Snape picked up a piece of bread suspiciously, sniffed it gently, and said, "This isn't ordinary bread... it has a faint soulful scent to it..."
"He can actually transfer souls without using potions... He's actually mastered the basics? He mastered them in his first year?"
"Yes! Isn't it wonderful?" Dumbledore exclaimed. "And it's extremely pure, more of an expression of emotion than an influence through the soul itself."
"This also means that we can experience the true beauty of existence from it, without having to worry about anything else!"
He looked at the Mirror of Erised again, a satisfied smile spreading across his face. "He... will definitely become a very, very outstanding wizard!"
Snape nodded, still carefully avoiding the Mirror of Erised.
Before leaving the principal's office, he left a message: "It's good that I wasn't possessed."
"Yes, everything is wonderful!"
...
In the corridor, Snape picked up the bread in his hand, frowned and stared at it for a long time, and finally took a bite with determination.
Although the bread had lost its warmth, the crust remained crispy, while the inside remained soft.
It was a wonderful experience for both the soul and the palate.
Immediately, Snape's eyes turned red.
He kept rubbing his eyes until they were bloodshot and his eye sockets were red.
Looking at the half-eaten bread, he murmured, "Indeed... the Dark Lord can't affect him yet!"
-------------------------------------
As the last banquet of the school year, the closing banquet was naturally very lively.
Despite the noise and whispers among the students in the auditorium as they announced their summer vacation plans.
Perhaps the saddest thing was the ghosts; once the students left the school, Hogwarts became deserted.
The ghosts, lacking anyone to joke with, all wore expressions of melancholy.
For most students, besides announcing their summer vacation plans, there was another extremely important thing at the end-of-term dinner – announcing the winner of the House Cup.
Not only did the student union care about who won the House Cup, but the deans of the four houses also cared about it, as it was a symbol of honor.
The curtains and various metal decorations in the auditorium were all replaced with blue and bronze, the symbolic colors of Ravenclaw.
Moreover, on the wall behind the teachers' long table, there was a huge flag with a lifelike eagle pattern on it.
This year, Ravenclaw finally took flight, winning the Quidditch Championship and now leading the House Cup by a wide margin.
Filius Flitwick was all smiles and bought a lot of candy from Honeydukes.
Before the banquet officially began, he cast a spell on the sky, releasing a lot of candy into the air.
As the students took their seats, the candies fell down and floated in front of them.
He also showed a little favoritism, giving Ravenclaw a wider variety of candies than the other houses.
For most students, such an event was naturally a cause for celebration, and they immediately peeled open the candy and savored it.
Only the Slytherin students looked rather grim, after all, they had won the House Cup for six consecutive years and the Quidditch Cup for several years.
However, that was all they could do; the new double crown belonged to Ravenclaw.
Harry was very frustrated after recovering and returning to health, and this frustration spread to Hermione, Ron, and Neville as well.
Because of their previous nighttime outing, the four of them lost 200 points in Gryffindor.
This further exacerbated Gryffindor's already meager House Cup score, solidifying their bottom-ranking position and turning them into Gryffindor Juniors.
Because of this incident, Harry became the target of public criticism, and people pointed and gossiped about him wherever he went.
The controversy surrounding the deduction of points finally subsided after the dark wizard invasion occurred at the end of the semester.
As Dumbledore entered the Great Hall, the noise quickly subsided, and the students all stared longingly at the podium.
Vizette was the same, but he was mainly concerned with Dumbledore's expression.
When he saw Dumbledore's rosy complexion and radiant appearance, he was relieved.
Dumbledore seemed to have already begun his vacation, wearing a loose, warm orange robe and a similarly loose, warm orange hat, which reminded one of a warm, flickering fireplace.
Seemingly noticing Vizette's gaze, Dumbledore looked at him and nodded slightly, as if to indicate that he was alright.
Dumbledore smiled and was as cheerful as his students. "An unforgettable year has passed! I'm so glad we can gather together and raise a toast to this feast."
"Before we enjoy this delicious meal, we must reap the rewards and bestow them upon this year's House Cup winner. Let's take a look at the current House Cup scores..."
"Fourth place: Gryffindor, 278 points; Third place: Hufflepuff, 376 points; Second place: Slytherin, 435 points; First place: Ravenclaw, 573 points!"
Ravenclaw erupted in thunderous applause, and Hufflepuff and Gryffindor next door joined in.
After all, they ended Slytherin's dream of seven consecutive championships, so they were naturally very supportive.
"Gentlemen, please allow me to say a few more words!" Dumbledore raised his voice with a smile, "I presume you are all aware of the Dark Wizards' invasion?"
"We have several outstanding students among us who, with their extraordinary courage and ability, resolved a crisis at Hogwarts, so I still need to allocate some points."
Snape narrowed his eyes slightly, crossed his arms, and leaned back in his chair, looking like he was waiting to see what kind of trouble he was up to.
With his back to Snape, Dumbledore naturally couldn't see these subtle movements and continued loudly, "First and foremost, Mr. Ronald Weasley!"
"He demonstrated a spirit of sacrifice, winning an extremely brilliant game of wizard chess, for which I will award him fifty points in Gryffindor!"
"Miss Hermione Granger, in the face of danger, remained calm and conducted a meticulous logical deduction, also earning her fifty points!"
"Mr. Harry Potter! He dared to confront the dangerous dark wizard, demonstrating extraordinary courage and bravery, earning Gryffindor a score of sixty!"
"Mr. Neville Longbottom! It takes rare courage to stand up and advise a friend. I'll award you another ten points!"
The Gryffindor table erupted in cheers. Although they hadn't won the House Cup, the bonus points they received propelled them from last place to second place.
They cheered wildly, grabbing Harry and the others' hands, looking even happier than if they had won the House Cup.
Harry and his friends were also incredibly excited, receiving hugs from the classmates around them.
"Finally!" Dumbledore glanced at Harry with satisfaction, then turned to Vizette, who was clapping, and said in the clearest voice, "Mr. Vizette Lovegood!"