Ancient Wizards Return to Hogwarts...

Chapter 301 Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw (Part 1)

After glancing at Helga's expression again, Rice understood her emotions; she was blaming herself.

When Salazar suggested seeing Rowena in the dungeon, Helga was initially overjoyed, but she soon tasted a different kind of bitterness within that joy. Upon closer examination, she realized it was the taste of guilt.

After careful consideration, Helga realized a problem she had been actively or passively ignoring: Was Rowena's tragic end caused by Helga Hufflepuff's departure?

When she left Hogwarts to travel the world, she didn't consider that once she left, only one founder would remain at the school. In the event of any unforeseen circumstances, Rowena would be forced to shoulder all the burdens. Perhaps the less mature students could share some of the pressure, but Ravenclaw would still be the main force facing the difficulties head-on.

What's even more painful is that when she delved deep into her own heart and confronted her inner thoughts, she discovered a terrifying reality: Had she truly not considered all of this? Or was it...?

Rowena said more than once that she wanted to leave the school to pursue "freedom" after the school was established, but what happened to Godric and Salazar after they left Hogwarts in a huff?

The students were still young, and only two of the founders remained. In this situation, whoever left first would likely be confined to the castle unless she abandoned the culmination of their collective efforts. So she beat Rowena to it, choosing to leave and leaving Ravenclaw alone at the school.

Is she shirking her responsibilities? Is she afraid that Rowena will leave first, leaving her trapped in the school forever? To put it more seriously, has she betrayed her best friend?

Helga didn't know her answer, because after a few months of traveling, her best friend Salazar took her a thousand years into the future, and she never had the chance to prove that she just wanted to go out and have some fun.

She could have placed all the blame on Salazar, standing on moral high ground and claiming to the world that she was also a victim. But when Helga recalled the smile on her face when she said goodbye to Ronay, she couldn't do that anymore.

Sensing Helga's emotional change, Rice took the initiative to help Hufflepuff resolve her inner conflict.

"This is not your problem, it's a trick of fate."

"But I betrayed my friends," Helga's emotions began to surge violently. "I shouldn't have chosen to leave school at that time..."

"That's too harsh," Rice said gently, trying to comfort her. "You haven't betrayed anyone."

"But..." Helga told Rice everything she had thought of.

"Judging by actions, not intentions. The fact is you encountered an accident while traveling—if it were Rowena, she would have done the same." Rice believed Helga's thinking was fundamentally flawed: "Besides, when you left the school, the situation wasn't as dire as Rowena's later years. We raised a group of very reliable children; it was just that an accident happened later."

Who could have imagined that the successors painstakingly cultivated by the four founders would all leave and wither away in such a short time?

According to Rice, Helga was results-oriented, exaggerated the situation at the time, and got herself into a dead end.

"Look on the bright side, we can still get together now—and this is a thousand years from now! More importantly, don't you think the magical world needs us more now than it did a thousand years ago?" Taking advantage of Helga's silence, Rice pressed her advantage and continued to help her resolve her inner conflict.

After Rice said those words, he realized how right he was.

After bringing twilight to the gods, their mission was essentially over, and the wizards would no longer face the crisis of being enslaved by the gods. Once Hogwarts was established, they even got perfect scores on the bonus questions.

The magical world is clearly facing unprecedented changes, and it's truly fortunate that these few individuals are still alive. Otherwise, the future of wizards would be bleak.

"But Godric isn't here." Helga thought of Godric; he had lost contact with him and wondered how he was doing.

"It's great that he's not there! My student Adrian was led astray by him. The farther he goes, the better. I hope he doesn't lead my new student astray!" Rice replied firmly.

Godric? Who's that? I don't know him!

"Why don't we take advantage of the time we still have and go see Rowena now, so we don't regret it later?"

Rice's words immediately touched Helga.

She quickly changed her mind and decided to go to the dungeon to see Rowena.

"That's great." Seeing that Helga had come to her senses, Rice immediately led her to the dungeon.

On the way, they brushed past Hermione, who was walking briskly.

Helga naturally noticed the girl and sensed a unique quality about her.

"That's Hermione Granger, a third-year student at Ravenclaw."

Helga seemed to be deep in thought.

"Yes, she's the one Rowena has her eye on—don't let it slip, her name is Spite now."

"You people are not honest at all."

"Then you must tell your students your true identity in the future."

"Then let's forget it, the time isn't right yet." Helga had no such intention. Watching Hermione's retreating figure, she asked, "She must be a very diligent and intelligent student, right?"

"That's right." Rice nodded.

"Royna is really lucky. The Granger family...never heard of them. Is she from a Muggle family?"

After receiving Rice's affirmative reply, Helga felt even more regretful: How wonderful it would be if such a child could become her student?

"Stop dreaming. Someone like her will most likely be sorted into Ravenclaw. Gryffindor might be a little hopeful, but it's completely impossible for the two of us."

Helga gave a wry smile: she was used to this situation. All the promising new students were absorbed by the students of the other three colleges, leaving her with only ordinary-looking people.

"I also think there seems to be something wrong with the Sorting Hat's sorting method..." Rice told Hufflepuff about her troubles, hoping to get her support to improve the Sorting Hat.

Hufflepuff began to consider it seriously.

The two arrived at the dungeon and broke the seal to enter its depths.

As soon as the seal was broken, a powerful whirlwind swept in. Rice and Helga struggled to stand firm and then saw Ravenclaw standing alone in front of an open space, amusing himself.

Rice took a closer look and saw that the guy was playing in the mud...

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.

First update delivered, second update will be a little later.

(End of this chapter)