Sirius had no objections, and Dumbledore continued with his preparations.
At this point, only Harry Potter himself was unaware of what was about to happen.
Voldemort knew. The Death Eaters knew. Dumbledore knew, and so did the Order of the Phoenix.
However, the students from the other two schools who would participate in next year's Triwizard Tournament were completely oblivious to the impending events. Especially since the tournament, being held again after such a long time, had already had its champion decided internally amid the rivalry between the two major opposing forces in the wizarding world. It was hard to imagine what they would think if they knew the truth.
"They'll probably break down."
"Break down over what?"
Ethan glanced at Hermione, who had suddenly appeared beside him. This was a Divination class, and Ethan wasn't particularly interested in it, so he usually found a quiet corner to pass the lesson in peace.
Anyway, his grades were absurdly stable, and the professor wouldn't go out of her way to call on him, especially when she could see he wasn't interested in the class. More importantly, Professor Trelawney, who taught Divination, could vaguely sense Ethan's identity, even though Dumbledore hadn't told her anything directly.
So this rather eccentric Divination professor wouldn't disturb Ethan unless something special happened.
Since Illya hadn't chosen Divination, Gryffindor students normally wouldn't sit next to him. Though the Slytherins were no longer openly hostile to him, Ethan hadn't made friends there either. Most of the Slytherins in his year were pure-blood descendants and part of Malfoy's circle.
But nothing is absolute. For example, Hermione, the academic overachiever who didn't want to miss any elective, often 'suddenly appeared' thanks to the Time-Turner—a bit of cheating, really—which led Harry and Ron to complain multiple times.
Later, she noticed Ethan often sat alone in the corner, so she began to 'appear' next to him instead.
After all, Ethan knew why she suddenly appeared and never voiced any dissatisfaction. Plus, he always chose a corner seat, so she wouldn't attract attention.
More importantly, Hermione wasn't particularly interested in Divination either. But she persisted because she didn't want to give up on any class. "I've conquered all the other subjects. Why should Divination be the one exception?"
"I was thinking, you clearly don't like Divination, but you still force yourself to attend. If you end up not getting a high enough grade to graduate, wouldn't you break down?"
Hermione opened her mouth, realizing that if something like that did happen, she probably would break down.
However, she quickly reconsidered. With her current grades, getting a passing grade in this class wouldn't be difficult at all.
"Hmph, even though I don't like it, getting a decent grade isn't hard."
For Hermione, getting into the advanced class and studying higher-level Divination wasn't difficult. Not because she was particularly talented in it, but because the advanced Divination course didn't have high requirements for students. It wasn't a popular class, so the threshold was relatively low.
In contrast was the Potions class taught by Snape. While other professors required an 'Exceeds Expectations,' Snape insisted on 'Outstanding.'
"Oh, right. How are you planning to spend this summer?"
"Hm?"
Ethan looked at Hermione in surprise, wondering why she was asking about that.
"Ron and Harry said they're going to watch the Quidditch World Cup, and they invited Rin and me too. Are you going?"
"Oh, that."
Rin had mentioned it. Ethan didn't mind Rin becoming friends with the Gryffindor trio, but he had reminded her that, barring any accidents, their fourth year would likely be their last in this world.
If Rin wanted to stay longer, that was fine. Ethan and the others could return first, then adjust the time flow and pick them up later.
"I've never been very interested in Quidditch."
"I can tell. You don't even pay attention to the inter-House Quidditch matches at Hogwarts."
Slytherin had been overshadowed by Gryffindor the past few years. Even with financial support from the Malfoy family, which provided the team with new brooms, it didn't change the outcome. The key factor was Harry Potter.
In Hermione's view, Slytherin shouldn't have been suppressed so badly with Ethan among them. The main reason was Ethan's complete lack of interest in Quidditch, even though his Flying class grades outmatched everyone in his year—even many upperclassmen weren't as good.
"You clearly have the skill. Didn't the Slytherin team ever try to recruit you?"
"They did. Every year."
Hermione had assumed Ethan's average family background meant the pure-blood Slytherins had excluded him, but apparently that wasn't the case.
"They annoyed me so much that I taught them a lesson."
"How?"
"I played against the whole team by myself. I said if they could beat me or even draw, I'd join."
"..."
Hermione gave Ethan a look that said, "Are you insane?" Then she realized something else. Even with those terms, Ethan still hadn't joined, which meant...
"They lost. So I told them, 'Your level isn't worth my time,' and sent them away."
In that moment, Hermione understood something: in the wizarding world, appearances were superficial. Only power mattered.
Ethan was this arrogant and prideful, yet the Slytherins hadn't ganged up on him (though they'd probably be beaten if they tried), and he actually got along with many of them. A young wizard from an ordinary family, in a House that worshipped pure-blood superiority, had earned their respect. It all came down to one thing—he was strong enough.
Although Hermione wouldn't suddenly become someone who believed strength was everything, she had realized long ago how important strength was in this world.
That was why she threw herself into learning everything she could, whether it was useful or not. As a witch from an ordinary family, with no special connections, her future depended entirely on how strong she could become.
"I suddenly feel... I should find a tutor and make the most of the summer."
Going to the Quidditch World Cup with Ron and Harry would be a total waste of time. She could spend that time studying the new term's material, maybe even prepare for fifth-year courses, and get ready for her exams early.
"Or maybe you could introduce me to the tutor you usually hire?"
"Huh?"
"Don't you usually hire private tutors during the holidays?"
"Oh, that... We found those in Diagon Alley. Honestly, that kind of tutoring isn't very effective. It's more for basic reviews. We don't go anymore."
"Really?"
"Yeah."
After casually answering, the Divination class finally ended. Hermione returned to the Gryffindor group, while Ethan went to find Illya.
Compared to Scáthach, who had already had her fill of fun, Illya, Leah, and Rin still had some attachment to Hogwarts. Among them, Rin's situation was mainly due to her own strength. Her current level was about that of a decent third-year student. She wasn't far ahead of her peers in terms of power.
She still had plenty to learn and wasn't willing to leave just yet.
Leah and Illya were different. Neither of them had experienced a normal childhood, let alone real school life.
Though they had felt a little out of place at first, they had now adapted to this lifestyle. Thinking about Rin's situation, Ethan suddenly felt that they might as well enjoy a few more years of peaceful school life. It would be a nice memory.
Although more trouble would arise starting next year, with Ethan around, the plot would no longer follow its original course.
Hogwarts would remain a safe haven and wouldn't become the main battlefield as it had in the original storyline. The true battlefield should be where adult wizards dominated.
It could be said that Hogwarts would remain a sanctuary and wouldn't face any real danger. Even if something did happen, they could just call Ethan, and all problems would be resolved.
"So, you want me to stay here?"
"I just think that experiencing a complete school life could become a really good memory, but the choice is still yours."
If Illya didn't want to stay, Ethan wouldn't force her.
Illya, holding Shiro, hesitated. She found Hogwarts life interesting. Even though she hadn't made any close friends, she had genuinely begun to enjoy school life. Given her mannerisms and behavior, some younger-year Slytherins even thought she was from a pure-blood family, like Malfoy.
"We're still coming back next school year, right?"
"If you don't want to stay, you can leave early like Logan. Dumbledore already knows our situation. One word is enough."
Hogwarts wasn't the only magic school in this world. They could just say they were transferring.
"Then I'll decide next year. I haven't made up my mind yet."
"Alright."
Ethan then went around asking the others what they thought. Scáthach said she would 'blend in' for one more year, then return. She was curious about the so-called Triwizard Tournament.
Logan had already made it clear he wouldn't be coming back next year.
Rin and Leah decided to stay at Hogwarts until graduation. As for their nominal guardians, whether they stayed or not didn't matter. As long as they spoke with Dumbledore, he would take Leah's identity very seriously.
(To be continued.)
◇◇◇
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)