An Extraordinary Night

"Professor Dumbledore, what is it?"

Looking at Adam’s innocent expression, Professor Dumbledore could not help lowering his voice.

"Mr. Reed, I must remind you that giving someone special treatment as the head chef at a banquet is unethical."

The earlier sweets were one thing. He had licked Fawkes, and it had merely been an oversized malt candy. Whether it came in large chunks or small ones did not matter much.

But that later plate of desserts had been going too far!

"Special treatment? Me? Did I?"

Adam thought back. He had indeed made some extra barbecue, but that was for a late-night snack. He had not even had the chance to bring it out yet!

"Of course you did!"

Professor Dumbledore secretly pointed in Professor Scamander’s direction.

"Look at Newt Scamander’s place setting!"

Adam glanced over. It was just one more plate of desserts than everyone else had…

"The meat and fish have had their bones removed, the little dessert figures are the biggest ones, and even the fruit has been peeled and cut into small pieces—"

Professor Dumbledore was getting a little worked up as he spoke, so he lowered his voice even further.

"And that would have been one thing, but you even served him an extra portion of dessert!"

"Ahem…"

Adam coughed guiltily, but he could not help explaining himself.

"Well, Professor Scamander is already over ninety…"

"…"

Professor Dumbledore looked at the white beard on his chest and could not help reminding Adam.

"He used to be my student. I am far older than he is!"

Adam was momentarily speechless before finally forcing out one sentence.

"Really? Then Professor, you’ve taken very good care of yourself."

Professor Dumbledore: "@%￥%!"

"Besides, Professor Scamander is a new professor, and he’ll only be teaching us for one year. Of course we should take good care of him."

"Then what about Professor Lupin?"

Hearing Professor Dumbledore’s faint question, Adam was not guilty at all this time.

"How old is Professor Scamander, and how old is Professor Lupin?"

No matter what, Adam still added an extra serving of dessert for all the other professors before returning to the Hufflepuff table.

"Oh! Adam, you’re finally back! We saved some for you!"

The food everyone had saved for Adam had been piled into a small mountain on his plate, while the various containers in front of them had now been nearly emptied.

As the saying went, growing boys could eat their fathers out of house and home. Especially when there was enough delicious food, the only dishes left were the fish, because they were too troublesome to eat.

The Hufflepuffs, still wanting more: Our hearts yearn for fish, but our abilities fall short!

Eugene, frantically picking up food: Doesn’t this prove the importance of learning how to pick fish bones?

"By the way, Adam, didn’t you say there would be a surprise? What is it?"

"A surprise? Isn’t it already on your plate?"

"My plate?"

Ernie looked at the plate in front of him. Other than bones, there was only…

"This bronze Knut? I thought you accidentally wrapped it in!"

Ernie could not help frowning as he spoke.

"So the surprise is a bronze Knut?"

Finding money in one’s food was certainly delightful… but it was still a far cry from the surprise they had imagined.

"No. You’ll know once you’re halfway through eating."

Adam kept them in suspense.

Midway through the banquet, Adam stood and cast a Sonorus Charm on himself.

"Everyone! You may find bronze Knuts that I placed inside any food at the banquet that can hide one! There are ten bronze Knuts on each House table. Anyone lucky enough to find one can claim the final prize!"

After dinner ended, the professors left first. Adam went to the front and asked everyone who had found a bronze Knut to come forward and claim their prizes.

"Students who found bronze Knuts, please come up with your Knuts!"

In the end, forty-seven people stood before Adam, each holding a bronze Knut and claiming they had eaten it from their food.

"These bronze Knuts are specially made. Please use your brains. How could I possibly use ordinary bronze Knuts that everyone has as tools for a lucky draw?"

Without the slightest courtesy, Adam eliminated one Gryffindor, three Ravenclaws, and six Slytherins.

Bang!

The Wand of Darkness struck the floor heavily. Its glittering spikes made the few young wizards who had wanted to say something swallow their words.

Outside the side door of the Great Hall, Professor McGonagall, Professor Snape, and Professor Flitwick had been preparing to enter and hand out the prizes. Seeing this, their expressions became somewhat awkward, and they exchanged slightly embarrassed looks.

"Does anyone else want to try looking? A reminder: every piece of food you search through must be eaten!"

Adam looked over the four long tables. Everyone glanced at the remaining food on the tables. Most shook their heads, while only a very few, with the mindset of giving it a try, picked up another small cake and stuffed it into their mouths—yet obviously, they still found nothing.

Adam had greatly underestimated how good his food was. If they could still eat, they would not have stopped.

"Then…"

Adam took out his wand and gave it a wave. A special bronze Knut flew from the Slytherin table into his hand. Placing that bronze Knut on the table alongside the original thirty-seven already there made thirty-eight in total. There were still two missing…

Adam looked at the Gryffindor and Slytherin tables, each missing one person, and fell silent for several seconds.

You two… certainly have good appetites.

"Although the special bronze Knuts taste the same as ordinary ones, they are edible. By now, they should have been completely digested… so let those prize slots be void. Congratulations to those standing before me for winning the final prizes!"

The applause in the Great Hall was not particularly enthusiastic. After all, someone else had won, and everyone was curious about what the so-called prizes actually were.

"Then, let us welcome the four Heads of House to present prizes to these lucky winners!"

The few young wizards who had just been eliminated felt a chill run down their backs.

H-Heads of House?!

The next moment, the side door was pushed open. The four Heads of House, who had clearly already left, entered the Great Hall again. Three of them swept displeased gazes over the students from their own Houses.

Professor McGonagall walked over to Adam’s side.

"Adam, give me a moment. I have a few things to say before the prizes are awarded."

"Of course, Professor."

Adam stepped away from the speaking position on the dais, and Professor McGonagall stepped up.

"Those who intended to cheat just now—fifty points deducted! From each of you! In addition, you will all receive detention! Your respective Heads of House will find you afterward—"

After saying that, Professor McGonagall nodded to Adam.

"I’ve said what I needed to say. Continue."

Adam returned to the dais. Looking at those dejected students, he could not help shaking his head inwardly.

Even if the professors really had left, did you think they would not settle the score with you after you cheated in front of the entire school and got caught by me?

Each lucky winner received a thick stack of redemption vouchers, which could be exchanged for corresponding sweets from Honeydukes Sweetshop.

"I made them into redemption vouchers to make them easier for you to carry. If you prefer, you may also redeem them directly. They are valid for this school year."

"Um… I’d like to redeem mine directly. Is that okay?"

Neville happened to be among the lucky Gryffindors. Blushing furiously, he held out his stack of redemption vouchers to Adam.

"I’m afraid I’ll lose them if I keep carrying them around…"

"Of course. It’s rather late now, and you probably can’t carry that much candy by yourself…"

Adam took the vouchers. As he brought his hands together, he used an Erase Card to erase them.

"How about this? At three o’clock tomorrow afternoon, I’ll bring the sweets to the entrance of the Gryffindor common room. You can ask your friends to help carry them."

"Okay!"

Neville nodded decisively.

However, Neville had no idea just how much candy that stack of redemption vouchers could exchange for…

And Adam had also forgotten that tonight would be an extraordinary night… in every sense of the phrase.

When Adam and the others returned to their dormitory, finished washing up, and eagerly took out the barbecue for another late-night meal, someone knocked on their dormitory door.

Klon opened it. Cedric stood outside with a grave expression.

"They found traces of Sirius Black! The professors told us to return to the Great Hall… Hm? What smells so good?"