Rewalking the Founders' Path

"Summoning Charm!" Hermione answered first. "Didn't I tell you before? Remember when you wanted to turn that rat... Scabbers yellow?"

"There was something wrong with that spell, I'm telling you..." Ron sounded rather uninterested. "Can we not bring that up?"

Harry had wanted to say something, but after seeing Ron's strange reaction, he closed his mouth as well.

Hermione did the same, lowering her head with a listless expression.

Vizet was the one enjoying himself the most. Maintaining the "Guardian Meditation," he immersed himself in the purest state of mind and savored this trip across the Black Lake.

A cool breeze swept past, sending ripples across the lake.

The moon in the night sky was like a curved blade. Moonlight spilled across the lake, coating its rippling surface in a layer of radiance. The shimmering waves looked like a breathtaking oil painting.

Many creatures lived in the Black Lake. Some surfaced and studied them with curious gazes.

Before they knew it, the small boat passed through a curtain of Ivy and gently bumped against the lakeshore.

Hagrid held up a lantern and walked at the front, leading the children through a pitch-black tunnel to a place resembling a boathouse.

From here, they could finally see traces of man-made excavation.

They followed the path paved with tiny pebbles upward, climbed a long flight of stone steps, and entered a spacious courtyard. At last, they arrived before Hogwarts Castle.

During their brief rest, the children were panting heavily, but they did not sit idle. They soon began chatting and laughing again.

Bang, bang, bang!

Hagrid raised his sandbag-sized fist and pounded heavily on the Oak Front Doors.

The doors slowly opened. Professor McGonagall stood before them, her tall figure and stern expression instantly silencing the children's laughter.

Hagrid walked to the side of the door. "Professor McGonagall, I've brought the first-year New Students!"

"Thank you, Hagrid." Professor McGonagall nodded slightly and swept her gaze over the children. "Follow me. The Start-of-Term Feast is about to begin."

The hall inside was extremely spacious, with an extravagant Marble Staircase standing in the center.

The group climbed the Marble Staircase, turned into a corridor, and entered a small room with a Fireplace.

The Fiendfyre in the Fireplace burned fiercely, driving away the chill from the children's bodies.

There was another door at the end of the room. Noisy voices drifted through the crack.

"Welcome to Hogwarts." Professor McGonagall stood before that door. "Before entering the Great Hall, you must undergo a ceremony—the Sorting Ceremony."

"Your House will be your home at Hogwarts. You will study and live with your Housemates and spend your free time in the same Common Room."

"Therefore, this ceremony is immensely important. It determines which House you will belong to. After the ceremony, you will become members of Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, or Slytherin."

"Each House has a glorious past and has produced countless outstanding Wizards. Your conduct in your daily life and studies will determine the winner of the House Cup at the end of the year."

"This is the highest honor you can receive at school. No matter which House you are sorted into, I hope you can bring honor to the school..."

She suddenly lifted her head and straightened her chest, radiating an imposing presence. "Wait here for a moment. The Sorting Ceremony will begin in a few minutes."

"All the teachers and students will attend your Sorting Ceremony. I hope you can use these few minutes to compose yourselves and show your best side!"

She turned and opened the door, then looked back and added, "Once the stage over there is ready, I will come back for you. Please remain quiet and compose yourselves!"

Without a doubt, Professor McGonagall's string of speeches, combined with her stern expression, plunged the children into an indescribable tension.

They looked at one another, but all they could see was the nervousness on each other's faces. The cheerful atmosphere was gone.

"We might have to fight a Giant! Or a Fire Dragon!" Ron's tone was unusually certain. "I didn't believe Fred and the others before, but now... it looks like they were telling the truth!"

"Vizet, aren't you nervous?" Harry breathed onto his glasses and began wiping them clumsily. "The Sorting Ceremony is about to begin."

"I'm not nervous." Vizet gently shook his head. "Just stay calm. This is a way of adjusting yourself, too."

Perhaps with the help of the "Guardian Meditation," he had detected a hint of amusement beneath Professor McGonagall's stern tone.

Combined with what Cho Chang had said before, this left him without the slightest concern about the approaching Sorting Ceremony.

Vizet's calm statement seemed to possess a kind of magic. Those who heard him speak became much less nervous.

Taking advantage of the brief rest, Vizet walked around the room once, taking in everything within it.

A flash of insight arose.

He released his Magic Eye and absorbed the Ancient Magic Power contained within the room.

The power transformed into an ink-like Silver-Blue liquid and was stored in the notebook.

It was within Vizet's expectations that the Ancient Magic Power from a single room was not enough to turn another page.

At the same time, a small bright area appeared on the map in the notebook.

The power contained in the room was not very abundant, insufficient to help the Magic Eye grow.

Even so, Vizet still summed up one insight: only by continuing to explore Hogwarts Castle could he obtain more Ancient Magic Power.

"Ghosts! Ghosts have appeared over by the wall! It's haunted!"

The screams attracted the children's attention, and they all looked toward the wall in unison.

The Ghosts, however, were not focused on them. They were passionately discussing something else.

Until a Ghost dressed like a friar floated down, triggering another burst of commotion.

"You can call me Fat Friar," the Ghost said cheerfully. "The Sorting Ceremony... I really hope you come to Hufflepuff. That's the House I'm from."

With those words, the nervous mood returned and surged into the children's hearts.

Professor McGonagall also returned to the room at just the right moment and called out, "Form a single line and follow me. The Sorting Ceremony is about to begin!"

The Great Hall was filled with an incredibly rich magical atmosphere. The lofty ceiling appeared transparent, revealing a brilliant starry sky.

Beneath the starry sky hung thousands upon thousands of candles. They floated in midair without dripping a single drop of wax or giving off a wisp of black smoke—a wondrous product of magic.

As a top student who had memorized her textbooks, Hermione had a rather interesting way of easing her nerves. She began reciting long passages about the ceiling.

"The ceiling has been enchanted... so that you can see the sky outside... It can even change the weather... This comes from Hogwarts: A History..."

Professor McGonagall brought over a Four-legged stool and placed a Pointed Hat on it.

The Pointed Hat looked filthy and was covered in patches. Draped over the Four-legged stool, it was especially conspicuous.

Vizet half-jokingly guessed, "Could we use a Mending Charm to make this hat Reparo?"

"I haven't practiced that spell!" Hermione sounded as though she might cry. "What should I do?"

Just then, the Pointed Hat split open on its own. From the opening came a "song" that sounded like a saw cutting through wood.

Setting aside the hat's unbearably awful singing, Vizet could still make out plenty of interesting information from the song.

For example, the hat was the one that carried out the Sorting Ceremony. Once someone put it on, it could assign them to the House suited to them;

For example, entering Gryffindor required courage; Hufflepuff valued honesty and loyalty; Ravenclaw favored students with sharp minds; and Slytherin preferred those who would use any means necessary to achieve their goals.

When the song ended, Professor McGonagall unrolled a parchment scroll.

"When I call your name, come sit on the stool and put on the Sorting Hat. Hannah Abbott!"