The Wind and the Wings of Hogwarts

The text on the wall was indeed consistent with the story Mr. Jeffrey had just told him.

"Fortunately, I finally waited for you, so these messages are meaningless now."

Mr. Jeffrey smiled with satisfaction, then turned and floated towards an upward staircase.

"Come on, I can't wait to entrust everything to you!"

"it is good."

Scott responded and followed behind him up the steep stairs.

"That's great."

Helena said happily to Scott.

"This time, there won't be those troublesome and dangerous trials. With Mr. Jeffrey here, you can smoothly inherit that knowledge!"

“Yes,” Scott said, sounding quite convinced. “They’re really lucky.”

Rimbaud rested quietly on Scott's left shoulder without making a sound.

The [magic mirror] floated above his head, still recording everything that was happening before his eyes.

A small picture frame floated to his right, and Ravenclaw in the painting curled the corner of his lips.

Led by Mr. Jeffrey, they walked up the stairs without railings, turning one bend after another.

As they climb higher, the quadrilateral formed by the steps gets smaller and smaller.

Finally, they stopped in front of a stone door that was completely undecorated.

"Go."

Mr. Jeffrey turned to Scott and said.

"Use magic to write all the initial runes of 'Yuktrasil' on the door, and the door will open automatically."

"I see."

Scott stepped forward, extended his finger, and wrote intricate runes one by one on the smooth stone door.

As he made the last stroke, a "click-click" sound was heard.

Then, the stone door began to move to the right and slowly retracted into the wall.

The room inside the door appears to be an old study.

Several torches burned quietly on the iron frames on the surrounding walls.

“That’s the ancient, pristine fire,” Helena whispered.

Scott nodded and continued to observe the furnishings in the room.

On several rows of stone shelves, stacks of rolled-up animal hides were neatly arranged.

The remaining areas were occupied by five enormous stone tables.

The tables were filled with all sorts of utensils, many of which were already decayed.

Despite having a lot of stuff, the interior space is not crowded at all; on the contrary, it is quite spacious.

In particular, a large open space has been reserved in the center.

There are also some intricate patterns carved on the floor.

Welcome to our studio.

Mr. Jeffrey floated into the room, stopped in front of the shelf displaying the animal hides, and turned to look at Scott standing in the doorway.

"Come in quickly, I'd be happy to explain the valuable knowledge we left behind to you!"

"Thank you for your help."

Scott smiled, placed the magic lamp on the ground by the door, and then took a step forward.

He walked at a leisurely pace, but soon arrived at the open space with the carved pattern.

"Come here quickly, Scott."

Mr. Jeffrey waved to him.

Scott raised one foot again, but never put it down.

"What's wrong?" Mr. Jeffrey asked, puzzled.

"Oh, I won't go."

Scott withdrew his foot.

Mr. Jeffrey asked with concern, "Are you feeling unwell?"

Scott shook his head. "No, I would say I would only feel uncomfortable if I took two more steps forward."

How could that be?

Mr. Jeffrey smiled gently.

"It's alright, it's safe here. Unlike the ice palace in Niflheim, we haven't set up any traps or mechanisms here."

Scott remained rooted to the spot, as if his feet were planted in the ground.

At this moment, Helena also realized that something was wrong.

"What happened?" she asked Scott softly.

Scott smiled. "You'll have to ask Mr. Jeffrey then."

Upon hearing this, Mr. Jeffrey's smile vanished instantly.

"You discovered it?"

Although Mr. Jeffrey's expression turned cold, his voice remained gentle.

How did you find out?

“You told a wonderful story, Mr. Jeffrey,” Scott said. “Unfortunately, I didn’t believe it.”

Mr. Jeffrey looked at him and sighed. “Can you tell me why? I’ve been pondering those words for over a thousand years.”

"Maybe it's because you're not good at lying."

Scott laughed.

"I guess you've always been the kind of wizard who buries himself in research, and apart from your classmates and friends, you haven't interacted with many people. Plus, you've been isolated from the world here for so many years..."

He shrugged as he said this.

"When it comes to lying and deceiving, I'm much better than you."

Mr. Jeffrey was still somewhat confused. "I thought my performance was perfect."

"Maybe it's because it's too perfect and too smooth."

Scott also sighed.

"It's too deliberate. You must have rehearsed countless times, down to every expression and every tone of voice. It's almost mechanical."

It's like an actor who has grown tired of acting, who no longer has genuine feelings and only relies on technique to act.

This kind of actor may be considered to have excellent acting skills, but he is full of artifice.

Audiences will naturally sense such a half-hearted and insincere performance.

Hearing this, Helena was shocked. "Wait, why didn't I see any of what you were saying?"

“Oh, my daughter, I’m not surprised by this.”

Ravenclaw in the painting speaks frankly.

"After all, this isn't the first time you've been completely fooled."

"Mother……"

Helena was speechless and lowered her head in shame.

"That's not a reason."

Mr. Jeffrey still found Scott's statement somewhat unacceptable.

"I am just a ghost who has been trapped alone for more than a thousand years. It is normal for me to lose my emotions and forget how to communicate with people."

“You’re right,” Ravenclaw began, “but you told the story too smoothly.”

Mr. Jeffrey said, "I am waiting for the successor of 'Agasd'. I want to tell him about the past. I want to prevent myself from forgetting, so I have been practicing."

This time it was Helena's turn to refute him.

"Ghosts never forget what they remembered in life, especially things related to their death!"

"You are not a ghost at all, and you don't understand ghosts at all!"

Did I make a mistake again?

Mr. Jeffrey suddenly realized.

"I have never communicated with ghosts, nor have I studied any topics related to ghosts."

Scott said, "I was just suspicious of you, but I wasn't sure you were really lying until I came into this studio."

“I didn’t show any weakness.”

Mr. Jeffrey thought for a moment.

"You should be drawn to this valuable knowledge."

Ravenclaw said, "You're too impatient. You don't know that Scott has an extremely keen sense of magical fluctuations; it's a natural talent of his."

"I see."

Mr. Jeffrey looked at the patterns engraved on the stone slabs on the ground.

"Indeed, I was too hasty. I should have waited until you stepped onto the spot I prepared for you before starting the magic ritual."

Scott guessed, "You probably also want to take over my body and replace my identity, right?"

"Also?" Mr. Jeffrey looked surprised.

“Ah, you’re not the only one who wants to do that,” Scott said.