NABC Chapter 90: Striking from the Black Lake
Chapter 90: Striking from the Black Lake
Chapter 90: Striking from the Black Lake
Looking at the tunnel that was completely blocked in front of him, Roy raised his wand, intending to cast a blasting spell, but upon closer inspection, he realized that this might cause an even more violent collapse.
It wouldn't be good to bury oneself underground, so there's no other way. Roy believes that the secret room must have other exits, and there can't possibly be only one passage.
After all, there was water here. Loira nodded gently as she looked at the deep pool of water under the stone bridge. She actually had a rough guess about the location of the secret room.
Although she wasn't good at finding her way around—well, she had gotten lost at Hogwarts before—Loira pursed her lips a little awkwardly and then waved her wand.
A thin film slowly enveloped her body.
This is a waterproof spell; it will prevent her clothes from getting wet.
Then she moved her wand again and conjured a bubble on her head.
The "Breath-in-the-Head Mantra" allows you to breathe underwater.
Great—the simplest problem is solved. Now comes the most difficult one: how to convince yourself to jump into the water.
Roy can't swim, so she has an innate fear of water. Even though she knows she won't suffocate if she falls into the water, she still can't bring herself to jump in.
Taking a deep breath, Roy stood by the pool and rubbed her face. She had already taken off her hood, letting her long silver hair fall down her back, as she was about to go into the water.
It's just a swim—nothing to be afraid of—it'll probably only take a few minutes, and I'll be ready for the dance.
Ah—swimming to get to the dance?
The more I talk about it, the more it seems like it's not worth it.
Roy involuntarily took a step back, wondering if he should choose another way out.
But her boots landed right on the wet ground and she slipped suddenly.
"Hmm!"
"thump!"
Miss Hamilton was like a stone thrown into water, splashing a huge spray as she sank rapidly.
"Woo-woo-woo-woo!"
Thanks to the Bubble Head Spell, Roy could see clearly underwater.
Even so, she could only frantically flail her arms and legs like a jellyfish, trying desperately to swim to the surface.
Coco—why is it that the more she struggles, the deeper she sinks!
Roy hurriedly raised his wand and flicked it above his head.
A long silver line was thrown out and got tangled on a rock in the water. Loira pulled hard, and the magical thread immediately shortened, like a fishing rod reeling her up.
However, she seemed to be just a struggling fish.
As she gradually rose to the surface, Roy's panic subsided considerably. So—so the next step was to figure out a way to get out.
Roy was certain that the water in the Chamber of Secrets led somewhere, and it was very likely that it was the huge black lake outside Hogwarts.
After all, Loira clearly remembered catching a corroded bone while fishing a few days ago.
Now that I think about it, it must have been left by the basilisk monster in the secret room!
Thinking this, Loira gripped the rock with one hand and gently flicked her wand with the other, releasing a burst of light that flew into the distance.
As the light drifted by, Roy saw a long, dark waterway.
This must be it!
Luo Yi clung to the stone wall and swam slowly toward the waterway.
The waterway was exceptionally long, and as Roy swam slowly, he began to wonder if it would be the next day by the time he got out.
However, my swimming skills seem to be getting better and better if you call walking in the water while holding onto a wall swimming.
It seems I've overcome a hurdle; at least I can swim! *Splash!*
As Luo Yi was thinking this, she suddenly felt something grab her leg, and her body trembled violently, causing her to subconsciously look down.
That was a huge, black octopus tentacle.
Miss Lovegood seems to have said that there is a giant octopus that Slytherin has turned into in the Black Lake, right?
Could it be—
"Screech! Screech!" Roy screamed in the water. Just as she was about to raise her wand to do something, she felt the tentacles tighten suddenly.
Then she was suddenly pulled out of the waterway.
Good news: The waterway isn't long.
Bad news: The reason I know the good news is that I got grabbed by the foot by a giant octopus.
In the depths of the pitch-black Black Lake, Roy was held upside down in the water, and in front of her was a gigantic octopus, as big as seven or eight Hagrids.
Please forgive Roy for using Hagrid as a unit of measurement, but he was indeed the largest human Roy had ever seen.
Hybrid giants are considered human, right?
"Chirp chirp chirp chirp!" Looking at the octopus in front of her, Loira hurriedly tried to say something, but unfortunately, neither the octopus nor the human could understand this language.
Mr. Slytherin! I am also a Hogwarts person!
Ah—I almost forgot you left because you didn't get along with the other three people—
But that's not important! Don't eat me yet!
"Waaaaaah!"
Hmm, this is probably something the Slytherin octopus overheard.
It raised its tentacles high, about to stuff Roy into its mouth.
"Coo-coo-coo!" Upon seeing this, Roy quickly raised his wand and flicked it at the tentacle that was grabbing him.
"Buzz!"
An invisible blade of energy shot out from the tip of the staff, cutting through the surrounding water and slicing through the octopus's tentacles in the process.
Blood splattered everywhere, mixing with the lake water. The giant octopus angrily swung its tentacles, creating a huge storm underwater.
The chaotic water rushed towards Roy, and she barely managed to deflect it by waving her wand.
Then she quickly aimed her wand at her feet, and a hurricane shot out from the tip of the wand, propelling Roy upwards.
"boom!
The giant octopus seemed to realize that Roy wanted to escape, and it angrily curled its tentacles and chased after Roy.
"Waaaaah!"
Roy watched the approaching tentacles and frantically waved his wand, as if to make the Hurricane Charm even stronger.
Even so, she was still slower than the giant octopus underwater.
Fortunately, the waters of the Black Lake eventually come to an end, and she could already feel a glimmer of light above her head.
"Bang!"
Just as the tentacles hooked onto Roy's boots, Roy's head broke through the water, and she immediately raised her wand and waved it, wrapping silver magic around the trees on the shore.
He gripped her tightly and pulled hard, the magic thread contracted, and pulled her to the shore in one go.
"Splat!"
Roy's body slammed onto the grass and rolled several times before crashing into a tree in a somewhat wolfish manner before finally stopping.
Fortunately, she had already cast an Iron Armor spell on herself, otherwise she might have broken several bones from that fall.
But Roy was lucky; all of this is just a possibility.
"Ha!" The first thing Loira did after regaining her senses was to quickly get up, raise her wand, and aim it at the lake to prevent the giant octopus from coming up and causing trouble again.
However, under the silvery moonlight, the lake was incredibly still—as if nothing had happened.
The deep black lake swallowed everything, as if it wanted to swallow the past too...
"Buzz!"
With a flick of her wand, Roy sent a leather boot flying out of the lake, which she then caught.
These are the boots that were just taken away by the octopus's tentacles. Roy only had this one pair, and after careful consideration, he decided not to leave them to Mr. Slytherin.
Even though it seemed to really want it, Roy saw a tentacle slightly emerge from the water, but it eventually disappeared slowly.
"What is all this about? I don't know how many times this has happened," Roy thought again.
However, remembering that she still had a mission to complete, she quickly patted her face.
Alright, next we'll go to the auditorium. Loira lifted her boots and emptied the water from inside, then pursed her lips and looked at the castle in the distance.
There seems to be a slight problem; I feel like I'm standing on an island in the middle of the Black Lake, rather than on the shore.
Roy instinctively waved his wand, but nothing happened.
Has Hogwarts' Anti-Apparition Charm even extended to the Black Lake?
Roy looked at the Forbidden Forest and the castle in the distance with a bit of a headache, but unexpectedly, he saw a silver glint in the Forbidden Forest.
"Hurry up, Harry!" Ron said, looking at the boy behind him. "The ball in the Great Hall has already started!"
"But what does that have to do with us?" Hermione said. "Students below fourth grade aren't allowed to dance."
"Of course, we're going to watch the show," Ron shrugged matter-of-factly. "Aren't you curious who Hagrid will dance with?"
"Or what will Snape dress up as?"
"And Professor Hamilton!" Harry trotted over and said, "Will she be coming today?"
"I don't think so—" Ron said, glancing up at the moon before quickening his pace. "She's been sick for a long time—"
"I wonder how Professor Hamilton's illness is going," Hermione thought, also thinking of the professor she had never met but who seemed so special. "She hasn't written back lately either."
"I remember Lockhart was your favorite, wasn't he?" Ron's voice made Hermione purse her lips.
"I'd rather talk about you and Malfoy than that." Hermione seemed to dislike Ron's words, and she frowned, abruptly changing the subject.
"If you hadn't listened to Malfoy, we'd probably be in the Great Hall by now," Hermione said, shaking her head. "You don't really think he'll keep his promise and fight you as a wizard, do you?"
"And your wand hasn't been repaired—what's that?"
Suddenly, Hermione pointed to the small island in the middle of the Black Lake in the distance and asked, "That silver one—"
"Is that a unicorn?" Harry exclaimed, his eyes wide. "I saw one in the Forbidden Forest before, Quirrell took it..."
"There's someone on the unicorn's back!" Ron said, squinting. "Look!"
"I saw it too!" Hermione exclaimed, her eyes wide. "I've never heard of anyone riding a unicorn—."
"She's coming!" Ron exclaimed, looking up as the unicorn carrying the girl leaped over their heads, bathed in the moonlight of the horizon, before slowly disappearing into the afterglow of the setting sun.
"So beautiful," Hermione muttered, reaching out to catch the unicorn, leaving behind a few glimmers of silver light.
"Was that a girl?" Harry murmured. "I just saw her face; it looked like an elf's—"
"Wizards generally call them Veela," Hermione unconsciously corrected, "but they're more like a legend than a Veela."
"Perhaps a fairy lives on an island in the Black Lake at Hogwarts?"
Ron looked at the Forbidden Forest and pursed his lips: "This can't be a dream, right?"
"I don't think so." Suddenly, a slightly chilling voice rang out: "Mr. Pott, Mr. Weasley, and Miss Granger—what are you doing here?"
Snape snorted coldly as the three stared in disbelief.
"Because you violated school rules by loitering near the forbidden forest, Gryffindor has deducted ten points!"
"And it's ten points deducted from each person!"
After saying that, he pursed his lips and then turned his gaze to the place where the unicorn had disappeared.