Hogwarts: What are the four great masters doing?

At Dumbledore's request, Barty Jr. will be sent to St. Mungo's tomorrow and will stay in the school hospital temporarily today.

This just gave Ryan a brief opportunity.

"Star Soul Incarnation."

Ryan's voice was almost inaudible.

The Star Soul Avatar came out, and his soul tentacles carefully reached out to the bed.

The next moment, Ryan felt a violent, almost sticky resistance and confusion.

That was not a normal train of thought, but a ruin ravaged by a hurricane.

Ryan saw images—like he was seeing inside Filch's soul.

He felt the cold breath of the Dementors of Azkaban.

He heard Barty Crouch Sr. cast the Imperius Curse.

Ryan struggled to capture those fleeting, illogically unconnected fragments.

Amidst countless shattered images and chaotic whispers, a relatively clear sound fragment stubbornly emerged, accompanied by a blurry picture:

"Shanshan...Shanshan dare not...Please, Master...Please be quiet...

In the picture, Ryan could see Twinkle's huge, tear-filled eyes, which were distorted by excessive fear.

Ryan's frown deepened.

These fragments of memory clearly confirmed what old Batty said.

"Winky is Barty Jr.'s caretaker, and his memory is clouded by the Imperius Curse... But judging from what happened just now, it should indeed be his memory?"

Ryan looked at little Barty lying on the hospital bed. The moonlight reflected his pale and thin face.

"There are no traces of Polyjuice Potion or Transfiguration on his body—and Madam Pomfrey's examination is absolutely reliable. So, is this really him?"

"The one I saw in the Department of Mysteries, was that indeed someone impersonating Barty Jr.?"

He seemed to have to accept this fact.

but...

The same thing - he always felt that something was not quite right.

Something was hidden in some details that he had not noticed, making him feel like he was looking at flowers in the fog. Although he could vaguely perceive it, he could not see it clearly.

Chapter 209: Dark Terma, Professor Flitwick’s special course!

The Hogwarts corridors were empty and silent late at night. The cold moonlight barely filtered through the high windows, casting blurry shadows on the ground.

Ryan came out of the school hospital with a frown on his face.

In his mind, the sound of Shining's frightened cries seemed to still echo.

"Little Barty..."

The feeling of disharmony in his mind kept haunting him, but it seemed to disappear into the mist again.

He rubbed his aching temple and planned to go back to the dormitory to rest.

But just as he passed a fork in the road, he heard a familiar voice: "What are you thinking about?"

Ryan looked up and saw Cedric Diggory standing not far away.

He had his usual gentle smile on his face and was holding a cloth bag in his hand.

"Cedric?" Ryan was a little surprised. "Why are you here?"

"I was originally researching some issues regarding wand making... I've hit a bottleneck. Um... I won't tell you yet, it's a secret."

Cedric shrugged and raised the cloth bag in his hand: "Just a little 'night supply' by the way."

He lowered his voice and smiled even more brightly. "Kitchen—right now is the time when the honey cakes are fresh out of the oven, the butter is still soft and steaming... How about it? Together?"

"...Walk!"

So, Ryan's doubts were temporarily put aside.

Nothing would lift his spirits better than a bite of warm honey cake – well, if anything, more honey cake.

So the two of them reached an agreement and went to the kitchen as if they were familiar with it.

Since Filch was hospitalized at St. Mungo's, the process seemed easier than usual.

The bright kitchen was as warm as ever, and now that the air pressure in the entire castle had dropped sharply because of old Barty's incident, it seemed like another world.

The flames danced in the stone hearth, and the air was filled with the rich aroma of bread, herbs, roasting meats, and a wealth of baked goods.

Inside the kitchen, the tiny sounds of the house-elves busying around came flooding out like a tide.

"Oh, I'm actually a little hungry."

Ryan muttered.

But at this moment, a thin figure with a somewhat timid posture and movements came up quickly.

"Mr. Elias! Mr. Diggory!"

It was a house-elf with big eyes—when Ryan saw her, his eyes widened as well.

"Sparkling?!"

That's right.

The house-elf that appeared before him at this moment was none other than Winky, the elf that originally belonged to old Barty Crouch.

Shanshan busily handed over two plates of steaming honey cakes on a small tray and nodded: "It's me, Mr. Elias."

"Why are you here?"

So Ryan naturally asked this question.

Winky's hand movements paused noticeably, and a trace of sadness flashed in her big eyes, but was soon replaced by gratitude: "It was... it was the great and benevolent Headmaster Dumbledore - he knew that Winky had lost all his masters and was out of work... He took in the humble Winky! He let Winky work in the Hogwarts kitchen!"

She straightened up, her voice filled with genuine joy. "He also promised that when Master Crouch is released from Azkaban, Winky can return to the Crouch family and work for them!"

As she spoke, she carefully pushed a cup of warm milk and cake to Ryan's hand: "Sir, have something to eat! The cake baked by Shan Shan is very soft and the sweetness is just right!"

Looking at Shanshan trying hard to express her gratitude and being genuinely proud of this job, Ryan didn't know what to say for a moment.

Shanshan's appearance here was undoubtedly something Ryan had not expected.

But when he thought about it carefully, he couldn't find any obvious loopholes.

After Barty Crouch Sr. was imprisoned, Winky did become an ownerless elf - you couldn't ask her to go to St. Mungo's to take care of little Barty, there was no precedent for that.

For elves, not having a job means that their existence is meaningless, and such elves are likely to do some irrational things.

Dumbledore took her in in the kitchen, which undoubtedly gave her a chance to survive.

As for the possibility of Shining returning to work for the Crouch family after old Batty is released from prison - Ryan doesn't think there will be such an opportunity.

Given old Barty's age, it is likely that he will have little chance of leaving Azkaban.

And it was when Ryan was thinking this in his heart.

Even he didn't notice...

At this moment, Shanshan was hunched over with his back facing Ryan and Cedric.

Deep within those large eyes, which usually looked fearful and humble, a gleam of light flashed across their surface that definitely did not belong to a house-elf.

The light was cold and sharp, carrying a long-hidden scrutiny and complacency.

Especially after Ryan and Cedric left.

Her eyes flicked over the bit of foam still remaining on the rim of the glass and she grinned.

The flickering firelight illuminated the diligent and dedicated elf.

The newest and least prominent of them all, now perfectly hidden in the shadow of this greatest of sanctuaries.

The darkness waits for its opportunity.

The next morning.

Sunlight streamed through the tall windows of the Charms classroom, illuminating the dust floating in the air.

Professor Flitwick stood atop a thick stack of books, his voice still shrill. "...So, the core of a counter-spell is to identify and reverse the magic of the corresponding spell, like this!"

He waved his wand with light and precise movements, demonstrating the counter-spell of the 'Piercing Spell' to the young wizards.

But even the enthusiastic Professor Flitwick couldn't change the classroom atmosphere of the young wizards recently.

The aftermath of Crouch's shocking scandal is still reverberating in the castle and has not yet subsided.

As one of the parties involved, Ryan inevitably became the focus of students' private discussions and even suspicions again.

Many young wizards looked at him and whispered to each other.

However, Ryan, who was at the center of the storm, seemed to be completely unaware of those sticky gazes. He just listened to the class calmly and attentively, with a peaceful expression as if he was sitting in the sun by the forbidden forest - although with his attainments in magic, he actually didn't need to listen to the class.

Professor Flitwick sighed inwardly.

Children need distraction, and classes should not be disrupted by gossip.

His round eyes swept around the classroom, and he suddenly raised his voice with the enthusiasm of an old mischievous boy: "Alright, kids, that's all we have to say about the basics of counter-spells. Today, let's temporarily break away from the textbooks and look at other aspects of magic... more mysterious, more intriguing unsolved mysteries!"

After he said this, he really attracted the attention of the little wizards.

Mystery? Unsolved mystery?

Little wizards are always interested in these things.

"What is it, Professor?"

A young wizard asked this.

"That's a good question, Mr. Finnigan."

Professor Flitwick grinned upon hearing this.

He paused, waving his wand, and the tip of the wand lit up with a soft light: "Mr. Elias once told me that it is important to add some interesting parts to the class, such as rumors about great wizards, or some powerful spells..."

"And today, we are talking about the greatest and most ruthless measure of all—one that applies equally to Muggles and wizards alike."