Ivan, the party concerned, was calm. He had been aware of the Order of Merlin award ceremony for a few days, and had received a letter from the head of the Order of Merlin when school started.
In fact, he was surprised at how long the ceremony had dragged on, as it was written around Hallowe'en.
As a result, it is now April of the following year, leaving only two months until the end of term.
On the platform, Dumbledore announced this shocking news and waved his wand, causing the tables to be filled with delicacies.
"That is all I have to say. You may now begin dinner…" Dumbledore said to the young wizards of the four houses, then returned to the teachers' table.
However, the power of food did not diminish the enthusiasm of the crowd, and there was a lot of chatter.
After dinner, Ivan returned to the Gryffindor Lounge with Harry and Ron.
Along the way, Ivan relived his celebrity troubles, becoming the focus of almost everyone's attention, hearing stories about himself everywhere he went.
As they approached the lounge, a strange young witch ran into them, and Ivan had a vague feeling that she had stuffed something into his arms.
Ivan, confused, suddenly remembered that the little witch was the Slytherin girl he had saved.
After being possessed by Tom Riddle, she remained unconscious in the storeroom of the Room of Requirement.
When Ivan left the Headmaster's office a few days ago, he rescued the girl and took her to the school hospital.
"What's this? A love letter?" Yvonne asked, looking at the envelope in her hand.
Ivan shook his head. He was not prepared to accept it. He could simply write a reply and refuse politely.
"You're going to be famous!" Ron said, watching with envy as Ivan put the envelope away. When was he going to be treated like this?
"There's nothing good about being famous. There's a lot of trouble…" Ivan complained.
Harry gave a nod of agreement, which he was deeply touched by.
Ron looked at his two friends with a strange expression. He opened his mouth but did not know what to say. He also wanted to experience this kind of trouble…
…
The next day, Ivan woke up early, and when he arrived at the Great Hall, he saw that it had been transformed, and was lavishly decorated.
The flags of the four houses flew high in the sky, and a scarlet carpet was placed in the middle of the Great Hall, stretching all the way to the steps outside the door. Every now and then, golden-red spots of light would fall from the sky onto the carpet and then disappear…
A dozen ghosts were moving around the hall, looking excited.
"Salute, sir!" Nearly Headless Nick exclaimed when he saw Ivan enter the room.
"Hello, Jazz!" Yvonne nodded, not sure why Nick respected her so much, and was about to ask when she heard an irritating voice.
"Ha! Look who's here!" Peeves cackled as he flew over the castle.
"Hales, I see. Care to fill me in? How does it feel to have killed two professors in a row? Who are you going after next?"
"I'm ready to fight you next!" Ivan said, pulling his wand from his sleeve.
Peeves's expression changed as he recalled the fear curse that Ivan had cast during his school years. He was so frightened that he did not dare to come out for a few days.
However, at that moment, a white light flew out and hit it accurately. Peeves was horrified to find that he could not speak.
Yvonne looked over curiously and saw that it was Professor McGonagall.
"Get out of here, Peeves!" Professor McGonagall snapped at him, her face grim. "If you try anything funny at the awards ceremony later, I'll put you in a suitcase!"
Frightened, Peeves nodded violently and fled the Great Hall.
Professor McGonagall then turned to Ivan and said, "All right, Hals, go eat, you've got a prize to collect later."
Ivan nodded and moved towards the Gryffindor table.
Ivan also noticed that Professor McGonagall had changed into an expensive red robe, which made her look younger than usual, as did several professors seated at the teachers' table.
Ivan immediately understood that the ceremony today would not be as simple as he had thought.
Not long after breakfast, Dumbledore entered the room, chatting with a group of strange wizards.
They were followed by a number of people, some of whom Ivan recognized as Daily Prophet reporters.
"That's a lot of trouble. Can't they just send the medals?" Ivan asked, sighing as a headache hit him.
"How can you do that? It's a big deal to give out the Order of Merlin! Not to mention, Ivan, you're the youngest recipient of the Order of Merlin in almost a thousand years. You can't take it too seriously…"
Hermione chattered away to Ivan about the information she had found in the book and was so excited that he thought she was going to receive the Order of Merlin.
Ivan wasn't listening, but he saw Dumbledore waving at him and getting up to go to him.
Dumbledore took the initiative to introduce them, and Ivan learned that they were all members of the Order of Merlin and had come to witness his investiture.
Ivan greeted each of them politely.
Several members of the Order of Merlin responded politely. Everyone knew that this young wizard in front of them had a promising future, and no one would find trouble with him at this time.
After a while more people arrived and the Great Hall became very busy.
Ivan, on the other hand, was struggling to cope, as almost everyone came up to him for a word or two, forcing him to keep a smile on his face as he tried to engage the supposedly famous wizards in conversation.
He had never been very good at socialising, so he only gave perfunctory compliments…
At the Gryffindor table, Percy Weasley looked on jealously as Ivan talked and laughed with the leaders of the Gryffindor Brotherhood. He had been trying to find a chance to speak to Ivan, but he was ignored.
The ceremony that followed was simpler and less tedious than Ivan had expected.
It's just that he had to recite a long, smelly oath in front of everyone, and give a brief account of his contribution to the wizarding community…
Dumbledore, as the nominee, personally placed the Order of the Second-level Merlin on his chest, and there was a huge round of applause…