The Wind and the Wings of Hogwarts

"Scott, are you alright?" Dumbledore asked.

Scott replied, "So far, Professor. We've faced some challenges, but no real danger yet."

"That's good."

Dumbledore breathed a sigh of relief.

"I'm sorry, the fog blocked my magic, and I was unable to complete the rescue in time."

“Everything happened so suddenly,” Scott said. “And the fog could block my magical senses.”

Dumbledore added, "After you disappear, Fawkes will not be able to find you either."

Then he held up the [magic phone] and showed Scott the surroundings.

"In addition, the fog has dissipated."

Scott looked at the Stennes Standing Stone, which was clearly visible in the image, with some surprise.

"So, the entrance will close as soon as someone enters?"

Dumbledore said, "Yes, I think the seven wizards mentioned in the old stories must have entered at the same time. I'm sorry, I should have gone with you."

Scott shook his head. "Professor, this is my adventure."

Then, under questioning from Dumbledore and Savannah, he recounted in detail his experience.

After listening to his account, Dumbledore said with satisfaction, "You did a good job, and you were very careful, Scott. It's fortunate that it was you; if it had been another wizard who went in, there would probably have been casualties."

"Thank you for the compliment."

Scott accepted his praise.

"After all, I had done a lot of preparation beforehand."

“By the way, Scott!” Savannah leaned closer to the “lens”. “Do you carry the gift I gave you with you?”

"Golden acorn?"

Scott took two golden acorns from the lizard skin bag.

"Oh, that's great, you can carry it with you."

Savannah said happily.

"As you know, the Heart of the Sacred Tree is a piece of wood that looks like a golden gem."

"But I forgot to remind you that when you approach it with the fruit of the sacred tree, their power resonates."

"If it were you, you would be able to sense the magical fluctuations of the Sacred Tree Fruit, and the [Heart of the Sacred Tree] would emit a golden light to alert you."

“Thank you.” Scott waved his hand holding the acorn. “That makes things much easier.”

Savannah said, "You're welcome. Also, try to keep the sacred tree fruit close to your body. It contains the power of the sacred tree and can resist the curse to a certain extent."

"I see."

Scott put down the Magic Mirror, intending to find a rope to tie the two golden acorns together and hang them around his neck.

But when he was taking something out of the lizard skin bag, he suddenly touched something that was a little hot, so he took it out.

"This……"

What he took out was the alpaca skull that Luna had given him.

At this moment, the skull was not just slightly warm.

Around the eye sockets of the large acacia beans embedded in the skull, several red cracks appeared, spreading outwards.

These cracks look very small, but their color is very bright.

“Maybe there really is a curse,” Scott murmured, “and a curse that neither the water sphere nor the magic barrier could withstand.”

"let me see."

Dumbledore asked Scott to show him the skull.

Scott raised his lit wand so that Dumbledore could see the skull more clearly.

"Oh, this must be the work of a Peruvian sorcerer."

The well-informed Dumbledore immediately recognized the skull's origin.

Scott nodded and explained where the skull came from.

"This skull cannot completely ward off the curse."

Savannah interrupted.

"But with it and the fruit of the sacred tree, the curse will undoubtedly be partially offset. After you come out, I will perform a purification ritual for you, and the curse will be completely eliminated!"

“I think Miss Dougherty is right,” Dumbledore said, “but you still can’t stay in the Tower for too long.”

Savannah said, "Eight hours. From now on, eight hours should be the limit. You must get out of there before then, otherwise the curse cannot be removed!"

Scott asked, "So, the wizard who escaped from here but still died from the curse did so because he stayed in the tower for too long?"

“I think that’s it,” Savannah nodded. “Of course, the fact that no druid priest performed a purification ritual for him may also be the reason he died from the curse.”

"Okay... Oh, Edgar is back."

Scott turned to look outside the water sphere.

Edgar flew back and reignited the flames around him, the intense heat illuminating the entire area.

"Gah...gagga..."

It barked several times.

"It said it didn't find any golden wood."

Although it was unnecessary, Rimbaud still volunteered to act as the translator.

"It also said that the entrance to the next level should be in the black forest above, in the heart of the forest, where the trees are densest and shrouded in mist."

“Well then, let’s head over there first,” Scott said. “Edgar, lead the way, and Sirein, follow it.”

"Gah!"

Edgar cried out and flew forward in a chosen direction, with Cyrein following behind in his water sphere.

"Strange, none of the crows have returned," Rimbaud couldn't help but say. "Has something happened to them?"

"Gah...gagga..."

Edgar, who was ahead, called out a few more times.

"Oh my God!" Rimbaud exclaimed in surprise, "Edgar said those trees would attack the crows, but they didn't! We have to be careful, Scott!"

Scott frowned slightly and nodded.

"Oh Scott, this is too dangerous, please be careful..."

Savannah's worried voice came from the [Magic Mirror], but soon her voice became indistinct and then disappeared.

Scott picked up the [magic mirror] and looked at it.

"Communications have been lost."

He looked up at the increasingly dense forest.

"Is it because we're close to the center of the forest?" Rimbaud asked.

"Maybe." Scott put away the [Magic Mirror].

Just then, several crows flew over and cawed loudly around the water sphere.

"Oh, my people, they are still alive!"

Rimbaud was somewhat pleased and continued to act as the translator.

"They said their companions had been impaled by tree branches! Unfortunately, they couldn't find anything unusual."

"Something is a little strange."

Scott frowned as he spoke.

"Seven people went on an adventure, and six of them died inside the tower. One died in the flames, one died in the deep water, and one died at the top of a tree..."

"Leaving aside the fire, we didn't find any bodies in the deep water or on the treetops."

Rimbaud said, "But it's been over a thousand years, the body must be long gone."

“Maybe,” Scott said.

That's the only explanation...

"Gah!"

Edgar reminded us that we had reached our destination.

Upon hearing Rimbaud's reminder, Scott, who was sitting backwards on the magic barrier, looked down at the dark forest above.

The trees here are indeed much denser, their sharp, straight branches intertwined, resembling a black monster covered in spikes.

Sure enough, there was a faint mist drifting around there.

“Get a little closer, but be careful,” Scott instructed Sirein.

With its head bobbing and tail wagging, Sirin manipulated the water sphere to slowly approach the black forest above.

Edgar followed closely, even faster than Edgar.

But something strange happened.

When Edgar approached, the trees did not react, but as the water sphere enveloping Scott drew near, the straight branches suddenly stretched out like swords, stabbing straight at him.

The branch pierced the water sphere, but was blocked by the magical barrier.

Scott looked at Sirein.

There was some trouble. Although the Sirein wasn't injured, it got stuck on the branches.

Scott acted decisively, waving his wand to turn the four fish carrying the metal ball into crows, while simultaneously having Cyrene scatter the water sphere.

The water balloon dispersed, and Scott took out his flying broom, which, along with the four crows holding the metal ball, flew away from the woods.

After he left, the branch stuck to Sirein retracted.