The wheelchair-bound warrior is speedrunning Hogwarts.

Chapter Thirty-Five: Ancient Magic is Like This

"Oh~ look who this is? Little Black in a wheelchair!" Pippi the Ghost somersaulted in the air and squeaked.

Vera narrowed her eyes slightly, and a faint golden light shone from her magic circuits in her pupils: "Since the start of the semester, I have seen quite a few ghosts. I have seen almost all the ghosts from the four colleges."

But you, Mischievous Sprite, the mischievous and chaotic elf of the castle, you've played pranks on every single freshman this year, yet I've never seen you appear in my sight.

Vera paused, looking at the somewhat stiff-smiling Pikachu, and asked with interest, "Could it be... you're deliberately avoiding me?"

Mischievous Ghost's smile froze, his cunning black eyes darting around uneasily: "Hiding from you? Hahaha! Why would Mischievous Ghost hide from a first-grader!"

Vera gently turned her wheelchair, moving closer to the shadows in the corridor: "Really? Then why do you suddenly disappear every time I pass through the corridor? Like now—"

She suddenly raised her hand and gently pressed it against a brick wall in the castle, and a golden light quietly seeped into the wall.

In an instant, Peeves seemed to be grabbed by the ankle by something and suddenly fell from the ceiling, hanging comically a foot above the ground.

Just as he expected, Vera smiled knowingly.

"What... what kind of trick is this?" Pipi Ghost struggled in terror, only to find that he could not break free from the invisible restraint.

Vera pushed her wheelchair to him, her long, silver-gray hair gleaming coldly in the dim corridor: "Looks like I was right, Peeves. You can sense the presence of ancient magic, can't you?"

Pipi Ghost's black eyes widened instantly, as if a secret he had been hiding had been exposed.

He stammered, "I...I don't know what you're talking about! Let me go! Or I'll call everyone in the entire castle!"

Vera shook her head slightly, the golden patterns on her fingertips shimmering faintly: "You can try, unless you want others to see what you look like now."

She never imagined she would use those classic blond-haired lines, especially in this kind of situation.

Pipi made a few faces and tried to escape, but the golden patterns on Vera's fingertips flickered slightly, as if Pipi was being tightly gripped by an invisible hand and could not escape at all.

"Don't be nervous," Vera's voice was gentle yet authoritative. "Why don't you listen to what I have to say first before you decide whether to agree or not?"

Pipi Ghost's black eyes darted around, and finally he reluctantly nodded.

Vera then released her restraints, and Peeves immediately floated to a safe distance, staring at her warily: "You cunning little Black! What are you trying to do?"

“It’s simple,” Vera’s voice was soft but firm, “I need you to do me a small favor tonight.”

Mischievous Ghost stubbornly raised his head: "Mischievous Ghost doesn't help anyone! Mischievous Ghost only creates trouble!"

Vera smiled slightly: "That suits me perfectly. There will be a big event in the prize room tonight at midnight, and I need you to make sure Filch happens to be passing by there."

Peeves' eyes lit up immediately: "Oh? Who are you trying to frame? The Malfoy brat?"

“That’s not important,” Vera said, not giving a direct answer. “You just need to consider whether or not you want to say yes.”

Peeves did a somersault in the air, his dark eyes gleaming with cunning: "What if I say no?"

Vera curled her lips into a smile, the patterns of her magic circuits faintly visible beneath her skin: "So... it seems you're prepared to be trapped here forever?"

Peeves' expression froze instantly. He floated in the air, a barely perceptible fear flashing in his dark eyes: "You...you can't use that on me! I'm part of the castle!"

“Yes, part of the castle,” Vera murmured, her fingertips tracing the seemingly ordinary brick wall in front of her.

By this time, many wizards had long forgotten that Hogwarts itself was a castle built by the four original founders of the house using ancient magic.

It is itself a large ancient magical ruin, including moving staircases and Peeves, an elf born from the castle.

Yes, Peeves is different from the other ghosts in the school, who are all humans who had obsessions in life and were unwilling to face death.

Peeves, on the other hand, exists in another form, deeply bound to Hogwarts, representing another kind of unbreakable mental chaos.

To this day, no one has been able to clearly explain what Peeves is, and even Dumbledore probably can't explain it clearly in the short term.

However, judging from Peeves's undisguised panic when she mentioned ancient magic, he is likely there because of the ancient magic inherent in the castle itself.

As for why she was able to easily restrain Peeves, who was similar to a Hogwarts earthbound, it was thanks to her exploration of the castle during that time.

Ever since she discovered the principle behind the changes to the staircase, Vera has been experimenting with different things in various corners of the castle.

The results of the experiment cannot be described as remarkable; they can only be described as basically useless.

Aside from being able to manipulate the stairs by touch, the only other discovery was that the castle walls and certain areas also contained similar ancient magic.

The existence of Peeves is clearly inextricably linked to the magical structure of the castle.

Therefore, the only one she can threaten with her abilities right now is Peeves, who is closely tied to Hogwarts.

She had deliberately lured Peeves here before she spoke, aided by her magic circuits.

“I can spare you,” Vera said slowly, “but in exchange, you need to do me this small favor.”

Peeves circled uneasily in the air, a hint of hesitation in his dark eyes.

"Want to close the deal?" Vera asked, extending her hand.

Peeves froze in mid-air for a few seconds, then suddenly burst into laughter: "Cunning! So cunning! Little Black is much more interesting than those old Blacks!"

He floated in front of Vera and extended his tiny, transparent finger. "Deal! But I have one condition to add!"

"What conditions?"

"Don't ever use that weird magic to trap me again!" Pippi made a face. "It felt as disgusting as being entangled by the tentacles of a giant squid!"

Vera's lips curled up slightly: "Okay. Midnight, the prize display room, don't forget."

Peeves somersaulted in the air and shrieked, "Filch and his cat will be there on time! I promise!"

After saying that, he disappeared through the wall.

Vera exhaled softly, and the golden patterns on her fingertips gradually faded, as if nothing had ever happened.

Chapter Thirty-Six: Everything Requires Preparation in Advance

When Vera pushed her wheelchair back to the Gryffindor Tower, the common room was already crowded with students.

Harley and Hermione were surrounded by a group of Gryffindors, with Ron standing next to Harley, vividly describing what had happened during his afternoon flying lesson.

Neville, who was initially taken to the school hospital, has returned and seems to be alright.

"—And then Harley swooped down like this!" Ron gestured dramatically, "grabbing the memory orb when she was just a few feet from Vera, and then pulling up the broom! It was so cool!"

A group of Gryffindors cheered and exclaimed in amazement.

Harley scratched her head sheepishly, her gaze inadvertently falling on the entrance, and her eyes immediately lit up: "Vera! You're back!"

She hurried through the crowd to Vera's side, her green eyes filled with worry: "Where have you been? I almost went out with Hermione to look for you."

Vera looked around, a hint of a smile on her face: "Come find me together?"

Noticing the Gryffindors still watching her, Harry coughed lightly, a little embarrassed, and explained in a low voice, "I didn't mean to, but Hermione and I just came back from the library, and they surrounded us..."

That being said, but seeing Harley's unusually radiant face, Vera roughly knew that she must really enjoy this feeling.

"What are you doing at the library?" she asked softly, taking the initiative to change the subject.

Harley's face flushed slightly, and she explained softly, "I just wanted to look up some information about wizard duels..."

Hermione squeezed through the crowd, carrying a thick stack of books: "I've borrowed all of these, including 'The Art of Duel,' 'The Complete Book of Defense Spells,' and 'A Collection of Nineteenth-Century Duel Cases'!"

Vera glanced at the pile of books that almost blocked Hermione's view and couldn't help but chuckle: "Very well prepared."

“Of course!” Hermione said seriously. “While we can’t rule out the possibility that Malfoy might use a trick, if he really comes, we must be fully prepared!”

Harley nodded: "That's right, I've found a few useful spells in the book that might come in handy!"

Vera felt a warmth in her heart as she looked at their earnest expressions. She said softly, "There's no need to be so nervous. I've already made arrangements."

Harley and Hermione both looked at her, their eyes full of curiosity.

"What's the arrangement?" Harley asked eagerly.

Vera smiled mysteriously: "You'll find out soon enough, but for now, we need to deal with our enthusiastic classmates."

She pointed to the Gryffindors still standing behind them.

"Could they have heard everything?" Harley turned around, a chill running down her spine.

Vera shook her head: "Not really... but there are always a few well-informed people."

As soon as he finished speaking, Fred and George squeezed out of the crowd and stood on either side of Vera's wheelchair.

"I just heard Ron say that you guys are going to duel with that Malfoy kid?" Fred asked excitedly in a low voice.

George added, "Need some prank props? We've recently developed some new ones..."

Vera gently shook her head: "Thank you, but we're almost ready."

"Really?" Fred exaggeratedly clutched his chest. "The junior schoolgirl actually rejected us?"

George pretended to wipe away tears: "It's so heartbreaking!"

Harley was amused by their performance, but quickly became serious and said, "Thank you for your kindness, but if Vera says it's not necessary, then it's definitely fine!"

Hermione muttered to herself, "At least they didn't say they wanted to come along..."

“Oh? Don’t you want us to come along?” Fred suddenly leaned closer and asked.

George joined the other side, saying, "We can be spectators! Or referees!"

Vera looked at Harley, who was caught in the middle and at a loss, and coughed lightly: "Actually, we would prefer that this matter not be blown up too much."

“That’s right!” Hermione immediately chimed in, “If the professors found out…”

“Don’t worry, Granger,” Fred patted her on the shoulder, “we Gryffindors are the best at keeping secrets!”

George blinked: "Especially secrets that violate school rules!"

Hermione rolled her eyes, clearly having no faith in their assurances.

Vera glanced at the clock on the wall of the lounge and said softly, "Next time, if the seniors have any new and interesting things, just send them over. I can buy them at the original price. But this time, let's try them out ourselves."

Fred and George exchanged a glance and smiled at the same time.

"no problem!"

After they finished speaking in unison, they turned around and pulled the others back to their respective dormitories.

Harley breathed a sigh of relief and whispered to Vera, "Do we really not need their help?"

Vera shook her head slightly: "Having too many people around makes it easier to be exposed."

As she spoke, her gaze fell upon Ron and Neville, who were still standing there. Undoubtedly, Ron had overheard their conversation with Malfoy and relayed it to many people.

Ron scratched his red hair, leaning closer somewhat sheepishly. "Uh...did I let it slip? But I promise, I only told George, Fred, and Neville about it!"

Hermione sighed. "Ronald Weasley! Do you know this could get Harley into even bigger trouble?"

Ron's face turned bright red: "I just think that Malfoy guy is too arrogant! He should have been taught a lesson a long time ago!"

Vera watched them argue and said helplessly, "Alright, now is not the time to blame each other."

She turned to Ron and Neville, her voice softening: "Now that you know, I hope you can do me a favor—no matter what happens tonight, don't tell anyone, okay?"

Ron immediately puffed out his chest: "Of course! I swear!"

Neville nodded repeatedly, though he still seemed somewhat worried: "But...but what if we get caught out while out at night..."

"Don't worry, we know what we're doing," Vera reassured her.

Harley chimed in, "And we might not even get caught!"

Hermione glanced at her helplessly and muttered under her breath, "Blind confidence isn't a good thing..."

Time passed by, and the people in the common room gradually dispersed.

"It's getting late, we should get ready," Vera reminded them.

Harley nodded, said goodbye to the others, and the three of them returned to their dorm room together.

As soon as the door closed, Hermione couldn't wait to ask, "Vera, what exactly have you planned? Can you tell us now?"

Vera pushed her wheelchair to the window, where moonlight streamed through, casting a soft glow on her silver-gray hair.

“Knox,” she called softly.

The cat, which had grown a little bigger, immediately and nimbly jumped down from the cat tree and dragged out something that looked like liquid, silvery-gray, from the cat bed.

The thing slid down to the floor with a soft thud, gathered into a glittering heap, and shimmered.

Author's Note: Please vote with recommendation tickets, monthly tickets, and rewards.

Chapter Thirty-Seven Night Tour

"What is this?" Harley picked up the shimmering silver fabric from the floor. It felt strange to the touch, as if it were woven with water.