After asking a few questions, William immediately realized how embarrassing his level of magical common sense was.
Hogwarts has been established for nearly a thousand years. Gryffindor's sword makes occasional appearances, and the Sorting Hat was created by Gryffindor himself. Slytherin's wand is currently buried in America (Note 1), where the snake wood grows luxuriantly.
As for Hufflepuff, there are a pile of books left by Hufflepuff in the common room that overshadow all the founders. Only Ravenclaw left no relics behind.
'No wonder Professor Flitwick is so excited. If it weren't for the unbroken lineage since the school's founding, Ravenclaw House would truly be neither holy, nor Roman, nor an empire.'
The pure-bloods hold the most sway in the wizarding world, and every pure-blood likes to bring out old artifacts to show off their ancient heritage and pure bloodline. Although Professor Flitwick himself doesn't care much about this, he probably has been laughed at by pure-bloods for it.
Although William hadn't heard similar jokes in Azkaban, considering the widespread rumors, he still felt his guess was accurate.
But the historical significance was secondary—this diadem was a recognized top-tier magical artifact capable of making one intelligent enough to solve most problems!
'No wonder those two little rascals were so obedient. They either wanted to use the diadem to solve their exam problems or come up with some new tricks.'
However, William didn't dislike such petty thoughts—to be fair, he had the same idea when he heard it: use the diadem to thoroughly understand incomprehensible books and thus greatly enhance his strength.
"I'll do my best to persuade Professor Flitwick, but I can't make any guarantees. Neither of you is allowed to tell anyone about this. If Professor Flitwick really agrees, I won't be able to control those Ravenclaw children once they find out!"
The two nodded like chickens pecking rice—if only they were usually this well-behaved.
"Professor William?"
Professor McGonagall's voice came from a distance, and behind her, a ghost floated indifferently.
"Why aren't you going in, Professor William?"
'Is the Grey Lady a ghost? Why would Dumbledore call a ghost over? This isn't a cultivation world; do magical artifacts also need artifact spirits?'
Although such strange thoughts popped into his head, William still replied with a smile.
"I'm discussing their rewards with these children, Professor," he said, smiling and patting their shoulders. "They were the main force in catching the culprit. I'm considering applying for a small bonus specifically for them."
"A bonus?"
Professor McGonagall considered for a moment. "Hmm, I don't think there will be any problem. I'll send the bill to Professor Flitwick."
"..."
William said nothing, only looking impressed.
"You have gained the approval of a (?) magical creature. Treasure Chest x1."
And then?
William's footsteps fell behind the others, and he waited for a long time without seeing a treasure chest appear—as he hurried to catch up, he saw a disdainful face appear on the door.
It was the Grey Lady from just now.
'It's broad daylight, don't scare people!'
William quickly stopped, and then the other party floated through the door and went inside.
'In broad daylight, are ghosts all this strange?'
---
When William returned to his office, he found two unfamiliar people in the room, but from the man's fiery red hair, he believed the other person was another Weasley—although the fiery red was a bit patchy.
"Ah, Professor William is back—" Dumbledore smiled kindly, but William noticed that one of his hands was firmly holding Professor Flitwick, as if afraid that the professor would pounce on the diadem if he lost control. "Sorry, Professor William, I temporarily connected your office to the Floo network. Although it's only one-way, I think it should be very convenient."
"Of course, I have no objection, Headmaster."
William was taking advantage while acting innocent—Hogwarts fireplaces couldn't be randomly connected to the Floo network; they were mostly one-way, but even one-way connections required approval. New professors weren't eligible, and William had applied but hadn't been approved.
Once the Floo network was connected, it would be much easier to go to places like Hogsmeade or Diagon Alley in the future, although returning would still require the old method.
"That's excellent," Dumbledore looked at the strangers with a smile. "I've already informed Professor Snape, Molly, Arthur, if you have no objections, the investigation will begin soon."
"Of course, Dumbledore, we have no objections," the red-haired Weasley replied decisively.
As for Mrs. Molly, William secretly saw her pinching the Weasley brothers who had entered before him with force.
The door was soon knocked on again, and Professor Snape walked in carrying a stone basin—William had seen this thing before, a Pensieve.
'Are they going to search memories? No wonder they needed to notify the parents.'
Professor Snape coldly put down the Pensieve, then turned to look at Dumbledore inquiringly. After Dumbledore nodded, he quickly walked to Ginny's side.
As his wand lightly tapped Miss Weasley's temple, a transparent, unevenly thick, and even broken strand of thread was pulled out, then quickly transferred to the Pensieve.
"You can begin, Percy, take your brothers out of the classroom."
Dumbledore nodded to everyone around—memories were already playing on the Pensieve.
William gathered around the table, and like the others, cast his gaze upon the images.
---
"Is this Hogwarts?"
The walls in the image gradually changed, then started repeating on the eighth floor—a magical door suddenly appeared on the wall.
The subsequent images dimmed and fluctuated, quickly jumping to the next scene.
The little girl caressed the diadem, which was now on a chair, with a look of obsession, as if she recognized what the diadem was—then, she slowly placed the diadem on her head.
The image fluctuated violently again, this time showing the scene of slaughtering roosters.
Compared to the previous images, this three-minute segment was much more complete, though it was very shaky, its integrity was high.
Then came a fleeting image of her writing furiously on parchment.
Next was a whisper in the darkness, "Resurrect, resurrect, resurrect..."
...
All the memories were chaotic, like many disconnected scenes jumping out of a long movie, with an incomplete plot.
"This is all I can do, Dumbledore. Both Miss Ginny and Filch, their memories are a mess like this. These useful memories were found from scattered corners."
Professor Snape's face was grim, but his tone suggested, 'No one could have done better than me; this is the best possible processing of those memories.'
"Thank you for your hard work, Severus," Dumbledore said, looking at the images with a serious expression. "Alright, Arthur, Molly, according to the investigation, Ginny was controlled, so she doesn't need to receive an unreasonable punishment for what happened afterward, but a month of detention is unavoidable."
"You can take her to the hospital wing first. Madam Pomfrey will take good care of her. The detention will be discussed after she recovers."
After instructing the couple, Dumbledore looked at the diadem, which had appeared countless times in the memories, and a serious expression William had never seen before appeared on his face.
Note: One of the founders of Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in America was a descendant of Slytherin. She buried Slytherin's wand within the school.
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