Harry Potter: From Muggle Cousin to Conceptual Archmage

Even after arriving at Diagon Alley and entering Gringotts.

Only in this way could the possibility of Dumbledore Apparating right in front of Dudley and catching him red-handed during his actions be reduced.

In the following two months, the relationship between Aunt Petunia and Harry became more harmonious.

To outsiders who didn't know the truth, they seemed like an ordinary mother and son.

Of course, compared to her endless doting on Dudley, Aunt Petunia's attitude towards Harry was still a bit lacking.

The moon hid away and the stars grew sparse while heavy rain poured down.

Privet Drive was wet late at night on July 30.

At Number 4 Privet Drive, inside the two-story English-style house.

The candlelight flickered, and colored ribbons were everywhere, creating a warm and festive atmosphere.

The Dursleys were sitting around the round dining table in the living room on the first floor, looking at the two-layer chocolate cake on the table and waiting silently.

On the cake, the thin colored candles had flickering flames that were reflected in the eyes of the two adults and two children, just like dancing flame sprites.

"Drip, drip, drip..."

Inside the mahogany grandfather clock, the pendulum swung steadily, marking the passage of time.

Finally...

"Dong~Dong~Dong~"

The hour hand, minute hand, second hand, and the hourly chime of the grandfather clock coincided.

It announced the arrival of July 31, 1991.

[Congratulations, host! You have successfully resolved the S-level regret event - The Dark Childhood of the Savior!]

[The host guided Harry Potter's entire childhood with a positive outlook on life and values. At the same time, the host tried his best to change the Dursleys' attitude towards Harry, enabling the Savior to have a childhood rich in material enjoyment, spiritual life, and relatively happy and cheerful.]

However, at the same time, the Savior's personality has deviated to some extent, and the future has become less clear.

This regret has been resolved quite well.

Specific fixed reward: 1 opportunity to fuse S-level magic items.

Extra rewards: 2 opportunities to fuse c-level magic items; 1 opportunity to fuse d-level magic items.

[Currently owned: 1 S-level item, 2 c-level items, 3 d-level items.]

"Happy birthday! Harry!"

The System's reward notice didn't distract Dudley. The moment the clock struck midnight, he and the Dursleys broke the silence and all wished Harry a happy birthday in unison.

Harry Potter, wearing a colorful birthday hat, was overjoyed. Amid everyone's applause and blessings, he was momentarily at a loss and then started clapping too.

"Harry, make a wish and blow out the candles!" Dudley reminded.

"Oh! Right!"

Harry snapped back to his senses, clasped his hands together, closed his eyes, and paused for a good while. Then he suddenly opened his eyes, took a deep breath, and blew as hard as he could.

All the candles went out, and the room suddenly darkened.

Aunt Petunia was just about to go turn on the light when, out of the blue, a loud bang came from the front door.

Then, everyone felt the cold wind and raindrop moisture blowing in from outside.

"Oh! Sorry! I didn't mean to!"

Outside the front door, a huge dark figure stepped back two steps ruefully, making a distressed buzzing sound. He accidentally pushed... poked the Dursleys' front door open.

Poor Mr. Doorknob was struck by an overwhelming amount of force and was forcefully separated from its wooden door "companion", leaving the Dursleys' front door wide open.

Aunt Petunia was terribly startled. Uncle Vernon quickly stood up and strode over to the sofa, trying to pull out the long-barreled flintlock stored in the gap behind the sofa to defend his family.

"Don't worry, Dad! It should be the wizards from Hogwarts!" Dudley called out to Uncle Vernon.

"Dudley, are you sure? I've seen those strange... wizards. Although they're nuts and annoying, at least they're about the same height as normal folks." Uncle Vernon had a look of extreme surprise on his face. "That thing outside... you sure it's not an elephant in disguise?"

For a split second, by the light of a lightning flash, everyone could clearly see the full figure of the visitor at the door. It was an oversized human, about three and a half meters tall, with incredibly thick hair and beard and a massively built frame.

"Dursley, you're so rude!"

The half-giant outside wasn't happy. He grumbled angrily. If it weren't for the fact that the ceiling height on the first floor of the Dursleys' house was less than three meters, he would have squeezed in to have a word with Vernon instead of being stuck outside in the rain, feeling aggrieved.

"You must be Mr. Rubeus Hagrid mentioned in Dumbledore's reply, right? Why don't you come in? I think a wizard trusted by a powerful person like Dumbledore won't be stumped by such a problem?!"

Dudley led Harry to the entrance hallway and looked at Hagrid with an inquisitive look, using a bit of goading.

"Oh, Harry! Look how big you've grown! When I brought you here back then, you were only this little..."

Mr. Rubeus Hagrid, the half-giant, looked at Dudley, who was beefy and extremely stocky compared to his peers, and let out a delighted sigh.

Dudley was a bit speechless. This Hagrid, just like in the original story, didn't have much sense of discrimination!

He tugged at his cousin Harry behind him, motioning for Harry to respond, and at the same time started quietly browsing the regret events that had just been unlocked on the System panel.

[Rubeus Hagrid - The Wrongly Expelled Half-Giant (Level C)]

[Details of the Regret Event: When Hagrid was in his third year at Hogwarts, he kept Aragog, an Acromantula. He was framed by Tom Riddle (Voldemort) as the one who opened the Chamber of Secrets, unleashed the monster within and killed Myrtle Warren.

As a result, Hagrid was found guilty by the Ministry of Magic. His wand was broken, he was banned from using magic, and he was expelled from school. Only with Dumbledore's guarantee was he able to remain at Hogwarts as the gamekeeper and key keeper.

It wasn't until Harry Potter's second year in the original story line that Hagrid was cleared of his charges with the help of Harry and his friends.

Since then, Hagrid had suffered 51 years of unjust accusations and also missed out on the opportunity to study and pursue further education at Hogwarts.]

Dudley looked at the information on the System panel and recalled the relevant plot, but he only gave it a brief thought and didn't dig deeper. Right now, Harry's birthday and his own actions were more important.

"Mr. Hagrid, I think you've got the wrong person. He's my cousin Dudley. I'm Harry."

Harry, wearing a birthday hat, stepped out from behind Dudley, looking curious.

"Oh... That's right!"

Hagrid felt a bit embarrassed. However, most of his embarrassed expression was covered by his thick beard, so it wasn't very noticeable. "I knew you were Harry. Your cousin is much burlier than an ordinary kid, but he still can't compare to when I was at school. Hahaha!"

Hagrid added, trying to save face and making a lame joke.

"So, Mr. Hagrid, who was even burlier than me back then, you're now too big to get in, right?"

Dudley sneered, "It seems your strength doesn't quite live up to Dumbledore's trust!"

"That's not the case! I'm Dumbledore's most trusted companion!"