Hogwarts: Don't call me the Staff Maker

Chapter 795 The Gryffindor Common Room

"Where does this secret passage lead?"

Seeing Harry's question, Siren simply shook his head. "I had no idea there was a secret passage here."

"You mean this is new?" Hermione asked, stepping forward.

"That's right, it should have appeared together with Ariana's secret passage." Xiren opened the cabinet door and peered inside.

Below the stairs was a smooth passageway, with the same brass lamps they had just seen burning on the walls on both sides.

Xilun was the first to step onto the stone steps.

"Watch out!" Hermione said nervously, grabbing Siren's robe from behind.

"I want to see where this secret passage leads." Xiren turned to look at the two of them. "Do you want to come along? Or would you like to rest first?"

"I'll go with you."

Me too.

Harry and Hermione spoke almost simultaneously.

Although the two were exhausted and their eyelids were drawn to each other like magnets, they both decided to stay with Xiren.

After all, a secret passage of unknown origin had suddenly appeared in the room, and no one knew where it would lead on the other side—whether it was a corridor in the school, a professor's office, or the most troublesome principal's office.

What if someone sneaks in from the other side while they're sleeping? Before they figure this out, they won't be able to fall asleep even if they actually lie down in bed.

Thinking of this, the two of them turned their heads at the same time to look at Ron, who was sleeping soundly, and felt a little envious for some reason.

If they went to bed earlier, wouldn't they be spared all these troublesome worries?

Despite their thoughts, they still followed Xilun into the secret passage.

The staircase was long and maze-like, with unexpected turns, and the brass lamps on both sides were not bright enough, so they had to use additional illumination spells to see the path under their feet.

After walking for about ten minutes, they came to what seemed to be a solid wall.

"Get in!" Harry said to Siren and Hermione, taking out his Invisibility Cloak and covering the three of them. Siren then gently pushed the wall.

The bricks in the wall immediately parted to reveal a narrow passage, and they slipped outside. Xiren glanced back and saw that the wall was sealed again. But if they reached out and touched it, the passage would reappear.

"Sirlen, you'll never guess where we are!" Harry's excited voice came from ahead.

Xiren looked up and realized they were standing in a bright, spacious room, with a crackling fireplace nearby and several gold and red armchairs scattered haphazardly in the distance. And most importantly, there were those familiar faces coming and going.

The exit on the other side of the secret passage led to Gryffindor's common room!

Harry couldn't help but gasp, and immediately people looked over.

Fortunately, Siron reacted quickly and retreated back into the secret passage the instant Harry made a sound. The remaining Invisibility Cloak was just enough to completely cover Harry and Hermione.

In the common room, Ginny was staring intently at the fireplace. Neville, who had just come downstairs, saw this.

He glanced at the fireplace in confusion, but saw nothing.

"Ginny, what's wrong?"

"I think I just heard Harry's voice," Ginny said.

"How could that be? You must have misheard." Neville waved his hand. "When I came out of the dormitory, they were still broadcasting Harry and the others' wanted posters. They're not stupid; why would they risk coming to Hogwarts at this time?"

"You're right." Ginny glanced at the fireplace one last time, a thoughtful look in her eyes.

"Let's hurry up and have breakfast, we still have that old witch's class later."

"Alright—but Neville, you'd better not call Carol that in front of Slytherin again, or she definitely won't let you off the hook."

"I'm not afraid." Neville walked ahead with his neck stiff. "I'm not only going to say this to Slytherin, but I won't hold back even in front of that old witch. It's not like I've been punished before."

"Speaking of which, did she really use the Cruciatus Curse on you? Although that's what the Slytherins all say, I think you—"

"Hmm, it doesn't seem like the pain of the Cruciatus Curse."

Ginny paused, then quickly explained, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean anything by it, but I've seen people under the Cruciatus Curse, and they're nowhere near as energetic as you."

“I know, because I’ve never been hit by the Cruciatus Curse.” Neville scratched his head. “It’s strange, but I went to the old witch’s office on Saturday to be punished. To be honest, I was mentally prepared, but she denied it and told me to behave myself—and then kicked me out.”

"You mean she forgot about putting you in solitary confinement?"

"That seems to be the case," Neville said, "but it's also possible that she has another scheme and is saying this on purpose."

"That's possible, but we'd better be careful."

"That's what I think too."

As they talked, the two climbed out of the Gryffindor common room through the passageway.

As fewer and fewer people remained, the last Gryffindor left the common room when there were still five minutes left before the first class.

The large room immediately fell silent, with only the crackling sound from the fireplace remaining.

At that moment, Harry and Hermione pulled off the Invisibility Cloak.

"Harry, you almost got us discovered!" Hermione glared angrily at Harry. "At least six people were looking this way just now. If it weren't for Siren, we would have been found out!"

"Sorry, I was just so surprised." Harry blushed slightly. "I've lived here for six years and never knew there was a secret passage by the fireplace leading to the Room of Requirement."

"Me too," Hermione said.

"I guess this place, like the entrance to the Room of Requirement, is newly appeared." At that moment, Siren also emerged from the secret passage.

"If this place had always existed, perhaps we wouldn't have discovered it, but Fred and George certainly did."

“That’s right.” Harry nodded in agreement. “They can even tell the difference between every single stone here.”

Fred and George's familiarity with Hogwarts goes beyond just the Marauder's Map.

It's no exaggeration to say that if Colin casually took a picture in a corner of the Gryffindor common room, Fred and George could easily spot the corresponding location based on the features in the photo.

If there had been a secret passage here before, they would have found it long ago. But they never mentioned it.

"Anyway, this is good news. It's better than being in some professor's office, isn't it?"

Harry yawned.

"I think we can go back now. We can talk about the secret passage later. I'm too tired and want to sleep for a while—"

"Harry!"

Just then, a sudden exclamation interrupted Harry's words and instantly dispelled his sleepiness.

"Oh my god, it really is you!"