Seraphina drew her Wand and gave it a gentle flick. With a bang, an ancient Stone Basin smashed through the carriage parked at the entrance, then flew inside with a whoosh, skimmed past Wade, and came to a stop directly before Seraphina.
Before Wade could even make out the Stone Basin, a chill suddenly ran through his entire body, and his stomach sank with it.
He instinctively wanted to step back, his right heel lifting slightly off the ground, but he forcibly stopped himself the next instant. Only his shoulders stiffened almost imperceptibly for a moment.
Then Wade stared fixedly at the floating Pensieve and could not help rubbing the goosebumps on his arm.
The "healer's assistant" seemed like part of the shadows cast by the walls. Everyone present unconsciously overlooked him. Yet that subtle anomaly did not escape the eyes of one guest who had been watching him, seemingly without intent, all along.
The somewhat gloomy Eastern European wizard looked toward the Pensieve, stroking his Wand as a glint of interest flashed through his eyes.
Seraphina ignored all the commotion. With a light tap of her Wand, the memories preserved within the Pensieve, which had been slowly revolving, suddenly sped up and formed a small vortex.
"Hum..."
The Stone Basin let out a low hum, and the silver light above it surged, directly coalescing into an enormous three-dimensional scene in midair over the Great Hall!
In the image, Niccolo Hawthorne and Ezra Hughes walked side by side, their expressions grave as though they were discussing something.
A thin, moonlit silver glow seemed to envelop them, a characteristic of the memory itself.
Then, without warning, the situation changed!
The two inadvertently stepped into a trap made of golden particles. Reginald Perez, whom Hawthorne had allegedly murdered with brutality, emerged with