"Don't worry about that. Look at the Professors; I bet Professor Kayson can't hold back his fists any longer," Neville whispered.
At this moment, they all looked towards the Professors' table. Almost every Professor was glaring at Umbridge with disgust. Madam Hooch, sitting next to Professor Trelawney, even reached out and tightly gripped Professor Trelawney's hand.
She was about to stand up for Professor Trelawney, and Kayson, not far away, had already stood up and stretched his limbs, intending to make Umbridge sober up and realize her true position at Hogwarts.
But even faster than the two of them was Professor McGonagall, who was supposed to be in the center of the Great Hall conducting the Sorting Ceremony for the Little Wizards.
Before she even arrived, the spell did. A red magic glow shot towards Umbridge, instantly causing her to fly up in the Great Hall, at a time when almost everyone at Hogwarts was present, before she landed steadily back on the ground.
"Ms. Umbridge? Are you alright?" Professor McGonagall asked coldly, retracting her wand.
"I…" Umbridge, realizing what she had just experienced, instinctively wanted to get angry, but she quickly remembered where she was and forcefully suppressed her rage.
At this moment, she had no face to stay in the Great Hall. She thought it would be better to leave the Great Hall directly and find her office. She didn't know which office Dumbledore had assigned her, or if it faced the sun… She definitely had to paint it pink.
However, as she walked step by step, trying to avoid the attention of the Little Wizards, towards the staircase, it could be said that all the Little Wizards in the Great Hall, even the Little Wizards wearing the Sorting Hat, turned their gaze towards Umbridge.
One gaze after another made her body itch, as if those gazes were tickling feathers.
And these Wizards, big and small, naturally included Kayson. He certainly wouldn't let Umbridge escape this hard-earned public execution so easily.
The next moment, he had a thought, and the Iron Golems, which had been standing guard at the staircase like statues, moved. Two Iron Golems blocked the exit of the Great Hall completely, one on each side.
She turned back in surprise to look at Kayson at the Professors' table. He raised an eyebrow without any avoidance, smiling at Umbridge, his meaning clear: tonight, you are not leaving this Great Hall.
Professor McGonagall, who was conducting the Sorting Ceremony, also smiled with satisfaction at this scene, and even her movements with the hat became a bit lighter.
The Sorting Ceremony ended very quickly. Though it was said to be quick, in Umbridge's eyes, it truly felt like an eternity.
Dumbledore smiled, seeing that every Little Wizards had found their house. He stood up: "I know you must be starving by now, and I don't believe a long speech here will make you remember anything, so… eat!"
After he sat down, he looked at Umbridge in the corner of the Great Hall and called out loudly to her: "Ms. Umbridge, find a place to sit and eat, you must be hungry. I apologize, I forgot you were coming today and forgot to customize a chair for you."
"Heh heh, Principal, you truly are a busy person with a short memory," Umbridge said through gritted teeth.
"So please sit at a table with the students, is there any problem?" Although Dumbledore added, "Is there any problem?" at the end, he had no intention of listening to any problems. After speaking, he immediately buried his head and started eating.
Umbridge took a deep breath, forcefully suppressing her surging anger. After all, she had been thoroughly briefed by Fudge before coming, told to be absolutely steady.
She was here to disgust Dumbledore and all the Hogwarts faculty and staff, not to seek death.
She bit the bullet and walked towards her alma mater, Slytherin. Snape then cast a deep glance at the current Slytherin Prefect, Malfoy.
Malfoy was stunned, then quickly adjusted the seating, ensuring that everyone's seat was perfectly spaced, and that no one else could squeeze in.
Umbridge watched this scene and again forced herself not to break down, continuing to walk towards the other houses.
Gryffindor was naturally out of the question. Professor McGonagall had given her a proper warning earlier, and consequently, the Gryffindor Little Wizards followed suit and shut Umbridge out.
Ravenclaw was even more significant. It's said that Ravenclaw Little Wizards are smart, aren't they? Not only are they all academic overachievers, but they also have a unique talent for social graces. For example, they all saw that Umbridge was being ostracized by the entire Hogwarts, so they naturally had to go along with the flow.
What's more, Professor Trelawney, whom Umbridge targeted not long ago, graduated from Ravenclaw, so their ostracism at this moment was perfectly justified.
Unconditional acceptance should be left to Hufflepuff.
And regarding this, Professor Sprout, the Dean of Hufflepuff, truly said nothing, embodying tolerance in its true sense.
However, at this moment, another Hufflepuff at the long table did not possess Professor Sprout's noble character. He cast a deep glance at the Hufflepuff table.
In that instant, every Hufflepuff Little Wizards seemed to be locked by that gaze. The Hufflepuff male and female Prefects, and Cedric, the undisputed Hufflepuff champion who won the Triwizard Tournament last semester, quickly received orders, arranging their seats one by one. Finally, fearing that Umbridge might have a large face, they even used a Transfiguration spell to turn the long bench into individual chairs.
One for each person, not one extra.
Kayson was very satisfied with this scene and lowered his head to eat again.
And Professor Sprout just smiled at this scene, saying nothing else.
Umbridge looked at this scene and awkwardly turned to Dumbledore: "Headmaster Dumbledore, I'm not very hungry. How about I go back to the office first?"
Dumbledore shook his head: "At the start-of-term feast, all Hogwarts students and faculty must gather together. I'm sorry, but you are no exception."
Dumbledore's words struck Umbridge like a bolt from the blue.
And it also provided the Little Wizards of the four houses with an extra show to enjoy with their meal. Although Umbridge was a bit disgusting, she was certainly interesting.
And so, Umbridge stood stiff and cold in the center of the Great Hall. The Little Wizards of the four houses even kept their voices down to create a stiff, cold atmosphere.
This stiff atmosphere made Umbridge feel suffocated; even breathing seemed to attract extra attention, although all eyes in the Great Hall were already on her.
And this couldn't be blamed on the Little Wizards. Who told Umbridge that the first thing she did upon entering the Great Hall was to post the Ministry of Magic's decrees, with the first rule being no loud talking in the Great Hall?
It was a boomerang, indeed.
The feast lasted for an unknown amount of time, followed by the singing of the school song, and Dumbledore's final address.
It wasn't until the very end, when Dumbledore announced that the Little Wizards should return to their common rooms, that Umbridge finally relaxed completely. She mechanically walked towards Dumbledore; all she wanted now was to return to her office and rest properly.
However, Dumbledore looked at Umbridge in surprise: "What office? The Head of Moral Education, as stated by the Ministry of Magic, has no teaching duties, so, Ms. Umbridge, you don't need an office!"
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