#18 - arrival

The three of them chatted, ate snacks, and played cards, and time flew by unnoticed.

"In five minutes, the train will arrive at Hogwarts. Please leave your luggage on the train, and someone will be responsible for delivering it to the school," a voice sounded from the train's loudspeaker, indicating that Hogwarts was just around the corner.

"Good heavens, we're finally here! My back is numb from this long ride," Charles complained as he stood up and stretched.

Anduin packed his luggage, tidied up the mahjong tiles on the table, and put away the remaining snacks.

The train gradually came to a halt, and the three of them stepped out of the carriage. The sky outside had already begun to darken.

At the station, Hagrid was holding a lantern, waiting for the passengers, and shouting, "First years! First years, this way!"

The crowd was drawn to the sound, and Anduin and his companions slowly moved closer.

"Hagrid, long time no see. It's been a while," Anduin said, approaching Hagrid to greet him.

"Oh, Anduin, it's good to see you. I heard about that terrible thing. It's all my fault. I shouldn't have that day…" Hagrid lowered his head and saw that it was Anduin. He had heard about what happened in Knockturn Alley that night from the Order of the Phoenix, and he began to apologize incoherently. Hagrid felt that it was all his fault that Anduin, an underage wizard, had almost had an accident.

"It's not your fault, Hagrid. It's all my fault for being careless. But I'm fine now, aren't I?" Anduin interrupted Hagrid, not intending to continue the topic. He didn't want to cause any trouble before school even started. The scene at the station made him realize that many Death Eater's children also attended Hogwarts. He didn't know if the Death Eaters he had taken down that day had any relatives at the school who might seek revenge.

Although he wasn't afraid of trouble, he wouldn't actively seek it out.

"That's good, Anduin. Thank goodness you're alright. Headmaster Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall also heard about what happened that night. I was scolded terribly and haven't been allowed to go to Diagon Alley since then. Heavens, you have no idea how guilty I feel," Hagrid said, clearly not understanding Anduin's intention and continuing to talk to himself.

"Can you relax now, Hagrid? I'm about to start school. Aren't you going to congratulate me?" Anduin said, helplessly comforting Hagrid while steering the conversation away again.

"That night?" Charles and Vivian heard their conversation and became curious. More and more first-year students gathered around them, and it wasn't convenient for them to ask directly. So, they suppressed their doubts, planning to find an opportunity to ask Anduin what exciting things had happened to shock even this big guy.

"Hey, big guy over there, what are you dawdling for? Hurry up and lead the way! This young master is exhausted from this journey. You're so big and brainless, are you stupid or something, leaving us standing here?"

At this moment, a boy among the gathered first-year students directly ignored the two who were talking and shouted at Hagrid in a sarcastic tone.

Anduin felt a surge of displeasure in his heart at this rude shout and glanced back at the speaker.

This underage wizard wasn't very tall, had a well-proportioned figure, short dark hair, and an arrogant look on his face at a young age, with deep, gloomy eyes.

"What are you looking at? It's you and this big oaf wasting time talking. How dare you glare at me?"

"Get out of here, Sampul Travers. This is none of your business. If you want to die, I can help you," Charles charged out from behind Anduin, pushed Travers aside, and stood in front of Anduin.

"Who is it? It's the timid McKinnon's friend. What's wrong, McKinnon? Why aren't you hiding behind the adults and crying like you were at the station?" Travers made a surprised expression and mocked Charles.

Upon seeing this, Charles was about to lose his temper and rush forward to teach this guy a lesson, but Anduin stopped him.

"Don't be easily provoked by words, Charles. He's doing it on purpose. Don't lower yourself to his level," Anduin coldly glanced at the person named Sampul. From the beginning, he felt that something was wrong. This person inexplicably provoked him and spoke rudely. It seemed that he was targeting Charles because he saw him with Anduin, deliberately trying to pick a fight.

Just then, a burly figure suddenly stepped between the two of them—Hagrid.

"Don't argue outside the school, or I have the right to send you home right now. In that case, you'll have to wait until next year to come to Hogwarts," Hagrid said unceremoniously, intimidating the confronting individuals, and his words were mainly directed at Sampul Travers.

"Hmph, the McKinnons are all simple-minded. As long as you poke the fire a little, they'll jump right out. When he dares to make the first move in the crowd, I can make him look good. It's a pity that kid next to him and this big oaf are getting in the way," Sampul Travers thought unhappily, while also glaring fiercely at Charles and Anduin before stepping aside.

"That guy is called Sampul Travers. He's from the Travers family. I don't think Hogwarts should let that guy come to school. His whole family supports the Dark Lord. There must be Death Eaters in his family. This morning, our two families ran into each other at the station, and they even dared to make fun of my injured uncle. Disgusting," Charles said to Anduin in a low voice, looking at Sampul Travers with a hateful expression.

Anduin cursed his bad luck inwardly. This guy didn't seem like a good person. He encountered trouble on his first day of school, but he immediately shook his head, not wanting to think too much about it. If this guy didn't come looking for trouble, then so be it, but if he dared to provoke him, Anduin wouldn't give him any good treatment.

At the same time, Anduin also noticed that even in school, during wartime, there were undercurrents. His previous idea of staying out of it was too naive.

"Don't pay attention to that guy. If you had rushed forward to attack him just now, you might have been criticized in public. Even if you weren't expelled, you might have been punished by the school. He just wanted to deliberately provoke your anger. You need to be more careful in the future," Anduin comforted Charles and warned him.

"I was too impulsive. Thank you, Anduin," Charles said, secretly relieved and grateful to Anduin.

Under the comfort of Anduin and Vivian, Charles gradually calmed down. The three of them followed Hagrid's footsteps along a path, and gradually the group came to a lake. Across the lake, they could see a magnificent castle, which was Hogwarts.