In a corner of the Room of Requirement, Albert was standing quietly, lost in thought. Those who knew him well knew that this was how he looked when he was thinking, and even he himself admitted it.
After all, no one could have guessed the truth: Albert was actually engrossed in his own panel.
After regaining his senses, Albert immediately looked away from the troll specimen. Having finally managed to squeeze in some time to come here, he naturally couldn't give up exploring the place. He planned to continue searching for other interesting items, and he didn't forget that he had come here to find the Ravenclaw crown.
However, based on the hazy memories in his mind, he vaguely remembered that the Horcrux should be worn on the head of a plaster bust. However, that was the only clue; whether he could find Ravenclaw's tiara sometimes really depended on luck.
As soon as he moved, Albert's attention was drawn to something else. Somewhere to his right was a large mirror with a gold frame, supported by two claw-shaped supports.
Albert strode toward the large mirror, raised his wand, and cast a cleansing spell on the mirror's surface, removing most of the dust.
"Eris…the Magic Mirror," he murmured, gazing at the letters on the frame.
That's right, it must be that magic mirror, the one that's said to reveal the deepest, most urgent, and strongest desires of the person in front of it.
"What do I desire most?" Albert looked at himself in the mirror with curiosity, and then he noticed that he was holding an eagle-shaped crown.
That's... Ravenclaw's crown.
"While I do want to find the crown, that's probably not what I crave most," Albert suppressed the urge to complain. He had originally imagined seeing himself in the mirror surrounded by beautiful women, or standing atop a mountain of gold coins, or at the very least, standing on Voldemort with the Elder Wand in hand.
So, what's with holding the Ravenclaw crown? Is it a thirst for knowledge? A desire to become smarter?
"Is this really what I desire most? Or is it what I desire most right now?"
Albert looked away with considerable disappointment and focused his gaze on the frame at the top of the magic mirror, where the following words were engraved: "erisedstraehruoytubecafruoytwohsi".
The name of the Magic Mirror comes from the first word, erised.
Readers familiar with the Harry Potter stories know that the line of letters engraved on the top frame of the Mirror of Erised must be read backwards.
Albert shifted his gaze to the back of the alphabet and read it aloud softly: "I show you not your face but your heart's desire."
"Yearning? Could it be that I don't actually yearn for anything? No, I'm not a saint, how could I not have desires?" Albert suddenly grinned. "Sure enough, the magic mirror can't reflect a bunch of illusory panel experience and skill points!"
Yes, what I crave most is experience and skill points on the panel, isn't it?
Isn't the risk of searching for Voldemort's Horcruxes all for these ethereal and intangible things?
Thinking of this, Albert suddenly felt like laughing again. "In a way, the Ravenclaw crown reflected in the magic mirror isn't actually wrong."
After all, finding the Horcrux means a lot of quests, experience, and skill points.
This is what he desires most!
After walking along the garbage trail for a while, just as Albert felt he was about to get lost in the garbage mountain, a slingshot with wings flew past him. He spotted it, was hit by a freezing spell, and fell from mid-air.
"What a strange thing." Albert walked over, bent down and picked up the slingshot from the ground. He glanced at it, pulled the trigger, and finally used his wand to turn a nearby object into a projectile. He tested the slingshot's power, but he quickly discovered its purpose. The projectiles seemed to be imbued with homing magic, able to accurately bypass objects and hit the target.
"A slingshot imbued with magic, interesting. It's probably a toy from Zonko's joke shop. It would be great for pranks," Albert muttered to himself. Soon, his mind started racing, wondering if this technology could be applied to bows and arrows, turning archers into sharpshooters in no time. If it were used on firearms, could it be used to take someone's head from a kilometer away?
Hmm, this slingshot is pretty good; it's worth studying.
Albert used a cleansing spell to remove the dust from the slingshot's surface, then took out a handkerchief to wipe it before putting it into the pocket of his robe.
After wandering around the garbage dump, Albert found a dilapidated Quidditch box in some nook and cranny. When he opened it, he found that all the Quidditch equipment inside was broken and tattered. One of the bats was even reduced to the hand-held section. God knows what had happened to it.
Both of the wandering balls were broken, and the only ghost ball was relatively intact, but it also looked a bit worn.
Albert's gaze, however, was drawn to the Golden Snitch. When he picked up the rusty Golden Snitch, he discovered that it was missing a wing.
The Golden Snitch's other wing is still usable, but after losing one wing, it can no longer fly normally.
A damaged Golden Snitch is very attractive to Albert. The craftsmanship of the Golden Snitch is actually very high. It is said that this thing has the ability of physical memory to determine who catches it first.
If this ability to remember physical memories were used in a treasure vault, wouldn't it be easy to create one's own secret treasure vault?
Dumbledore actually did just that.
Come to think of it, why do I feel like a piece of junk in a garbage dump?
This art style is off!
Well, calling this place a garbage dump doesn't seem quite right.
Regardless, Voldemort's Horcruxes are hidden here; clearly, the Dark Lord wouldn't hide his Horcruxes in a junkyard.
Sure enough, this place should be called the Treasure Vault, yes, the Treasure Vault! It contains items from Hogwarts that have been stored for thousands of years, and he is a treasure hunter in the Treasure Vault.
No one knows what they might find in this treasure vault—it could be worthless junk, an incredibly precious Ravenclaw relic, or a Horcrux that could kill you.
Regardless of what he finds, Albert's adventure and treasure hunt will continue. He walks lightly into the maze, continuing his search for a crowned bust.
Perhaps those who smile often have good luck; perhaps Merlin's beard is protecting him; or perhaps Voldemort's soul fragments are simply too restless to resist.
Albert suddenly stopped, held his breath, and listened intently. From a distant place, he heard a faint whisper.
At that moment, Albert felt as if his soul was trembling, the whispers in his ears disappeared, and were replaced by his own heavy breathing.
It's getting closer, it's very close. The Horcrux is nearby, it's luring him in. Yes, Voldemort's Horcrux is using whispers to lure him into a trap.
At that moment, Albert suddenly wanted to laugh. He knew that Voldemort's Horcruxes were tempting him, but wasn't this also a case of offering himself up?
It saves you the trouble of searching for Horcruxes yourself!
However, that was Voldemort's Horcrux, and Albert dared not be careless at all. There was the example of Kino's mishap, so he had to be extremely vigilant. He pulled his wand from the pocket of his robe and began to look around, carefully examining the surrounding objects to find the source of the whispering.
Albert walked slowly and carefully through the area, but the whispers were getting closer.
There it is, right ahead, on top of that old cabinet with its bubbly surface, isn't there a half-body statue of a male wizard covered in pockmarks? The half-body statue wears a dusty old wig and... an old, faded crown.
That's Ravenclaw's tiara... Voldemort's Horcrux, and I actually found it.
Albert could no longer hide the excitement on his face.
At this moment, he was certain that the whispers in his ear were coming from the crown, tempting him to pick it up and put it on his head.
By wearing the Ravenclaw crown, one can become wiser.
Albert almost instinctively reached out to touch the crown, but he stopped in his tracks and lowered his raised arm. He listened intently to the whispers in his ear, then burst into maniacal laughter, laughing until tears streamed down his face.
"Interesting!" Albert murmured after stopping his laughter. "If it were an ordinary student, they probably wouldn't be able to resist trying on the crown. After all, no one would want to miss out on experiencing the intellectual boost that Ravenclaw's crown brings, or even be tempted to possess it."
"Come on, let me take a picture of you." Albert took a few steps back, raised the camera hanging around his neck, and took a picture of the wizard's bust and the old, faded crown on his head.
Then, Albert retreated another dozen steps, took several more photos of some prominent coordinates around him, and only after retreating to the entrance did he check the new task that appeared on the panel:
Evil whispers.
You hear whispers tempting you to corruption, and the source of these whispers is highly likely an evil dark magic artifact. Although you don't know what it is, you've realized it could be extremely dangerous and are preparing to try and find out.
Reward: 10,000 experience points, and a random unmastered magic spell.
"That's fantastic," Albert said softly, staring at the mission panel. "That's a Horcrux, Voldemort's Horcrux."
The task was completed automatically when he finished speaking.
Albert did not choose to complete the task, but instead continued to review the remaining tasks:
Return the lost items.
You have stumbled upon the Ravenclaw tiara, which was lost a thousand years ago. As a student of Hogwarts, you should return the Ravenclaw tiara to the school.
Rewards: 30,000 experience points, 3 skill points, Dumbledore's favorability +10, Lady Grey's favorability +30.
The Dark Lord's Secret.
You accidentally discover the secret to Voldemort's immortality. You can choose to remain silent or share this secret with others.
Reward: 1000 experience points, +20 or -20 favorability towards this target.
Ms. Gray's regret.
You stumble upon the Ravenclaw tiara, lost a thousand years ago, but this relic from the Four Great Kings has been corrupted by powerful dark magic. Cleanse the tiara of this dark magic.
Rewards: 10,000 experience points, 2 skill points, and +30 favorability with Ms. Gray.
"What good is it for me to have the ghost's favor?" Albert couldn't help but complain. "Does Ms. Grey grant me a wish once I've accumulated enough favor?"
Destroy the Horcrux.
Destroying the Dark Lord is everyone's responsibility. Now that you have accidentally discovered Voldemort's weakness, join the great cause of fighting against the Dark Wizard and destroy, or assist others in destroying, the Horcruxes.
Rewards: 30,000 experience points, 3 skill points, and +10 favorability with the person you assist.
The downfall of the Black Demon.
You've stumbled upon Voldemort's weakness, and if he finds out, he'll never let you off the hook. Since you might become mortal enemies, why not strike first and eliminate this most evil dark wizard of the century?
You can choose to do it alone, or gather more helpers to assist you in eliminating this dark villain.
Current contribution: 0%
Rewards: 10,000 x 100,000 experience points, 110 skill points, +100 reputation with the Magic World, and a bounty of 100,000 Galleons.
By the way, the book-reading app I've been using recently, [Mimi Reading app], allows you to cache books and read them offline!
"That's awesome! No wonder it's the final boss, such generous rewards!" Albert looked at the several task information panels that appeared and couldn't help but swallow hard. His previous efforts had really paid off.
As for how to accomplish these tasks, isn't there still the savior Potter, that stubborn kid?
Engage head-on, draw enemy fire, and fight against Voldemort.
Harry in the novels always does an exceptionally good job. Most importantly, the missions don't require Albert to do anything personally; completing the missions while lying down is actually quite nice.
Albert patted his cheeks to compose himself, then pushed open the door to the Room of Requirement. After glancing around to make sure no one was there, he strolled around the castle happily, even smiling and greeting Peeves along the way, leaving Peeves completely bewildered.
After taking a few more photos in the castle, Albert happily returned to the lounge, where Fred, George, and Lee Jordan were still doing their homework.
"Albert seems to be in a good mood," George said to the two people beside him as he watched Albert's figure disappear into the dormitory entrance.
"Maybe something good happened!" Fred said without looking up.
"To be honest, this is the first time I've seen him like this." Unable to suppress his curiosity, George got up, packed his things, and chased after Albert's retreating figure.
"Why don't you go check it out? Maybe something really good has happened." Li Qiaodan also packed his things and followed George back to the dormitory.
Fred looked up and saw that his two roommates had run away. He quickly gathered up his homework on the table and hurried after them.
The three of them soon learned that Albert had encountered some good news, but Albert did not tell them directly what it was.