"Right, exactly. Cedric isn't like that at school."
"No, no, no. He absolutely didn't have any subjective intention to brutally kill the dragon. It was because of the bloody assignment I gave him."
"That's right. I'm the one who told him to kill the dragon. This wasn't his personal will, do you understand?"
"If you have any other issues, you can take them up with Dumbledore. Or I can introduce you to someone—Arthur! Come over here for a moment!"
With just a few sentences, Kasenhis dealt with the reporter who had come looking to stir up trouble and write a sensational story about Cedric—or to put it more bluntly, scared him off. Only then did Kasenhis let out a breath and head back into the Great Hall.
As for why he resorted to intimidation… it was because Cedric, of all people, had said, "If there's anything, go ask my mentor Kasenhis."
Forced to take the blame, Kasenhis naturally followed suit and tossed the responsibility right back, telling those reporters to go ask Dumbledore if they had questions.
Of course, Cedric didn't dump just one pot on him. There was another one Cedric simply couldn't get rid of—though strictly speaking, it wasn't something Cedric dumped back on him. It was something Kasenhis had actively grabbed back from Cedric's shoulders.
That was Cedric's act of killing the dragon in a brutal manner.
This kind of thing was fine for him, a professor, to shoulder. After all, he already had Hogwarts' Alchemy Professor's job, and he wasn't lacking in reputation.
But Cedric was different. He was young and outstanding. If he ended up being labelled as cruel and violent because of the Triwizard Tournament, it would seriously affect his future prospects.
After tossing both of these black pots off Cedric's back, Kasenhis wandered his way to the castle entrance, then continued walking toward the Great Hall.
After all, once an entire afternoon of competitions came to an end, the next event was a grand dinner in the evening to celebrate the young wizards' achievements.
Madame Maxime stopped in front of Kasenhis, took a deep breath, and prepared herself. She had at least two questions she needed answered.
"That so-called alchemical backpack used by Harry Potter—whose work was it?" Madame Maxime asked calmly.
"Harry's. I have no interest in making toys for children," Kasenhis replied without batting an eye.
"It'd better be," Madame Maxime said coolly. "Then what about that so-called mechanical arm of Cedric Diggory's?"
"That's alchemy. Just like bloodline magic or Dark Magic, it's simply a form of knowledge," Kasenhis said, raising an eyebrow. "If you feel there's a problem with it, then next time you can choose to ban those kinds of magic in the Triwizard Tournament. For example, Durmstrang can ban Dark Magic, Hogwarts can ban Transfiguration and alchemy, and Beauxbatons can ban spellcasting studies. Wouldn't that be even better… what do you think?"
"…Hmph." Madame Maxime was left speechless by the retort. She huffed and stepped aside.
"Of course, alchemy isn't Hogwarts' exclusive domain. Beauxbatons and Durmstrang can use it too. You could go look up Nicolas Flamel—who knows, he might have another batch of stock lying around," Kasenhis added, turning his head back with a casual remark.
That evening's feast in the Great Hall was exceptionally lavish. Perhaps the house-elves in the kitchens were celebrating the outstanding performance of Hogwarts' two champions.
Those good results also infected most of Hogwarts. For example, during the campus practical session of the Alchemy class the next day, the third-year students were noticeably quicker than usual when laying down the alchemical rails.
And as the last section of alchemical rail was set into place, the final inch of gaps filled with redstone powder, Kasenhis had, more or less, completed the full renovation of Hogwarts.
At the very least, the Hogwarts Titan could now move properly!
With someone positioned in the center to control it, it could walk along the pathways. If that person was skilled enough, it could even throw a set of military fist forms.
What a wonderful thing.
Back in a corner of the Alchemy office, Kasenhis had fenced off a small area using Netherite blocks. This could be considered the "brain" of the entire Hogwarts Titan, since the Soul Branch technology needed a centralized processing node before being distributed to various parts of Hogwarts.
And this little Netherite room was built for exactly that purpose.
Inside, Kasenhis adjusted and tested the system again and again using Soul Branches and densely packed redstone circuitry.
Only after the commands were perfectly transmitted through the redstone and Soul Branches did he finally leave the small Netherite room in satisfaction, then sealed it up completely.
Then, holding a specially made necklace, he headed toward Professor McGonagall's office.
....
"So… as long as I wear this necklace, I'll be able to control Hogwarts?" Professor McGonagall accepted the necklace excitedly. But after hearing exactly what Kasenhis was saying, she suddenly calmed down and asked seriously.
"Obviously, yes," Kasenhis replied with a nod.
"Then what exactly should I do?" Professor McGonagall asked.
"Put it on first. When the time comes for you to pilot Hogwarts, you just need to open the necklace's casing and press the button inside. Your soul will link up with the Soul Branches and begin controlling Hogwarts," Kasenhis explained.
"I assume there are side effects."
"The side effects are soul fatigue lasting up to a week. The pilot will need to lie in the hospital wing for three or four days before being able to get out of bed." Kasenhis extended a hand as he spoke. "If you don't like that, I can hand it over to someone else."
His hand was promptly slapped away by Professor McGonagall.
"It's decided. It'll be me. I don't trust anyone else with this matter." She stroked the necklace at her neck, unable to stop herself from smiling.
"Oh… well then, Professor McGonagall. I wish you plenty of fun in the future, if the day ever comes when you need to use that big fellow," Kasenhis said, looking at her with half-lidded eyes and a teasing smile.
"Mm. Is there anything else I should be aware of?" Professor McGonagall asked.
"No. I specifically went to Lockhart earlier and had him make a reporter containment package. When you press the button, the containment package will link to you along with the Soul Branches."
"That does sound pretty good. Though I really didn't expect Lockhart to have that kind of talent. At least it's not too embarrassing for Ravenclaw…" Professor McGonagall said happily.
_________
(～￣▽￣)～Read 12 Chapters ahead:
Patreon: Dragonel