152: Chapter 150 The Whole City Searches for the Owl

When Toby's jungle camouflage Jeep convoy reached the military base entrance, chaos was visible inside.

It was so chaotic that even the Soldiers guarding the gate were nowhere to be found.

The convoy faced no obstacles, skipping even the normal registration procedures, and drove smoothly into the military base's parking lot.

At this moment, the entire base was permeated with an atmosphere of panic.

Large numbers of Soldiers, clutching rifles, ran across the open ground toward the distant cloud of dust that blotted out the sky; panicked shouts filled the camp, seeming to come from everywhere.

The surrounding attack helicopters, fighter jets, tanks, and armored vehicles provided them with no sense of security whatsoever.

Toby looked around and soon spotted the Director under a tree to the left of the two-story office building opposite him.

Leading his men over with large strides, Toby heard him squatting in the shade, muttering with vacant eyes.

"Is he threatening me?

No, it's not a threat. He could crush me like an ant. This is a well-intentioned warning...

I'm going to die..."

"Mr. Director.

Mr. Director?

Mr. Director!"

As Toby's tone gradually rose, the Director's vacant gaze finally focused, and he slightly raised his head: "Who are you?"

Scared out of his mind?

Toby sized him up with doubt, seeing that he wasn't acting, and got straight to the point: "We are taking Ms. Rowling away, immediately!"

"Rowling?" After repeating the name a few times, the Director seemed to regain his senses, his tone returning to normal. "In the third room on the left of the second floor."

Watching Toby's back as he immediately turned toward the building, he stood up abruptly and emphasized: "I didn't do anything out of line or offensive!"

Toby paused for a few seconds before continuing forward, saying: "That is something you'll need to explain to Mr. Dumbledore yourself."

Quickly heading to the second floor, Toby arrived at the door of the room the Director mentioned. He twisted the handle and found it locked.

"Let me."

Lenk waved Toby aside: "Ms. Rowling inside, please stay safe. I'm going to kick the door down!"

"Alright, sir."

A response came from inside the room. Lenk no longer hesitated and kicked the door open.

An excited Melody and Ms. Rowling, who wore an elegant smile, stood side by side by the window.

Seeing the group file in, Ms. Rowling waved: "Thank you for making a special trip to pick me up, gentlemen."

Toby, entering the room, was stunned: "You knew we were coming?"

"Grandpa told me."

Hearing this, Toby and Lenk breathed a heavy sigh of relief.

Since Dumbledore had tacitly permitted their action of picking her up, it meant the actions of MI6 had not completely enraged the Headmaster of Hogwarts.

Toby was about to ask if Dumbledore had said anything else when he was interrupted by the satellite phone suddenly ringing in his pocket.

He pulled out the phone and answered.

"Director General.

No, it wasn't an earthquake, it was magic.

Yes, that giant boulder wasn't moved from somewhere else; it appeared out of thin air right above us, like a skipped frame in a video, only taking the blink of an eye.

Alright, I understand!"

Moving the phone slightly away from his ear, Toby smiled at Ms. Rowling and said: "Ms. Rowling, to prevent restless citizens from interfering with your normal life.

We can provide you with a residence in a quiet environment. Of course, there will be absolutely no private surveillance.

If you're unwilling, we can also set up a cordon within a certain range of your villa. No problem at all.

It all depends on your own wishes."

Ms. Rowling didn't think he was being alarmist.

With that giant boulder having just crashed to the ground, passing cars nearby surely caught it on video; it would be impossible to keep it from the citizens of the Kingdom.

The existence of Hogwarts naturally couldn't be hidden either. As the only person with a definite connection to the wizard, she would inevitably be frantically pursued by those hoping to become wizards themselves.

So she nodded: "Let's go to the place you provide. Can my best friend come along?"

"Of course."

Seeing her decision made, Toby brought the satellite phone back to his ear: "You heard that. That's how it is. We're returning to London immediately."

...

"The secret villa is ready. The address is..."

After reporting the address, the Director General sitting on the right side of the U-shaped conference table put down the phone and looked at the Queen at the head of the table: "Your Majesty..."

"Shh..." The white-haired Queen held her index finger to her lips, signaling the Director General not to speak.

Her gaze never shifted, staring straight at the laptop in front of her.

After more than ten minutes, she moved her gaze to the Director General and pointed at the screen: "So, this terrifying giant rock is magic?"

"Um... from the evidence currently available, there is no other possibility."

The Queen gripped the mouse and dragged the progress bar. The rapidly rewinding footage stopped on an old man sitting in the driver's seat of an old car, looking up at the sky.

"He's not looking at the sky; he's staring at me." The Queen locked eyes with the old man on the screen.

"Hogwarts? Magic? Dumbledore?

Just how long has he lived?"

The Queen's tone was like she was talking to herself, but the observant Director General hurried to answer: "His exact age cannot be determined,

however, based on the initial leaked videos and the descriptions in the original novels, he is at least 200 years old."

"Has he always looked like this?"

"Uh, I'm not sure."

"A wizard... how truly enviable..." the Queen murmured, her lips moving.

"Knock, knock—" The conference room door was knocked.

"Come in."

An old man in a tailcoat pushed open the door: "Your Majesty, several princes are in the drawing room awaiting your audience.

Additionally, the American Ambassador to Britain..."

"Heh." The Queen chuckled. "Don't they look like a pack of vultures smelling rotting carrion?"

The Director General knew she was asking him: "Just as Your Majesty described."

"I will stall them. You must gather all the Interview Letters, or the lucky ones who obtained them, in the shortest time possible."

Concerned that the Director General might do something out of line, she warned solemnly: "It is forbidden to force those lucky ones to join the Superpower Bureau or use various means to strip them of their freshman status.

I don't want to wake up tomorrow morning with a giant boulder capable of destroying the Kingdom hovering over my head, understand?"

"I'll get right on it!" The Director General stood up, saluted, and strode away.

...

Watching Ms. Rowling get into the Jeep and the convoy leave the military base, disappearing over the horizon along the asphalt road.

Zhang Mu, floating in the air, stretched.

"That's mostly settled. Also..."

Looking at the dissipating dust, the boulder was gone, leaving only a massive crater on the ground like a meteorite strike, proving the giant rock wasn't an illusion but had actually existed.

"I reckon they probably won't dare to act recklessly now.

Well... London citizens are probably all out catching Owls. The authorities will definitely get involved. It won't be long before the freshmen are all recruited."

Zhang Mu stroked his chin, thinking he should head back to London to keep an eye on things.

The selection of freshmen wasn't just about luck.

First was their identity; it had to include all social classes and professions to ensure a sense of equality for all.

This was to reflect the transcendence of Hogwarts.

Then, there had to be people from the authorities.

Because Zhang Mu needed a channel to reveal information to the officials, and Toby was an excellent choice.

As for the others... thinking about it, Zhang Mu felt a bit of a headache.

There couldn't be too many people, as they'd be hard to control, but too few wouldn't cover all aspects.

"I'll head back to London and see. The city is probably full of citizens with nets by now."

Shaking his head, Zhang Mu flew toward London while the effect of the Levitation Potion still lasted.