A magical journey that begins at Hogwarts

Unsurprisingly, a group of girls surrounded Krum, chattering away, seemingly discussing who he would choose as his dance partner.

Not far away, Hermione was quietly reading a book by herself.

“I knew you’d be here.” Aaron placed Abe on the desk, then looked at Hermione across from him and asked directly, “Miss Granger, would you be my dance partner?”

"what?"

Hermione blushed, and her heart pounded in her chest.

After being stunned for a while, she blushed and focused her gaze on the book.

"I agreed."

"That's good." Aaron breathed a sigh of relief. "This is the first time I've ever asked a girl to dance. I'm glad you didn't refuse, or I would have been embarrassed."

Why did you come to me?

"Of all the girls at Hogwarts, you're the one I know best. Who else would I turn to if not you?" Aaron said bluntly.

"Just this reason?" Hermione's eyes twitched slightly, a complex expression flashing in them.

"Not entirely," Aaron scratched his head. "Firstly, you're the most reliable person I know, which saves me a lot of trouble. Secondly, you're very beautiful..."

“Wait a minute,” Hermione interrupted hastily. “I’m pretty? You really think so?”

Aaron paused for a moment, then carefully examined the girl in front of him, and couldn't help but sneer, "How insecure are you about yourself?"

Hermione smiled sheepishly. "Looks like I'll have to dress up nicely for the ball."

Chapter 375: Clues to the Second Project – Dance Partner and Hostage?

"So you still invited her?" The Memory Body couldn't help but click its tongue. "I don't object, and I agree with your decision, but isn't this a bit too hasty?"

"It's better to do this sooner rather than later. Dragging it out will only cause trouble for myself. Besides, I don't have many options for dance partners." Aaron said methodically, counting on his fingers. "First of all, I'll rule out all the senior students. It's not that they're not pretty, but the way they look at me is like wolves looking at a little rabbit. I'm afraid they'll eat me up."

Secondly, all unfamiliar people were excluded. The tradition of the three-way competition may have some special meaning, otherwise our vice principal would not have been so firm in his attitude.

There are some suitable female students among them, but they also have to go home for Christmas.

After considering all that, there aren't many options left, and among them, Hermione Granger is the most reliable.

Most importantly, since you've decided to attend the Christmas dance, finding a dance partner as soon as possible is essential; otherwise, it would be incredibly awkward for the lead dancer to be without one.

"Um... how about we skip dancing and use illusion magic to cover it up?"

"I have thought about that, but can you guarantee that Dumbledore won't attend the ball?"

"No, the principal will definitely show up."

"That settles it then." Aaron shrugged. "If we choose a dance partner sooner, we won't have to worry about this mess. Wouldn't it be better to use that time to practice forbidden magic circles?"

"We're far from being able to do that with our current level," the thought entity said with a sneer. "Forbidden magic is magic that only Saint Magisters can use. The two of us combined are only novice Archmages, and individually we're only novice Magisters."

"I'll leave the practice under the ultimate magic circle to you, while I'll practice the forbidden magic circle in my spare time."

"The more you practice beforehand, the easier it will be when you regain control of your mind form and start practicing again later."

"Alright."

"How's the cracking of the golden egg's secret going?" Aaron asked.

"That's about it." The thought entity took the golden egg off the storage shelf. "This thing makes a terrifying sound when opened, but we can't deny that the clue to the next project lies in that sound."

I think if we just filter out the noise, we can get what we want.

As she spoke, the Thoughts Entity pointed her wand at the hot spring pool in the main hall, and a stream of clear water flew out of the pool, enveloping the golden egg.

The knob on top of the golden egg opened automatically, and beautiful sounds began to echo throughout the hall:

Look for us, where our voices can be heard.

We cannot sing on the ground

When you search, please think carefully.

We stole your most beloved treasure.

You have only one hour to find and retrieve the items we took.

An hour later, all hope vanished; it had completely disappeared, never to reappear.

click!

The longing body closed the golden egg. "This is the clue to the second project, a simple and clear ballad."

“The location is underwater, and it involves singing…” Aaron stroked his chin and pondered for a moment, “Mermaid, it must be a mermaid.”

"That's right, if nothing unexpected happens, the location should be Black Lake."

The second task was to find the items stolen by the mermaid within one hour in the Black Lake.

"But the problem is, what do I have that they would want to steal?" Aaron asked, somewhat puzzled. "There are quite a few good things inside the Temple of Divine Sound, but they definitely can't get in."

Even Dumbledore wouldn't have been able to escape unscathed from the defensive magic and self-destruct mechanisms here, let alone a group of mermaids who are unable to land!

"What if it's not an object?" the thought asked, sounding slightly serious.

Aaron paused for a moment, then turned to look at Abe swimming in the pool, his lips twitching slightly.

Don't be ridiculous. A mere mermaid trying to catch a dragon would be lucky if she didn't end up roasted into fish jerky.

"It can't be it, absolutely not."

"It's so important to us that we have to go to Black Lake to search for them." The Memory Entity frowned. "Besides Abe, how many people are left?"

Professor Snape? No, unless the mermaid doesn't want to stay in the Black Lake anymore, she wouldn't be foolish enough to offend the head of Slytherin.

There are quite a few classmates and friends: Draco, Celine, Neller, Harry, Hermione... oh my god!

"Gan!"

Aaron seemed to have figured something out as well, and a hint of anger flashed in his eyes.

No wonder warriors are required to have their own dance partners; this is clearly a hostage chosen by the mermaid.

If they don't have a suitable target, they'll kidnap their dance partner. Kidnapping students is much easier and less dangerous.

"Damn, they really know how to have fun!" Thoughts slapped his forehead. "Is it too late to change dance partners now?"

“I’m afraid it’s too late,” Aaron said calmly. “Besides, the dance partner is just a backup option. No matter who the mermaid has tied up, I have to go and rescue her according to the competition rules.”

"In that case... the most important part of the second project is breathing underwater for an hour."

The water-repelling spell would come in handy, and with Captain Jack's compass, finding someone should be quite easy.

"So, this level will expose the water-repelling spell and the compass?" Aaron asked, a hint of a pain in his voice.

“You could also try the head-diving spell,” the thought suggested. “It’s not as good as the water-repelling spell, but at least you can breathe underwater, and you can just swim a little further.”

“Let’s use the water-repelling spell instead!” Aaron said helplessly. “This spell isn’t as earth-shattering; at least it’s more low-key than the first one.”

As for Captain Jack's compass, it's best not to take it out.

"Whatever makes you happy." The thought shrugged indifferently, then placed the golden egg in Aaron's hand. "This thing is useless now, but I don't know if the school will take it back. It's not appropriate for me to keep it here."

......

It's the last week of the semester, and Christmas is just around the corner.

The school is getting more and more lively, and you can hear all sorts of news about the Christmas ball everywhere, but eight out of ten of them are rumors.

Some teachers' attitudes towards teaching have also changed. Professor Flitwick allows students to chat during class, and Professor Binns' lectures are becoming more tedious. However, Professors McGonagall and Moody remain as diligent as ever, while Professor Snape requires all students to do their homework during the last class.

The students, above fourth grade, sat scattered in the Great Hall, writing furiously on parchment, while Professor Snape patrolled the hall, maintaining order.

"Finished writing." Aaron placed the three pages of parchment in Professor Snape's hands.

Snape glanced at it briefly, a slight smile playing on his lips. "Well done. Come to my office after class."

"understood."

Aaron yawned and prepared to go back to practice drawing forbidden magic circles.

"This is terrible, at this rate we'll be the only ones who can't find dance partners."

Ron's voice suddenly reached Aaron's ears, immediately piquing his interest. He put down his notebook and sat down in front of them.

"What did you just say? You haven't found a dance partner yet?"

"Pretty awkward, right?"

"But we're not the only ones struggling to find dance partners; Neville is too," Ron teased. "He's been practicing alone in his dorm these days."

"Uh... he must have found a dance partner to train like this."

“Impossible.” Harry laughed incredulously. “We’re pretty sure he didn’t find a dance partner.”

“In fact, he found it,” Hermione interjected. “Neville invited Ginny.”

Ron and Harry exchanged a glance. "Now we're even more annoyed."

Just then, a crumpled piece of paper was passed to him by Fred: "Don't hesitate, or you'll miss out."

"Insightful," Aaron commented directly.

"So who are you planning to go with?" Ron asked, looking at his brother.

Fred, unperturbed, tossed the crumpled paper to Angelina. "Would you like to come to the ball with me?"

“To the ball, sure!” Angelina hesitated for a moment before smiling and agreeing.

This action left several people nearby speechless. Aaron even gave a thumbs up, saying, "I'm truly impressed. I'm still a bit too shy in front of girls."

"You haven't found a dance partner either?" Harry asked, surprised, but also secretly pleased.

Aaron was definitely a hot commodity at the ball; after the first competition, his fame was probably only slightly less than Krum's.

He hasn't found a dance partner yet, so things won't be so awkward between him and Ron.

"What are you thinking about?" Aaron said speechlessly. "I found a dance partner on the second day, but I was a little embarrassed when I asked her out."

"Oh, I see." Harry lowered his head dejectedly.

"I remember reminding you to find a dance partner sooner rather than later. You haven't been putting it off until now, have you?"

“I just… I’m not ready yet,” Harry said somewhat awkwardly. “Girls usually come in groups, so it’s hard to invite one of them alone.”