Sherlock Holmes at Hogwarts.

Chapter 576 Fairness is Relative
When Sherlock, Hermione, and Fleur emerged from the empty classroom, the light in the corridor had softened considerably.

The setting sun shines through the stained glass windows, casting dappled patterns of light on the ground.

Furong's figure disappeared at the end of the corridor, still looking somewhat lost and dejected.

Hermione watched her retreating figure, then turned to Sherlock and said, "I didn't expect you would actually tell her the answer to the golden egg."

Her tone was full of disbelief.

Sherlock's tone was very calm: "Even if I hadn't told her, she would have eventually solved the mystery. I just sped things up a little."

"Why are you so sure?" Hermione asked curiously, taking two quick steps to catch up with him.

Sherlock turned to look at her, his gray eyes devoid of emotion, yet strangely persuasive: "My dear Hermione, we shouldn't underestimate ourselves, but we also shouldn't be arrogant."

Hermione couldn't help but smile.

It was rather funny to hear Sherlock say that.

Apart from his brother Mycroft, she had never seen Sherlock truly value anyone's wisdom.

With a soft sigh, Hermione continued, "But the way she acted just now was like a primary school student facing a teacher, even her speech was restrained."

Even now, Hermione still finds it somewhat unbelievable.

Because of Fleur Delacour, she had just seen another side of this French woman.

Especially after learning that Sherlock had already solved the secret of the golden egg more than a month ago, he said many flattering things.

Words like “great,” “superb methods,” and “powerful actions” flowed from her lips like a stream, her cheeks flushed with excitement.

At that moment, Hermione truly realized that the French not only possessed an inescapable arrogance, but also an undisguised romance and passion.

"I can only say that she overestimated the help I gave her. As I just said, she is actually quite talented herself."

The fact that the Goblet of Fire chose her as the captain of Beauxbatons proves that she already possesses the necessary qualifications.

Even if I didn't say it today, she would have found the answer—she simply lacked some knowledge and luck.

"Alright, Durmstrang, do you want to tell Krum the secret of the golden egg too?"

“Why would I do this?”

"I thought you would do it for fairness..."

“My dear Hermione, fairness is relative, unfairness is absolute.”

Sherlock suddenly chuckled softly, stopped by a window, and gazed at the Forbidden Forest outside, saying quietly:
"Miss Delacour found me and earnestly asked for my help."

She even told me about Mycroft and her family, and I was naturally happy to help.

"It sounds like you're saying that if the people of Durmstrang sincerely asked you for help, you would help them?"

“If they are truly at a loss, I would certainly be happy to help.”

"Then you are truly a great philanthropist."

A crisp voice suddenly came from the end of the corridor, breaking the conversation between the two.

Hermione and Sherlock turned their heads at the same time and saw Gemma standing there gracefully.

Today she wore a light purple dress, the hem of which swayed gently with her movements, giving her a charming and elegant look, her temperament in no way inferior to that of Furong.

She stood with her hands behind her back, a teasing smile playing on her lips, her eyes sparkling as she looked at them.

"Gemma?"

Hermione's eyes widened in surprise, and she took two steps forward. "How did you get here?"

"What, are you not welcoming me?"

Gemma tilted her head, her chestnut hair cascading down to her shoulders, giving her a playful look.

"of course not!"

Hermione panicked and quickly waved her hands, her cheeks instantly turning red.

"I mean... weren't you always very busy before?"

"I was in charge of the fire dragon, I thought you were too busy to come... Oh, that's not what I meant!"

Seeing Hermione's flustered and incoherent state, Gemma couldn't help but reach out and gently pinch her nose, laughing as she said:
"I was just kidding! Look how anxious you are."

Hermione breathed a sigh of relief, raised her hand and patted her chest, her long eyelashes drooping down as if a heavy burden had been lifted.

Sherlock raised an eyebrow, a hint of doubt creeping into his mind.

When did Gemma and Hermione become so close?

However, he has never been good at or too lazy to get involved in girls' affairs, so he quickly put the idea out of his mind.

"You're right, I do have some free time today."

Gemma's smile faded, and her tone became light. "Those three fire dragons have finally been sent back to Romania. We shouldn't need them for the next two projects."

“We definitely won’t need it,” Sherlock said with certainty.

"maybe."

Gemma blinked, then changed the subject, her tone becoming gossipy again:
"But that's not important. I came here specifically to see what was going on because I heard that the Flower of Beauxbatons had taken away our Lion King."

“The Flower of Beauxbatons?” Hermione paused, then realized, “You mean Fleur Delacour?”

"Yes, don't you know?"

Gemma chuckled and said in a rather teasing tone:

"During this time, the news that Cedric Diggory, the captain of Hogwarts, and Viktor Krum, the captain of Durmstrang, were fighting over this French rose has been the talk of the school."

At such a crucial juncture, Miss Delacour's private conversation with you, a champion of Hogwarts, is bound to attract attention.

"Boring speculation."

Sherlock commented casually, his tone full of disdain, as if he were talking about a trivial matter.

"In Sherlock Holmes' view, it was naturally boring."

Gemma smiled, a hint of understanding in her eyes, "But that's exactly what students this age care about most!"

Since graduating, she has increasingly realized that Sherlock's maturity is out of step with his peers, and she is even more grateful for her choice back then.

"But from what I just heard of your conversation with Hermione, it seems you're planning to share the secret of the golden egg with Durmstrang?"

Gemma looked at Sherlock, her tone tinged with curiosity.

“Only on the condition that they wholeheartedly sought Sherlock’s help!” Hermione quickly said.

"Then there's no need, because they've already solved the mystery."

Hearing Hermione's words, Gemma's smile deepened, and a sly glint flashed in her eyes.

"How did you know?" Hermione asked in surprise, leaning forward, her curiosity piqued.

Gemma blinked: "That's what the Durmstrang people said."

"You know someone from Durmstrang?" Hermione was even more surprised to hear this.

Just then, Sherlock suddenly spoke up: "So, Durmstrang is indeed in Sweden."

Hermione's surprise hadn't faded before it was replaced by an even more obvious astonishment.

The topic of Sherlock changed so quickly. Is there any connection between the two?

She looked at Sherlock with a puzzled expression, waiting for his explanation.

Gemma smiled and said, "That's right, but Professor Karkaroff has been trying to keep it a secret, so you mustn't tell anyone."

“We’re not Hagrid, we won’t tell.” Sherlock’s words made both girls burst into laughter.

Hagrid is indeed famous.

But after laughing, Hermione couldn't help but ask, "Sherlock, how did you know?"

“Mr. Farley once hoped that Gemma would go to Sweden to engage in the trade of magical minerals after graduation, which shows that the Farley family has a certain influence in the Swedish mineral market.”

"good."

“Mycroft once told me that Durmstrang is located in northern Scandinavia—northern Sweden or Norway, and now Gemma has learned this from Durmstrang as well, so the answer is obvious.”

“I knew it would be like this,” Hermione couldn’t help but sigh. “Every time you reveal the answer, it always gives people the feeling that it was so simple.”

“But before that, you always thought it was amazing,” Gemma interjected, her tone slightly teasing, as she affectionately patted Hermione on the shoulder.

"Yes, it's always like this."

Hermione sighed again, then burst out laughing with Gemma.

"But they're doomed to lose anyway."

Hermione said confidently:
"We unlocked the secret of the golden egg long ago."

Cedric has figured out a way to survive underwater.

Sherlock even had a contingency plan...

I can't even imagine what could possibly stop us!

Sherlock and Gemma exchanged a knowing smile upon hearing Hermione's confident declaration of victory.

Many people have this feeling.

When you hate something, time seems to pass very slowly.

For example, when you're in class or at work, you might feel like, "Why isn't this all over yet?"

But time flies when you focus on doing something.

It was so fast it was as if someone had cast a spell on the clocks, making them spin incredibly fast.

There's only one week left until February 24th... five days... only three days left...

This week, both Harry and Cedric have successfully mastered how to use scuba gear.

In this situation, even someone who doesn't know magic but has a little swimming ability could stay underwater in the Black Lake for an hour.

The contingency plan that Sherlock had prepared turned out to be a more reliable solution than originally planned.

As for the method Cedric mentioned at the beginning, he finally succeeded in coming up with it.

Just as Sherlock had previously deduced.

A curse.

Bubble head spell.

This is an advanced spell, not part of the regular spells course content, and leans more towards extracurricular knowledge.

Its effect is to create a large, transparent bubble around a person's head, like an inverted goldfish bowl, allowing the person to breathe normally underwater or in polluted air.

The surface of the bubbles has a faint sheen, which neither obstructs vision nor hinders water flow.

"not bad!"

After Cedric cast the Bubble Head Charm on Harry, Harry reached out and touched the bubbles on his head, exclaiming in surprise.

He tried taking a breath; the air was fresh and smooth, and he felt no suffocation at all while underwater.

When speaking, the voice can be heard clearly without any obstruction.

"It's enough to keep us underwater for an hour!"

Cedric said excitedly, his eyes filled with excitement, his hands clenching into fists:

"Even if there isn't enough time, with Sherlock's scuba gear, there won't be any problems!"

With no worries about the future, Sherlock and Harry learned the Bubble Head Charm exceptionally quickly.

Both Sherlock and Harry have an exceptional talent for spells.

While the Bubble Head Curse can be considered a high-level spell, it pales in comparison to the Patronus Curse.

So by the evening before the second project, the two of them were already able to skillfully cast the spell.

The movements were smooth, and the bubble size was perfectly controlled.

"Alright, I have nothing more to teach you!"

Inside the Room of Requirement, Cedric couldn't help but burst into laughter as he watched Sherlock and Harry putting fishbowls on each other's heads.

He had absolutely no reason to be unhappy; the combination of magic and Muggle equipment was practically a guaranteed win!
"Whatever awaits us at the bottom of Black Lake is no problem!"

Cedric patted Sherlock on the shoulder, his confidence practically overflowing:

"Sherlock, thanks to you for solving the mystery of the golden egg so early, I had enough time to find the spell and prepare contingency plans with you all."

Sherlock smiled slightly and said nothing.

He was also looking forward to seeing what surprise the organizers would prepare for him.
After all, even he himself didn't know what was most precious to him.

The three of them came out of the Room of Requirement and walked down the spiral staircase.

The portraits on the stairs peeked out, looking at them curiously, some even whispering about tomorrow's match.

Just as they were about to part ways on the first floor and return to their respective dormitories to rest, a familiar voice suddenly rang out:

"Great, I've finally found you!"

Hannah Abbott and Neville Longbottom walked briskly toward them side by side.

Seeing the anxious looks on their faces, Harry asked in surprise:

"What are you doing here? Are you looking for Sherlock and me?"

"Actually...we...we're here to find Diggory..."

Neville stammered, his voice trembling slightly, seemingly nervous about something.

"Find me?"

Cedric pointed to himself in surprise, his brow furrowing slightly, clearly not expecting this outcome. "Is something the matter?"

"Yes."

Hannah stepped forward, her tone more composed than Neville's:

"It's not us looking for you, it's Professor Sprout looking for you."

Neville added at this point, his voice still trembling slightly:

"Hannah couldn't find Diggory, so she came to ask me where Sherlock and Harry were."

I asked Ron, and he said you guys went to practice, so he brought her over.

"What does Professor Sprout want with me?"

"I don't know, but she looks pretty serious," Hannah said with some concern, looking at her prefect. "She wants me to take you to her office now."

Hearing Hannah say those words, Sherlock's eyes sharpened.

(End of this chapter)