Magical Studies at Hogwarts...

Chapter 69 Little Black

It was already evening when I came out of the Room of Requirement.

Ike had been busy all day and was starving. He put the shrunken box into his pocket and headed straight for the auditorium.

As we entered the auditorium, dinner had just begun.

Professor Flitwick waved to Ike as he entered, gesturing for him to sit down. Ike nodded slightly in return, found an empty seat at the long table, and gulped down a large mouthful of pumpkin juice, which relieved him somewhat.

Dinner during the Christmas break was the same as usual, but since not many people stayed on campus, everyone sat casually and didn't sit according to their college as they would during regular school days.

Ike saw Padma sit down at the Gryffindor table, right next to her sister Parvati. Cho and several Ravenclaw girls sat with the Hufflepuffs, and a few Quidditch players joined them, chatting and eating.

Very few of them actually remained on the Ravenclaw table.

After drinking another glass of pumpkin juice and finishing a steak, a fried egg, two German sausages, and half a plate of pasta, Ike's stomach finally protested.

He poured himself another glass of lemonade and sipped it slowly. Ike felt he needed to catch his breath before he could move; he really couldn't stand up right now.

As he was drinking, a brown-haired dumpling sat down in front of Ike with a glass of orange juice, along with a thin book placed on the table.

A quick glance revealed it to be the latest episode of "Today's Metamorphosis".

"Ike, where have you been all day? I've been looking for you all day," Hermione asked.

"I'm in the dorm," Ike replied, catching his breath. "What's up? What do you need?"

Hermione seemed a little embarrassed, and after a pause, she asked softly, "Ike, is your pet... Little Black, still there?"

Upon hearing this, Ike looked annoyed and shook his head, saying, "Little Black is missing. I don't know when he ran away. I've been looking for him for a long time but haven't found him."

"You saw it?"

"I think I... have seen him before..." Hermione hesitated for a moment, glancing at the professors' table but not seeing Snape. She continued, "I secretly went to Snape's private collection room before..."

"Oh!" Ike exclaimed in realization, "That attack last time was..."

"Yes!" Hermione quickly interrupted Ike, "Don't interrupt, listen to me..."

"For some reason, I needed some potion ingredients, and those were only in Snape's private collection room. So, while Harry was there... I sneaked in."

"After finding what I wanted, just as I was about to leave, I suddenly heard a noise that startled me!"

"I glanced over instinctively and vaguely saw a snake slither out the doorway..."

"Ike, I'm not sure if that's Blackie, but as far as I know, you're the only one at Hogwarts who keeps a snake..."

Ike understood, but his face showed anxiety.

"It must be it! Did you see it again after that?"

Hermione shook her head and said, "No, I haven't seen her since."

"Ike..." The little witch leaned forward slightly and asked in a low voice, "Little Black, did you really not send it?"

"No." Ike also lowered his voice, "Little Black had already been lost before that, and Jimmy was sad about it for a while."

"Feel sorry……"

Seeing that Ike was a little sad, Hermione apologized softly, "If I see it again, I'll definitely catch Little Black and give it to you."

"Thank you, Hermione," Ike replied, "if you see it again..."

Hermione was about to say something when she suddenly heard someone calling her from the Gryffindor long table behind her. She turned around and saw Harry and Ron.

"Alright Hermione, I think you should go back now. Ron doesn't look too good." Ike pointed to Ron behind Hermione, whose face was dark. "But I still want to thank you again for bringing me this news."

The little witch waved her hand, picked up "Today's Transfiguration" and her cup from the table, and stood up abruptly.

"Then I'm off, goodbye Ike."

She left in a huff without waiting for Ike's reply.

Watching Hermione and Ron bicker, Harry caught in the middle, Ike downed his lemonade and left the Great Hall.

"Comrade Voldemort, what are you looking for in Snape's private collection room?"

Sitting in his usual spot in the library, Ike casually picked up a book and opened it, but his mind wasn't on it at all.

It's certain that Comrade Xiao Fu has possessed Xiao Hei, but what's uncertain is what he's planning.

With Hogwarts as his backing and Snape being a renowned Potions Master in the wizarding world, even without ever having been there, Ike knew that Snape's collection must be unimaginably rich, some of which might even be items explicitly prohibited from being traded by the Ministry of Magic.

For example, dragons, unicorns...

"Could it be that they went there because of the unicorn's blood?"

Ike's knowledge of dark magic was limited to well-known spells like the Unforgivable Curse and the Fiendfyre, with perhaps a few additional curses and evil rituals. But dark magic was vast, and who knew if some evil spell or ritual could help Voldemort escape his current predicament?

Snape's private collection contained exactly what he needed.

After much thought, this was the only possibility I could come up with.

Unicorn blood can save lives. Given Comrade Xiao Fu's current condition, he certainly can't hunt in the Forbidden Forest like Comrade Lao Fu did last year, but Ike isn't sure if the blood of a dead unicorn has the same effect.

If so, then it can be confirmed that Comrade Xiao Fu is definitely after the unicorn blood; he wants to increase his power in order to continue his plan.

But if not, then things get complicated!

What's certain now is that he and Harry are definitely on Voldemort's final revenge list, and he might even be higher up in it. Therefore, once Voldemort regains his powers, he will certainly face a far more dangerous situation than he did throughout the year.

Will the attacks continue?

Ike wasn't sure, but Voldemort might actually do that, creating panic at the school, even leading to a lockdown. Of course, these weren't just side effects; the key was to expel Dumbledore from the school.

His chance will come as soon as Dumbledore leaves the school!

Suddenly, Ike remembered the magic that Voldemort used on Ginny in the original story—a magic that most likely revived itself by absorbing the life force of others!

"Yes, yes, he'll definitely find someone else! Maybe someone else, maybe it'll be..."

"Ginny!"

Ike hurriedly stuffed the book back onto the shelf, quickly left the library, and headed straight for the Gryffindor Tower.

Halfway there, he suddenly stopped and turned back towards the Ravenclaw lounge.

"No rush, no rush..."

Ike walked slowly back to his dorm, took out the box he had been keeping in his pocket, and then lay down on his bed.

"Comrade Xiao Fu definitely needs time, and I need time too..."

"With Hermione keeping an eye on it, it'll definitely be spotted as soon as it appears near Ginny..."

"The most urgent task is to find out why it went to Snape's private collection!"

"Perhaps I should go see Snape tomorrow..."

The image of Snape's cold face flashed through Ike's mind, and he couldn't help but shiver.

He sighed, then brought his right index and middle fingers together, pointing them at his head.

He collapsed to the ground, completely unconscious!

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(End of this chapter)