When he saw the gloves, Tom sighed heavily. The familiar movements, the familiar style... it was Dumbledore! Tom hadn't really thought that every time Dumbledore appeared, he could perform so many tricks.
"Tom, what is this?" Hermione looked at the glove curiously.
"It's just a prank by Peeves."
"Peeves?"
"Yes, Peeves in human form with a long beard." Tom thought that Dumbledore and Peeves were similar in the "skin" department. But Dumbledore was firm in his skin, like dancing in front of an atomic bomb crystal, while Peeves was real skin, a total evil chaos.
After recognizing the owner of the glove, Tom didn't turn away, but followed him to the empty classroom with Hermione in tow.
Upon entering the classroom, Tom saw Professor Dumbledore sitting in a window seat in the back row, staring intently. A breeze entered through the open window, tousling his hair slightly. When the classroom door slammed open, it created a convection current with the window and swept a piece of parchment off Dumbledore's desk.
"Back row by the window, the best seat." Tom couldn't help but blurt out upon seeing this scene. But Dumbledore extended his wand and used a levitation spell to retrieve the parchment and change its style from schoolyard Japanese to fantasy.
"You're here?"
Tom: ...
"I didn't think you would come."
Tom: ...?
"Just now, a new organization was born in the magical world, the International Wizarding Union (IWU)..." (Nickname: Guild)
Dumbledore gave Tom an overview of his summer accomplishments: the International Wizarding Union, an organization dealing with magical events, the international equivalent of the Ministry of Magic's Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes, but for more dangerous events.
Its operation is simple, as wizards from all countries can join the Guild after passing their own Ministry's tests, and then they receive a commission to assist their local Ministry in solving difficult problems.
"Lately, there have been so many magical accidents that it's only a matter of time before the magical world is exposed." Dumbledore said, with some reluctance.
Tom frowned, not understanding why this had happened so suddenly.
"According to the confession of the Trackers, it seems that six years ago, the organization received some mysterious power, and suddenly it started to revive. Since the year before last, the power of the Trackers has been expanding by leaps and bounds. Now, the power of the Trackers has surpassed any other Ministry of Magic in the world. We must unite, first cutting off their tentacles around the world."
Dumbledore said, taking out two badges from his robe and placing them on the table. The badges were shaped like a six-pointed star, with the letter D in the center.
"I have permission for both of you to bypass the Ministry of Magic and become Class D members of the Guild; you can refuse."
Tom looked at the two badges on the table and didn't make a decision on his own. He looked at Hermione and realized that she seemed eager to give it a try.
"Don't you seem to be against it?" Tom felt relieved that Hermione didn't resist the idea. He didn't want Hermione to twist her will to join the guild because of him.
"I would like to be able to do something for the magical world, and if something goes wrong in it, we won't be able to escape, right?"
"How can a bird's egg survive when the nest is overturned?" Tom laughed, grabbed the badge, and placed it on Hermione's chest. Tom had a strong desire to join the guild because, as Dumbledore had just said, the rise of the Trackers was interesting.
Six years ago and the previous year, one when he had awakened to the system, and the other when he had enrolled. Tom's instinct told him that he had something to do with the rise of the Trackers. He had to investigate this mysterious organization. And what easier way to do it than to join the International Wizarding Union?
Dumbledore smiled as he watched the two of them put on the badges.
He took out two crystal balls from his pocket and handed them to Tom and Hermione. "Nicolas made these for the Guild. Place them under your pillows before going to bed, and you'll be able to travel to the International Guild of Wizards. Remember to bind them with a drop of blood before using them, the same goes for the badges."
Tom played with the crystal ball and felt a slight shock: this was real alchemy!
[Dream Crystal Sphere, Subsphere (3 stars): When you enter a dream, the whole world opens up before you.]
[Description: The owner of this crystal ball will share the same dream world and can use the stunning spell or a baseball bat to quickly fall asleep, with a series of functions to be developed.]
[Note: This is a magical creation that connects the owner's dreams and is a product of advanced alchemy. Only a master alchemist who masters the mysteries of alchemy can create it.]
The mother sphere would be a five-star first-class alchemy product, and only Nicolas Flamel, who knew how to make Philosopher's Stones, could have made it.
"I'll leave the two of you to continue with your lessons. If I recall correctly, I think you have to attend Professor McGonagall's Transfiguration class." Dumbledore saw that Tom and Hermione had taken the badge and the crystal ball and didn't feel like continuing the conversation. He stood up from his chair and left the classroom.
With his departure, the series of tests that Tom had received earlier were activated again.
[Dumbledore's Trial (2): Use the dream crystal ball to travel to the International Wizarding Union.]
After the first class in the morning, Tom was supposed to join the Gryffindor students in Professor McGonagall's Transfiguration class. But the students, just coming out of their Divination classes, all the Gryffindor students had signed up for Divination, were not focused on the class, not even with Professor McGonagall standing at the podium.
Harry was like a spotlight, and the students glanced at him.
The lesson was about Animagi, Professor McGonagall's specialty. She was writing on the blackboard about the preparations for Animagus transformation. At that moment, Tom raised his hand.
"What's the matter? Mr. Yodel?" Professor McGonagall pointed at him, gesturing for him to stand up and speak.
Tom stood up. "Professor, people can transform into animals, so can some animals with human intelligence learn to be Animagi? For example, I have a very intelligent cat, can it transform into a human by learning Animagus?"
"An interesting question," Professor McGonagall said with a small smile. "It is true that there are many creatures in the magical world that are as intelligent as humans: Centaurs, goblins, house-elves, merpeople... and so on, but Animagus Transformation is an exclusive skill of wizards."