Chapter 82: Return from the Holidays

Chapter 82: Return from the Holidays

The Blood Baron is the ghost of Slytherin House, and even the young wizards of this esteemed institution keep their distance from him.The inaugural upload of this chapter took place via N0v3l-B1n.

His appearance is truly fearsome, and Peeves the Poltergeist is most afraid of him.

"Long time no see, Baron," Felix Harp greeted.

The Blood Baron remained still, hovering in place, his vacant eyes fixed on the direction in which Professor Greengrass had departed.

After a while, in his raspy voice, he finally spoke, "Hello, Harp."

Felix looked at him, recalling an incident during a nighttime stroll at school when he inadvertently overheard a conversation between the Blood Baron and Professor Greengrass. The Baron was pleading for her forgiveness, while Professor Greengrass cursed him, ensuring he would never find redemption.

It was also that night when he discovered the identity of Helena Ravenclaw. He pieced together the entanglement between the two. Helena had taken the diadem of Ravenclaw and had been too afraid to return home. As her admirer, the Blood Baron had been entrusted by Rowena Ravenclaw to bring her back.

A fierce dispute arose between them, and tragically, the Blood Baron accidentally killed Helena. Consumed by remorse, he used the very weapon that had taken Helena's life to end his own.

"Baron, you said her name was her taboo. What does it mean?" Felix inquired.

The Blood Baron didn't answer directly. He simply said in a dry tone, "I see you haven't fallen into the dark magic. In this, you are stronger than I."

Felix's expression turned solemn, and he spoke softly, "It was you who reminded me."

"Even without me, you could have broken free on your own. I saw the records you kept..."

"Oh," Felix also found a glimmer of humor, "that was a Muggle world psychological assessment form, a precaution I had prepared in advance to prevent myself from sinking deeper... but I must say, without you, I might have taken another month or two to realize the severity of the problem."

The erosion of the mind by dark magic is subtle, and the data on assessment forms always lags behind. By the time anomalies are detected, the danger might already have occurred.

The Blood Baron drifted away in silence.

Felix gazed at his emaciated figure and shook his head in the end. The affairs between the two ghosts were beyond his involvement or mediation—ghosts' inner conflicts were not easily unraveled.

Ghosts were creations of death with lingering regrets and strong obsessions that kept them tethered to the realm of the living. Their existence hinged on these obsessions, and thus, their understanding remained rooted in the time when they were alive.

In this aspect, they were somewhat akin to the portraits in the headmaster's office, but ghosts could change over time.

"I caught a cold, cough cough!" she said briefly.

"But I noticed the color of your eyes has changed too, a bit like a cat's..." a young witch observed her closely.

"Uh... probably due to magic," Hermione deflected the topic, "Katie, how did you spend your holidays?"

Katie was indeed diverted, pouting. "Stayed home, really boring except for being safer. Do you think there'll be more attacks? I read a lot of newspapers during the break..."

"Don't worry, Katie. There won't be any more attacks," Hermione said confidently.

"How do you know?"

"Cough cough, you'll understand in a bit," Hermione replied, and on the other side, Harry tugged at her sleeve.

He whispered, "Hermione, isn't your magic transformation complete yet? Honestly, your appearance is a bit odd."

She sighed in frustration, "Not yet—I can manage to use it, but the effect is quite poor, and I still have a light layer of fur on my face. Maybe in another day or two, Professor Harp said my progress has been fast."

Ron tapped an empty tall goblet with his fork. "But how are you going to eat?"

"Not eating!" Hermione replied indignantly.

Ding ding ding! At the teacher's table, Dumbledore tapped a glass in front of him.

The Great Hall gradually quieted down.

Dumbledore stood up, his face radiant, and said, "Welcome back, young wizards."

A bit delayed, I apologize.

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