Hogwarts: Starting with full Unforgivable Curses

"They've probably found a clue, but haven't figured out how to deal with it yet," Hermione guessed. "That's understandable, though, since the clues to the golden egg aren't easy to unravel."

After a while, everyone saw Dylan gently close the golden egg.

George was the first to react, and he quickly asked curiously, "Dylan, have you already solved the secret of the golden egg?"

"We've solved about half of it," Dylan explained with a smile.

"Huh?" Neville blinked.

Dylan then hummed a tune, and then looked at the students gathered around him and explained, "The tune I was humming just now is actually the real melody inside the golden egg."

"Huh?" Neville blinked subconsciously, his brows furrowing as he tried to connect the ear-piercing scream he'd just heard with Dylan's somewhat pleasant humming in his mind.

After several attempts, he shook his head, his tone full of confusion: "The difference is too big! It's completely incomprehensible! What we heard from the golden egg just now was clearly like a female ghost roaring wildly in our ears, and it had nothing to do with any melody at all!"

"Hey! I said that to you first!" Ron, who was standing next to you, immediately raised his hand, protesting with a hint of smugness in his tone. "I was just standing next to you and I complained that it sounded like a female ghost howling. How come you're taking it as your own words now?"

“Indeed, the two sound like they’re on completely different levels.” Dylan nodded with a smile, agreeing with everyone’s feelings, then changed the subject, “But that’s exactly the key point—we need a ‘medium’ to restore the distorted sound inside the golden egg to its original pleasant tone.”

He looked around and continued, "The medium is a humid environment. I need to make the air here humid first. If you don't mind, please move closer to me. The golden egg's song might be a little soft, and you might not be able to hear it if you're too far away."

At this point, he seemed to suddenly remember something and added, "Oh, right! There's one more important thing—everyone should cast a spell on themselves first. When the environment becomes humid later, the moisture in the air will be quite heavy. With this spell, you won't have to worry about your clothes getting wet, and you won't feel sticky or uncomfortable."

"Singing? And you have to cast a spell?" Hearing these novel requirements, the students' curiosity was instantly piqued, and the discomfort they had felt from the screams earlier had long since vanished.

Everyone took out their wands, flicked their wrists, and clearly recited the spells.

A magical barrier, shimmering with a faint light, instantly enveloped everyone's clothing, like a transparent protective film.

After the spell was cast, everyone eagerly moved forward, forming a tight circle, their eyes fixed on the golden egg in Dylan's hand.

Dylan first stepped aside to make way, then waved his wand at the long table in the center of the room, which was covered with food.

As the tip of the wand glowed with a pale blue light, the long table slowly moved to the corner, making room for the long table.

Then, he grasped the golden egg again, pointed his wand at the eggshell, took a deep breath, and clearly recited the spell.

"It nourishes things silently."

This is a moisturizing and preservation spell specifically designed to create a humid environment.

The moment the incantation was cast, a pale blue, semi-transparent energy field rapidly spread out from the golden egg, enveloping all the students present.

Within the energy field, the air instantly becomes humid, and the skin can clearly feel the fine moisture, but it doesn't feel stuffy.

The originally dry air seemed to be infused with vitality, becoming fresh and moist, perfectly preparing for the presentation of the golden egg's singing.

As the spell was cast, the pale blue magical energy field quickly stabilized.

The students immediately noticed a significant change.

The surrounding air became exceptionally humid, with moisture clinging to the skin and bringing a slight coolness, as if one were truly by a lake or in a forest after the rain, even the breath could taste a faint moisture.

Fortunately, everyone had heeded Dylan's warning and cast the spell beforehand.

A golden magical barrier enveloped the surface of the clothing, and the thick moisture dissipated automatically upon encountering the barrier, without wetting the fabric at all.

But the wool blanket on the ground wasn't so lucky. Without magical protection, it was visibly absorbing moisture, and its originally fluffy and dry wool was gradually becoming heavy.

Some people can even see tiny water droplets seep out from the blanket with a light stomp of their foot, leaving shallow damp marks on the ground.

Dylan put his wand back into his robe pocket, grasped the golden egg with both hands again, placed his thumbs on either side of the slit, and looked up at the students gathered around him: "Ready? This time, when you open it, you should be able to hear the real sound of the golden egg."

The students nodded in agreement, their eyes filled with anticipation, yet also with a hint of wariness.

The piercing screams from just now were so vivid that several people, seeing Dylan assume his pose, instinctively grimaced and raised their hands to their ears, ready to cover them, clearly afraid of hearing that shrill sound again.

Dylan didn't say anything more. With a gentle push of his hands, the golden egg was broken open again with a "click".

As before, the eggshell was empty, but the sound that came out this time was completely different. It wasn't a sharp scream, but a melodious chorus, with male and female voices intertwining, the melody soft and soothing. It was the same tune Dylan had hummed earlier, only now with added harmonies, making it sound fuller and more moving.

The song was accompanied by clear lyrics, each word reaching the ears of the audience: "Find us! Where our voices are heard, we cannot sing on the ground."

“In the very beginning, you will lose the treasure you depend on for survival… You will find yourself in dangerous darkness… We have hidden your treasure in something pure, to find and reclaim the treasure we have taken from you.”

"Within an hour, try to complete the 'masterpiece' as much as possible, or return with a 'masterpiece' full of rewards, or return empty-handed in the face of failure."

The lyrics were repeated twice before gradually fading away.

Dylan slowly closed the golden egg, then drew his wand and gently tapped it against the pale blue energy field. The energy field instantly dissipated, and the surrounding dampness also disappeared.

He then turned his wand toward the blanket on the ground and uttered the words "cleaned up."

As the light swept across the blanket, the previously damp fleece instantly became dry and fluffy again, and even the damp marks left behind disappeared.

The golden egg's singing completely faded away, and the common room was quiet for a few seconds before erupting into a heated discussion.

George spoke first, his tone full of doubt: "The difference is too great! When I turned it on just now, there was a sound like a female ghost screaming, awful and shrill. Now it's turned into such a beautiful chorus, even the melody is so lovely. What could have caused this?"

Hermione didn't immediately join the discussion. She looked down at the blanket on the floor, subconsciously increasing the pressure on her calves. She lightly tapped the spot where the blanket had been soaked with water, and said thoughtfully, "Could it be related to the environment? The first time we opened it, the surroundings were dry. This time, before opening it, Dylan used magic to make the air very humid, and then the singing appeared. Maybe the golden egg needs a specific humid environment to reveal its true sound."

Her words instantly resonated with the others, and Fred nodded immediately: "Now that you mention it, I think it makes sense too! The energy field was incredibly humid just now, the blankets were soaked, and that's when the golden egg started singing. Before, in the medical tent, the environment was dry, so all we heard were screams. So it seems that 'humidity' is the key to unlocking the golden egg's voice!"

Dylan watched as everyone discussed animatedly, but did not immediately interrupt.

He knew that it was more meaningful for the students to draw conclusions through their own observations than to be given the answers directly.

The lyrics of the Golden Egg lyrics, which mention "pure things," "dangerous darkness," and "an hour," gave him an initial guess about the second item.

"To achieve that level of humidity, you'd probably have to go to the beach, right? And it would have to be a foggy day—the kind of fog where you can wring water out of the air, to get that much moisture."

A Gryffindor student rested his chin on his hand, his tone full of speculation, his gaze unconsciously drifting to the night sky outside the window, as if he could already imagine the scene of thick fog at the seaside.

“You’re right.” Dylan nodded, gently stroking the surface of the golden egg with his fingers, and continued, “Moreover, when there is a thick fog at sea, a magical creature often appears in various legends, and its existence is closely related to ‘water’ and ‘sound’.”

"It's a Siren! That's what we call a mermaid!" Hermione's eyes lit up, and she immediately realized, her voice full of excitement. "The song from the golden egg only works in a humid environment, and mermaids live in water and are famous for their singing. This can't be a coincidence!"

"So, does this golden egg have anything to do with Greek mermaids?" another student asked curiously. "When I traveled to Greece during the summer vacation, I saw mermaids once with the help of a local wizard. Their songs were indeed very beautiful, but I was too far away to hear what they were singing."

But as soon as he finished speaking, he frowned and shook his head in confusion: "That's not right. Why is there such a big difference in the sound inside the golden egg just because it's in a humid environment? It went from a piercing scream to a melodious chorus. That's too amazing."

“Actually, you can use the concept of ‘medium’ in ritual magic to understand the mermaid’s singing voice.” Dylan patiently explained, “Mermaids have a very special vocal cord structure. They need a humid environment as a ‘medium’ to make their voices vibrate and produce beautiful melodies. If they are in a dry environment, their voices will become distorted and harsh, just like when the golden egg was first opened.”

He added, "At first, I discovered that the screams inside the golden egg actually contained a melody—since there was a melody, it meant that it was a complete piece of music, but it lacked a suitable 'medium' to restore its original form. Moreover, besides using magic to create a humid environment, there is an even simpler method: simply soak the golden egg in water and open it underwater, and you will naturally hear the same song."

“Speaking of ‘humid environment as a medium,’ I feel like I’ve seen this in some book…” Another Gryffindor student frowned, trying hard to recall, his fingers unconsciously tapping the table. “It was a book about mermaid research, but I can’t quite remember the name.”

“There aren’t many books about mermaids. You must have seen it in one of them,” Dylan answered. “There’s a book that talks about the conditions for the spread of mermaid songs, and it details the effect of environmental humidity on the songs.”

"Yes, I remember the book also mentioned that mermaid songs contain magic, which can confuse ships and sailors, making them lose their sense of direction. If the song in the golden egg comes from a mermaid, wouldn't that be dangerous?"

“You’re describing the characteristics of mermaids from warm waters,” Dylan explained. “Mermaids from different waters have very different ways of surviving. Warm-water mermaids are better at using their songs to cast spells, influencing people’s consciousness and bewildering sailors through melodies, while cold-water mermaids are stronger and have thicker scales. When faced with danger, they prefer to attack directly with their claws and tails and rarely use their songs.”

He paused, then added, "Besides that, they also differ in appearance—warm-water mermaids are more graceful, with brightly colored scales, somewhat like legendary elves, while cold-water mermaids are more ferocious, with sharp teeth and dark gray scales. But regardless of the type of mermaid, they all have one thing in common: they are all particularly fond of music, which is why they can sing such melodies."

“If that’s the case…” George’s eyes lit up, and he boldly guessed, “Could the second test be about dealing with mermaids? And it will definitely take place in the water, and the Black Lake is the most suitable place near Hogwarts!”

"Black Lake? Wait a minute, what if they bring the Greek mermaids with them?" Fred suddenly became excited and leaned forward to ask. "I've only ever seen pictures of Greek mermaids in books, never the real thing. It would be so interesting to see them in the Black Lake!"

With a few people taking the lead, many students' eyes lit up and they began to discuss quietly, their tone full of anticipation. Some were even speculating whether they would be able to go to the shore of Black Lake to watch.

“No, Fred,” Dylan shook his head with a smile. “I don’t think the Ministry of Magic can bring the Greek mermaids over. The main reason is that mermaids are highly intelligent magical creatures with their own society and rules. They certainly wouldn’t want to travel all the way from Greece to England just for the status of a ‘competition prop.’ Also, the Black Lake is cold-water, and the Greek mermaids are used to warm seawater. Even if they came, they wouldn’t be able to adapt to the environment here and would easily get sick.”

Upon hearing this, Fred's excitement vanished instantly, replaced by a disappointed sigh, but he quickly rallied. (End of Chapter)