In the wizarding world, it wasn't particularly difficult for a little girl to imitate the voice of the Bloody Baron.
However, this at least showed that Agnes wasn't just a goody-two-shoes; otherwise, she wouldn't have been sorted into the eccentric Ravenclaw.
Ray explained his analysis. He didn't draw any conclusions, but it was enough to get Agnes's attention.
The key was that every student in the classroom had had Professor Doric appear behind them and touch the back of their necks with his wand.
Without Ray's reminder, Agnes might have just thought that Professor Doric's teaching methods were a bit unusual. It was like a thin sheet of paper; before it was pierced, no one would have thought anything of it.
Accepting the doubts in Ray's analysis, Agnes asked, "So, what should we do now?"
"There are too few clues at the moment. The key is that we don't know Professor Doric's purpose. If you can check in the library and see if any experiments or potions require a small amount of everyone's blood, that would be ideal."
Ray picked up the trash basket from the ground, gathering the rubbish as he spoke his thoughts.
At the same time, he took out his wand, pointed it at the floor stained by the ink bottle, and cast the spell Scourgify, erasing the ink marks from the ground.
"Alright, I can subtly ask Penelope to help look into it. What about you, what are you planning to do?"
"Me? I think I'll go back to the dorm and sleep. After that ruckus with Peeves, I'm feeling a bit sleepy."
Ray yawned, looking utterly exhausted.
"Then you should go back and rest. You boys, I don't know what you get up to at night, but you're always so tired."
Agnes pouted a little, obviously not understanding the world of boys.
After seeing Agnes off, Ray, yawning, returned to the Ravenclaw tower and knocked on the common room door.
The Eagle-shaped Bronze Ring let out an eagle's screech after Ray knocked, and then asked: "Which came first, the phoenix or the fire?"
"The phoenix, of course."
Ray, whose mental state wasn't great, answered off the cuff. He was incredibly sleepy and didn't have the energy to think carefully.
"NO, the answer is wrong."
The Eagle-shaped Bronze Ring clearly wasn't giving Ray any face, directly declaring the answer incorrect.
"Then fire came first." Really not in the mood to play games with the Eagle-shaped Bronze Ring, Ray, lacking any principles, changed his answer.
"No, no, the answer is still wrong."
Damn it, Ray cursed inwardly. His mental state, spurred by the Eagle-shaped Bronze Ring, instantly perked up a bit.
"I say, then it absolutely must be the phoenix!"
"The phoenix comes first, of course. Fire appears during the phoenix's rebirth. So, which came first, the phoenix or the fire?"
Pulling himself together, Ray, a thirty-year-old soul, wasn't fazed by this kind of philosophical question. Thanks to the internet in his past life, he could argue his way through any circular logic.
Ray's question hung in the air, and the Eagle-shaped Bronze Ring was silent for a moment. After a few seconds, it let out a joyful shriek and opened the door to the common room.
Ray stumbled into the common room, his head still fuzzy. His eyelids felt heavy, like thick gates, and he struggled to keep them open.
Tired, so tired. I just want to fall asleep. Ray didn't know what was happening to him, but he was suddenly incredibly sleepy.
It was a time when the studious Ravenclaw students were usually in the library or enjoying the scenic spots around Hogwarts, so the common room was empty.
Ray staggered through the room and immediately spotted the white marble bust of Rowena Ravenclaw.
The statue looked different, more alive somehow. His eyes, already narrowed to slits, struggled to focus on the blurry image, which seemed to possess a life of its own.
Ray shook his groggy head, trying to fight off the overwhelming sleepiness, but it didn't seem to help much.
He was so tired, as if he hadn't slept in days. Ray's thoughts seemed to have stalled. All he wanted at that moment was to collapse on a soft bed and get a good night's sleep.
He struggled forward, past the stone statue and back to the dormitory, then collapsed directly onto the soft bed.
That bed, Ray had never felt so comfortable on it before. The faint fragrance was filled with the scent of sunshine. It was so comfortable that Ray immediately closed his eyes.
Without even a moment's delay, he fell onto the bed and drifted off to sleep.
In the morning, sunlight streamed through the window. Ray slowly opened his eyes and then woke up gently.
He had slept soundly. Half asleep, he had even changed positions and continued to luxuriate in the comfort.
"Madam Pomfrey, he's awake."
"Oh, really? Then go inform Headmaster Dumbledore."
A brief exchange, two female voices of different ages.
In the boys' dormitory, why were there women's voices? Ray, still groggy, perked up considerably upon hearing this.
However, as he sat up, he realized something was off.
He should be in his dorm bed, but where was he?
White sheets and duvet covers. A faint medicinal scent filled the air. Seeing Madam Pomfrey in her nurse's uniform, Ray immediately understood where he was.
The Hogwarts hospital wing. Ray hadn't expected to suddenly wake up here.
"Why am I here?"
Ray asked, puzzled. He had of course seen Madam Pomfrey at the welcoming feast, so he recognized her.
Waking up from a nap, I'd somehow changed locations. That was quite a sleep, wasn't it?
"That's what I'd like to ask you, child."
Madam Pomfrey asked with concern, simultaneously examining Ray. While she did, Dumbledore, with his long white beard, arrived at Ray's bedside. Madam Pomfrey smiled and nodded before leaving.
Ray was bewildered, with no memory of how he'd gotten there.
He only remembered being incredibly sleepy when he entered the common room, and then collapsing onto the bed and falling asleep.
As for now, apart from being extremely hungry, he felt perfectly fine.
Dumbledore, seeing Ray's condition, conjured an apple and handed it over. "Mr. Ray, can you tell me why you were found unconscious in the girls' dormitory?"
"What!?"
"I was asleep in the girls' dormitory?"
Ray, who had just taken a bite of an apple, was so startled by Dumbledore's question that he couldn't even swallow it properly.
The amount of information was a bit overwhelming. He had actually slept in the girls' dormitory.
This was a bit too shocking! It was like a huge thunderclap on a sunny day, and Ray happened to be struck by it.
Burnt on the outside, cooked on the inside, that was his current state. But surprised as he was, now that he thought about it, no wonder there was a faint fragrance the moment he fell on the bed.
"Professor, can you tell me what exactly happened?" After a long while, Ray, who hadn't choked on the apple, finally spoke the first sentence after his surprise.
"Of course, you must be hungry. Finish this apple first."
Dumbledore smiled kindly; he hadn't expected Ray to be so surprised. In his opinion, Ray should at least know something, at least before he fell asleep, some things had happened, Ray should be able to provide some clues.
But now, looking at Ray's expression, it was as if he knew nothing about it, and it was likely he thought he'd been sleeping in his own bed.
After Ray finished his apple in a few bites, Dumbledore finally began to explain.
After Dumbledore's explanation, Ray was astonished beyond words. First of all, the length of his slumber. He had slept for two whole days.
After classes on Monday afternoon, he went back to the dormitory and fell asleep. However, as luck would have it, in his confused state, he ended up in the girls' dormitory and fell asleep on Penelope Clearwater's bed.
When the girls returned to the dormitory to rest after dinner, it naturally caused a round of screaming.
No matter how the girls called to him, or how they tried to wake him with magic, Ray seemed to be dead asleep, and didn't react at all.
So, with the collective help of the panicked girls, he was sent to the hospital wing.
He had slept for two days straight, and today was Thursday, which made Ray feel like he was in a dream, and it felt somewhat unreal.
However, judging by how famished he felt, it was true that he had slept for two days, just as Dumbledore had said.
"I heard from your classmate, Agnes Greengrass, that you were investigating Professor Doric's teaching methods?"
"No, Professor. We didn't mean anything by it, we were just curious about Professor Doric's teaching style."
Ray explained quickly. After all, it wasn't a good look for two students to be suspicious of their teacher, no matter how you looked at it.
"No, no, child, I have no intention of blaming you. If you have any doubts, you can tell me directly, and I will investigate everything."
Dumbledore nodded. His friendliness made him seem like a senior to Ray. Dumbledore's strength wasn't just in his magic, but also in his personality.
Even though Ray had a mature soul, Dumbledore's words quickly made him feel that Dumbledore was indeed a trustworthy person.
Facing such a senior, Ray eventually voiced his suspicions in a roundabout way. Of course, Ray wasn't foolish enough to reveal everything.
Dumbledore pondered for a moment then said, "Professor Doric is a very experienced teacher, we should trust him. I will also look into your curiosity."
"Oh, alright, Professor," Ray replied, not entirely understanding what Dumbledore meant.
"Well, get some rest, child."
After their conversation, Dumbledore peeled another apple for Ray. He could tell that one or two apples probably weren't enough to even be a snack for him.
....
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