The Admiral of Hogwarts

It was the annual start-of-term day. But the weather was terrible—Hugo woke up to see torrential rain lashing against the window.

After breakfast, Mr. Granger decided to drive his children to King's Cross Station in London, and Mrs. Granger would naturally go with them.

So, after packing everything up, they drove their car towards central London, but unfortunately, the closer they got to the city center, the heavier the rain became.

When they got out of the car at King's Cross Station, the rain was much heavier than it had been at home, so heavy that they couldn't even see the view outside the car windows.

As soon as they opened the car door, raindrops pelted them. By the time they had carried their trunks through the busy streets and into the station, they were soaked to the bone.

The weather was terrible. Upon entering Platform Nine and Three-Quarters, they could see many Hogwarts students and parents on the platform, looking like dark shadows obscured by the thick smoke billowing from the train's engine.

After saying goodbye to their parents, Hugo and his friends joined Veneto and the others in a compartment. They could just make out the faint sound of the Weasleys talking not far away.

For example, Charlie was being very mysterious when he hugged his sister Ginny goodbye, hinting that he might see everyone at school again very soon.

Just then, the whistle blew to signal the train's departure, so he only had time to tell his twin brothers that Hogwarts might be hosting some major event this year.

Soon, the train started moving. After waving goodbye to the familiar faces on the platform, Hugo began to think about the information he had gathered during the second half of the holidays.

In fact, there was some rather suspicious information. For example, a Ministry of Magic employee was attacked in Knockturn Alley and lost a portion of their memory.

Later, the Aurors at the Ministry of Magic discovered through clues that this employee had been attacked by a Dark wizard while purchasing some kind of illicit item. The Dark wizard had fled before the Aurors arrived, to escape punishment.

For such a minor case, the Aurors simply issued a warrant for the Dark wizard and didn't pursue it further. After all, there were dozens of such petty crimes in Knockturn Alley every day, and the Aurors couldn't possibly handle them all.

But for Hugo, this was a dangerous omen, especially since the attacked Ministry of Magic employee worked in the Department of International Magical Cooperation and knew that the Triwizard Tournament would be held this year.

This indicated that Voldemort, hidden in the shadows, already had some followers at his disposal and would likely use the Triwizard Tournament to complete his resurrection.

For a normal person, the enemy's blood needed for resurrection would likely be obtained by simply finding someone they hated, shedding their blood as quickly as possible to avoid any complications.

But Voldemort was different. He had a very strong chuunibyou vibe and was a detail-oriented maniac, so he would definitely insist on using one hundred percent Harry Potter's blood to achieve that sense of ritual and obtain the best resurrection experience.

Even more interesting, Harry and Ron walked in from outside and told Hugo that he had a dream during the summer in which someone was being interrogated with Veritaserum, while another person was being killed.

Ron and Hermione just thought Harry was too stressed, but Hugo and the ship girls knew that this meant Voldemort's return was on a countdown.

However, he didn't reveal this, because the plot had already changed. Without knowing where the enemy was lurking, saying this would have no effect other than creating a tense atmosphere.

Aside from that, the journey was very peaceful, except for Malfoy coming in to provoke them. However, what Malfoy said was indeed hurtful, and Ron was still sulking when the train arrived at Hogsmeade Station.

The weather outside was as bad as Ron's mood: even though they had taken the train from the south of England to the north, the weather had not improved, and could even be said to be worse.

The rain was heavy and fierce, as if buckets of icy water were constantly being poured over their heads. It looked like the whole world was soaked in water.

Even worse, Hugo learned that Moody was doing well during this time and there were no reports of any attacks. This meant that Voldemort had chosen a plan that Hugo didn't know about to launch his attack.

"Hagrid, good evening!" Just as Hugo was thinking, Hermione suddenly greeted a dark figure in the distance.

"Hello, Hermione, and Hugo!" Hagrid replied in a booming voice, waving his hand. "See you at the feast, if we don't drown!"

"Oh my goodness, taking a small boat across the lake in this weather... It would probably be very dangerous without magic," Hermione said, looking through the carriage window at Hagrid leading the first-year students towards the lake, with a sense of wonder.

Before they got off the train, they had specifically cast warming and waterproofing charms on Ella, but the current weather still made them feel a little uneasy.

Of course, this uneasiness was just a feeling. Even though Ella was the only non-ship girl among Hugo's subordinates, Ella was as safe as being at home on the water.

"Actually, it has always been a high-risk ritual, especially in bad weather. Even with magic, it's dangerous. I remember a boat capsizing in this kind of weather once. Luckily, the giant squid in the lake rescued everyone in time."

Luna's somewhat ethereal voice came from beside them. Luna had also boarded the carriage with Hugo and his sister, after all, the weather was bad today, so everyone tended to squeeze together when riding in the carriages.

"Also, thank you very much for saving me during the summer," Luna said, smiling at Hugo and his sister sitting opposite her. "My father hopes to invite you to our house when you have time."

When everyone arrived at the castle and walked into the Entrance Hall, several large red water balloons fell from the sky. Luckily, Hugo and his friends drew their wands in time to block the attack.

When they looked up, they saw Peeves flying around the Great Hall, surrounded by more of the same water-filled red balloons.

Peeves represents the soul of all the suppressed emotions of the children in this school, similar to a Dementor. So, unlike other ghosts, he can pick up various objects but can also be attacked by them.

However, because Peeves has been around for so long—even when Dumbledore was a student, Peeves was already here—the teachers only manage Peeves to a limited extent, preventing him from going too far.

Of course, this is also due to the fact that Peeves is directly bound to Hogwarts Castle. As long as the castle exists, Peeves will continue to exist.

The chaos in the Great Hall also attracted Professor McGonagall, and under Professor McGonagall's reprimand, Peeves had to quickly drop the water-filled balloons he was carrying and leave the hall.

After everyone entered the Great Hall, the older students from each house began to help the younger students tidy up their clothes after drying them. After all, it wouldn't be appropriate to look sloppy for the start-of-term feast.

The Great Hall was as magnificent as ever, and was specially decorated for the start-of-term feast. Hundreds of candles floated in the air above the tables, illuminating the golden plates and goblets.

However, as Hugo and the ship girls looked at this warm scene, they felt a sense of melancholy in their hearts, because this scene was likely the last peaceful start-of-term before the war.