Ryze was not entirely lost in a state of divination.
Although his mind seemed distant, faint sounds from the outside world still reached him. He could hear Professor Babbling stopping Anthony somewhere nearby, her calm voice drifting into his awareness. Yet Ryze's focus was turned inward.
He had triggered his special talent.
Within moments, memories from his previous life surfaced in his mind. Some of them were blurred by the passage of time, but the important parts remained clear enough.
Across from the old tapestry depicting the troll wearing a ballet tutu and striking Barnabas the Barmy, there was a place Ryze personally considered the most magical location in the entire Hogwarts castle.
The Room of Requirement.
In the stories he remembered, the Room of Requirement was a mysterious and powerful chamber hidden deep within Hogwarts. It would only appear when someone truly needed it. A user simply had to focus on their need and walk past the blank stretch of wall three times.
Then the room would read their thoughts.
From nothing, it would create a space perfectly suited to fulfill that person's requirement.
In the future timeline that Ryze remembered, Harry Potter had used this room as a secret training ground for practicing Defense Against the Dark Arts. It was also the place where the lost diadem of Rowena Ravenclaw had eventually been discovered—a diadem that Lord Voldemort had secretly turned into one of his Horcruxes.
The room was far more than a simple hidden chamber.
It could transform itself into almost anything. A classroom, a storage space, a refuge, or even a hidden passage. Some rumors even suggested it could create a secret exit leading outside the Hogwarts grounds.
In Ryze's previous life, the Room of Requirement had also appeared in the game Hogwarts Legacy. Unfortunately, he had never experienced much of that game.
He had suffered from severe motion sickness when playing 3D games.
After purchasing the game out of excitement, he had only managed to play for about half an hour before feeling dizzy. The game had then spent the rest of its life gathering dust in his digital library. Because of that, Ryze only possessed a vague understanding of the game's overall storyline.
More importantly, since arriving in this world, Ryze had not discovered any trace of the game's protagonist.
Either this world was a completely different timeline from the one in which that mysterious student existed—the one rumored to casually play tic-tac-toe using the Killing Curse—or that ancient guardian of Ancient Magic had deliberately erased their existence from history.
Both possibilities were equally plausible.
After sorting through every memory he had about the Room of Requirement, Ryze slowly brought his thoughts back to the present.
His gaze sharpened.
If that raven statue had truly been moved from its original location…
Then there was a high possibility that the statue had once been inside the Room of Requirement.
Which meant that the trace of Ancient Magic he had sensed earlier might also be hidden there.
"In other words…"
Ryze muttered softly to himself.
"The Room of Requirement may have been built by Ravenclaw herself. It might even be something similar to Ravenclaw's own Chamber of Secrets."
He had heard this theory many times during his previous life.
Back then, it had simply sounded like an interesting piece of fan speculation.
But now that he was standing here in person, the idea suddenly seemed far more believable.
Snapping out of his thoughts, Ryze turned to Professor Babbling.
"Professor," he said calmly, "I think I understand the situation now. Could you please bring the raven statue here?"
Professor Babbling did not question him.
Instead, she simply nodded.
She raised her wand with practiced ease and gave it a light flick.
"Raven statue—Accio."
Her voice echoed clearly in the air.
A moment later, the statue that had been resting high above Ravenclaw Tower suddenly trembled. It lifted from its position and shot forward through the air.
The statue flew rapidly toward the castle.
Along its path, every closed door and window seemed to sense the approaching spell. They swung open just long enough for the statue to pass through, then closed again as if nothing had happened.
Within less than half a minute, the stone raven glided gracefully into the corridor.
It descended slowly and landed gently in front of the group.
"What happens next?" Professor Babbling asked as she looked toward Ryze.
"Make the door appear," Ryze replied simply.
Then he turned toward the blank stretch of wall.
Taking a deep breath, he focused his thoughts.
In his mind, he clearly imagined one specific idea:
A room where this raven statue was originally placed.
Holding that thought firmly in his mind, Ryze began to walk past the wall.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
The moment he completed the third pass, something incredible happened.
To the astonishment of everyone present, ancient patterns began to ripple across the previously empty wall. The stone surface shifted like liquid before solidifying again.
Within seconds, a large wooden door appeared.
It looked ancient and majestic, covered with intricate magical carvings.
"The room appeared!" Michael exclaimed excitedly, clapping his hands.
He looked at Ryze with wide eyes.
"Ryze, how did you do that?"
Ryze gave a small shrug.
"This may be a secret chamber left behind by Ravenclaw," he explained. "It seems capable of creating different spaces depending on the user's intentions."
Without waiting any longer, he stepped forward and pushed the door open.
The others followed him inside.
The room beyond was quiet and spacious.
At first glance, it looked somewhat similar to the Ravenclaw common room. However, there were several noticeable differences.
There were no windows.
There was no staircase leading upward to the rooftop.
The structure of the room was simple and symmetrical. Unlike the elegant decorations seen in the common room, this chamber contained very little ornamentation.
Despite clearly having been unused for many years, everything inside appeared perfectly clean.
Not a speck of dust could be seen.
Even more strangely, although there were no windows and no visible light sources, the entire room was filled with soft, steady light.
Professor Babbling immediately noticed something near the far wall.
A bookshelf.
Several books rested quietly upon it.
Curious, she walked over and picked one up.
The moment she examined the cover, her eyes widened slightly.
The text was written in a script style that dated back to the tenth century.
"This…" she murmured softly.
She opened the book carefully.
"This is the original first-edition textbook used at Hogwarts. Spellcraft."
Her voice carried a hint of disbelief.
"It was personally compiled by the four Founders."
She flipped through several pages before continuing.
"The original version of this book has long disappeared from the public market. Only later transcriptions still exist."
Her gaze moved slowly around the room.
"If the original manuscript is still here, that means this chamber truly hasn't been entered for centuries."
The contents of the book were relatively simple.
Some theories inside were already outdated by modern magical standards. However, certain sections—particularly those discussing the Dark Arts—still held valuable historical insights.
More importantly, it was a book written by the founders of Hogwarts themselves.
Its value as a collector's item was immeasurable.
Professor Babbling closed the book gently and looked at Ryze.
"Some of the material in these books isn't suitable for you to read yet," she said in a serious tone.
"We'll discuss them again when you reach your third year. Until then, I'll keep them safe for you."
As she spoke, she continued searching the room.
Unfortunately, she did not discover any additional rare books.
Meanwhile, Ryze had begun examining the floor.
He was searching for the original position where the raven statue had once stood.
After several minutes, he finally found something.
At the center of the room, there was a slightly raised circular mark on the floor.
"It should be here," Ryze said.
He pointed at the spot.
"There are Ravenclaw letters carved into the floor, and they perfectly match the base of the statue."
He looked at Professor Babbling.
"Professor, could you try placing the statue here?"
Everyone watched closely.
Before following the suggestion, Professor Babbling carefully cast several defensive spells around herself and the young wizards.
Only after ensuring their safety did she move the statue.
With a controlled motion of her wand, she levitated the stone raven and placed it precisely onto the circular imprint.
The moment the statue touched the floor—
Something changed.
Ryze immediately saw it.
The eyes of the raven statue suddenly began to glow.
A brilliant white light emerged from them, shining forward like a beam toward the nearby wall.
The light was clear and powerful.
Yet something strange happened.
No one else reacted.
Ryze quickly glanced around.
Professor Babbling, Terry, and the others were all staring at the statue in confusion.
None of them seemed to notice the glowing beam.
Terry scratched his head nervously.
"So… what happens next?" he asked.
"Why isn't anything happening?"
At that moment, Ryze suddenly remembered something from the game.
Ancient Magic.
In Hogwarts Legacy, the traces of Ancient Magic could only be seen by certain individuals.
Only those with special talent—like the protagonist—could perceive its presence.
Realizing this, Ryze understood what was happening.
Just then, Professor Babbling noticed the change in his expression.
She frowned slightly.
"Did you discover something?" she asked.
Ryze nodded.
He pointed directly at the raven statue's eyes.
"You didn't see it?" he asked.
"It's glowing right here. There's a beam of light pointing straight at that wall."
Terry stared at the statue again.
His face was full of confusion.
"Where?" he asked.
"I don't see any light."
Professor Babbling raised a hand, signaling the young wizards to remain quiet.
Then she looked back at Ryze.
"Follow your intuition," she said calmly.
She had spent more than ten years studying Ancient Magic.
During that time, her mentor had told her an important truth.
Some traces of Ancient Magic could only be perceived by individuals with extraordinary talent.
In the distant past, those individuals had been considered the only ones truly worthy of being called wizards.
Clearly, Ryze possessed that kind of talent.
And his affinity for Ancient Magic was far from ordinary.
Professor Babbling briefly glanced at the other young wizards standing nearby.
Their expressions were filled with confusion and curiosity.
Seeing them reminded her of her own past.
More than ten years ago, during her student days, she had once encountered a Muggle-born witch who possessed this same rare talent.
The difference between them had been overwhelming.
It had nothing to do with intelligence.
Nothing to do with effort.
It was simply a gap in pure magical talent.
At that time, the realization had shaken her so deeply that she had even considered abandoning her research into Ancient Magic entirely.
Now, watching Ryze standing there, she wondered about something else.
The young wizards who surrounded him now would continue to grow alongside him in the future.
Would they be able to accept the difference between themselves and someone like Ryze?
Would they be strong enough to endure the pressure that came with standing beside such a gifted individual?
Only time would tell.
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