Magical Studies at Hogwarts...

Chapter 166 Initial Display of Ancient Magic Learning Results

On February 23rd, Ike was unusually not with Hermione. It wasn't for any particular reason, but simply because Harry hadn't yet come up with a viable way to get through the second project, and Hermione and Ron were trying to find a solution for him.

However, before they could find a clue, Hermione and Ron were summoned by George. Professor McGonagall had invited them, and they had to go.

Harry continued his search alone until Mrs. Pince kicked him out of the library, but he still had no clue.

Carrying a thick stack of books, Harry spent the entire night searching in the common room, but to no avail. Suddenly, an idea struck him. He went back to his dormitory, put on his invisibility cloak, and quietly returned to the library.

This time, his target was the restricted book section.

In the early hours of the morning, Harry, who was still searching, finally couldn't hold on any longer and fell asleep.

When he woke up, there were only ten minutes left before the second project started.

"I'm not going, I'm giving up." Faced with Dobby waking him up, Harry chose to give up.

"Mr. Harry Potter has to go; he has to get his son back from the mermaids!"

"Wei Zai? What's that?"

"Your son, sir! The son who gave his sweater to Dobby!"

"You mean... Ron?"

"Yes, that's Mr. Harry Potter's favorite!" Dobby struggled to pull Harry up and stuffed a grayish-green thing that looked like a rat's tail into his mouth.

"Gill grass, Mr. Harry Potter needs this; it allows you to breathe underwater!"

After receiving Dobby's repeated assurances and learning that Dobby had learned the method from overhearing the professors' conversation, Harry had no more worries. He stuffed the Invisibility Cloak into his backpack and strode towards the Black Lake.

Fortunately, he wasn't late; unfortunately, he didn't have time to catch his breath.

"Is it alright, Harry?" Ludo asked in a low voice, holding his wand.

"I'm...I'm alright." Harry was panting, only slightly relieved.

Ludo said nothing more, patted Harry on the shoulder, and walked to the referee's table. His wand pressed against his throat, just like in the Quidditch World Cup.

"A loud and clear voice!"

"Ladies and gentlemen, our warriors are ready. At my whistle, the second event will begin!"

"They had a full hour to get their stolen goods back!"

"Let's start the countdown!"

"three!"

"two!"

"one!"

Whistles sounded, and deafening cheers erupted from the makeshift stands by the Black Lake. Without hesitation, Krum and Fleur jumped into the icy water. Harry didn't dawdle either, stuffing a large clump of gill grass into his mouth before leaping in as well.

Only Ike remained standing on the shore.

"Get in the water, Ike!"

"What are you doing!"

Shouts came from the audience, including those from Stewart. Ike heard them, turned around, and smiled at them.

He then drew his wand and tossed it into the air. The wand spun twice before pointing straight into the depths of the Black Lake.

With a slight twitch of his fingers and a single step, amidst the gasps of the audience, Ike stepped onto the lake's surface, as if it were flat ground, and slowly walked towards the Black Lake, following the direction indicated by his wand.

"Amazing spellcasting ability!" Lady Maxim murmured from the judges' stand. It sounded like she was talking to herself, and no one else seemed to hear her, but Dumbledore clapped his hands, a slight smile playing on his lips, a stark contrast to Karkaroff's cold expression beside him.

After about ten minutes, Ike finally stopped. By then, he was quite far from the shore, the people in the stands had become a blur, and even the stands themselves were just an outline.

Reaching out, he grasped the wand with its tip pointing straight down, and with a gentle wave, the lake water beneath his feet parted naturally, and his body slowly sank downwards.

It was as if a bubble had enveloped Ike. He wasn't in a hurry, letting the bubble slowly sink, even having the leisure to admire the scenery in the Black Lake.

Gradually, the surroundings grew darker and darker, then after a while, it inexplicably became much brighter again. Looking down, there was a huge mermaid statue, with four people firmly tied to its tail.

A melodious and beautiful song rang out, as the mermaids guided the warriors. They surrounded the statue, all looking up at the slowly descending bubbles.

She waved her hand as if to greet the ugly mermaids, and the bubble slowly drifted towards the statue's tail. There, Hermione seemed to be asleep, her head drooping limply, a string of tiny bubbles constantly rising from her mouth.

"A sleeping spell? And... a hair-soaking spell that changed some places?"

With just one glance, Ike saw through the magic applied to Hermione; it was no challenge for him at all.

With a flick of his left hand, the straw rope binding Hermione's feet and tying her to the statue snapped in two; with another flick, the rope on her feet also broke, and she sank to the bottom of the lake.

Slowly, the bubble moved closer to Hermione, enveloping her inside. He supported Hermione with his left hand, and gently tapped her head with his wand in his right.

"Hermione, wake up, it's time to get up..."

As Ike spoke softly, Hermione's eyelids slowly twitched, and her eyes gradually opened.

"Are you the first one, Ike?"

"Of course, it will be a long time before they find this place," Ike said with a smile, naturally taking Hermione's hand.

Hermione looked curiously at the bubble enveloping the two of them, poked it with her other hand, and easily passed through it, surrounded by the cool lake water. But strangely, the bubble was still dry, without a single drop of water.

"This is……"

"A little trick, you can find it in those books."

Hermione lowered her head slightly, then suddenly looked at Ike, her eyes flashing with inexplicable emotions.

"Ike, can you show me just how capable you are right now?"

As if reading Hermione's eyes, Ike nodded slightly, pressed his wand down, and the bubbles sank again until their feet were firmly planted on the bottom of the lake.

He gently tossed the wand aside, glanced at the direction the tip was pointing, and then grasped it again.

"Hermione, do you remember Exodus?" Ike smiled brightly. "Of course, it also has a touch of it in the legend of Merlin."

After saying that, he stepped out of the bubble, and the lake water naturally parted, clinging tightly to Ike but not falling onto him.

Holding the wand in his right hand and holding it upright in front of his chest, Ike lowered his head and slowly stretched his left hand forward.

A celestial melody, seemingly from ancient times, resounded, distant and lingering. A breeze seemed to stir at the bottom of the lake, and the surrounding water plants slowly bowed in the same direction, their hems swaying along with the fabric of Ike's robe.

Suddenly, Ike swung his hand, raising his wand upwards while simultaneously pushing forward with his left hand.

"boom!"

"Splash!"

Looking at the lake that seemed to have been cleaved in two by a sharp sword, and the cascading water wall, the bubble that had been enveloping Hermione had disappeared at some point.

With her feet firmly planted on solid ground, Hermione felt that everything was unreal.

Just then, Ike turned around, reached out and took Hermione's hand, a bright smile on his face.

"This is a legendary magic that only two people have mastered—the Sea Control Technique."

"Of course, I prefer to call it..."

"Moses parted the sea..."

(End of this chapter)