Appear, Dumbledore
The Starry Sky Kite coalesced in the light, its wings spreading to scatter tiny starlight as it circled Regulus once.
Find it here, all the excitement awaits!
The Patronus is not summoned intentionally; when a crisis reaches a certain critical point, this power deep within the soul, symbolizing freedom and exploration, responds on its own.
The Starry Sky Kite raised its head and let out a clear, melodious cry, the sound echoing through the narrow passage, causing all the distorted faces in the Grey Mist to freeze simultaneously.
This legendary creature, which feeds on starlight and can penetrate space, is itself a denial of all blockades and Restraints.
Wherever the body, composed of pure positive Magic Power, passed, the Grey Mist began to tremble—an instinctive shudder when encountering a natural enemy.
The Patronus didn't attack intentionally; it simply flew into the Grey Mist and weaved through the dense human faces.
Silver-white wings swept through the Grey Mist, leaving trails of light. Faces that touched the trails vanished instantly, leaving no black smoke, no trace, as if they had never existed.
Regulus watched as the Starry Sky Kite flew to and fro through the Grey Mist.
It flew with ease, each flap of its wings creating a swirling trail of starlight.
The faces desperately tried to retreat, but the passage was too narrow, and they were crowded together with nowhere to escape.
This is the essence of the Patronus Charm: a pure embodiment of positive emotions, naturally suppressing all negative Magic Power.
The despair and pain that had solidified in the Grey Mist melted away at a visible speed before the Starry Sky Kite.
He recalled the state of mind he had when he summoned this Patronus, his longing for the vast world, and his unwavering commitment to the essence of freedom.
That longing itself is a powerful tool to dispel despair.
The Starry Sky Kite feeds on starlight and has the ability to penetrate space, allowing it to directly access the core structure of negative Magic Power.
No brute force is needed; simply existing here is enough to deprive faces that depend on despair of their anchor.
Where the starlight reached, human faces crumbled like sandcastles that had lost their foundation.
The Patronus flew around the outer edge of the Shield Charm Barrier, and the Grey Mist receded wherever its light wings swept across.
With the pressure on the barrier decreasing sharply, Regulus was able to focus his attention on the changes in the field.
Then he discovered the problem.
The human face that had been vanished by the Starry Sky Kite re-formed from the depths of the Grey Mist after a few breaths, without any process or origin, as if it had been reborn out of thin air.
Regulus locked onto the nearest face, which dissipated in the starlight. Three seconds later, the same facial features emerged from another part of the Grey Mist.
He understood that the Starry Sky Kite only eliminated the appearance; as long as the source remained, the human face could regenerate infinitely.
The source lies within the Stone Gate.
He reinforced the Ironclad Shield Charm, and the barrier became thick and sturdy again, but the Magic Power power continued to drain.
With each impact, the barrier weakens, and he needs to replenish his Magic Power.
The existence of the Starry Sky Kite also continuously consumes spiritual power; if this consumption continues, it is only a matter of time before the barrier collapses.
Regulus noticed another detail: the faces reacted strongly to the presence of living people.
They rammed against the barrier frantically, each face with its mouth agape and its empty eye sockets staring intently at him.
What are they craving? Vitality.
Vibrant emotions?
Or is it simply existence itself?
These creations, formed from suffering, seem to have an instinctive inclination towards the breath of the living, carrying a clear desire to assimilate.
Perhaps they need vibrant life to fill their void, dragging more lives into the same painful situation.
After some time, Avery and Alex should have run out of the tunnel.
Regulus calculated in his mind that if the professors knew, they should have already met by now.
If they were unaware of the situation, the two could quickly locate Professor Slughorn.
But he doesn't place all his hopes on others; the worst-case scenario is simply breaking through alone.
At worst, we can burn this whole place down.
But before that, there is still room for experimentation.
With a slight thought, the Starry Sky Kite responded to the call.
The Patronus suddenly flapped its wings outside the barrier, and a silvery-white light burst forth, forming a curtain of light that instantly cleared away all the Grey Mist within a ten-meter radius.
The faces evaporated in the light, and the passage temporarily regained its clarity.
The silvery-white figure flashed in the light and disappeared.
Regulus quickly calculated that Starry Sky Kite's clearing of the area before leaving, plus the replenishment of the Shield Charm, would buy him about a minute.
The barrier can hold for up to a minute.
He quickly devised a plan. If the Starry Sky Kite could not be found at its source, and if the professors did not arrive in time, he needed to prepare an escape route.
Spatial Warp is a last resort; as long as you don't go back or get embedded in the stone wall, the other risks are still bearable.
Spatial friction can tear the body apart, but with his current physical strength and the protection of the Shield Charm, he should be able to withstand a brief tear, although it will be very painful.
As for whether Splinching damage caused by Spatial Warp is the same as the Splinching by Apparition, and whether the Dittany Potion is effective, there is still no opportunity to verify these.
The Fiendfyre Curse is ready; even if it can't be controlled, it will still burn when the time comes.
He remembered that he was only twelve years old. If he had another year, he might be more composed in the face of this situation and wouldn't have to take such a big risk with every choice.
We still need to learn, we still need to practice.
But these thoughts were useless at the moment; everything was ready, and all that remained was for the Starry Sky Kite to respond.
The cracks in the barrier spread again.
The Grey Mist surged up again, and the faces were even more densely packed than before, layer upon layer, almost completely covering the surface of the barrier.
They opened their mouths and roared silently, their despair piercing through the barrier and directly impacting Regulus's spirit.
The Star Orbit Meditation was running at full power, and the Mental Barrier blocked most of the impact, but the heaviness was still there, as if a solid object was pressing on my chest.
Thirty seconds passed.
The Starry Sky Kite has not returned.
Without further hesitation, the Spatial Warp was ready to be activated, and the Fiendfyre Curse was on standby.
Just as the incantation was about to be uttered, a cry rang in my mind.
It is Starry Sky Kite, its cheerful cry carrying the joy of having completed its mission.
Regulus's mind raced, and he maintained the Spatial Warp Magic Power at a critical state. He felt a slight weight on his left shoulder as something landed on it.
Looking back, he saw Starry Sky Kite standing there, meeting his gaze.
Those eyes, the same color as his, seemed to hold a whole starry sky deep within them, reflecting the surrounding scenery.
His eyes sparkled with excitement, the shimmering starlight seeming to come alive.
A magic wand is held in the beak of Starry Sky Kite kite, its body enveloped in a thin layer of silvery-white light, yet its true nature remains visible.
The Black Walnut Wood, bearing signs of corrosion, has a surface covered with lines of varying depths, resembling congealed blood, and gleams with a dull luster.
A hard object, of unknown material, is embedded in the middle of the staff, covered by wood grain with only its pale yellow edge showing.
Regulus could sense the inside of the wand.
Inside this wand is a vortex, where countless emotions of despair and pain surge and churn. The Grey Mist, the human faces—all the negative energy originates here.
The final pain of each face before death, and the resentment after death, are all sealed within this magic wand.
He even began to have painful hallucinations flashing through his mind: his joints being crushed, his skin being burned, and his internal organs rotting.
The stark reality of the pain made him furrow his brow instantly.
He finally understood that this was the ultimate destination for all human faces.
All that condensed despair and pain overflowed from this magic wand.
After the face is destroyed, it will return to the wand through the Magic link and reform into a new face.
Regulus had never heard of a wand that relied so heavily on negative Magic Power and could generate an attack form on its own.
It is like a living container of pain, constantly venting the darkness accumulated over hundreds of years.
Regardless of who assigned this mission, or whether they wanted to steal the wand or simply cause destruction at Hogwarts, let's set aside the question of who arranged it for now, and delve into whether they wanted to take it or simply cause damage.
Regulus only knew that if he destroyed it, everything would end.
He opened his left hand, and a ball of blazing white flame rose from his palm, the intense heat distorting Transfiguration the surrounding air.
He couldn't destroy the invisible negative energy, but destroying a physical wand was no problem.
The Starry Sky Kite winked at his eyes, its long tail feathers gently brushing against his neck before releasing its beak.
The wand fell towards the flames.
Just as the tip of the wand was about to touch the flame, a hand reached out from the side and gently caught the wand with two fingers.
Without warning, without spatial fluctuations, without Magic Power ripples, the hand seemed to have always been there, but Regulus had not noticed it.
Regulus's pupils contracted slightly as he looked up.
Albus Dumbledore stood beside him, within the barrier of the Shield Charm, wearing a deep purple nightgown with Star Chart and a matching dressing gown over it.
His long, silvery-white hair and beard were slightly disheveled, as if he had just gotten out of bed.
His other hand was holding an empty teacup, with a speck of glistening honey on the rim.
The old headmaster held the magic wand between two fingers and examined it closely.
He squinted for two seconds, as if trying to identify something, then flicked his wrist and the wand disappeared.
After doing all this, he turned to Regulus, his blue eyes behind the crescent-shaped lenses giving him a gentle look.
Regulus calmed his breathing and extinguished the flames in his palm.
Starry Sky Kite remained perched on his shoulder, tilting its head to examine Dumbledore, its silver-grey eyes filled with curiosity.
"Good evening, Headmaster Dumbledore." Regulus nodded slightly, his voice a little more hurried than usual.