Sherlock Holmes at Hogwarts.

Chapter 573 is right, but it's meaningless.
"Sherlock, how...how did you know?"

Harry and Hagrid both looked surprised when Sherlock said that Madam Maxim had contacted Hagrid.

Harry was a bit better off.

After all, he was basically in a state of "unexpected yet reasonable" regarding Sherlock's various amazing performances.

That is to say, while I was surprised, I also felt it was only natural when I thought that the other person was Sherlock.

But Hagrid was different.

He hadn't spent as much time with Sherlock as Harry, and his understanding of Sherlock wasn't as thorough as Harry's.

So I was completely stunned:

"Sherlock, how...how did you know?"

Hagrid stammered, his thick fingers unconsciously twisting the hem of his clothes, his eyes darting around.

Ms. Maxim did indeed contact him.

I just contacted him last night.

But he didn't tell anyone!

He was also quite certain that he had not revealed any flaws.

So how exactly did Sherlock figure it out?

He had told Sherlock and Harry not long ago that he wanted to show Madam Maxim his "big frame".

Even if Ms. Maxim came to apologize to him, he would never forgive her!

When Ms. Maxim actually came to see him, he still met with her.

Looking back, I realize how pathetic I was!

Sherlock's lips curled into a slight smile:
"Hagrid, your current surprise has already confirmed my deduction."

However, this is only supporting evidence, and I will try to explain it in a simpler way.

Hagrid nodded repeatedly, saying that even if it were explained in a more complicated way, he wouldn't understand!

Sherlock's gaze swept over Hagrid's entire body. He no longer tried to tidy his hair, but it had turned into a tangled mess of wires.

"First of all, there's a smear of lavender ash from Beauxbatons' carriage on your cuff. Others might not notice, but I know that only Lady Maxim's carriage uses this kind of ash."

Also, there's fresh mud on the heel of your left leather boot, the stain is fan-shaped.

It's obvious that this was left behind while strolling along the shore of Black Lake last night.

Once these two points are combined, it can be proven that you rushed to an appointment last night, and that the person was related to Beauxbatons.

It's obvious that Ms. Maxim's sudden visit has unsettled you, making you forget even the most basic grooming."

Hagrid's face flushed instantly, and his fingers nervously curled his beard.

Harry suddenly realized, "No wonder you were so distracted in class today!"

"Secondly, it's because of Hibiscus de la Cour."

She was well aware of the role my observation and reasoning abilities would play in the three-way battle.

She knew that with me involved at Hogwarts, the golden egg puzzle wouldn't be delayed for long.

So before Beauxbatons had unlocked the secret of the golden egg, she was bound to tell Ms. Maxim about it.

For Ms. Maxim, she was well aware that the competition between warriors was merely a facade, and the real battle lay precisely in the intelligence war.

Since I'm in charge of solving the mystery at Hogwarts, she can only obtain clues through the most accessible means: you, Hagrid.

Hearing Sherlock's words, Hagrid's face turned even redder.

Last night, Ms. Maxim apologized to him as soon as she arrived, and as a result, she took advantage of his soft heart and managed to extract a lot of information from him.

Hagrid didn't understand why he had unknowingly revealed some important information.

You clearly intended to keep it a secret beforehand!

"Sherlock, I... I didn't say anything, I just..."

"You just tell her that I have a high probability that I have already unlocked the secret of the golden egg."

Sherlock said quietly, "That's all you know."

Hagrid: "..."

After being completely exposed by Sherlock, Hagrid felt utterly ashamed.

He took a deep breath, then abruptly changed the subject:
"Ah, since you are so confident, that's wonderful!"

This time, he once again reached out and patted Sherlock and Harry on the shoulders, making them sink two inches into the soft soil.

For the rest of the time, Sherlock and Harry could only pretend to be interested in the little unicorns and go up to pet the two cubs with their classmates.

Even the brilliant Sherlock felt somewhat powerless against Hagrid, a giant who overcame skill with brute force.

He didn't actually mean to blame Hagrid.

But he felt guilty about it.

I feel bad about it, but that's fine.

But the way he changed the subject was so abrupt.

Both Sherlock and Harry were worried that if they continued discussing this topic, their knees and the rest of their bodies would sink into the ground.

That would be absolutely terrifying.

After the lesson on protecting magical creatures ended, Ron asked curiously:
"What did Hagrid talk to you about earlier? He seemed quite happy."

“He was quite happy,” Harry said with a somber expression. “He also taught us some important lessons about life, about knowing our place.”

Ron: ? ? ?
Dude, do you know what you're saying?

Hermione, who was standing nearby, guessed something from Harry's words.

She turned to Sherlock and said, "Was he asking about the Triwizard Tournament?"

“Indeed,” Sherlock said quietly, “just as Harry said, he also taught us that we should know our place.”

Hermione, forcing a smile, continued to ask:

Didn't you listen to Hagrid's advice?
Perhaps Hagrid sometimes has to dive underwater to deal with the animals in the lake?

Because he took care of everything else on the field—”

"Forget it. Once we ask about this, I'm afraid we won't even wait until tomorrow. Ms. Maxim will know the secret of the golden egg, and then it will be the warriors of Beauxbatons."

No, it's possible that not only Beauxbatons, but even Durmstrang will find out!

Harry's tone was slightly resentful, but he still spoke with certainty.

"Pfft~!"

Hermione finally couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Ron finally understood and asked in surprise, "Hagrid and Ms. Maxim are back together? Didn't you say they had broken up?"

"Come on, how could Hagrid possibly completely cut ties with the other person?"

Harry said somewhat helplessly, "Last night, when Madam Maxim came to see Hagrid, he told her everything he knew!"

Fortunately, we didn't tell him the secret of the golden egg.

“That’s a really wise move,” Ron said, wholeheartedly agreeing.

Since the Philosopher's Stone incident in their first year, the four of them had reached a consensus—they could not tell Hagrid anything important.

As Dumbledore said, you can entrust your life and fortune to him.

Because his loyalty and courage are beyond question.

But you can't tell him any secrets.

Just as Sherlock said—he grew up drinking truth serum.

"By the way, Sherlock, Watson and Hedwig brought us something this morning in the Great Hall. Shall we go back and take a look?"

Hearing Ron mention this, Hermione couldn't help but raise an eyebrow: "I remember you guys have a divination class coming up, right?"

"Hey, it's okay to skip one of those classes once in a while!"

Ron said casually, "Last time, when Harry skipped class before the first event of the Triwizard Tournament, Professor Trelawney didn't say anything, did he?"

"Whatever you want."

Hermione has always disapproved of skipping classes.

Even if the other party is Professor Trelawney.

She thought that either she should just give up on the course, or since she had already decided to take it, she shouldn't skip class.

But Harry and Ron clearly didn't think so.

As for Sherlock, apart from the few required courses, the other elective courses were optional for him.

Seeing how excited his two friends were, he gave in to their wishes and took them back to the dormitory.

Hermione was there too—she didn't have to take divination classes anyway, so she was free during this time.

"Speaking of which, why are girls allowed into the boys' dormitories, but boys are blocked from entering the girls' dormitories?"

Ron watched as Hermione followed them smoothly into the boys' dormitory, and muttered to himself as usual:
"This is just too unfair."

“I also think it’s unfair, but you have to say that to the people who founded the school.”

"why?"

"The book 'Hogwarts: A History' clearly states that this rule was established by the school's founders because they believed that it was 'very dangerous' for boys to freely enter the girls' dormitories, hence the creation of this barrier."

"You're just meddling in other people's business," Ron said irritably.

Hearing this, Harry asked curiously, "Ron, are you planning to go to the ladies' dormitory?"

Ron coughed twice. "No, that's not true. I was just saying."

“It’s not necessarily true,” Sherlock interjected. “I’ve been to the Ravenclaw girls’ dormitory.”

“That was because you got Professor Flitwick’s permission to investigate the case,” Ron said, still looking unconvinced. “Now you can’t go anymore.”

As they were talking, the four of them had already entered the dormitory.

The dormitory was empty at the moment; Neville and Dean were not there.

Harry carefully closed the door, while Ron rubbed his hands together impatiently, his eyes fixed on the gleaming bundle on the bedside table:
"Open it now, Sherlock!"
What exactly is inside?
I've been itching to go ever since we were in the auditorium.

Harry stood to the side with his arms crossed, not saying a word, but his curious gaze was also fixed on the package.

Sherlock only told him that he needed to borrow Hedwig, but didn't say what he needed her for.

Hermione sat down beside Sherlock's bed, equally eager for the moment.

Sherlock drew his wand and gently touched the intricate knots on the bundle, causing them to untie automatically.

He then quickly removed the outer layer of thick tarpaulin and shock-absorbing padding, revealing three oddly shaped devices inside, each equipped with a metal gas cylinder and a mask.

"This is……?"

Ron leaned closer and carefully poked one of the cold metal cans.

Harry and Hermione exchanged a glance, both looking on incredulously.

"Sherlock, could this be..."

"As you expected, scuba."

Sherlock answered succinctly, picked up one of them and examined it carefully to confirm that the transport had not caused any damage.

"Scuba gear? You all know what that is?"

Ron became even more curious upon hearing this.

His gaze swept back and forth between Sherlock, Harry, and Hermione, his eyes filled with suspicion, as if the three of them were hiding some secret from him.

"This is a diving device invented by Muggles—people can rely on it to breathe underwater and move freely for quite a long time."

Harry immediately spoke up upon seeing this.

Hermione, with sparkling eyes, offered a more professional explanation:
"That's right, scuba, SCUBA - it's actually a self-contained underwater breathing device that people can use to breathe freely when they dive underwater."

"Scuba gear? This thing actually allows people to survive underwater?"

Ron picked up the other one in surprise, feeling its weight:
"My God, the inventions of Muggles are truly amazing!"

"That's why I suggested you take a course on Muggle Studies a long time ago. You're just like Mr. Weasley, clearly interested in everything about Muggles."

“You’re right, but it makes no sense—you should have told me before I chose my courses. I don’t want to take another course now—two courses are enough.”

“Sherlock, are you planning to use scuba gear to solve the second project? But didn’t Cedric say he had a way to survive underwater for an hour? And he said it with such confidence.”

“Dear Harry, Cedric’s abilities are beyond question.”

Sherlock put the scuba gear back into his pack and said calmly:
“Since he promised to develop a method for moving freely underwater, I believe he will succeed – his execution and dedication were proven in his first project.”

"Then why did we even prepare this?" Ron asked, puzzled. He felt it was a bit redundant. "Could it be... that you don't actually trust him?"

"No, this has nothing to do with trust."

Sherlock's gaze deepened and sharpened, revealing a caution that stemmed from his very being.

"Although Cedric didn't tell us his method, I deduce that he was probably going to use a high-level spell."

I believe he can keep us alive in the water for an hour.

But survival doesn't mean being able to act without restraint for an hour.

He paused, his fingers unconsciously tapping the metal gas cylinder, making a soft sound.

"Sherlock, you mean..."

"The second project is not just about letting us stay quietly underwater for a long time."

Sherlock said with certainty:

"Do you remember the mermaids' song? They would take away our most precious things and then have us bring them back to shore within an hour."

Furthermore, based on the experience of the first project, the organizers will most likely design search and confrontation elements into the rescue process.

This means we need to engage in vigorous underwater activities!

Vigorous swimming, potential confrontations, and even battles will significantly deplete our physical and magical energy.

As a result, Cedric's magic, which maintained a stable environment for one hour, is likely to have a shorter duration under such high-intensity consumption.

The air in the dormitory seemed to freeze.

(End of this chapter)