Chapter 61: Ravenclaw's Dream

"We've arrived; this is the hidden room we discovered!"

After spending no short time on the spiral staircase,

the section of stairs leading from the second to the third floor finally turned, connecting to a staircase rarely used.

Just a short distance away, Jia Jia Siting gently tapped the wall here and said excitedly,

"After three crisp knocks, this wall, almost devoid of torchlight, actually revealed a painting."

"We stumbled upon it by chance... but after answering the painting's question, we suddenly entered that room."

"Although we have lanterns, still—Lumos."

A faint glow emanated from the tip of Jia Jia Siting's wand, followed by Hermione, whose wand tip glowed much brighter than Jia Jia Siting's.

At this moment, Wizard Sean approached, holding a wand as bright as a light bulb.

"Oh, Wizard Sean..."

Jia Jia Siting whispered in awe, and the three focused their attention on the painting.

The canvas, yellowed and cracked with age, depicted not some dignified wizard, but a snowy owl wearing a velvet vest and sporting small pince-nez glasses.

It was struggling to adjust its glasses with one claw while clutching a roll of old parchment with the other.

"What are you looking at! An owl is also an eagle!"

Hearing its shrill voice, Hermione was the first to burst out laughing.

Immediately followed by Jia Jia Siting,

even Wizard Sean curled up the corners of his mouth.

"It's you again! What are you laughing at!"

The owl flapped its wings so vigorously that Wizard Sean seemed to hear the whooshing wind.

"I... I just remembered something happy."

Hermione explained with a flushed face.

This time, Wizard Sean couldn't hold it in.

"What are you laughing at now!"

"I also remembered something happy."

Wizard Sean said softly.

He never expected to see echoes of movies from his past life in an owl.

"You are clearly laughing at me! You haven't stopped!"

The owl flapped furiously in anger, causing the parchment under its feet to shake wildly.

"Sorry."

"Sorry."

"We apologize."

Before it completely barred the three from entering, they suppressed their laughter and sincerely apologized.

"Detestable little wizards, if you want to enter, answer my question!"

It unfurled the parchment beneath its feet; though Wizard Sean and the others didn't know if an owl could even read,

after rummaging for a while, it indeed posed a question:

"Hogwarts, peaceful Hogwarts... tell me, why was Hogwarts established here?"

It rotated its head one hundred and eighty degrees, then asked this question arrogantly.

Jia Jia Siting and Hermione instantly froze.

"How has its question changed? Wasn't it asking for Lady Ravenclaw's true name before?"

Jia Jia Siting found it hard to believe,

"Hermione, do you know?"

Jia Jia Siting cast a pleading glance at Hermione,

the little witch with bushy brown hair pondered hard for a while, then finally shook her head.

"Little wizards, stupid little wizards!"

The owl seemed very pleased with itself, chattering away.

"It is because of Ravenclaw's Dream."

At this moment, an incongruous voice drifted over,

and after Wizard Sean spoke softly,

the owl stopped flapping entirely, nearly falling off its perch instead.

"How do you know—"

It cried out in surprise, then stiffly gave a slight bow,

and with the wave of its wings, a crack appeared in the wall, revealing a sky-blue door,

Wizard Sean turned the eagle-shaped doorknob with a thoughtful expression.

Opening this door revealed a spacious interior.

Several desks were scattered in the center of the room, covered in dust;

in one corner, a massive bookshelf leaned precariously, with most books scattered on the floor, their pages brittle and yellowed;

in another corner lay a pile of oddly shaped instruments: a complex apparatus of crystal lenses and several glass cabinets bearing tattered labels.

Other than that, there was nothing else.

"Wizard Sean, what does 'Ravenclaw's Dream' mean?"

Before practicing spells, Jia Jia Siting couldn't resist asking this question.

"Legend has it that the location of Hogwarts was decided by Lady Ravenclaw..."

"Coming from the lakeside, she once dreamed of a wart hog that led her to the edge of a cliff; thus, a school was founded here..."

Wizard Sean recounted the events of a thousand years ago, carried away by the wind, in a storytelling tone.

Jia Jia Siting involuntarily moved closer to Wizard Sean, his face full of anticipation and longing,

while Hermione lowered her wand, her eyes sparkling in the magical light.

The three gathered together around Wizard Sean's wand in the dark environment.

"Hogwarts, wart hog, aren't they very similar? Legend says this is the origin of the name Hogwarts."

"Wow—"

Jia Jia Siting exclaimed instinctively,

while Hermione had long since covered her mouth.

"What a wonderful story, just like Peter, um, Peter What's-his-name..."

Jia Jia Siting frowned.

"It's The Tales of Beedle the Bard."

Hermione glared at the mood-killing Jia Jia Siting and replied irritably.

"Oh, oh."

Jia Jia Siting scratched his head and gently lit the magical lantern.

After the wonderful story concluded, what the three little wizards faced was wonderful magic.

The Levitation Charm, a simple yet practical spell,

is one of the easiest spells for little wizards to master in the early stages.

However, even such a simple spell remains a challenge for newly enrolled little wizards.

"Failed again..."

The feather Jia Jia Siting was carrying fell after floating for only three seconds, clearly failing to meet the minimum requirement of ten seconds.

[You practiced the Levitation Charm once to the standard of Entry Level; Proficiency +3]

Wizard Sean automatically blocked out the surrounding sounds; he was always focused.

"Hmm..."

The feather in front of Jia Jia Siting slowly drifted down once more; this time he sustained it one second longer, but it was still insufficient.

[You practiced the Levitation Charm once to the standard of Entry Level; Proficiency +3]

[You practiced the Levitation Charm once to the standard of Entry Level; Proficiency +3]

"It fell again..."

[You practiced the Levitation Charm once to the standard of Entry Level; Proficiency +3]

[You practiced the Levitation Charm once to the standard of Entry Level; Proficiency +3]

[You practiced the Levitation Charm once to the standard of Entry Level; Proficiency +3]

While continuous successful practice increased proficiency by 30 points,

Wizard Sean felt his magic power vanish completely; his arm became sore, and his breathing grew rapid.

Magic power, well, let's call it magic power for now, is a miraculous existence;

unlike the mana bars in fantasy worlds, it manifests directly on the wizard,

appearing as fatigue and a lack of spirit.

It is not some intangible thing like mental energy,

but is closely linked to the wizard's physical body.

However, it can clearly be restored; one can even feel it,

After all, it is easy to distinguish between someone brimming with spirit and someone lifeless.

During this time, Wizard Sean noticed the distressed Jia Jia Siting.

He was making various hand gestures in an attempt to keep the feather floating, but unfortunately, the feather would either suddenly bounce up or drift unsteadily before quickly falling.