Hogwarts Raven

Chapter 329, Section 328: The Mystery of the Fairy Tale

The castle was completely silent.

Only Ian's footsteps echoed softly through the stone corridors. The shadows cast by the wall lamps scattered throughout the castle swayed gently, illuminating the tiny dust particles floating in the air.

Ian stood in front of the oak door to Professor Morgan's bedroom.

Fingertips traced the intricate rune carvings on the door.

The ancient patterns shimmered with a faint blue light when he touched them, then returned to stillness. A yellowed parchment was pasted on the door, standing out starkly in the dim light.

Ian tore the parchment off.

His gaze went up.

Morgan's sharp handwriting came into view.

"If you're going out temporarily, don't wait up. If anything happens, handle it yourself—remember, don't go into my bedroom, it's dangerous inside." Short, direct, and without any fluff—this is typical of the wicked witch.

A small warning symbol was drawn at the bottom of the note, clearly out of concern that he would ignore the last reminder. The familiar tone made him feel as if he could see the teacher frowning as he wrote those words.

"Am I the kind of person who would just walk into someone else's bedroom? No!" Ian asked himself, then looked around and found that the bedroom was under a tight protective spell.

Morgan's personality is unlikely to be that of a demure young lady; perhaps there is some danger in the room. Ian carefully folded the note, put it in his pocket, and then lay down on the ground.

He certainly wouldn't enter other people's rooms, but that doesn't mean he wouldn't peep through the crack in the door—that's not exactly a skill, the crack is so big it's obviously for the same purpose as a peephole.

While mentally preparing himself, Ian peered through the crack in the door. Medieval castle gates were like this; a hand could even fit through the crack below.

There was no concern about fit or fit, which meant Ian could clearly see the interior, and sure enough, it was just as he had guessed. Morgan wasn't some timid girl with bedroom embarrassment; she had indeed, probably, perhaps really placed something dangerous in the room.

I saw.

Through the crack in the door, one could vaguely see a row of crystal bottles shimmering with a dangerous light on the desk, one of which was constantly changing its eerie color.

Because we were unable to observe it up close.

Ian couldn't determine what was inside the crystal bottle either. It might be some kind of legendary treasure, or perhaps an alchemical artifact crafted by Morgan.

To know.

As a legendary dark witch.

Morgan is a well-rounded expert in magic, and she was the one who introduced Ian to alchemy. Even now, Ian is not sure if his alchemical skills are better than Morgan's.

"Is he out searching for alchemical materials? Or is he forging some kind of alchemical artifact in the dreamlike realm?" Ian could only speculate about the reason for Morgan's sudden departure.

after all.

Morgan's departure was indeed too hasty. There were no warning signs when she entered the Enchanted Realm last time, and it seems she still hasn't told Ariana in the town.

This can be seen.

There must have been some urgent matter that led them to go out—although wizards in the Dreamlike Realm are left with only cognition, it's not surprising that they forge things there.

This is, after all, a limitation of knowledge. If King Arthur Pendragon could brew wine, then naturally, the wizard Morgan could also use his alchemical knowledge in this place.

Alchemy is the foundation of the world, a manifestation of the Creator's power. Even in any special space, alchemy is the only thing that remains unaffected.

Previously, when he was in the Illusory Realm, Ian had already seen Raven and Death performing alchemy there, so he was quite used to it now.

“Perhaps my teacher Morgan, as a wizard, is also brewing magical wine.” Ian could see the liquid churning inside the crystal bottle, but out of caution and respect for his teacher, he simply licked his lips.

He didn't violate the teacher's rules by entering the teacher's bedroom for a quick taste. Getting up from the floor, Ian shook his head helplessly. It seemed he would have to rely on himself to solve this problem that had suddenly appeared in the ancient world.

It was quite an unfortunate coincidence.

However, Morgan might not be able to offer any useful advice for Ian's situation, since the Bronze Gate that brought Ian to the ancient times is clearly something from a very distant past.

Moreover, there is no record of it in any of the wizarding books, and not even a single story about it has been passed down. It is conceivable that it is much more secretive than the Three Sacred Relics.

I lingered outside the teacher's bedroom for a while.

Ian circled back to the hall, walked out of the office, and went to ask the ancient dragon senior who often lay on the steps outside sunbathing and was said to have lived for many, many years before passing away peacefully.

He opened the heavy oak door, sunlight streaming onto his face, and Ian squinted as he walked up the steps. Sure enough, the giant dragon, covered in thick scales and with its tail curled up, was already lying on the ground, taking a nap.

"Senior, are you sure you didn't see Professor Morgan leave?"

Ian stood in front of the gate and asked a question.

The dragon slowly opened one eye and yawned: "What's wrong? Can't find your teacher again?"

"Did you already know where she went?" Ian frowned.

The dragon rolled over, flicked its tail, and said with a hint of helplessness, "I have no idea. I didn't see her leave just now. Maybe she used one of those annoying teleportation spells again, and disappeared in a flash."

"She's done this before, and only comes back after two days." It has to be said that the dragon, having been captured and brought to this place, clearly understands Morgan's habits quite well.

"Two days?"

Ian sighed.

"But I can only stay in the illusion for half a day at most, and I won't be able to wait for her to come back." He still wanted to rely on his teacher, but now it was clear that he couldn't.

The dragon blinked: "So what do you plan to do?"

"Forget it, I'll find the answer myself and see if I can find a way back to Hogwarts." Ian looked down at the giant Ben clock not far away.

The time displayed above reflects the passage of time in the real world.

"There's still a little while."

Ian had a sudden inspiration. He didn't want to just sit there chatting with the dragon. "My teacher didn't say I couldn't go to her bedroom, so... I'll just wander around the castle."

With some time still to go before his return, Ian idly explored the castle. After all, his teacher hadn't forbidden him from going anywhere else—in fact, although Ian would enter this world every seven days to learn magic from Teacher Morgan, he still knew very little about this castle.

The ancient dragon immediately perked up upon hearing this, its massive body wriggling closer like a puppy: "Take me with you! Take me with you! I know what's hidden in the secret compartment of her study!"

"Do you want to turn me into a toad?"

Ian took two steps back.

"Besides, with your size, can you even get into the castle?" His statement was indeed correct, after all, the dragon's enormous body looked almost the size of the entire castle.

Upon hearing this, the dragon immediately wilted and lay back down on the ground, looking dejected.

"Then you have to share half of what you find with me." Clearly, even though they have lived in human society for many years, the dragons' habit of collecting and searching for treasure still exists.

“If you take anything from Master Morgan, you’ll definitely be tortured by him.” Ian shook his head with a smile, then turned and pushed open the heavy castle door again. With a creak, a dusty, ancient aura wafted out, still mixed with potions, parchment, and some indescribable, ancient magical scent.

The main hall was where Ian often stayed; many other places were unknown. Thus, in this ancient castle filled with mystery and magic, Ian began his "street hustler" journey.

“When I traveled through time before, the castle I saw where Professor Morgan’s father lived was similar, but the layout of many places has changed.” Ian murmured to himself, his fingertips tracing the mottled stone wall.

He first arrived at the weapons exhibition hall on the east side. This place should have been displaying various magical weapons, but now it had become a bizarre "living exhibition hall".

The walls were covered with armor of various styles, some resembling heavy knight's armor, others like ritual implements. Most striking was a suit of obsidian armor in the corner, its surface engraved with intricate runes, emanating a chilling aura.

"Could this be a cursed armor left behind by some fallen knight?" Ian leaned closer to examine it, but was blown back a few steps by a cold gust of wind.

Suddenly, the eyes of the armor glowed red, as if it had come to consciousness.

"Kiss me~"

The armor has an opening.

Ian was startled.

Shocked.

Turn around and run.

They waited until they were sure no monsters were chasing them.

He finally stopped to catch his breath.

"What weird XP, this place is really not suitable for wandering around alone."

He said with lingering fear.

Just at this time.

“That’s right, that’s right, this place is full of Miss Morgan’s memories of fairy tales.” A set of knight’s armor that could dance on its own stopped immediately when it saw Ian. The helmet spun 180 degrees with a clattering sound and “stared” at him with its empty eye sockets.

"Good evening, sir." The armored figure bowed politely, but then its waist joint suddenly jammed, and its upper body crashed to the ground with a thud. It was probably some kind of failed attempt at something.

It was then placed in this spot. Ian, suppressing a laugh, reassembled it, but as soon as he let go, the armor screamed and jumped away, seemingly afraid that Ian would charge it.

"Merlin's beard! Your hands are colder than ice!"

This is clearly just a made-up excuse.

After saying that, the cunning armored man quickly disappeared into the locker.

"It's really become sentient."

Ian was still savoring what the other person had said about the fairytale-like atmosphere everywhere.

and so.

He chose to explore the garden behind the castle.

I knew there was a garden here.

It's also because I once traveled through time to visit the castle's real-world counterpart.

as predicted.

The garden behind the castle was surrounded by a ring of thorny vines, accessible only by a specific incantation. Ian recited the incantation, and the vines slowly parted.

A path leading to a sea of ​​flowers is revealed.

It's different from the garden that Morgan's mother tinkered with.

The plants in this dreamlike garden are now incredibly diverse.

There are singing roses, mushrooms that spray rainbow mist, and stone statues curled up under trees like cats. Most amazingly, there is a giant apple tree.

The fruit will automatically float into the air when ripe, waiting to be picked.

"It really does have a touch of fairy tale charm." Ian picked an apple, took a bite, and immediately felt enveloped in warm light, as if he were in the spring sunshine.

"This apple... tastes a bit like a golden apple. Could it be a replica cultivated by the teacher? It's a pity it doesn't increase magic power." He muttered to himself as he continued to stroll through the fantastical garden.

All sorts of strange plants can be found everywhere.

Many of these features still belong to the dreamlike and fantastical realm.

After smelling the extremely rare spider lily, Ian slowly returned to the castle.

He continued exploring, and at the corner of the corridor stood a broom that cleaned itself. As Ian passed by, the broom suddenly sprang up and chased after him, beating him mercilessly.

"New guy! No running and jumping in the hallway!" the broom sternly barked, its voice sounding just like a strict old butler. In response, Ian simply used a shapeshifting spell, turning it into a broom the size of a slug.

however.

It kept chasing after Ian.

no way.

But we can't really destroy Morgan's work.

"What a terrible temper."

Ian ran away with his head in his hands until he crashed into a room full of mirrors and escaped the pursuit. Every mirror in the room could talk, and they were all chatterboxes.

"Oh my, isn't this little Ian?"

"Ms. Morgan's apprentice!"

"His hair is even messier than last time he came!"

"I bet he didn't comb his hair properly again!"

Ian covered his ears and ran away.

I could also hear the voices behind me, one after another, shouting, "Remember to use conditioner!"

"What the heck, Mr. Morgan loves mirrors so much." Ian arrived at the "Mirror Room No. 2" marked outside the door, which was still a room with mirrors on all four sides.

These mirrors, however, do not speak. Each mirror reflects a different scene: some are scenes from the past, some are fragments of the future, and some are simply pure fantasy.

Ian stood in front of one of the mirrors and saw himself standing under a starry sky, holding a glowing sword in his hand, with a mysterious figure dressed in black robes standing beside him.

He tried to get closer to his reflection in the mirror, but the mirror rippled like water.

"This is... a fate observer."

he asked in a low voice.

The mirror did not answer, leaving only endless reflections.

"It seems that Professor Morgan has been trying to replicate the Magic Mirror." Ian left the place thoughtfully and began to explore the higher floors.

The study on the third floor was unusually quiet. Ian cautiously pushed open the door and found that all the bookshelves in the room were slowly rotating, the books flying around like birds before automatically returning to their places. Just as he was about to pull out a copy of "Analysis of High-Level Curses," the book slammed shut, pinching his fingers hard.

"Touch without permission."

A line of small, gold-embossed characters appeared on the spine of the book.

All the books in this place seem to be locked.

Ian's attempt to crack the code failed.

Can only leave.

He uses violence, but he's not very respectful.

The castle was full of strange things, the most bizarre of all being the kitchen. Ian had only wanted to find something to eat, but he saw a cleaver on the cutting board locked in a fierce battle with a carrot.

The teapot cheered him on from the sidelines. Upon his arrival, all the kitchen utensils froze, pretending to be ordinary objects—if one ignored the knife stuck in the carrot.

“Excuse me, please continue.” Ian tactfully withdrew.

When he reached the observatory on the top floor, he finally discovered something interesting. A huge brass astronomical instrument was running automatically, projecting a star map a hundred times more detailed than those shown in Hogwarts astronomy classes. Even more amazing, several crystal balls were piled up in the corner, each containing miniature storms, volcanoes, and even small galaxies.

Ian was about to get a closer look when he suddenly heard a "click" behind him. He turned around abruptly and saw a mechanical owl peeking out from a hidden compartment, its ruby ​​eyes gleaming.

"Password," the owl said in a mechanical voice.

“Uh, Dragon Scrab Cookies?” Ian tried to name Morgan’s favorite snack.

"Error. Remaining attempts: 2."

"Shadowwing is most afraid of being tickled?"

"Wrong. Last chance."

Ian took a deep breath and uttered a sentence he had once seen in Morgan's notes: "Knowledge knows no bounds, truth is eternal."

The hidden compartment slid open silently, revealing a thin black notebook inside. Just as Ian was about to reach for it, the notebook flew to him automatically and flipped to a certain page with a rustling sound.

[To the little rascal who rummages through things:]

I knew you'd find this place.

Remember to put it back where you left off after you're done reading.

——M】

I saw.

The writing slowly disappeared.

The black notebook also began to transform into a book.

The Mystery of Fairy Tales

A line of text featuring a golden shovel appeared prominently on the cover.

(End of this chapter)