The Bard of Hogwarts

Chapter 254 The Power of Life

This house, weathered by time, has a slightly rustic feel.

Ino leaned against the straw-covered bed, the oil lamp on the table burning quietly, the flame flickering gently with the wick.

Beside the bed, a ceramic teapot and matching teacups floated. Although there was no flame, wisps of steam continuously rose from the spout, releasing a faint aroma of tea.

The simple room exudes a unique charm. The candlelight, teapot, and sparse furnishings all contribute to a sense of peace and tranquility, as if one can forget all worries and noise.

Having experienced the Battle of Helm's Deep, which was clearly unintentional, the rich rewards still surprised him.

Needless to say, the changes in Boggart were immense. The plains outside the valley were shrouded in a thick, fearful smoke that enveloped more than ten thousand people, and by daybreak the smoke had almost become a dense curtain.

The flames and the Guardian Charm also changed.

On their way back this afternoon, the Rohan people, survivors of the catastrophe, were overcome with a collective sense of compassion that fundamentally changed the flame of redemption—it came to life.

Ino was very familiar with this.

Just like the period before Fide was born, it absorbed the resentment and curse of the Dance of Fine Snow, giving the flame its initial signs of life.

Although somewhat unexpected, it also seemed to make sense. Of these more than 10,000 Rohan people, more than half were rescued by him as he crossed the grasslands; these were the people who had truly experienced suffering.

And it is precisely because of this unforgettable pain that they cherish the hard-won peace even more.

With the victory in the war and the arrival of peace, this simple and genuine sentiment seemed to come together as well.

The flames unexpectedly spontaneously combusted.

It's like firewood that, once the temperature is right, can spontaneously combust even without human intervention.

To be honest, he never expected all of this to happen, and perhaps he didn't even have the most basic thought of it.

But they happened as if by prior arrangement, naturally and spontaneously.

Ino slowly sat up from the bed covered with hay. The ceramic teapot, which had been waiting for a long time, obediently poured warm tea into the cup.

After sipping a cup of fragrant black tea, my gaze turned to the flame in the oil lamp.

Unlike when Fide was born, a solitary, azure flame.

The flame, now brimming with life, burns quietly within the bronze oil lamp, as if searching for a nest. And this tiny flame, less than an inch in size, seems to contain a power that cannot be ignored.

At that time, on the way back.

The moment the flame appeared out of nowhere, Ino was somewhat moved. Perhaps to others, it was just a tiny flame.

But in his eyes, he saw a vast emotion, no less than the overwhelming joy of harvest he felt when he first released the Guardian Spell.

It is probably people's expectation of peace, their yearning for a peaceful life, and it also contains the power of "life".

Human life and reproduction are essentially intertwined with the vitality of nature. The birth of a baby, the sprouting of a seed—all these unfold around this vitality.

"Two extremes! Now Fede has company..."

Ino gazed wistfully at the flame in the oil lamp.

Fide is a place of despair and destruction, but the flames before us hold hope and life.

……

Time flows like water.

The next morning, the first rays of dawn fell like fine threads, heralding the arrival of a new day.

Edoras, the ancient capital of Rohan, is like a withered old tree that sprouts new branches after a spring rain.

After a night's rest, everyone got busy.

Inside the room, listening to the cacophony of noise outside the window, Ino opened her eyes.

After a quick wash, he began preparing breakfast.

To be honest, if Rohan hadn't been in dire need of development, he really wouldn't have wanted to eat the few dishes in his suitcase.

But there's nothing we can do; Rohan hasn't even completed the most basic housing arrangements, let alone a trading market.

Leaving aside the original inhabitants of Edoras, the remaining five thousand or so elderly, women, and children really need to be properly taken care of, since their homes have been destroyed in the war.

Sending them back now would be tantamount to murder.

……

On the old wooden table.

A plate of sliced ​​ham, a serving of cheese, and a pot of boiling black tea.

"Knock knock knock!"

But just as the breakfast was laid out, a soothing knock came at the door.

Although somewhat surprised by the early morning visitor, Ino still got up to open the door.

Outside the door stood a tall, fair-skinned figure.

"Haha, good morning! I hope I haven't bothered you," Gandalf greeted with a smile.

Although the visitor arrived unexpectedly early in the morning, since they were guests, they were not ignored.

"Good morning, Gandalf! Come in." Ino stepped aside and extended an invitation.

"I apologize for visiting so early in the morning, but I have nowhere else to go." Gandalf sat dejectedly on the bench.

"If you have nowhere to go, come to me! I'm planning to set up a stall in Edoras in a couple of days, and you can come and help out. I'll pay you."

Ino continued the conversation, even though he didn't believe a word Gandalf said.

"That would be an honor, but now is clearly not a good time." Gandalf shook his head with some regret in response to the invitation to set up a stall.

Although the rejection was expected, Ino used it as an excuse to stop communicating.

He always kept his distance from Maya, the man before him.

As your strength increases, looking back at everything that happened in the past always brings a sense of sudden enlightenment.

A hundred years ago at Bion Farm, he disguised himself as an adult using compound decoctions, but now it seems that his disguise was probably seen through long ago.

An obvious example: if even Old Man Bans of Hogsmeade could detect the anomaly, there's no reason why Gandalf the Grey wouldn't see it.

But what's the truth? Not only did they ask him to help the dwarf team get through the Dark Forest, they also planned to give him a sword to strike the enemy.

Give the weapon to a child who isn't even as tall as the weapon?

To be honest, after thinking all this through, his feelings toward Gandalf became quite complicated.

Although, strictly speaking, Gandalf was a good man, even a great man.

But this greatness is terrifying.

Unlike Dumbledore's sacrifice, Gandalf always only cares about the big picture and not about individual feelings.

This reminded Ino of Muggle computer games, where the main storyline is to overthrow the Demon King, and the characters are always striving for justice.

But what happened? The characters never paid any attention to the ordinary people inside.

A clear example is that Rohan, even after suffering heavy losses and having just finished the Battle of Helm's Deep, still persuaded them to support Gondor.

For this reason, Gandalf even went so far as to set fire to Megundor's beacon tower.

Perhaps this part of the original story was very moving, representing the ignition of the flames of hope.

But from another perspective, this is practically putting Theoton on the hot seat.

Not sending troops to provide support would be a breach of faith.

Sending troops to support them is truly squeezing out Rohan's last reserves.

Under the guise of so-called righteousness, no one considered the lives of the people of Rohan.

No one considered how many Rohan people would be able to return to their homeland after this battle.

(End of this chapter)