Regulus of Hogwarts: Lord of the Stars

The Starry Sky Kite coalesced in the light, its wings spreading to scatter tiny starlight as it circled Regulus once.

The guardian spirit is not summoned intentionally; when a crisis reaches a certain critical point, this power, symbolizing freedom and exploration, responds spontaneously from the depths of the soul.

The starry kite raised its head and let out a clear cry, the sound echoing through the narrow passage, causing all the distorted faces in the gray mist to freeze simultaneously.

This legendary creature, which feeds on starlight and can penetrate space, is itself a denial of all blockades and constraints.

Wherever the body, composed of pure positive magic, passed, the gray mist began to tremble—an instinctive fear when encountering a natural enemy.

The guardian spirit didn't attack intentionally; it simply flew into the gray fog and weaved through the dense human faces.

Silver-white wings swept through the gray mist, leaving trails of light. Faces that touched the trails of light vanished instantly, leaving no black smoke, no trace, as if they had never existed.

Regulus watched as the star kite flew to and fro in the gray mist.

It flew with ease, each flap of its wings creating a trail of shimmering starlight.

The faces desperately tried to retreat, but the passage was too narrow, and they were crowded together with nowhere to escape.

This is the essence of the Guardian Charm: a pure embodiment of positive emotions, naturally suppressing all negative magic.

The despair and pain that had solidified in the gray fog melted away at a visible speed before the starry sky kite.

He recalled the state of mind he had when he summoned this guardian deity, his longing for the vast world, and his unwavering commitment to the essence of freedom.

That longing itself is a powerful tool to dispel despair.

The Starry Sky Kite feeds on starlight and has the ability to penetrate space, allowing it to directly access the core structure of negative magic.

No brute force is needed; simply existing here is enough to deprive faces that depend on despair of their anchor.

Wherever the starlight reached, human faces crumbled like sandcastles that had lost their foundation.

The guardian spirit flew around the outer edge of the Ironclad Curse Barrier, and the gray mist receded wherever its light wings swept across.

With the pressure on the barrier decreasing sharply, Regulus was able to focus his attention on the changes in the field.

Then he discovered the problem.

The faces that had been vanished by the starry kite re-formed from the depths of the gray fog after a few breaths, without any process or origin, as if they were reborn out of thin air.

Regulus locked onto the most recent face, which dissipated in the starlight. Three seconds later, the same facial features emerged from another part of the gray mist.

He understood that the Starry Sky Kite only eliminated the appearance; as long as the source remained, the human face could regenerate infinitely.

The source is inside the stone gate.

He reinforced the Ironclad Spell, and the barrier became thick and stable again, but the magic power continued to drain.

With each impact, the barrier weakens, and he needs to replenish his magic.

The existence of the Starry Sky Kite also continuously consumes spiritual power. If this consumption continues, it is only a matter of time before the barrier collapses.

Regulus noticed another detail: the faces reacted strongly to the presence of living people.

They rammed into the barrier frantically, each face with its mouth agape and its empty eye sockets staring intently at him.

What are they craving? Vitality?

Vibrant emotions?

Or is it simply existence itself?

These creations, formed from suffering, seem to have an instinctive inclination towards the breath of the living, carrying a clear desire to assimilate.

Perhaps they need vibrant life to fill their own void, dragging more lives into the same painful situation.

After some time, Avery and Alex should have run out of the tunnel.

Regulus calculated in his mind that if the professors knew, they should have already met by now.

If they were unaware of this, the two could quickly find Professor Slughorn.

But he doesn't place all his hopes on others; the worst-case scenario is simply breaking through on his own.

At worst, we can burn this whole place down.

But there is still room for experimentation before that.

With a slight thought, the Starry Sky Kite responded to the call.

The guardian spirit suddenly flapped its wings outside the barrier, and a silvery-white light burst forth, forming a curtain of light that instantly cleared away all the gray mist within a ten-meter radius.

The faces evaporated in the light, and the passage temporarily regained its clarity.

The silvery-white figure flashed in the light and disappeared.

Regulus quickly calculated that Starry Sky Kite's clearing of the area before leaving, plus the replenishment of the Ironclad Spell, would buy him about a minute.

The barrier can hold for up to a minute.

He quickly devised a plan. If the Starry Sky Kite could not be found at its source, and if the professors did not arrive in time, he needed to prepare an escape route.

Spatial warp is a last resort; as long as you don't go back or get embedded in the stone wall, the other risks are still bearable.

Spatial friction can tear the body apart, but with his current physical strength and the protection of the Iron Armor Charm, he should be able to withstand the temporary tearing, although it will be very painful.

As for whether the damage caused by spatial warp is the same as the damage caused by phantom teleportation, and whether the White Fresh Potion is effective, there is still no opportunity to verify these.

The Fiery Curse is also ready; even if it can't be controlled, it will still burn when the time comes.

He remembered that he was only twelve years old. If he had another year, he might be more composed in the face of this situation and wouldn't have to take such a big risk with every choice.

We still need to learn and practice.

But these thoughts are useless at this moment; everything is ready, and all that is needed is for the Starry Sky Kite to respond.

The cracks in the barrier spread again.

The gray fog surged up again, and the faces were even more densely packed than before, layer upon layer, almost covering the surface of the barrier.

They opened their mouths and roared silently, their despair piercing through the barrier and directly impacting Regulus's spirit.

The Star Orbit Meditation was running at full power, and the mental barrier blocked most of the impact, but the heaviness was still there, as if there was a physical object pressing on my chest.

Thirty seconds passed.

The kite in the starry sky has not returned.

Without further hesitation, the spatial warp was ready to be activated, and the Fiery Curse was on standby.

Just as the incantation was about to be uttered, a cry rang in my mind.

It is a starry kite, its cheerful cry carrying the joy of having completed its mission.

Regulus's mind raced, and he maintained the magic of spatial warp at a critical state. He felt a slight weight on his left shoulder as something landed on it.

Looking back, he saw Xingkong Yuan standing there, meeting his gaze.

Those eyes, the same color as his, seemed to hold a whole starry sky deep within them, reflecting the surrounding scenery.

His eyes sparkled with excitement, and the shimmering starlight seemed to come alive.

The starry kite held a magic wand in its beak, the wand's body enveloped in a thin layer of silvery-white light, yet its true nature was still discernible.

The black walnut wood, bearing signs of corrosion, has a surface covered with lines of varying depths, resembling congealed bloodstains, and gleams with a dull luster.

A hard object, of unknown material, is embedded in the middle of the staff. It is covered by wood grain, with only its pale yellow edge showing.

Regulus could sense the inside of the wand.

Inside this wand is a vortex, where countless emotions of despair and pain surge and churn. The source of all negative energy—the gray mist, the human faces—lies here.

The final pain of each face before death, and the resentment after death, are all sealed within this magic wand.

He even began to have painful hallucinations flashing through his mind: his joints being crushed, his skin being burned, and his internal organs rotting.

The real pain made him frown instantly.

He finally understood that this was the ultimate destination for all human faces.

All that solidified despair and pain overflowed from this magic wand.

After the face is destroyed, it will return to the wand through the magical link and reassemble into a new face.

Regulus had never heard of a wand that relied so heavily on negative magic and could generate an attack form on its own.

It is like a living container of pain, constantly releasing the darkness accumulated over hundreds of years.

Regardless of who arranged this mission, or whether they wanted to steal the wand or simply cause destruction at Hogwarts, let's set aside the question of who assigned it and delve into whether they wanted to take it or simply cause damage.

All Regulus knew was that if he destroyed it, everything would end.

He opened his left hand, and a ball of blazing white flame rose from his palm, the intense heat distorting and deforming the surrounding air.

He cannot destroy invisible negative energy entities, but destroying a physical wand is no problem.

The starry kite blinked into his eyes, its long tail feathers gently brushing against his neck before it loosened its beak.

The wand fell towards the flames.

Just as the tip of the wand was about to touch the flame, a hand reached out from the side and gently pinched the wand between two fingers.

Without warning, without spatial fluctuations, without magical ripples, the hand seemed to have always been there, but Regulus had not noticed it.

Regulus's pupils contracted slightly as he looked up.

Albus Dumbledore stood beside him, within the barrier of the Ironclad Charm, wearing a deep purple nightgown with a star pattern and a matching dressing gown over it.

His long, silvery-white hair and beard were slightly disheveled, as if he had just gotten out of bed.

His other hand was holding an empty teacup, with a speck of glistening honey on the rim.

The old headmaster held the magic wand between two fingers and examined it closely.

He squinted for two seconds, as if trying to identify something, then with a flick of his wrist, the wand disappeared.

After doing all this, he turned to Regulus, his blue eyes behind the crescent-shaped lenses giving him a gentle look.

Regulus calmed his breathing and extinguished the flames in his palm.

Starry Sky Kite remained perched on his shoulder, tilting its head to examine Dumbledore, its silver-grey eyes filled with curiosity.

"Good evening, Headmaster Dumbledore." Regulus nodded slightly, his voice a little more hurried than usual.