A strange feeling arose in Karl's heart; as long as he wanted to, he could summon and manipulate flames.
In another instant, orange flames appeared in his vision, burning within the souls of the Little wizards and amidst the leaves and branches of flowers and plants.
Karl could perceive the warmth within the flames; it was the fire of the heart born from firm beliefs and fine qualities, and also the healing fire born from love and nature.
Amidst this realization, Karl opened his palm in front of his chest and condensed the fire of the heart.
Soon, a small Fire Treasure appeared in his palm, only slightly larger than a fist.
It had a round body, round eyes, and a pair of little round hands just like Patrick Star.
Fire Treasure blinked its friendly big eyes and enthusiastically greeted Karl: "Ji~~~"
"Hiss!"
Karl's heart nearly melted from its cuteness, and he beamed as he stroked it with his finger.
"Ji~"
Fire Treasure hugged Karl's finger, happily rubbing its cheek against it, feeling warm and comfortable.
Just as Karl was immersed in petting Fire Treasure, it suddenly went quiet around him.
He looked up and saw that the Little wizards, led by Prefect Judy, were surrounding him.
"Uh... sorry, I..."
Before Karl could finish his sentence, Judy interrupted him.
"Mr. Karl Orolin, what kind of magical creature is this little cutie?"
Although she was asking him, Judy's gaze was entirely on Fire Treasure, and the eyes of the other Little wizards were also full of curiosity.
"Ji~"
Fire Treasure smiled, squinting its eyes, and waved its little hand at the crowd watching it, instantly winning over everyone's affection.
"It is Fire Treasure, my partner."
Karl scanned everyone vigilantly, feeling as though they were about to pounce.
You must know that Fire Treasure wasn't just cute; as a fire of the heart, it contained love and beauty, and as a healing fire, it contained the energy of nature, which could be said to naturally attract the affection of all living things in the world.
"Oh! Then can we... hmm?"
Just as Judy was itching to ask for the little cutie to cuddle, Fire Treasure changed.
It grew two long ears on its head, turning into the appearance of a little rabbit.
Then, it jumped forcefully from Karl's hand, crashed into his chest, and disappeared.
"Ji~"
Karl, who shared a telepathic connection with Fire Treasure, couldn't help but laugh, "The little guy is shy; I'll introduce you later."
"Alright then..."
Judy sighed in disappointment, and the other Little wizards also felt it was a pity.
However, at this moment, the door to the Hufflepuff common room opened again.
The older Hufflepuff students who had gone to the kitchen returned, each carrying some fruits, drinks, and snacks.
"Hi! Ready for another feast?"
The first-year students cheered immediately.
The next day, it was already nine o'clock when Karl woke up.
"Ji~"
"Good morning, Fire Treasure~"
He sat up, stretched, and stroked the little cutie on his pillow.
Upon noticing Karl wake up, the vines at the window moved aside to clear the view.
Sunlight immediately shone into the room through the window, spilling onto the four-poster bed covered with patchwork sheets.
"Whew~ As expected of the most comfortable common room and dormitory in Hogwarts!"
Karl got up, got dressed, patted Fire Treasure into his chest, and turned to look at his roommates.
Stebbins and Shabi were still fast asleep, showing no signs of waking up.
This was partly because they had slept too late yesterday, and partly because there were no classes on Sunday today.
That's right, September 1, 1990, was a Saturday, so they could rest today, get familiar with Hogwarts, and wait until tomorrow for classes.
And by the time Harry, Hermione, and Ron enrolled next year, it would be a Sunday, and classes would start the very next day.
Tsk! Winning big!
Without waking his two roommates, Karl left the dormitory and came to the common room.
There weren't many people in the common room, among whom Cedric Diggory and Summers were playing Wizard's Chess.
"Hi! Karl! You're the first one up among the first-years!"
Summers greeted Karl happily, while inadvertently sweeping the pieces on the chessboard into a mess with his sleeve.
This move caused the chess pieces to curse at him one after another, refusing to follow his commands again.
"Is that so? Had I known, I would have waited a while longer, at least until you determined a winner."
"Please! Forget about that!"
After teasing Summers, Karl looked at Cedric, "Can we still get food if we go to the Great Hall now?"
"Of course, today is a day off, and the House-elves won't let the students of Hogwarts go hungry."
Cedric packed up the Wizard's Chess and stood up, "However, we have a better option; there's no need to go to the Great Hall."
"Let's go, I'll take you to the kitchen."
Karl readily agreed and walked out with him, and Summers, having nothing else to do, followed as well.
"Do you know about House-elves, Karl?"
"I've seen them in books."
Cedric weighed his words before continuing: "They look a bit peculiar, so I hope you won't be surprised; in fact, they are very hardworking, loyal, and friendly."
"Of course, we are Hufflepuff, aren't we?"
"That's right! Exactly!"
Karl and Cedric fist-bumped, having a good impression of this boy who Dumbledore described as upright, brave, and kind.
Actually, Karl thought Cedric would be able to trigger the light screen, and he had already thought of a matching hero.
Explorer Ezreal: "In other games (stories), someone as handsome as me is usually the protagonist!"
Both Twilight and The Batman could testify to this, what a pity.
The three of them came to a painting of a bowl of fruit, and Cedric tickled a pear in the painting.
Then they saw the pear laugh and turn into a green doorknob.
After opening the door and entering the kitchen, Karl once again marveled at the magic and the immense wealth of Hogwarts.
This was clearly a replica of the Great Hall above, with clean kitchenware and fresh ingredients piled all around...
There were four long tables in the room, exactly the same as the tables for the four houses.
Cedric told Karl that the food placed on these would be transported to the Great Hall.
Over a hundred House-elves, uniformly wearing tea towels printed with the Hogwarts crest, were busy at work.
They were only two to three feet tall, with thin arms and legs, a very large head, large eyes, and large, pointed, bat-like ears.
It was no wonder Cedric had specifically warned him; using "peculiar" to describe them was already very euphemistic.
Seeing Karl, Cedric, and Summers enter, the House-elves smiled, bowed, and curtsied one by one.
They also enthusiastically surrounded them, asking what they wanted to eat.
After Karl had a hearty meal, the House-elves enthusiastically saw them off.
Cedric was drinking a cup of juice, "What are you planning to do today?"
"Get familiar with Hogwarts."
Summers nodded vigorously, "A wise choice! You need to know that there are one hundred and forty-two staircases in the Castle, and they all change, sometimes even disappearing suddenly."
"And the doors can be real or fake; everything is constantly moving. You'd better remember clearly where the classrooms are, otherwise you will definitely be late."
"Do you need two guides?"
Karl raised an eyebrow, "You have time?"
Summers showed a helpless expression, "We're only in our second year and haven't been allowed to go to Hogsmeade yet."
"Then I'll trouble you, but I also need to call two friends."
Karl looked meaningfully at Cedric, wondering what reaction this guy would have when he saw Cho Chang.
Although everyone is only at the age of middle school students now, considering that even elementary school students have partners...
Forget it, never mind.