Seeing Daphne's reaction, Asterion grew curious and followed her gaze. His eyes almost immediately fell on the girl with black hair and red eyes. He blinked a few times, trying to understand if he was seeing correctly, but even after blinking, the girl remained there.
Frowning, Asterion tried to sense any cursed spirit within the girl, but found no trace of negative magical energy in her. The girl definitely didn't possess the Black Family Technique - [Creation and Manipulation of Cursed Spirits] - he would have sensed any cursed spirit in her.
But her features practically screamed Black from every angle; she even had certain similarities to him.
Daughter of Sirius?
This was the only possibility Asterion could think of upon seeing the girl next to his sister-in-law.
Professor McGonagall placed the Sorting Hat on the stool. The hat, in turn, began to sing a song about how amazing and handsome it was.
If there was truly anyone arrogant at Hogwarts, it was the Sorting Hat.
Looking helplessly at the supreme creation of the Hogwarts founders, Minerva took a deep breath and focused. She picked up a parchment and unfolded it, reading the first name in her mind. She opened her mouth and spoke aloud.
"Weasley, Ginevra!"
At the professor's call, a red-haired girl with a shy expression stepped out of the crowd of first-years and quickly reached the chair, sitting down.
Not even five seconds passed before the Sorting Hat announced its decision.
"Slytherin!"
The Weasley twins' mouths dropped open in shock. They looked at each other and asked simultaneously.
"Did you hear that right, Fred?"
"Did you hear that right, George?"
They continued to stare at each other in shock before turning to see their sister, still stunned in the chair, the color drained from her face.
Even Minerva looked at the Weasley girl with a surprised expression but didn't show much importance to it. Compared to Sirius Black being sorted into Gryffindor, this was less shocking.
"Miss Weasley, please proceed to your designated house table." Professor McGonagall spoke in a serious and slightly reprimanding tone, seeing the girl still stunned in the chair.
Ginny nodded and climbed down from the chair, walking to the Slytherin table with stiff steps while murmuring repeatedly, "I'm dead. Mom and Dad are going to kill me."
The Slytherins, although surprised by the arrival of the youngest Weasley, all clapped with great elegance, leaving Ginny even more shocked by the unexpectedly warm reception.
She had expected disdainful looks or insulting words, but looking around, everyone seemed not to care much about her arrival.
Asterion nodded in satisfaction. It seemed his words at the beginning of last year had had a positive effect, especially after the invasion of Hogwarts, where the Slytherin students had defended the school alongside all the other houses. This had restored the resentment against Slytherin to mere rivalries among the four houses.
"Welcome, Miss Weasley. I hope your stay in Slytherin is pleasant," Daphne greeted the red-haired girl with an elegant and kind look, putting the youngest Weasley completely at ease.
"Thank you, Miss Greengrass," Ginny replied with a very flattered tone. Even without attending Hogwarts, Ginny had heard about Daphne from her brothers—the beautiful queen of Slytherin. She completely agreed with their praises about Daphne's beauty. She truly looked like a Greek goddess.
"Hello, I'm Tracey Davis. I hope we get along well," Tracey laughed and greeted the newcomer after Daphne.
"Dorea Malfoy," Dorea said curtly and nodded amiably while remaining silent.
"Theodore Nott, the most handsome guy in Slytherin," Theodore introduced himself, raising his hand in the air.
"HAHAHA~" The entire Slytherin table laughed while Theodore showed clear dissatisfaction with everyone's laughter.
"Dare you point to anyone more handsome than me!" he said with a mock furious expression.
Everyone pointed to Asterion, Draco, and Blaise.
Theodore pretended to clutch his chest in pain and collapsed back onto the bench, powerless.
Everyone laughed at Theodore's miserable appearance, including Asterion himself.
Ginny also laughed and looked around at everyone laughing. For a moment, she didn't think it was so bad to be sorted into Slytherin. No one seemed like the people-eating demons her mother had warned her about while she was growing up.
At the Gryffindor table, seeing their sister laughing and talking with other Slytherin girls, Fred and George's faces relaxed. As long as their sister could be happy, they didn't care if she was in Gryffindor or Slytherin.
Ron, on the other hand, looked angrily at Ginny getting along with the snakes, as if he were looking at a traitor who had killed their parents. "I'm going to tell Mom and Dad."
Fred and George heard this and looked at their younger brother with dissatisfaction.
"No, you're not. If we find out you told," Fred said, and George finished the sentence, "Don't expect to sleep at night, because we'll be playing a lot of pranks on you,"
"Foolish," said Fred. "Stupid," said George.
"Brother," they finished together.
Ron's face turned as red as his hair from anger, but the young Gryffindor lion remained silent under the intense gaze of the twins. Hermione, who was listening nearby, looked at Ron with disgust and turned away, fearing that even looking at him would dirty her eyes. Ron's behavior only confirmed her opinion of him: he was a spoiled and idealistic boy.
As Hermione criticized all of Ron's flaws in her mind, Professor McGonagall continued her list calmly, calling out student after student.
"Greengrass, Astoria." Her loud voice echoed throughout the Great Hall.
A thirteen-year-old girl with very pale skin and blonde hair stepped forward with calm steps and a confident smile on her lips, unaffected by the thousands of eyes falling on her.
Seeing the girl sit in the chair, Professor McGonagall placed the Sorting Hat on her head, and it took less than five seconds for the hat to make its decision.
"Slytherin!"
Daphne's smile widened as she clapped, followed by the rest of Slytherin house.
Astoria also smiled happily and walked over to the Slytherin table, where she sat next to Ginny Weasley.
"Welcome to Slytherin, Astoria," Daphne greeted her sister with a tone almost bursting with pride. It was clear that she was extremely pleased to have her sister with her in the best house at Hogwarts.
Astoria was equally delighted to be in Slytherin; she would have felt isolated in any other house. As she greeted everyone, her eyes fell on her new friend from the Hogwarts Express. Although she didn't care about the girl's family background, she knew the chances of her being sorted into Slytherin were slim at best.
Asterion's eyes fell on the last girl who had not yet been sorted. Looking into her crimson eyes, he swore they seemed familiar somehow.
Professor McGonagall looked at the final student and was surprised. She glanced at the parchment and her expression froze upon seeing the name.
She rigidly looked at Dumbledore in the main seat for a moment before announcing the girl's name loudly.
"Riddle, Ophelia."
The smile on Dumbledore's lips vanished for a moment, but he quickly resumed his usual calm demeanor.
Asterion's gaze, on the other hand, turned icy cold.
"Slytherin."
The Sorting Hat's voice echoed in Asterion's mind. He finally understood why the girl's eyes seemed so familiar.
This girl was Voldemort's daughter!
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Next Chapter Second Volume: Chapter 114 – Ophelia (1), Chapter 115 – Ophelia (2), Chapter 116 – Doubts (1), Chapter 117 – Humbug (1), Chapter 118 - Ophelia's Mother (1), Chapter 119 - I Decided to Seduce Daphne (1), Chapter 120 - Arrival of the Twelve Schools of Witchcraft and Wizardry (1), Chapter 121 - Arrival of the Twelve Schools of Witchcraft and Wizardry (2), Chapter 122 - Arrival of the Twelve Schools of Witchcraft and Wizardry (3), Chapter 123 - Arrival of the Twelve Schools of Witchcraft and Wizardry (4), Chapter 124 - Conspiracy In Progress (1), Chapter 125 - Conspiracy In Progress (2), Chapter 126 - Ophelia, Narcissa And Andromeda (1), Chapter 127 - Ophelia, Narcissa And Andromeda (2), Chapter 128 - The Four Representatives of Hogwarts (1), Chapter 129 - The Four Representatives of Hogwarts (2), Chapter 130 - The Four Hogwarts Representatives (3), Chapter 131 - The First Trial (1), Chapter 132 - The First Trial (2).