Extra Chapter (1)
In front of the Headmaster's Office at Hogwarts, a female professor was walking this way.
As she drew closer, it became clear that she was one of the two Deputy Headmistresses who had led the first-years to the Sorting Ceremony back then.
Hermione Granger!
It seemed she had come to the Headmaster's Office for some matter involving the current, irresponsible Headmaster of Hogwarts.
The entrance, which should originally have been guarded by a stone gargoyle, had now been replaced by a marble fire dragon.
Similarly, entering the Headmaster's Office required a password, to prevent anyone from sneaking in while the Headmaster was away.
Although, given that person's formidable strength and the fact that the wizarding world had gradually stabilized, such a thing was probably unlikely to happen.
Of course, with a small number of Death Eaters still on the run, there was nothing wrong with being careful.
In any case, Hermione arrived before the door and recited the password in her pleasant voice.
Only, whether it was an illusion or not, there seemed to be a trace of helplessness on Hermione's face.
"The password is... Voldemort."
"....."
As the door leapt aside, it proved that the password was correct.
It was worth mentioning that ever since that man became Headmaster of Hogwarts five years ago, this password had never been changed.
According to that man, most wizards could not bring themselves to say it.
Death Eaters were unwilling to utter that name.
Unless one could face the Dark Lord directly, then even if one knew the password, one would still be unable to say it successfully.
More importantly, who would ever think of using the Dark Lord's name as the password for the door?
At this, Hermione rolled her eyes before stepping inside. "It's just that man's awful sense of humor..."
...
Every Headmaster's Office at Hogwarts clearly reflected the personality and style of its occupant.
Take Dumbledore, for example. The instant one walked into his office, one would smell a sickeningly sweet scent, because Dumbledore loved sweets.
Aside from that, one could also find several pairs of worn socks in various corners of the office, which suited Dumbledore's mysterious and incomprehensible way of doing things perfectly.
Compared with the offices of previous Headmasters, after Draco took over, this office became his territory, filled with his own style and character.
Here, one could see great bookshelves packed with all kinds of books, as well as the large balcony meant for Norberta to take off and land. The greatest difference, however, was probably that Draco had thrown out all the portraits.
After all, Draco was not willing to be stared at for long periods of time.
Tap, tap.
Footsteps sounded.
When Hermione entered the room, the first thing she saw was the figure seated behind the desk.
Sunlight spilled in through the window, casting a soft golden glow over that figure.
A lazy sitting posture.
Pages being turned gently.
Seeing this, Hermione suddenly felt as if time had turned back to the Express seventeen years ago.
That was their first meeting.
And the beginning of her heart stirring.
Hello, I'm Hermione.
Hello, I'm Draco...