Once again, Dawn found himself watching a scene from his dream.
By now, he was already familiar with the process.
After his vision cleared, he turned his head and quickly found Lai's figure. He was no longer surprised to see Harry and the other two beside him. He had almost grown accustomed to it.
At this moment, the four of them were walking along a corridor.
Sunlight fell upon them, passing through the stained-glass windows and breaking into seven brilliant colors. Each of them carried books in their arms, clearly having just finished a class.
Hermione walked on the far left.
When they passed through a deserted corridor, she pursed her lips, as though she had finally made up her mind.
She suddenly lowered her voice and asked, "Lai, I have a question. Have you ever heard the name Nicolas Flamel?"
"Who did you say? Nicolas Flamel?"
Lai was startled by the sudden question. He looked confused as he turned his head.
"Why are you asking about him?"
Hermione opened her mouth, about to explain.
But Ron suddenly tugged at the little witch's sleeve.
His already-unpleasant face was scrunched up into a frown, clearly reminding her not to say too much.
Hermione glanced at him and shook her hair back.
"It's fine, Ron. I trust Lai. Besides, he knows so much. He'll definitely be able to help us!"
Harry, who was beside them, nodded repeatedly in agreement.
Seeing that both of his friends had taken this attitude, Ron grumbled under his breath but said nothing more.
Judging by his expression, however, he clearly wasn't fond of Lai.
Hermione then recounted the entire story.
A few days ago, during their midnight duel, Draco had deliberately set them up. While fleeing, they had accidentally reached the end of the fourth-floor corridor, where they encountered the three-headed dog.
Afterward, they had managed to coax the name Nicolas Flamel out of Hagrid.
Dawn silently listened from behind the four of them.
It was easy for him to determine from their conversation that everything was proceeding exactly as it had in the original story.
He looked at his past self standing nearby.
Lai's lips carried a hint of surprise. Dawn still couldn't determine whether this fellow knew anything about the original storyline.
Lai merely sighed.
"So that's how it is.
Well, when you mention Nicolas Flamel, the only person who comes to mind is that alchemist who has lived for more than six hundred years!
Oh, right. The Philosopher's Stone he created is extremely famous."
"The Philosopher's Stone... Of course! Why didn't I think of that before?!"
Hermione slapped her forehead.
After being reminded, everything suddenly clicked into place, and she spoke rapidly:
"And Nicolas Flamel isn't a modern person. No wonder I couldn't find him in A Study of Recent Developments in Wizardry!
I'm certain that what Fluffy is guarding must be the Philosopher's Stone!"
The three of them immediately gathered together and began whispering excitedly.
Hermione explained the functions of the Philosopher's Stone to her two academically hopeless friends, while Harry and Ron were astonished by the power of the Elixir of Life and the ability to turn base metals into gold.
"One little stone can let someone live that long? No wonder Snape wants it! Anyone would want to get their hands on it!"
Ron waved his fist as he declared his conclusion.
Harry wholeheartedly agreed with his friend's deduction.
Only Hermione rationally voiced her objections.
The three of them discussed the matter enthusiastically for quite some time, at one point moving from Voldemort's schemes to analyzing suspicious individuals.
But eventually, they decided to go back to doing their homework or practicing Quidditch.
There was nothing they could do about it.
Even saving the world was still only a side quest when you were a student.
Dawn, following behind them, curled his lips.
Then—
Just as they were about to part ways, Lai suddenly called out and stopped the other three.
"Hey! Wait a second, everyone!"
After Hermione and the others turned around, he rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
Then, under the sunlight, his eyes curved into a gentle smile.
"How should I put this? I'm really grateful that you trust me.
So how about this? Since you've told me a secret, I'll show you a place in exchange."
"In exchange?"
Harry was stunned.
Thinking that he might have accidentally made it seem as though he expected something in return for his help, he hurriedly said:
"Lai, we weren't doing this because we expected—"
"Ah, I know!"
Lai smiled and interrupted him.
He turned around and waved for the three of them to follow, "Just think of it as something friends share with one another. Come on!"
Harry and the others exchanged glances.
Then, curious and puzzled, they followed.
In a corner no one could perceive, Dawn snorted coldly.
Perhaps it was his own prejudice, but he always felt that Lai was full of hypocrisy.
His current self hated his past self.
If anyone ever found out about that, it would probably count as one of the strangest stories in the wizarding world.
Dawn clicked his tongue.
His field of vision was fixed, following Lai all the way upward.
They climbed the stairs and arrived at the familiar eighth-floor corridor.
There, they saw the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy.
This was...
The Room of Requirement?
Dawn raised an eyebrow.
He had finally discovered another similarity between himself and Lai.
Although both of them were curious about this magical room, neither seemed to think particularly highly of it.
He had once, or rather, according to his memories, casually told quite a few people about this place.
The Weasley twins, for example.
Hmm.
Wait!
Could those memories of his have been altered because of Lai's actions?
Dawn suddenly realized this possibility.
He rubbed his chin, and for a moment fell once again into the question of who he really was.
Meanwhile—
Lai had already begun introducing the room to the trio.
"I discovered this room by accident. If you walk back and forth in front of this tapestry three times and say, 'I need a room filled with miscellaneous objects,' a door will appear in the wall opposite."
What?!
Dawn's expression suddenly froze.
Lai continued speaking while demonstrating.
He grabbed the handle that appeared and pushed the door open, revealing a room filled with mountains of miscellaneous objects.
"Whoa!"
Ron exclaimed in astonishment.
The piles of objects reached all the way to the ceiling, looking like a vast mountain of junk.
He instinctively walked inside, only to trip over something and fall flat on his face.
After picking up the broken broomstick that had tripped him, his expression immediately turned disdainful.
"Why is it all junk?"
"I said it was a room full of miscellaneous objects. Naturally, most of it is junk. But there are definitely useful things in here too."
Lai shrugged.
He bent down, picked up something shiny from the floor, and flicked it toward Ron.
Clink!
Seeing something fly toward him, Ron instinctively caught it.
He looked down in confusion.
Instantly—
A silvery gleam entered his eyes.
He froze.
Then he rubbed his eyes, thinking he must have been mistaken.
But the silver object was still shining brightly.
The poor Weasley was completely mesmerized.
"Money! Merlin's beard, there's money in here!"
Ron was stunned.
A moment later, he threw himself into the pile of junk like a starving dog attacking a meal, searching through everything with more enthusiasm than he ever showed in class.
Hermione rolled her eyes in disgust, then looked worriedly at Lai.
"Lai, is this really okay? This money..."
"Oh, don't worry."
Lai reassured her.
"This is probably where things abandoned or lost by students over the past thousand years have ended up. They haven't had owners for a very long time."
As he spoke, he picked up a book and turned around, handing it to Hermione.
"Look at this!"
"An Introduction to Transfiguration? Isn't this... Oh my goodness, the notes in here are incredibly detailed!"
Hermione had initially been puzzled about why he was handing her a first-year textbook.
But after opening it, her expression changed dramatically.
After only a quick glance, she became just as enthusiastic as Ron.
She entered the pile of junk and began searching through the paper books one by one.
Lai smiled at the sight.
Finally, he turned around and patted the Chosen One on the shoulder.
"All right, Harry, don't just stand there. As far as I know, there are quite a few spellcasting techniques in here, as well as tactics from previous Quidditch matches held at the castle."
"Yeah!"
Harry nodded enthusiastically.
His eyes were shining.
He clearly loved the feeling of treasure hunting.
However, before he could completely immerse himself in it, he suddenly noticed Lai opening the door as though he intended to leave.
Confused, Harry asked, "Lai, aren't you staying with us?"
"Ah, I'll pass."
Lai waved his hand.
"I've already searched this place several times. Besides, our timetables are different. I still have Herbology later."
"I see."
Harry understood.
After saying goodbye to each other, Harry immersed himself in the joy of treasure hunting.
Creak—
The door closed.
Lai walked out of the Room of Requirement.
Once he was alone, the smile on his face faded considerably, leaving only the faintest trace.
After pausing for a moment, he immediately left the eighth floor.
He retrieved his Herbology textbook and headed toward the greenhouses outside the castle.
Dawn followed behind him, taking everything in.
Slowly, his brows furrowed.
He stared gravely at the familiar figure walking ahead of him.
Actually—
Dawn had already noticed something clearly wrong when Lai introduced the Room of Requirement to Harry and the others.
When explaining the Room of Requirement, Lai had deliberately concealed the fact that it could transform into any room someone desired.
He had only pointed out that it connected to a room filled with miscellaneous objects.
Was it because Lai didn't know?
Dawn didn't believe that.
Because it was simply too deliberate. So deliberate that Dawn couldn't help thinking deeper.
The Room of Requirement.
The room filled with miscellaneous objects... And the Ravenclaw diadem hidden there.
The clear connection between these things caused countless possibilities to surge through Dawn's mind.
But just as the thought began to take shape, he temporarily suppressed it.
There was no need to draw a conclusion yet.
He would first see what happened next.
Soon—
The two of them left the castle.
Dawn followed Lai into the greenhouse.
Nothing unusual happened during Herbology.
Professor Sprout taught them about a magical plant called Mimbulus mimbletonia.
Its appearance resembled a succulent, but enormous leaves similar to banana leaves grew all around its body.
Whenever someone approached, its green body would faintly turn red as it hid itself behind the leaves, making a sound rather like a spoiled child.
According to Professor Sprout, only after spending more than three weeks closely interacting with it would the Mimbulus mimbletonia become familiar enough with someone to reveal its true nature.
Dawn and Lai listened to the lesson together.
It was like revisiting knowledge he already knew.
Although Dawn had plenty on his mind, the class wasn't particularly boring.
When Herbology ended—
It was time for lunch.
Lai did nothing unusual.
After class, he greeted several acquaintances and followed the crowd toward the Great Hall.
But when he sat down at the table, he seemingly glanced toward the Gryffindor table without thinking.
Dawn followed his gaze.
He immediately noticed—
Harry and the other two weren't in their seats.
Even as time slowly passed, until lunch ended and the plates were cleared away, not one of them appeared.
Lai withdrew his gaze.
That familiar face showed no emotion.
He simply finished his lunch in silence, returned to Ravenclaw Tower, took a short nap, and then went to his afternoon Charms class.
Time flowed on as usual.
Everything remained peaceful.
___________
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