The Old Ones of Hogwarts

Chapter 48: The Legend of the Four Giants

The sky was getting dark.

The frigid temperature and the gathering of dark clouds hastened the arrival of night.

"Found it!"

The enormous, half-giant Hagrid, with a face covered in a tangled beard, lit his lantern and led a large group of young wizards toward the Black Lake.

"What's going on with those two over there?"

"Are they also freshmen this year? Why didn't they take the train with us?"

"It's possible they live near Hogwarts."

……

Ian and Aurora, who were squatting in front of the Black Lake playing in the water, almost immediately attracted the attention of many young wizards, who chattered and whispered behind Hagrid.

"You two are the children Dumbledore mentioned, aren't you?" Hagrid held his little pink umbrella in his other hand, a stark contrast to his imposing physique.

"If there's no one else here, then they must be talking about us." Aurora almost had to tilt her head back to see Hagrid's bearded face.

"Professor, you've finally arrived! We've been waiting so long!" Ian quickly grabbed his suitcase and walked with Aurora towards the group of freshmen.

"Hahaha, sorry, sorry, it took some time to find a lost student." Hagrid laughed so hard his beard trembled. He ruffled Ian's hair with his large hand. "Just call me Hagrid. I'm just the gamekeeper at Hogwarts. Don't get me wrong. You're a really cute little guy."

obviously.

The word "Professor" truly resonated with Hagrid.

"They're all the same, they're all the same."

Ian felt that the other person's large hand could almost cover his entire skull.

"Everyone's here, let's hurry and catch the boat, we're running out of time."

Hagrid's favorability was always easy to boost. When he saw the thin Ian, he even tucked the little red umbrella into his waistband and effortlessly freed one hand to help Ian and Aurora carry their suitcases.

"Thank you, Professor Hagrid, you're a good person."

Ian eagerly followed Hagrid, while Aurora seemed to understand something. The two of them joined the group of young wizards following Hagrid.

just.

But no one spoke to them.

The initial friendship.

Almost all of them began on the Hogwarts Express. The chance encounters in the carriages largely determined the young wizards' initial circles of interaction.

The group soon arrived at the boat docking point in Black Lake.

"Four people per boat, don't fight, don't push, this is for your safety!" Hagrid shouted at the crowd of eager young wizards.

immediately.

Then, he casually tossed Ian and Aurora's suitcases into the boat in front of them—Ian and Aurora naturally had no choice but to climb into the small boat without hesitation.

"You! I'm talking to you! No ten people allowed on one boat!"

Hagrid ran towards the other young wizards.

At this time.

Two girls came over one after the other and climbed into the boat where Ian and Aurora were. The two girls probably weren't very familiar with each other, as they sat quite far apart when they sat opposite Ian and Aurora.

Hello.

One of the girls greeted Ian and Aurora warmly.

Aurora nodded slightly.

Ian breathed a sigh of relief.

"I thought I was going to go to school by boat with big Hagrid."

He was somewhat relieved that everyone on the ship was a tiny little guy like him.

"You just called him professor and said he was a good person, but now you're saying you don't want to ride the boat with him?" Aurora looked at Ian with a hint of surprise.

"This isn't a matter of whether I want to or not."

Ian responded matter-of-factly, "Of course I think he's a good person, but what does that have to do with the possibility of our boat capsizing?"

That makes a lot of sense.

The girl who had greeted them so warmly just moments before couldn't help but nod in agreement.

Just at this time.

"Everyone, hold on tight, let's go!" Hagrid found himself a boat by himself, and with a shout, all the small boats began to move forward automatically on the mirror-like lake.

"This is not scientifically sound!"

Ian was surprised to see that Hagrid's ship had the same draft as the other small boats. He then seemed to understand and murmured a sigh of relief.

"But it really is magical."

Hagrid's weight could not possibly be equivalent to that of only four junior wizards. The small boat that ferried junior wizards to Hogwarts was clearly some kind of alchemical artifact with multiple abilities.

Feel the boat's automatic navigation.

Ian was starting to look forward to learning alchemy.

"Your eyes are so beautiful."

The enthusiastic girl noticed Aurora's eyes.

"Thanks."

Aurora gave a flat response.

"My name is Qiu Zhang. I hope we can become friends." The enthusiastic girl sitting opposite Aurora extended her hand to her. Aurora hesitated for a moment but still shook hands with her gently.

however.

She did not introduce herself at all.

"She has autism and doesn't like to talk."

Seeing the awkward atmosphere, Ian quickly tried to smooth things over for his friend. However, this excuse made Aurora turn and glance at him several times.

"So that's how it is."

I wonder if the girl named Qiu Zhang believes it or not.

"Just call me Ian. I'm different from her; I love to talk."

Ian warmly extended his hand and shook hands with Cho Chang. He looked at the girl in front of him, Harry Potter's first love, who indeed had the typical delicate features of an Asian girl.

"Fluorescent lights!"

As dusk fell, the aloof girl who had been silent all along suddenly drew her wand and chanted a spell. A soft white light hovered at the tip of her wand.

This person seemed to be naturally quiet, and didn't interact with Ian and the other two at all.

"Fluorescent lights!"

"Fluorescent lights!"

……

Except for their ship.

Occasionally, white lights also began to appear on other small boats.

On the lake.

Small boats drifted neatly toward Hogwarts Castle, leaving behind winding trails of water that traced a picture-perfect path in the boundless night.

"It is said that the four founders of Hogwarts arrived there by small boat and established Hogwarts." Qiu Zhang was generally quite outgoing.

She gazed at the distant outline of Hogwarts Castle, revealing a desire to educate others that would eventually belong to Ravenclaw. "I remember someone once told me a story that young wizards would receive the blessing of the four great wizards when they crossed the lake, and that the legacy of the four great wizards would baptize the young wizards' magic."

Ian was invigorated by the slow, deliberate words.

After a while.

"Rumor! Absolutely a rumor!"

Ian sighed in disappointment after checking his personal panel.

Women will lie to him.

However, this doesn't happen on the personal panel.

"I already said it's just a story, so it might not be true." Qiu Zhang tossed his hair and smiled lightly, not caring why Ian was refuting him.

"I don't mind you chatting."

Just at this time.

The aloof girl holding the glowing magic wand suddenly spoke up, "I'm just suggesting that instead of talking about some vague legends, perhaps you should pay more attention to the crisis at hand."

Her sudden statement surprised Ian and the others.

crisis?

What kind of crisis could Hogwarts possibly face?