Chapter 51: A New Game
At the very back of the classroom, the mirror Dumbledore had just moved there was particularly conspicuous, and Charles couldn't help glancing over.
He saw a string of writing at the top of the mirror: "Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi." Only by reading it backward and separating the words differently could one understand its meaning: "I show not your face but your heart's desire."
"Is that the Mirror of Erised?" Charles asked Dumbledore curiously. "I read about it in a book. It reflects the thing someone desires most deep in their heart."
Dumbledore nodded slightly. "Yes. It's a very wondrous mirror, but also a very dangerous one."
Charles agreed. "The book also said that some people sat in front of the mirror, lost themselves in it, and stayed motionless until they starved to death."
"Yes." Dumbledore nodded. "That's why I want to hide it here. Don't tell anyone."
Charles nodded with a very serious expression and promised he wouldn't.
At the same time, he grew wary. In his "memories," the Philosopher's Stone was hidden inside the Mirror of Erised, and Harry would see it during the Christmas holidays some time later. It was hard not to feel that such a "coincidence" was being pushed along by an invisible hand behind the scenes.
Dumbledore definitely knew the circumstances of the key figures at Hogwarts and was controlling the development of events.
"Would you like to take a look?" Dumbledore asked Charles with a smile. "Looking once or twice won't hurt."
Charles thought about it. There was no harm in looking, so he walked toward the Mirror of Erised.
The Mirror of Erised was quite large, standing on the floor and rising slightly higher than him. From its angle, however, the reflection wasn't