Chapter 166: 'Surging Tide”

Chapter 166: “Surging Tide”

Regardless of whether Hermiones concerns were justified or not, they couldnt afford to dwell on the issue any longer because they had classes to attend.Updated from novelbIn.(c)om

The three friends went their separate ways, with Hermione wearing a solemn and sad expression.

At noon, when Matthew returned to the auditorium, he was surprised to find a sumptuous feast laid out on the tables, just like it used to be.

It seemed that the House-elves strike had come to an end.

Hermione, however, seemed unwilling to accept this fact and appeared to have skipped lunch entirely.

After their meal, she convinced Matthew and Neville to accompany her back to the kitchen.

She wanted to check on the House-elves and offer assistance if needed.

Unfortunately, this time, they couldnt open the door in the picture; it was locked from the inside, tightly sealed.

They had no choice but to return empty-handed.

In the following weeks, strikes appeared to occur from time to time, or so they assumed.

Every so often, a meal was far less lavish than usual, quite monotonous, and even a bit inadequate.

Matthew believed this was Hogwarts emergency response to House-elves going on

they never let students go hungry again.

Hermione Granger never mentioned anything related to the House-elves, whether in casual conversations or private moments with Matthew and Neville.

But Matthew was certain that she hadnt forgotten what she witnessed in the kitchen.

Time continued to pass day by day.

During the Slug Clubs gathering, while conversing with Dirk Creswell, an official from the Fairy Liaison Office at the Ministry of Magic, Matthew had caught wind of these events.

Hogwarts House-elves, usually so reliable, had been frequently going on strikes.

The fairies at Gringotts appeared to be on the brink of a new fairy rebellion.

Adding to the uncertainty, the unaccounted-for members of the Order of the Phoenix were known to have infiltrated Hogwarts.

All of this was disconcerting.

Truth be told, the first six months of the semester had been relatively uneventful compared to the previous year.

Nevertheless, Matthew couldnt shake the feeling that beneath the apparent calm, a dark tide was silently rising.

It seemed clear that the orchestrators behind this dark tide were none other than the members of the Order of the Phoenix.

They appeared to be clandestinely guiding these events.

If he were to be completely honest, Matthew would lean toward supporting the magical world influenced by Albus Dumbledore and the Order of the Phoenix.

After all, as a Muggle-born wizard, Grindelwalds politics, which leaned toward wizards and opposed Muggles, didnt align with his values.

Furthermore, Aberforth Dumbledore of the Order of the Phoenix had likely saved his life during their encounter in Hogsmeade.

However, given the circumstances, Matthew would choose to align himself with the current Hogwarts Headmaster.

This was because the times had spoken

Grindelwalds influence had permeated every aspect of the wizarding world, and his forces were far superior to those of the Order of the Phoenix, whose leader had been imprisoned and could only operate in secret.

Hence, Matthew was baffled by this surging undercurrent!

The only action he could take at this point was to distance himself from it all, hoping that this dark tide wouldnt touch him.