Kyle didn't hesitate. He walked onto the platform in two strides.

Relieved to be alive, he patted his chest and looked sincerely at Professor McGonagall, "Thank you, Professor."

Professor McGonagall was caught off guard by Kyle's sudden gesture. She didn't expect Hogwarts to have such a polite child. It took her two or three seconds to react. She shook her head and said, "It's my duty."

Although she said that, Professor McGonagall's stern expression softened. And before placing the Sorting Hat on Kyle's head, she deliberately patted the dust off it.

"Such a polite child. It would be great if he could be sorted into Gryffindor."

Professor McGonagall was hopeful. Gryffindor lacks model students.

Last year, she dreamed of bringing Cedric into her house, but Sprout and Dumbledore didn't agree.

Let's see how this year goes.

Professor McGonagall stared intently at Kyle, praying in her heart that the Sorting Hat would be reliable this time.

...

"Strange, very strange."

When Kyle put on the Sorting Hat, he heard a faint voice in his ear, "You said thank you sincerely? That's not right. I mean, are you that kind of good boy?"

"Of course I am!" Kyle said solemnly, "You can go and ask around. Both the Weasleys and Mr. Scamander have said that I'm the most polite good boy they've ever met.

So, please don't slander me. Even if you're just a hat, I'll report you."

"..."

The Sorting Hat fell into an unusual silence. The tip of the hat swayed back and forth unconsciously, as if it was at a loss for words, or as if it was agonizing over something.

After a long time, it continued, "Your shameless demeanor reminds me of a thousand years ago. But back then, I was just a normal hat, on Godric's head.

So, how about Gryffindor? I feel like it should be... forget it, it's not right for you."

"I think..."

"Let me think about it." Kyle was about to speak, but the Sorting Hat interrupted, "Still, Slytherin would be better. There, you will achieve glory, no doubt about it."

"That..."

"Wait, wait."

For the second time, the Sorting Hat interrupted Kyle again, "No, it's still not right. Besides, if you went to Slytherin, Snape would pour some weird potions on me. Let me think...

The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

Dumbledore has given me a real challenge... Too bad, if Azkaban were part of Hogwarts or even Nurmengard."

...

The more Kyle listened, the more uneasy he felt. What was going on? He hadn't done anything wrong. At most, he just scared Kanna a little while ago. Could it be that he was going to be sent to Nurmengard for that?

Was this fair?

Besides, that's what everyone did in the wizarding world. And many people were even more extreme than what he said. Why were they fine?

There was no such double standard.

Kyle felt like he had to do something. If he let the Sorting Hat say it, he was done for.

Azkaban was fine. It was under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Magic. He couldn't just go there.

But Nurmengard was different. Dumbledore had connections there. It would be incredibly easy to send someone there.

Although Kyle knew in his heart that the reason why the Sorting Hat was so petty was probably because it was upset that he had threatened to report it earlier. It was just trying to be cheeky and get back at him. It wouldn't say that place.

But what if…

A hat that had existed for over a thousand years, with its consciousness, who knew what it was thinking. What if it got a sudden urge and wanted to yell something out to liven up the mood?

It was possible.

"That..." Kyle showed a harmless smile and said, "That song you sang earlier was good. Especially the first few lines, the lyrics were concise, the tone cheerful, much better than those clichés from the Weird Sisters."

Hearing this, the Sorting Hat was immediately interested, "You think it's good too, right? I told you, it took me a year to come up with it. How could it not be good? Only Dumbledore doesn't appreciate it. He even encouraged me to sing the school song. That old bee!"

Well...

Kyle didn't want to badmouth the Headmaster under his nose. That was too suicidal, even if he couldn't hear.

After coughing awkwardly to cover it up, Kyle continued, "May I ask, your song sounds familiar. Is it a rap style?"

"Rap style…" The Sorting Hat was curious, "What does that mean?"

"You don't know! Are you self-taught? Amazing." Kyle pretended to be shocked, then explained, "Rap, also called hip-hop or rhyme, is a very popular Muggle music genre."

"Muggle music…" The Sorting Hat was even more curious.

"Yes. I think you should try it. It would suit you." Kyle said sincerely, "If you need it, I can send you a gift on that topic for Christmas."

"Okay… No, I mean, let's get sorted first. It's been a long time. You must be hungry too. It's not good to delay the feast." The Sorting Hat cleared its throat, "Right, where were we?"

Kyle smiled, "You just said I was a polite good boy, but you think Gryffindor, Slytherin, and Ravenclaw aren't right for me."

"Hmm? Did I mention Ravenclaw... Oh, I almost forgot. That's right, you're right.

So, the result is clear..."

"Hufflepuff!"

The moment Kyle's Sorting result was revealed, thunderous applause echoed through the Great Hall, including the professors' table.

It had been twenty minutes. The longest Sorting Ceremony in Hogwarts history was finally over.

They were really hungry. After all, the feast usually started at this time.

The Hufflepuff table was especially lively. Cedric, no longer caring about Quidditch teams, came over and hugged Kyle.

"That's awesome, Kyle. I knew you'd be in Hufflepuff."

Kyle laughed, "You have better taste than the Sorting Hat."

"Hmm?" Cedric was stunned. He didn't quite understand what that meant.

But Kyle just smiled and didn't explain.

Just then, several upperclassmen came over to shake his hand. Judging from the badges on their robes, they were the Hufflepuff prefects.

It was also a custom in every house, a way to show their welcome and also get familiar with the new students.

Kyle smiled and greeted them, then sat down in the empty seat beside Cedric.

A prefect had been sitting there, but when he saw Kyle and Cedric were acquainted, he voluntarily offered the seat.

...