Ancient Wizards Return to Hogwarts...

Chapter 221 From Egypt

If you had to sum up the curse breakers in one sentence, Rice would say: How dare you?

In his view, the curse breakers were recklessly testing the limits of danger, courting death in the ruins despite having little real strength.

If they were going to a medieval wizard's or a site "excavated" by a medieval wizard, that would be fine. But what if they unearthed ancient ruins from thousands of years ago? That would be too dangerous. If, by accident or intentionally, they dug up the things he and his old friends buried back then, it would cause even more trouble.

But Rice's opinion did not affect Gemma's expectations for the job of the antidote.

In response to Rice's kindness, Gemma simply said that she would be careful.

Seeing Gemma's insistence, Rice didn't say anything more. He just thought that he should keep in touch with this senior student in the future, so that she wouldn't really cause any big trouble. If she found the ruins from thousands of years ago, it wouldn't be a bad idea for him to go and explore the ruins himself.

"Where did you get the dust you used on the night of the duel? It seems quite magical," Rice steered the conversation to the main point.

"Oh? You have good taste!" Gemma praised Rice. Most students hadn't even noticed the sand they were using, but he had; the boy's observation skills were indeed sharp.

"I stumbled upon it by chance when I traveled to Egypt last year—I suspect there might be an undiscovered relic there," Gemma told Rice.

Upon hearing "Egypt" and "ruins," Rice's eyes lit up: This is interesting! He wondered if Gemma would be willing to share the location with him.

It's probably very difficult, and Rice understands the rules of this industry. For someone like Gemma Farley, who aspires to be a curse-breaker, an unexplored ruin could be a lifeline. He doesn't think he can just ask a question, even if he's not really that interested in the treasures that might be inside.

Seemingly sensing Rice's longing, Gemma's eyes lit up, and she told Rice that she would take him to explore the ruins after he graduated.

"Not now. You're too young. Exploring ruins is very risky." Gemma Farley's excuse was excellent. She used her age as a pretext to refuse to reveal any further information. By the time Rice graduates, he might not still be interested in the ruins. Even if he is, Gemma will have already explored the place for several years, giving her a head start.

At that moment, Rice had a strong urge to forcibly access Gemma's memories and locate the ruins. He could even use a forgetting spell to make Gemma forget everything afterwards, but he ultimately abandoned the idea.

First, Gemma's remains may not have anything to do with Hufflepuff; second, this is really breaking the rules. Once a wizard crosses the line once, the line will be lowered again and again, eventually turning him into a despised dark wizard.

He was the founder of Slytherin House. How could he do such a thing to his own students because of some interests and unfounded speculation?

He decided to take the above-board approach.

"So where exactly was it found?" Rice pressed on, seemingly "out of line."

Gemma Farley frowned.

"I can exchange some information for it."

What Lin Te said next eased Gemma's displeasure slightly: at least the junior wasn't just getting something for nothing. But what information could compare to an undiscovered ruin? She should probably think of a way to politely decline.

"That's a palace left behind by the Norse gods, and it's highly likely that it has never been discovered."

Gemma: !

Her eyes widened in surprise: if what her junior said was true, then that site was definitely more valuable than the one she held in her hands. Although Egyptian history predates that of the Norse gods, the age of a site doesn't necessarily equate to its value. It depends on the identity of its owner and the number of times it has been excavated.

But the Norse gods are, after all, myths and legends...

Gemma hesitated.

"It's a very reliable source," Rice added.

Gemma was now interested, but she definitely needed to hear Rice's detailed explanation before making a decision.

"My family has a large collection of letters between ancient wizards, some of which are extremely valuable—the letters between the founders of Hogwarts," Rice continued, using the wizarding letters as a universal remedy to persuade Gemma.

"Didn't the four founders co-found Hogwarts? Living in the same castle and still sending each other letters?" Gemma immediately found the flaw in Rice's statement.

"They're running a school together, not going to jail together," Rice couldn't suppress his urge to complain.

Why would anyone think they were confined to the school after founding it?! Couldn't they have left Hogwarts to do something else?

It's understandable that Gemma has this misconception, because the headmasters of Hogwarts are truly like they're locked up in the school. From Monday to Friday, they have a heavy workload, and after grading assignments on weekends, they have very little free time. They're lucky if they can even go to Hogsmeade; they rarely even go to Diagon Alley.

"Okay, go on." Gemma shrugged and continued to listen attentively.

"The letter mentioned the aftermath of Ragnarok. The founders sealed the main battlefield of Ragnarok, but many other traces of the gods remained, such as their temples and residences. These things should not continue to exist in the world. Salazar Slytherin was the one of the four responsible for erasing the traces of the gods. He destroyed a large number of sacrificial sites and used magic to hide the palaces of the false gods."

Rice was telling the truth.

After Ragnarok, they indeed expended considerable effort to clean up the mess; otherwise, the corpses of the false gods and the battlefield, now contaminated by magic, would have caused immense trouble for future generations. The wonders left behind by the false gods could not be preserved, lest the faith in the gods be rekindled. Indeed, some of the palaces were hidden by magic.

Rice believed he could choose a harmless palace from among them and hand it over to Gemma to work on. The most immediate benefit of this approach was that it would keep the future unraveler's actions under control, preventing her from digging up anything she shouldn't.

Rice's words seemed very reasonable at first glance, but after thinking about it carefully, Gemma felt that they were not very credible.

"The Norse gods are just myths, right? There are no gods in the world." She didn't believe in gods and was skeptical of the so-called "Ragnarok."

Rice raised an eyebrow: This young girl has pretty good values.

Normally he would praise Gemma's views, but now he had to convince her.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Here's the second update, goodnight everyone~

I drew a Ravenclaw:

(End of this chapter)