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74.72% Return of Salazar Slytherin / Chapter 136: 136- Adventure in the Library

Chapter 136: 136- Adventure in the Library

Madam Pince wasn't too happy when she saw Hermione Granger visiting the library on the very first day of term.

She forced a stiff smile and said to Hermione, "Young lady, working so hard on the first day? Why not spend a couple of days playing with your dorm mates?"

Hermione, upon hearing this, appeared thoughtful.

"You're right," she replied.

Madam Pince was overjoyed by this response. If the little girl became engrossed in playing with her roommates, she wouldn't come to the library and mess with her precious books, right?

"I'll just bring them here to read with me next time," Hermione added.

"..."

With that, she walked deeper into the library, leaving Madam Pince standing there like a statue.

What Madam Pince didn't know was that Hermione was extremely nervous during their conversation, fearing she would check her bag—because then she'd have a lot of explaining to do about the dozen Hogwarts-marked magic books inside.

Hermione wandered between the bookshelves, using her memory to find the fake books one by one and replace them with the real ones from her bag.

Soon, most of the books had been returned, except for one—Wizarding Landmarks—which she hadn't found yet. Luckily, a few minutes later, she spotted the fake book at the bottom of a shelf.

Hermione broke into a cold sweat—Madam Pince had actually reorganized the bookshelves right at the start of term!

Thankfully, she hadn't noticed the issue with Wizarding Landmarks.

Just as Hermione was about to stash the fake books she had recovered into her bag, a glimpse of blue caught her eye, freezing her in place.

Slowly, she raised her head and saw a beautiful middle-aged witch, dressed in an elegant blue wizard's robe, smiling at her. The witch looked about the same age as Professor Sprout, the head of Hufflepuff House, but she was better groomed and exuded an air of refinement.

The blue-robed witch seemed vaguely familiar, but Hermione couldn't quite place where she'd seen her before.

Hermione: "..."

For the first time, Hermione truly understood the feeling of being overwhelmed by fear. Her mind went completely blank—she had no idea what to say or do.

Though she didn't recognize the witch standing before her, it was clear she was a professor at the school. And she had just caught Hermione in the act.

This was bad.

The blue-robed witch beckoned her with a finger, indicating Hermione should follow. In a dazed, rigid manner, Hermione trailed behind her.

The witch led her deeper into the library, past several bookshelves, and into a small room that resembled a study space.

The room's setup was simple—just a long table with seven chairs placed around it and a whiteboard for writing. On one side of the room was a closed side door, its destination unknown.

It was Hermione's first time in this room—she hadn't even noticed before that the library had such a study space.

"Sit down," the blue-robed witch said.

It was the first time the witch had spoken to Hermione, and her voice was soft, like music.

Hearing such a pleasant tone, Hermione felt her nerves ease slightly.

"Why did you do this?" The witch gestured toward Hermione's bag.

"Well..." Hermione explained the difficulties she had faced borrowing books last term, carefully omitting any mention of Rhys.

"Did you transform the parchment into the shape of books?" The blue-robed witch asked a question that was difficult for Hermione to answer—telling the truth would reveal Rhys's involvement, while lying would mean deceiving a professor.

In the end, Hermione chose to insist that she had done it herself.

The witch smiled. "Then your Transfiguration skills are quite advanced."

Hermione pressed her lips together.

"Let's leave that matter there for now. The school's book-borrowing system does indeed have its flaws—those who set the rules didn't think it through carefully. However, I hope you'll be honest in the conversation that follows."

Hermione's face flushed slightly.

"You seem to really enjoy spending time in the library?" The blue-robed witch casually started a conversation as if chatting.

"Yes, there are so many books here, and I love reading."

"So do I. Books are the most precious legacy our ancestors left us." The witch appeared quite pleased with Hermione's response. Then, she asked a critical question: "You love reading so much, are you in Ravenclaw?"

After receiving an affirmative answer, a look of "I thought so" appeared on the witch's face—only Ravenclaw students would love books that much.

"Heh~ You're very much like the founder of Ravenclaw."

"I.. I'm not worthy of such a comparison..." Hermione replied modestly.

"What's your name?"

This question immediately made Hermione nervous: Weren't they done with that topic? Why was she asking for her name now? Was she going to report her to Professor Flitwick or Dumbledore?

"Hermione Jean Granger." Despite her inner panic, Hermione still reported her full name truthfully.

Upon hearing her name, the blue-robed witch began to play with her long, black hair that hung over her shoulders. Her glossy hair was twirled, loosened, and played with, much like a cat batting at its tail.

She did this as a sign that she was deep in thought.

The witch's silence for a few seconds made Hermione even more anxious.

Fortunately, when the witch spoke again, she didn't seem to intend any punishment for Hermione. Instead, she asked unrelated questions, such as how much time Hermione had spent in the library last year, how her grades were, and whether reading so many different books had affected her studies.

Hermione nodded and told her that she had spent over a thousand hours in the library, visiting whenever she had free time. As for her grades, they were decent—she had been lucky enough to achieve perfect marks in all her subjects.

"Perfect marks in all subjects?" Now the blue-robed witch was genuinely surprised.

This mysterious witch was none other than Rowena Ravenclaw herself—or, more precisely, a magical projection formed from Ravenclaw's magic.

If Hermione had been brave enough to touch the witch's body, she would have been astonished to find that the witch was merely an illusion with no physical substance. Even outside the "study room," the witch hadn't touched anything solid.

This "study room" was Ravenclaw's personal classroom within Hogwarts Castle, much like Rhys' "Chamber."

At the end of the previous school year, after Rhys had helped Rowena Ravenclaw regain consciousness, she had devised a way to send a trace of her magic to the surface. This trace of magic acted as a key to activate a contingency she had left in her personal classroom.

Using the magic circle left in her secret classroom, Ravenclaw forcibly opened a special passage through the seal, allowing her consciousness to pass through the barrier and manifest in the magical projection that had formed in her classroom.

Due to the limitations of the seal, this projection was extremely restricted, unable even to leave the library—moving too far from the secret classroom would cause her to "lose signal." But still, it was a breakthrough from nothing to something.

Of course, if Rhys knew about this, he would undoubtedly be displeased, as Ravenclaw's actions had, in effect, compromised the integrity of the seal.

__________

Read 12 Advance Chapters—Patreon.com/HornyFBI


Chapter 137: 137- Ms. Spett

The four founders of Hogwarts each had their own personal classroom, over which they held absolute control. In these classrooms, they would set up magic that reflected their individual styles and teach advanced magical knowledge to students they personally selected.

Rowena Ravenclaw was no exception. Her personal classroom, which looked like a study room, was designed to help her select "Chamber Apprentices" who met her criteria.

The selection process wasn't complicated—it was based on spending enough time in the library or borrowing a large number of books over the course of a year.

Though the requirements weren't particularly difficult, after a thousand years of absence, Ravenclaw discovered that there weren't many young witches and wizards who met them. In a millennium, the list of names barely reached three digits, and in the past twenty years, only one name had appeared: Hermione Granger.

Fortunately, Hermione hadn't graduated yet, so as soon as she stepped into the library, Ravenclaw sought her out.

Her eagerness was partly due to Rhys.

After Rhys had brought Daphne to show off in front of Ravenclaw, she felt inspired to take on a student herself. Salazar had a new student, so naturally, she couldn't fall behind!

However, Ravenclaw wasn't desperate to recruit just anyone.

Before accepting Hermione as her "Chamber Apprentice," she intended to thoroughly assess her.

If Hermione could pass her test, the girl would receive Ravenclaw's mentorship.

After asking a few questions, Ravenclaw was very pleased with Hermione's answers: she loved reading, excelled in her studies, and was a student of Ravenclaw House—this last point was particularly important.

When Ravenclaw had asked this question, she had been a bit nervous. Though it was highly likely that a student meeting her criteria would come from Ravenclaw, there was always a chance of an exception.

People are complex, and sometimes a young wizard or witch might be well-suited to multiple houses. For example, a brave, intelligent, and ambitious pure-blood student could fit the standards of Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. In such cases, the student's own opinion would become crucial.

If, before the Sorting, they had heard biased information and developed prejudices against certain houses, the outcome could be unpredictable.

According to the rules established back then, because "Chamber Apprentices" involved issues of legacy, the four founders could only recruit talented students from their own houses. If Hermione had belonged to another house, Ravenclaw would have had no choice but to let her go, as this was a matter of principle.

If it were just her, it might not have been such a big deal, but Salazar Slytherin was still alive! If she broke the rules, she wouldn't be able to face him.

Fortunately, Hermione was a Ravenclaw, so Rowena Ravenclaw had no further concerns.

After making her decision, Ravenclaw continued chatting with Hermione.

"Speaking of which, I haven't introduced myself yet. My name is Raven Spett," she said. Like Rhys, Ravenclaw chose to use an alias.

Her reasons were slightly different from Rhys's. Ravenclaw simply felt it was unnecessary. Telling the young girl her real identity would only lead to her boasting about being Ravenclaw's student. What good would that do, other than causing endless trouble for herself? So, she decided it was best to deny that she was actually Ravenclaw from the start.

"Is it the 'Raven' as in the bird, or the 'Riven' as in split?" Hermione was momentarily confused.

"Fussing over a name is pointless. If you're unsure, just call me Ms. Spett," Ravenclaw replied, not directly answering Hermione's question.

"Alright," Hermione nodded, committing the mysterious professor's name to memory.

The only thing that bothered her was why she had never seen this professor at the school before.

"By the way, you're in your second year now, right? What spells have you learned so far?"

After Hermione listed the spells she knew, Ravenclaw smiled slightly and asked, "Do you know why you're able to cast these spells?"

Hermione: "??"

This was a question she had never really thought about.

"Because I pronounced the incantation correctly and used the right wand movements?" she answered tentatively.

"Yes, but not entirely."

Ms. Spett then opened a new door for young Hermione, guiding her to glimpse the beautiful world of "mana and magic flow" behind it.

"So that's how it works." Hermione felt she had gained a new understanding of spells and magic.

"Here are some notes about magic flow. Take them with you and study them; you can start practicing. If you have any questions, I'll be back here next Monday. Just come find me in the library. These are from my personal collection, so please don't share them with anyone else."

As she finished speaking, an ancient-looking key and a roll of yellowed parchment appeared on the table.

"If you can't find a suitable place to practice, use the room next door. This is the key to get in," Ravenclaw had even arranged a practice space for Hermione.

"Thank you!" Hermione gratefully clutched the two items close to her chest.

At this point, Ravenclaw had nothing more to say and waved her hand, signaling Hermione could leave.

"Um, one last thing," Ravenclaw called out just as Hermione was about to leave.

"Although you had your reasons, you still broke the school rules."

Hearing this, Hermione's heart sank—was she going to be punished after all?

"You need to be punished. As for the specifics... help me find a few books. I need A History of Magic, Hogwarts: A History, Selected Spells of the Eighteenth Century, Important Magical Events of the Twentieth Century, Significant Discoveries in Modern Magic, and A Study on the Development of Modern Witchcraft. Bring these books to this study room. That will be your punishment." Ravenclaw rattled off a long list of books as if she were reciting a menu.

These were all books Ravenclaw had noticed while wandering around the library. Reading them would give her a general understanding of magical developments over the past thousand years.

Unfortunately, Ravenclaw, as a highly realistic magical projection, couldn't physically touch the books. Only within her personal study room could she use the magic array to make the pages turn automatically.

The general process involved a book floating in midair, with the pages turning on their own as Ravenclaw stood in front, reading. Therefore, she needed Hermione to bring the books in for her.

"That's it?" Hermione couldn't help but blurt out.

Ravenclaw raised an eyebrow. "If you think the punishment is too light—"

"No, no! I'll go get the books right away!" Hermione dashed out, and a few minutes later, she returned, carrying a large stack of books.

"Huff.. Huff.. Here!"

She placed them carefully on the study room table, then earnestly bid farewell to "Ms. Spett" before leaving the study room that she'd never noticed before.

When she finally made her way back to the Ravenclaw common room and saw the statue of the house's founder, Rowena Ravenclaw, she realized where the sense of familiarity came from: Ms. Spett's aura and posture closely resembled that of Lady Ravenclaw, although the two didn't look alike.

"Maybe that's just something all wise witches have in common!?!"

Hermione didn't think much of it, eager to dive into Ms. Spett's precious notes.

__________

12 Advance Chapters—Patreon.com/HornyFBI


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