Once the Runespoor Inferius had been dealt with, the ordinary Inferi in the lake were no longer so sensitive.
After Hermione froze the lake's surface once again, the Inferi merely floated beneath the ice. Although they looked truly terrifying, they had no real effect.
Lupin and Sirius had seen plenty of disgusting things and felt nothing much about this.
Harry was a little scared, but with Hermione and Daphne beside him, he absolutely could not show the slightest sign of fear.
Hermione really was a little scared, so she huddled close to Daphne.
Daphne was delighted.
The group still walked cautiously across the ice, worried that something else bizarre might emerge. But nothing did, and the journey passed without incident. Soon, they spotted something protruding not far away.
A little closer, they saw it clearly: an island in the middle of the lake. However, since Hermione had frozen the surrounding lake with the Freezing Charm, it was now more accurately an island in the middle of the ice.
The island was made of rock, but unlike ordinary rocky outcrops, its surface was unusually smooth. With a few ice chips on top as well, Harry slipped as he stepped onto it and nearly fell.
Fortunately, his constant Quidditch practice had made him very agile.
The rocky island was black, like an enormous blackboard, and empty. Only at its center did a faint green light shine.
From a distance, everyone had thought it was a lamp or something else, but a closer look revealed a stone basin in the center.
The basin was filled to the brim with emerald-green liquid, which was the source of that faint green glow.
"Remus, take a look at this," Daphne said.
Lupin's research into potions might not yet have reached a master's level, but he was