With extraordinary comprehension, I built a floating city at Hogwarts.

Page 274

Dumbledore was aware that Levin had powerful allies within the Ministry of Magic.

Nymphadora Tonks is a young witch he highly regards. She is talented, energetic, kind-hearted, and of impeccable lineage—one of her parents is a Muggle, and the other is a pure-blood wizard who betrayed his family to be with a Muggle.

Dumbledore had his eye on her for a long time and planned to bring her into the Order of the Phoenix.

Who knew that Levin would steal him away in his first year of school, leaving him no choice but to watch as Tonks grew closer to Levin's faction, making it impossible for him to join the Order of the Phoenix now.

Jaina Proudmoore is a rare and powerful witch among the high-ranking officials of the Ministry of Magic. In some ways, even she herself cannot see through him.

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She is kind-hearted and intelligent, but overly cautious and rarely forms cliques. The Order of the Phoenix once tried to recruit her, but gave up after only a brief contact.

That's how it was originally.

Who knew that she would become so radical in the last two years? The once easygoing woman began to frantically expand her influence in the Ministry of Magic, a change he couldn't understand at all.

Before that, she had also met Levin Green and quickly became close to him.

Lady Catlana Presto, a descendant of South American nobility, came to the Underworld because of the dragon-slaying incident. A powerful witch, she is skilled at taming dragons and adept at socializing, quickly thriving in the Underworld's high society of wizards.

While it was unexpected for him that Katlana would acquire shares in Hogwarts, it was also quite reasonable.

However, she actually authorized Levin Green to hold all the shares.

This was something Dumbledore couldn't have come up with even after racking his brains.

When did their relationship become so close?

Dumbledore left earlier to confirm this.

Who knew it was actually true?

To be honest, he couldn't understand it at all, and couldn't figure out why such a Muggle-born wizard could build such a powerful network of relationships.

At the same time, his immense prestige at school and the prestigious Erudite Society he founded were admired by everyone.

In addition, he has a series of amazing achievements.

Dumbledore found that he had absolutely no way to deal with the other party.

After careful consideration, he got straight to the point: "Mr. Green, I am pleased that Ms. Presto has delegated the powers of the school board to you. I hope you will use these powers appropriately."

“Of course,” Levin replied, “I am also a Hogwarts student, and of course I hope Hogwarts gets better and better.”

“I believe you,” Dumbledore nodded with a smile, “but I must also remind you that the Board of Trustees has no right to punish professors.”

After hearing this, Levin put down his pumpkin juice: "I know that, but similarly, professors don't have the right to physically punish students."

He took another sniff of the pumpkin juice, then took a sip.

At this moment, the atmosphere inside the room became unusually tense.

The illustrations of Hibiscus and Orianna have been restored.

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Chapter 298 A Dirty Deal

It was getting late, and Levin wasn't going to waste any more time with Dumbledore.

He said bluntly, "In fact, I've discovered that the Moody you invited is not an ordinary professor, and that's exactly what I was about to tell you."

As Levin spoke, he summoned his wand and pointed it lightly at Dumbledore's desk.

An image of Moody's office automatically appeared on the desk.

It was the one Orianna played earlier.

"You're actually spying on the Hogwarts professors." From the angle of the camera, Dumbledore realized something.

But he immediately shut his mouth and did not continue to criticize.

Because he saw Moody transform back into Crouch Jr.

"Moody was a fake!"

After watching the whole thing, Dumbledore seemed quite surprised.

He hadn't expected this at all.

"He infiltrated the school like a hungry lion sneaking into a flock of sheep. Given his Death Eater identity, his target is obvious—Harry Potter." Levin's eyes were sharp as knives as he stared intently at Dumbledore.

Dumbledore had completely forgotten about the cake he had prepared, leaving it all alone to one side.

"Do you know that curse? The curse that can resurrect you using the blood of your enemy." Levin's voice carried a chilling undertone.

Dumbledore nodded.

He remembered that this was a resurrection magic called "bone, flesh, and blood".

In this magic, the father's bones, the servant's flesh, and the enemy's blood are needed to reshape the body, thereby bringing the target back to life.

This magic was recorded in "Heart of Darkness: The Origin and Evolution of Black Magic," a book that was deemed too dangerous and was taken from the restricted area to the headmaster's office.

Later, due to a deal with Levin, most of the books in the principal's office were returned to the restricted section.

It's normal that Levin would know about this magic.

Dumbledore clasped his hands together, steadily supporting his chin: "He must be trying to use the Triwizard Tournament to get Harry out of your protection, Levin. His goal is definitely to get Harry to participate."

“He could succeed with just a powerful Confusion Charm or some help,” Dumbledore muttered to himself, his voice filled with worry.

"As for Barty Crouch Jr., I don't think it's time to expose his true colors yet." Dumbledore's expression was calm and almost indifferent.

Levin looked Dumbledore straight in the eye, placed his hands on his knees, and leaned forward slightly.

"Capturing Crouch now would only alert the enemy and do us no good. On the contrary, it would expose us to more danger. At least now we know who the mastermind is, and his every move is under our surveillance. Otherwise, finding out who the imposter is among so many teachers and students would be like finding a needle in a haystack. At that time, Ha..."

The dangers facing them will be even more severe.

Dumbledore's voice was calm, yet full of determination.

"As for Moody, he's safe as long as Crouch Jr. isn't exposed and their final plan isn't implemented."

Dumbledore didn't explain why, but he and Levin both knew the reason.

The preparation of the compound decoction requires Moody's body as ingredients, and Crouch Jr. needs Moody to be alive to ensure the efficacy and stability of the compound decoction.

It's like a complex game of chess surrounding Harry's safety, with everyone searching for the best strategy.

Levin had no objection to this.

After learning about the conflict between Cerira and Moody, he felt no goodwill towards them.

Now that even Dumbledore, one of his own, has abandoned him, Levin, an outsider, naturally has no choice but to let it go.

That said, through this incident, Levin once again witnessed another side of the old man beneath his gentle exterior.

Arrogant, conceited, and willing to sacrifice everything—including himself—for his goals.

Only someone like that would raise a newborn child in a terrible environment based on a prophecy, subjecting him to various trials before personally pushing him to his death.

This is also one of the reasons for the conflict between Levin and Dumbledore.

However, at least for now, they can still reach a cooperation agreement.

“I understand why you told me this. I think I see clearly your and Ms. Proudmoore’s purpose. Once this is over, I will personally hand Barty Crouch Jr. over to you and testify for you.”

Dumbledore smiled slightly, adjusted his glasses, and stated his price.

Levin nodded slightly, indicating his acceptance: "You're right. If we don't touch the fake Moody for now, the danger Harry faces is under our control. In fact, as far as I'm concerned, once we catch the fake Moody, Crouch's downfall is only a matter of time. We're not in a hurry."

His voice was full of confidence, as if he had already foreseen Crouch's defeat.

And so, the two reached a dirty deal during their conversation.

Dumbledore knew that in the current political struggle within the Ministry of Magic, it was the Fudge faction, in alliance with the Jaina faction, that was trying to strangle Crouch's power.

It's common knowledge that Crouch Jr. was a Death Eater. His mother sacrificed herself by using Polyjuice Potion to save his life.

The price was that old Crouch had to keep him under house arrest and prevent him from seeing anyone.

Now that Crouch Jr. is alive and has infiltrated Hogwarts posing as former Auror Alastor Moody, this will be a huge stain on Crouch Sr.'s reputation if it comes to light.

Crouch would almost certainly fall from grace because of this.

Now, Dumbledore wants Levin to cooperate with him and not expose Crouch Jr. for the time being.

But this would force Levin's backers to leave an extra year for Crouch.

In response, Dumbledore promised to personally vouch for the success of the operation, guaranteeing that they would be able to effectively cripple Crouch's power.

"Speaking of which, there's something else I need to tell you."

After reaching an agreement, Dumbledore smiled happily again.

"It's about the Triwizard Tournament. In fact, the rule that minors are not allowed to participate was proposed by Mrs. Maxime of Beauxbatons and Karkaroff of Durmstrang, precisely to restrict your participation."

At this point, Dumbledore looked at Levin with eyes full of admiration.

"They reached a consensus that you are too strong and that letting you participate would disrupt the balance."

“Then I won’t participate,” Levin said nonchalantly. “But you should at least give me some compensation. Even Muggles know to give non-compete agreements to departing employees…”

Dumbledore didn't know what a non-compete agreement was, but he understood what Levin meant.

"So, what do you want, Mr. Green? I think Mrs. Maxim and Mr. Karkaroff would be willing to consider your opinion."

Levin nodded and stated his conditions: "Since you won't let me be a participant, then at least let me be an organizer. I think I should be deeply involved in the work of the Triwizard Tournament."

At this point, he smiled slightly and said, "Believe me, I will bring some new flair to the Triwizard Tournament."

“If that’s what you’re asking for, I’ll persuade them,” Dumbledore readily agreed.

He also felt that Levin's request was reasonable.

After all, it would be incredibly tasteless to ask someone to give up such a great honor for no reason—those in the know will understand that Levin was refused entry because he was too strong.

Those who don't know him might think his skills are all hype, and that he wouldn't even be selected as a warrior.

Levin needs to be given some reason to prove his status and position.

The fact that one of the organizers is one of the better ones is quite impressive.

Moreover, Dumbledore also had his own selfish motives:

“However, Levin, I would like to ask you to look after Harry during the Triwizard Tournament and ensure that nothing happens to him.” Dumbledore’s tone was calm as he looked at Levin.