously extremely obvious knowledge monopolies and technical barriers in the magical world.

He still remembered that in that mysterious Moscow wizarding tavern, the chief executive officer of Tianming Group, who called herself Theresa Apocalypse, a small, dignified lady, once said very proudly:

"In today's Hogwarts, I can easily name at least three or four first-year students who are proficient in advanced mathematics, can easily decompose compounds into elements, and can complete battlefield-level first aid with their bare hands."

And this is just the level of Hogwarts first-year students.

Alexei found it hard to imagine how much terrible knowledge beyond the times the official professors of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, or those wizards who are said to be at the top of the magical world, still possessed—the magical world is really too mysterious.

"So, Dad, where are we going now? Didn't you say before that we were going to England by boat today? The nearest port from here should be in St. Petersburg, right? Is there really enough time now?"

In the interval when Alexei was slightly distracted, Danilova had already put the books around her into her large schoolbag, walked up to the man, and asked curiously, looking up.

In the girl's hand, she was holding a card with an abstract yellow rabbit (Houm) head drawn on it.

It looked about the same size as a common phone card, with a few lines of simple text descriptions written in English and Russian, which looked like a gift card that could be seen everywhere:

[Hyperion One-Way Ticket]

[Boarding Time - Novosibirsk - 17:00]

[Note: Please be sure to bring your personal belongings with you to avoid loss]

"Oh, the boat..."

Alexei came back to his senses, a strange expression on his face.

Compared to the graffiti paper that took him from Novosibirsk to Moscow a few months ago, this "Portkey" was obviously much better made, although... if nothing unexpected happened, the experience might still be just as bad.

Alexei shrugged and said calmly.

"We're not going to the port. We can board the ship with this ticket... According to my experience, as long as we hold this ticket, we will be on the ship when the time comes—that is... our own ship..."

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