Chapter 2: The Anderson Family's Past
Chapter 2: The Anderson Family's Past
No one moved, everyone froze in place for at least half an hour... well, perhaps more like ten seconds in reality.
Albert bent down to pick up the pale yellow envelope, a letter without a stamp, addressed in emerald green ink. He read it quietly:
"Tibby Road, No. 19, Front Door, For Mr. Albert Anderson."
As Albert read these words, he was surprised to find that he had triggered a quest:
The Path of Wizardry You have the potential to become a wizard, but you are not yet qualified. Now, you have been given a precious opportunity to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry as a student.
Rewards: 10,000 experience points, 2 skill points, and +1 Wizard Bloodline.
Wizard bloodline? Albert was stunned.
What the heck was this?
2 skill points were certainly tempting. Becoming a student at Eton College only granted 1 point, and Albert had barely accumulated 3 skill points over the years, which he had been reluctant to use.
However, the bigger shock was that this was actually a novel world.
The magical world of the Harry Potter stories?
Albert turned the envelope over and indeed, he saw the Hogwarts coat of arms: a large 'H' surrounded by a lion, an eagle, a badger, and a snake.
"Mom, do zoos now train owls to be postmen?" Nia curiously stared at the owl lingering nearby.
"Nia, I don't think anyone uses owls to deliver mail these days. At least, normal people don't. Maybe it's just a prank," Daisy said as she glanced at her husband, Herbert, who was frowning. "What's wrong, dear? Shouldn't we be leaving soon?"
"It's nothing. Albert, let me see the letter," Herbert said softly.
"Oh, here," Albert handed the envelope to his father.
"Dear!" Daisy was a little unhappy.
Herbert, ignoring his wife's displeasure, quickly tore open the envelope and scanned the parchment inside. "Children, it looks like our plans will have to be postponed," he said.
"Dear Herbert, what's going on? What does the letter say?" Daisy sensed something unusual about her husband, and her tone became more insistent.
"Dad, what does the letter say?" Nia asked, unable to contain her curiosity. Strangely enough, Albert, the recipient of the letter, remained rather calm.
"Let's go back inside and talk in the living room, Daisy," Herbert said as he closed the car door firmly and led his family back into the house.
Even after the front door was shut, the owl that had delivered the letter remained perched nearby.
"Dear Herbert, you'd better give me a good explanation," Daisy said angrily. She had been eagerly anticipating seeing her son in his Eton school uniform.
"Dad, what does the letter say? Read it out loud so we can all hear. I want to know who could have predicted my whereabouts," Albert said, his face devoid of strong emotion. Of course, he knew exactly what this letter was about. If it weren't for his past experiences with transmigration and the system interface, he might have been shocked by the letter's contents.
However, having already experienced two such surprises, discovering that he was living in a novel world didn't seem so strange anymore, especially since he had read the Harry Potter series and even written fanfiction for it.
Back then, he had researched a lot of background information and gained a decent understanding of the world of Harry Potter.
"Then I shall read it," Herbert said, glancing at his son, who was, as always, calm and collected. He began to read the parchment:
"Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry: Albus Dumbledore (President of the International Confederation of Wizards, Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards, Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, and Master of the Order of Merlin)."
"...a school!" Daisy exclaimed, her eyes wide with shock as she guessed what this was about. An admission letter?
"Magic, is there really magic in this world?" Nia's face lit up with excitement. "I want to learn magic too! I want to go to magic school!"
"Ugh, Albert, let go of me!" Nia glared at her brother, annoyed that he was holding her back as she tried to move closer to the letter.
"Nia, let Dad finish reading the letter," Albert said, motioning for his father to continue while gently pulling his angry mother to sit down.
"Son, I will never allow you to go to that Hog... place!" Daisy protested angrily, suspecting that her husband knew something she didn't.
Herbert cleared his throat softly and continued reading:
"Dear Mr. Anderson, We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of required books and equipment.
Term begins on September 1st. We await your owl no later than July 21st.
Yours sincerely, Minerva McGonagall
(Deputy Headmistress)"
Herbert finished reading and handed the letter to his son.
Albert glanced at it and then passed it to his curious sister, who ran to their mother's side with the letter in her hand.
Daisy carefully studied the letter again and said emphatically:
"I absolutely refuse to let Albert attend such a school. No, someone must be playing a trick on us. Perhaps we should call the police and catch those nasty pranksters."
"Mom, does the part about 'awaiting your owl' mean we should write back to them?" Nia suddenly asked.
Daisy didn't respond but instead fixed her husband with an intense gaze.
Albert asked, "Dad, do you know something about this?"
"Not exactly," Herbert said, his hand on his head as if deep in thought. "When I was about your age, your grandfather, my father, was disappointed that I didn't receive a letter from Hogwarts."
"I asked my father what Hogwarts was, and he only told me it was a school."
"Later, when my father was drunk, I asked him why he wanted me to go to Hogwarts."
"He only said that he was a Squib, but I didn't know what that meant." Herbert's tone was somber as he recalled the time his father had cried.
"I think I understand now. Grandfather would be so happy to know that his grandson received a letter from Hogwarts."
Of course, Albert knew what a Squib was, but he had never really considered his own connection to the wizarding world.
Come to think of it, he didn't have any wizarding skills in his skill panel, or he would have noticed something earlier.
"Yes, I should write to him, no, call him! He'll be so happy to hear the news!" Herbert exclaimed, seemingly about to call his father.
"Herbert Anderson!" Daisy shouted. "Albert should go to Eton! He will achieve things beyond our imagination there, not at some school we've never heard of! Don't you understand? This concerns his future, and I will not allow you..."
"Mom, we haven't confirmed if magic exists yet," Albert said, gently grabbing his mother's hand to calm her down. "Doesn't the letter say they're awaiting our owl? Maybe we should write back and ask them to prove that magic exists. If they can't, then we'll know it's a hoax."
"Alright, son, I agree with your suggestion. Let that damn school prove the authenticity of this letter," Daisy said, clenching her fist and waving it in the air. "Just you wait, I'll call the police and have those scammers locked up for a few years."
(End of Chapter)
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