A certain Hogwarts professor of runes.

As Felix spoke, his palm passed through the golden flames, a tiny golden flame clinging to the tip of his index finger.

Hermione's eyes widened.

"Is it amazing? Not at all. You haven't yet discovered the true nature of this magic. It's not a particularly explosive spell, otherwise I wouldn't have taught it to you..."

……

Felix got busy at the start of the new week.

After finishing his classes at noon, he took a break and went to classroom number seven to write down the name on the stone tablet and hand it to Professor McGonagall.

When McGonagall saw the list of candidates, she was taken aback: "There's a second-year student too?"

“Yes, I didn’t expect that either,” Felix said. “Unless she has a very deep and positive understanding of fear itself…”

"What do you plan to do, Felix?"

Felix had a bit of a headache. "I'll talk to Severus about it. After all, she's a Slytherin student, and it seems she has an older sister in the same house..."

“I’ll talk to Severus.” Professor McGonagall pursed her lips and said seriously, “No matter what, I will not agree to involve second-year students. We’ve discussed the training plan, and frankly, I think it’s too radical, even for the fourth-year students…”

“Minerva, fourth graders aren’t exactly young anymore. They’re generally fourteen or fifteen, the age when they crave honor the most. If we try to expel them, someone might secretly send us a taunting letter,” Felix joked.

“...Alright, since you and Professor Moody both say so, and Albus doesn’t object.”

Professor McGonagall didn't press the matter further. These issues had been discussed more than once in the meeting, and she had actually agreed with them; she was just grumbling now. She changed the subject—

"Congratulations, Felix, Remus has landed a big order."

Chapter 367 Classroom No. 7

After his conversation with Professor McGonagall, Felix assigned only one homework assignment, similar to the essays Harry and Hermione had written: What can help you get through a crisis when you are in danger?

"You can write down anything, including your personality, knowledge, spells you've mastered, and things you carry with you." The new presidents of the male and female student councils relayed his words to the selected students.

Over the next week, the professors worked together to complete a major project, while he himself spent most of his time in the Room of Requirement, copying the magic and magical conduits. Now, only the final step remained—

Dumbledore and Felix stood in the empty room. The transformed hillsides and green fields were gone, as were the different arenas from the dueling matches. Even the black, suspended gate used to select students a week earlier had disappeared.

The room retained only the Unseen Stretching Charm cast by Felix, making the interior space comparable to ten Quidditch pitches. If it weren't for the opinions of the other four schools, Hogwarts could easily have housed them here.

The professors cast numerous stabilizing and protective spells, imbuing every inch of the ancient castle with powerful magic. They added extra defensive measures on top of that.

There were only the two of them in the classroom at the moment, and they were having a serious conversation.

“What do you think?” Felix asked.

“It’s worth a try,” Dumbledore said casually.

“I never imagined that I would embed my magic into Hogwarts’ defense system and exist thereafter for hundreds or thousands of years…” Felix was momentarily dazed. When he came to his senses, Dumbledore was smiling at him.

“Let’s begin, Albus. The students outside are probably getting impatient,” Felix said, gripping his wand tightly.

Dumbledore readily complied, raising his wand and waving his arm like a conductor in an orchestra, communicating with the ancient castle in a way that Felix could not comprehend.

"Om~"

Whether it was an illusion or not, Felix felt the castle beneath his feet come alive, like a slumbering dragon. It slightly turned its body, and the small creatures that lived on its scales discovered that the whole world had changed.

Clusters of magic materialized into physical forms: purple, blue, yellow, bronze, green, gray... They coalesced and then quickly separated, forming magical flowers.

“Felix—” Dumbledore said in a deep voice.

Felix understood immediately; he needed to solidify these magical powers, forming a stable link—like the Room of Requirement.

A fluffy silver ball appeared in his hand, like the seed of a tuft of grass or a cluster of neural networks, with occasional flashes of light blue electricity. It slowly floated into the air and then quickly expanded into a three-dimensional structure, occupying the entire spacious room.

Felix chanted complex incantations, causing the tentacles and core nodes to gradually merge into the space. The tentacles, like synapses, absorbed the unclaimed magic power, stabilizing the magic nodes on them.

Then everything disappeared. Magic, tentacles, nodes... they became completely integrated into the room.

Felix switched perspectives, located the nodes, and hid them one by one, making them difficult for even powerful wizards to detect. Dumbledore did the same thing, also setting up stable magical channels from his own secrets, accessible only to the headmaster.

As long as Hogwarts exists and continues to enroll students, this place, like the Room of Requirement, will never disappear.

Dumbledore had done all this and found four more Mindstones in front of Felix.

"What is this...?" he asked curiously, a guess forming in his mind.

“It’s the memory of several professors,” Felix said succinctly.

He took a deep breath. Everything before was to create a suitable environment. The main event was about to begin. Although this step was not difficult, he couldn't help but feel nervous.

Felix controlled the four mind basins to fly around, making it look as if he had divided the room into four sections, with a mind basin floating in the center of each section.

"What's the point of doing this?" Dumbledore asked with great interest. Even for him, this was a rare large-scale magical practice, a rare fusion of alchemy, mind magic, and transfiguration in the magical world.

“Let’s add a touch of ceremony,” Felix said with a smile, then his tone became serious. “So—the first administrator, seventeen-year-old Albus Dumbledore.”

The stone basin to their left shattered, and countless thick silver clouds of mist poured out. Then, a tall, thin young student with reddish-brown hair walked out.

He held a wand in his long, nimble fingers, and with a deft flick to the left and right, the thick fog split in two. Young Dumbledore had bright blue eyes that sparkled with kindness and mischief.

“Old friend, you haven’t given me much knowledge. My head is empty. How am I supposed to face those troublesome students?” the young Albus said. Although it was a complaint, he didn’t seem bothered at all. Instead, he smiled and nodded at Felix.

Dumbledore looked at him, his eyes welling up with tears, and murmured, "This was when I first graduated, young and full of vigor, thinking I had a bright future ahead of me..." He shook his long silver beard and smiled, saying, "Oh, I don't know if I've mentioned it before, but I really loved Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans when I was young."

The young Albus Dumbledore was waving his wand, stirring up a silver storm. Wisps of mist, like solidified waves, froze in mid-air. Then, they transformed into an open-air plaza, adorned with numerous red and gold decorations.

Felix and Dumbledore looked at each other for a moment, then turned to the other side. Felix said softly, "The second person to selflessly provide memories—Minerva McGonagall."

The second Mindstone shattered into dust. A young and beautiful woman stood there, with thick black hair, around thirty years old, and green eyes. This was the young Minerva McGonagall, who bore more of the hallmarks of a Hogwarts Transfiguration professor: a serious expression, her hair piled high, and square-framed glasses.

“This is really interesting…” She looked around, her lips pursing in her signature way. “Let me think about what I need to do. Minerva left me a task list.”

Then she stopped moving.

The third person to appear was a young Felix Flitwick, who was much younger than the current Hogwarts Charms professor. He didn't yet wear gold-rimmed round glasses, and had fewer wrinkles. He was dressed in a dignified and formal suit.

He revealed that this was the outfit he wore when he won the Wizards Duel Championship.

“Oh, Felix, Albus…” The young Flitwick bowed slightly and waved his wand with an air of elegance. “Welcome. I think you’re not in the mood for a duel right now, but I’m here and waiting for you.”

The last stone basin exploded, and young Felix emerged, looking exactly the same as he did now, except with a somewhat frivolous expression. He looked at Felix, pointed at him, and said, "I need to talk to you. You've placed too many restrictions on me."

“Oh, you don’t need that,” Felix muttered, letting layers of silver mist shroud him.

……

Felix told Dumbledore, “They won’t be here often, but rather as managers of this secret place. Their task is to make it more dynamic and the training scenarios more controlled. Of course, I’m talking about after the training.”

Dumbledore nodded slightly: "You've already told me all this, so I have no objections."

They walked out of the room together, where more than twenty students waited anxiously. A little girl cried out in a shrill voice, "Why am I not on the list? Why?"

Professor McGonagall was trying to comfort her, saying, "Greengrass, you're too young, it's really not suitable..."

"I am the champion! The champion!" Astoria shouted.

Professor McGonagall looked at her with a headache. Just then, Dumbledore walked over and said gently, "You're Astoria? Your father sent me a letter. Let's go see it together. By the way, I can recommend some sweets..."

"really?"

“Professor McGonagall can be my witness…”

McGonagall rolled her eyes, but at least one problem was solved. She said to Felix, "These students are yours now, Felix. I think—"

She thought for a moment, then turned and left without saying anything more.

Felix looked at the young faces and said, "Alright, students, take your papers and come inside with me."

He took a few steps, stopped, looked at the half-open door, drew his wand, and traced it in the air. Above the door appeared a line of gold-embossed letters: "Classroom Number Seven".

Harry, Ron, and Hermione exchanged a glance, and Harry shrugged: "Now it's truly fitting."

Chapter 368 Surprise

The young wizards filed into the classroom, and the door to classroom number seven closed automatically behind them.

There was only a narrow path in front of them, with thick fog swirling around them. In the fog, blurry figures could be vaguely seen.

“What kind of monster do you think is hiding inside?” said Roger Davis of Ravenclaw, a tall, handsome man with dark brown hair combed back, revealing a dashing face.

At that moment, although he was speaking to the crowd, his eyes glanced at a pretty girl not far from him.

“Where does he think he is, a ball?” Ron muttered from behind, making Harry and Hermione laugh. The wizard named Davis was wearing a high-necked robe with blue and bronze trim on the cuffs, and he was trying to shove his hair back as he spoke.

A soft laugh echoed from the thick fog, startling Harry. He whirled around, staring into the fog. He heard it clearly; the voice belonged to someone nearby. A wisp of fog drifted away, revealing nothing. He quickly took a few steps and heard Ron say, "...But who's that girl? She's really pretty!"

From Harry's perspective, the girl Davis was staring at was indeed very pretty, petite, even somewhat thin. She had fair skin, delicate features, and short brown hair. The only flaw was her overly thick eyebrows, which didn't quite match her face. And another thing—she was a Slytherin.

“Do you know who she is?” Ron pulled at Rahmin.

“How should I know?” Hermione said impatiently.

“You know at least half the students in the school, like her, like her…” Ron tried to find the right word to describe her, but he couldn’t think of one.

“I only know students who have taken Ancient Runes!” Hermione pointed out sharply.

After walking for more than ten minutes, Felix, who was leading the group, finally stopped. Only then did they realize that they were in the middle of a crossroads, with two long roads dividing the place into four sections, each of which was shrouded in fog.

“I want to see your papers first,” Felix said to the group. “You can wander around… This place isn’t perfect yet, but…” he smiled, “I’m sure there will be some surprises for you.”

As he spoke, he conjured a comfortable armchair for himself and sat down.

The students looked at each other, somewhat unsure of what the professor meant.

The girl with short black hair calmly asked, "Are we encountering the same things?"

Felix thought for a moment and said, "It depends on the area you choose."

"Is it dangerous?"

"It depends on how you define it, but don't forget why you came here in the first place."

The short-haired girl nodded slightly, drew her wand, turned and walked into the thick fog closest to her. The fog automatically parted to make a path, and after she entered, the parted fog quietly closed again.

After a few seconds, the people who remained heard no sound.

“Let’s pick one too,” Hermione said decisively. Harry and Ron watched as Davis had already chased after the short-haired girl into the area she had entered, so they decided to change direction.

“This way!” Harry said, pointing to the right. He had first heard a soft laugh from here and was particularly eager to go in and take a look.

Ron and Hermione had no objections. "Neville, what about you?" Harry asked. Neville scratched his head. "I think I'll stay with you guys. I'm a little worried about going alone."