The Ancient Sprout seemed to sense something, persistently pointing toward the floor.
Leonard looked down in confusion but saw nothing unusual. The hall's floor looked no different from what he had seen in the ruins behind the Vault. Even under Magical Sight, there was nothing that stood out from the rest of the structure.
Still, the sprout's reaction couldn't be ignored. Leonard's ancient magical resonance had always relied on its assistance.
He knelt, running his hand across the surface. The coarse, weathered texture confirmed it was indeed a very old stone slab. Nothing about it seemed remarkable.
Midgard noticed his movement and asked curiously, "What's wrong with the floor?"
Leonard didn't answer. He simply watched as the Ancient Sprout slowly extended its branches, brushing lightly against the stone beneath them.
Under Midgard's astonished gaze, the hard floor began to ripple like water. Waves spread outward in widening circles.
Midgard—who had thought herself long past being shocked by Leonard's tricks—found herself speechless again. The sight was nothing short of awe-inspiring.
She stared down, feeling strangely unsteady, half-afraid she might sink through the rippling surface.
As the waves spread across the entire hall, the dull gray stone began to glow with a soft light. Its color faded gradually, transforming into something clear and glass-like, almost crystalline.
Soon, the entire hall gleamed with translucent brilliance. Both Leonard and Midgard raised their hands to shield their eyes, lowering them only after adjusting to the brightness.
"This is…" Midgard stared, dumbfounded.
The hall had completely changed. The floor had become a magical lens, and beneath it appeared the image of a castle—so lifelike it looked solid and real.
A blanket of dark clouds hovered over the castle's towers.
"That's Hogwarts," Leonard said immediately. "Looks like a live map showing current events."
"You know what this is?" Midgard asked.
"How would I? I just recognized it," Leonard said with a shrug.
"A hall with a live map of Hogwarts inside? Fascinating." Midgard studied the image beneath their feet in amazement—then suddenly pointed. "Leonard, look at this."
"What is it?" Leonard stepped closer.
"There's a name on the map," she said, squinting. "Al... Percival... Wulfric... Brian... Dumbledore?"
Midgard's head shot up. "Dumbledore?"
"Looks like it's a live map with a Homonculous Charm," Leonard murmured. "But if it's truly showing current activity…"
He placed a hand on the crystalline floor. As his will focused, the image zoomed in, centering on the Headmaster's office.
The castle blurred—and then revealed the interior of the office itself.
White-haired Dumbledore sat by the fireplace, calmly grooming the feathers of a half-plucked bird. He looked completely at ease.
"Is... is that really Dumbledore?" Midgard's voice trembled slightly, her expression stiff.
Seeing the legendary wizard in real time made her knees weak.
"Looks that way," Leonard replied. "But why are you so nervous?"
Midgard rolled her eyes. "Because it's Dumbledore—the real, living Dumbledore! I'm the one who runs Knockturn Alley and robbed Gringotts. If he ever saw me, I'd be done for."
"He's on the other side of a screen," Leonard said flatly. "What's next, are you scared of Chocolate Frog cards too?"
"How's that the same? Those are tiny and barely realistic. This feels like he's standing right in front of me," Midgard muttered, waving a hand. "Just turn it off. I don't like it."
"You really need to toughen up. No matter what we've done, we should still have the guts to joke around with these so-called paragons. Lose your nerve now, and what's the point of any of this?"
Leonard waved his hand, returning the map to its original top-down view of the castle.
"You think I'm like you, thick-skinned as a castle wall?" Midgard scoffed. "So what now? Is this ruin just showing us a map?"
"There's also that chest," Leonard said, pointing toward it.
The chest had appeared when the floor transformed, resting beneath the three cracked murals.
"Finally, something treasure-like. Isn't that what ruins are for?" Midgard said with a grin. "Come on, let's see what's inside."
They approached. Leonard opened the chest, revealing a single ornate crystal bottle filled with an unknown liquid.
"Just this?" Midgard peered into the empty chest. "No note, no label—what's it supposed to be?"
"No idea." Leonard gave the bottle a light shake, a silver gleam flashing in his eyes as he activated Magical Sight.
In that mode, all things returned to their pure magical essence—and he could clearly see the energy swirling inside the potion.
It had the telltale vortex pattern of a potion, but this one was irregular and streaked, almost poisonous-looking.
"Seems like a potion," Leonard said at last, lowering the vial. "But I've never seen one with such chaotic magic before."
"Chaotic?"
"Yeah. The kind that'd probably kill someone instantly if they drank it." Leonard frowned, turning the vial over in his hands. He wasn't sure what to do with it.
"Keep it for now," Midgard suggested. "This ruin feels too carefully designed. I bet it'll come in handy later. Honestly, I think the real treasure here is that map—everything else is just a bonus."
"Can't be just that," Leonard said, scanning the surroundings. "There has to be a clue to the next ruin."
"How many more ruins do you need? We've already found two," Midgard said with a shrug. "Magical ruins are rare these days. Muggle expansion has destroyed most of them."
Her words made sense, but something about it still didn't sit right with Leonard.
If the ancient magical ruins were meant to form a series, there was no way there were only two.
He had learned two ancient spells so far, but could that really be all there was to ancient magic?
No. There had to be another clue—something he'd missed. But where?
...
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