Draco's gaze was fixed intently ahead.
In the secluded alleyway next to the Hog's Head, a figure in a black cloak flashed by, perpetually filled with a strange odor and piled high with discarded wooden barrels.
"What's wrong?" Hermione noticed his stiffness.
" Viktor Rookwood," Draco murmured the name, "The dark wizard from last night."
"Should we follow them?" Hermione gripped her wand tighter.
"Of course, let's see what these rats are planning." Draco pulled Hermione along.
He quickly cast Disillusionment Charm on the two of them.
As the spell took effect, the two figures distorted and faded, eventually merging completely into the air.
They held their breath and carefully followed along the wall into the dark, damp alley.
The alley was dimly lit. Rookwood stood in front of a pile of abandoned wooden crates, and opposite him stood his companion, the burly man Theophilus Harlow.
Several dark wizards with chilling auras were gathered around them, clearly indicating that this was a secret gathering.
In the very center of the crowd, with his back to Draco and Hermione, stood a short, familiar figure.
The figure slowly turned around, revealing the greedy face the two had seen in Gringotts.
Goblin Ranrok.
"Didn't you say you'd handle Young Malfoy?"
Ranrok scoffed.
"Why did I wait so long near Vault Twelve and get nothing? My patience has its limits."
"That little bastard..." Rookwood said through gritted teeth, "He almost killed me yesterday! I admit, that kid's got some skills, but this time I brought more men."
"I can testify," Harlow said.
"Don't make excuses." Ranrok looked at him disdainfully. "If you can't even handle a student who hasn't graduated yet, how can we believe you can obtain the power of Ancient Magic?"
"Didn't you also corner him in Vault Twelve?" Rookwood retorted sharply, "How come you didn't catch that kid either? Don't try to shift all the blame onto me!"
Ranrok snorted coldly, a dangerous glint in his crimson eyes. "If you can't handle Malfoy, then I don't need you."
"Don't make it sound so easy," Rookwood said, the atmosphere instantly becoming tense. "Without me, you'll never obtain the true power of Ancient Magic."
The surrounding air seemed to freeze.
The dark wizards were stirring, the light of their wands flickering in the shadows, and a fierce battle seemed imminent.
In the end, Ranrok compromised.
"You'd better not let him ruin our plans. If I don't see any results by the next full moon, you can go and feed the dragons of Gringotts."
As the dialogue was about to end, the two sides seemed to have reached some kind of temporary truce.
Draco felt Hermione's palms were covered in cold sweat, so he immediately grabbed her hand and mouthed, "Let's go."
The two held their breath and carefully backed away until they reached the alley entrance, only then daring to breathe heavily.
Not daring to linger, Draco and Hermione immediately returned to Hogwarts, where the main road was covered in snow.
A gust of wind blows, and a cold mist swirls around your feet.
Draco and Hermione walked side by side, the aftershocks of their confrontation in the dark alley still lingering, both of them carrying a heavy feeling in their hearts.
"I don't understand," Hermione broke the silence first, her voice sounding somewhat ethereal in the night breeze. "Why do you think Ranrok would get involved with dark wizards?"
"Aside from Ancient Magic, I can't think of any other commonality. Goblin covet that power, and so do dark wizards; they're just temporarily banding together because they each get what they need."
"Oh, right." Hermione stopped and looked up abruptly at Draco, a glint of inspiration in her eyes.
" Professor Babbling said that one of the professors guarding the Ancient Magic ruins also has the surname Rookwood!"
"This Viktor Rookwood could very well be his descendant!" she exclaimed in shock.
"No wonder!" Draco exclaimed, as if waking from a dream.
Having figured it out, the two walked in silence, quickly passing through the main gate, through the noisy hall, and straight to Professor Babbling's private office.
The office was empty, the fire in the fireplace was still crackling, a huge parchment map lay open on the table, and an unsealed letter was pressed down next to it.
Hermione picked up the letter and read it quickly:
"Whatever you see, do not act rashly. Only Hogwarts can protect you to the greatest extent possible."
"The professor is warning us." Hermione put down the letter, her gaze falling on the map. "It's a map of Hogwarts? And it even has the Hogwarts crest engraved on it."
"This looks like just an ordinary architectural drawing." She leaned closer to examine it, her finger tracing patterns on the map.
"Aside from describing the locations of various parts of the castle, secret passages, and magical nodes, there doesn't seem to be any other special information."
"Ordinary blueprints wouldn't warrant Professor Babbling's special attention." Draco walked to the table, took his wand from his pocket, and said, "Move aside, Hermione."
He drew his wand from his robes, pointed it to the center of the map, and muttered in a deep voice, " Specialis Revelio!"
The white light moved across the map.
Hermione held her breath and stared intently, but apart from the original building lines, there were still no changes on the map.
"No," Draco pointed to an inconspicuous corner of the map's northwest side, "There are tiny specks of starlight there... faint, but definitely twinkling."
Hermione followed his finger and exclaimed in surprise, "That's... the Restricted Section? And the deepest underground area?"
"It seems the answer isn't in the vault, but in the Restricted Section." Draco put away his wand, his eyes sharpening.
"We have to go there."
The two cast Disillusionment Charm, their bodies enveloped in a pale blue aura, and their figures instantly disappeared into the shadows.
They stealthily infiltrated the Restricted Section, descended the spiral staircase, and reached the rarely visited underground area.
A portal resembling a vault had appeared, but it was currently dark and could not be opened.
Draco recalled his experience in the vault, saying:
"This kind of portal needs to resonate with the Wellspring of Magic to activate." As he spoke, he raised his wand, cast Specialis Revelio again, and scanned the surrounding environment.
Sure enough, behind the stone pillar next to the portal, a faint blue light flickered—that was the Wellspring of Magic!
Draco pulled Hermione along quickly, channeling his magic to resonate with the geyser.
"Buzz--"
With a soft sound, the portal instantly lit up with a dazzling blue light, and mysterious energy surged within.
"The portal is lit up!" Hermione exclaimed.
Draco turned around and saw that the once lifeless obsidian door was now bursting with a dazzling blue light.
"Let's go," Draco said, squeezing her hand.
The two stepped into the portal, which shimmered with blue light, one after the other, and instantly disappeared underground in the Restricted Section.