Chapter 40: Black Lake

"Hogwarts."

Dali whispered softly.

The ancient castle, standing atop the cliff and full of mystery, suddenly gave Dali a sense of anticipation toward the school.

"Everyone follow me, board the boats, no more than four people per boat."

Hagrid shouted loudly to the crowd.

Near the lakeshore, numerous small wooden boats were moored, each bearing a dim yellow candle that emitted a faint glow.

Dali and the other two chose a small boat and got on, Hermione hesitated, saw the other boats were almost full, so she walked over here.

"If you don't mind, come up."

Dali said to Hermione.

"Thank you." Hermione smiled and climbed up.

Ron's first impression of Hermione hadn't been good, but later Hermione was the first to stand up and vouch for them, which greatly improved Ron's view of Hermione.

"Thanks for speaking for us earlier," Dali said to Hermione.

"You're welcome, I just tell the truth. Besides, I also come from a Muggle family, the mud that Ma Er Fu said..." Hermione didn't finish, "In short, he wasn't insulting just one person, but an entire group; it's right for you to give him a lesson."

"What a pity, I didn't have time to punch Ma Er Fu; Dali was too fast," Ron said regretfully.

"Me too, by the time I reacted, they were already lying on the ground; what a shame," Harry smiled.

Hermione gave a shy smile and said nothing more.

Soon after boarding, under Hagrid's lead, they rowed toward the castle.

According to Hagrid, this is a ritual, and all first‑year freshmen enter the school this way.

The pitch‑black water surface was slowly brushed past on both sides of the small boat, stirring dull splashes; the braver students dared to glance at the water, while the timid ones curled up and wouldn't look at the dark surface at all.

"My brother told me there are water monsters in this Black Lake," Ron whispered.

His voice trembled slightly, unsure whether from fear or cold.

"They won't suddenly rush out and eat us, will they?" Hermione asked, a little frightened.

"Probably not; otherwise Hogwarts would definitely send professors to protect us."

…

Dali had been meditating with his eyes closed, and upon hearing Ron mention water monsters beneath the surface, his interest was suddenly sparked.

He turned his body slightly, blinked his eyes faintly, activated Spiritual Sight, and looked beneath the water surface.

With the dim light leaking from the castle, Dali could barely see the water surface.

The lake's water seemed unlike ordinary lake water, much darker, so that under these conditions almost nothing could be seen; Dali even guessed that even during daytime the lake's color remained very deep.

Dali focused his attention, and the spiritual energy gradually gathered in his eyes, adding a hint of color to the otherwise pitch‑black lake water.

Swish.

A faint light streaked rapidly from beneath the water, looking like a fish, yet also like a person.

"That is..."

Dali's gaze tightened slightly.

Indeed, there was something strange in this lake.

From what he saw, extraordinary creatures indeed lived here, and some even resembled humans.

"Mermaids?"

Dali guessed.

There are many legends about mermaids in the world; in the Guiyi Shijie he had traveled to, mermaids existed, and some advancements in the Extraordinary Sequence required mermaid assistance.

He just wasn't sure what kind of beings mermaids were in this Magic World.

Besides the humanoid silhouettes, Dali also vaguely saw some odd creatures, none of which belonged to the ordinary world.

Suddenly.

Dali noticed a light shape pause at the lake bottom; it seemed to have noticed Dali on the surface and looked toward him.

Faintly, Dali seemed to hear a beautiful song, gently echoing by his ear…

"Lower your head!"

Hagrid's shout startled Dali; he quickly pulled his body back and lowered his head.

They had arrived before the sheer cliff; the small boat carried them through a barrier of growing ivy, then into a pitch‑black tunnel.

They had reached the castle's underground.

"That one just now was indeed a mermaid."

Dali thought to himself.

That beautiful song must have come from the mermaid.

However, compared with the mermaids of that Guiyi Shijie, the mermaids of this world seemed much gentler.

They didn't make Dali feel danger; otherwise, when he heard the song, he would have immediately sensed something wrong.

"The area around this castle is truly more spectacular than I imagined."

Not long after, their boat reached the end; once it stopped safely, all the freshmen disembarked together, walked along a cobblestone road, and arrived before a large gate.

Meanwhile, the round‑faced boy named Neville found his toad on the boat.

Hagrid knocked three times on the gate.

Boom—

The next moment, the gate burst open, and Professor McGonagall, dressed in a bright green robe, stepped out, her hair tied high, looking completely different from how she appeared on the train.

"I wondered why I didn't see her when we got off the train; turns out she went back to the castle to change," Ron whispered to Harry and Dali.

Professor McGonagall seemed to hear Ron, and glared fiercely at him.

Luoen was frightened and no longer dared to speak nonsense.

"Thank you for your hard work, Hagrid."

"First-year students, follow me."

Professor McGonagall didn't say much more, leading everyone toward the castle.

"Welcome to Hogwarts. After you enter the Great Hall, the first thing to confirm is which house each of you will go to."

"Hogwarts has four houses in total, and each house has its own criteria for selecting students."

Professor McGonagall spoke while walking, giving a simple overview of Hogwarts' situation, not much different from what Luoen had said earlier, just more detailed.

Dali simply summarized: Gryffindor values bravery, Hufflepuff accepts all comers, Ravenclaw favors the clever, and Slytherin favors the ambitious.

As for how the selection works, Professor McGonagall didn't say, only mentioning that some tests would be conducted.

This made those newcomers who didn't understand the situation nervous, fearing they wouldn't pass the test.

Hermione had already begun reciting the spells she had learned, while Harry's face turned slightly pale, showing he was really nervous.

"It should be a simple test," Dali said.

"I hope I can pass smoothly," Harry nodded.

Although Dali didn't say anything specific, after his words fell, Harry seemed to really feel less nervous.

"Alright, let's go inside."

Professor McGonagall finished speaking and pushed open the doors of the Great Hall.

A magnificent, golden hall unfolded before all the newcomers.