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Chapter 118 - Chapter 118: Harry's Guards, Report for Duty!

The moment Sterling uttered "Avalon", he felt a suffocating sensation, though different from that childhood experience when he could clearly feel death beckoning.

Just pain, but no danger. Exactly as Sterling's intuition told him.

"Sterling?" Terry keenly noticed Sterling's abnormality, though that expression lingered on Sterling's face for only a brief instant, making Terry unsure if he had seen correctly.

So when Sterling looked at Terry with his carefully composed expression, he just shook his head, saying he might have been mistaken.

"Avalon, the one from Arthurian legends?"

Ron answered even faster than Hermione, though that was normal since he now enjoyed heroic adventure stories.

In England, could there be a more famous "hero" and adventure story than King Arthur?

"Well, there aren't any other Avalons, are there?"

Sterling selectively revealed some facts about Avalon, just common knowledge, describing Avalon as a secret realm protected by magic, like the Forbidden Forest, except magical arrays replaced Hogwarts as its protection.

"In summary, Avalon is such a place, basically a society entirely composed of wizards. Though not everyone has great magical accomplishments, everyone possesses magic power."

"But don't they produce Squibs?"

Hermione raised her hand. She had been reviewing magical history recently and remembered this "eternal pain" for pureblood and wizarding families.

"Squibs also have magic power. Their magic is just too weak to cast spells."

Terry corrected Hermione's error. "If you want to understand more about Squibs, maybe ask Madam Pince? She definitely remembers every book in Hogwarts library."

"And I believe Hogwarts library has every kind of book, so ask her sometime. If this were a History of Magic exam, you might drop from 'O' to 'E'."

Professor Terry's powerful technique—a one-hit kill on Ravenclaw's know-it-all miss!

Then Terry's eyes turned to Sterling.

"Harry is in Avalon and we need to find him?"

He didn't ask why professors couldn't go. The conversation between McGonagall and Sterling had hinted at restrictions.

This wasn't strange to Terry. His father was an Unspeakable, specifically from the mysteriously enigmatic Department of Mysteries' Planetary Room.

Such magical things having restrictions on entry attempts was perfectly normal.

Unrestricted ruins were basically classified as third-tier, the lowest kind, by Unspeakables.

Sterling nodded, then told them his story of "analysing" the truth from Harry's body.

"Harry Potter voluntarily allowed himself to be taken into the Black Mirror Country by the Queen's alchemical device, the black mirror, to obtain the peace he dreamed of and escape all reality."

Hermione repeated this, then looked down thoughtfully.

"Harry wasn't voluntary? Meaning Harry would escape? I don't remember any of us..."

She glanced at Ron, who also didn't know about Voldemort's existence, and stopped the topic in time.

Ron felt uncomfortable under her gaze but couldn't figure out why, only humming and turning his head slightly to express mild dissatisfaction.

He didn't dare really sulk. If he truly annoyed Hermione, his homework and final reviews would become castles in the air.

Sterling and Terry exchanged glances, both discovering surprise in each other's eyes.

He still didn't realise that something was being hidden from him and Harry?

Understood. Ron currently shared quarters with Harry. Though Harry had "departed", Gryffindor bonds didn't disappear with departure.

Plus Sterling, Terry, and Hermione had formed their own Ravenclaw study circle, leaving poor Ron increasingly out of the loop.

Regardless... ah, good thing.

Ron once told me what he and Harry saw in the Mirror of Erised. Hermione, do you think Harry's trying to escape the pain of losing his parents, James Potter and Lily Potter?

Ron's brain activated like radar detecting Harry's automatic program.

He immediately turned around, looking intently at Sterling and Hermione's analysis.

"If the mirror could give him a 'world where parents are alive', he'd definitely rush toward that world with all his might."

"But that's not real, is it?"

"I don't think that matters," Sterling shook his head. "If your heart believes it's real, if every part of you experiences it as real—does it really matter what we call 'truth'?"

Hearing this, Terry inconspicuously glanced at Sterling.

"But we still need to find Harry. If he truly doesn't want to return, then there is nothing more to say. Actually, I think Harry was more likely induced, like timing. Harry might think the reunion with parents was one night's miracle, not permanent fantasy."

Sterling felt this reason was eighty percent accurate.

Simple. Harry wasn't someone who could easily abandon friends. He was sensible. Though unknown what shaped his character, he was emotionally sensitive and understanding.

So he wouldn't disappear so suddenly without leaving any words or objects.

"Are we all going with you?"

Terry still hit the mark directly. Sterling felt his initiative was particularly high today, and unexpectedly had a Hermione-like quality.

Sterling thought, finally extending his hand toward Ron and Hermione.

"Ron, Hermione, I hope you'll come with me."

"Terry, I hope you'll stay."

Upon hearing this, Hermione's first reaction wasn't joy or worry about going to Avalon, but immediately looking at Terry.

She was somewhat confused.

Whether magical accomplishments or personal relationships, she didn't think she could compare with Terry.

Though Terry hadn't participated much in magical sparring in Utopia, all of Utopia had learnt advanced content with Sterling's help.

And Terry had spent the most time with Sterling.

Relationships needn't be mentioned. Though Hermione and Neville were Sterling's "first friends" in the magical world, unfortunately, some people were naturally destined for each other.

In Hermione's view, Sterling and Terry were such an image.

So she worried whether Terry would feel hurt by this.

But when she turned her head, the face in her view showed no extra emotions. Terry still leaned cheerfully against his chair back, seemingly completely unaffected.

"Can you step out for a moment? Hermione, and Ron too."

He looked at Sterling, who happened to be looking at him too.

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