308: Chapter 301 The Baby's Screams

Ms. Rowling muttered mysteriously, and after piquing their curiosity, she became reluctant to reveal more, picking up her wine glass and sipping to herself.

This left the five people, who had leaned in with serious expressions, completely baffled.

What was the meaning of this?

Stirring up trouble but not seeing it through?

The five of them fidgeted uncomfortably, but Ms. Rowling was in no hurry. She smiled and said, "This isn't a convenient place to talk. Follow me."

She stood up to settle the bill at the bar, then led them out of the tavern, twisting and turning through the night-shrouded streets before finally entering an inn.

Without stopping in the lobby, the five followed Ms. Rowling straight to a room on the second floor.

It was a single room with one bed, a wooden table on the balcony, and a matching bathroom to the right of the door.

They took their seats at the balcony's wooden table. Ms. Rowling drew the curtains before sitting down as well.

“First, let me clarify: the information I have is what I gathered myself and has nothing to do with Grandpa. I'm telling you this out of a sense of justice, not to help you pass your assessment.”

She said this in a long string as if layering on armor. Toby nodded to show he understood, then asked in confusion, “In that case, why don't you just go and deal with them yourself?”

“With it around, an Evil Sorcerer shouldn't be able to harm you.”

“Also, isn't this supposed to be a practical combat class? What does it have to do with the assessment?”

“Uh...” Ms. Rowling opened her mouth as if to speak but hesitated, glancing at everyone. “Did Grandpa not tell you?”

“What should the Headmaster have told us?”

“I guess Grandpa forgot to mention it.” She interlaced her fingers on the table, organizing her words. “As you know, in my novels, I never mentioned the content of the practical combat classes.”

“Mm.” The five of them spoke simultaneously, indicating they understood.

Seeing this, Ms. Rowling continued, “So when I learned you were starting practical combat classes, I immediately returned to Hogwarts and asked Grandpa about it.”

“According to Grandpa, the so-called practical combat class is actually the annual exam. Well... just like the final exams you had when you were in school.”

“But there are some differences.”

She pulled several sheets of paper covered in scrawled writing from her bag, saying, “After all, final exams don't usually threaten your life.”

Leon frowned as he recalled something, then protested vehemently, “No, final exams also threaten your life. To this day, I cannot forget how tough my father's belt was.”

Klaisi's grades during his school days were equally poor, so he nodded vigorously in deep empathy.

“Fine.” Ms. Rowling shrugged noncommittally and looked down to flip through the papers. “Let's talk business first.”

“If your evaluation for the practical combat class is a failing grade...”

Wino's eyes narrowed. “Will we be expelled?”

“Not exactly. You'll be held back a year.”

“Huh?” The four adults looked dazed; it seemed they never expected that, years after graduating, they would have the chance to experience being 'held back' again.

Of course, it wasn't exactly an enjoyable experience.

Toby was the first to snap out of it and asked the key question: “What are the evaluation criteria?”

“That... Grandpa didn't tell me.” She seemed to find what she was looking for and pulled a sheet from the stack. “In any case, please work hard, freshmen of Hogwarts.”

“Since this year's class is only you, we'll have to count on you for the upcoming Magic Academy competition as well.”

“You've heard about that too, Ms. Rowling?”

“Grandpa mentioned it briefly while we were chatting. Oh, right.”

She seemed to remember something important and looked up. “Grandpa said the magic world should have more contact with the outside world, so the competition will be held on Blue Star.”

“Besides tens of thousands of spectators on-site, it will be broadcast live throughout. You'll represent not only Hogwarts and the Kingdom, but also Blue Star.”

Hearing that the entire country, and even the whole world, would be watching, the five of them grew nervous despite the competition being days away.

Ms. Rowling didn't notice them and looked down at the paper. “According to my investigation over these past few days, there are indeed Evil Sorcerers appearing in Hogsmeade Town.”

“Oh, you probably don't know what an Evil Sorcerer is yet, do you?”

Snapping back to reality, the five of them shook their heads in unison.

“Evil Sorcerers are former students who were expelled from the Magic Academy for various reasons and then, out of resentment, began practicing Blood Magic.”

“What is Blood Magic?”

“I'm not sure, but it sounds like something very evil,” Ms. Rowling replied, then continued. “Because they were expelled, they usually harbor extreme hatred for Magic Academy students. They'll ambush and attack whenever they get the chance, so never flaunt your status as a mage outside the academy.”

“Grandpa has organized several suppression campaigns, but their movements are hidden, and they don't reveal their magic in daily life, so it's always difficult to root them out.”

“Uh, even if they're expelled students, the academy should have their identity information, right?”

“As long as the academies join forces, there's no reason they can't be found—”

“If the Magic Academies had a harmonious relationship, then it would indeed be as you say. But unfortunately, the reality is quite the opposite.”

Leon and Klaisi seemed a bit unable to grasp Ms. Rowling's euphemistic answer, but Toby and Wino understood quite easily.

They served the Kingdom's official government; in theory, every department was loyal to the Kingdom and should cooperate, but in reality, internal strife was the norm, and sabotaging each other was common.

Misha seemed to remember something and fell silent with her head bowed.

Ms. Rowling clapped her hands, waking the five from their thoughts. “You already know the general situation of the Evil Sorcerers. Next, I'll tell you the intelligence I've gathered over the last few days.”

“Hmm... let's start with the recent strange events in the town.”

She picked up the paper, her eyes falling on it. “About half a month ago, a townsman reported to the police station that he often heard shrill wails in the middle of the night.”

“According to the informant's description, it felt like it was coming from a baby.”

A baby? Could it be that the Evil Sorcerers were practicing some cruel magic?

The five felt confused; they hadn't heard of any magic that used babies for practice.

Or had the school sealed away such content to prevent anyone from accidentally coming across it?

“After learning this, I specifically went to stake out the place where the sound came from, but for three consecutive days, I heard nothing. So, I went back to the informant to verify.”

“The man insisted he had indeed heard it, but since there are no voice recorders in this era, he couldn't prove it.”

Having said that, Ms. Rowling said with slight puzzlement, “He also mentioned a detail to me. The screams were very close to him at the time, but strangely, while he was searching around the area with courage, he was surprised to find that the volume of the sound remained constant.”

As she spoke, she used some professional terms, which the poorly-educated Klaisi didn't understand for a moment: “What does that mean?”

Wino explained, “It means no matter where the person went, the volume of the screams didn't change at all.”

“That's very abnormal!” Leon emphasized a correct but redundant point.

Toby ignored the others and asked with a solemn expression, “Ms. Rowling, do you have any theories?”

“As I just said, I went to the scene to investigate and found nothing.”

“By the way, I asked at the police station. No babies have gone missing in town recently, so you don't need to consider that direction.”

Ms. Rowling folded the paper neatly and tucked it back into her bag. “I'm leaving now. Remember to close the door behind you when you leave.”

Leon was stunned. “Where are you going?”

“To enjoy medieval nightlife.” She brushed her hair. “And to film and record the daily life of a real medieval town. I'm going to post it on Twitter later; my fans have been looking forward to it for a long time.”

After Ms. Rowling had returned to Blue Star previously, she had uploaded footage of her life at the academy to her Twitter account.

It had caused quite a stir; fans were so excited they even wanted to try if getting hit by a truck would work for isekai-ing, though they eventually calmed down under Ms. Rowling's persuasion.

To appease her fervent readers, Ms. Rowling had promised them before this return to school that she would film an ordinary town in the Hogwarts world as compensation.

The others didn't pry further; after all, they didn't need to worry about her safety.

Ms. Rowling finished packing, slung her bag over her shoulder, and walked toward the door.

Misha, who had been quiet, suddenly called out to her, “Ms. Rowling, I have a slight doubt.”

Turning around, Ms. Rowling said cheerfully, “I'm happy to clear things up for our little lady.”

“You said not to flaunt our status as mages outside because we'd be attacked by Evil Sorcerers, but my teachers all ride broomsticks when they leave the academy.”

“Hehe, little lady, that's because the Evil Sorcerers can't beat the teachers.” After saying that, she left, her high heels clicking.

The five looked at each other for a moment and understood.

Clearly, Evil Sorcerers were basically rats in the gutter, unable to face the light.

They were certainly annoying, but their low strength meant they couldn't cause substantial damage, making them perfect opponents for Magic Apprentices like them.

“Thanks to Ms. Rowling for her enthusiastic help.” Wino stood up and looked at Toby. “Captain, what's our next move?”

“First, let's get some rooms,” Toby said in a low voice.

The five of them walked out of the room together to the first-floor bar to check in.

To guard against a sneak attack by Evil Sorcerers, the five of them only opened one triple room.

They entered the room with the key card and prepared to rest after a quick wash.

Fortunately, the beds were wide enough to accommodate two people. So Wino and Klaisi took the leftmost bed, Leon and Toby slept on the right, and Misha slept alone in the middle.

Even though they hadn't done anything to reveal their mage identities since entering the town, the four adults still decided to take turns keeping watch.

The night passed without incident.

The next morning.

Sunlight filtered through the curtains to dispel the darkness in the room, and the five of them got up.

While eating the breakfast brought by the waiter, Misha was full of energy, while the other four were somewhat bleary-eyed.

Leon couldn't help rubbing his sore eyes and muttered, “Damn it, I only lost two hours of sleep, why do I feel like I'm about to drop dead... even before becoming a Magic Apprentice, I was fine after staying up all night.”

“Probably because you're old,” Klaisi jabbed at him while yawning.

“Screw off!”

“Alright.” As the captain, Toby interrupted them and chewed his bread quickly. “I thought about it last night; the course grade might be affected by completion time.”

“Let's not dally at the inn. Eat quickly, and we'll head out once we're done.”

Wino swallowed the milk in his mouth. “Do you have a plan?”

“Not much of a plan.” Toby finished his bread in a few bites. “According to what Ms. Rowling said, the Evil Sorcerers have been wanted for a long time.”

“Living in such a high-pressure environment for so long, they must be very sensitive. At the slightest sign of trouble, they'll flee immediately.”

“Yes.” Wino nodded in agreement.

“Since the Headmaster sent us here, it means they must still be lurking in the town.”

“However, Ms. Rowling's intel said that besides the strange baby screams, nothing else has happened in town.”

“Could Ms. Rowling's investigation be wrong?” Leon chimed in.

“Unlikely, unless there are Evil Sorcerers in the police station hiding all the cases, but that's a stretch.”

“Mm.” Misha hummed vaguely while chewing her bread, then looked up. “After we entered the town yesterday and looked around for a bit, the townspeople's reactions didn't seem like anyone had lost a child.”

Toby picked up a napkin to wipe his mouth. “So, instead of blindly guessing here, we might as well go out and look for clues.”

Thinking about how a low score would lead to being held back, the four quickly finished their meal and walked out of the inn together.

In front of the door, Toby looked left and right, hesitating on where to set the first investigation site.

While taverns were full of information, Ms. Rowling went there every day. If there were really clues there, she would have noticed long ago.

After a moment of thought, he decided to go to the market, which was also a place dense with information.

The five set off and asked for directions to the market located at the northernmost part of the town.

It was a market with a very complex array of goods.

Food, daily necessities, iron farm tools, horses, weapons, and more were all available. Toby even saw... black slaves wearing leg chains and shackles in a corner of the market.

Leon was shocked. “Why are there black slaves here?”

“This world is very large; perhaps there is a continent like FZ out there.”

“Uh, doesn't the Headmaster stop this?”

Misha rolled her eyes. “Uncle Leon, Grandpa Dumbledore is the Headmaster of Hogwarts, not a liberal warrior.”

He knew Misha was right, but seeing a scene recorded in history books actually appearing before his eyes, combined with the education he had received from childhood to adulthood, Leon still felt his values being challenged.

Guessing something from his changing expression, Wino teased, “You could try to become the Abraham Lincoln of the Hogwarts world.”

He caught a glimpse of an iron cage on a carriage not far away and smiled. “Also, you could establish the first animal protection organization here.”

Leon followed his gaze.

About twenty meters ahead, a cat peddler by the roadside was dealing with sick and weak kittens.

Probably for the sake of cost and convenience, the peddler's method was simple—snapping their necks and throwing them into a wooden bucket beside the carriage.

Finding the scene a bit bloody, Leon suppressed his urge to vomit. “Doesn't... doesn't anyone care?”

“Leon.” Toby turned around. “This isn't Blue Star.”

The five of them were dressed differently from ordinary people, and since they were standing still, the cat peddler soon noticed them.

Sizing up their fine clothing, he walked over enthusiastically. “Folks, do you need a cat?”

“Honest business, there will definitely be no sick cats!”

Wino glanced at the wooden bucket by the carriage. “I believe you.”

Seeing his quality trusted and recognized, the cat peddler showed joy. “Want a few?”

“Whether cute and well-behaved, or wild and fierce, I have them all.”

“Oh, half a month ago, a customer bought all my cats at once. You'd better seize the opportunity; he could come back at any time.”

Toby and Wino exchanged a look, then looked at the cat peddler together. “We'll take all your cats, but we hope you'll tell us where that customer lives.”

The cat peddler asked suspiciously, “What... do you want with him?”

“We also like cats very much. It's rare to meet someone with the same hobby, so we hope to get to know him and exchange tips on raising cats.”