In the principal's office, nothing seems to have changed much.

The Sorting Hat was still resting on the shelf behind it, Phoenix Fawkes was squinting and napping, and the silver flask on the long table next to the bookshelf was still smoking......

Only on the top of the wall behind the desk, among the rows of golden frames, there was one more picture.

It is a portrait of the previous headmasters of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and whenever a headmaster leaves, there is an additional portrait of the headmaster on the wall.

At this moment, in the new picture frame that has just appeared, the old wizard with half-moon glasses on the bridge of his nose is gently closing his eyes, as if he is closing his eyes to recuperate.

But if you look at it for a long time, you will find that unlike other portraits that can move freely in the frame, the old wizard in this frame has not moved at all.

It's as if it was a Muggle picture, and it doesn't move.

"Minerva, the minister will come over this afternoon, the schedule has been arranged......"

Suddenly, a man walked in from one of the empty picture frames and spoke.

"Thank you, Evra."

Professor McGonagall, who had been standing at his desk since then, staring at the last portrait of him, turned her gaze to the person who was speaking, and nodded slightly.

Just as she looked at Dumbledore's portrait again, there was a knock on the door to the Headmaster's office.

"Tuk Tuk"

“…… Come in. McGonagall slowly turned around and pointed to the door with her wand.

Before he could finish speaking, the door quietly opened, and the three professors, Flitwick, Snape, and Sprout, walked in one by one.

They are all deans of various colleges. With Dumbledore's death and the lack of a headmaster's position, the Headmasters became the top decision-makers at Hogwarts.

Although Professor McGonagall was temporarily elected as the Vice-Chancellor's Agent, she did not have absolute authority to deal with some important matters of the University.

"It's all here," McGonagall said slightly, "the Minister of Magic will be here in the afternoon, but before then, I think we should talk about it first...... Questions about the direction of Hogwarts' future. ”

"How?" Flitwick, the little man, asked sharply.

Professor McGonagall looked at the deans in front of her, and went over what she was thinking about before continuing to speak.

"First of all," she pursed her lips, "based on Snape's description, Dumbledore's cause of death shouldn't have been homicide—he 'floated' down from the top of the tower, right?" ”

As she spoke, McGonagall glanced over to Snape, who nodded expressionlessly.

"There's no sign of anyone hacking into the school, we searched together last night, so there shouldn't be any problem with that." "At least," she said seriously, "I don't think anyone would be able to sneak into Hogwarts without a trace and kill Dumbledore without a trace. ”

Professor McGonagall's remark was unanimously agreed by the other two deans.

"So, the actual cause of Dumbledore's death—"

“…… It's suicide. ”

As the door to the principal's office was opened again, Maca walked quickly over to the deans and made a clear conclusion on the matter.

"McLean?" "Maca?"

He nodded calmly when all four of the Headmaster's office looked at him, and then his gaze fell on Professor McGonagall.

"It's suicide," Maka repeated what she had just said, and then continued, "I can't say the details for the time being. However, this incident was also conveyed to me by Dumbledore himself......"

"This ......," Professor McGonagall froze.

"But why did he do it?" Professor Flitwick squealed, "This doesn't make sense at all, does it? ”

"Procrastination is probably one of the reasons," Maka said, shaking her head, "Of course, for Professor Dumbledore, there are other, more important reasons for him to do so. ”

Judging by what Dumbledore had said to him, there might be even bigger changes to follow.

Dumbledore was as "selfish" as he put it, but while he chose to continue on his path to magic, he was clearly still working for the future of this world.

He even did not hesitate to commit suicide to abandon his body and go to the edge of death.

"Anyway," said Maca, "something worse is bound to come, and we're going to have to watch and guard against it, whether it's at Hogwarts or elsewhere." ”

"Maca, is that what Albus told you?" Professor Sprout asked.

"Almost!" Maca spread her hands and said a little helplessly, "Professor Dumbledore has always disliked to speak too clearly, and you know that......"

"That'...... What should the students do next, and do you have any suggestions? ”

Maca could see that after Dumbledore's death, Professor McGonagall's usual courage and decisiveness had shrunk considerably.

Maybe she's confused too!

After all, Dumbledore had been alone behind the scenes at Hogwarts, after all. When looking at the current situation and development of the school as a whole, the field of vision will vary greatly depending on the location.

Although Dumbledore did intend to train Professor McGonagall, there were too many big facts that had to be dealt with by Dumbledore himself in these most critical years.

Although Professor McGonagall has the ability to be the head of the school, taking over Hogwarts in this stressful time is a very fatal test for anyone.

In addition, Dumbledore's death also dealt her a very heavy blow, and her momentary weakness was understandable.

"Don't worry, Professor McGonagall...... "Just do what you want, and we'll all have your back—Hogwarts wasn't a place for one person to hold it up alone. ”

Truth be told, McGonagall actually had plans to close the school temporarily. The reason why she had this idea was entirely because of the pressure that was about to come like a landslide and tsunami.

As soon as news of Dumbledore's death broke, the parents of the students were bound to shake the authority of Hogwarts.

In the minds of many parents, Dumbledore's existence is one of the important reasons why they choose to enroll their children in Hogwarts.

However, at the moment of Voldemort's successive attacks, Dumbledore actually died inexplicably?

Public opinion in the wizarding society, the Ministry of Magic's involvement in the investigation, and the students' uneasiness...... All of this will lead to a turbulent period for the school.

Whether to reunite or fall apart is a big question that will soon be faced.

Choosing to temporarily suspend classes for rectification when you have no clue and take the safety of students as the first priority will undoubtedly be the most reassuring measure for parents.

But......

"The curriculum remains the same for each grade level, with priority given to achieving the teaching objectives for students." Professor McGonagall nodded at Maca, and then said with a serious face, "Under the above premise, strengthen the security and preparedness of the entire school, and at the same time conduct the most subtle investigation and filing of all personnel entering and leaving the school. ”

"I agree." "Agreed."

Both Flitwick and Sprout immediately responded to Professor McGonagall's decision, Snape nodded in return, and Maca was even more unrestricted.

Professor McGonagall's decision was straightforward - first to let the young wizards continue to attend classes normally, and then to strengthen the security of the school, but the personnel entering and leaving the school were only investigated and recorded.

This is obviously a series of coping arrangements that are loose on the outside and tight on the inside.

Maca understood that Professor McGonagall had understood Dumbledore's intentions and wanted to confuse the outside world.

"But......" Professor Flitwick agreed, frowning slightly, and shrieked, "what is the Board of Directors going to say?" The sudden death of the incumbent principal needs to be done according to the rules...... The board of directors wouldn't let this matter be handled so lightly, would it? ”

"Yes! And the Ministry of Magic, ...... afternoon," Professor Sprout hesitated.

"Of course, we have to 'do things according to the rules'," Professor McGonagall at this time, no longer confused, she said decisively, "We must not only do things according to the rules, but also hold Dumbledore's funeral publicly!" ”

"That's a good idea," Maka agreed, adding, "but there's one more thing to focus on before that......

"What's the matter?" MacGallio asked, a little confused.

"Professors, do any of you know Gellert Greenwald well? I need to focus on this Dumbledore's ...... Well...... Should I be considered a 'former best friend'? ”

Maca's words made the hearts of the other four people in the principal's room skip a beat.

"You're talking about...... That prophecy of Sybil? Flitwick said solemnly.

"Honestly, I've never seen such a clear prophecy," Marka said with a frown, "and if the prophecy comes true, then Greenwald will be one of the enemies we will have to face next." ”

"Perhaps it would be more appropriate for old Binns to talk about Greenwald...... Professor McGonagall thought for a moment, "though when it comes to Greenwald, one must think of Dumbledore and his duel; But his most dangerous place is in the control of the overall situation. ”

"Minerva is right," Flitwick said, a little skeptically, "but ...... Greenwald ...... Is it really alive? ”

“…… Who knows? Probably......" Maca shook her head.

Greenwald had expanded his terror campaign, but it didn't extend to the British wizarding world. So here, not many people know what was going on at that time.

Now that a long time has passed, although his name is still in various historical materials, how many people are left who really know him?

Is Gellert Greenwald still alive?

Here, only Maca vaguely remembers that the first generation of the Dark Lord is indeed alive.