Harry Potter: The Bard of Hogwarts

Slytherin common room.

The vast space was filled with young wizards eager to see the spectacle. They all stared wide-eyed at a mirror with a diameter of three feet.

Three feet, nearly a meter in diameter, seemed large but was still too small for the number of onlookers.

The first row of young wizards had to squat or sit directly on the floor.

After setting up the mirror, Ino had long vacated the first row, sitting quietly alone in the back corner.

The scene before him resembled an outdoor cinema from a century ago, making him sigh at the closed-off nature of the wizarding world and its lack of entertainment.

In fact, it was just Slytherin. If it were any of the other three houses, it probably wouldn't have caused such a sensation.

After all, the essence of the mirror was just a magical television, and any young wizard from a Muggle family wouldn't be overly fascinated by it.

But for the pure-bloods and half-bloods gathered in Slytherin, this novel thing piqued their interest.

As soothing music played, everyone sat quietly around it. Although the scenes in the mirror were familiar, they still watched with great interest.

Whenever a fleeting figure appeared on the screen, it would trigger small exclamations, and those who were captured in the frame couldn't help but lift their heads proudly.

...

Even amidst the joyful and lively scene, Ino, sitting in the back corner, felt a touch of loneliness.

It was a peculiar feeling, like when he was in the orphanage and saw well-dressed gentlemen come to visit and bring gifts during Christmas.

Though living in the same era, the children in the orphanage seemed very pitiable. A beautiful candy, a new toy, or even a battery-powered Christmas hat could amaze them.

Comparatively, weren't the young Slytherins just like this?

As he was immersed in his memories, a polite voice came from beside him:

"Mr. Swinburne! May we have a word?"

As a repeating student, the 18-year-old Flint immediately saw the business opportunity.

So, he ignored the crowd and approached Ino as quickly as possible.

Flint's voice was very low. It was hard to believe how a six-foot-three giant managed to slip over unnoticed.

Seeing the shrewd Flint, Ino couldn't help but think of old Flint from last summer.

But even with personal feelings involved, he had his own plans for this matter and shook his head gently:

"You can participate, but it can't be just you. This revolutionary thing will face significant resistance in promotion. One family's strength alone is too weak."

Flint was a bit disappointed when he heard he could only participate and cautiously suggested:

"Then we can go slower, spreading it gradually. As long as the pace is steady, the entire British Isles are our market."

"British Isles?" Ino chuckled softly.

Flint was the first to react, showing some excellent foresight, but it was still limited.

"Mr. Flint! We can't just look at little England." Ino turned his head, seeing nothing but youthful faces.

"A revolutionary thing has a revolutionary effect because it sweeps through the entire era. And this can't be accomplished by Flint alone. We need all of Slytherin."

Hearing the idea of sweeping through the entire era, Flint thought Ino was crazy.

Because that implied global promotion, which was unimaginably difficult, and once more people were involved...

"There won't be significant profits," Flint voiced his concern.

"I'm not looking for profits from it. The real profit comes from the chain benefits after the equipment becomes widespread."

Ino didn't explain further because it was a bit early for that.

When the mirror could function nearly like a television, that would be the real rise.

For now, it was merely an entertainment item confined to Slytherin.

...

In two days, the recorded content was only about an hour long.

As the final scene in the mirror showed the majestic castle under the setting sun, the screening concluded.

At the eager request of many lower-year wizards, Ino had the mirror replay the content.

This time, he became the focus of the senior wizards.

Slytherin rarely had fools. Flint reacted quickly, but that didn't mean others didn't.

"Ino! You are a friend of the Malfoy family," Draco was the first to speak, his eyes shifting to others.

Though only a third-year, Draco didn't flinch while facing many senior wizards.

It was a silent statement.

Likewise, Pansy, Daphne, and the group who had studied the history of magic together also stood united.

It was an interesting scene. Without saying anything, many had already started choosing sides.

This even influenced the young wizards watching the movie in the front row, with people gradually joining different factions.

Seeing the polarized scene, as the standard leader of the house, Flint was the first to step forward.

"What's wrong with you all? Are you going to start a fight without saying a word? Tomorrow we'll be a laughingstock for the other houses."

Flint looked at the two groups in bewilderment. Why the sudden confrontation?

But it wasn't just Flint who was confused; everyone present was too.

Especially the senior wizards who were there with friendly cooperation in mind. But as soon as Malfoy stood out and the third-year wizards cheered, they instinctively began to cluster together.

Now that the confrontation had formed, they couldn't easily back down.

Seeing the tense atmosphere in the common room.

From the sofa, Ino spoke slowly:

"We come from the mire, we crave power, we are ambitious, we are strong and calm, we are elegant and reserved, we never regret, we are Slytherin."

"But today, I saw Gryffindor's bravery! That's a good thing! It shows we've made progress."

A small joke eased the tension.

After all, the previous confrontation was just a wonderful misunderstanding.

After a brief pause, Ino smiled:

"I know what you're all thinking, but I want to say, it still needs improvement. However, every one of you is eligible to join, even after graduation."

"Because we are..."

At this point, Ino deliberately paused.

"We are Slytherin!" In the common room, with the shrewd Flint responding first, everyone subconsciously joined in.

One shout of Slytherin dissipated the previous conflict and confrontation.

But it also made many remember the figure who had been sitting on the sofa the whole time.