From Azkaban to Hogwarts.

"Want to come sit in my office for a while?"

William greeted the two men with a smile, and then he heard a dry, agreeing reply.

"Let's go then."

He figured the student traps below would at least hold out for a while, so he decided not to just wait there idly and instead ask these two guys, who were clearly the leaders, what exactly they had planned.

The twins followed William dejectedly—being locked up was nothing compared to the fact that the pranks had only just begun…

William, on the other hand, seemed unfazed, smiling and occasionally glancing back to see if the two had any new mischief in mind…

However, this seemingly ordinary journey suddenly came to a halt halfway through.

William stopped in his tracks—Peeves had suddenly appeared in the corridor ahead, looking serious.

This is very unusual, extremely unusual…

William can assure you that he has never seen a Peeves like this before.

It was so serious it was almost unbelievable... There was no chalk, no dung ball, no water-filled balloons or smelly socks or any other props in its hand; to be precise, there were no prank props at all.

As a wizard who had dealt with ghosts many times, William knew a bit about Peeves, and since William entered the school, he had never seen Peeves stop the professors in their office.

But what's going on today?

William discovered that his wand had been pulled out, but Peeves showed no sign of moving.

This was quite unusual—William suddenly recalled the Peeves outbreak recorded in the school history…

'Are you kidding me? Is it really today?'

He felt a slight toothache—damn it, the students were still having an interesting assessment, and the portrait was still helping him keep an eye on things. Was today going to be canceled because of this unexpected event?

Just as William was about to report to Dumbledore, Peeves suddenly landed next to the twins, took off his funnel-shaped hat, and bowed to them.

This scene was extremely rare, but William's mind suddenly began to race. The song of Pippi the Ghost that he had heard before suddenly came to mind, and he suddenly understood the meaning of the song back then.

'After a grand, positive prank, under the moonlight…'

Chapter 555 Gryffindor's Pranks

What is going on?

William looked at Peeves with a hint of uncertainty in his eyes.

He considered himself to be quite knowledgeable after experiencing the darkness of Azkaban and seeing the First White Wizard's office—but what the hell was this scene?

He knew how ferocious Peeves was. Although Filch kept saying he wanted to expel Peeves from Hogwarts, the previous administrators' painful experiences had proven that this idea was best left as a mere thought, or it could really turn into a disaster.

He was a little confused about the song's specific meaning—literally speaking, it should mean that witnessing Pippi's singing under the moonlight and then staging a grand, well-intentioned prank would trigger some strange scene, but what was this definition?

Is it consequentialism? Idealism? Or should it be determined by the pixie ghost?

Who orchestrated this ritual? Was it left behind by the four founders? By the first magician who helped build the castle? Or could it even be a hoax?

He didn't know, but that didn't affect Pipi Ghost's actions at all.

After bowing, Pikachu walked toward the wall—the wall it passed through instantly turned into a transparent area with a phantom image.

"this…"

The twins were somewhat tempted, but still looked at William.

It's true they enjoy exploring the secrets within the castle, but they're currently carrying an undetermined punishment!

As for the danger, the two of them didn't even consider it.

"Wait a moment."

William waved his wand gently, attempting to use his Patronus to send a message—a technique Professor McGonagall had given him along with some general Animagus skills, which he was not yet proficient in, but could already use.

Unfortunately, just as the adorable hummingbird was about to fly away, it was blocked by an invisible force, as if it had hit glass, and could not fly away no matter what it did.

"This is…"

William paused for a moment, then decisively shouted to the two, "Come on, keep up! You seem to have triggered something amazing!"

"Follow me closely!"

William's tone was slightly excited. He then decisively activated his shield and walked to the front, easily passing through the illusory walls.

He was very familiar with this power—it was the protective force of the entire castle!

He has built various mazes many times, especially during last year's Three Kingdoms Tournament. Although he couldn't mobilize this power, he has dealt with it countless times.

'Just as I suspected, Peeves can even mobilize the castle's power when necessary; otherwise, there's no reason why the headmaster and a group of professors were so badly defeated by it…'

'So, is this protective power really... left behind by the founder?'

William carefully surveyed his surroundings while pondering the situation, occasionally glancing at his twin brothers behind him.

He was certain that the passage they were taking did not belong to any known secret passage, and there was not even such a passage in Hogwarts—because they had passed directly through several secret passages, and all the beings present were lightly moved aside to make way for them.

'This is…'

William walked up one slope, then another, and after a moment's thought, he figured out their destination—the Gryffindor common room!

The twins behind him also noticed this, and the two exchanged a glance and quickly communicated with their eyes.

'Outrageous…'

When Peeves finally stopped, William's eyes turned strange.

He was fairly certain who did it, and he had very clear evidence.

Their current location was extremely strange—William knew that the entrance to Gryffindor's common room was marked by a portrait of the Fat Lady. After the Fat Lady opened the passage, Gryffindor students had to pass through a hole in the wall to enter the common room, and they were now positioned slightly next to the Fat Lady, even able to see the transparent, hidden passageway…

This is a small room, cleverly nestled between the common lounge and the tower's exterior wall...

'The treasure hidden beneath the common room—I refuse to believe it's not a huge joke played by Gryffindor and his students.'

William couldn't help but glance at the twins behind him.

Gryffindors play pranks for fun, but when it comes to serious pranks, it's Gryffindors who do it.

This place, hidden next to the Gryffindor common room, has been hidden for thousands of years, and no one knows how many people have uncovered its secret.

He examined the room. In the center of the not-so-large room was a stone table with five items scattered on it. Judging from the empty spaces, there should have originally been seven or eight items on it—William couldn't be sure.

Pipi Ghost pointed at the table, and a piece of text appeared directly at one of the places William was unsure about.

Choose one, don't be greedy.

"A well-intentioned prank always gets a well-intentioned reward..."

"Perhaps you just want a great adventure..."

...

William shook his head at the Sorting Hat's poetic verses—he was pretty sure who made this thing.

Taking something requires almost no effort; simply sign a very simple and effective contract, and forget about the prank after you leave, and you can take it.

William checked the contract—no problem. The only problem now was that only one item would be taken away each time it was opened.

"Forget it... we can't just steal the students' opportunities..."

Gryffindor's treasure is certainly interesting, and only two of the seven items were taken, so there are plenty of other options. But it's not a big deal—doesn't he still have a crown that's only for show and not for use?

And, to be honest, if he's not mistaken... one of the two items that were taken from inside is now in his possession.

"professor?"

Fred's quiet question interrupted William's speculation. He turned around, smiled at the two of them, and said, "Alright, pick your spoils. Don't try to joke with the guards here. I swear on Merlin's beard, I can't beat Peeves now."

We really can't beat them—unless we're determined to tear the school down, but what's the point of even talking about that?

"Are they real?"

"Really, and it's safe enough."

William nodded, endorsing what was there.

The two nodded together and then quickly ran to the stone table—a simple description would appear when they stood in front of it.

"An even better adventure!"

In just this simple sentence, the thing on the table looks like a pot.

"More time!"

There was something on the table that looked like a time converter, but after William looked closely, he realized that it was actually an empty potion bottle with a special shape.

"More accurate intelligence!"

This is empty—it's been taken.

More money!

This time it's a cloth bag.

"Lighter steps!"

These are shoes made of linen.

A more certain future!

This one is empty too. William can now determine exactly what that more accurate intelligence is.

"More wisdom!"

On the table was a crown prototype that looked somewhat like a Ravenclaw crown—but it was definitely not real; the real one was still in the headmaster's office.

William seemed fine, but the twins simply shook their heads—they had a very unpleasant experience last time they wore the crowns, and now they were both preoccupied with what their great invention was, unable to recall it yet.

"Watch carefully, then make your choice—you two will be locked up again!"

William very kindly reminded his students that the assessment was still in progress outside, and that the two students who had performed a wonderful positive prank should go to solitary confinement after receiving their Gryffindor rewards.

The smiles on their faces froze for a moment, then they looked at each other, nodded, and walked resolutely toward the cloth bag.

"Think it over carefully. That's most likely a pocket with a transformation spell on it, which can produce some gold—maybe a valuable item, but it won't be of much help to a wizard."

William didn't stop the two from choosing other options—but the extra money was simply... other things were truly irreplaceable!

"We've thought it through, Professor!"