Ancient Wizards Return to Hogwarts...

Chapter 242 Rice: If I haven't come back up in three days, please open this package.

Harry leaned weakly against the wall in the corridor, his emotions a jumble of complex feelings: What should he do? He didn't know. Who could he turn to for help? He didn't know either. He couldn't even be sure if the events were true.

Logically speaking, this kind of "world-ending" disaster has nothing to do with a young wizard like him who has only been enrolled for two years. But reality is what it is, and this responsibility suddenly fell on his shoulders like a meteorite.

Just then, Harry heard footsteps in the corridor behind him. He turned around and saw Daphne walking towards him with a small satchel on her back. Behind her was a little girl with silver hair; Harry recognized the child—Daphne's sister, Astoria.

Harry: !

He rushed to Daphne like a drowning man grasping at a straw and stopped her.

"What's the matter?" Daphne was startled by Harry's sudden appearance. She instinctively took a step back to create some distance between herself and Harry before asking him what he wanted.

Harry immediately told the Daphne sisters what he had heard from the snake.

"May I ask where you heard this rumor?" Daphne's first reaction after hearing what Harry said was also one of skepticism.

After careful consideration, Harry decided to tell Daphne about his Parseltongue ability, because she was someone he could trust.

"You're a Parseltongue?!" Daphne was genuinely shocked that Harry knew Parseltongue. However, she could view this talent with a normal mindset. For example, didn't her closest friends, Ras and Astoria, talk to snakes? Perhaps Harry's ancestors had married into a Parseltongue family and passed this talent on to him.

However, considering that the message was brought by a snake, its credibility increases significantly.

Daphne decided to discuss it with Rice.

For any information related to snakes, Rice is the place to go!

Moreover, if what the snake said is true, then Rice should be the one to step in, since it's a disaster that could "devour the world"!

"Okay, then I'll wait for you in the hall!" Harry's eyes lit up when he saw that Daphne and the other girl were willing to help.

The Daphne sisters were quite capable, and with the addition of Rice—all the reliable students in Slytherin were involved—Harry felt that things had suddenly taken a turn for the better.

So Harry and the Greengrass sisters were briefly separated. One stayed on standby, while the other two went to fetch reinforcements.

When Daphne returned to the Slytherin common room, it was empty. She found that Rice was still awake, curled up alone by the fireplace reading a book. On the table, besides the book, there was a crystal ball the size of an egg.

What she didn't notice was that Rice's hair at the back of her head was gradually changing color, and the skin on her palms was becoming smoother.

"Rice, great! There's something..." Daphne quickly told Rice about the monsters that had appeared in the Forbidden Forest.

"Such a thing is true? The snakes in the castle have indeed been quite restless lately..." After listening to Daphne's words, Rice tossed the book aside, narrowed his eyes, as if weighing the pros and cons. In the end, he made a decision.

"Well, there's no time to lose. I'll go with you and investigate the secrets of the spider's nest."

Upon receiving Rice's reply, Daphne and Astoria became excited. In their view, with Rice involved, what evil creature could be easily captured?

Suddenly, the crystal ball on the table emitted a red flash, and Rice's expression immediately turned serious.

He patted the crystal ball, and Ravenclaw's voice came from inside: "Rice Lint, I need your help. The seal shows signs of being breached. Come to the dungeon immediately. I'll be waiting for you here."

Daphne's expression changed instantly. She knew that a large group of extremely dangerous dark creatures were sealed beneath the school's dungeon, and if the seal were to waver, the consequences would be terrifying.

After hearing Ravenclaw's words, Rice didn't say anything more. He straightened his wizard's robes and took out a handkerchief to wipe his wand.

After doing all this, he said to Daphne in a very gentle tone, "I'm sorry, something has come up on my end, and I'm afraid I can't go to the Forbidden Forest with you."

Daphne tensed up immediately, and Astoria also vaguely felt that something was not quite right.

"Rice, you..." Daphne wanted to say something, but Rice interrupted her.

"Listen carefully, time is tight, so I won't say much more. Here, take this." Rice took the package he always carried with him from his waist and handed it to Daphne.

Daphne: ? ! !

"If I'm not out of the dungeon in three days, you and Astoria will leave Hogwarts, leave Britain, and head east. Of course, you can also cross the sea to America if you wish; the contents of the package are sufficient for you—"

At this point, Rice seemed to remember something and gave a wry smile: "You forgot you're Greengrass's children? Fine, do as you please, but you must leave Britain as soon as possible. The things in the package are still of some value, consider it a gift from me."

Daphne felt as if something had hit her head hard.

"No, this..." She froze on the spot, at a loss for what to do.

Astoria stepped forward, pushed her sister aside, and grabbed Rice's sleeve.

"Take us with you, we can help too." Her gaze was extremely firm. No matter how many difficulties and obstacles lay ahead, she would stay by Rice's side and fight alongside him to the very end.

"Yes, take us with you, we're very strong." Daphne also realized what was going on and immediately grabbed Rice's other sleeve, telling him that it would be good to take them along even as human shields against the spell.

A hint of helplessness appeared on Rice's face. He shook his head and firmly pulled his sleeves out of Daphne and Astoria's hands.

Seeing that she couldn't help, Daphne's eyes were filled with disappointment. She regretted not practicing her spells more diligently. If she were stronger, could she have helped Rice?

Astoria also pursed her lips tightly, her face filled with resentment.

Rice ignored them and headed towards the exit of the lounge.

After the gate opened, he remembered something and turned to the two men, saying, "By the way, that monster in the Forbidden Forest is quite suspicious. I suspect it's related to the changes in the seal—maybe it's something that escaped from the seal. You two go and investigate for me. If you can handle it, it will be a huge help."

Daphne, Astoria: !

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. My throat hurts so much, ugh.

(End of this chapter)