Hogwarts' Christmas break lasted two weeks, or fourteen days, and today was already the ninth day. Lynn read continuously from eight o'clock on the evening of the ninth day until six o'clock on the morning of the tenth day before closing her book.
Standing up, she slung her bag over her shoulder and headed to the Hogwarts Library; she needed to return the books.
Madam Pince had not yet arrived at six in the morning. Lynn placed the books on her desk, then turned and quickly headed toward the Great Hall.
The fifteen hours she spent unconscious allowed her complexion to recover slightly, but only slightly.
Her face was still a sickly white, and her lips were completely drained of color, dark and bruised.
After eating breakfast in the Great Hall, Lynn hurried back to Ravenclaw Tower, sat down at her desk, and entered a serious state of study, reading intently.
Over the next four days of the holiday, no Professor or student staying at school saw Lynn again.
Even Madam Pince hadn't seen Lynn come to the Library to borrow books again. Thinking that Lynn had finally given herself a few days off to rest, Madam Pince silently sighed in relief.
She thought to herself that the child finally knew how to rest.
The truth, however, was that Lynn had concluded after deliberation that her current appearance would surely lead the Professors to demand she stop studying.
But studying could not be stopped; even being sick could not halt her studies.
Therefore, she needed to avoid the Professors. Lynn made this judgment without any emotional reaction.
Thus, for these four days, she deliberately went to the Great Hall early to eat, then returned to her Dormitory as quickly as possible, all to avoid running into the Professors and the students staying behind, especially Harry and Ron.
She even read books from the small internal Library within Ravenclaw House during these four days.
For four full days, she did not close her eyes again, not sleeping for even a minute.
Furthermore, there was one more thing... her left arm had become completely unable to lift during these days.
On the very night she woke up from her unconsciousness, she punished herself for the fifteen hours of study time she had wasted.
After her right hand pressed down on her left arm, mercilessly leaving fifteen handprints.
Her left arm began to tremble uncontrollably, losing even the strength to lift it.
With a calm expression, she slowly opened her right hand. Under the Dormitory light, Lynn clearly saw her right palm filled with blood.
Slowly removing her wizard robe, Lynn gently pulled aside her shirt. The upper left sleeve of the white shirt was completely soaked in blood.
Lynn's upper left arm, revealed after taking off her shirt, was covered in bloody handprints. The continuous self-inflicted injuries had finally overwhelmed her left arm, causing it to seep blood.
Withdrawing her gaze indifferently, Lynn reached for a nearby tissue and vigorously wiped her left arm, cleaning away the seeping blood.
The force she used suggested she felt no pain at all; even though it must have been excruciating, there was no change in her expression.
Even in this state, Lynn merely changed into a clean set of clothes with indifference, then sat down at her desk and re-entered her study state.
Consequently, her left arm remained unable to lift until the very last day of the holiday.
She truly wasn't afraid of pain. Without emotion, pain, though unpleasant, was easily endured for her.
However, besides the pain, her left arm was so injured that the human body's tolerance had essentially reached its limit, making it impossible for her left arm to exert any force.
Let alone moving it despite the pain. Thus, when the holiday ended, what Hermione saw was Lynn, looking strangely awkward, eating at the table only with her right hand while her left arm hung limp.
Not to mention the suffocating pallor of her face and her dark, bruised lips. Hermione felt like her heart was being clutched tightly.
The hogwarts express arrived at Hogwarts in the evening. She deliberately rushed to the Great Hall immediately after tidying up her belongings.
Earlier than the other Professors and students, she thought that if she went early, she would definitely run into Lynn, or if Lynn hadn't arrived yet, she could wait for her there.
As she walked into the Great Hall, she indeed encountered Lynn, who, just like the previous days, had arrived early to eat.
Before she could go up and greet her, Hermione noticed her strange posture.
Frowning, Hermione quickly walked up to Lynn. "Lynn, good evening."
Hearing Hermione's voice, Lynn's eating hand paused involuntarily. She then looked up at Hermione with a blank expression.
"Good afternoon, Hermione."
"Hmm," Hermione nodded, her gaze fixed on Lynn's left arm. "What happened to your left arm?"
Lynn, devoid of emotion and incapable of lying, immediately spoke the truth.
"Punishment for wasting study time."
"What?" Hermione looked at Lynn confusedly, but Lynn did not answer again, lowering her head to continue eating.
Hermione vaguely sensed that something was seriously wrong. She narrowed her eyes at Lynn, then walked over and sat down beside her without ceremony, reaching out to get food for herself.
"I'm going back to your Dormitory with you later. Let me see your left arm."
Hermione's tone was absolute. Lynn did not contradict her, continuing to eat the dinner in front of her without any reaction.
Finishing her dinner as quickly as possible, Hermione followed Lynn closely, all the way to the entrance of the Ravenclaw Common Room.
Lynn answered the bronze knocker's question, then led Hermione up the Common Room stairs and into her Dormitory.
Maranhao and Marietta Edgecombe had just gone to the Great Hall to eat, so the two groups missed each other.
Hermione stood by the door with her arms crossed and nodded at Lynn. "Alright, show me your left arm."
Lynn responded mechanically, "Okay."
She then slowly removed her wizard robe and pulled open the shirt she was wearing underneath.