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Exam week had arrived.
With the number of students at Hogwarts having increased dramatically, the usual testing arrangements were no longer enough to accommodate everyone.
As a result, the Great Hall had been converted into an examination center.
Once breakfast ended, the long dining tables vanished. And under the professors' control, hundreds of desks floated through the air before descending neatly into rows, transforming the hall into a massive testing venue.
The first group to use it was Tom's year. Today, the fourth-years were sitting their written Transfiguration exam.
"Let me be perfectly clear."
Professor McGonagall swept a stern gaze across the hall, lingering a little longer on the Hogwarts students.
"I do not want to catch anyone cheating. This is a joint examination involving seven schools. If anyone is caught cheating, the news won't stay in Britain."
Her voice sharpened. "The entire wizarding world will hear about it. Europe, the Americas, Africa. Everyone. If that sounds like something to be proud of, then by all means, go ahead. At least, Hogwarts has no place for students like that."
McGonagall rarely resorted to threats involving expulsion. But she absolutely refused to let Hogwarts embarrass itself before the entire world.
Fortunately, her warning had an effect. Several students immediately turned pale and discreetly got rid of whatever cheating methods they had prepared.
Soon, the bell rang.
Only then did McGonagall's expression soften slightly as she allowed the students to begin.
Tom finished the entire exam in fifteen minutes.
Honestly, there was little point in grading his paper anymore. The result could only be a perfect score.
If his answers differed from the official answer key, then the answer key would be the one considered wrong. As far as modern Transfiguration was concerned, Tom's understanding had already become the standard.
Still, to maintain appearances, he participated in the exam like everyone else.
After finishing, he simply rested his head on the desk and stared into space.
Lately, he'd been feeling strangely unsettled.
In the language of novels, it would be called a sudden stirring of the heart. A sixth sense. A premonition. The unmistakable feeling that something significant was about to happen.
In the original timeline, this year had always been a major turning point.
Before this point, the story of Hogwarts could still be called a fairy tale.
Afterward, it gradually descended into darkness.
The dividing line had been Cedric's death and Voldemort's resurrection.
Now, however, Voldemort was already back. And Tom could guarantee that even if someone lent Voldemort three extra lives, he still wouldn't dare set foot inside Hogwarts.
Hell, he probably wouldn't even dare enter Britain.
So why was this feeling growing stronger?
Unable to find an answer, Tom closed his eyes.
To anyone watching, it looked as though he had fallen asleep. But in reality, he was using the power of time to continuously calculate possible futures.
Fragments of countless futures flashed through his mind. One after another.
Thanks to his extraordinary memory and mental strength, he managed to capture many of them.
He saw himself battling Herpo. Endless spells flooded the battlefield, overwhelming the ancient dark wizard.
He saw himself capturing Voldemort. But rather than destroying him, Tom used a curse to erase Voldemort's self-awareness permanently, solving the threat at its root by annihilating his sense of self.
In all of those visions, Tom was only a year or two older than he was now.
They represented futures that were highly likely to occur. But whenever he tried to look farther ahead, or examine events in greater detail, a chaotic force blocked his sight.
Compared to that force, Voldemort and Herpo barely qualified as problems.
So who was the real threat?
Tom immediately thought of one possibility.
The Feathered Serpent God. Quetzalcoatl.
He had tried tracing the deity before. But even weakened, it was still called a god for a reason.
Its level of existence was simply too high. Failing to perceive it was understandable.
There was also another issue.
His god-slaying trial remained incomplete.
And besides the Quetzalcoatl, there was still Kamio's prophecy.
So far, he had yet to find a being possessing true divinity that met the trial's requirements.
Even the resurrected Andros and Jeanne, despite wielding divine power, hadn't triggered any response from the trial.
Then Tom's eyes snapped open.
He had noticed something. Something very wrong.
Among all those countless future fragments, there was one person who had never appeared.
Not even once.
Tom immediately sank his consciousness into the study space and summoned Grindelwald.
"What happened?" Grindelwald asked, his expression serious.
Anything urgent enough for Tom to call him over immediately couldn't be trivial.
Tom got straight to the point. "Have you been in contact with Quahog lately?"
Grindelwald blinked, then nodded. "Robert stays by his side. I've been communicating through him."
Quahog was the President of MACUSA.
Grindelwald had deliberately avoided placing any magical safeguards or surveillance measures on him to prevent detection by the American authorities.
Robert, on the other hand, had much more freedom.
Besides, many people already suspected a connection between him and Grindelwald.
The reason nobody had acted against Robert was simple. They feared Grindelwald was setting some deeper trap.
Tom's gaze darkened. "Quahog may already be dead."
"What?"
Grindelwald started to object before suddenly freezing.
His eyes narrowed. "You're saying the current one is a fake?"
He wasn't an idiot.
In fact, manipulation, infiltration, and replacement schemes were areas in which he possessed extensive experience.
The reason he'd never considered the possibility before was because Quahog's position was so unique.
And because, frankly, Quahog was supposed to be one of their people. Would the people inside MACUSA really be ruthless enough to kill their own president and replace him with a puppet?
"I'll investigate personally."
Grindelwald's expression darkened. Then he left in a hurry.
The thought that he'd been fooled by a bunch of politicians he looked down on felt like a personal insult.
...
..
Days passed. And exams at Hogwarts continued smoothly.
Meanwhile, Grindelwald traveled to the United States himself.
What he discovered only deepened his suspicions.
Quahog never left MACUSA headquarters. Almost all government business was conducted through video conferences.
That fact alone convinced Grindelwald that the man currently serving as president was not the real Quahog.
He immediately relayed his findings to Tom.
By then, Tom had just completed his final History of Magic exam.
After hearing the report, he slowly narrowed his eyes.
"It seems... The biggest variable in the future is hiding in the United States."
.
.
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