A Certain Scientific Harry Potter 46

Actually, Harry hadn't intended to exclude her this time; it was just that Voldemort had made the scene look like a zombie outbreak, and Harry was genuinely worried that Hermione would have nightmares for nights on end if she saw it.

After all, when it comes to spoiling one's wife... no, he didn't say anything at all~

The heat in June and July was enough to make anyone irritable, and with the added disaster known as final exams, the entirety of Hogwarts was practically wailing in misery.

Of course, this certainly didn't include Harry and Hermione, for as the well-known truth goes—to an academic elite, every exam is a carnival~

However, there was one thing Harry couldn't help but complain about.

Watching an owl fly into the Headmaster's Office through the window with a letter in its beak, Harry couldn't help but sneer inwardly...

What exactly is going through Voldemort's head?

Since he was "badass" enough to lure Dumbledore away from Hogwarts with a single letter, why did he have to wait until after the exams were over to make his move?

If he really wanted to secure the Sorcerer's Stone without any risk, wouldn't it have been better to strike during the day while everyone was busy with exams?

With Dumbledore lured away and the heads of houses busy proctoring, surely no one would have interfered with his actions; wouldn't the chances of success have been higher then?

All these doubts were finally resolved when Harry "ran into" the gap-toothed Quirrell in the corridor.

"Harry Potter... how is the scar on your forehead lately?"

He grinned hideously, showing Harry his teeth, which had been knocked out by a brick, without the slightest bit of restraint.

At this very moment, Harry could see four words written clearly on Quirrell's forehead—I'm going rogue!

So... is Voldemort just going to be blatantly reckless now?!

"Thanks to you, the scar does hurt a bit, but it won't affect my exam performance, and it certainly won't hinder me in a fight!"

Tch, posturing and trash-talking... as if anyone couldn't do that~

"That's good... one last warning for you, Harry Potter," Quirrell leaned in, and a stench of decay rushed straight into Harry's nostrils, "Snape may not be a trustworthy person. The potions he brews could be antidotes... or they could just as easily be deadly poisons!"

After leaving behind these inexplicable words, Quirrell carefully adjusted his turban and turned to stride away.

However, Harry caught a glimpse of his wand, pressed tightly against his arm, as if it were intentionally revealed for him to see!

In that instant, Harry figured out many things.

"Harry..." Hermione stepped forward and took Harry's hand, her voice trembling, "Quirrell... no, I mean Vol... what is he trying to do by revealing his identity?"

"He wants to kill me, the kind of mutual destruction scenario." Harry replied calmly, as if he were describing a trivial matter that had nothing to do with him.

Hermione's grip tightened instantly.

Harry was now basically certain that Voldemort, like himself, had guessed that the Sorcerer's Stone was no longer at Hogwarts.

And the reason he still chose to follow the original plot was entirely because of him.

The wand that Quirrell had intentionally revealed clearly displayed his murderous intent!

After all... whether a wizard has a wand in hand or not, the difference in strength can sometimes be like heaven and earth!

Since Quirrell-Voldemort was now using his wand, it meant he was very likely to cast an Avada Kedavra on him, just like that night eleven years ago!

Since he couldn't get the Sorcerer's Stone, he would just kill the savior instead... a very logical villain plot~

The reason he chose to show his hand immediately after Dumbledore left was to force Harry into a head-on confrontation, while simultaneously preventing him from seeking help from any of the professors!

Because at this very moment, everyone in the school had effectively become his hostages.

Ron, Neville, McGonagall, Filch, Flitwick, Hagrid, Snape...

And Hermione!

Once Harry dared to expose his presence, Voldemort would undoubtedly launch a frenzied slaughter, taking out a whole crowd of people before the professors—or Dumbledore, who might double back—could strike him down!

By then, the entire Hogwarts would surely be turned into a purgatory!!

"Let's go, Hermione. We need to go to the Room of Requirement to prepare. Tonight... we cross the trapdoor!!"

Harry didn't comfort the shivering Hermione; instead, he kept holding her cold hand and led her all the way to the eighth floor.

The Room of Requirement held everything Harry had acquired since coming to Hogwarts, and it also bore witness to the most beautiful memories he and Hermione had shared during the latter half of their first year.

Harry organized things carefully, sealing everything he needed into his Space Ring.

The flute Hagrid had given him at Christmas; this could be used to deal with Fluffy.

Snape had given him many different potions and materials earlier, which would likely come in handy.

Then there was the Invisibility Cloak. Since Harry completely ignored the rules against night wandering, the cloak hadn't actually seen much use, only helping him complete a sneak attack in the Forbidden Forest...

After steadying his thoughts, Harry turned to look at Norbert, the Norwegian Ridgeback who had grown to over four meters long.

"Reducio!!"

Dragon hide is highly resistant to magic, but because Norbert was still young and wouldn't actively resist Harry's magic, the dragon's body quickly shrank to the size of a palm under the full force of the spell, looking just like an exquisite baby dragon model.

"Sleep in my pocket for now. I'll wake you if I need you."

Harry gently rubbed Norbert's ridge, and the little dragon obediently curled into a ball, shrinking into Harry's robe pocket to sleep soundly.

"Hermione, let me fix your hair."

Harry changed the appearance of the Room of Requirement, gave Hermione what was likely the last hair treatment of the school year, and then brought her to stand before the Mirror of Erised.

They stood side by side, looking together at the image in the mirror.

"Harry, what... do you see in the mirror right now?" Hermione asked softly.

Harry held this mirror in high regard, and Hermione had never asked for the reason before, but at this moment, she wanted to know what Harry saw in the mirror.

And... whether he was seeing the same scene as she was.

"Us." Harry turned his head, looking earnestly into Hermione's eyes. "And you?"

"Us." Hermione smiled faintly, a smile that, to Harry, felt like a glimmer of light illuminating the darkness.

Hands clasped, they draped the Invisibility Cloak over themselves together, and the door to the Room of Requirement... slowly opened.

Outside the door, Snape stood like a statue, his dull eyes fixed on the empty space before him.

"..." The two, who were about to leave, froze in place.

"Be careful."

Yet, the other party only left behind a sentence that sounded almost devoid of emotion, before drifting away.

"We will!" From beneath the Invisibility Cloak came a firm, whispered vow!

(p.s. A bit of personal analysis at the end of the chapter: why doesn't the protagonist seek help from Dumbledore when threatened by Voldemort's counter-ambush? Because Dumbledore really isn't around at this moment. The Dark Lord in Sanmiao's setting isn't a fool, and Dumbledore is well aware of this, so he must truly leave for Voldemort to act. However, in this story, the time difference of his departure and return would be enough for Voldemort to go on a killing spree, so for the safety of others at the school, the protagonist dares not act rashly and can only choose to face it.

Additionally, analyzing from the perspective of the original work, when did Dumbledore return? Sanmiao personally believes it was after Harry and Hermione cleared Snape's challenge, when Snape sent a message to Dumbledore to return and save the day. Because in the original, when the Golden Trio discussed going into the dungeon at night, Snape 'just happened' to pass by, and when it comes to Voldemort, the only one Dumbledore can trust is Snape, the double agent.

Finally, a small rant: I can only say the original Sorcerer's Stone is truly a fairy tale. How could a ticking time bomb like Quirrell-Voldemort be allowed to wander around the school? Weren't they worried he would give up searching for the Sorcerer's Stone and instead rely on his immortal soul to trade lives with Harry?

Just imagine: during a Defense Against the Dark Arts Class, Quirrell pulls out his wand and starts a massacre, killing Harry while slaughtering a bunch of students, and before dying, uses the Death Eater mark on Snape to cast Morsmordre. By then...

Hogwarts is locked down, Dumbledore is put on trial, the Boy Who Lived is dead, the Dark Lord reigns supreme, the Death Eaters cheer, and HP ends with flowers!

That's all~)

Chapter 87: Thinking of Someone While Clearing Challenges

On the fourth floor of Hogwarts castle, in front of the secret room door.

Harry and Hermione took off the Invisibility Cloak; since they had arrived here, there was no need to hide anything anymore.

"Let me open the door..."

"Wait!"

Seeing the door locked tight, Hermione immediately pulled out her wand to unlock it, but Harry stopped her.

He approached the door and kicked the panel twice, and immediately, a burst of frantic barking erupted from within.

Sure enough, Fluffy was awake.

Unlike the original plot, which seemed tense but was actually just child's play, Voldemort was determined to kill him and certainly wouldn't kindly help him bypass any of the challenges!

Thinking this, Harry took out the flute Hagrid had given him and began to play through the crack in the door.

Very soon, his superior hearing caught the sound of Fluffy snoring in deep sleep.

"Alohomora!"

Hermione used the unlocking charm to open the door, and what appeared before them was the sleeping Three-headed Dog and a harp that was no longer playing.

The two began to move Fluffy's giant paws together, and after enduring the 'halitosis breath' for a good while, they finally lifted the trapdoor that allowed them to continue.

"Harry, your left hand..."

Hermione looked curiously at Harry, who was playing the flute with his right hand while holding up one of Fluffy's paws with his left, feeling that ever since he went to the Forbidden Forest, the strength in that hand had been a bit off.

Was a Three-headed Dog's paw something that could be lifted so easily?

However, they were in the middle of clearing challenges, so she didn't dwell on it for the moment.

"Hermione, you keep playing the flute, I'll go down and check the situation." Harry handed the flute to Hermione and leaped down through the trapdoor.

"Harry..." It was pitch black below the trapdoor, and Hermione couldn't see a thing, but if the flute music stopped, Fluffy would wake up immediately, so Hermione had no choice but to keep playing while anxiously waiting for Harry's response.

"Jump down, and use Lumos with all your might as you descend!"

A moment later, Hermione heard Harry's shout and jumped into the dark pit without a second thought.

"Lumos Solem!!"

As she fell through the air, the tip of Hermione's wand suddenly emitted a dazzling, intense light, instantly illuminating the entire pitch-black cavern!

In the light, Hermione discovered a patch of terrifying, tentacle-like vines. They had originally been tightly binding Harry's body, but upon being exposed to the light, they retreated like a receding tide, not only releasing Harry but also clearing the path forward.

And before she could even adjust her posture in mid-air, she found herself falling into a warm embrace.

"Good teamwork~" Harry said with a smile, holding Hermione.

The strength in his left hand was also quite good; otherwise, with his original physical strength, it would have been quite a struggle to catch Hermione in a bridal carry after she jumped from such a height.

"Devil's Snare... so this was Professor Sprout's challenge~" Hermione jumped down from Harry, and after looking around, she realized that the plant entangling Harry was one they had learned about in Herbology class.

But Harry recalled his experience in the Forbidden Forest; the vines Quirrell summoned to bind him seemed to be Devil's Snare as well.

So... could this be a coincidence?

The two continued along the corridor and soon arrived at the next brightly lit room.

The ceiling here was very high, and countless dazzling little birds were flying happily about the room, looking exactly like the pigeons that scattered in every direction after a full meal at Trafalgar Square.

However, when Harry and Hermione observed them closely, they discovered that these were not birds at all, but keys with wings!

"It's no use, the lock won't open; this must be the work of Professor Flitwick!" Hermione pointed toward the Flying Broomstick in the corner of the room. "It seems we have no choice but to act like a Quidditch Seeker and find a way to catch the only correct key among the flock~"

The corners of her mouth curled up slightly, and her eyelashes fluttered gently along with her eyes, casting the light of the smile hidden in her gaze toward Harry.

Heh, you little brat, let's see how you try to hide your skills from your big sister this time~

Hermione wasn't actually that interested in Quidditch; after all, she wasn't particularly good at riding a Flying Broomstick, but after she discovered someone's 'family heritage' in the Trophy Room, she became especially eager to see what that person looked like playing in a Quidditch match.

Mmm, preferably the kind where he zips and dodges around, then snatches the Golden Snitch in one go—that would be incredibly cool~

It was just a pity that the dense guy in question had never noticed this little expectation of hers.

"How long would that take to find? Watch me, there's no need for anything so troublesome~"

Harry had spotted the silver key with the bent wing immediately... but he had no intention of solving the challenge like a Seeker.

He would just solve it the same way he had on the Quidditch pitch.

Eh... why does it seem like this has something to do with Quirrell again?

As his mental power was poised and ready, Harry suddenly thought of Quirrell, who had used a Bludger to smash into him.

"HRAAAH!!"

Hermione had been full of anticipation, waiting for him to transform into a Seeker and solve the problem with style, but she was caught off guard when Harry suddenly let out an explosive roar. Then, a pitch-black gale swept wildly from his body, instantly tearing all the keys into shreds!

CRACK!!

Following a faint sound came a series of wails as the keys were hit by Diffindo. Hermione turned her head mechanically to look, only to find that the door, which was supposedly impossible to open without a key, was now reduced to nothing but a battered door frame...