Back in the privacy of my dorm, I opened my system interface.20 points — gone in an instant.
Ancient QuillA tool of deception and legend.Its ink would age like wine — gaining an aura of truth the longer it "existed."
Then five more points for:
Ancient ParchmentPaper that hummed with quiet, old power — as though it carried centuries of whispered secrets.
I didn't even need to hold the quill.With a twitch of thought, it hovered above the parchment and began to write, my will guiding its every stroke…
"25th of Narwain, Year 2939 of the Third Age."
"We stumbled into the depths of Khazad-dûm… and into the maw of shadow and flame."
I wrote — no, Gandalf wrote — about Durin's Bane:
The roar of fire.The cracking of stone.A battle against darkness so ancient even the dwarves feared to speak of it.
Ten days of combat.Ten days of falling ash and blinding light.
And when the story closed, I added what every wizard hungers for:
A spell.
Aura of Light — a divine healing incantation, "gifted" by the White Wizard Saruman himself.
But knowledge alone was not enough.
No — proof is the true sculptor of belief.
So I seeded more hints:
Cave trolls in Moria?Good. I had one ready to introduce when needed.
Dark magic in flame?Good. The Balrog I kept hidden was real enough.
Everything was aligning.Everything was building toward belief.
When the diary was complete, I donned the One Ring.Silver vanished into shadow, and I walked — silent and unseen — to the library.
Madam Pince sorted books nearby, unaware of the invisible force placing a relic of a different world among the unshelved piles.
I whispered a spell — not to hide the book, but to make curiosity seek it.
Hermione would find it.Harry would soon follow.Knowledge would spread.
Belief would grow.
And with belief…
Sauron would rise.
I would rise.
As I turned to leave, the castle's ambient magic seemed to thrum — as though Hogwarts itself felt the disturbance I introduced.
A chessboard had been set.The players were assembling.But for now, only I knew the stakes.
I allowed myself one small, careful smile.
"Let the Age of Sauron begin."