Leo immediately looked troubled. "Master Flamel, it's not that I don't want you to enter," he explained quickly. "It's just that currently, only members of the Nicholas family can access the Cave Heaven directly."
He hesitated briefly before continuing. "Even my mother could only enter using the key connected to the Cave Heaven."
His expression darkened slightly. "But Raven still hasn't awakened."
Everything Leo knew about the Cave Heaven came from the fragmented memories Amber had left behind when ownership transferred to him. Those memories were incomplete, more like scattered echoes than a proper inheritance.
Nicolas nodded slowly, seemingly deep in thought. He remembered quite clearly that Amber had once intended for the Cave Heaven to become a true family inheritance passed down through future generations.
At the time, Amber had even joked that the Nicholas bloodline would probably rely almost entirely on descendants from mixed marriages eventually. After all, he himself had been the last true wizard born directly into the Nicholas family for quite some time.
Beside them, Perenelle suddenly smiled gently. "If the raven acts as the key," she pointed out, "then Nicolas should be able to determine what's wrong simply by examining it."
Leo froze. Then he immediately slapped his forehead.
How did I not think of that?
A legendary alchemist who had lived for centuries was standing right in front of him, and somehow Leo had never considered asking for help.
"I'll get Raven immediately," he said quickly. "Please wait a moment, Grandpa, Grandma."
The titles slipped out naturally. Neither Nicolas nor Perenelle seemed bothered by them.
Standing where he was, Leo focused his mind directly toward the Cave Heaven. Then he vanished.
It was not Apparition. It was not Floo travel. He was simply gone.
Nicolas' eyes sharpened instantly. Perenelle looked equally surprised.
For most wizards, such a sight would have been incomprehensible. But Nicolas Flamel only needed several seconds of thought to piece together what had likely happened.
Bloodline authentication. Spatial linkage. Protective dimensional magic.
And most interesting of all, a teleportation mechanism deeply integrated into the artifact itself.
Nicolas became immediately intrigued. The Cave Heaven Leo described differed drastically from the version Nicolas remembered helping create centuries ago.
Amber had clearly modified it heavily afterward. And yet alchemy had never even been Amber's primary field of study.
Where exactly did he learn all this?
Several minutes later, space distorted again. Leo slowly reappeared in the exact same location, his figure transitioning smoothly from blur to solid form in less than two seconds.
Nicolas' curiosity deepened further. Still, there were more important matters to handle first.
Leo carefully carried Raven in both hands. The black bird appeared completely ordinary at first glance.
No magical fluctuations. No visible abnormalities. Just a sleeping raven.
Nicolas accepted it gently before examining the bird in silence for a long moment. Then he called calmly, "Adam."
The tall man from earlier entered immediately. Even now, Leo still found Adam slightly unsettling.
If Nicolas had not personally explained that Adam was an alchemical construct, Leo would have mistaken him for an actual human without hesitation. But considering Amber had created Raven, perhaps it was not strange that Nicolas could create something even more advanced.
Then Adam changed.
A glowing magic circle suddenly appeared across his abdomen. Mechanical clicking sounds echoed softly through the room.
Sections of his body unfolded smoothly outward like a transforming machine until a small operating platform emerged directly from his torso.
Leo stared. That is unbelievably cool.
Nicolas, meanwhile, calmly selected a monocle-like lens from the equipment tray and clipped it over one eye. Then the examination began.
He gently placed Raven onto the operating platform. First, Nicolas used a strange magical detector to scan the bird completely.
Different colored lights flashed repeatedly across the instrument while he observed every reaction carefully. Blue, yellow, then red.
His expression gradually became more serious. "The magical fluctuations are extremely weak," Nicolas murmured. "The raven appears trapped in some kind of dormant state."
Next, he removed a slender silver wand unlike any Leo had seen before. Soft light spread outward as the wand touched Raven's feathers gently.
Nicolas closed his eyes. Several long moments passed in silence.
Finally, he opened them again. "There's an external force interfering with the magical core," he said quietly.
Leo immediately grew tense. "Can it be fixed?"
Nicolas did not answer immediately. "First," he said instead, "we need to understand exactly what we're dealing with."
Then he gestured toward the detectors. "Come here. Watch carefully."
For the next several hours, Nicolas personally guided Leo through the entire examination process. Every magical fluctuation, every rune response, and every reaction inside Raven's body was explained with patient precision.
"This blue light," he said while adjusting the detector, "represents stable magical circulation."
Another color flashed across the device. "Red indicates abnormal interference."
Leo watched carefully while memorizing everything. "What about yellow?" he asked curiously.
Nicolas smiled faintly. "Usually resistance. It means the magical system itself is fighting something."
Together, they carefully parted Raven's feathers and examined the skin beneath. Nicolas touched different locations with his wand while sensing magical reactions directly.
Meanwhile, Leo observed every tiny response from Raven himself, searching desperately for clues. His fingers tightened slightly every time the bird failed to react.
As the investigation continued, Nicolas occasionally shared his thoughts aloud. "I suspect the interference originated externally," he said eventually. "Possibly some form of magical attack."
Then after another pause, he added, "Though internal magical collapse remains possible too."
Leo frowned. "So how do we remove it?"
Nicolas shook his head slightly. "Not until we identify exactly what the force is."
Time passed quietly.
At last, Nicolas suddenly froze. "There."
At the base of Raven's left wing, something faintly glimmered beneath the feathers.
A rune.
Tiny. Almost invisible. Yet pulsing softly with dark magical light.
Nicolas' expression immediately turned grave. "This," he said quietly, "is likely the source of the problem."
Leo's heartbeat quickened.
Nicolas leaned closer while studying the rune carefully through his enchanted monocle. "The raven's dormancy appears directly connected to this magical mark."
Perenelle watched silently nearby, her expression equally serious now.
Leo stared fixedly at Raven, anxiety rising steadily inside him.
What exactly happened to you?
After several more minutes of careful examination, Nicolas finally stopped moving altogether. Then slowly, the old alchemist frowned deeply and fell into thought.
....
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