An Unexplainable Heartache

Hearing Professor McGonagall's inquiry, Lin Yue instinctively shifted her gaze from the fallen Troll to Harry and Ron.

Meeting her eyes abruptly, both boys shuddered in unison.

Harry then spoke without hesitation, recounting the entire sequence of events. He held nothing back, and Hermione, who was still too stunned to react, didn't have the chance to interrupt or try to make excuses for him and Ron.

"It... it was us. We made Hermione cry this morning, and she's been crying here all afternoon. Lin Yue must have found out, and because she was worried about Hermione running into the Troll, she came to find her."

"Ron and I... we came because we realized Hermione didn't know about the Troll. Then we encountered it, and Lin Yue," Harry paused here, checking to see that Lin Yue's expression remained unchanged before continuing, "knocked the Troll out."

Although they had suspected as much before Harry spoke, confirming that it was indeed Lin Yue who had taken down the Troll caused the professors present to cast looks of disbelief in her direction.

That was a Troll. Many adult wizards wouldn't dare claim they could take one down single-handedly. That Lin Yue, a first-year little wizard, could actually defeat it—and protect her classmate in the process—truly left the professors shocked.

Professor Snape stepped over the remaining wall debris into the Girls' Lavatory and cast several diagnostic spells on the Troll lying at the far end of the room.

"It's dead," he said, turning back to nod at Headmaster Dumbledore and the other professors, announcing the Troll's demise.

Professor McGonagall took a deep breath, trying to compose herself. She looked at Harry and Ron sternly.

"Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, I think you should indeed learn to be more polite and respectful toward young ladies."

"For your rudeness toward Miss Granger, five points will be deducted from each of you."

Watching Harry and Ron lower their heads in disappointment, Professor McGonagall lifted her chin slightly.

"However, the fact that you came to save your classmate despite knowing the danger proves your kindness. I hope you will maintain that, while also correcting your issues with etiquette."

"For your kindness and bravery, five points will be awarded to each of you."

Five points deducted and five points added for each—it balanced out to no net change, which made Harry and Ron feel slightly better.

Turning to look at Professor Flitwick, Professor McGonagall gave a slight nod. Since Lin Yue was a student of Ravenclaw Academy, the decision to award or deduct points naturally fell to him.

Professor Flitwick looked at Lin Yue, who was still standing in front of Hermione, feeling a mix of pride and anger.

He was proud that this student of his house was so excellent, so courageous, and so kind.

He was angry that she hadn't sought help from a professor first, choosing instead to risk her own life. What would she have done if something had gone wrong?

But regardless, Lin Yue had defeated a Troll, and as a first-year little wizard at that. It was certainly worthy of points.

"Miss Lin Yue, for your actions today, I award you ten points."

"As a first-year little wizard, defeating a Troll is truly a feat worth more than ten points, but I am only giving you ten in the hope that, in the future, you will seek help from a professor whenever possible rather than taking risks yourself."

Lin Yue slowly turned to face Professor Flitwick. Her expression remained unchanged, and her tone was devoid of any inflection.

"Very well, thank you, Professor. I will remember that."

Thanks to Lin Yue's extremely fast magic power recovery, the color had already returned to her face, and the beads of sweat on her forehead had faded away.

Otherwise, if the professors had seen her pale face and sweat-drenched appearance just moments ago, they would have sent her straight to the Medical Wing without a second thought.

Having dealt with the entire situation and seeing that the students were all unharmed, the professors, along with Headmaster Dumbledore, finally turned their attention to the two walls destroyed by Lin Yue.

Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick exchanged a look and resignedly drew their wands.

With the professors present, Albus's personality meant he wouldn't concern himself with such repair work. Among the other professors on the scene, Professor McGonagall possessed the most superb Transfiguration skills, while Professor Flitwick was the best at Spells.

Therefore, this wall-repairing job was, without a doubt, destined to fall to the two of them.

"Miss Lin Yue, Miss Granger, please come out first." Professor McGonagall nodded at the two girls.

Hermione reacted quickly, stepping forward to take Lin Yue by the arm and leading her out.

Professor Flitwick first waved his wand at the Troll, causing it to float out of the Girls' Lavatory, and then he set the creature's carcass aside.

Together with Professor McGonagall, he raised his wand high; one cast Reparo, and the other cast a Transfiguration Charm.

In the blink of an eye, the two shattered walls began to restore themselves as if a video were being played in reverse. The broken bricks and stones on the ground returned to their rightful places, and the next moment, the two walls of the Girls' Lavatory stood perfectly intact once again.

"Well, I imagine you are all tired," Headmaster Dumbledore said, stroking his white beard and looking down kindly at the four little wizards, including Lin Yue. "Why don't you head back to your lounges, enjoy a good dinner, and get a wonderful night's sleep?"

As he spoke, he gave the four of them a mischievous wink. Hermione, Harry, and Ron couldn't help but laugh and nod in agreement.

Lin Yue watched the Headmaster's expression with a blank face, then nodded in cooperation.

After exchanging greetings with their colleagues, Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick led the students of their respective houses toward their own lounges.

The path back to the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw lounges shared a long stretch of the same route.

Walking behind the two professors, Hermione finally couldn't suppress her curiosity and turned to look at Lin Yue.

"Lin Yue, did you really... use a Levitation Charm to pull that wall out? And then controlled it to smack the Troll?"

Lin Yue turned her head to see Hermione's sparkling eyes and nodded calmly.

"It was a Levitation Charm."

"Wow!" Hermione's eyes widened in admiration. "I never imagined the Levitation Charm could have that kind of power. I mean, I thought it was just for helping to lift things and such."

Lin Yue shook her head, her expression unchanged. "Any spell, as long as the magic power is strong enough and it is applied correctly, has many uses and can achieve powerful effects."

Walking in front, Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick both nodded in unison upon hearing Lin Yue's words. Lin Yue was right; the power of a spell never lay in the spell itself, but in the user and the way it was employed.

It wasn't just the three Unforgivable Curses and Dark Magic that held terrifying power. As long as one used them well and possessed enough strength, even the most ordinary spells could unleash power comparable to, or even far exceeding, the Unforgivable Curses.

Watching Hermione's thoughtful expression, Lin Yue continued to explain in a flat tone.

"Just like the Levitation Charm; if I had enough Magic power, I could even levitate an entire building, or even an entire city, lift them high into the sky, and then smash them down."

Hermione imagined the scene following Lin Yue's words and couldn't help but shiver.

That was simply terrifying. If that were to happen, the destructive power would likely be no less than a Nuclear Bomb.

Harry and Ron, who were trailing behind the two, looked at Lin Yue with even more fear after hearing this. They had already made up their minds that, no matter what, they must not provoke her.

Professor Flitwick, however, chuckled at Lin Yue's words and turned his head to look at her with a smile.

"A very interesting, yet dangerous idea, Miss Lin Yue. But as far as I know, there are very few wizards who could possess the Magic power required to levitate an entire city."

Lin Yue stared steadily at Professor Flitwick, pinpointing the key detail in his statement.

"Very few, which means there are some, right, Professor?"

Professor Flitwick pondered for a moment and nodded. "The two people I know of haven't done such a thing, but they perhaps could."

Lin Yue's brain rapidly listed the people Professor Flitwick might know, then listed those who might be associated with them.

In the end, she effortlessly arrived at the two most likely names. "Headmaster Dumbledore and Gellert Grindelwald?"

Professor Flitwick's expression stiffened slightly upon hearing the latter name, but he still affirmed it. "Yes."

"Sorry, Professor, but what about the Dark Lord?" Hermione couldn't help but interject. "I mean... he seems very, um, powerful? Though it might not be appropriate to say so."

This time, it was Professor McGonagall who turned to look at her. "There is nothing inappropriate about it, Miss Granger. The Dark Lord is undoubtedly evil, but as a Dark Lord, we must admit his power."

"As for why Professor Flitwick excluded him," Professor McGonagall paused, a complex look flashing across her face, "it is perhaps because, since rising to fame, he has rarely used any magic other than Unforgivable Curses and Fiendfyre."

"So, to what extent he can utilize other types of magic is truly hard to say."

"Oh, I see. Thank you, Professor." Hermione nodded in realization.

After satisfying the curiosity of the two students, they reached the point where they had to part ways.

Hermione took the initiative to reach out and gently hug Lin Yue. "Thank you for saving me, Lin Yue."

Lin Yue still felt nothing in her heart, but she followed the inexplicable urge that had arisen within her, reaching out to hug her back just as Hermione had done.

"You're welcome."

Releasing Lin Yue, Hermione looked into her eyes—deep as an ancient well and devoid of any ripples—and for some reason, felt a sudden pang of pain in her heart.

"See you tomorrow." Suppressing the feeling in her heart, Hermione waved at Lin Yue.

"See you tomorrow." Lin Yue nodded, turned around, and followed Professor Flitwick toward Ravenclaw Tower.

Under Professor McGonagall's lead, Hermione walked toward Gryffindor Tower with Harry and Ron.

Returning to the entrance of the Ravenclaw Common Room, Lin Yue bid Professor Flitwick farewell according to etiquette, answered the door knocker's riddle, and stepped inside.

Almost the moment she walked into the Common Room and the door clicked shut, the Little Eagles who were eating dinner in the lounge erupted into a frenzy.

They watched her figure as she entered, whispering and discussing among themselves. They wanted to step forward and ask her questions, but they were held back by her expressionless face and her reputation for exceptionally high academic performance.

Only Cho Chang and Marietta, who shared a dormitory with her and understood her personality, along with the female prefect, Penelope, walked up to her.

Penelope had seen Professor Flitwick escorting her back. Never imagining that her own rational and clever little eagle would go head-to-head with a troll, she assumed Lin Yue had been caught doing something like self-punishment again and had been summoned for a talk.

She looked at Lin Yue with a serious expression. "Lin Yue, did you... do that thing again, and Professor Flitwick caught you, so he called you in for a talk?"

Lin Yue thought for a moment, understood what Penelope was referring to, and shook her head expressionlessly.

"No."

"That's good..." Hearing the negative, Penelope let out a massive sigh of relief. At least she wasn't hurting herself again.

Standing nearby, Cho Chang and Marietta were confused by their conversation.

"What did Lin Yue do last time?" Cho Chang asked Penelope, looking at Lin Yue with concern. If it was enough to make Penelope this worried—to the point where Professor Flitwick had to have a face-to-face talk after catching her—it definitely wasn't a small matter!

Penelope pursed her lips. "It's nothing." Once she said that, she quickly changed the subject, looking at Lin Yue with confusion. "Then why were you back so late? And why did you sneak out of the group?"

"Hermione didn't know about the troll, so I went to find her."

"Oh..." Penelope, who had acquaintances in Gryffindor, knew that Miss Granger had been upset to tears this morning and had been crying in the girls' lavatory on the first basement floor.

Wait, the first basement floor... wasn't that where Professor Quirrell said the troll was? The dungeon classroom! "You didn't run into the troll, did you?!"

Penelope reacted sharply, her voice rising an octave as she looked Lin Yue up and down, as if checking to see if she was missing any limbs.

"We did," Lin Yue confirmed in a flat tone.

"What?!" Now Cho Chang and Marietta couldn't stay calm either; they immediately grabbed Lin Yue's arms, one on each side, and began a meticulous inspection.

Even the Little Eagles who hadn't dared to approach earlier put down their food and crowded around, looking at her with concern.

She was Ravenclaw's treasure, the treasure who had earned the house so many points—nothing could happen to her!

Lin Yue let Cho Chang and Marietta poke and prod her during their inspection, enduring the concerned gazes of the Little Eagles as she stated the facts in a flat, emotionless tone.

"I'm fine. I killed the troll."

The room fell silent for nearly ten seconds. Cho Chang and Marietta's movements as they checked her body came to a halt.

Ten seconds later, "Eh?!" everyone in the Ravenclaw Common Room let out a unified cry of astonishment.

After being strongly urged by everyone to recount the process of killing the troll in detail, Lin Yue continued to sit on the sofa, feeling nothing while enduring their even more shocked—and now reverent—gazes.

She only had one thought now: she had demolished two walls of Hogwarts to kill that troll. That counted as damaging school property, so she would probably have to punish herself twice.