Chapter 105: Investigation, Rumors

As soon as the voice stopped, the eerie sound immediately disappeared. Michael's terrified expression froze for a moment, quickly turning into speechlessness. Moments later, two red-haired heads popped out from behind the mirror, one on each side. "Huh? How did you know it was us?" Fred asked curiously. "Probably because you didn't hide your feet properly?" George said as he stepped out. "Aren't we the same?" Fred retorted. Just a moment ago, they thought the professor was coming, so in a panic, both of them hid behind the mirror—one foot tucked behind the claw-shaped base, while the other was awkwardly lifted, clinging to the mirror like an octopus. When they heard that the people coming in were Wade and Michael, the twins immediately got playful. They pretended to be ghosts, trying to scare Wade and Michael, but to their surprise, they were caught immediately. "What are you doing here?" Wade asked. "Same as you guys—came to see why our little Ronny got knocked out." Fred also walked over to the pile of ashes, squatted down, and curiously poked it with his finger. Michael said, "Then you should go to the school infirmary!" "Percy already went," George replied, blinking. "Besides, investigating a restricted area is way more fun!" "So, this is Quirrell?" Fred asked in confusion. "What kind of magic can burn someone like this?" "Fiendfyre?" Michael guessed. He had only heard the name of this dark magic, and guessed that it was much more powerful than ordinary fire spells. "Impossible," George said. "Fiendfyre burns everything that can burn; it wouldn't leave the clothes behind like this—it's more like... some other kind of dark magic." "When Harry wakes up, we can ask him," Wade said, steering the conversation to what he was more concerned about. "Have you guys studied Fiendfyre?" Fred grinned proudly. "During our night adventures, we snuck into the library... read a few books the professors wouldn't allow, like The Complete Book of Spells and Secrets of the Darkest Art..." "Fiendfyre is way too dangerous, hard to control. But Jinxes for the Jinxed is pretty good; we learned some very useful little jinxes from it," George generously shared his experience. The group gathered around the mound of ash to study it for a while but didn't come up with any conclusions. However, the twins did collect some of the ashes to take back with them, saying they wanted to make a souvenir for their brother Ron. Michael walked around the stone house, but found nothing. As he passed by the mirror twice, he suddenly felt like he saw something strange. He stepped back again and slowly turned to face the mirror. Michael's eyes widened in shock, and suddenly his face turned red. In the mirror, he saw himself, but neither Wade nor the Weasley twins were there... Instead, he saw Padma. The girl's sun-kissed skin looked healthy and full of energy, and her oval face was graced with an enchanting, sweet smile. She was wearing a deep blue sari, revealing smooth, slender arms like lotus stems. The girl, full of affection, was holding Michael's arm in the mirror, and the two were leaning tightly against each other, inseparable. For a moment, Michael even felt jealous of his reflection in the mirror. "What did you see?" Fred suddenly leaned over, looking at him with a mix of surprise and teasing. "Your face is so red, it looks like you're about to boil water!" "N-n-nothing!" Michael hurriedly blocked the mirror. Wade also came over, looking up at the words engraved on the mirror and reading them aloud: "I show not your face... but your heart's desire..." He gave Michael a knowing look. Michael, still red-faced, coughed awkwardly and secretly took a deep breath to cool down his face before stepping away from the mirror. Once he calmed down, he realized that when standing off to the side, the mirror was completely empty—it showed nothing at all. "This is a magic mirror that lets you see your innermost desires," Fred said with a laugh as he stood in front of it. "I see our prank products becoming a huge success, and the two of us lounging on a pile of Galleons." George laughed as well, "And I see the Quidditch Cup!" Michael noticed that Wade was standing to the side, not approaching the mirror, so he asked curiously, "Wade, don't you want to take a look?" "...Hmm." Wade was silent for a moment before smiling and saying, "The mirror only shows illusions, right? So there's no real need to look." Michael nodded in agreement. What Michael understood was this—Wade knew exactly what he wanted, so he didn't need the satisfaction from a mirror. Still, Michael wanted one more look at Padma in the mirror. They lingered in front of the mirror for a while, but eventually, they managed to break free from the illusory happiness and prepared to leave. Before leaving, Wade glanced back one last time—the magic mirror stood silently in the center of the empty room, as if it was silently calling out to him. Wade lowered his eyes and hurried to catch up with the other three, as though escaping from a whirlpool. ... Harry remained unconscious in the school hospital for three days before finally waking up. During these days, rumors spread wildly throughout the school. Dumbledore hadn't announced the truth, nor had he stopped the students from discussing the event. Those who had entered the trapdoor were surrounded constantly, with people begging them to tell the adventure story over and over again. Neville, having been knocked out early, quickly escaped this attention. But Theo, with his easygoing nature, found himself talking so much his mouth went dry. Sometimes, when he accidentally told a part of the story wrong, someone would loudly correct him, "No, that's not what you said last time!" Soon, except for the part Harry experienced alone, the entire school knew every detail of the story. Everyone learned how Professor Quirrell had tried to steal the Philosopher's Stone but ended up defeated by Harry Potter and his companions. Ron, who had bravely sacrificed himself, became a hero of Gryffindor. The day he woke up, several Gryffindor boys hoisted him onto their shoulders and carried him from the infirmary all the way to the Great Hall, while his mischievous brothers cheered him on, making Ron's face as red as his hair. Privately, however, a more "outrageous" rumor began to spread quietly—that Quirrell wasn't really Quirrell, but a puppet controlled by the Dark Lord... meaning that Harry Potter had once again defeated He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named... Of course, this rumor was so absurd that not many believed it. But precisely because they didn't believe it, people shared it with even more excitement, telling everyone, "Did you know? The real truth isn't what you've heard at all..." Rumors spread rapidly, taking flight in all directions. Dumbledore's attitude toward all of this was ambiguous. When someone asked him directly, he replied vaguely, "Hmm... the Philosopher's Stone, yes... It certainly attracted a lot of attention, especially from those who seek to escape death..." The person who asked the question immediately understood—the name "Voldemort" (French - vol de mort) means "flight of death." "Yes, some of our students showed great courage in the face of evil," Dumbledore continued, "demonstrating fearless bravery and responsibility. They protected the Philosopher's Stone..." Then, with a smile, Dumbledore added, "But Nicolas and Perenelle have already destroyed the Stone. They've decided to take care of some last affairs and then embark on the unknown journey... For those who have lived long enough, death holds its own unique charm, don't you think?" -------------------------------- ????????Please consider supporting this translation project by becoming a P@treon member!!! Your support is greatly appreciated! Available on my P@treon page for just $4!! Early access to the following translations:- ⭐Harry Potter: Becoming a Study God (HP:BSG)- +91 Chapters & 2 Chapters/Day ⭐MCU: Druid's Adventures (MCUDA)(⭐COMPLETE⭐) - Total Chapter 460 ⭐Famous Police Detective in Detective World (FPDDW)- +165 advance chapters ⭐Marvel: Little Genius (MLG) (⭐COMPLETE⭐) - Total Chapter 450 [email protected]/Lightreaper457 --------------------------------