81 Chapter 81 "Silver Spear Trial"
Boom! The wooden door sealed shut behind them, leaving the four at the entrance of a long, narrow passage, enclosed by gray stone walls. In the subdued light, torches on the stone walls crackled with sparks, casting an eerie glow on the dismal passage.
Though silence prevailed in the corridor, an uncanny atmosphere filled the air. Daphne, displaying the most courage, took the lead, with Meredith closely following and Astoria trailing behind them. Being the strongest, Skyler assumed the rear position, ready to oversee and protect everyone.
As they advanced, the air grew increasingly humid, and a misty fog materialized before them. Daphne whispered, "Lumos!" A milky white halo emanated from the tip of her magic wand. The luminescence was akin to moonlight, gentle and not blinding, surpassing the brightness of standard lumos spells. Yet, visibility remained limited to about three feet.
Meredith, intending to cast the Incendio, was halted by Skyler. "Meredith, it's unwise to conjure flames recklessly in unfamiliar surroundings. Consider this: what if there's gunpowder ahead? We'd risk blowing ourselves up."
Daphne, struck with inspiration, exclaimed, "Use the wind! Wind can disperse the fog!" She then wore a distressed expression, adding, "But I haven't mastered the Ventus. Even if the fog disperses, I doubt my magical power would be sufficient."
Skyler shook his head. "I know how to cast Ventus, but there's actually an easier solution for this—Avis!" With a soft burst from Skyler's wand, a small sparrow emerged, chirping and flapping its wings cheerfully.
"Engorgio!" The diminutive sparrow transformed into a creature larger than a golden eagle, its wingspan reaching 10 feet.
It soared into the mist, creating a gentle breeze with its fluttering wings.
Although it only cleared a small area of fog, it unveiled the path ahead.
The three girls were left speechless, astounded by the versatility of Asuka Magic spells.
Daphne prepared to step forward but was halted by Skyler. "Hold on. While the mist dissipates, how do we know nothing else is concealed within it?"
This time, confusion dawned on the faces of the three girls.
What did Skyler mean? The path ahead was revealed, and there seemed to be nothing in sight.
Meredith was the quickest to react. She pointed her wand forward and exclaimed, "Reveal your true form now!"
In front of them materialized a tall, silvery-white creature, resembling a lean bear, standing upright and extending its unusually long arms toward them.
Astoria questioned, "What is this?"
Skyler nodded, "Yes, this concealed monster is a hybrid of the Demiguise and the Ghoul, known as the Hidebehind. It can turn invisible like the Demiguise, distort its body shape, and is adept at hiding and sneaking. It has a penchant for hunting humanoid creatures, including wizards. Be cautious when dealing with it."
(Note: The Hidebehind is one of the six creatures added in the 2017 version of "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them," the others being bird-shaped man-eaters, cats and leopards, horned creatures, long-horned water snakes, and thunderbirds.)
Skyler was somewhat surprised. A four-star Hidebehind appeared for a medium difficulty challenge, utilizing the fog to conceal its figure.
Without their quick response, something unexpected might have occurred just now. It made him ponder if it truly qualified as a silver spear challenge.
The Hidebehind proved highly agile, effortlessly evading spells cast by Daphne and Meredith.
When cornered, it skillfully contorted its body, akin to the bone-shrinking yoga practices in India, elegantly avoiding their attacks.
Daphne deployed a Sticky Charm, covering the ground around the Hidebehind with a viscous paste.
Unintentionally stepping onto the paste, the creature came to a halt.
Seizing the opportunity, Meredith performed a Transfiguration on the adhesive substance, causing four arms to sprout from it, tightly restraining the Hidebehind's limbs.
"Now's the time!" Meredith and Daphne exclaimed in unison.
Astoria raised her wand and shouted, "Stupefy!" A beam of light shot from her wand, accurately hitting the Hidebehind's head and rendering it stunned.
"Excellent job!" Skyler praised sincerely. The two girls seamlessly cooperated, creating a perfect opening for Astoria, whose spellcasting precision and speed were commendable.
Continuing their journey, they entered a circular room with two exits in front, featuring a central dragon statue.
The term "Dragon" encompasses various sub-dragon branches in the wizarding world.
Skyler recalled encountering two types from his previous life: the Wyvern slain by the mad Knight Sir Cadogan in Gryffindor and the Firedrake seen in the Fantastic Beasts movies.
In this room, a sub-dragon creature known as Amphiptere, learned by Skyler from ancient books in this life, took center stage.
Resembling a Feathered Snake or Birdsnake, it was among the most beautiful creatures in the magical realm, boasting a blue snake-like body and a pair of rainbow-colored wings.
The feathered snake statue, nearly 15 feet long, had eyes embedded with two bright red rubies, giving the impression that it was observing them with a sparkling gaze.
Daphne voiced her concern, "What should we do now? Should we pass by it? Could it come to life?"
"Probably not," Skyler replied uncertainly.
If facing a moderately difficult test involved a feathered snake, he couldn't fathom the difficulty level of a Medium challenge. "I believe we may need to interact with the feathered snake statue, uncovering its secrets to proceed safely, or else we might face an attack."
"That makes sense. It's just a moderately difficult test. There's no reason for it to be overly challenging. Let me give it a try—" Meredith raised her wand, "Aparecium!"
"Revealing Charm" and "Revelio Charm" are distinct spells.
The original form is employed to reveal invisible or distorted objects, while the quick form is used to expose concealed handwriting.
Similar spells include "humanoid manifestation" to locate invisible individuals and "trace manifestation" to discover recently vanished magical traces.
True to expectations, the feathered serpent statue unveiled an orange halo, and a Gurunis talisman slowly emerged on its wings.
Skyler recognized it as Eihwaz, symbolizing the yew tree and signifying "defense" and "guard" in the wizarding world.
The feathered snake held a counterpart position to the three-headed dog in wizarding world lore, guarding the gates of heaven and hell. In this magical realm, Heaven And Hell generally represent two aspects: Luck And Disaster.
Skyler elucidated the significance of Eihwaz, prompting Astoria to suggest, "Could we use the guidance of this ancient magic talisman to find the correct exit? Perhaps one of the two exits is perilous, while the other leads safely to the next level?"
Consideration of using Gurunean magic talisman to cast spells crossed their minds.
Skyler had delved into this subject after witnessing it on the fifth floor of Hogwarts' secret passage.
In Ravenclaw's legacy, he found some records about it. However, Gurunis's text was vast and profound, with Germanic, Nordic, Celtic, and other systems in the Muggle world alone.
Skyler knew of at least twenty different systems in the wizarding world, and the complexities of error correction between each system hampered his progress in this research.
Despite the challenges, Skyler was determined not to forfeit this test.
He decided to give it a try.
Pulling out the Ravenclaw's Diadem from his robes, he donned it and infused the magic eye with energy.
Both the Ravenclaw's Diadem and the Supreme Wizard's robe emitted faint, colorful rays of light.
Skyler meticulously traced a complete Eihwaz magic talisman with his wand in mid-air.
Suddenly, a warmth emanated from the wand, and it vibrated autonomously as if imbued with life.
Skyler's pupils transformed into a pool of azure blue water with undulating waves.
The feathered snake statue appeared to come to life, twisting its body stiffly and emitting a long chirping sound reminiscent of a phoenix or sea snake.
The Guruni magic talisman on it transformed into fire, shooting into the left exit of the two.
"Go!" Without delay, everyone hastened towards the left exit. Daphne led, followed by Meredith, Astoria, and finally, Skyler.
Just as Skyler entered, the feathered snake statue fully revived, attempting to peck fiercely at him but colliding with a transparent barrier at the exit junction.
The impact illuminated the barrier in a dazzling display of blue light, emitting circular ripples centered on the point of impact.
Realizing the feathered snake statue couldn't pursue them into the exit, a collective gasp of fear escaped the group.
Meredith couldn't contain her curiosity, asking, "Skyler, did you just successfully cast a spell in Gurunian?" The significance of resurrecting Gurunian magic, lost for centuries, wasn't lost on anyone present.
Skyler nonchalantly responded, "Perhaps! But it's, at most, a rudimentary spellcasting method that requires further refinement."
Daphne marveled, "Even so, it's a remarkable accomplishment. Ancient sorcerers cast spells in ancient runes, Egyptian sorcerers parted the Red Sea, and Babylonian sorcerers erected floating cities in the sky."
Skyler shook his head, "To be honest, while there might be people who understand the Gurunis language, it's not as rare as you'd think. The real mystery is why Gurunian magic remains lost."
Meredith suggested, "Maybe certain conditions need to be met first... like unlocking the special abilities hidden in one's bloodline, akin to a Parseltongue, a Seer, or a Metamorphmagus."
Skyler agreed, "Exactly. I can't confirm, but that's my hypothesis."
A pensive silence settled among them as each contemplated the myriad possibilities.
Without much ado, they continued their journey and encountered a large number of ghouls, at least thirty in sight.
Newt Scamander's "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" served as a beginner's textbook for young wizards, providing elementary information.
However, it didn't cover all species, omitting certain lesser-known creatures. While it mentioned ghouls, it failed to detail the various types, such as the Selma sea snake featured in the Daily Prophet (the Norwegian team's mascot), a highly aggressive sea snake known for consuming human flesh.
Despite the book categorizing ghouls as two-star dangerous creatures, the group knew better than to underestimate them. Lockhart's "Gadding with Ghouls" recounted a highly dangerous and aggressive variant—Chameleon Ghoul—underscoring the peril they presented.
In contrast to the progressively deteriorating ghouls, the color-changing ghouls have reverted to the primal nature of their ancestor, the Ogre.
Possessing an insatiable appetite for the flesh of the living, they have also rekindled the cunning traits of cannibals, adept at morphing and disguising themselves as everyday items to avoid detection, launching sudden attacks when someone approaches.
Although a considerable number of color-changing ghouls stand before him, revealing their genuine forms, Skyler has no cause for concern.
Consequently, he entrusts the task to the three girls.
"Draconis Inferno!" After three semesters of rigorous practice, Daphne's magical prowess and spellcasting skills surpass those of her peers.
She conjures a substantial orange-red flame, forming a protective wall emitting astonishing heat.
Meredith employs a transformation technique, summoning over 30 flame arms from the middle of the firewall.
These fiery appendages rush towards the ghouls, seizing and restraining them.
Astoria produces a few bottles of blue flame potions, tossing them one by one at the unburned corners and gaps, depriving the ghouls of any escape route.
Should any ghouls attempt to forcefully breach the flames, Astoria hampers their progress with another curse that blocks their way out. With just enough delay, the ghouls succumb to the engulfing flames.
In a short span, more than 30 color-changing ghouls meet their demise.
Skyler is thoroughly satisfied with their performance this time.
The trio doesn't engage in individual battles, mindlessly casting spells; instead, they collaborate effectively.
They compress the opponent's space with flames, assigning roles for precise attacks and compensating for dead spots and vulnerabilities.
While the color-changing ghouls display notable intelligence, their agility and speed prove insufficient to overcome such a well-executed tactical assault.
Eliminating ghouls may seem straightforward, owing to well-arranged tactics and flawless execution.
Yet, close encounters with ghouls are perilous; their teeth, nails, and blood are highly toxic.
Once contaminated, the effects are challenging to treat.
Lockhart's "Gadding with Ghoul" provides an example of extracting chronic venom from a ghoul's body.
