Hogwarts: This holy light is righteously evil

Chapter 161 Let's add some spice to the secret room!

Late at night, Hogwarts completely shed its daytime hustle and bustle, the entire castle fell into silence, the corridor lights flickered dimly, and only a few scattered candlelight illuminated the empty stone corridors, the vast majority of students and faculty were already fast asleep.

In the midst of this silence, the Weasley twins, guided by the Marauder's Map, pinpointed a hidden corner in the fourth-floor corridor.

In the shadows, a figure stood silently, Puni's illusion magic flowing steadily around him, perfectly concealing his aura and outline, blending discreetly into the darkness.

The three agreed to explore the castle's forbidden area together again tonight. The twins had been preparing for this late-night adventure for a long time.

They packed every imaginable tool and item they could possibly use into large canvas backpacks, filling them to the brim and making them extremely heavy. They looked more like merchants preparing for a long-term migration than short-distance exploration of a secret realm.

The three worked in perfect harmony, keeping a low profile and moving quickly along the shadowy area. They remained on high alert throughout, precisely avoiding the patrolling Filch and Mrs. Lorris who patrolled the corridors several times, without making a sound, and successfully infiltrated the restricted corridor on the fourth floor.

At the end of the corridor, the solid wood door, which Dumbledore had publicly announced to the entire school and strictly forbade any student from approaching or entering without permission, stood quietly in the dim light and shadow. The heavy door panels isolated all movement and atmosphere behind it.

Fred broke the brief silence with a low voice, his eyes brimming with barely suppressed excitement and anticipation: "Is everything ready? Our adventure is about to begin."

George took a slow, deep breath, suppressing his nervousness and excitement, and nodded solemnly to indicate that he was ready.

Unlike the twins' restless excitement, Puni remained calm and composed. He first carefully scanned the surrounding blind spots to confirm that there were no patrol personnel or hidden magical surveillance triggers in the entire area, thus completely eliminating external risks.

He then raised his hand and gently pushed against the door panel, tentatively applying force to push it open.

Surprisingly, this restricted area gate, which should have been firmly locked to prevent outsiders from entering, was not locked at all and could be slightly opened with a gentle push.

The three of them looked puzzled, exchanged glances, and were filled with surprise.

Given the school rules and the school's control measures, it is absolutely impossible for this restricted area to have any loopholes where the gates are not secured.

The only possibility is that someone had already entered this area earlier tonight.

The effects of the illusion spell on Puni's body had not yet dissipated, and he was completely safe in his concealed state. Without further hesitation, he slowly pushed the door open a crack large enough for him to squeeze through and peered inside to examine the environment.

Behind the door was not a regular room layout, but a long, dark passageway. The passageway was closed year-round and no one used it. The air was filled with thick dust and a strong, heavy, and oppressive aura of a giant beast's breath.

A scan of the entire passageway revealed no trace of anyone, except for a few faint footprints scattered on the ground. They were small in size and had regular patterns, clearly left by the student wizard's shoes.

After confirming that there was no immediate danger inside, the three of them entered the passage one by one, and then quietly closed the solid wood door.

To prevent the door from locking automatically and trapping the three inside, the twins pulled out a thin wooden board they were carrying and precisely wedged it into the door lock latch, firmly holding the door panel in place. This eliminated the risk of the door automatically closing and locking, and also prevented the door panel from opening loosely and revealing their whereabouts.

The three continued to advance slowly inward, keeping their footsteps light and avoiding loose gravel on the ground, deliberately circumventing the dark corners on the left side of the passage.

The deep, resonant snoring that filled the entire area emanated from there; its rhythm was regular, heavy, and deeply intimidating.

Louie, the three-headed dog guarding the restricted area, was fast asleep in the middle of the passage. Its huge and burly body almost stretched across most of the passage, and its thick fur rose and fell slowly with its even breathing. Its massive size was extremely intimidating, firmly sealing off the core area of ​​the entire passage.

The three quickly scanned the entire terrain and figured out the layout of the passage. The entire enclosed passage only had one entrance on the outside, and the only trapdoor leading to the lower secret realm was being held down by one of Luwei's huge front paws, leaving no room to pass. If they wanted to go deeper, they had to move the beast.

"We must find a way to move it."

Fred leaned closer to the two of them and whispered quickly in a breathy voice. Then he and George turned their heads together and looked at Puni with expectant eyes, pinning all their hopes on him.

"Leave it to me."

Puni slowly stepped forward, walked directly to a safe distance in front of the three-headed dog, and took out a square-shaped snack that he kept with him.

These are special gummies made by Hagrid himself, and they are the exclusive food that he has fed to Lou Williams on many occasions to maintain his goodwill towards him.

The familiar sweet aroma instantly filled the air and entered Louie's nostrils.

The previously dormant behemoth immediately reacted, its three heads twitching rapidly in unison as it sensed the source of the scent.

The next moment, all six eyelids opened one after another, and the hazy eyes slowly opened, completely waking up from their deep sleep.

The intense appetite completely aroused the giant beast's emotions. All three heads turned towards Puni's direction at the same time, emitting low and urgent whimpers from their throats. A large amount of saliva dripped continuously from between their teeth, making a soft splashing sound when it hit the ground, full of longing for food.

"Don't get agitated, Lou Williams."

Puni deliberately slowed his speech and softened his tone, using a gentle and steady voice to soothe the restless beast.

He had been feeding Lou Williams from a safe distance and had never been in close contact with him while he was awake.

At this moment, he raised his hand and gently shook the gummy candy in his hand, and the three huge dog heads swayed from side to side with his movement, unable to look away.

The giant beast's thick tail slapped the ground incessantly, producing a series of dull thuds. Just by looking at the force of its tail striking the ground, one could imagine the immense impact one would suffer if struck by it.

Puni didn't throw the gummy candies immediately. Instead, he quickly turned to the twins and whispered, "This three-headed dog is extremely sensitive to music and can be soothed by melodies. Just play any piece with a continuous rhythm."

Fred and George reacted quickly. Without much explanation, they exchanged a glance and immediately raised their hands to whistle.

A melody without a fixed tune, but with a soothing and light rhythm, quietly rose in the dark passage.

A remarkably effective scene then unfolded.

The three dog heads, which had been shaking slightly with a hint of anxiety due to their thirst for food, calmed down completely the moment the melody started.

The eyelids of the six eyes grew heavier and heavier, slowly drooping down. The originally tense head lowered little by little, and the fierce aura of the whole body dissipated, replaced by extreme drowsiness and dullness, and the consciousness gradually became hazy and scattered.

Seizing the perfect opportunity, Puni no longer hesitated. He raised his hand and threw all the special gummy candies in his hand towards the far end of the passage, away from the trapdoor.

The sweet scent that swept through the air instantly drew Louie's attention. All three heads leaped into the air at the same time, rushing towards the landing point and scrambling for the scattered gummy candies, completely neglecting the entrance to the passage they were originally guarding.

"Quickly, now's the time!"

Puni gave a low shout, and the three of them sprinted to the center of the passage without stopping. They accurately reached the unguarded trapdoor, quickly lifted the cover, and jumped down one after another without hesitation.

There was no hard stone beneath their feet; the three landed steadily on a layer of soft, highly resilient vines—the Devil's Web.

Upon first close contact with these magical plants possessing binding properties, Puni subconsciously felt a slight tension and discomfort, and a subtle shiver ran through her skin.

Fortunately, the twins had a solid foundation in the classroom and reacted quickly. The moment they landed, they immediately raised their hands to cast a spell, illuminating the shimmering fluorescent light, which precisely targeted the vines around them.

The demonic net, which is susceptible to light, immediately relaxed its binding posture, slowly unfurling its branches and leaves, completely releasing the three bodies, allowing them to land steadily and stand firmly.

This layer of devil's net is not a wild, high-risk species, but a domesticated variety specially bred by Professor Sprout. Its power has been greatly weakened, and its lethal binding ability has been removed, retaining only a cushioning effect. Its main function is to cushion the impact of falling from a height and prevent the jumper from being injured.

The three steadied themselves, looked up at the spreading vines overhead, and completely understood the design intent of this challenge. It was layered with defenses yet left a safety baseline, perfectly matching Hogwarts' teaching and protection logic.

With their feet firmly planted on the ground, the three looked up at the Devil's Web vines slowly unfurling and relaxing above them. Puni then explained the intricacies of the situation.

Based on what he had learned in class, he quickly determined that this vine was not a dangerous native species found in the wild, but a teaching plant specially improved and cultivated by Professor Sprout.

The originally highly aggressive restraint features have been greatly weakened, and the danger is almost negligible. Its only function is to cushion the impact of falling, making it specifically suitable for classroom teaching scenarios.

After confirming that there were no hidden dangers in the surroundings, the three continued to venture deeper into the secret realm. They made their way through without any obstacles and soon arrived at the stone chamber door at the very end of the secret realm.

The interior of this stone chamber was empty and desolate, without any traps or special objects. The entire space was empty except for a simple, rustic wooden door standing in the very center.

Dozens of metal keys of various shapes float above the stone chamber, slowly swirling and dancing in the air; this is the only obstacle design in the entire stone chamber.

The three worked in perfect harmony, each raising their wands and precisely targeting the key with its unique pattern that matched the lock. They easily controlled the metal object using basic wand-pulling spells.

Without expending any effort, he firmly grasped the key and successfully unlocked the wooden door.

The wooden door opened inwards, and the scene behind it left the twins speechless.

The space behind was even more spacious than the outer stone chamber. The four stone walls were bare, the ground was flat and clean, and there were no defensive mechanisms, magical traps, or even a trace of special magical fluctuations.

Fred put down his wand, looked around the empty stone chamber, his eyes filled with astonishment and deep disappointment, and muttered in a low voice, "That's it? I thought the final challenge would be much more difficult."

"Aside from the three-headed dog at the entrance and the Devil's Net used as a buffer, the rest of the defenses are utterly perfunctory."

Fred raised an eyebrow, his tone full of confusion. "This is hardly a top-secret protected area. Any senior student who's paying attention in class could easily break in."

George frowned, his face full of agreement, and continued Fred's analysis: "The difficulty of this defense system is at most comparable to the college's final practical assessment. With these floating keys, they can't stop any adult wizard who has mastered dark magic at all, and they are completely ineffective in providing security and protection."

Puni didn't interrupt, but stood quietly in place, concentrating on observing the entire space and carefully sensing the remaining magical aura around him.

The twins' doubts are valid; the current level design is illogical in every way.

The entire defense system has an extremely low difficulty gradient and a very high margin for error, offering almost no resistance to intruders.

In particular, the Devil's Web and the Floating Key barriers were almost powerless, which was completely unlike the level of security that Hogwarts' top secret hideout should have.

After a moment of contemplation, Puni slowly spoke, offering his speculation: "Perhaps the school's original intention was never to use these mechanisms to stop external enemies, but rather to screen those who would attempt to pass. Only those who successfully pass all the basic tests are qualified to touch the ultimate secret."

Even so, he still felt that the defense system was full of loopholes and did not meet Hogwarts' security standards at all.

He had heard the twins mention that the trials at Hogwarts in previous years were extremely difficult, and there were even rumors that the trials were as dangerous as facing trolls. In comparison, the challenge before him was child's play.

Just as the other two were wondering to themselves, a familiar glint of cunning suddenly appeared in Fred's eyes, and his usual mischievous thoughts came to life.

"Regardless of the school's intentions, we risked our lives to break in overnight, so we can't leave empty-handed and with nothing to show for it."

Fred's lips curled into a mischievous smile, his tone playful. "I think this rudimentary level really needs us to add some Weasley-style surprises to make things a bit more difficult and fun for anyone who dares to wander in later."

George instantly understood what the twins were thinking, and immediately nodded in agreement, his face showing the same mischievous smile.

"That's right. We're not causing trouble; we're proactively helping the professors identify and address any shortcomings, and improving the security and defense system of this secret realm."

Seeing the two people's enthusiasm, Puni pondered for a moment and offered a more prudent plan, a faint smile playing on his lips: "Don't rush into action. The checkpoints aren't fully completed yet, and many professors on campus are familiar with the layout of the secret realm. Making rash changes would easily be discovered on the spot. We can postpone the setup and add mechanisms before the school completely completes and officially opens the secret realm, which will perfectly avoid everyone's scrutiny and prevent easy exposure."

"That's a brilliant idea! You really are a very thoughtful person." Fred's eyes lit up, and he sincerely praised him.

"Let's go with this plan!" George immediately made the decision.

The three exchanged a smile and reached a consensus.

The twins immediately put on backpacks stuffed with all sorts of homemade magical gadgets and prank experiments, and rummaged through them to find a bunch of items that they had originally intended to discard and were unwilling to bring back to the castle.

Most of these props are unfinished prototypes developed by them in their spare time. They have strange effects and a variety of uses, making them perfect for modifying levels.