Uric the Oddball
As the sunlight seeped deeper into the seawater, fish gradually became more common in the surrounding area.
Kate didn't utter any more spells all afternoon, and the Poseidon remained transparent, with the plankton resembling dust in the air when the sun shines directly on it.
On this beautiful afternoon, Kate did not ask to play Mind Games with Ryan again.
Instead, he kept taking pictures with his camera—pictures of himself, the scenery, and most of all, pictures of Ryan.
To be honest, for a moment, Ryan felt as if he hadn't transmigrated yet, and was still an ordinary boy eagerly being pulled by his female classmates to take pictures.
Kate casually tossed the book "Eighteenth-Century Charms" aside.
As Kate searched for various shooting positions and angles, they finally arrived at their destination.
It was already 6 p. m., but the sky—no, the seabed—was still filled with warm-looking sunlight.
Not far away was a huge flat-topped pyramid, made entirely of a translucent, glass-like material. The Poseidon began to slow down and came to rest on top of the pyramid, slowly landing on its summit.
Then came the sound of the air mattress deflating. The Poseidon returned to its original state without the incantation of Thetis, and a passageway appeared from the center of the living room.
The tunnel was incredibly smooth, and the material appeared to be semi-transparent, like glass. Looking down, you couldn't see the bottom.
Kate hurriedly stuffed all her belongings into Ryan's pockets and then jumped down. Even though Ryan was still on the Poseidon, he could hear Kate's sweet laughter.
Ryan followed closely behind, and upon entering the tunnel, he discovered that the entire city could be seen from the side of the tunnel. The city was divided into two worlds by invisible bubbles: one half was the normal seabed, and the other half seemed to be on land. The two intersected, as if they had entered a fairy tale kingdom.
On land, there are wizards dressed in seaweed, jellyfish, and coral. Some of them have carpets laid out, while others ride all sorts of flying machines, greeting the wizards Merpeople on the opposite side of the sea.
At the bottom of the sea, wizards wearing fishbowl-like hoods and Merpeople reign supreme. Some wizards even swim on the seabed simply by casting the Bubblehead Charm, while wizards with Transfiguration Spell that have grown gills circle around them anxiously.
The descent was surprisingly slow. Although the tunnel walls were very smooth, it felt as if an invisible fluid was slowing the descent, presumably to allow tourists to appreciate the city.
But for Ryan, this was annoying. With his physique, no matter how fast he went, he could still enjoy the show.
After about two minutes of agonizingly slow walking from Ryan's perspective, the sound of splashing into water and Kate's excited laughter came from ahead.
What comes into view is a crystal-clear fluid. Falling into it feels like falling into water, but your body remains dry.
It feels like water, looks like water, but tastes... no, no, no, Ryan quickly stopped his wild thoughts.
"Ryan, the people here are dressed so strangely, how should I put it, um, very seafood-like," Kate whispered, pointing to a wizard wearing a hat made of lobster shell.
"Kate, here's a hint: Uric the Oddball from Ravenclaw." Ryan replied telepathically, behaving with impeccable manners and looking around with curiosity. Anyone who saw him would praise him, "What a handsome young man, a gentleman of this turbulent world."
"Huh? That's really like the Uric the Oddball." Kate remarked, glancing at a wizard wearing a jellyfish hat not far away.
"Uric is probably a normal wizard here now," Ryan thought to Kate in his mind as they waited for the reception staff.
"No, no, no, Ryan, you probably haven't read much about the A History of Magic. I suggest you read Radolf Pittiman 'The Biography of Uric the Oddball."
"My Ravenclaw predecessor was not just peculiar in his attire; the story I mentioned last time about his Augurey was just a minor matter."
"It is well known that the high-pitched, chirping calls of the Fwooper can drive people mad. However, the Uric the Oddball, in order to prove his point ( that the Fwooper's calls are actually beneficial to human health), listened to the Fwooper for three months straight and even wore a dead badger as a wig, intending to prove his point to the Magic Council," Kate replied to Ryan in her mind.
"So, Uric's magical abilities are probably higher than we thought. Kate, what danger level is the Fwooper?" Ryan asked.
"Xxx, the level that a capable wizard can handle."
"So that's what you mean." Kate suddenly looked up and blurted out.
"Yes, the Fwooper is a dangerous pet that needs to be Silencing Charm every month before it can be sold or kept. A wizard who wants to keep it must demonstrate his level of Silencing Charm in order to obtain a license."
"The Fwooper was classified as xxx only because its sound is dangerous and easily avoided. Yet Uric listened to the Fwooper's sound for three consecutive months. You should know that at that time, it was impossible to fake the application for an experiment to the Magic Council."
"He actually overcame his physical limitations with his spirit. Mad wizards, especially half-mad wizards like Uric, are truly terrifying. In fact, if he really recovers in three months in the Hell version, that would be even more incredible. If he continues this habit, then I estimate..." Ryan "thought" and then suddenly stopped.
"Estimate what?" Kate asked, her cat-like eyes widening, which made her look especially adorable with her round face.
"It's nothing, I misunderstood. He'll probably really go crazy," Ryan explained, then mentally finished the sentence: "He'll probably stay 'healthy' forever, which is why the date of Uric the Oddball's death is so ambiguous?"
After waiting for about 10 minutes, an ordinary-looking male wizard ran over, large beads of sweat dripping from under his glasses like rain. This wizard was also dressed surprisingly plainly, completely out of place with the seafood-themed surroundings.
"Mr. Ryan, Ms. Kate, please follow me." The ordinary wizard apologized, briefly introduced where they would be staying that night, and then guided Ryan and Kate to a reception room about 100 meters away from the pool.
After registration, the ordinary male wizard was given something like a pocket watch, the hands of which would always point to the reception room. After that, you were free to do as you pleased. The reception room had a "fish tank", flying vehicles for rent, and dinner and bedrooms were on the second floor.
"Kate, shall we eat in the reception room first? Or shall we go out and have some fun and figure things out ourselves?" Ryan asked.
"Let's eat first, in the reception room. Let's see what's different," Kate replied.