Gryffindor? A Sure Win

Perhaps it wasn't just Ian's imagination.

After all.

Although the witch looked absolutely furious, she ultimately chose not to strike, merely glaring at Pandero and Ariana with eyes that seemed ready to spew fire.

"Ian! We've come to save you!"

Pandero brandished a longsword, looking aggressive and imposing.

Perhaps.

Only Ariana, with her more delicate sensibilities, noticed that Ian and Mara did not look like a prisoner and his captor in the great hall, and she wore a look of shame, as if realizing, We've really messed up this time.

"Pandero... Ian doesn't look like he was captured..."

She whispered a reminder to Pandero.

"Huh?"

Pandero wore a look of confusion.

"How is that possible! I heard she loves eating children!"

The hyper-masculine swordsman still wanted to stick to his judgment.

"Grrr..."

That was the sound of Witch Mara gnashing her teeth.

"I'm sorry, Teacher. I forgot to go find them and tell them about my situation here." Ian snapped back to reality and hurriedly stepped forward to smooth things over.

"Get your friends out of my territory!"

The witch shifted some of her anger onto Ian, though judging by her behavior, she might indeed have been wary of Pandero, who had barged into her domain.

"Huh?"

No matter how slow-witted Pandero was, he had heard Ian's address to Witch Mara. His eyes immediately went blank, and his face turned visibly red.

"I actually guessed wrong..."

This "old ghost" in the shape of a boy was momentarily at a loss.

Drawing his sword and looking around in confusion.

The scene seemed to perfectly capture that sentiment at this moment.

The aura that had previously seemed ready to cut down everything had long since vanished.

"Ms. Mara, I'm so sorry. We will help you repair this place." Ariana, filled with immense shame, began bowing frantically to apologize to Witch Mara.

"With his empty head and a foolish, ignorant little thing like you? I'd be thankful if you could even create a chair that someone could sit on!"

Witch Mara's expression was grim as she turned to look at Ian again.

"Make them leave! They are not welcome here!"

With that, the witch turned and walked toward the depths of the castle with a sour expression. Although her gown wasn't dragging on the floor like a rag, the missing corner was still very conspicuous.

"I don't want to stay here! The monster is back!"

"So scary! So scary!"

"He must be trying to harm us again!"

Tables, chairs, and benches all grew legs and followed behind the witch.

"That woman has such a temper!"

Pandero started complaining the moment the witch left.

"Pandero, say less. After all, it was our fault; we damaged a lot of her property." Ariana reminded him in a weak voice from the side.

"Hmph, she tried to catch me before, so this is just breaking even."

Pandero, however, remained unconvinced.

Clearly.

He and Witch Mara had crossed paths before.

"I don't think Teacher Mara is that bad, is she? She's taught me quite a bit of knowledge." Ian walked to the main entrance out of curiosity, and only then did he see the scene outside.

Everywhere were scattered fragments of armor, and some half-bodied suits of armor were crawling miserably on the ground, frantically trying to get as far away from Pandero as possible.

"Maybe. Or perhaps I had a grudge against her when I was alive?"

Pandero said, sounding uncertain.

Just like Ariana.

He only remembered that he was waiting for someone here before he died.

But he had never waited for them.

The longer one stays in this mysterious realm, the more blurred their memories of the mortal world become, until they are forgotten entirely, at which point the souls are compelled to embark upon their next journey.

"Regardless of anything else, we have definitely caused a massive disaster this time."

Ariana sighed, her expression filled with trepidation.

"At worst, we'll just compensate her with a dragon—that one we encountered to the north. It looked incredibly vicious and only died a few years ago; it's certainly more impressive than this pile of scrap metal she has."

Although Pandero was still putting on a brave face, he was not oblivious to the fact that he had made a mistake.

"I will find a way to make it up to Teacher Mara."

Ian patted Pandero on the shoulder.

He was deeply moved by the "rescue" attempt carried out by the two of them.

Regardless of the outcome.

To have people care so deeply for his safety was something that truly defined a real friend—though, perhaps these two friends did not realize that no one in Limbo could actually imprison him?

As soon as the time came.

He would, after all, be forcibly sent back to the mortal world...

"Are you learning magic under Ms. Mara?" Ariana asked with curiosity.

Ian nodded.

"Teacher Mara is incredibly knowledgeable; she has helped me get a significant head start over other young wizards." He wasn't just saying empty words of flattery.

"That's wonderful."

Ariana felt happy for Ian, yet she also felt a twinge of envy.

"Perhaps I could bring some magic textbooks in for you."

Ian remembered that Ariana had always harbored a certain longing for Hogwarts.

"Teaching her is useless; magic has no meaning here."

Pandero shook his head from the side, speaking in a tone of great pride, "It would be better to learn swordsmanship from me; you can cut down whatever you want."

As he spoke.

The hyper-masculine swordsman gestured with the unremarkable sword in his hand.

"I was once undefeated throughout all of Limbo, and even that... that fellow from your school, Godric Gryffindor, could barely exchange a few blows with me!"

Good grief!

He had actually crossed swords with the founder of Hogwarts?

"You know Godric Gryffindor?"

Ian became curious.

Although Teacher Mara seemed very wary of this friend, how could Teacher Mara compare to Gryffindor? That was the legendary Sword Saint of Hogwarts!

While there were no historical records detailing just how strong Gryffindor's swordsmanship was, he was, after all, a legendary wizard evolving toward the level of "Gandalf," so an ordinary swordsman could hardly be his match.

"I met him a few years ago, but he left quite quickly. That guy's swordsmanship was decent enough, which is why I remember him."

Pandero lifted his head arrogantly and began to swing his longsword, performing a few flashy flourishes before turning to urge Ariana to learn swordsmanship from him instead.

"You have both been dead for who knows how long; surely both swordsmanship and magic are useless here." Ian nearly had his little toe sliced off by the sword Pandero was waving around.

"Indeed."

Ariana nodded helplessly from the side.

For the souls here.

They did not shy away from discussing the fact that they were already dead.

"There will definitely be a time when it's useful, trust me."

Pandero spoke with full confidence.

"Uh, when you were taking me up the mountain earlier, you also told me to trust you..."

Ariana, however, was left between laughter and tears.

"That's different, that's different."

Pandero gave an awkward, sheepish laugh.

Perhaps to change the subject.

He immediately turned his bright eyes toward Ian.

"Ariana said you've started learning magic, so we went and found an enrollment gift for you. Take a look—this is the real deal; I wouldn't waste my time on this for just anyone!"

With that, Pandero pulled something from his bosom—it was an apple, as if cast from gold, shining with a dazzling luster even within the dim castle.

It was as if a fragment of the sun had been left behind in the mortal realm, or a masterpiece crafted by the ingenious hands of the gods.