Ancient Wizards Return to Hogwarts...

Chapter 481 Salazar Slytherin, Death

"In the world of alchemy, I met a prophet." Rice organized his thoughts and decided to begin with Vasak's prophecy.

"You don't actually believe those so-called prophecies, do you? If so, I'll laugh at you." Before Rice could finish speaking, Rowena retorted, "Those prophecies are all over the place, you can interpret them however you want, anyway, people will always find a corresponding explanation for those cryptic statements in the end."

Regarding divination, prophets, and their prophecies, the four men each held their own views. Rowena was the least skeptical of divination and prophecy.

She believed that destiny was actually in her own hands. The prophecies given by fortune tellers could only serve as vague hints. For the sake of magic, Rowena admitted that they could indeed glimpse a corner of the future, but only a corner.

Like the blind men and the elephant, the prophesied future is one-sided, and anyone who completely believes in prophecies is undoubtedly a fool.

If Salazar were to say that he decided to die because of a prophecy, then Rowena would certainly laugh at him and scold him awake.

"What is the content of the prophecy?"

There are those who do not believe in prophecy, and there are those who believe in it.

Helga was the one among the four who believed in prophecy the most, Godric also believed quite a bit, but he believed even more in the longsword in his hand.

Having heard that Salazar encountered a prophet in the Alchemy World, Helga wanted to hear what the prophet's prophecy was.

As soon as Helga finished speaking, Rowena frowned. As a longtime friend, she naturally understood what Helga was thinking.

However, there was nothing she could do to stop it.

Rice relayed the prophecy he had heard, and both of them became serious.

Putting everything else aside, the fact that Vasak could figure out Salazar's background is quite remarkable.

"From the perspective of training students alone, what he said is quite accurate." Rowena snorted, trying to divert Salazar's attention.

"So he not only predicted your death, but also gave all four of us a warning?" Helga was more concerned about the sentence "all four of our animal friends are sick, each one more serious than the last," which was clearly directed at the four of them.

Godric, needless to say, was someone who needed the Resurrection Stone to manifest, so his condition was naturally extremely poor. The same was true for himself; his body was decaying, and he didn't know when he would die of old age. Rowena was simply a ghost; without possession, she couldn't even be considered alive.

Salazar, who was in the best condition of the four, is now seriously injured.

"This prophecy is terrifyingly accurate," Helga thought to herself.

Rice gave a soft "hmm," but indicated that this wasn't the key issue.

"This prophecy is quite accurate; I'm thinking I might as well just go with it."

Rowena raised an eyebrow, about to say something, but Rice spoke first.

"This is a good thing. A good thing that achieves multiple benefits."

"Good news?" Rowena's eyebrows rose even higher; she was clearly not very accepting of Salazar's explanation.

Rice's voice continued to emanate from the crystal ball.

"I know you don't really like words like prophecy and fate, so let me put it another way... I'm conducting an experiment, an experiment on life and death."

"Um?"

To be honest, the same thing sounded much better when it was said in a different way.

Of course, this also depends on the nature of the matter. One is to accept one's fate passively, while the other is to explore the unknown; they are two completely different extremes.

"I'm planning to explore the afterlife, and now is the perfect opportunity. I'll make the arrangements."

Upon hearing their old friend's words, Rowena and Helga couldn't help but sigh.

"The risks of your experiment seem a bit high."

"I've made some preparations."

The crystal ball remained silent for a long time.

"In short, I'm just informing you that my mind is made up," Rice said firmly. "After you receive news of my death, remember to come and visit often."

Rice transmitted his address in the alchemy world.

This was quite important of the many things he prepared.

After receiving assurances from his two old friends, Rice breathed a sigh of relief: things are settled now.

He wouldn't have dared to play like this without his two old friends; now he can go all out.

"So there's really no way to treat the injury?" Helga was still a little unwilling, she always felt that Salazar could still be saved.

Wizards at their level can survive for a while as long as they aren't killed on the spot.

"We can first create a device that freezes time when you step into it, and then Helga and I can slowly work out a treatment plan for you—" Rowena proposed her idea.

Since she, who is skilled in time magic, dared to say that, it means that she is confident that she can turn her idea into reality by the end of the second stage of the competition.

"No, please don't!" Rice was terrified of this guy.

Once you step into this device, it's hard to say when you'll be able to get out.

After some persuasion, Rice finally convinced Rowena to abandon her idea.

"My identity will inevitably be exposed once I get out—"

"We've taken care of everything for you," Helga said eagerly. "Your ranking on the leaderboard is now normal..."

"Thank you, but that's not what I meant. I meant the imposter. I think you all know who he is, right?"

Rowena and Helga nodded together.

After obtaining new information from Aries, they finally figured out Godric's true identity: he was a remnant of the Norse gods.

"I'm in a very bad state right now, and I can no longer conceal the aura of my soul. As soon as I step out of this small world, that person will definitely notice something is wrong."

"So what? At worst, the three of us can take him down together." Helga didn't take a mere god seriously at all.

In her view, the only reason that person was still breathing was because the three of them didn't want to lay a hand on Him.

If they really wanted to get rid of Him, even if He were inside Hogwarts, they would still have a way, it would just take more effort.

Rowena remained silent, a thoughtful glint in her eyes. She sensed that Salazar was trying to use this opportunity to fish for her.

"There's no need. He'll only act if we create an opening. The reason he hasn't made any rash moves is because he suspects there are top-tier experts within Hogwarts, but he's also unsure of their numbers. So, my revealing myself is the optimal solution. This way, we can dispel his doubts and cover for the two of you."

Rowena hummed in agreement.

"But I can roughly guess what that guy wants to do... He wants to bring back the age of the gods."

Upon hearing Salazar's speculation, Rowena remained calm, while Helga was horrified.

"How can this be? We must—"

"Not necessarily." Rowena's voice was soft, but it silenced Helga instantly.

She couldn't understand why her old friend would say such a thing.

"Royna is right. It's in the wizards' best interest to bring the gods back now, and we can simply let that guy do it. Times have changed, this is beneficial, and it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the modern magical world." Rhys figured Royna definitely wouldn't want to expose this, so he might as well be the bad guy.

When the cunning foxes of the mountains and forests disappear, the hunting dogs' days are numbered.

For wizards to integrate into modern society, it would be best to have a sufficiently threatening villain on the opposite side of the Muggles. This would incentivize the Muggles to try and win over the wizards, allowing them to integrate into Muggle society.

Is there anything more suitable to be villains than the gods?

If those four hadn't ended the era of the gods, the magical world probably wouldn't have been forced into hiding, right? When there's a threat from supernatural forces, Muggles need wizards.

Helga began to seriously consider Salazar's point of view. Rice, on the other hand, took the opportunity to communicate with Rowena.

"How do you think He will bring back the age of the gods?"

"It's nothing more than making a fuss about the underworld." Rice shrugged. "Just a mirage."

"Yes," Rowena agreed.

Even if the barrier between the underworld and the mortal world is broken, those gods cannot truly return.

The gods were powerful because they absorbed a significant amount of magical meteorite power. This power vanished with their deaths; where can they replenish it now?

At most, it will only allow a few phantoms to return.

"And if my experiment fails, I'll have to rely on that person's help to revive me!" Rice made a cautious joke.

He was also a little worried that his superior strength might lead to him being targeted.

Ordinary people can be reincarnated, but I'll be cast into the underworld. At that time, I'll really have to ask this Gryffindor to open a door in the underworld so I can escape.

After explaining some trivial matters to Rowena, Rice ended their communication.

He also needs to start making some preparations.

After putting the crystal ball into his pocket, Rice looked up at the big tree behind him and was surprised to find that it was actually a snake tree.

"It's truly fate..." Rice sighed, as wisps of silvery-white, mist-like liquid began to appear on the surface of his body.

"Smoke" flowed from his wounds like water and then disappeared into the tree roots.

A few hours later, the "smoke" inside Rice's body finally dissipated, and the snake tree behind Rice seemed to have undergone a slight change.

At the base of the tree, a faint silver light shimmered. But upon closer inspection, there was nothing there.

Rice nodded in satisfaction, then fell into a deep sleep.

He needs to rest.

After such a catastrophe, peace returned to the Alchemy World, and the competition continued.

As time went by, the situation on the leaderboard gradually became clear. This marathon-like long-distance competition is all about the hard power of each school.

With Daphne, Astoria, Cedric, Hermione, and others on the team, Hogwarts quickly rose to the top of the leaderboard, far ahead of the competition, and taking first place was practically a done deal.

Ifamoni successfully retained his second place due to the large number of participants.

Other schools also vary in quality, but the differences are not significant.

Durmstrang is unsurprisingly vying with Cordosdorez for the last place spot, with both schools even being surpassed by some smaller, independent teams...

Finally, when the deadline for the second stage of the competition arrived, everyone breathed a sigh of relief: it was finally over.

Aside from schools like Hogwarts and Ilfamori that secured their places early, the other schools were in a state of turmoil. Schools with lower rankings desperately wanted to improve their positions, while those with higher rankings feared being overtaken by schools below them. Everyone was on edge with anxiety.

It's time to start the party and celebrate!

When the contestants returned to Hogwarts, they were greeted with a warm welcome and celebration.

No one noticed that when the contestants returned, the legendary wizard Godric Gryffindor's expression turned extremely ferocious for a moment.

However, he quickly regained his composure and returned to normal, joining the other Gryffindor students in shouting: We are the champions.

However, his gaze kept drifting over a student whose face was wrapped in bandages, whether intentionally or unintentionally.

He smelled a familiar stench.

That night, the four common rooms of Hogwarts were brightly lit, as if they were about to have a night of revelry.

Rice, on the other hand, went to the Astronomical Tower to enjoy a rare moment of leisure.

Suddenly, all sounds around them vanished. The wind whistling in the astronomical tower, the animal cries in the distant forbidden forest—all disappeared.

Rice turned around and found that the figure he knew all too well was standing behind him.

"This is truly amazing," Rice exclaimed sincerely. "Has it isolated me from the space where Hogwarts is?"

"Yes." Godric forced a smile. "As expected of Salazar Slytherin, you're quite knowledgeable."

"Back in Valhalla, what kind of treasures didn't I see?" Rice waved his hand.

"Is this the time for exchanging real names? Then I won't hold back, reveal your true form, Loki."

Loki, disguised as a Gryffindor, remained unmoved.

"This body I'm in now is my true form."

Rice raised his eyebrows: I see, no wonder there were no flaws.

Loki narrowed his eyes.

"If you hadn't given yourself away, I wouldn't have recognized you, my 'old acquaintance,' Salazar. You've got quite the lifespan!"

"You've survived this long too, haven't you?" The bandages on Rice's body instantly burst open, revealing snake scales beneath. "Enough talk, let's do it!"

His response was a devastating blaze of fire.

……

The battle is over.

Loki gently wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and held up a charred, barely recognizable human-shaped object high in the air.

"Salazar, you probably never imagined this day would come a thousand years ago... Ha, if you hadn't been injured, the outcome tonight would have been uncertain..."

The humanoid "coke" trembled.

"It's all over." Loki was too lazy to waste any more words with Salazar. With a flash of red light, he completely killed the dying Slytherin.

Salazar Slytherin, dead.

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.

Update delivered. The next update will be tomorrow night at midnight.

good night!

(End of this chapter)