The Path to Enrolment and the Ceremony

Passengers jostled and crowded, all getting off onto a small, dark platform. The night's cold sent shivers through Harry, who was standing close to Kevin. Then, a lantern swung above the students, and a gruff voice shouted, "First-year students! First-year students, over here! Harry, come over here. How are you?"

Amidst the bustling crowd, Hagrid's face, with his large beard, broke into a smile. Kevin found the half-giant looking somewhat goofy, but most of the young wizards and witches around were more intimidated by his abnormally large size. After all, these people hadn't read the original "Harry Potter" series.

Following Hagrid, they walked along a narrow path and suddenly arrived at a vast, dark lake. On the opposite hillside loomed a magnificent castle with numerous turrets and windows that twinkled under the starry night.

They had reached the lake, and a row of small boats awaited the new students. The rocks by the black lake were covered in moss, and Hagrid shouted loudly, "Watch your step; don't slip."

As soon as he said this, two students immediately slipped and nearly plunged into the lake.

"No more than four per boat!" Hagrid pointed to a line of boats waiting on the shore. Since he was the first to arrive, Ron had already been pushed into one of them. Kevin skillfully claimed another, and Harry followed suit. Neville and Hermione watched Kevin, who had helped them earlier, and sighed with relief before joining as well.

"Is everyone on board?" Hagrid shouted.

His immense size meant that each boat could only carry one person, a tight squeeze for him.

"Alright, off we go!"

With his call, the line of small boats immediately started rowing across the mirror-like lake. Kevin remembered that there were mermaids living in the massive black lake. Legend had it that mermaids were all exceptionally beautiful. But the lake's inhabitants were an exception, not quite living up to the standards of "beauty." At the very least, they were strikingly unique.

It was possible because there were different species of merfolk, including the yellow, white, and utility mermaids, among others. In addition, there was an enormous giant squid of unknown origin in the Black Lake. Rumour had it that it was actually Godric Gryffindor, affected by a blood curse.

"As we round this bend, you'll get your first view of Hogwarts." Hagrid's voice suddenly interrupted Kevin's thoughts.

Around the cliff, they saw the blurry outline of the castle with its illuminated windows. The closer they got, the more majestic and grander the castle appeared under the lamplight.

Hermione spoke softly: "Every year's first-year students take this route. They say it's to let us experience the difficulties that the founders of Hogwarts faced when finding this castle's location."

"Perhaps there's more to it," Kevin added.

Having mastered the arcane arts of magic, he could sense the essence of power hidden beneath the magical wonder more than the average wizard.

At this moment, he had already sensed something unusual. He could feel a tremendous magical presence emanating from the distant castle, and between himself and the castle, an inexplicable connection was gradually forming.

The new students retraced the steps of the four Hogwarts founders, and the essence of this tradition was likely an ancient ritual of magic. When the students completed the entire process, it meant they had entered into a contract with Hogwarts and truly became students of the school.

As the fleet of boats drew closer to the cliff where the castle was located, it seemed as if the castle was towering above them.

"Lower your heads!"

When the first batch of boats approached the cliff, Hagrid shouted loudly. Everyone lowered their heads as the boats carried them through the ivy curtains covering the front of the cliff to a concealed, open entrance. It was then that the young wizards and witches realised that it was only Hagrid who needed to lower his head.

They followed a dark tunnel-like path and seemed to be underground, ultimately arriving at a place resembling an underground dock. Then they climbed onto a hill paved with gravel and pebbles.

Hagrid raised a lantern high, saying, "Everyone, disembark, disembark. Follow me."

The new students disembarked and ascended more than two hundred steep, zigzagging flights of stairs, arriving at an open courtyard surrounded by pillars. At the end of the courtyard was the entrance to Hogwarts.

Hagrid stepped forward, raising his large, clenched fist.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

From the sound of it, the door was indeed quite thick. The door opened, and the one who opened it was a familiar face to Kevin, Professor McGonagall.

Professor McGonagall introduced the four houses at Hogwarts and informed them that the sorting ceremony would take place shortly. She also talked about the House Cup and the points system, making it clear that the school valued honour.

When Professor McGonagall returned to the Great Hall, discussions immediately broke out among the students. Regardless of their Muggle or pure-blood backgrounds, many were apprehensive. There were various speculations about the sorting ceremony, and everyone seemed to have their own theory.

"How do they accurately determine which house to sort us into?" Harry asked.

"They won't expel us, right?" Kevin attempted to offer some empty words of reassurance, but this only made others more anxious.

Personally, Kevin had no intention of disrupting this tradition. Watching everyone be so nervous was quite enjoyable.

"They probably do it through some sort of test. Fred said it's quite damaging to us, but I think he was joking," Ron said with a terrified look.

Hermione had already begun memorising knowledge from her textbooks, worried that the sorting ceremony would involve an entrance exam.

"Don't worry; they won't be testing algebra and trigonometry," Kevin joked, earning himself an eye roll.

As for himself, Kevin didn't have many worries. As a Legilimens, he had mastered the spell [Occlumency] and, when cast proactively, it was as effective as the best "Mind Cloak" spells. In fact, he used this spell almost constantly. There was just too much hidden in his mind.

Even if it drew Dumbledore's attention, it was still better than him knowing about reincarnation

Anyway, the wizarding world wasn't short of geniuses, and he didn't particularly like Gryffindor. Skilfully controlling the effect of [Occlumency,] he could choose to only shield specific memories, allowing his Legilimency to perceive only the parts he wanted others to see. So, which qualities should he expose, and to which house should he be sorted?

As Kevin was lost in thought, Harry suddenly jumped to his feet. Shortly after, there were a few loud screams from behind. It turned out that the school's ghosts were coming out to spook the new students. About twenty pearly-white, translucent ghosts emerged from the wall behind them. These ghosts glided through the room, whispering among themselves as if they were just passing by. It wasn't until the students started screaming one after another that the ghosts seemed satisfied with their appearance and floated through the walls.

Professor McGonagall conveniently appeared, almost as if she had been waiting for the ghosts. She first comforted the frightened students and then instructed, "Now, single file, follow me. The sorting ceremony is about to begin."