Hogwarts Study Panel

Chapter 274: Soul Artifact

"Professor, is it that stone?"

Sheen seemed to be asking a question, or perhaps he had already made up his mind.

This information comes from Professor Terra's previous explanation—students granted admission to Vargadu would receive messages from the then-principal through the Dream Messenger.

The Dream Messenger would leave a Vagado token for the young wizards while they slept—usually a stone with an inscription.

"A genius-level intuition—"

Professor Terra was extremely pleased.

"The sacred stone, also known as the empty rune, is said to be the blank rune tablet in mythology, containing the most profound wisdom and the essence of the self's mysteries."

But I'm more inclined to think of it as a powerful alchemical creation, like the Deathly Hallows in the Tales of Beedle the Bard.

Its effects weren't as powerful as legend suggested, but they were enough to allow wizards to enter that unique realm. This is also why the wizard Vargadu was adept at self-transformation.

Originally, all the Holy Stones were not allowed to leave Vagado, but there were always exceptions.

Please wait patiently for the next opening... my dear disciple.

Professor Terra looked into the distance, where a paper airplane was wobbling and flying among the clouds.

……

Professor Terra mentioned the legend of the Deathly Hallows, which prompted Sheehan to come to the library, where he remembered that the Tales of Beedle the Bard were on a particular shelf.

Unlike usual, when most seats are occupied, the library was deserted during summer vacation. The magic lantern illuminated Sheen's eyes, revealing a vast collection of books:
*The Adventures of Mad Muggle Martin Miguel*: This comic book tells the adventures of the "mad" Muggle Martin Miguel, and Ron is a devoted reader. On his seat in Hope Hut lies a huge stack of comic books.
On the same shelf as this book, Sheen also saw "The Magic Storybook," "The Christmas Owl's Voyage," and others, all with thick red covers and gold titles.

Soon, Sheehan found The Tales of Beedle the Bard—its blue cover was very eye-catching.

“The Tales of Beedle the Bard? Oh, I forgot you were such a little kid.”

Mrs. Pince appeared out of nowhere, holding a feather duster, and said with a smile,
"This reminds me of that horrible play...that play led more than one parent to demand that the book be removed from the Hogwarts library..."

Sheen had originally intended to read through the legend of the Deathly Hallows, but Mrs. Pince's words sparked a new curiosity in him.

"I know..."

"Of course—I remember the herbalist teacher back then was Professor Herbert Billley."

He is a very enthusiastic theater enthusiast, and he proposed to adapt one of the children's favorite stories, "Good Luck Fountain," into a Christmas performance for teachers and students to enjoy.

However, some human factors ultimately ruined the entire performance. Professor Billley, as the director, was completely unaware of the emotional entanglement unfolding right under his nose, which made the stage extremely dangerous.

The actresses playing the female lead "Amata" and the supporting actress "Asha" are involved in a love triangle with the actor playing the male lead "Unlucky Jazz." Just before the show starts, the male lead falls for someone else.

The performance quickly spiraled out of control as Amata and Asha engaged in a fierce and evenly matched duel, drawing Professor Billy into their battle as well.

The battle grew increasingly fierce, and the fire ash snakes used in the performance even caused a fire, overwhelming the hospital. Several months passed before the pungent smell of burnt wood in the auditorium gradually dissipated.

Headmaster Armando Dippet decreed a complete ban on mime performances, a tradition that Hogwarts continues to this day. Mrs. Pince recalled with interest, then pulled a book from the shelf and handed it to Sheehan.

"Relax a bit during your vacation. The Tales of Beedle the Bard is very good, but you can also take a look at this book, The Dream Stories."

Sheehan took the book; he hadn't expected Hogwarts to have so many wonderful stories.

He felt that although the wizards didn't see the play, perhaps the farce they witnessed was even more entertaining than the play itself.

After Mrs. Pince left, he began to silently read the story of the Deathly Hallows. One day, he happened to open the book *Dream Stories*, and a single word captivated him:

—A sacred artifact of the soul.

So Sheehan decisively put down The Tales of Beedle the Bard and began reading The Dream Stories.

It tells the story of a wizard who travels through a "world behind a veil" using a spirit artifact.

He initially transformed into various animals there, experiencing all sorts of wondrous adventures; after a while, he discovered that stargazing there could predict the future; eventually, he even met other dead wizards and could "pull out for a while" wizards who were "hesitant to go, not wanting to become ghosts, but not wanting to leave."

How amazing...

By the time I closed the book, the sky outside the window had already turned pitch black.

Before the curfew bells rang, Sheehan went to the counter to borrow the book, which surprised Mrs. Pince:
"You've finally decided to take a break—what are you waiting for? Let me sign for you."

……

My time at Hogwarts was peaceful and fulfilling.

Sheen mostly switches between cat and wizard states, and a single switch of sufficient duration can increase his proficiency in soul transformation.

For example, right now:

[You have practiced Soul Transformation to the standard of an apprentice in the Master realm. Master-level proficiency +1]

After regaining his wizard body, Sheen will practice his polymorph magic, which is his greatest asset in defeating the basilisk head-on.
Of course, due to certain special reasons, Professor Snape became even more demanding in his training in dark magic, and his proficiency in dark magic improved rapidly every day.

In the early morning, Sheen had other things to do, such as taking some time to visit a large dog in the Forbidden Forest.

After a busy week, an owl brought Sheen a special letter.

"Please take the Hogwarts Express from King's Cross Station to school on September 1st."

Hmm... what if I were at Hogwarts?
He looked up at the tall tower, where the owl was flying back to the principal's office.

It appears that the letters were distributed uniformly, and that Headmaster Dumbledore was delivering the letters to him face to face.

He continued reading:
"Second-grade students should read: Standard Spells, Level 2, by Miranda Goschak; Breaking Up with the Ghost, by Gilderoy Lockhart; Traveling with Ghouls, by Gilderoy Lockhart; Vacationing with a She-Devil, by Gilderoy Lockhart; Traveling with Trolls, by Gilderoy Lockhart; Sailing with Vampires, by Gilderoy Lockhart; Wandering with Werewolves, by Gilderoy Lockhart; A Year with the Yeti, by Gilderoy Lockhart."

Sheen was overwhelmed by the long list of Lockharts.

(End of this chapter)