Herman didn't want to continue, but winning was too easy, so he didn't think much of it, drew another card, and won again without a doubt.
Peeves approached with a grim expression and whispered, "Don't go out at night these days. Some professors patrol frequently at night."
Herman almost burst out laughing after hearing that, "I already knew that even if you didn't say it."
Seeing that he wasn't interested, Peeves eagerly raised the stakes. "Then what secret do you want to know? I know everything! Let's bet another round!"
Herman was about to subconsciously agree when he suddenly felt a slight warmth emanating from the deck of cards in his hand, instantly bringing him to his senses.
He glanced down at the deck of cards and his heart skipped a beat. He felt like he was being influenced by the cards. Just like the shopkeeper had said, those who held the cards would eventually suffer the consequences. Perhaps it wasn't the cards themselves that were harmful, but having such a deck of cards made it hard to stop once you started gambling, and sooner or later, problems would arise.
Herman put the cards in his pocket and stopped looking at them. "No, just keep your promise. If anyone asks, just say you were the one making those noises in the hallway."
After saying that, he turned and left. Peeves chased after him down several corridors, shouting "One more round!" Herman didn't turn his head. After shouting for a while and seeing that he ignored him, Peeves pouted and floated away.
Herman continued up to the Seventh Floor, this time without encountering any further trouble. He circled the Seventh Floor twice, passing a tapestry depicting Troll in a skirt struggling to spin, then passed it again, and then circled back once more.
He remembered that the original story said that the premise of the Room of Requirement is that you really need it, and if someone has already used the room, you can't get in even if you go three times.
However, if the room you want is the same as the room requested by the person already there, you can enter the same room, so you need to add a setting when requesting a room.
Following the method he remembered, he walked back and forth in front of the tapestry three times, repeatedly thinking: I need a quiet room that is all my own, where no one but Herman Horace can come in.
When I finished walking through it for the third time, a door appeared in the wall. The door panel was made of dark wood, and the handle was brass. It didn't look new, but it wasn't old either, as if it had been waiting there for a while.
Herman paused in front of the door for a moment, then grasped the handle and pushed it open.
The space inside the door was larger than he had imagined. The floor was made of thick wooden planks, and it didn't make much noise when he stepped on it. There was a wide open space in the center of the room, and several rows of wooden mannequins stood in the four corners. Some were holding swords, some were holding shields, and some were standing quietly with nothing on them.
The dummy's surface was pitted and battered, indicating it had been used by many people. In the corner, there was a bench with several rolls of old bandages and a few bottles of unidentified medicine on it.
The room was a bit smaller than the classroom, but spacious enough for one person to practice.
Herman stood in the center of the room, stretched his wrists, and focused his attention on the row of wooden mannequins in the corner.
He took a deep breath and spread his attention outward, his senses spreading out like a net, enveloping the nearest bench.
The bench wobbled, then lifted off the ground, hovering in mid-air before swaying and flying towards the dummy. It struck the dummy's chest with a thud, bounced off, and landed on the ground. The dummy wobbled a few times before regaining its balance.
Herman frowned; the pressure wasn't enough.
He refocused his attention and this time lifted both benches simultaneously, using them to sandwich the dummy from the left and right.
The impact of the two benches hitting each other was much stronger, causing the dummy to lean back slightly, but it didn't fall over and returned to its original position after regaining its balance.
Herman watched as the dented piece of wood on the dummy's chest slowly bounced back, the dented edges bulging out again within seconds, returning to their flat state.
He tried a few more times, expanding the area of control and throwing tables and chairs around the dummy. Various shapes of dents and cracks were smashed into the dummy, but after each destruction, the marks would slowly disappear, as if an unseen force was repairing it.
It seems this dummy also possesses magic, capable of self-repair. No wonder it's made by the Room of Requirement. I just wonder what kind of magic caused those marks on the dummy, preventing it from healing itself.
I wonder when I'll be able to inflict such damage on a dummy.
After practicing several more times, a sudden wave of dizziness hit Herman, who quickly stopped and leaned against the wall to catch his breath.
Overwhelmed with excitement, he seemed unaware of the drain on his magic power, which had already exceeded his usual limits.
After the dizziness subsided, my head started to throb, my temples throbbed as if something was being pulled out of me, and all my strength seemed to drain away.
Herman, leaning against the wall, glanced around and realized he had smashed all the chairs. He thought to himself, "You really shouldn't waste things like this; isn't this karma coming my way?"
Finally Herman could only sit down against the wall, close his eyes for a while, and wait for the throbbing pain to subside a bit before slowly opening them again.
He recalled that when he used this ability in Cokeworth before, he usually only used it once or twice before stopping, after all, a human life is only once.
Even when I practice on my own, I've never used it so many times in a row. I'd stop and rest after about half the number of times, and I've only been handling small items. I chose playing cards because they're light.
Based on his own understanding, his magic power had not increased. A wizard's magic power increases with age, and under normal circumstances, there is no possibility of a sudden increase unless there is some extraordinary encounter.
But the number of uses has indeed increased, so there seems to be only one possible reason.
Compared to his previous crude usage, he now uses the magical path of the Levitation Charm and his experience to optimize his abilities. He can now produce the same output more precisely and with less effort, just like replacing a water pipe with a thinner and straighter one. The water pressure is the same, but the water flow is more concentrated, resulting in a better effect.
That's probably why he overlooked the rate at which his magic power was depleting, and the excessive use of it overloaded his brain.
He leaned against the wall to rest for a while, thinking that if he had any extra magic power, he could try using Transfiguration to Transfiguration or Transfiguration of the tables and chairs. This would be more effective than simply smashing them with telekinesis.
But that's clearly not going to work today. My magic reserves are almost depleted, and if I force myself to use it again, I'll probably just pass out.
Herman's gaze fell on the short sword held in the dummy's hand.
Since the Transfiguration magic has failed, let's try object manipulation instead.
He tried to use his remaining magic to grab the sword, attempting to pull it from the dummy's hand. As his magic wrapped around the hilt, he felt a distinct resistance, as if the sword was being held in place by something. When he pushed it with his psychic power, he hit a thin membrane, making it much more difficult than controlling a chair in mid-air.
He increased his output, and the hilt of the sword wobbled slightly, but it didn't slip from his grasp. The resistance remained firmly in place, and he couldn't budge it no matter what he did.
Herman paused for a moment, then withdrew his telekinesis.
Does even magic apply property law, with private property being sacred and inviolable?