"Reveal your secrets!"
Gerald cast a Revealing Charm, but neither the portrait nor the marble wall reacted.
He activated the Qi-Perception Spell as well, yet still saw nothing unusual.
Under the Qi-Perception Spell, the portrait did indeed give off a red aura, proving that it was a magical object.
But Gerald found no hidden passages or secret doors.
He tried walking past the portrait three times, the way he opened the Room of Requirement, but it still did not open.
"Did Helga say anything else? A password, for instance, or some particular action?"
"No. She only said she had a secret hoard here, reserved for a true Hufflepuff."
"A true Hufflepuff..." Gerald murmured.
He hurriedly took out the Q&A Notebook, opened a page, and wrote down the name "Helga Hufflepuff."
The notebook soon provided a great deal of information about Helga, including her life and teaching philosophy.
Among the densely packed words, one passage caught Gerald's attention.
Gerald read the passage aloud, word for word.
"Helga once said: I shall teach the many, and treat them all the same. A true Hufflepuff is undoubtedly someone upright, loyal, hardworking, and fair."
As Gerald finished reading, the wooden bridge in the landscape painting suddenly gave off an exceptionally soft, pale golden glow. Then the bridge began to extend out of the canvas.
The wooden bridge stretched from the frame all the way to Gerald and Cedric's feet, like a road sealed away for a thousand years that had finally greeted its owner.
Gerald and Cedric exchanged a glance and stepped onto the wooden bridge together.
They passed through something like a film of water, and then a warm white light enveloped them.
When the white light faded, Gerald found himself standing on the wooden bridge. Beneath his feet was a crystal-clear stream,