The Rune Mage Starting at Hogwarts

Harry explained, "Snape has always wanted to embarrass Rhett and deduct points from his score, but Rhett has a great talent for potions and has already caught up with the fifth-year students. So Snape has never succeeded and can only let Rhett continue to be tested alongside the older students."

Sirius grinned at Rhys immediately: "I never thought the Black family would produce a Potions Master. I really want to see how ugly Snape's face looked back then... I'll go back and find you a few of the Black family's Potions Notebooks. You should put on a good show in front of Snape and make sure he has nothing to say!"

Reiz nodded slightly, indicating that he was very interested in the books and notes.

One of the reasons he rescued Sirius early was indeed for the sake of the Black family's centuries-old book collection.

Seeing that Ryze was noticeably more energetic than before when he mentioned books, Sirius was stunned for a moment, and then finally realized that the boy in front of him was the first Ravenclaw in the Black family in hundreds of years.

"Judging from your yearning for knowledge, you're just like Ravenclaw. Don't worry, once I can get back on my feet, I'll clean up that damned ancestral home and get rid of those annoying paintings. Then you can find any book you want in the library."

Sirius paused for a moment, seemingly remembering that there were still many dark magic books in Black's library that were not suitable for young wizards, and added, "Of course, you should still tell me in advance, after all, many of the books there are even more dangerous than the restricted areas at Hogwarts."

"I can sense it," Ryze nodded, answering calmly, "I won't deliberately come into contact with dangerous things unless I'm already prepared."

"Sensing?" Sirius quickly picked up on the word.

He looked at Ryze curiously: "You mean, you can sense malice or energy fluctuations on magical items?"

Harry originally wanted to explain that Rhett possessed a talent for divination, and even that Sirius's early release from prison was due to Rhett's divination abilities.

But then he remembered what Principal Dumbledore had said about keeping Rizz's secret.

But now Sirius shouldn't be considered an outsider.

This is his godfather, and also Ryze's cousin.

As someone involved in the matter, he felt that Sirius should also be entitled to know about it.

However, just as Harry hesitated, Andromeda stepped in to explain: "It's a talent for divination. Sirius, perhaps because of his mother of unknown identity, Rhett awakened his talent for divination shortly after starting school, and since then, his intuition has been remarkably accurate."

"Fortune telling?" Sirius was stunned, and couldn't help but recall the prophecy from eleven years ago that led to Harry being targeted by Voldemort.

Eleven years ago, Dumbledore brought back a prophecy that James's children might be targeted by Voldemort, so he made them go into hiding.

The result was a change of Secretkeeper, Pettigrew betrayed James, and ultimately, on that night, Voldemort was inexplicably defeated by young Harry and disappeared, thus fulfilling the prophecy.

But this cost James and Lily their lives.

For this reason, Sirius had a rather conflicted attitude towards divination.

I never expected that my cousin would have such a talent.

However, when he noticed Andromeda's somewhat meaningful expression and Harry's hesitant look beside him, he felt as if he had grasped something.

He is a smart man.

Previously in Azkaban, Dumbledore did not explain how he discovered that Peter Pettigrew was still alive, only telling him that he would understand after his release.

Sirius's gaze swept back and forth between Andromeda and Harry's faces, finally settling on Ryze's calm face.

His voice trembled: "So, you saw the truth back then, didn't you?"

Chapter 122: Sirius's Night Wandering Experience and Marauder's Map

“It’s actually quite simple,” Reese met Sirius’s gaze. “An innocent person shouldn’t stay in Azkaban and presumptuously try to atone for their sins, especially when a real traitor is lurking around Harry and could be a threat at any time.”

Because of the fact that Peter Pettigrew had been lurking around them for a whole semester, Harry and Ron have felt lingering fear more than once these past few days.

Ron even touched his neck, expressing his amazement that he was still alive.

After all, Pettigrew himself made it very clear that he didn't kill Harry not because he couldn't bring himself to do it, but because he wanted to continue observing the situation in the wizarding world.

Voldemort didn't return; after Sirius Black dies, Pettigrew will return as a hero.

If Voldemort returns, Pettigrew plans to kidnap Harry to claim credit.

Ryze continued, "Now that I've noticed this potential problem, I'll naturally try to solve it first. However, my own abilities are insufficient, and I'm not convincing enough, so I can only ask Professor Dumbledore to verify it."

He looked at Sirius lying on the hospital bed: "Fortunately, you are still conscious. Professor Dumbledore is very efficient. He handled this matter in just a few days and even thoughtfully removed my traces."

Sirius was silent for a long time before nodding: "Being cautious is the right thing to do, son. You did the right thing, much smarter than we were back then."

“Abu has thought things through very thoroughly. I know those Death Eaters better than anyone else what they are capable of. You are only 11 years old and should not be facing these things yet.”

He sat up straight and reached out to pat Rizz on the shoulder: "Thank you, Rizz."

"Although I know that no amount of thanks can fully express my gratitude, I still want to thank you. You pulled me out of that hellhole, captured Peter Pettigrew, and saved Harry. Without you, I really don't know what my future would have been like..."

Harry went over to comfort Sirius.

"Everything is alright now, Sirius."

“Yes, everything is getting better,” Sirius said with unusual firmness. “Riz, if you ever need my help in the future, I swear, as long as I’m alive, I’ll stand behind you.”

Seeing that Sirius was getting agitated again, Andromeda spoke up at the right moment: "Alright, let's save the touching words for after we're discharged. If we don't eat soon, the food will get cold."

As the topic ended, the atmosphere in the ward relaxed considerably.

Harry seemed very happy. He sat on the edge of the bed, eating a sandwich and telling Sirius about his life at Hogwarts, about Hagrid, about Quidditch, and of course, about the predictions Rhett had given him.

Rizzi ate quietly to the side, occasionally adding a few details that Harry had missed.

Harry didn't mention the incident of someone putting a curse on his broom during the Quidditch match; he only mentioned that Rhett told him before the holidays that he would have some amazing experiences.

Then Harry mentioned that in addition to meeting his godfather Sirius Black, he also received an invisibility cloak from Dumbledore, which came from his father.

“Oh, the invisibility cloak. James did a lot of things with us back then using the invisibility cloak. We would wear it almost every night and wander the corridors after curfew. Felch never caught us... We even deliberately left some interesting things in his office before graduation, things he'll never know the truth about.”

He winked at Harry and Rhett: "If you're interested, you can try searching his office. I think he'll probably put that thing in a 'highly dangerous' drawer. Trust me, if you find that thing, it will make your life at Hogwarts several times more enjoyable."

"What is that?" Harry couldn't help but lean forward and ask curiously.

“A map of Hogwarts Castle, Harry, but not one of those mass-produced ones you can buy at Flourish and Blotts,” Sirius lowered his voice, but his tone revealed an undisguised lightness. “It was our greatest masterpiece while we were at school. To make it, we practically scoured the library’s restricted section for all the tracking and location magic, and we also studied alchemy for a long time.”

He glanced at Reese, pleased with Reese's equally curious attitude, and continued, "Of course, the most crucial thing is the internal authority of Hogwarts Castle, which only the Headmaster of Hogwarts has."

“I secretly took some old things left by our great-great-grandfather, Finias, from home. He was the headmaster of Hogwarts, and although he had a terrible reputation, he did have that authority.”

"In short, we put in a lot of effort and found a way to bypass some of the permissions through those things before we finally created the map that could reflect the situation at Hogwarts in real time."

Sirius encouraged Harry and Rhett to retrieve the map, adding that it wasn't just animated; it contained even more amazing details.

Hearing this, Andromeda, who was standing nearby, rubbed his forehead slightly, feeling somewhat helpless towards Sirius.

However, this is how Gryffindor is, and it can also be considered an interaction between Sirius and his godson.

To be honest, she and Ted had both broken many school rules back then for their private dates, so she didn't intend to stop them.

"If no students have emerged in recent years who are even more mischievous than we were back then, then that map should still be there."

He lowered his voice as if conveying top-secret information, imparting his experience as someone who had been there: "Listen, Felch's office is on the ground floor of the castle. The locks on both the office and the drawers can be unlocked with a simple lock-picking spell."

"If you really want to make a move, you'd better do it on Friday night or during a Quidditch match. That's when Felch is usually patrolling the entrance to the Great Hall or the edge of the pitch. That's when he's most vigilant outside and when his office is least vulnerable."

“I have an invisibility cloak, I can try to find a way to do it,” Harry said, his adventurous spirit from Gryffindor coming to the fore at that moment.

Sirius was very pleased with Harry's attitude.

Then she looked at Ryze: "Ryze, what do you think? You're interested in it too, right?"

Rizzi nodded naturally.

He was naturally very curious about something as amazing as Marauder's Map.

"But I'm more curious about how it's made."

Chapter 123: The Secret of the Marauder's Map

"Besides reflecting the layout of the Hogwarts staircase, the map also reveals..." He continued, "You said you searched through every book in the forbidden section related to tracking and locating objects for this map, and even went to great lengths to bypass the restrictions on Hogwarts Castle."

"Then I think the map you created might also show the whereabouts of some specific people within the castle."

Sirius laughed smugly, "That's right, but that's not all!"

"That map can show the name of everyone in Hogwarts. The name of each of the thousands of people in Hogwarts Castle will appear precisely on that map according to their current location."

"Even with the magic of Hogwarts Castle, no matter what method you use to disguise yourself—Polyhydral Solution, Disillusionment Charm, or Invisibility Cloak—your name and footprints will appear on that parchment in real time as long as you are within the castle grounds!"

"Of course, as the creators, we also left ourselves a little 'backdoor'. By reciting a specific password, our own names can be temporarily hidden on the map, so even if the map falls into enemy hands, they won't be able to find our location."

"Can even see through the Invisibility Cloak?" Harry didn't know what Polyjuice Potion and the Disillusionment Charm were, but he knew how useful his Invisibility Cloak was. Hearing this, he looked at Sirius in shock.

"Doesn't that mean that there are absolutely no secrets in Hogwarts in front of someone with a map?"

“That’s true in theory, Harry,” Sirius nodded first, then shook his head. “But no one can guarantee they know all the secrets of Hogwarts, not even Albus. We’ve just recorded the secrets we’ve discovered in our seven years at Hogwarts on a map, but James and I are pretty sure there are still many places in Hogwarts that we haven’t even been to.”

Sirius turned to Ryze: "I will teach you how to adjust and improve that map later. If you find any secret passages that are not recorded on the map, you can also update those places on the map."

Ryze nodded, then asked Sirius, "So, does this map have a search or highlighting function?"

"For example, when I only want to focus on a specific group, such as a prefect or professor, or when a specific person enters my pre-defined 'warning zone,' can the map provide a notification in some way?"

Sirius was stunned when he heard Rizz's idea, then quickly began to think.

"Search? Highlight key points?"

He looked up, his eyes filled with astonishment: "What a brilliant idea, Ryze!"

"Back then, we only thought about recording everyone's names, which sometimes resulted in parchments being so densely packed with names that it was difficult to find the target we were looking for at a glance."

"If we had had your ideas back then, Marauder's Map might have been even more perfect."

He stroked his chin, pondering the improvement plan proposed by Ryze: "Hmm... these functions are not difficult in theory. We just need to add some filtering runes to the existing rune logic and then use arithmetic divination to perform some corresponding calculations, which should be enough."

"However, the prerequisite is that you have to get your hands on that parchment first. After all, that parchment was originally a blank document with a pre-signed name and magical properties, created by Finias when he was the principal to save trouble. Albus wouldn't leave such a loophole now."

He chuckled, expressing his "gratitude" to that ancestor.

“It was thanks to his laziness that we came up with a solution. Although we should be able to find other blank documents in the old Blake house, the workload of recreating a map from scratch is just too great. Even if you really have that idea, it’s best to find the old Marauder’s Map first and study it slowly,” Blake said. He explained that it took them more than a year to complete the initial framework of the map, and the subsequent adjustments took almost another year.

Upon hearing this, Harry, who was already completely absorbed in the map his father and the others had created, said that he planned to scout it out as soon as he returned to Hogwarts that night.

"I'll handle this. Once you're back, Ryze, we can find an opportunity to make our move."

“I understand,” Ryze nodded. Although it was possible to create a new Marauder's Map, it would obviously be more efficient to have an older map to refer to.

He knew that the Marauder's Map should already be in the hands of the Weasley brothers.

But let Harry wander around the school a few more times while wearing the invisibility cloak.

There's another amazing thing happening during this holiday that Harry hasn't experienced yet.

......

During the next few days of the holiday, news of Sirius's regained freedom spread quickly.

Just as Dumbledore and Andromeda said, Sirius has been very busy these days.

Even though those pure-blood families had previously been eager to divide up the Lake family's resources, they have temporarily put aside that idea now that Sirius has appeared.

Ryze sat in a corner of the ward, holding the alchemy introductory books recommended by Sirius Black, receiving guidance from Sirius while watching wave after wave of visitors.

The Malfoys sent a basket of expensive magical fruits and a beautifully written letter of condolence.

Although Lucius Malfoy himself did not appear, the tone of the letter, which expressed his "deep sorrow for the fate of the Black family," made Sirius Black immediately throw it into the wastebasket.

“It’s so hypocritical it’s nauseating. The Malfoy family was one of the core members of the Death Eaters back then, and he probably knew from the beginning who the real traitor was. He just used the excuse that he was under the Imperius Curse to avoid being held accountable. All these years, he and Narcissa have never thought of seeking justice for me,” Sirius wiped his hands with disgust. “When I was sent to Azkaban, they probably celebrated with three days of champagne at Malfoy Manor.”

The Ministry of Magic acted swiftly. Fudge not only personally led a group of reporters to offer his sincere condolences, but also sent one of his trusted subordinates to negotiate compensation with Sirius.

As Ryze watched the old woman in the pink suit, who looked a bit like a toad, give Sirius a fawning smile and ask him in a low voice if he was satisfied with the compensation, Ryze, unusually, couldn't resist taking a stroll outside the ward.

Just as Ryze was getting some fresh air outside the ward, he noticed a haggard-looking man in an old robe slowly walking towards the ward.

Chapter 124: Moon Face and Big Feet

The corridors of St. Mungo's Hospital were filled with the strong smell of potions, but after getting used to the smell, Rhett began to try to analyze the ingredients and possible brewing methods of these potions by smelling them.

Many people have come to visit Sirius in this VIP ward these past few days.

The pure-blood nobles who came to visit were usually dressed in fine silk robes.

The officials from the Ministry of Magic were more formal, including Umbridge, the pink toad who was still in the hospital room. Apart from the somewhat jarringly bright color scheme, they had clearly tidied their clothes and appearance before coming.

Until now, Ryze saw a down-on-his-luck man wearing an old, worn-out robe.

His hair was a mix of gray and white, making him look much older than his actual age, and his face showed signs of fatigue from years of hard work.

The man stopped in front of the ward, a complex emotion flashing in his eyes.

He looked at Ryze beside him and asked, "Excuse me, is this Sirius Black's hospital room?"

"Yes, sir, but he's dealing with officials from the Ministry of Magic right now, and I don't think you'll like the atmosphere in the room. I only came out for some fresh air because I couldn't stand it."

A flicker of unease crossed the man's eyes when he heard the words "Ministry of Magic."

Then he asked Raz, "Thank you, I'm Remus Rupin... I used to be Sirius's friend, and I'm here to visit him. And who are you?"