Hogwarts Study Panel.

Chapter 613, Section 611: Opportunity

Barrow the Blood Man never imagined he would end up here.

He was a ghost fleeing death, wandering the corridors of Hogwarts for centuries, dragging faint bloodstains along the way, startling students who wandered at night with the heavy clanking of his shackles, and avoiding all questions about the living with his silence.

He knew that the sins he committed were heavier than those shackles.

So when the thought first crossed his mind—to go to the Enchanted Realm and see Helena, just once—his chains trembled and groaned.

He's probably gone mad.

Perhaps wizards are inherently mad, but he was even more so?

"Please follow me."

A black cat lay on a mound of mist, guiding his way through the thick fog.

He followed the black cat's footsteps, looking around.

The mist in the dreamlike realm resembled a layer of dark sesame paste, shimmering with various dull colors.

Behind the black cat, he saw the solid street beneath his feet break off, and the deeper part was completely invisible, as if it did not belong to the black cat's territory.

For spirits like Barrow, this is the place of judgment.

He stood before the broken road, the shackles clanging crisply as he trembled.

He dared not step inside.

He feared the eyes he had once looked up to, the soul he had hurt, and the illusion itself would tear him, a sinner with blood on his hands, to shreds.

So he simply reached out and carefully touched the black mist with his fingertips, which were stained with blood that would never dry.

"Fear is normal, but the important thing is to move forward with fear."

The black cat suddenly spoke, and then disappeared into the mist.

Blood Man Barrow stared blankly at its last disappearing tail, then followed it straight ahead.

This place is boiling over.

A pale red mist drifted down from the distant sky, and needless to say, Barrow could feel the terror emanating from it.

The black cat ran faster and faster, but he gradually couldn't keep up.

How can a person in shackles stride forward?

"You should put them down."

"The black cat said."

Barrow was at a loss.

In the end, his obsession with seeing her destroyed all his rivals.

After a deafening battle, and after following the black cat's instructions and trudging on for an unknown period of time.

He saw her.

The world in the illusion was so warm it almost blinded his eyes, which were used to darkness.

It was a small town with cobblestone paths and stone walls covered in ivy, and she lived in a simple wooden house.

She is not alone.

The esteemed Rowena Ravenclaw, the witch he revered until her death, was now sitting in a rocking chair on the porch, holding a thick book, occasionally glancing up at the figure watering the flowers and plants in the yard.

Helena wore a sky-blue dress, her hair loosely draped over her shoulders, and a smile he had never seen before, yet had fantasized about countless times, played on her lips.

That was a happy smile.

Barrow saw the black cat return; it was limping, and its fur was dull and lifeless.

He knew their agreement had been fulfilled.

He knew that the trial would come soon.

It's a strange intuition, much like some people's belief that they will go to hell after death.

But he couldn't take his eyes off it.

He saw Helena put down the kettle, walk over to her mother, sit down, and gently rest her head on Rowena's shoulder.

Rowena put down her book, reached out and stroked her daughter's long hair, and said something silently.

Helena smiled again.

"So beautiful!"

Barrow was stunned.

Under the porch of the wooden house, the black cat statue sat in the corner, its obsidian ears slightly perked up, as if guarding some treasure that no one could take away.

In the neighboring yard, a witch wearing a Hufflepuff yellow apron was drying herbs, humming an off-key tune.

Under the eaves across the way, a wizard named Gryffindor was disciplining a dark wizard, occasionally glancing up at the wooden house and grinning.

This is the town she chose.

Barrow sensed the red mist surging in.

He knew it was time.

But his gaze was fixed on the figure in the blue dress, unable to look away for even an inch.

He wanted to remember it all. To remember the strands of hair falling over her shoulders, the curve of her smile, and the clear sky in her eyes that he had never been able to give her.

Because he knew this was the last time he would see her.

He never had the chance to come back.

"If you had the chance, what would you choose?"

"The black cat asked."

Barrow froze, gave a bitter smile, and did not answer.

Just as the red mist completely enveloped his vision, Helena suddenly turned her head slightly, as if she sensed something.

Her gaze swept across the courtyard, through the flowers, and straight toward where Barrow was.

Her gaze was clear and calm, carrying only a hint of surprise and relief.

She glanced at him, then turned her head back to lean on her mother's shoulder.

In that instant, Barrow didn't know whether it was the mercy of an illusion or her true forgiveness.

He looked like he was crying.

Maybe it's raining.

"Just look at it from afar, that's enough."

Barrow said.

He was a despicable person and shouldn't have been near her. But seeing her happy, he shared in her happiness.

Even criminals should have the opportunity to choose after the trial.

The black cat murmured, its eyelids drooping.

A blacksmith has moved into the town.

No one knows where he came from, only that he wears a strange mask, never speaks, always strikes a ping-pong ball with a hammer, and then gazes at the distant garden from Mars.

[You have practiced Soul Transformation to legendary standards, Proficiency +1000000]

[Soul Transformation Proficiency Has Significantly Improved]

[Name: Sheehan Green]

[Transfiguration Talent: Purple (Master Transfiguration title already granted). Note: Regular wizards have Green.]

Transfiguration Classification:

Magical Transformation: Master Level (2000/3000000)

Matter Transformation: Master Level (2000/3000000)

Soul Transformation: Master Level (2100000/3000000)

[Evaluation: A wizard who has reached the Master level in the field of shapeshifting is an outstanding figure even among the best, capable of fighting against many wizards who have barely reached the Master level.]

There is no sound more beautiful than this.

Sheen sat up in bed, invigorated.

Then he lay down again.

It was still too early, and he could clearly feel his fatigue.

I need to take a nap.

Lying on the soft bed, gazing at the dim light of day, he silently pondered his progress in learning magic.

Phoenix cookies are almost ready;

The progress of black magic is also steadily increasing;

As for the Transfiguration technique, it's only missing one more mission to travel to and from the border region.

Kong Fu recovered quickly; perhaps his first consideration should be choosing who to sink into the dream.

Mr. Sirius?

Harry?