Daily News: The Prophet of Hogwarts

Chapter 12 The Sorting Hat

Principal's Office.

"Lane, I'm puzzled. Why don't you want to become a Ravenclaw prefect?" Dumbledore asked.

Having already received a letter of recommendation to attend Nicolas Flamel's training program, Lane suppressed his smile and said very seriously, "Ravenclaws pursue knowledge, not power."

"Moreover, in my opinion..."

He hesitated, then looked at Dumbledore's encouraging gaze and said honestly, "Although I don't approve of the Floodman's ambitions and actions, there is some truth to the saying 'magic is power.'"

"Ryan," Dumbledore called to him.

"I've read all sorts of sociological discourses about the ordinary world, which are basically Muggle studies by ordinary people themselves." Lane ignored Dumbledore's serious expression.

There's a saying: "Political power grows out of the barrel of a gun." The barrel of a gun is just a magic wand for ordinary people.

"And going back further, this viewpoint is consistent with the idea that the so-called national government institutions are the most powerful violent groups within a certain range."

Ryan stared intently at Dumbledore: "And for wizards, it can be the most powerful and violent individual."

Both of them knew what that sentence meant. Since Connery Fudge became Minister for Magic last year, he had been sending Dumbledore a letter almost every day to seek his opinion.

Finally, Lane concluded his argument with a summary: "Therefore I do not pursue power, I pursue knowledge. Power? It is merely a roadside flower on the path of pursuing knowledge, which one may admire, but should not linger over."

Dumbledore remained silent for a long time, and all the portraits in the headmaster's office seemed to come to their senses, listening intently to their conversation.

"I understand." Dumbledore finally nodded, breaking the heavy atmosphere.

Ryan understood that as a fifth-grader, his arguments were too sharp for the headmaster's aged heart to accept quickly, so he got up to take his leave.

After Ryan left, Dumbledore picked up the Sorting Hat and placed it in front of him.

The Sorting Hat opened and closed: "Headmaster, you must still remember what happened at Ryan's Sorting House."

Dumbledore nodded, and the portraits of countless former headmasters also expressed their agreement, for the performance of the Sorting Ceremony in Lane was enough to leave a deep impression on all the professors, portraits, ghosts, and so on.

It is enough to be passed down for thousands of years and become a story for future young wizards.

It's not that the Sorting Hat failed to make a judgment for a long time. This phenomenon, known as "hat dilemma," is rare, but it occurs once or twice every few classes of students.

For example, during the Sorting Ceremony, the Sorting Hat hesitated between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw when Minerva McGonagall was in the Sorting House.

However, the "hat dilemma" did not occur during the Ryan Sorting.

After Professor McGonagall called his name, he came to the high stool and said clearly, "Ryan Welsh, Ravenclaw."

Then, amidst the clamor of the crowd, he donned the Sorting Hat and engaged in an exceptionally heated debate in his mind, forcing the Sorting Hat, which had to respect the young wizard's choice, to agree to sort him into Ravenclaw.

"I still stand by my opinion, Headmaster, the best fit for Ryan Welsh is Azkaban or Newmont Gard," the Sorting Hat said.

Dumbledore was amused: "Unfortunately, there is no wizarding law that allows a young wizard in the sorting process who has not committed any illegal acts to be sent to Azkaban."

"Oh no, Headmaster," the Sorting Hat exclaimed, "I can't even read any reverence for wizarding law or the law of secrecy from an eleven-year-old's brain."

"Fearless courage..." Dumbledore sighed, then changed the subject: "Have you thought of your song for this year?"

"Of course, Headmaster!" The Sorting Hat was overjoyed to hear that Dumbledore was interested in his annual performance.

...............

At the opening ceremony that evening, the Sorting Hat finally got to perform in the singing competition that it had been planning for a whole year.

"......."

"Because I am a thinking magic hat."

Amidst applause from the entire audience, the Sorting Hat concluded its song.

The branch campus has officially begun.

Professor McGonagall began taking attendance.

"Hannah Abbott!"

Hufflepuff.

"Terry Booth".

"Ravenclaw".

Harry, who was in line with the young wizards, saw that as Terry Boots headed toward the Ravenclaw table, Lane, who was sitting at the end of the table, stood up to greet the new student, and then all the Ravenclaws stood up to greet him.

Terry Boots blushed deeply, overwhelmed with excitement at receiving such treatment in front of the entire school.

The young wizards who were still waiting for the Sorting House saw this scene and were very envious of Terry, which unconsciously increased their expectations of Ravenclaw.

Subsequently, many young wizards were assigned to Ravenclaw.

They were all greeted with a standing ovation from the entire college.

Ryan encouraged each of the newly enrolled young wizards.

The first entry in "The Headmaster's Growth Record of Hogwarts": "The Duke of Zhou feared rumors, and Wang Mang was humble before his usurpation." This refers to stabilizing Ravenclaw's base, absorbing and expanding Hogwarts' influence, and strengthening relationships with various figures in the wizarding world.

We need to give Dumbledore a boost.

Ryan greeted his classmates with a smile, but in his heart he was plotting to seize the throne.

"Hermione Granger!"

The Sorting Hat hesitated for a long time, as if deep in thought, before finally making its decision: "Gryffindor!"

Penelope Crivat, who had just entered fourth grade, sat down next to Ryan: "Ryan, what did you see?"

"I was just thinking back to the prophecy from this morning," Ryan said.

This morning, after staying up all night, he received today's intelligence: [After some additional influences, the wise and courageous witch stands at a crossroads of fate. Will she follow her instincts, or will her inner courage triumph over her thirst for knowledge?]

The text description perfectly captures the scene that just unfolded before my eyes.

"You predicted what happened to that little witch? What did she say?" Penelope asked.

Ryan repeated the information, and finally said, "It's likely that during the new student enrollment period, as in previous years, the prophecies during this time will all be about junior wizards and their corresponding colleges."

At that moment, Professor McGonagall called out the next name: "Neville Longbottom."

"The boy who narrowly escaped fate stands at the beginning of the story. Beneath his dullness lies courage, and beneath his slowness lies resilience. An unprotected lion cub will pick up its claws among the pride."

Ryan recounted the intelligence he had previously obtained.

The background sound is the Sorting Hat shouting "Gryffindor!"

In the midst of his public display of power, he raised his hand and gestured vaguely at Draco Malfoy, who was about to place the Sorting Hat on his pale blond hair: "Slytherin."

The next instant, the moment the Sorting Hat touched Malfoy, he shouted, "Slytherin!"

The other wizards sitting next to Penelope and Ryan gasped in surprise.

A passage about Malfoy flashed through Ryan's mind: "A self-important and arrogant young wizard arrives at Hogwarts; he is destined to be a Slytherin. But shrewdness and shortsightedness are inseparable twins; a kind, ordinary young wizard like Malfoy is destined for awkwardness and regret."

This wasn't a very good verdict, so he didn't give the full details like he did with Neville's intelligence, only saying that Malfoy would be entering Slytherin.

The number of waiting young wizards dwindled until Professor McGonagall called out, "Harry Potter!"

Countless eyes in the Great Hall were fixed on Harry.

The Ravenclaw table was an exception; everyone's eyes were on Lane Welsh.