Hogwarts Raven

Chapter 333, Section 332: Ian and the Time Machine.

Ian sat in the eerily quiet room, staring blankly at Claire. Outside the window stretched a vast, dark universe, as if the entire world were asleep in ancient silence.

There was no ticking of clocks or whispering of the wind in the room, only Claire's bubbling soup pot, slowly churning with mysterious golden foam.

It's as if the core of some ancient ritual is still at work.

"You mean..."

Ian finally spoke, his voice hoarse.

"The Dumbledore family originated from a bowl of soup?" As he spoke, his brows furrowed so deeply they could trap a fly, and his eyes conveyed a complex emotion that seemed to say, "Are you kidding me?"

Upon hearing what the female Tytank Lyle said, Ian was completely dumbfounded.

He had thought a lot about the origins of the Dumbledore family before, but he never imagined that the origins of the Dumbledore family could be related to a bowl of soup.

That's just too absurd!

Daigo didn't make soup, but the Dumbledore family originated from a bowl of soup.

"I mean, the power of the phoenix comes from my phoenix, and the affinity between the Dumbledore family and the phoenix comes from my soup." Titan seemed to be carrying out a mission assigned to him by history.

She corrected Ian's statement with utmost seriousness, which left Ian speechless for a moment, unsure how to respond. He could only cover his forehead in astonishment and ask again.

"Okay, even so, the fact that the power of the Dumbledore family bloodline comes from this is truly speechless. You've pulled off just too many outrageous moves."

This is Ian's heartfelt sentiment.

however.

Faced with Ian's complaints, Tank Lyle simply chuckled softly. The steam from the bowl swirled before her, making her pupils appear even deeper.

"The main reason is that I have a good teacher."

She even added some green vegetables to the soup she served herself—the kind of green vegetables Ian didn't recognize. It was amazing how thoughtful she was in even combining meat and vegetables.

"..."

Ian fell silent.

If he remembered correctly.

The female Tytan Lyle calls herself a teacher.

Her teacher was a raven.

"Did the Dumbledore family originate from your family? Is that a long time ago?" Ian changed the subject, as he still remembered that this was an era before the gods were born.

If the Dumbledore family had started developing in this era.

Apart from asexual reproduction.

The only thing Ian could think of was interbreeding with the gods—however, the Dumbledore family of later generations did not have the blood of the gods, and Ian was quite curious about this contradiction.

Hear the question.

Claire was gently stirring the soup with a spoon when she heard this. She looked up, a mysterious smile playing on her lips: "That depends on how you see it."

Her expression had that familiar, old-fashioned look that Ian knew so well.

"Huh?" Ian was taken aback. "What do you mean?"

The young wizard quickly pressed for more information.

The female tank Lyle immediately gave an answer.

“Time is never a linear force,” she said slowly, her tone gentle yet carrying an undeniable authority. “Do you think history flows from the past to the present and then to the future? No, it’s more like a river that sometimes swirls, sometimes flows backward, and sometimes even starts flowing again from its source.”

This statement is indeed a bit too philosophical.

This was beyond the little wizard's comprehension.

"Can you speak human language?"

Ian sighed helplessly.

You'll understand this sooner or later.

The female Titan Lyle responded again in a cryptic tone, a mysterious smile playing on her lips. Her voice was ethereal, carrying a charm that seemed to transcend the constraints of time.

Ok.

In layman's terms, it's just showing off, not much different from those who use fake vocals or spiky voices.

Ian looked up at her and found that her expression was still unfathomable, like a wise man standing on a mountaintop looking down on all living beings.

He was just an ordinary person who had only climbed halfway up the mountain and was completely bewildered.

Isn't this a form of psychological manipulation (PUA)?

"Riddler, get off the planet!"

Ian sighed, unable to resist complaining. He hated three groups more than anything in his life: those who disliked him, and men and women who acted like idiots when they spoke.

The last group is the group that doesn't want him to be a death trap.

"Hmm?" Faced with Ian's sarcastic remark, Claire simply blinked, her tone remaining calm: "But... this isn't Earth."

"This is in the vast universe—are you still half asleep?" She looked completely at ease. Well, this place was indeed floating above the Earth.

It is not within the scope of Earth.

Logically speaking, Tantalus Lyle is the true owner of this place. This place is not only ancient, without Hogwarts, but also not any magical world he is familiar with.

This room is located in a Titan castle floating in space, with fragments of stars embedded in the walls and an aura that does not belong to any known civilization.

The entire island is filled with Titans' spaceships.

So, in reality, Ian was standing on someone else's turf.

Ian: "..."

He was speechless, only able to stare at the three-meter-tall Titan, who was smugly swinging her toes like a child who had just pulled off a prank.

"Want to know the answer?" Claire suddenly leaned closer, her long, silvery hair cascading down, the ends shimmering like starlight. "Then you'll go to Earth and collect something too."

Claire put down her spoon, placed her hands on her knees, and looked intently at the little wizard.

Ian frowned: "Why aren't you going?"

As soon as the words came out of his mouth, he regretted them.

Because he knew why the female Titan Lyle was alone.

This is not.

Upon hearing this, Claire's expression instantly darkened. She sighed heavily, her previous cunning vanishing completely, replaced by an almost desolate calm.

“‘Exile’ means that I can’t enter any other part of the earth except the area around the island you landed on.” Her fingers unconsciously rubbed the soup spoon.

“The banishment of the Titans is not just about driving them away... it involves the power to limit them.” The female Titan raised her head and looked at a distant point in the void.

“Even if the Titans are gone, this power remains; it is an ironclad agreement within the race,” the female Titan stated, offering a reason that seemed straight out of science fiction.

Laws.

Ian felt that the other party was taking advantage of his lack of understanding of ancient powers, but looking at her expression at this moment, he inexplicably felt that perhaps what she said was true.

Clearly, as an alien species, the Titans possess their own civilization and laws.

This law does not disappear with the death of the Titans on Earth; it is rooted in the body of every Titan and represents a more advanced form of group management for social creatures.

Ian didn't understand how much magic or science was involved, but he could tell that the female Titan Lyle wasn't lying; this reclusive girl might not have become a recluse voluntarily.

In the endless years.

They would then be limited to moving around in a certain place.

Isn't this a form of imprisonment?

In such a life, being able to find some amusement is a kind of comfort—at this moment, Ian felt that he seemed to understand why the female Titans did so many fancy tricks.

It's Pokémon, Digimon, and those Aesir gods again, along with this spaceship that's constantly being modified. Perhaps it's all because the female Titan simply can't find any other activities to kill time.

The room fell into a brief silence.

The flames in the fireplace crackled and popped.

The light reflected the soft contours of Claire's profile, but couldn't penetrate the shadows in her eyes.

“If you want to go home,” Claire suddenly spoke, her tone light as if the gloom from before had never existed, “that’s something you have to help me with too.”

She tilted her head and blinked her eyes, looking just like a cat begging for treats.

Ian: "..."

Being controlled.

He sighed and rubbed his temples. Whether it was to unravel the secrets of the Dumbledore family or to return to the real world, he seemed to have no choice. "Alright," Ian nodded helplessly, "What do we need to collect?"

Claire immediately perked up, pulled out a roll of parchment from somewhere, and unfurled it with a "whoosh"—it was covered with a dense list of materials, with the following words marked at the very top in exaggerated cursive script:

Claire's Material List (Deluxe Edition)

“No, this is definitely not as difficult as Dumbledore’s!” Ian Ian stared down at the “Claire’s Materials List (Deluxe Edition)”, his eyelids twitching. He stared at the absurd requirements on the list, such as “lava crystals that need to be freshly dug from an active volcano” and “the nectar of the night-blooming cereus that must bloom on the night of a full moon”.

It's truly speechless.

He suddenly had a strong urge to travel back five minutes and strangle the version of himself who had so readily agreed. This wasn't helping; it was clearly an epic errand-running mission.

"Indeed not."

The female Titan tilted her head, her long, silvery hair cascading over her shoulders, a sly smile playing on her lips: "The capable should do more, right? Dumbledore can't do it, but you can."

Her tone conveyed a sense that this was the only way.

"what?"

Ian frowned. "You mean... I can do what Dumbledore couldn't?"

“That’s right.” Claire nodded, her tone as calm as if she were talking about the weather. “Because he is Dumbledore, and you are you, the most special individual in the universe.”

"What kind of reason is that?" Ian couldn't help but complain.

“Because you possess something he doesn’t.” Claire put down her teacup, looking at him intently, her words carrying a clear weight.

"Um?"

Ian's gaze returned to the list, focusing on the item "lava crystals from the crater," his brow furrowing slightly. He slowly looked up as if suddenly realizing something.

"What kind of volcano is this? This volcano... could it be that volcano?" He stared at the words, his brows furrowing deeper and deeper, already realizing something.

Claire smiled slightly, as if she had expected him to ask this question.

“It’s that volcano crater.” Claire blinked, a mischievous glint in her purplish-gold pupils. “To do what you need to do first, of course you’ll need the crystals from the volcano crater in the Enchanted Realm!”

This is a fairly reasonable situation. Ian had already guessed that something was wrong with the volcano, and sure enough, the volcano possessed a power that probably no other place had.

"..."

Ian took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down.

"I can only enter the dreamlike realm once every seven days."

He was telling the truth.

"We can do that last, right?"

Claire waved her hand dismissively. "You can go and work on other things first." Her slender fingers traced the list. "Epiphyllum nectar, eternal ice crystals, stardust... they're from different eras, so—"

"So I need to travel through different eras?" Ian interrupted her, his brow furrowed.

Claire nodded with a smile.

"Is this a task only I can complete?"

"That's right~"

Ian stared at her for a few seconds, then his eyes widened slightly: "Because I can interfere with fate?"

Claire's smile deepened, a hint of approval in her eyes. She clapped her hands lightly. "Brilliant! No wonder you're my senile Raven teacher."

This is no longer a personal attack.

Rather, it is a spiritual achievement.

Ian was silent for a moment, then looked up, his gaze intense.

"Will you teach me time magic?"

He was somewhat taken aback by the methods of the female Titan Lyle.

"No."

Claire shook her head upon hearing this, her tone still relaxed, "I'll build you a time machine."

obviously.

She did indeed possess the power to manipulate time. Perhaps the Titans lost this power because she took it with her, which is why the gods created afterward lacked such power?
"..."

Ian's expression froze for a moment.

"...Huh?" Ian almost thought he misheard. "You said 'make'? You mean you made it yourself?"

“Yeah,” Claire shrugged. “Anyway, I’m pretty free.”

Her words still left people speechless.

Ian opened his mouth.

Ultimately, instead of dwelling on that topic, I raised another question that puzzled me.

"Then wouldn't I be able to use a time machine to go back to my time?" His tone was somewhat tentative, his eyes fixed on Claire, wanting to see her reaction.

Claire couldn't help but laugh out loud at this. She reached out and ruffled Ian's hair. Ian tried to dodge but failed, the three-meter-tall giant speaking with a relaxed tone.

“My power has its limits; the time machine I built can’t go that far.” She paused, then added, “Besides, you wouldn’t abandon your principal, would you?”

"..."

Ian was speechless.

This woman... knows him too well.

He sighed and shrugged resignedly.

"Alright, come on, show us."

He wanted to learn the alchemical techniques of the female Titans.

however.

Claire's eyes lit up, and she immediately skipped and hopped toward the table in the room. With her three-meter-tall frame, the movement shook the entire room.

I saw.

The little girl opened the drawer.

"??????"

Ian's eyes widened.

"The time machine was already built a long time ago!"

Claire proudly showed off her drawer, where in the dark there was something Ian recognized: a small time machine with a unique shape and its surface covered in runes.

It looks exactly like the time machine from a certain anime.

"..."

Ian stared at the "time machine" that was clearly inspired by Doraemon's design.

The corners of his mouth twitched.

"You even messed with Doraemon?"

His tone was full of speechlessness.

Art imitates life, after all.

Claire was perfectly justified.

"Besides, don't all time travel devices look like this?"

She has the right to define it.

Ian remained silent.

He looked down at the time machine, his heart filled with mixed emotions.

He originally thought he was just an ordinary magic student, but now he actually has to rely on a "drawer time machine" made for him by a female Titan to travel through time and space to collect alchemical materials.

He suddenly realized that he was no longer just an ordinary student. He was embarking on a journey far larger and more profound than he had imagined.

And the starting point of this journey was actually a pot of phoenix soup—even though I've been processing this information for over ten minutes, it still feels a bit absurd.

"What am I doing?"

Ian took the list and went inside.

The room returned to silence, except for the bubbling sound of the soup pot.

(End of this chapter)