"Ah?"
Hagrid and Harry opened their mouths wide in surprise.
"What are you 'ah'-ing for? I'm strong and can hold onto Hagrid tightly. Sitting up high is also safer. Hagrid is even stronger than me, so it won't be difficult for him to carry me. This is the best solution!"
Dudley always had well-reasoned justifications.
"Oh! Dudley! You're really a great guy!"
Hagrid thought Dudley was looking out for Harry and admired him greatly, not holding back his praise.
Harry thought his cousin must have a good reason for doing this and decided to just go along with it.
So, Harry nimbly leaped into the cart, while Hagrid struggled to clamber in.
Sure enough, the space in the cart was now filled up completely.
Dudley's eyes sparkled. Taking a running start, he jumped, grabbed Hagrid's elbow for leverage, and landed perfectly on Hagrid's shoulder.
This position enabled Dudley to rummage through the upper pockets of Hagrid's coat and shirt secretly without anyone noticing.
If things went smoothly and no outsiders caused trouble, Dudley's 'substitution' plan would be easily achieved on the way back after retrieving the items from the underground vaults of Gringotts.
"Hold on tight! We're about to set off!"
Griphook, the goblin, gave them a reminder. Then, this cart without any power system started speeding along the winding tracks.
"Ah—"
Harry and Dudley let out excited yells. They really enjoyed the feeling of speeding through the dim environment.
Hagrid didn't feel the same. The cart tossed him from side to side and he felt like vomiting. But Dudley clung tightly to his big head, making him even dizzier.
During the high-speed journey to the underground vaults of Gringotts
Sitting up high and shouting excitedly, Dudley was actually extremely calm on the inside.
"System, fuse three packs of Harry's magic power blood!" He issued a clear mental command.
[Command received! Consume 1 opportunity to fuse d-level magic items.]
The three refrigerated blood packs that Dudley had tightly fastened inside his coat, wrapped in tin foil and cotton, instantly deflated. All the blood stored inside vanished without a trace, turning into an invisible and colorless light that merged into Dudley's body.
[Congratulations, host!]
[You have obtained the bloodline of a weak wizard!]
[From this moment on, you're no longer a Muggle. You've become a wizard with no potential for improvement and can learn at most five ordinary spells!]
[You have obtained a weakened version of maternal love protection!]
[Now, Lily Potter's maternal love and sacrifice can offer a bit of protection to the son of her sister!]
[Before the host reaches adulthood, you can resist and rebound a one-hit-kill attack once in a short period (both the resistance and the rebound damage are 80% of the power of the one-hit-kill attack). You can also counterattack those who have murderous intent towards the host by touching them (the counterattack damage is half of the murderous intent).]
During the lightning-speed journey, Dudley felt himself being enveloped by a gentle warm current, which was very comfortable.
At the same time, Dudley, who had successfully obtained the wizard bloodline, experienced his first magic power eruption in his life!
An extremely weak air current emerged and gave the speeding cart a 'push' from behind.
And then... that was about it.
It's not even as powerful as a strong puff Hagrid blows!
Is this supposed to be a magic power eruption? It's more like a wriggle of magic power!
Dudley had anticipated this kind of situation, but he still couldn't help feeling a little disappointed.
Fortunately, he never pinned his hopes of getting stronger on Harry's blood from the very beginning.
On the speeding rail transporter, Dudley quietly changed from a Muggle into a wizard without Hagrid, Harry, or the goblin Griphook noticing at all.
Harry was still marveling at the huge stalactites above the underground space and the tiny glimmers of flame, seemingly spat out by caged fire dragons, in the distance of the darkness.
Griphook was using goblin magic to control the movement of the vehicle, and Hagrid was still feeling nauseated and dizzy from the shaking and jolting.
Everything was so harmonious.
In the mysterious ancient castle in the distance, at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry where the term hadn't started yet, two ancient magic items with a history of thousands of years were in conflict.
"Professor Dumbledore! Professor Dumbledore! The Entrance Book and the Quill of Acceptance are fighting!"
Ms. Minerva McGonagall, the nominal vice principal and the de facto principal who handled all the affairs at Hogwarts, rushed quickly towards the headmaster's office.
After saying the name of a strange kind of sweet as the password, Ms. McGonagall passed through the blockade of the statue at the entrance of the headmaster's office and saw the greatest wizard of the 20th century.
An old man with white hair, a long white beard, and a crooked nose.
"Don't be excited, Minerva! Would you like a Fizzing Whizbee?" The wise old man always cloaked himself in childlike innocence.
"Thanks, Dumbledore! Instead of having candy, I think you should come with me to see the situation of the Entrance Book and the Quill of Acceptance. They're fighting over a name!"
The industrious Professor McGonagall was obviously more practical.
A moment later, Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall arrived at the place where the Entrance Book and the Quill of Acceptance were stored.
By this time, the dispute between the two ancient magic items had subsided.
After some sensing and investigation, the Entrance Book acceded to the writing request of the Quill of Acceptance.
Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall watched helplessly as the Quill of Acceptance added a name at the end of the list of wizards who were to enroll at Hogwarts this school year in the Entrance Book:
Dudley Dursley.
"Dursley?! The the Dursleys' house where Harry is fostered?!"
Professor McGonagall looked utterly incredulous. "How could this be? If the child born to that mean Muggle couple had any potential, this name ought to have appeared in the Entrance Book eleven years ago!"
Dumbledore's expression also turned a bit solemn. Over the years, through the investigations of Mrs. Figg, a Squib and a member of the Order of the Phoenix, Mr. Diggory, and some other informal wizards, he had always had a general understanding of the situation of the the Dursleys' house.
He knew that Dudley Dursley was an outstanding Muggle whose thoughts, attitudes, and behavior styles went beyond the ordinary.
For this reason, he had even observed Dudley and Harry's daily routines of going to school and playing up close while being invisible.
Dumbledore could be absolutely certain that Dudley Dursley was not a person with wizarding talent. He was just a curious Muggle interested in wizards and the occult.
In this respect, he was a bit similar to his mother.
But now...
"The Entrance Book and the Quill of Acceptance aren't broken!
Dumbledore sensed something and said, "Moreover, they've never made a mistake!"
"So... this Dursley has really changed from a Muggle to a wizard?!"
Professor McGonagall still couldn't believe it. This was something that challenged her understanding. The idea that Muggles can't become wizards is an established truth deeply ingrained in the minds of modern wizards.
"Hagrid sent me a letter. He arrived at the Dursleys' house last night and saw Harry and Dudley. In Harry's previous reply letter, Harry wanted his cousin Dudley to go with him to purchase school supplies."
"At this time, Hagrid should have already taken them to Diagon Alley. They might even have entered Gringotts."
Dumbledore analyzed step by step.
Professor McGonagall had a sudden flash of inspiration and suddenly had a guess: "Gringotts? Dumbledore, did you ask Hagrid to retrieve that thing? Could Dudley becoming a wizard be because..."
"Minerva, don't mention this to anyone else about this matter. Just assume that Dudley Dursley's name was inscribed in the Entrance Book eleven years ago! Now, I need to go to Diagon Alley!"
Dumbledore pondered for a while and made a decision.
A fiery red bird was summoned and flew from the headmaster's office, circling above Dumbledore's head.
The old man with a crooked nose and wearing half-moon glasses stretched out his two old arms and nimbly grabbed the phoenix's talons.
In the next instant, a fiery red spiral light flashed.
Both the old man and the bird disappeared.