Lion's Roar Bracers

"Well, strictly speaking, it's not quite there yet. You still need to face one last test..." the lion-shaped phantom said slowly.

Well, Skylar knew things wouldn't be that simple—whether it was Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, or Slytherin, they all liked to set up a bunch of bizarre and unpredictable tests, and if you weren't careful, you would miss out on the real test and reward.

"There's one more thing," the lion-shaped phantom said in a condescending tone, "You'd better not call me 'senior' anymore, it makes me sound old—didn't that arrogant, clueless bird tell you? My name is Aslan, and back in the day everyone called me Lion King Aslan."

Skylar felt a sudden heat on the back of his neck. Aquila appeared in the Chamber of Secrets on its own, flapped its wings, and landed on Skylar's left shoulder, angrily shouting, "Stupid lion, don't go around calling me a dumb bird in front of outsiders! I just disdain using underhanded tricks, I'm not really dumb!"

Three black lines appeared on Skylar's forehead.

Okay, so these two summoned beasts know each other and have maintained contact and interaction for a thousand years— Aslan calls Aquila the silly bird, Aquila calls Aslan silly lion, which fits the image of Ravenclaw House nerd and Gryffindor brute.

Skylar had no interest in listening to the two ancient magical creations bickering. He spoke first, "Aquila, what just happened? I tried to summon you but couldn't get a response."

"That was a pre-set anti-summoning restriction by Gryffindor, intended to ensure that his successor possessed great courage and dared to face danger alone," Aquila explained.

"This is more than just dangerous, this is downright deadly! I dare say, if any other junior wizard, even a seventh-year student, were in this situation today, they would have a very difficult time escaping unscathed," Skylar said irritably.

"That doesn't make sense. Isn't that just a weakened Manticore?" Aquila said with some doubt. "I haven't heard of any changes to this trial in the past thousand years. Of course, in the last hundred years, I've focused on collecting and updating the riddles in the Ravenclaw Tower dormitories, giving those little brats an endless stream of new riddles to solve. I'm not very clear about the situation here. Stupid lion, what's going on?"

Aslan scratched his head with his paw, looking puzzled. "No, as far as I know, the test at the Chamber of Secrets entrance hasn't changed at all. It's just that ever since Hogwarts suddenly changed the game keeper seventy or eighty years ago, this new guy seems to get along quite well with the Manticore, often bringing it some treats."

Skylar was taken aback. He roughly guessed what was going on and asked, "Aslan, do you know what those so-called delicious things you're talking about actually are?"

Aslan licked his lips and said, "I know, there are so many delicious things... dragon jerky, Re'em, sea snake gall... they're all precious and good stuff!"

"What!" Aquila screamed in disbelief. "You stupid lion! Don't you know these are ingredients for powerful Potions? They can greatly enhance a creature's strength, size, vitality, and even lifespan. Are you trying to kill those students who accidentally wandered in by feeding these to the Manticore guarding the entrance?"

After being scolded by Aquila, Asura realized the enormity of his mistake. He scratched his head again with his paw and said sheepishly, "I really didn't know that. It was my oversight—but doesn't this bring us such an excellent little wizard?"

"You!..." Aquila was about to continue his tirade, but seeing Aslan's listless and submissive appearance, he snorted and said, "Forget it!"

Skylar smiled. Now he finally understood the reason for the Manticore's mutation. At the same time, he realized that Hagrid knew about the cave's existence, so the Manticore's death couldn't be hidden from him. But even if he knew, so what? Now he dared to confront Dumbledore head-on, and besides, as long as he didn't take out Gryffindor's heirloom, no one would know it was him.

Having thought this through, he composed himself and said loudly, "Aslan, now tell me, what is the Chamber of Secrets all about? What benefits will I receive? And what do I need to do?"

"A candidate for the Gryffindor lineage, ho ho—" Aslan slowly rose to his feet, his eyes gleaming. He cleared his throat and said solemnly, "Once you pass one last test, you will be recognized as the official heir to Gryffindor, just like Aquila, and you will gain my allegiance."

Skylar nodded, indicating that he understood; this meant he was going to add another summoned beast. He then asked, "So, how exactly do I do it?"

Aslan pointed with his paw at the Black Gold gauntlets on the altar, beginning his explanation with the gauntlets' origins. "These gauntlets were the treasured gauntlets that accompanied Gryffindor on his conquests. They were called the 'Lion's Roar Bracers,' and Gryffindor cherished them no less than the 'Sword of the Brave.'"

"Before Gryffindor passed away, he imprinted his fighting spirit and indomitable will on these gauntlets in some form. Only those he approves of can wear them, and once you successfully don them, they will belong to you until your death..."

Skylar nodded in understanding. This was actually similar to the nature of Sword of Gryffindor —in order to avoid the Goblin's coveting of it, Gryffindor hid his sword in a hidden space. Only those who showed the courage to gain his approval could pull the sword out of the Sorting Hat. In this process, the Sorting Hat was like an entrance to the hidden space.

The owner's ownership of the sword is not permanent. Once the owner loses it or dies, the sword will automatically disappear and return to that hidden space. The owner cannot give the sword to others, nor can it be passed on to future generations as a family heirloom.

Of course, what intrigued Skylar was just how profound Gryffindor's understanding of spatial magic was a thousand years ago, and how it compared to his own.

"What happens if the wearing fails?" Skylar asked. To be honest, Skylar was always very cautious about this kind of inheritance with an unclear selection mechanism. As a Slytherin who was good at intrigue and self-preservation, Skylar didn't have much confidence in his ability to gain recognition in terms of "courage".

Aslan chuckled and said, "You are the first inheritor to arrive here in the past thousand years. How could I possibly know? However, I think that given Gryffindor's character, even if you come from Slytherin House he doesn't get along with, he wouldn't harm a junior wizard. At most, he would just make you back down."

Aquila, however, held a different opinion. He cautiously said, "Skylar, you mustn't underestimate Gryffindor's recklessness. He sometimes acts entirely on impulse, and there's a possibility he might impulsively seal away some terrible magic..."

"Yes, thank you for reminding me, Aquila," Skylar said softly, closing his eyes. "I understand."

Skylar's thoughts were largely the same as Aquila's. Facing a wizard he had never met a thousand years ago, it was difficult to fathom his true intentions—in any case, caution was paramount. But the problem was that if Skylar was overly cautious, he would hardly be highly regarded for his "courage."

"However," Skylar's voice suddenly rose, "I, a member of the House of Malfoy and a descendant of Slytherin, am not entirely a coward. I am willing to prove here and now that I have no fear of any trial!"

He suddenly opened his eyes, a sharp, sword-like red light flashing across the Chamber of Secrets. The Ancient Runes representing "Sacred Fire" spun rapidly in his pupils, and his crimson eyes seemed to burn with a raging fire. At this moment, his usually calm heart was ignited by the challenge before him, becoming unusually fiery—only truly difficult challenges could truly hone him and allow him to advance further on the long path of magic.

Gryffindor, I accept your test!