When discussing the founding of Hogwarts, one has to mention the circumstances of the time and the four great founders.
In fact, when those four founders chose the site for the magical school, they took a great many factors into account.
Among them, safety was one of the most important considerations.
That was because, given the era, the laws concerning wizards were nowhere near as complete or well-established as they are today.
Dark wizards had not yet reached the point of appearing everywhere, nor were dangerous creatures roaming every corner, but to be fair, the wizarding world at that time was certainly far more complicated than it is now.
After all, there was no Azkaban Wizarding Prison back then.
As for the situation at the time, there were not only uncontrolled Giants and Vampires, but also the recently ended Goblin Rebellion and the gradually emerging threat of Werewolves.
It was not hard to imagine just how chaotic the wizarding world must have been.
The moment wizards stepped outside their homes, they had to keep their wands in hand and could not afford to lower their guard for even a moment.
For half-blood wizards who had come into magic halfway and had never received systematic training, it was the worst of times, but also the best of times.
The main reason was that, at the time, all magical resources were concentrated in the hands of noble wizards.
As a half-blood wizard, if you did not become a follower of those noble wizards, it was impossible to climb any higher, let alone become powerful.
Simply put, for a half-blood wizard with no resources, surviving in that environment was difficult enough. As for wizards from Muggle families, that was even more out of the question.
It was precisely in such an age, when there was still no school where wizards could systematically study Charms, that the magical school founded by the four founders came into being.
Under those circumstances, what the four founders did directly touched the interests of the noble wizards.
In other words, since Hogwarts was born and established against such a backdrop, then from the very beginning, it was only natural to consider whether it might be attacked by powerful dark wizards or creatures.
And, of course, whether those noble wizards might interfere or sabotage it.
Because of that, the choice of location and the question of how to make it safer became extremely important.
After all, what they had to guard against was not only dark wizards, but also the hidden schemes of the noble wizards.
...
Speaking of Hogwarts' location, it was built on a very typical stretch of the Scottish Highlands.
An eight-story Gothic-style castle.
With mountains surrounding it, a lake to the south, and the Forbidden Forest spreading outward from the west of the castle, it was a strategic stronghold that was easy to defend and difficult to attack.
Faced with such a strategic stronghold, if someone were to attack Hogwarts using only Muggle cold weapons, all they would need to do was guard the only bridge at the Hogwarts gates, and a very small force could hold back an army several times its size.
In other words, trying to flatten Hogwarts Castle through sheer numbers was fundamentally impossible.
Of course, the enemies Hogwarts had to face would never be Muggles who could not even use magic.
At the very least, before they became capable of discovering the castle, there was no need to consider Muggles as enemies for the time being.
Therefore, those methods were aimed only at dark creatures that could not fly and could not use magic, or at dangerous Magical Creatures without intelligence.
As for beings capable of flight, and wizards who possessed magic and could cast Charms, other defensive measures had been prepared.
But before discussing those defensive measures, there was the fresh intelligence currently in Draco's hands.
At this very moment, many Werewolves were gathering toward Hogwarts Castle, and their speed could only be described as astonishing.
Was this to be expected from Werewolves?
In any case, among these Werewolves, there was naturally a leader.
And that leader was none other than the SSS-level criminal wanted by the Ministry of Magic, Fenrir Greyback.
Although it was not the night of the full moon, Fenrir looked almost no different from an ordinary human on the outside.
Only a few subtle movements revealed that some of his beastly instincts still remained.
Those occasional gestures, along with the wildness in his eyes, exposed just how dangerous he was.
He shook himself, then opened his large mouth, sharp fangs visible inside. "How much longer until the encirclement is complete?"
"Chieftain Greyback, it will probably take a few more magical hours. Also, we still haven't seen the Giants."
"...Tch. Don't expect those stupid lumps to arrive on time. In fact, I seriously doubt whether their brains can understand time at all, or remember where they're supposed to gather."
"Then once the time comes, we attack?"
Just as the Werewolf lieutenant looked eagerly at their leader, the night sky before them suddenly lit up with an orange glow. Anyone who did not know better might have thought it was some large-scale offensive spell.
A translucent barrier glowing orange slowly rose in front of Fenrir Greyback.
Mysterious and sacred.
Seeing this, the Werewolf lieutenant beside him gaped in shock, as though he had never expected to witness such an astonishing sight.
Fenrir Greyback, by contrast, showed not the slightest loss of composure. It was as if he had expected this scene from the start.
Fenrir ground his teeth. "Have we been discovered... Looks like our Death Eater friends inside are going to be furious with me."
"Chieftain Greyback?"
"Don't worry. There's nothing surprising about this. You have to remember, what stands before us is something with a history of more than a century. If it didn't have this sort of measure, then we'd be the ones who should worry about whether a trap was waiting for us."
Although Werewolves generally gave people the impression of being cruel, frenzied, and lacking reason, Fenrir Greyback's behavior at this moment was clearly far calmer.
It also made it clear why he had been able to live so comfortably despite being wanted by the Ministry of Magic.
It seemed that aside from the missing Minister of Magic being rather incompetent, this Werewolf leader was not simple either.
At the very least, he was quite good at keeping his patience.
...
In any case, faced with the orange barrier before them, which looked like an upside-down bowl covering Hogwarts, the Werewolves who had been excited and restless only moments earlier all instinctively turned to look at their leader.
It had to be said that Fenrir's subordinates looked so foolishly obedient that the grave atmosphere from moments ago instantly changed flavor.
It seemed not all Werewolves had retained their humanity.
Grinding his claws against a nearby tree trunk, Fenrir Greyback frowned. "So we really were discovered. I was hoping to take it down in one push."
"Looks like we can only use the original plan."
Fenrir Greyback, now feeling bored, showed not the slightest guilt over having alerted the enemy, or even over possibly ruining the original plan.
His unconcerned expression only made it clearer that he had no regard for Voldemort at all.
Rather, he despised all wizards.
In fact, the main reason he was cooperating with Voldemort was simply that Fenrir Greyback wanted the world thrown into chaos.
In his eyes, the more chaotic the wizarding world became, the better. Ideally, all those wizards would turn into Werewolves.
Watching both sides tear each other apart was the outcome Fenrir Greyback truly wanted to see.
So he had no interest whatsoever in carrying out Voldemort's plan, nor had he put much thought into it.
That was why this current action, one that exceeded the original plan, had happened.
The problem was that his operation had ended before it had even properly begun.
What remained unclear was just how long the magical barrier before them could last.