How Do You Want Me to Explain?

Dumbledore did not expect this, but he reacted after a moment's hesitation, his expression remaining the same.

"Mr. Seamus Finnigan, I think I've explained everything. As for why you saw all of this…"

Dumbledore paused, then smiled. "Perhaps you would care to ask Mr. Hales how he did it."

As soon as Dumbledore finished speaking, everyone's attention was once again focused on Ivan, and even several professors gave him curious looks.

Ivan was stunned. He did not expect the kind-looking old headmaster to trick him at a time like this. He quickly shot Dumbledore a questioning look, only to see the 100-year-old blink at him, his eyes clearly telling him to find an excuse.

Ivan felt a pang of frustration, thinking this must be Dumbledore's revenge for burning down the Forbidden Forest…

Ivan shrugged in response to the crowd's questioning looks.

"You'd believe a first-year wizard could tame a dragon and ride it around spitting fire? That's ridiculous…"

"We do!" George and Fred said in unison.

If it had been anyone else, they would have been suspicious, but Ivan was a real possibility!

Ivan rolled his eyes in exasperation. How was he supposed to answer that?

Ivan's explanation was well received by the vast majority of lesser wizards.

Indeed, dragons were one of the top magical creatures!

Adult dragons were often much larger than a house, and were known to be violent and savage, to the point where even professional dragon tamers would not necessarily ride on their backs, as they would be considered offensive by dragons.

Of course, they did not know Norbert was only a month or so old, or they would not have thought so.

Due to Seamus's revelation about the dragon-riding incident, Ivan had to eat a few pieces of cake before bidding farewell to all the delicacies and ending the dinner.

Hermione, Harry, and Ron were also asked the same thing, and were annoyed when they did.

They did not stop until they had returned to their room and shut the door behind them.

"Ivan, what do we do now? Seamus saw Norbert with his own eyes. Surely Hagrid isn't in Azkaban?" Harry asked worriedly.

Ron nodded, and more than that, there were too many young wizards and witches in the school to hide the fact that Norbert was crying.

"Don't worry too much, we'll just have to get Norbert out of here before the Ministry of Magic gets here. I'm sure Professor Dumbledore will be able to handle it, as long as there's no conclusive evidence," Ivan assured her.

"Then I'll write another letter to Charlie. He should be on his way by now, so I'll tell him to get here tomorrow!" Ron sprang into action, pulling an envelope out of his drawer and writing on it.

"Remember not to make it too obvious in the letter, or even mention the word 'dragon,' in case it is intercepted," Ivan cautioned.

"Okay… I get it." Ron thought this was being overly cautious, but he made the corrections anyway.

Harry and Ron were both relieved when the envelope was delivered.

From beginning to end, Ivan never worried that Dumbledore, the most influential man in the wizarding world, would be able to stir up trouble at Hogwarts with a few rumours and the testimony of a minor wizard.

After a secret discussion in the dormitory, they realised that Neville was still locked out of the room. By the time Harry opened the door, the Gryffindor lions had already left.

Poor Neville was like a doormat, with all the buttons on his wizarding robes having been ripped off in the previous crush, and no idea what was going on.

Ivan was so embarrassed that he apologized profusely and used a Repair Charm to get Neville's buttons back on.

Harry and Ron were so overwhelmed by the day's events that they fell asleep almost immediately.

Ivan, on the other hand, got out of bed around midnight, having rested for a while, as there was something more important that he had not yet done.

Before leaving, Ivan remembered that the castle would be on guard today, so he tried a spell he had never used before, the Disillusionment Charm!

"Disillusionment Charm ~ " Ivan chanted, waving his wand against his forehead.

Ivan felt as if something had wrapped itself around him. It was cold, as if he had been dipped in water. It was a little like egg white, or a little more viscous, but it did not affect his breathing or his walking.

This was completely different from being in an Invisibility Cloak. There was no sense of alienation or security, but it was more convenient without the restrictions of clothes.

Yvonne stood at the foot of the bed and looked into the small mirror that hung on the right side of the bed. The mirror reflected the covers and pillows as if they were looking through her.

The nocturnal visits to Hogwarts were a walk in the park for Ivan, especially with the Marauder's Map in his possession.

Ivan also did a thorough search, but Quirrell's name was not in the castle.

Perhaps he was afraid to return?

Ivan speculated as such.

"I need a place to brew the potion…" said Ivan as he stood on the carpet in front of the Room of Requirement. After pacing back and forth three times, he pushed open the door that had appeared and entered the hidden potion room.

It is very different from the first time we entered, with nearly a third of the empty bottles around us now filled with different coloured liquids…

Ageing Potion…Bone-growing Potion…Pleasure Potion…Fireproof Potion…

These potions were brewed by Ivan using potion ingredients he had stolen from Snape, and since they would be wasted there anyway, he might as well use them to gain proficiency in Potions.

In the middle of the cauldron was the Bloodline Fusion Potion that he had been brewing for an entire semester!

After a long period of sedimentation, the cauldron was no longer as chaotic as before. It was as clear as ordinary water.

If Ivan had not been witnessing this change day by day, he would have suspected that his potion had been secretly replaced.

With a little excitement, Ivan took the two test tubes containing the blood of the magical creature out of the pocket of his wizarding robe…

(PS: Thank you, fellow reader, for the 2,200 starting coins you received in 2019917071457184. Thank you, fellow reader, for the 100 starting coins you received in 201971457184.)