That night, without Hermione's visit, Lynn was enjoying a quiet dinner alone, struggling with the dry bread on the table.
"Ding! Stranger detected. Unregistered facial features. Please authorize access, Owner."
The doorbell chime suddenly rang, breaking the silence in the house and interrupting the "affectionate stare-down" between Lynn and a piece of dry bread.
Lynn mumbled indistinctly with the bread still in his mouth.
"Who would come visiting at this time? It's the middle of the night, disrupting my meal."
He pulled out his mobile phone and opened the app connected to the doorbell camera.
The screen showed a young wizard in his twenties wearing formal wizard robes. He stood at the door with a professional smile.
In his hand was a roll of parchment clearly stamped with the Ministry of Magic seal.
Lynn's heart skipped a beat as he instantly filled in the "details" in his head.
Is the Ministry of Magic coming for me?!
Did the matter of me imprisoning those two Dark Wizards get exposed? Or was I reported for secretly raising Abraxans?
He immediately put down his chopsticks, grabbed the wand he always kept nearby, cautiously walked to the door, and opened it.
"Good evening, Mr. Lynn."
Seeing him, the young wizard outside immediately put on an even more standard professional smile.
"I'm Felix, from the Ministry of Magic's Auror Office."
An Auror!
Alarm bells rang loudly in Lynn's head.
Are they really here to arrest me?! Is it too late to run?
"Good evening… sir," Lynn replied cautiously, tightening his grip on his wand.
However, Felix's next words completely stunned him.
"Your doorbell is quite nice."
Lynn blinked.
"Hehe… I think so too…"
Wait. Something isn't right.
If they were here to arrest someone, how could they be in the mood to compliment a doorbell?
Thinking this through, Lynn's tense nerves relaxed slightly, and he stepped aside to invite Felix in.
"Would you like something to drink, sir?" Lynn asked politely.
"Do you have any Coke?" Felix asked while rubbing his hands together, looking a little embarrassed.
"When I was studying at Hogwarts, a classmate brought me some. I have to say, the taste is wonderful. I liked it a lot."
A nostalgic expression appeared on his face.
"You have good taste! I love Coke too!"
Feeling like he had found a kindred spirit, Lynn quickly took two chilled cans of Coke from the fridge and handed one to him.
"By the way, sir, is there a reason for your visit so late?"
"Oh! I almost forgot the main business!"
Felix slapped his forehead, quickly set the Coke aside, unfurled the parchment, cleared his throat, and spoke in the formal tone used for reading official documents.
"Mr. Lynn, I have been commissioned by the Minister for Magic and the Order of Merlin Committee to formally notify you:
"This Friday, July 10th, at 10:00 AM, in the Ministry Awards Hall, you will be presented with the Order of Merlin, Third Class, in recognition of your outstanding contributions to the field of Alchemy.
"At that time, several other award recipients will receive their honors alongside you."
Lynn: …
Wait?
Does the Ministry of Magic actually send Aurors to deliver notifications now?
And in the middle of the night?
How bored is this Mr. Auror? Or has the Ministry's workload become that light?
"Sir," Lynn asked cautiously, unable to stop his curiosity, "may I ask what specific contribution earned me this medal?"
He needed to make sure they hadn't sent the award to the wrong person.
Hearing this, Felix showed a thoughtful expression. He scratched his head and tried hard to remember.
"Wait a moment, sir… let me think… What was that competition called… It seemed to be… the International… Youth… Alchemy Competition?"
He suddenly snapped his fingers.
"Yes! That's it! You won the championship in Switzerland, right?"
Lynn: "…"
If he remembered correctly, that Alchemy competition had ended before last Christmas.
It had already been almost half a year.
Is the Ministry's efficiency always this… "fast"?
Why not just wait until my graduation ceremony to give it to me?
"I see." Lynn nodded slowly, gaining a deeper understanding of the Ministry's administrative efficiency.
Felix, who was still trying to recall details, didn't mind the interruption and continued.
"Additionally, the ceremony allows you to invite a few friends to attend. This is a copy of the formal invitation. You can give it to them."
He handed the copied parchment to Lynn.
Lynn accepted it and nodded.
"Alright. I'll notify them."
Felix gave Lynn a few more instructions about the dress code and the arrival time. Finally, he finished the last sip of his Coke, stood up, and said thoughtfully:
"You should get some rest, Mr. Lynn. It's getting late."
Lynn escorted him to the door. Watching his figure disappear into the night, he couldn't help complaining silently.
You know it's late too!
As soon as Felix left, Lynn pulled out his mobile phone.
Ignoring the time completely, he started a group video call with his friends.
Ring… ring… ring…
The ringing continued for a long time. Just when Lynn thought no one would answer, the video finally connected.
The screen shook a few times, and Edgar's sleepy face appeared first. He squinted at the screen and asked groggily,
"Hm? Lynn… what's wrong… calling in the middle of the night…?"
"I'll explain when everyone's here," Lynn said mysteriously.
Soon, two more small windows lit up.
William appeared first. His hair was neat, but his face was terrifyingly dark.
"Lynn!" he said through gritted teeth. "You'd better give me a reasonable explanation for disturbing my sleep at one in the morning! Otherwise, your Alchemy notes might 'accidentally' disappear after school starts!"
"Same here," Ollie said shortly.
Although his face wasn't very clear on the screen, his voice was thick with sleepiness and annoyance.
"It's like this…" Lynn began.
Seeing everyone present, he briefly explained the Auror's late-night visit and the notification about the award ceremony.
"Sorry, Lynn," Ollie said first after calming down, his tone apologetic. "I probably won't be able to attend the ceremony."
"As you know, it already took a lot of effort for my father to agree to let me attend Hogwarts."
"Going to the Ministry of Magic… I'm afraid that's not very realistic."
His voice carried a trace of helplessness.
Lynn nodded in understanding.
"That's a pity. But it's fine. Even if you can't come, we can livestream the ceremony for you. You can experience the atmosphere remotely."
Ollie fell silent for a moment before nodding slightly.
It seemed that saying that long paragraph earlier had already reached his language limit for the night.
Although Lynn didn't know the exact reason, Ollie's father seemed to have a deep dislike for the wizarding world. Still, Lynn respected that.
"I'm fine," William said. "I'll tell my parents and head to London in a couple of days to find you. We'll go to the Ministry together."
"What about you, Edgar?" William asked casually.
Before Edgar could answer, Lynn interrupted.
"Him? Going to the Ministry should be as familiar as going home, right? After all, both your parents work there."
On the other side of the video, Edgar was finally fully awake.
He gave a proud thumbs-up to the camera and grinned.
"Exactly! I'll lead the way for you guys. I guarantee I know the place better than a tour guide!"
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