Opposite the Tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy Bashing Trolls on the eighth floor of Hogwarts Castle.
Hermione pushed open the door to the Room of Requirement and stepped out. The group that had been waiting outside for a long time immediately gathered around her.
"Stephanie said she needs to guard the items and wait for Sean to return. No one is allowed to enter the Room of Requirement until then," Hermione explained.
Professor McGonagall adjusted her glasses. Her bun was slightly askew, which was rather unusual for someone who valued her stern image so much.
But seeing the battered corridor around them and the walls scarred by war, one could roughly imagine what had happened during this time.
While Sean had taken the girls to Avalon, the Returners, who had only just suffered a crushing defeat, had launched another all-out assault without hesitation.
Hogwarts, Newmontgard, and the Ministries of Magic in various countries had all become battlefields.
A week ago, the Returners had launched an extremely powerful attack. With Sean and several other key fighters absent, Hogwarts had been plunged into a bitter battle.
Fortunately, Grindelwald, who had made preparations in advance, sent over another group of fresh reinforcements in the end, barely managing to hold Hogwarts.
Even so, the reinforcements everywhere had suffered heavy losses. Worse still, after such prolonged fighting, everyone's minds and bodies had nearly been pushed to their most dangerous limit.
If the Returners had not committed so much of their strength to the attack a week ago and been unable to launch another assault of the same scale, Hogwarts would probably have been on the verge of falling by now.
During this rare moment of respite, everyone at Hogwarts naturally hoped for Sean and the others to return.
But now, Stephanie and the others had