The Silent Witch of Hogwarts

Chapter 543 The Silent Ghost

Late at night, Hogwarts was unusually quiet. Without the noisy students, Severus Snape felt a long-lost sense of peace.

Without those chattering students, he felt a sense of relief walking down the corridor.

Snape never felt that he liked Hogwarts, except during holidays, and of course, during his first few years as a student.

He strode up the stairs, flicked his robes, and turned the corner. He was quickly completing his patrol duties as the professor staying on campus before throwing himself into his potion-making work.

However, as he approached the Astronomy Tower of Ravenclaw, he suddenly frowned slightly.

A faint creaking sound came from the wooden planks of the empty corridor; Hogwarts, which should have been deserted, had somehow acquired a guest.

Snape tightened his grip on his wand, then looked scrutinizingly at the source of the voice.

Hogwarts was no longer what it used to be. In addition to the Death Eaters, there was also the Ministry of Magic, which was always up to something—whoever infiltrated Hogwarts had their own purpose.

Snape snorted and then tiptoed slowly up the stairs. As he walked, he raised his wand and pointed it at the intruder. The moment the intruder showed his face, he would strike and show him that Hogwarts was not a place for someone like him.

"Clatter".

Footsteps sounded again from upstairs, very light—indicating the intruder wasn't heavy, or perhaps because he had noticed them.

But before Snape could think about it, he heard a series of noises coming from upstairs.

It sounded as if the intruder had knocked over one of the armor stands, making a jarring noise that made Snape frown.

Who brought in these intruders? Their clumsy movements are truly appalling.

"Ugh!"

Upon hearing that voice, Snape had an "I see" expression on his face.

It was Miss Hamilton—and then everything seemed to make sense.

Snape was just about to step forward and give the lazy lady a fright when he coughed as if he remembered something.

"Miss Hamilton." Instead of blindly trying to frighten Loila, he called her name first.

"Huh?" Miss Hamilton's head peeked out from the gap in the spiral staircase. She looked down somewhat awkwardly and saw Snape looking up at her.

When Royla met Snape's gaze, she was so frightened that she shrank back and sat down on the ground.

"Ah—Professor Snape, don't panic—I'll clean this up right away!"

Snape shook his head silently, then stepped forward.

Miss Hamilton's abilities with spells are truly unparalleled, and by the time Snape approached her, the chaotic scene that should have existed was neatly organized.

Glancing at the armor rack beside Loyra, Snape coughed and said, "Miss Hamilton—if I'm not mistaken, it's a holiday, isn't it?"

"Why don't I see any signs that you miss school life so much?"

"Ah—I—I have something to do." Loila awkwardly fidgeted with her fingers. She hadn't expected to be caught—and not only that, but it was Professor Snape.

"What is it?" Snape asked coldly.

"I—that—" Loila thought for a long time before finally managing to squeeze out, "I want to find—find a ghost to ask some questions."

"A ghost?" Snape raised an eyebrow. "What could you possibly ask me?"

"The magic circle—the matter of the magic circle," Loila said, half-jokingly, "and the ghost is—is Lady Ravenclaw."

"Ms. Ravenclaw?" Snape paused before saying, "You mean Helena Ravenclaw from Ravenclaw House?"

"Yes—yes." Loila nodded seriously and said, "Professor Snape, do you know where she is?"

"You might find something interesting if you go up to the top of the tower," Snape said, raising an eyebrow at Loira's knowing look. "But before you do, I need to warn you something."

"Hmm?"

"She's not the talkative ghost," Snape said with a cold laugh. "And then there's—"

He reached out and placed his hand on the armor stand, saying slowly, "I've heard that the armor stands at Hogwarts are all alive—if you displease them, they might come looking for you in the middle of the night."

"Hmm!"

"Of course—it's just a rumor." Snape smiled, looking at Royla, whose face was a little pale. "Who knows if it's true or not?"

"And it's unlikely that it would be such a coincidence—that I would just happen to come looking for you, right?"

With that, Snape walked away; he had his own business to attend to.

After watching Professor Snape leave, Royla stood there for a few minutes, trying to catch her breath.

What Professor Snape said probably isn't true, right?

After all, strictly speaking, this wasn't the first time she'd knocked over an armor stand—she glanced at the armor stand in front of her, pursed her lips slightly, and then carefully walked a little further away.

However, Professor Snape had just said that she was at the top of the tower—Loira looked up and saw that she wasn't far from the top of the Astronomy Tower, so she took a deep breath, pursed her lips, and started walking up.

Soon, she arrived at the top of Ravenclaw Tower, which served as the Ravenclaw house's lounge and dormitories, a place Loila had visited several times before.

If she remembered correctly, entering this place required answering one question—

She glanced at the eagle-headed gate in front of her, coughed, and prepared to answer the question, but before she could even open her mouth, she suddenly felt a chill.

A white ghost emerged from behind the door and then floated past Loila, startling her.

This was a rather melancholic-looking female ghost. She kept her head slightly bowed and remained silent. Upon seeing her, Loila paused for a moment before speaking, "Um—excuse me, are you—Ms. Helena Ravenclaw?"

The ghost was silent for a few seconds, then turned its head slightly to look at Loila.

"Um, there's something I want to say—" Loila had barely finished speaking when the ghost silently shook its head, then lowered its body and disappeared.

eh?

She doesn't seem to want to chat with me—did I say something that upset her?

Or—what's wrong?

Loila looked down, but all she could see was the floor.

She has left completely, without saying a single word to me.

This is a bit awkward—I came here to help your mother with something—well, actually I'm also doing something for myself.

But why wouldn't she say a single word to him?

Is it because I didn't bring a gift?

Loila thought for a few seconds but still didn't understand the reason—but it seemed she would need to come see her a few more times.

Well!

Loila clenched her fists slightly to encourage herself.

I can't give up in order to control Hogwarts!