"Then I suppose you now realize how foolish your actions were?" Madam Pomfrey said sternly. "You're still young, and you have a lot of room to grow. Don't be in such a hurry to defeat adult wizards."
"Yes, I understand. I'm very sorry," Wade said.
His attitude was so good and so sincere that Madam Pomfrey found herself unable to scold him. In the end, the school nurse only lightly reprimanded him a couple of times before hurrying away.
There were still a few young wizards in the infirmary who hadn't been discharged yet!
As the stairs automatically rotated downwards, Dumbledore in his office clearly let out a sigh of relief.
Wade raised his hand to knock on the door when he heard Dumbledore say, "Come in, Wade."
He walked in and saw that the Headmaster's office was as mysterious as ever. The Pensieve, with its swirling silver mist, sat on a nearby shelf.
On the walls, the portraits of past headmasters were softly snoring, whether truly asleep or pretending to be, it was hard to tell.
Wade had read in books that these headmaster portraits had a mysterious contract with the school. Hogwarts' magic provided power for their continued existence, and in return, no matter what kind of people they were in life, as portraits, they had to assist the current headmaster.
Of course, "headmasters" not recognized, like Umbridge, were not included in the contract.
At this moment, Dumbledore took off his glasses and wiped them, saying with some weariness:
"Poppy is one of the most challenging people for me to deal with, but thankfully, she's quite fond of you."
A soft cooing sound came from nearby. Wade turned his head and saw Fawkes, whose feathers had turned completely golden-red, flapping its wings on a perch.
He hadn't seen the Phoenix when he entered earlier; it must have landed on the perch at some point.
"Oh, right," Dumbledore chuckled. "Fawkes is very fond of you too."
"You mean it likes the Magic Golem pets I make, right?" Wade quipped, then said, "Professor Dumbledore, I came to ask how much you know about Professor Abigail?"
"I imagine you want to talk about that," Dumbledore blinked. "I heard you had a rather enthusiastic welcome ceremony yesterday."
"We did," Wade said. "My bones nearly broke. I've never encountered a wizard so skilled in combat."
"To be honest, you surprised me quite a bit too."
As Dumbledore spoke, he waved his Wand, and two boxes of pink ice cream appeared on the table.
"But while we chat, we can enjoy a little treat."
Wade casually picked up one of the boxes and asked, "Did she train with Muggle military forces?"
To avoid being led astray by Dumbledore, he asked directly.
"Hmm, not bad."
Dumbledore took a bite of ice cream, his eyes narrowing slightly from the cold. A moment later, he said, "Professor Abigail has had a very colorful life, and she's also one of the rare wizards who knows a great deal about Muggles––she lived in Muggle society for many years."
The Headmaster smiled at the student, who was holding an ice cream and listening intently, and said, "However, I can't reveal other people's privacy. If you want to know the details, once you get to know her better, let Professor Abigail tell you herself."
Wade opened the lid, scooped out a spoonful, and after a moment's hesitation, looked up and asked, "Then do you know if she might also carry a Gun? A Muggle Gun."
"I know. That's Professor Abigail's personal habit. Just like we always carry our Wands, otherwise, we wouldn't feel secure."
Dumbledore said, "I can assure you, Professor Abigail would never use such a weapon on students. And unlike your previous two professors, she is a reliable person."
Really?
Wade looked at him with a skeptical gaze.
"And I don't think there's anything wrong with students understanding Muggle weapons," Dumbledore continued. "In fact, Professor Abigail once applied to me to show you the power of Muggle weapons in Defense Against the Dark Arts class."
"You agreed?"
"Of course."
"But..." Wade paused for a moment, then said, "As far as I know, a pistol is one of the most insignificant types of Muggle weapons..."
"So Professor Abigail has also acquired some special... well, surprises."
Dumbledore said casually, "You must not only learn to defend against the harm of dark creatures but also against Muggle methods."
Wade was a little surprised.
In the original storyline, Dumbledore had never had such an idea. Everyone in that story had an invisible arrogance and disdain towards Muggles, and the two worlds were almost completely separate.
Did Professor Abigail make him feel this was necessary?
Or was it...
"Professor," Wade looked up and asked, "Did something happen during your previous investigations...?"
Dumbledore looked at him, and through his glasses, his expression was unreadable.
After a long while, he said, "We didn't find much, child."
"Didn't... find anything?" Wade's eyebrow twitched slightly.
"Yes... and that's more terrifying than finding something."
Dumbledore sighed, "We thought if magic couldn't track it, then there might be some clues among Muggles... but there was nothing. No witnesses, no rumors, and we even had a Muggle check that thing called surveillance at the airport, but still nothing."
"Our enemies… they've infiltrated the Muggles so deeply that they're able to erase all traces. In that regard, we're far behind."
Dumbledore's voice carried an undisguised weariness and worry.
But then, seeing the young boy's face before him, he immediately realized his lapse and quickly concealed all his emotions.
"This is quite unusual, you know… most wizards know nothing about Muggles, let alone their technological advancements."
Dumbledore continued calmly, "We need to re-evaluate our investigative direction, or wait for their next move. If they've done something, they will leave traces. As long as it hasn't been too long, we'll definitely find something."
It had been over a year since the Muggle couple realized the problem, which was why finding people was so difficult.
If it had been within a few days, or even weeks, Dumbledore would have been able to track down those subtle traces.
Scamander was also skilled in this area.
Wade didn't doubt this, but after leaving the headmaster's office, he looked back at the receding light and felt a wave of deepening concern.
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