Although Professor Horace didn't physically grab Draco's arm to keep him from leaving, the way he kept staring at Draco made it look as if he was afraid that, the moment he stopped watching, Mr. Malfoy would disappear right in front of him.
And Horace's eagerness made one thing perfectly clear.
The person he truly wanted to invite was Draco, not Hermione.
In fact, while Hermione's potential was certainly worth investing in, Horace's real focus was still on Draco.
To be precise, part of that focus was on the name Malfoy itself, a name known throughout the wizarding world as that of a noble family...
Although she had already prepared herself for it, and although the person being favored was someone she liked, Hermione still couldn't help feeling a faint sense of disappointment when she actually saw it happen.
Especially for someone as competitive as her, someone who cared deeply about professors and academic performance, it took a little effort to steady her emotions.
"So it really was like that."
"What, disappointed? I thought you'd already figured it out."
"..."
The little bit of gloom Hermione had been feeling was instantly ruined by Pansy's muttering. After shooting her a speechless look, Hermione finally noticed what kind of important people were standing in front of them.
"Draco, I've been wanting to introduce you to Eldred Worple. He was once my student, and he's the author of Living Among Vampires."
Besides the short, bespectacled wizard in front of them, there were plenty of other wizards gathered around him as well.
As Horace introduced them one by one, there were middle-aged wizards holding important posts in the Ministry of Magic, monster hunters who specialized in hunting dangerous Magical Creatures, and even wizard idols currently touring the wizarding world.
This one small long table had gathered together top figures from all walks of life.
And without exception, every one of them had once been one of Horace's outstanding students.
After hearing all the introductions, Hermione came to understand Professor Horace even more clearly, and once again.
Who would have thought that this potbellied old wizard, who looked so ordinary at first glance, was actually holding such an astonishing network of connections in his hands?
For some reason, Hermione felt even more certain that Draco's earlier analysis had been right.
After all, how could a Professor Horace like this possibly have let the Dark Lord slip by back then?
...
Although all of these wizards had achieved quite a lot in their respective fields, Draco was obviously not interested in them at all.
Under Hermione's regretful gaze, Draco merely greeted them briefly, then took Hermione and the others away from Horace's "entanglement."
Thinking about it, Hermione had actually wanted to chat with that famous author who had become friends with a Vampire...
"Look. Professor Snape is actually here too?"
"And Potter's with him. It looks like the atmosphere over there isn't very pleasant."
While snacking on the refreshments at the party, Pansy and the others were surprised to spot Snape in attendance. After all, Snape was not the sort of person who usually socialized.
Still, from where Draco and the others were standing, there was no way they could hear what was being said over there.
Draco shook his head. He was not surprised by Snape's presence in the slightest.
"Because Snape was also Professor Horace's student. You should remember that Horace has mentioned more than once that Potter's mother was his favorite student."
"I see."
Although she did not really understand what that had to do with anything, Pansy still nodded as if she half understood.
Hermione, however, was much more concerned about something else. She turned her gaze back to Draco, who was gently swirling the wine in his glass, then covered her mouth with one hand and asked in a low voice, "When are we going to start?"
"Don't rush. You should observe this place first."
"Observe this place? How does that help our plan?"
Draco did not answer right away. Instead, he pressed the chilled glass in his hand against Hermione's cheek, earning himself an annoyed, delicate glare from the girl.
With a soft chuckle, Draco took a sip of the Dragon's Blood wine in his glass.
"Don't forget where we are."
"Professor Horace's office?"
"Exactly. Then let me ask you another question. How do you get the secret you want from a professor, especially one skilled in Occlumency?"
"...But you never said any of this about the other professors."
"Because from the very beginning, Horace was my target. To be more precise, aside from him, I don't think any of the other professors know what we want to find out... well, except Dumbledore."
That made not only Hermione stare at him, but Pansy too, who had been toying with Draco's fingers a moment ago, now looked up at him with her lips slightly parted.
Didn't that mean everything they had done before had been a waste of effort?
Realizing that, Pansy could not help glaring at Draco too.
Faced with the girls' resentful looks, Draco gave a light cough.
"It's not like I was certain."
That answer only earned him more charming eye-rolls from the girls.
"Anyway, since there's no way to get what we want directly out of him, then there's only one option left."
Draco's words immediately aroused Hermione's curiosity.
"You mean there might be some crucial information hidden in this office?"
Even as she said that, Hermione shook her head hard.
"That's impossible. Even if there was something, so much time has passed. How could it still be here?"
"Words and objects may be gone. But what about memories?"
"M... memories?"
In the wizarding world, there are all kinds of magical objects.
They are fascinating, and they also bring a great deal of convenience to the lives of wizards...
Among them is one especially unique magical object.
It can preserve the thoughts and memories in a person's mind, allowing them to be revisited and experienced again over time.
A magical object that remarkable naturally has a name that suits it perfectly.
The Pensieve.