Ruins on a Remote Island

In the vast, boundless Pacific Ocean, a small island stood alone, as though it lay at the edge of the world.

The island was small, but its terrain was exceptionally rugged. Steep cliffs surrounded it, while a mountain that was difficult to climb rose in its center.

There were no plants on the island, nor even any signs of life. It seemed to be a barren wasteland steeped in deathly silence.

Yet high above the island, a black vortex suddenly appeared. A figure tumbled out of it a moment later, plummeting straight toward the ground.

Jerry, who had been in his room at the orphanage just moments before, had suddenly been transported by the ring to a hundred meters above the ground. Fortunately, he recovered from the dizziness caused by the teleportation in time.

Upon realizing his predicament, he immediately transformed into a raven Patronus. His body became light and powerful, and after struggling to adjust his posture, he finally landed safely.

Once on the ground, Jerry panted heavily, his heart still pounding fast and hard.

Anger welled up inside him. He swore that if he ever found out who had sent him that damned ring, he would treat them to a curse—a guaranteed lethal Avada Kedavra!

After calming himself down, Jerry began carefully examining his left hand.

He discovered that the middle finger of his left hand was completely unharmed and now bare. It was as though the mysterious ring had never appeared at all.

Yet Jerry could clearly sense the ring's presence. It lay beneath the flesh of his left middle finger, seemingly fused with the bone.

Jerry tried squeezing and touching his middle finger, but nothing felt unusual.

He tried bending and straightening the finger with force, but encountered no resistance either.

Yet whenever Jerry concentrated on sensing the ring, he could clearly feel it hidden quietly beneath the surface of his left middle finger.

Just as the ring's presence was leaving Jerry puzzled and uneasy, a sudden stinging pain shot through the inside of his left wrist.

The unexpected sensation startled him, and he hurriedly pulled up his sleeve to see what had happened.

When Jerry looked at the inside of his left wrist, he discovered a black mark about the size of his thumbnail. Its shape and design were identical to the pattern on the outside of the ring, as though part of the ring had been branded onto his skin.

Jerry tried touching and pressing the black mark with his fingers, but strangely, he felt nothing unusual. It seemed to be nothing more than an ordinary mark or tattoo.

With a sigh, Jerry reluctantly gave up on examining the ring and the black mark any further. He looked up at the blazing sun overhead, then surveyed the endless ocean around him, his mind swirling with thoughts.

Now he needed to start considering how to survive on this barren, isolated island.

Jerry went to the edge of the island, took off his thick coat, and carefully made his way along the rugged cliffs, trying to find a path down.

The island was not large, and before long, Jerry had made a complete circuit and returned, only to feel even more hopeless. Steep cliffs surrounded the entire island, with no sign of a way down. Forget fresh water—he could not even get seawater to drink.

Jerry also noticed something strange. Not only were there no signs of life anywhere around him, but even the seawater was an eerie, deep black.

With no other choice, Jerry headed toward the mountain in the island's interior. He knew that the ring must have had a reason for bringing him here.

The path toward the summit was even more rugged. By the time he reached the mountainside, there was nowhere left to put his feet. Helpless, Jerry could no longer afford to conserve his magic and had to transform into a Patronus to fly to the summit.

The summit was just as barren as the land below, but Jerry soon noticed something unusual: he found an ancient, dilapidated ruin there.

The buildings in the ruins had all been made of stone, and every one had collapsed, leaving only broken walls and fallen stone pillars.

Jerry searched through the ruins for a long time, hoping to find useful objects or written records about the place. Yet despite his efforts, he found no valuable clues.

Time seemed to have erased every trace of what had once been there, leaving only crumbling walls and fallen stone pillars.

Just as Jerry was about to give up his search, he suddenly sensed a reaction from the ring in his left hand. It seemed to be pointing him in a particular direction. He was a little surprised, but decided to follow its guidance.

Still doubtful, Jerry followed the ring's guidance to an open space beside the ruins. He had already searched this spot and found nothing.

Just as he began to think the ring had made a mistake, a stone stele suddenly appeared out of thin air before him.

"This... this is..." Jerry murmured, staring at the stele in shock.

The stele was pure white, roughly five meters tall and two meters wide, its surface densely covered in mysterious writing.

Jerry approached the stele and found its surface as smooth as a mirror, without a speck of dust. It stood in stark contrast to the crumbling surroundings. The years had left no trace upon it, as though it had quietly sealed time away.

As Jerry drew closer, the ring hidden in his left middle finger also appeared.

Seeing the ring emerge, Jerry wondered whether he could take it off now.

But to his surprise, before he could act, the ring slipped easily off his finger.

Looking at the ring in his right palm, Jerry could hardly believe it. It was that easy?

Just as Jerry was feeling both relieved and puzzled at having removed the ring so easily, it suddenly seemed to come alive in his hand. It turned into a beam of light and instantly merged into the stele, like a pebble falling into water.

The instant the ring disappeared, the stele also began to change. It gradually turned transparent, then transformed into a mass of liquid floating in midair.

"This is bad!" At the sight before him, alarm surged through Jerry, and he turned to flee.

However, the stele that had absorbed the ring suddenly unleashed a powerful suction, pulling Jerry's entire body into the liquid.

The force was so powerful that Jerry could not resist it at all. He felt the liquid swallowing him, and he gradually lost control of his body.

Jerry struggled, trying to break free of the suction, but all his efforts were in vain.

Once Jerry had been completely swallowed, the liquid stele suddenly rippled violently. A surge of powerful energy poured out from within it like a storm poised to break, enveloping him.

The energy engulfed Jerry in an instant, as though he had fallen into a world of chaos.

Jerry felt an immense force pulling him along, leaving him unable to control his own body.

Under the influence of that force, Jerry's consciousness gradually grew hazy, and he slowly slipped into sleep.