In the original story, the Three-Headed Dog was a magical creature Hagrid had raised to guard the Philosopher's Stone. Its only weakness was that music could lull it into a deep sleep.
Perhaps next time, she could try taming it again while it was drowsy.
Vela gently closed her eyes. The Magic Circuit slowly circulated within her body, displaying the Resonance Value from the battle just now before her eyes.
With the battle over, this portion of Resonance Value had also finished converting.
Twenty-five points of Resonance Value had increased her mana cap by 5 after conversion. Her Magic Circuit experience had risen from 62 to 87, and breaking through to Control · Beginner Rank was now within reach.
At first, Vela had thought the experience she gained through constantly studying and practicing spells was fast enough. She had never expected battle experience to be so absurdly plentiful.
Just beating up Malfoy had brought such gains. In the future, she definitely needed to make this sort of activity routine and scalable, striving to raise her strength quickly and restore her legs as soon as possible.
After the rush of excitement passed, endless exhaustion swept over her. Vela's breathing gradually steadied.
She unconsciously curled up, holding Nox a little tighter.
The kitten purred comfortably in her arms, its warm body rising and falling with every breath.
On Saturday morning, sunlight streamed through the window into the dormitory. Hermione was already fully dressed, sitting at her desk and flipping through her textbooks.
Vela wheeled herself to the window and saw Harry hugging her pillow as she slept soundly, her messy black hair scattered across her face.
"Should we wake her?" Hermione turned around and asked softly. "Hagrid invited us for tea this morning, and she still has Quidditch practice afterward."
Clearly, Hermione had already figured out Harry's entire schedule.
Vela gently shook her head. "Let her sleep a little longer. She used up too much energy last night, and she needs to save her strength for Quidditch practice later."
She wheeled herself over to Harry's bed and gently brushed the stray hair from the girl's face.
Harry wrinkled her nose in her sleep and rubbed against the pillow like a kitten, but she did not wake up.
Hermione seemed to notice something. She looked strangely at Vela's profile. "Vela... why do I sometimes feel like you treat Harry..."
"What is it?" Vela withdrew her hand and turned to Hermione as if nothing had happened.
Hermione hesitated, seemingly choosing her words. "It's just... sometimes it feels like you pay special attention to Harry."
After a rare stretch of silence filled the room, Vela's lashes cast faint shadows in the morning light. Only after a while did she say, "She's the Savior. The entire wizarding world is watching her."
Hermione frowned. "That's not what I meant, but... um... I can't explain what's different."
At the very least, she could tell that most people around them looked at Harry with curiosity or eagerness. There were also people like Malfoy, who deliberately put on airs of disdain and contempt.
But Vela was different. Though eleven-year-old Hermione could not yet put that feeling into words, a girl's intuition told her that Vela treated Harry in a particularly different way.
That conclusion occasionally left Hermione, caught within their three-person friendship, feeling at a loss.
Strictly speaking, Hermione Granger had not made any friends in primary school. When it came to friendship, her understanding was nearly blank.
Yet perhaps because of that, she found herself unconsciously... wanting to pay even more attention to these two hard-won friends by her side.
Vela fell silent for a moment, then suddenly asked softly, "Hermione, what kind of person do you think Harry is?"
Hermione froze for a moment. She thought about it before answering, "She's very brave and kind. She can be a little impulsive sometimes, but she's always willing to help others... Why?"
"Nothing." Vela turned her wheelchair toward the window. "I was just curious about your opinion."
Hermione wanted to ask more, but movement from the bed suddenly interrupted her.
"Mmm... What time is it?" Harry opened her eyes groggily, her glasses hanging crookedly on her nose and her black hair a complete bird's nest.
"Half past nine," Hermione immediately told her. "You promised Hagrid tea at ten, and you have Quidditch practice afterward."
Harry abruptly sat up. "What? I overslept!"
She scrambled out of bed and grabbed her school robes, pulling them on. "Hermione! Why didn't you wake me earlier?"
Hermione spread her hands helplessly. "Vela said to let you sleep longer..."
Harry's movements paused. She turned to look at Vela, hesitation flashing through her green eyes, but it quickly gave way to their usual brightness. "Then I'll go wash up now! I'll be quick!"
She snatched up her toiletries and rushed into the bathroom, leaving Hermione and Vela smiling at the same time.
"Oh, right," Harry asked, sticking her head out while squeezing toothpaste onto her brush. "Vela, are you really not coming with us? I can carry you!"
"Don't be silly," Vela said gently. "Hagrid's Hut is so far away, and you need to save your strength for practice afterward... Go on. Remember to say hello to Hagrid for me."
After Harry and Hermione left, the dormitory finally fell quiet.
Vela wheeled herself to the window and watched the two girls cross the lawn toward Hagrid's Hut.
Nox lightly leaped onto the windowsill, amber eyes fixed on her owner.
"I should get going too," Vela murmured, turning her wheelchair out of the room.
Five-Year Transfer Student
As soon as she entered the common room, she saw quite a few students who had returned from breakfast gathered in little groups, discussing something.
As Vela wheeled past, she vaguely heard words like "Malfoy," "sneaking out at night," "detention," and "points deducted."
It seemed last night's incident had already spread.
Vela did not linger. She went straight through the common room and arrived at an abandoned classroom on the third floor.
With a flick of her wand, she pushed open the window. The sunlight outside was just right, and a breeze brushed through her silver-gray hair, bringing a rare sense of freshness.
"Peeves." Vela spoke lazily. "Come out. I know you're nearby."
A head popped out from the ceiling. Peeves appeared upside down above the window frame, watching her warily. "You said you wouldn't use that weird magic on me!"
Vela gently shook her head. "I'm not here to cause you trouble. I still have to thank you for your cooperation last night."
Peeves flipped through the air, grinning smugly. "Peeves always keeps his word! That little brat from the Malfoy family got caught red-handed by Filch. I heard Snape made him scrub potion bottles for a whole month! And he lost twenty points!"
The corners of Vela's lips lifted slightly. "Besides that, I wanted to ask you about something..."
Her fingertips lightly brushed the wall bricks, and a golden pattern quietly seeped into the ancient stone. "I want to know some things... about this castle."
Peeves's expression, which had only just relaxed, immediately turned wary again. "Cunning little Black, what are you up to?"
If there was anyone in this world who knew Hogwarts best, it was neither Dumbledore, the headmaster, nor the portraits that had remained in the castle for decades or centuries. It was the spirit before her.
Unlike other ghosts, Peeves had been born alongside Hogwarts itself. He was an existence firmly bound to the castle.
However, considering Peeves's chaotic nature, anything she asked him might very well be relayed to Dumbledore, whom he also feared—
Given her current identity and her increasingly close relationship with Harry, Vela did not want the strongest wizard of the age to notice her too soon.
"What am I up to?" Vela frowned slightly and lowered her gaze to her completely unfeeling legs, unable to stop a bitter smile. "What do you think I can do in this state?"
Showing weakness was a little trick she had learned from Harry.
Sure enough, Peeves drifted suspiciously before her and looked her up and down. "Then why are you so interested in the castle?"
Vela gently stroked the wheelchair's armrest, her voice low. "I just... want to find a way to move freely. This castle has too many secrets. Maybe one of them can help me."
Peeves tilted his head as he studied her, seemingly judging whether she was telling the truth.
After a moment, he suddenly grinned. "Peeves knows lots of secrets! But why should I tell you?"
Rather than answering directly, Vela raised her hand. Her fingers lightly swept across the window frame, and a golden Magic Circuit pattern flashed and vanished.
Peeves's smile instantly froze. A flicker of wariness crossed his black eyes before he finally said, "About a hundred years ago, I met a student similar to you. But... you're much weaker than she was."
Vela's fingers paused slightly, surprise flashing through her eyes. "A hundred years ago?"
Peeves flipped through the air and blinked mischievously. "Aha! So there are finally things even you don't know!"
Vela calmly withdrew her hand. "I was simply curious who else was like me... interested in the castle."
"A transfer student who only arrived in fifth year." Peeves floated over to sit on the windowsill, swinging his short legs. "Just like you, always asking questions about everything."
A transfer student in fifth year, a hundred years ago...
Vela grew thoughtful and continued, "What was her name?"
"Why should Peeves tell you?" Peeves pulled a face at her. "You may have a way to trap me, but that's all. Your power is still far from enough."
Vela immediately frowned. Just as she was about to say something, a stern voice suddenly came from the corridor—
"Peeves!" Professor McGonagall appeared in the doorway. "Are you bullying first-years again?"
Peeves cackled. Before Vela could react, he immediately fled through the ceiling.
Professor McGonagall strode into the classroom. When she saw that Vela was the student inside, her expression tightened slightly. "Miss Black, are you all right? Peeves didn't harass you, did he?"
Vela disappointedly withdrew her gaze, slowly turned her wheelchair around, and obediently shook her head. "I'm all right, Professor. He... hadn't had time to do anything yet."
Professor McGonagall looked her over from head to toe. Only after confirming there were no signs that she had been bullied did she breathe a sigh of relief. "Why are you here on a weekend morning?"
"I was just looking for somewhere to do my homework," Vela said. Her eyes lowered somewhat dejectedly, and her fingers unconsciously tightened around the fabric over her legs. "The library is too crowded..."
Professor McGonagall's gaze fell on Vela's powerless legs, and a trace of pity flashed through her usually sharp eyes.
She cleared her throat, her tone softening. "There are indeed many quiet places in the castle suitable for studying. But you must still be careful. Some areas of Hogwarts are not safe for first-year students."
Vela looked up, her silver-gray hair gleaming softly in the sunlight. "Thank you, Professor. But... I'd rather explore the castle myself. After all, this is where I'll be living for the next seven years."
Professor McGonagall nodded approvingly. "A commendable bit of courage. If you encounter any difficulty, you may come to a professor for help at any time."
"I'll remember that, Professor," Vela replied obediently.
After watching Professor McGonagall leave, Vela wheeled herself to the window and gazed thoughtfully toward the distant Forbidden Forest.
That transfer student from a hundred years ago whom Peeves had mentioned... without question, she had to be the protagonist of Hogwarts Legacy.
In this world, that transfer student seemed to have been a girl as well?
Of course, gender was not important. What mattered was that this person's existence itself confirmed the reality of the mysterious area beneath Hogwarts that Vela had sensed before.
In the game, that mysterious area was called the Secret Vault. It lay deep beneath Hogwarts, its entrance hidden near the Room of Requirement.
Inside were spheres of Ancient Magic energy.
However, in the game's story, the protagonist could choose whether to absorb that energy. So Vela did not know whether that transfer student from back then had absorbed it.
But... she would note it down for now.
Her strength was still nowhere near enough to explore the Secret Vault alone. She should take things slowly and gradually improve her abilities first.
Friendliness +10
Thus, that morning, Harry and Hermione went to Hagrid's Hut, while Vela stayed behind in the abandoned classroom to practice spells all morning.
Whenever she exhausted her mana, she calmed herself and began working on the rest of her homework.
By the time her mana was depleted and all her homework was complete, it was already close to noon.
At a thought from Vela, a panel displaying her current status appeared on her retina:
[Name: Vela Black] [Age: 11] [Attributes: Strength (3), Agility (1), Magic (3), Intelligence (7), Charm (8), Luck (2)] [Physical Condition: Lower-body paralysis (repairable)] [Ancient Magic Learning Status: Multicast (Beginner Rank)] [Talents: Shadow Affinity (Black bloodline talent), Ancient Magic Affinity] [Magic Circuit Bonuses: Basic spell power +20%, mana recovery speed +30%, spell learning speed +50%] [Magic Circuit Skill 1: Circuit Vision] [Magic Circuit Skill 2: Basic Healing (Passive)] [Magic Circuit Skill 3: Mana Tracing] [Current Magic Circuit Level: Awakening · Advanced Rank (96/120)] [Mana Reserves: 1/96] [Mana Recovery Speed: 19.5/hour]
After this period of study at Hogwarts, Vela's overall strength was only one final step away from breaking through to Control · Beginner Rank.
She had even made up her mind that taming the Three-Headed Dog would have to wait until her Magic Circuit reached at least Control · Intermediate Rank. By then, she could use the reward to rise another level.
To restore her legs as quickly as possible, she had to maximize her gains during this period.
She let out a soft breath and wheeled herself out of the abandoned classroom, preparing to head to the Great Hall for lunch.
Before you continue