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"So we sped up a bit and finally arrived before Hogwarts closed for the holidays."
McPhail smiled and said, "To go through the honors ceremony with everyone at Hogwarts...it must be very meaningful for the child."
After hearing his words, the entire auditorium fell silent instantly. Everyone's eyes widened. They had some guess in their minds, but they didn't dare to believe it.
A twelve-year-old wizard won the Order of Merlin... How is this possible!
Not far away, at the Gryffindor table, Fred glanced at George stiffly.
"Twelve years old, should be the second grade."
"…It could also be the first year."
George's expression was also a little strange: "Maybe it was Harry. Everyone knows that he defeated the mysterious man, so it's nothing for him to get an Order of Merlin."
"But...Harry's birthday is in July, which means he is still eleven years old."
Now George was speechless.
A name suddenly popped up in his mind, and he believed that Fred should have the same idea.
"No way……"
"Could it be..."
The two looked at each other and looked in the direction of the Hufflepuff table.
At this time, McPhail, who had come from afar, did not continue the greetings:
"Then let's get started quickly, Dumbledore, the youngest member of Merlin's Order... I can't wait any longer, and don't keep the children waiting too long."
"Of course no problem, but will you still host the ceremony this time?"
McPhail shook his head. "Of course not. We have someone more suitable."
Hearing his words, Cornelius Fudge subconsciously cleared his throat and took a small step forward, seeming to be very eager to take on the job.
But MacPhail pretended not to see him and continued: "Since it is at Hogwarts, it must be you who came, Albus.
And this is your job as Chief Wizard of the Wizengamot, you can't keep pushing it on me... Remember, I've been retired for a long time."
"But you're better suited for the job than I am, Dug."
Dumbledore smiled, then turned and walked towards the guest of honor table.
"Today is such a happy day," he said loudly, "Let me introduce these distinguished guests to you..."
"Doug McPhail, a wise and calm wise man, led the Ministry of Magic through a period of pleasant tranquility at a time when the Muggle Parliament was experiencing obvious turmoil."
McPhail waved hello to everyone.
There was warm applause in the auditorium.
"I know him." Hermione said excitedly, "Remember, we saw him when we were looking for Nicolas Flamel.
Dougal MacPhail, Minister for Magic in 1858, was one of the most trusted ministers."
"1858?!"
Ron said in disbelief: "Then he must be over a hundred years old now!"
"133 years old," Harry whispered.
"You two..." Hermione frowned, "He should be at least 133 years old. He can't have been the Minister of Magic since he was born."
"He's really alive..." Ron muttered quietly, "I mean, he doesn't have an elixir of life, right?"
On the stage, Dumbledore has already begun introducing the next person.
"And our Minister of Magic, Mr. Cornelius Fudge..."
Fudge took off his hat and gave a friendly smile.
There was another round of applause from the audience, especially from the Slytherins, who clapped particularly excitedly.
"And Pegasus Sassia, the headmaster of St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, a respected master of potions..."
"Newt Scamander, famous magizoologist and author of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them..."
When Dumbledore was introducing those people on the stage, Kyle's eyes were always on the last two people.
Those were his parents, Chris and Diana.
But Diana was wearing a large black hood, hiding herself very tightly.
And for some reason, her presence was very low. If she hadn't been standing next to Chris, Kyle probably wouldn't have noticed her.
It felt like a Muggle-repelling spell...
As he was thinking, Kyle suddenly felt something strange coming from his palm. He looked down subconsciously and found that a few small words had appeared on his hand...
"Don't look around, mission!"
Kyle's mouth twitched.
Obviously, his mother probably took leave to come here during the mission, but because of the special nature of the Department of Mysteries, she had to hide herself.
After being reminded, Kyle nodded slightly and didn't look at them again.
Just know that your parents are there too.
It was such an important matter, and Kyle always felt that something was missing without their participation.
"Kyle, why are you smiling so happily?"
Cedric looked at him doubtfully, and then seemed to think of something:
"Wait. Could it be that this Order of Merlin is... for you?"
Like George, he had thought it was for Harry Potter.
Kyle spread his hands and said nothing, but Cedric's expression became more and more surprised.
There was also a hint of daze in his surprise.
Soon, Dumbledore introduced the last person.
The inventor of the wolfsbane potion, Damocles Belby.
Except for Fudge, the other four were all recipients of the Order of Merlin, some first and some second.
As for Chris and Diana... they had already found a seat near the door and sat down.
Dumbledore seemed to have noticed something, so he did not mention the two of them.
"Perhaps you will find it strange and wonder why these famous wizards would come to Hogwarts..."
Dumbledore stood in front of the guest of honor table and said in a clear and loud voice: "It's simple... They are here to award a student the Order of Merlin."
After receiving Dumbledore's affirmative answer, there was an uproar from the audience.
Everyone was guessing who it was...and the one mentioned most was Harry Potter.
"Harry, is that really you?" said Ron excitedly.
"Impossible." Harry shook his head. "I've never heard of it, and I'm not even twelve, you know."
"I know, but who else could it be besides you... Don't forget that you defeated the You-Know-Who and saved the wizarding world." Ron said, "Maybe they just got your age wrong."
Harry frowned, he still felt something was wrong.
If it was really because of Voldemort, why did they wait until today to present the award, and why did they let him live in the Dursleys' house for eleven years?
If Hagrid hadn't taken him away from that seaside cottage, he might not have known about the existence of Hogwarts until now.
The auditorium was in chaos and there was constant noise... everyone was arguing about who the winner was.
But soon, Dumbledore told them the answer.
"Kyle Chopper!" he shouted.
The hall seemed to have been paused and fell silent in an instant. They subconsciously looked at the Hufflepuff table and Kyle who was standing there.
"Come here, child," said Dumbledore gently.
Kyle walked over.
Dumbledore said solemnly: "At St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, you successfully subdued an out-of-control werewolf and saved the lives of 57 injured patients on an entire floor.
In recognition of your heroic and fearless behavior at that time, I, Albus Dumbledore, on behalf of the International Confederation of Wizards, the Order of Merlin, the Wizengamot, and the wizarding community, award you the Order of Merlin, Second Class!"
(End of this chapter)
Chapter 233 Thank You
Only then did everyone in the auditorium react.
What had they just heard… a werewolf out of control?
Even as freshmen, after a year of study, they all knew how terrifying werewolves were.
It was mentioned when we were learning about the werewolf code of conduct. It is a 5X level werewolf. After transformation, the werewolf is ferocious, agile, and extremely powerful, and can be a deadly and dangerous creature to wizards.
Even many adult wizards and even the Ministry of Magic strikers cannot deal with werewolves. That has always been the job of the Aurors.
They really couldn't imagine how Kyle did it...
At the Gryffindor table, Ron and Harry's eyes were already wide open.
They have had this expression ever since the truth came out.
They are still reciting the werewolf behavior rules, but Kyle can already tear a werewolf apart with his bare hands. The gap is a bit too big.
Hermione was better off. She had thought before that the person who received the medal might be Kyle, so she was not too surprised.
No matter what others thought, Dumbledore had already taken and opened the box handed to him by Doug McPhail at the guest of honor table.
Inside was an exquisite gold medal and a purple ribbon.
The ribbon colors of the Order of Merlin medals of different levels are also different. The first level is green, the second level is purple, and the third level is white.
However, this thing should be a standard one, and it seemed a bit big for Kyle, almost stretching from his left shoulder to his calf.
If this were red...it would be so festive.
Dumbledore moved his fingers slightly and instantly changed it to the right size.