Hogwarts: Starting with full Unforgivable Curses

As Dylan and his group approached the roller coaster queue, they heard a series of screams coming from ahead. There were shouts from boys and gasps from girls, filled with extreme excitement and a hint of fear. The sounds carried on the wind and made everyone tense.

Hermione was clearly affected by the dense screams. She looked up at the roller coaster track that kept spiraling, sometimes disappearing into the temple and sometimes rushing out. Her eyes gradually became complicated, with a bit of curiosity and a hint of undisguised unease. Her fingers unconsciously tightened their grip on the map in her hand.

Ron looked up at the towering Indian temple and the roller coaster speeding past on the track, then turned and noticed the complicated expression on Hermione's face. He couldn't help but ask in a worried tone, "Hermione, are you sure you really want to ride this? Judging from the screams, it sounds even more thrilling than what we experienced in the Forbidden Forest last time. And Fleur just said that there's a 360-degree rotation section too."

After the thrill of the roller coaster, everyone was a little thirsty. They found a cozy café in the park and chose a seat by the window. The cold drinks they ordered were served quickly. The icy liquid slid down their throats, instantly dispelling the heat and tension. After Hermione drank most of a glass of iced lemonade, her face was no longer as pale as before, her eyes regained their sparkle, and her tense mood calmed down a lot.

Just as everyone was enjoying a moment of peace, Sirius's eyes suddenly lit up. He pointed to an attraction on the park map not far away and said, "Look, there's an attraction called 'Madness Hell' in the next park. It's not far from here. Shall we go check it out? I just noticed the description. It looks like a tour, so it should be relaxing. It's perfect for us to unwind now."

Hannah paused, her hand holding the cup still trembling with caution, clearly not yet fully recovered from the roller coaster's thrill: "Will this ride... have the plunges and flips like a roller coaster? I can't handle that kind of thrill again right now."

“Let me take a closer look at the introduction…” Sirius picked up the park guidebook on the table and read it word by word. “It says that it is an immersive scene tour, without fast-moving tracks, and the whole tour route is gentle. It should not be as thrilling as a roller coaster.”

Everyone crowded around to look at the information in the guidebook. Ron pointed to a story summary and read it aloud: "What does this mean? Are we supposed to play the role of guests and attend a ghost wedding?"

“I bet the ghosts here are fake, all created by Muggles using special effects.” Ron put down the manual, his eyes filled with curiosity. “But I really want to see what ghosts look like through the eyes of Muggles. Thinking about it that way, it’s quite interesting! What do you guys think? Want to try it out?”

“I think it’s a good idea! It’s a good way to relax!” Neville immediately nodded in agreement, his face showing a hint of relief after surviving the ordeal. “The roller coaster was so thrilling, my heart is still pounding, I need a gentle ride to calm down.”

“Speaking of that roller coaster!” Fred said suddenly, taking a sip of his iced coffee. “I think if Wood came, he might really like this ride. His pursuit of speed and thrills is no less than ours.”

“Thank goodness he’s already graduated from Hogwarts!” George chimed in, his tone tinged with relief, but his eyes gleaming with anticipation. “Otherwise, he might have built a towering track on the Hogwarts lawn and used it like a roller coaster to train our Quidditch team’s reaction speed…”

"Just thinking about it gets my blood pumping!" the two said in unison, their faces showing no relief that he had graduated, but rather a longing for this kind of crazy training.

After chatting for a while, everyone got up and headed towards the area where "Mad Hell" was located. This project was situated in a medieval castle-style building with gray-black stone walls, towering spires, and retro arched windows, exuding a mysterious atmosphere. For Dylan and his group, this retro-style building gave them a sense of closeness to the magical world, as if they had returned to Hogwarts Castle.

Guided by the staff, they entered a spacious area resembling a foyer. The ceiling was high, and a huge crystal chandelier hung from it. The dim lighting created a gloomy atmosphere. Portraits hung on the walls, depicting figures dressed in early 20th-century clothing. The men wore sharp suits, while the women wore flowing dresses, each with a different expression.

Just as everyone was curiously examining the portraits, a slight tremor suddenly came from the ground. Then, a low, cold voice echoed around them, speaking slowly in fluent French. The voice seemed to come from a distant hell, carrying a strange resonance.

Hannah instinctively moved closer to Hermione, her tone still cautious: "Fleur, can you understand? What is that voice saying? It sounds scary."

"It's the background story Ron just read out: the ghost invited us to a special wedding."

Fleur Delacour patiently explained, "It details the origins of this wedding—"

"The owner of this mansion had a greedy daughter who did things against her conscience for wealth and status, which brought about an ancient curse. Later, a sudden and powerful earthquake swept through the area, taking the lives of the mansion owner, his family, and servants. Now, these people who were bound by the curse have returned to the mansion as ghosts, wanting to complete the wedding that was not finished back then."

"It sounds like stories made up of memories that weren't erased by the Obliteration Curse." Sirius couldn't help but laugh, his tone tinged with admiration. "Muggles have such rich imaginations! To come up with such a fantastical plot, and the details are so realistic... Hmm... at least for those of us who know the magical world, this setting of curses and ghosts returning is indeed very realistic."

“And these portraits on the wall are amazing too.” Neville’s gaze remained fixed on the paintings on the wall, his tone full of curiosity. “Although I’m sure they’re not magical portraits, and they’re not infused with magical energy, the figures in them just disappear when we’re not looking, and then suddenly reappear a moment later. It’s really amazing.” As they were discussing this, the ground beneath their feet suddenly began to slowly sink, and the hall gradually descended to the bottom. The surrounding lights abruptly went out, and darkness enveloped the entire space, with only a few emergency lights emitting a faint glow. A few seconds later, the lights came back on, but this time the light was dim and ambiguous. A long corridor appeared before them, and the walls on both sides of the corridor were also covered with all kinds of portraits.

These portraits were different from those in the foyer. Every time the lights flickered, the figures in the paintings would instantly transform into hideous and terrifying ghosts—some with bloody tears streaming from their eyes, some with pale faces and exposed fangs, and some wearing tattered funeral clothes with distorted postures. This sudden change amazed Neville and his companions, who were both somewhat terrified and irresistibly drawn to this novel special effect.

"I never expected Muggles to be so creative!" Fred said with some admiration, looking at the ghosts shifting in the painting. "To build such a huge house and design so many complex mechanisms and special effects just to scare people—the creativity and execution are truly amazing!"

“Yes!” George nodded in agreement, his eyes gleaming with eagerness. “We really need to learn from their spirit of innovation and daring to try new things! When we get back, we can pull off some similar creative pranks at Hogwarts, which will definitely impress everyone!”

As they spoke, the two exchanged a smile and began to conceive all sorts of novel pranks in their minds, clearly using Muggle horror ideas as a source of inspiration for their new pranks.

For Dylan and his companions, "Mad Hell" brought more of an indescribable sense of the bizarre—it lacked the extreme thrill of a roller coaster and the eerie horror of a real magical world, but created a strange atmosphere that intertwined reality and illusion through the unique creativity of Muggles.

Walking along the corridor, the group arrived at a spacious hall. In the center of the hall, rows of sightseeing trains were neatly arranged, naturally dividing the space. On the other side of the hall, the scene was particularly eye-catching. Lightning flashed continuously through the huge windows, and the pale lightning ripped through the virtual night sky, reflecting on a wide wooden staircase beside the window. At the top of the staircase, a figure wearing a pure white wedding dress stood silently, her skirt trailing on the ground, motionless. Under the flickering lights, she appeared even more bizarre and eerie.

"Ron, look at the spider web on the candlestick!" Fred suddenly pointed to the bronze candlestick in the corner of the hall, his tone deliberately exaggerated, clearly trying to scare Ron.

"Oh, right!" George immediately understood and hurriedly added, "There's a spider on the web! Look, look, it's climbing down the silk! It's almost on your shoulder!"

Ron first widened his eyes subconsciously, his pupils contracted slightly, and then he took a deep breath, his chest heaving noticeably, as if he was trying his best to suppress his discomfort. After all, he had a natural fear of spiders since childhood, and even if he knew that this was probably fake, he couldn't help but have some instinctive reactions.

"Stop it! It's just a spider web and a spider, we've seen them before." Ron quickly composed himself, suppressing his inner turmoil. He even rolled his eyes at Fred and George, and said in a deliberately calm tone, "Besides, it's not even real, just a prop made by Muggles. What's there to be afraid of?"

"Huh?" Fred and George exchanged a glance, their faces showing confusion. They looked Ron up and down as if they were seeing him for the first time. "Are you really Ronald, the one who gets scared of spiders?"

“Of course I’m Ron, how could I be fake?” Ron awkwardly looked away from the candlestick, avoiding the direction of the “spider,” and said firmly.

"Hey Ron, you've really grown up!" Fred and George sighed in unison, their tone carrying a hint of feigned sadness and an undisguised teasing. "Seeing you face spiders so calmly now makes us really happy!"

Hermione, Neville, and Hannah boarded the ride much slower than the others. Their bodies tensed up involuntarily, and they looked around nervously with obvious vigilance in their eyes. For them, the most frightening moment was when they boarded the ride and the car began to move slowly—after all, when they rode the Indian Temple roller coaster, it started with a smooth ride followed by a sudden acceleration and plunge, and that shadow still lingered in their minds.

Fortunately, their fears did not come true. The tour train maintained a steady speed and slowly entered a dimly lit tunnel. Eerie background music and screams echoed from the walls on both sides of the tunnel, creating a strong sense of immersion, but there was no rapid movement or violent flipping.

"How do Muggles come up with these bizarre ideas?" Fred looked around with great interest, his eyes full of curiosity. "George, look at that self-playing piano! It can play music on its own without anyone controlling it, and that talking head floating in the air! It's so interesting!"

“Haha! I think Dad would be terrified if he came here!” George couldn’t help but laugh as he looked at the bizarre scene. “Dad told us before that he confiscated a lot of similar gadgets when he was working in the Muggle Misuse Prohibition Division. I didn’t expect there to be so many here.”

As the tour train slowly passed through a lavishly decorated drawing room, Neville, looking at the "ghosts" wandering around the room, exclaimed in amazement, "These ghosts created by Muggles using special effects look so real! Dressed in retro clothes, walking lightly, they're almost identical to the ghosts we saw at Hogwarts."

“Yes! I almost thought they were real ghosts,” Ron exclaimed. “If Nicholas Flamel came here, he might also be confused, unable to tell whether these were props from his own kind or Muggles. Hermione, do you know how Muggles achieve such realistic effects?” (End of Chapter)