Chapter 222: I'm Not a God-like Clow Reed
The damp, cold air of early winter twilight seeped into Hogwarts Castle. Although there were a few unexpected incidents, the end of the Quidditch match couldn't stop the students from being excited. The clamor echoed through the corridors. As Dylan entered the castle, he saw Cedric standing alone, leaning against a stone pillar.
Cedric, the Hufflepuff Seeker, had taken off his yellow and silver jersey and was now wearing a dark green scarf loosely draped around his neck.
"That dive today was amazing. The final arc you took to dodge the Dementors and catch the Golden Snitch was a really cool way to win."
Dylan's voice reached him before he did. Cedric was slightly taken aback. "Thanks..." He looked up and saw that it was Dylan, a Gryffindor student. His expression became a bit awkward, and the tips of his ears turned red. But this actually gave his handsome face a softer, less angular look.
He didn't think he had won entirely fairly, and even though he was on good terms with many Gryffindors, being praised for a beautiful victory made him a little embarrassed.
"About the match..." Cedric began.
Dylan just smiled and shook his head gently. "The way I see it, you endured the pressure from the Dementors and won the championship. That's both reasonable and fair."
Cedric paused and blinked. "You really think so?"
Dylan nodded as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "The rain was heavy, but I could see clearly that your speed and reflexes were much better than Harry's." He continued, "Even if Harry hadn't been under pressure from the Dementors, you definitely would have caught the Golden Snitch before him."
Cedric pursed his lips. Was that true? He couldn't shake the feeling that the Snitch was trying to fly toward Harry.
"Don't look so surprised. As an observer, I saw everything clearly." Dylan shrugged. "Otherwise, why do you think Wood rejected your suggestion for a rematch? Was it just out of loyalty?" Dylan shook his head. "Even if he is a bit hot-headed, that clearly wasn't the case this time."
"Wood's acceptance of Hufflepuff's victory was because of his love for Quidditch. You won fair and square. If he had agreed to your proposal, it would have been him going against his conscience and blaming Gryffindor's loss entirely on the Dementors." Dylan looked directly at Cedric. "I think you and Wood are old acquaintances; you should know his character. He wouldn't have agreed to that."
Cedric sighed. "It's precisely because I know how much he loves Quidditch..."
Dylan interrupted before he could finish. "Don't forget, you love Quidditch just as much—even if I'm not that passionate about it."
Cedric paused, then let out a heavy breath and smiled with relief. "I guess you're right."
"Exactly!" Dylan said. "Congratulations on winning a victory for Hufflepuff, but since I'm a Gryffindor, I won't celebrate with you. Your teammates will take care of that."
Cedric smiled. "Then when Gryffindor wins a match, I'll go celebrate with Wood."
"That's your business," Dylan said with a smirk.
Cedric noticed that Dylan didn't seem to care much about Quidditch. He had even less interest in the outcome of the game. After a moment of thought, Cedric winked at Dylan. "So, since Gryffindor lost, would you like me to use one of the food charms we Hufflepuffs know to make you some pumpkin pasties?"
Dylan raised an eyebrow. "No need. A Ravenclaw student will bring me some."
Cedric smiled. "You mean Luna? I've noticed that girl. She's very pretty. Although I've heard many people say she's a bit spacey, I figured since you're good friends with her, the rumors might be false."
"No, there's always some basis for a rumor, even if it's far-fetched," Dylan replied, shaking his head. "Luna is very clever, but her logic and way of thinking are a bit different from most people, which is why everyone thinks she's a bit odd."
Cedric nodded slightly. "But Luna is a second-year and not in my house, so I don't interact with her much. However, from what I've heard from people I know in Ravenclaw, she's on pretty good terms with her classmates now."
"More importantly, her food charms are very good, and some were even taught to her by people in our house. I think she must be able to make a lot of delicious food now."
Dylan nodded. "I know. After we found the secret oven in the Hufflepuff kitchens, Luna has been talking to people in your house more and more often."
Among the Ravenclaw students, many initially found Luna difficult to get close to. Luna would often go to Hufflepuff to borrow their kitchens and got along well with the students there. A while ago, Dylan would occasionally go with Luna to borrow the Hufflepuff kitchens and make some food. After cooking, Luna would share the food with the Hufflepuff students. It was natural that Luna and the Hufflepuff students became more familiar with each other over time. Dylan had even learned a few food charms from Luna.
Speaking of food charms, they were quite different from the max-level cooking spells Dylan had mastered before. The cooking spells Dylan knew were just for basic cooking methods like chopping, stir-frying, and deep-frying. These were the processes of cooking. This meant he could use these spells on any type of dish. The real food charms, the ones from Hufflepuff, were spells that each corresponded to a specific food. Before he met Luna, Dylan had learned a few, but his control and understanding of them only grew after he started cooking with her.
"The secret oven, you say?" Cedric raised an eyebrow slightly, a faint smile on his lips.
"You know about that oven?" Dylan asked, his eyebrow twitching.
"Of course. I saw that oven back in my second year," Cedric nodded.
Dylan's curiosity was piqued. "So what is that oven? Did the founder of Hufflepuff really leave it behind?"
Cedric thought for a moment, then nodded and shook his head. "Our house members speculate that it might have been left by the founder, but there's no evidence to support that, so we can't be sure." Cedric continued, "But one thing I can confirm is that the oven is enchanted with many food charms, and many of them are ones that have been lost to our house."
Dylan clicked his tongue, and the thought of borrowing the oven to use it crossed his mind again. If he could get his hands on that oven and analyze it thoroughly, he might be able to learn a lot of new spells—valuable food charms that required continuous research and development.
Cedric looked out the window. The rain continued to pour. The cold presence of the Dementors seemed to still linger in the air. He fell silent.
Dylan looked at his expression and cocked his head. "What are you thinking about now?"
"The Dementors," Cedric sighed. "I don't know why they suddenly entered Hogwarts territory. Did the Dementors lose control? Or did the Ministry..." Cedric's voice trailed off.
The corridor was empty. They were in a secluded corner of the entryway, and since all the students had already passed, it was very quiet. But outside, the rain was coming down in sheets, and the sound of the downpour couldn't be stopped, so Dylan was the only one who could hear Cedric's voice.
"Don't worry, it probably has nothing to do with the Ministry of Magic," Dylan said. "Even if it does, it has nothing to do with you."
"Really?"
Dylan nodded. "Yeah. Dementors like to gather in places with happy atmospheres; it allows them to feed their fill. Quidditch in a downpour stirred everyone's emotions. I'm guessing the Headmaster has already gone to chew out Fudge."
From where they were, Dylan could only see the heavy rain outside the window, not what was happening in the Headmaster's office. But based on his imagination, he could picture exactly what old Dumbledore was doing right now.
"I thought so, too," Cedric said after a moment of silence, nodding slightly. "I've been a student at Hogwarts for so many years, and every time I see the Headmaster, he's always kind. Even when a student makes a mistake, he doesn't scold them too much." Cedric's gaze shifted. "But... he seemed genuinely angry this time. It was the first time I've ever seen him make that expression."
Dylan chuckled. "Yeah. Even in a situation like last year, he would only show worry or seriousness."
Suddenly, Dylan changed the subject. "Instead of worrying about the Dementors losing control at the hands of the Ministry, you should think about whether there are others who can influence them."
"Others?" Cedric was confused again. He thought of something, and his face suddenly changed. "Are you talking about... the Dark Lord?"
The Dark Lord? Dylan raised an eyebrow, realizing who Cedric was talking about. He let out a little laugh. "Yes, but this time, you can rest assured. It was just an accident. If it were truly the Dark Lord's doing, he wouldn't have let the Headmaster drive the Dementors away so easily."
—If old Dumbledore hadn't acted so fast, he could have used his Patronus to secretly abduct a few Dementors! Thinking of this, Dylan felt a little annoyed. Why was old Dumbledore so quick to react? And the key was that his magic was too powerful. Dylan couldn't be sure if Dumbledore's magic would sense him if he had taken one or two Dementors. This meant he didn't get to take a single Dementor for himself.
—What a shame!
"It's not him? That's good," Cedric said, nodding slightly. Dylan had previously hinted to him that his transformation into a Tree-man might have been the Dark Lord's doing. This made him feel uneasy whenever he thought about the things that had happened at Hogwarts in recent years. He couldn't be sure that Dylan's prophecy would come true, nor could he be sure that it wouldn't change. The seemingly known future was constantly affecting his state of mind.
"You don't have to be so anxious. Didn't I tell you last time that the future can be changed, provided you're prepared?"
"I'm trying to be prepared at all times."
"...You don't have to be that prepared."
"I'll try my best to get rid of these messy thoughts and not let them interfere with me," Cedric said with a gentle sigh, rubbing his forehead and leaning against the wall. A chill instantly passed through his clothes and onto his body.
Dylan felt the slight numbness of Cedric's emotions and pursed his lips, starting to think about something.
Just then, Cedric spoke again. "Dylan, am I really going to die at the Dark Lord's hands? You told me last time that the things that have happened at Hogwarts over the past two years are all connected to him." He didn't know why the Dark Lord would target him or how he would die at his hands. This made him feel a bit panicked, even though he knew there was no news of the Dark Lord right now.
"It looks like you need to learn a magic that can calm your mind," Dylan said, stroking his chin. He had planned to do this a little later, but now it seemed that if Cedric didn't quickly seal his thoughts, Voldemort might notice him faster than the day he would actually die.
—Dylan couldn't be sure when Voldemort would sneak in. He wasn't the "door-opener," constantly keeping an eye on where Voldemort was. He had his own things to do. Sometimes, even Dumbledore couldn't be omniscient and notice everything that was happening in the castle, let alone him. "I'm not a god-like Clow Reed."
He was just a wizard with a few small abilities, a little intelligence, a small cheat, and a great love for learning. While he might be far ahead of his peers in terms of mastering magic, and even some adult wizards couldn't compare to him, when it came to true magical proficiency, his experience couldn't be directly increased just because he had mastered some spells.
"A spell? What spell?" Cedric asked, staring at Dylan blankly.
"This." Dylan flipped his hand, and a small notebook appeared in his palm. It was the one the professor had given him.
....
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