Under the watchful eyes of several people, Ryze slowly followed the faint glow spreading across the wall. The light shimmered like ripples on water, pulsating softly as though responding to his presence. After a brief hesitation, he raised his hand and gently touched the glowing spot.
The moment his fingers made contact, the light burst outward in a dazzling flash.
The stone wall silently parted.
Behind it appeared a vast, unfamiliar white space that seemed almost endless. The brightness within was not harsh, yet it carried an overwhelming sense of purity—like standing inside a beam of sunlight.
For a moment, Ryze simply stared.
Then he instinctively turned his head, intending to call Professor Babbling and his roommates so they could investigate together.
But when he looked back—
No one was there.
The corridor behind him was completely empty.
Ryze frowned.
He was certain that just a moment ago everyone had been standing behind him, watching closely. Yet now there was nothing but silence.
"Is this… the effect of Ancient Magic?" Ryze muttered quietly.
Had the others been moved somewhere else?
Or had he been transported to another space entirely?
The possibilities spun through his mind. Ancient magic was mysterious even to experienced witches and wizards. No one truly understood the limits of what it could do.
Ryze stared at the pure white space before him.
For a moment, he hesitated.
However, the hesitation did not last long.
After all, he was a Ravenclaw student. And if this truly was a space left behind by Rowena Ravenclaw herself, it was unlikely that it was designed to harm a Hogwarts student—especially one from her own house.
Taking a slow breath to steady himself, Ryze stepped forward.
The moment he crossed the threshold, the glowing doorway vanished behind him without a sound.
The interior of the space was surprisingly small.
Despite the illusion of vastness from the outside, the room itself was simple and almost empty. The smooth white walls reflected the soft ambient light, making it difficult to judge distance or depth.
At the center of the room stood a single table.
That was all.
Curious, Ryze walked closer.
Resting atop the table was a bronze ring set with a deep blue-black gemstone. The gem seemed to absorb light rather than reflect it, giving it an almost mysterious, starless appearance.
Beneath the ring was a small slip of paper.
Ryze carefully picked up both objects.
The ring felt cool to the touch, surprisingly heavy for its size.
He then looked down at the paper.
There was only one word written on it.
"Fatum."
Ryze softly read the Latin word aloud.
It meant fate.
However, unlike other Latin words related to destiny, fatum carried a heavier meaning. It referred to an inevitable fate—something unavoidable and beyond the control of mortals.
A destiny that could not be resisted.
Ryze frowned slightly.
It felt strange.
Why would Rowena Ravenclaw, one of the greatest witches in history and one of the founders of Hogwarts, leave behind such a pessimistic word?
The Rowena Ravenclaw recorded in Hogwarts: A History was known for her wisdom, ambition, and brilliant mind. She was someone who believed strongly in knowledge and the pursuit of excellence.
Such a person leaving behind a message about unavoidable fate seemed… contradictory.
But Ryze also knew something most people in this world did not.
He had read the original Harry Potter books.
Because of that, he knew that Ravenclaw's later years had been filled with tragedy.
Her beloved daughter, Helena Ravenclaw, had grown jealous of her mother's legendary intelligence. In her envy, Helena stole the Ravenclaw Diadem—a powerful magical artifact said to enhance the wearer's wisdom—and fled Hogwarts.
Rowena Ravenclaw sent a trusted student to find her daughter and bring her home.
But the story ended in disaster.
The student found Helena, but in a moment of rage and desperation, he killed her.
Overcome with guilt, he then took his own life.
In the end, Rowena Ravenclaw lost both her daughter and the precious diadem.
According to historical records, she eventually died from illness, becoming the first of the four Hogwarts founders to pass away.
However, Hogwarts: A History never clearly stated the cause of her illness. The book only mentioned that she may have fallen sick due to exhaustion from managing Hogwarts and its many responsibilities.
Yet Ryze suspected there was more to the story.
After all, losing both her daughter and the diadem must have left deep scars.
Ryze remembered the strange dream he had experienced on his first night at Hogwarts.
In that dream, he had seen Ravenclaw standing alone on a terrace, gazing toward the distant horizon.
The direction she was looking… was the same direction Helena had fled.
The memory made Ryze feel strangely uneasy.
"So… what exactly did she mean by this word?" Ryze murmured.
Was fatum a warning?
A lesson?
Or perhaps something else entirely?
His eyes then returned to the ring in his hand.
"What kind of effect does this thing have?"
The ring looked ancient, but aside from its unusual gemstone, it seemed rather ordinary.
Of course, there was also another important question.
"How am I supposed to leave this place?"
Just as Ryze was beginning to wonder if he would be trapped here indefinitely, a familiar notification suddenly echoed in his mind.
The system had finally responded.
Ryze quickly shifted his attention to the system interface.
[You have completed a special Raven Task.]
[Number of Ravens permanently increased by +3.]
[Beginning Silver Hextech Rune draw…]
Ryze's eyes widened slightly.
The next notification appeared immediately afterward.
[You have obtained: Illumination!]
Illumination!
Light and fire magic effects are enhanced.
Your damaging magic marks enemies.
Detonating the mark deals additional magic damage.
Ryze blinked.
"…Wait a second."
He stared at the description.
"Isn't this Lux's passive ability?"
In the original game, Illumination functioned differently. It caused enemies hit by Lux's spells to become marked, allowing Lux's next basic attack to deal bonus magic damage.
However, the rune system he had been using had slightly altered mechanics.
Previously, Ryze believed that Illumination would provide bonus magic damage every four attacks—a decent rune choice for on-hit builds. Combined with runes like Twinshot and One After Another, it could create extremely powerful damage combos.
But now the effect had changed completely.
Instead of enhancing attacks, it strengthened light and fire magic.
And the mark could be detonated by further magical damage.
In other words—
It had become the true passive ability of Lux, the Lady of Luminosity.
Ryze couldn't help smiling.
In the fast-paced combat of a video game, the original Illumination relied on weaving basic attacks between spells to maximize damage output.
But wizard duels in the real world worked very differently.
According to Anthony's enthusiastic explanations during previous discussions, duels between wizards involved constant spellcasting and counterspells.
However, unless there was a massive gap in skill, very few spells actually hit their targets.
Most spells were either dodged or blocked by defensive charms.
That meant something important.
In a duel, landing even a single effective spell could instantly shift the balance of the fight.
Under those conditions, the new Illumination rune might actually be even stronger than the original version.
If every damaging spell left a magical mark…
And that mark could be detonated for extra damage…
Then the impact of a successful hit could become devastating.
"Enhancing light and fire magic…" Ryze murmured thoughtfully.
His mind immediately began racing with possibilities.
"I wonder…"
"Could Lumos Maxima be modified into something like Final Spark?"
The idea made him grin.
One of Lux's most iconic voice lines echoed in his mind.
"Let's light them up!"
To be honest, Ryze had always liked Lux's abilities.
Back when he had been researching the many derivative forms of the Lumos Charm, he had already considered whether it could be modified for offensive purposes.
Normally, Lumos was used only as a lighting spell.
But light itself could carry tremendous energy.
If properly amplified…
Perhaps it could become something far more destructive.
Now that the Illumination rune enhanced light magic directly, the idea suddenly seemed far more realistic.
Ryze continued contemplating spell formulas and rune modifications in his head.
Time passed without him noticing.
Then—
Voices suddenly reached his ears.
"…It's already been ten minutes. Is Ryze really okay?"
Another voice replied.
"I'm not sure either. But if this truly is a room left behind by Ravenclaw, she wouldn't harm a Hogwarts student."
Ryze blinked.
That was Anthony.
And the second voice belonged to Professor Babbling.
Confused, Ryze looked around.
Only then did he realize something strange.
At some point—without him noticing—the white room had disappeared.
He was standing in front of the wall again.
The glowing light had vanished.
The corridor had returned to normal.
It was as if the entire experience had never happened.
Ryze glanced down at his hand.
The slip of paper was gone.
But the mysterious ring remained resting in his palm.
"…Was that whole thing some kind of illusion?" he wondered.
Just as he was thinking about it, the people nearby noticed that he had finally moved.
They quickly gathered around him.
Several pairs of concerned eyes carefully examined his condition.
After confirming that Ryze didn't look exhausted or mentally drained like he had the previous day, they finally relaxed.
Anthony spoke first.
"How do you feel now?"
"You suddenly stopped moving when you touched the wall," he said.
"Professor Babbling thought you might have entered some kind of magical state."
Another student asked eagerly, "Did you see Ravenclaw in the magic?"
Ryze shook his head.
"No," he replied calmly.
"I just felt like I entered a room behind the wall."
"And inside, I found this."
He opened his hand and showed them the ring.
Professor Babbling immediately leaned closer to examine it.
Her eyes narrowed with curiosity.
"…Hmm."
"An extremely ancient ring," she said slowly.
"But strangely… I can't sense any magical aura from it."
Terry stepped forward eagerly.
"Let me see!"
He reached out and picked up the ring from Ryze's palm.
But the moment he blinked—
The ring disappeared.
"…Huh?"
Terry looked down in confusion.
The ring had somehow returned to Ryze's hand.
"Wait, what?!"
Refusing to believe it, Terry grabbed the ring again.
Once more—
Blink.
Gone.
Back in Ryze's hand.
The group watched in stunned silence as Terry repeated the process several more times.
Every single time, the same thing happened.
The ring simply refused to stay with anyone else.
Finally, the students turned to Professor Babbling.
Clearly, they expected an explanation.
But even Professor Babbling could only shake her head helplessly.
"The power of Ancient Magic is extremely mysterious," she said thoughtfully.
"I'm not sure what kind of spell this is."
"But it seems that, much like Ryze's Ailey and that unusually large wand of his, this ring may only recognize him as its owner."
She straightened and glanced at the now ordinary wall.
"In any case," she continued, "there doesn't seem to be anything else here."
"Let's return to my office."
"We can sit down and discuss everything slowly."
The students nodded.
Together, they followed Professor Babbling out of the corridor.
As she closed the door to the Room of Requirement behind them, the hidden entrance disappeared completely.
The stone wall returned to its original form.
Empty.
Silent.
As if nothing had ever happened there at all.
For more chapters
patreon.com/Liamlivingstone