After eating, Sean received a letter from his grandfather.
Upon getting the letter, Sean briefly looked it over and immediately went to the headmaster's office.
Standing before the stone gargoyle that guarded the entrance to the spiral staircase, Sean spoke clearly:
"Lemon Drops!"
The gargoyle's eyes glinted briefly before it rumbled, "Password correct." With a grinding of stone, the gargoyle slid aside, revealing the spiral staircase that began moving upward like an escalator.
The door opened, and Sean immediately entered the headmaster's office. Looking at the smiling Dumbledore, Sean bowed slightly, then sat across from him at Dumbledore's gestured invitation.
"I must say, Sean, your information network is quite well-informed."
"I only came to find you, Headmaster, after receiving my grandfather's letter."
Nodding, Dumbledore said, "I naturally have no objection to this matter, and personally, I very much support you becoming a full Wizengamot member. Although your age is indeed an issue, before your achievements, this problem isn't significant. Moreover, you're currently riding the momentum of the Triwizard Tournament. Having won two rounds, you have more political capital than usual. I think you should have quite a few supporters."
"But it's still not stable!"
Looking at Sean, Dumbledore nodded approvingly, his eyes showing admiration. At this moment, still able to remain so calm, Dumbledore finally stopped treating Sean as a child.
"So Gavin is requesting leave for you at this time. I imagine he's preparing to take you to visit some old friends to secure some support for you. For Gavin, this is also a rare and excellent opportunity."
As Dumbledore's words ended, the fireplace in his office suddenly burst into emerald flames. A silver-haired man with slicked-back hair, wearing a tailored coat and robes, stepped out of the flames in shining leather boots. He removed the leather gloves from his right hand, reached out to shake hands with Dumbledore, and said, "Long time no see, Dumbledore."
"Gavin, it has been quite a while. You've kept a low profile all these years. Are you finally going to start making moves for your grandson?"
Hearing this, Gavin immediately nodded. "Of course, this opportunity is rare, and I should come out and work for the children. Moreover, among those alternates, how many have achievements better than Sean's?
One of those two open positions should rightfully be Sean's! Just because he's young, he needs to waste time waiting for those incompetent fools... I won't allow it!"
"Hmm..." Dumbledore scratched his head. "I somehow feel like you're talking about me."
"You're not incompetent, so of course I'm not talking about you."
The two men smiled at each other, then discussed various matters, generally planning whom to visit and whom not to visit.
Watching Dumbledore and Gavin discuss, Sean suddenly realised that his grandfather and Dumbledore must have a very good relationship. At least friends. But he hadn't seen his grandfather in the original history. Why was that? Was it because his grandfather became more active after his arrival, or because people unrelated to the original plot didn't appear in the novels or movies? Moreover, this world had quite a few differences from the one he knew, so Gavin's existence was reasonable.
"Alright, Dumbledore, I'll take Sean with me now. You can consider what I mentioned earlier."
Hearing this, Dumbledore frowned slightly. "I still maintain my position on that matter..." At this point, Sean noticed Dumbledore glance at him, then continue. "While there are no procedural problems, I don't think it's a very good choice."
Though Gavin obviously disagreed with Dumbledore's words, he still nodded in agreement to disagree. "Fine, I'll stick to my position on this matter too. Think it over carefully. The timing isn't right yet anyway; it's too early."
"Good, we'll discuss it later then. I wish you success."
"Thanks, Dumbledore. Actually, with your support, this matter is pretty much settled. But you know those old fellows. The older they get, the pettier they become. If I don't take Sean to visit them, they'd dare to sabotage me behind my back. I can't just go beat them up like when I was young, so visits are still necessary."
"Why do I always feel like every sentence of yours is targeting me?"
"If that's how you want to think about it, I can't help that."
Waving his hand, Gavin pulled Sean into the fireplace that had burst into emerald flames, disappearing within.
When Sean followed Gavin out of the green flames, he found they'd come directly to the Ministry of Magic!
"This is the Ministry?"
Nodding, Gavin said, "Today's a work day, and most of the old fellows we need to visit are at work. We'll visit them one by one. After finishing those in the Ministry, there won't be many left."
The first person Gavin took Sean to visit was actually an acquaintance.
Tiberius Ogden! Sean had met him at Dumbledore's side before the Golden Cauldron Awards and had spoken with him.
Seeing Sean and Gavin arrive, Ogden immediately burst into laughter. "When I got the news just now, I immediately thought of you. I even bet with someone about when you'd come. I didn't expect you to bring Sean here so soon after the news spread."
Gavin and Ogden obviously had a good relationship, or rather, they and Dumbledore were all on the same side.
Hearing Ogden's words, Gavin had Sean sit aside while saying to Ogden, "So who exactly do you support? Give me a straight answer."
"Sean, of course! Even without you, I'd support Sean."
"Oh?" Gavin raised an eyebrow. "Why?"
"First, I like him! Second, the Wizengamot needs fresh blood. Third, you know the third reason. I won't waste words. Anyway, I definitely support Sean. You can go find others now."
Gavin was equally direct. Hearing Ogden's words, he immediately stood up, pulled Sean to say goodbye, and came to an office not far from Ogden's.
But before Gavin and Sean could enter, a familiar voice came from inside.
"Alright, don't come in. I'm working! As for the promotion, I support Sean. Go bother others quickly, and stop bothering me!"
Hearing this, Sean glanced into the office and thought, "As expected."
At this moment, Gavin shouted directly into the office, "Thanks, Marchbanks. When I get back, I'll give you a bottle of that German white wine I found!"
"Two bottles!"
"No problem!"