However, the oil lamp's light was indeed too dim, and Herman couldn't help but mutter, "Using this light for a long time will definitely affect my eyesight."
Draco finally couldn't hold back any longer and retorted, "You're a wizard! When you go blind, I'll replace your eyes with those of little Goblin. You won't even need an oil lamp; they can serve their master in the dark."
Herman paused for two seconds, then said, "Okay, this is magical; there's no need to worry about rejection at all."
The three of them walked slowly and quietly through several corridors and two staircases, their arms around each other's shoulders. Harry's route was clearly carefully planned; she led them away from all the main passages, taking narrow paths hidden behind tapestries or beside bookshelves. Some sections of the path were even covered with a thick layer of dust, obviously corners that were rarely visited.
They didn't encounter a single professor, not even Filch's cat.
Herman began to believe that Harry's earlier statement about "seeing it several times" wasn't just a casual remark; she truly knew the castle's night patrol patterns very well.
Harry quickly stopped, and Herman looked over her shoulder; in front of her was that familiar, heavy wooden door.
The door was made of brown oak planks, edged with a ring of slightly rusted iron bars. There was no handle on the door, only a round metal hole, which gleamed dimly in the dim blue light of the oil lamp.
Harry let go of her dry hand, picked up the oil lamp and shone it on the door, then reached out to push the door open.
Herman, quick as a flash, stopped her. "Wait."
Harry's hand froze in mid-air as she turned to look at him.
Herman explained, "I'll do it, just in case there's any danger."
Harry glanced at him, her gaze unreadable, as if she were wondering what Herman was up to. Surely he wasn't worried about her? With his skills, after all? But Harry didn't refuse. She withdrew her hand and stepped aside to make room for him.
Herman guessed that the situation inside would most likely be the same as in the original story, with the first obstacle being Cerberus, and that the door itself should be fine and there shouldn't be any magical traps.
But it's better to be cautious, after all, if Harry were injured here, even with just a scratch, Snape knew he wouldn't let her off the hook if he was there.
Herman stepped forward, opened his small bag, and took out a few items.
A short sword, about half an arm's length long, its blade gleaming with a dark metallic sheen in the lamplight.
It was a small shield, indeed not very big, round, not much bigger than his head, with fine Goblin patterns engraved on its surface.
There was also a deck of cards, with dark red edges.
Draco leaned over to watch for a while, tilted her head and pondered for a moment, then asked seriously, "Do you want to play cards? Let's play back in the common room, or you can play in your dorm."
Upon hearing the words "playing cards in the dorm," Herman's mind involuntarily wandered in a certain direction, but he quickly realized the context and shook his head, lowering his voice to say, "Next time, next time."
Then he quickly stuffed the playing cards back into his bag.
That deck of cards was something I'd just casually packed in; it was in the same spot in my suitcase as the short sword and shield.
He gripped the short sword in his right hand, the small shield wedged against his left forearm, then took a deep breath, took a serious step forward, used the shield to brace against the door, and tried to push it open.
The door didn't budge an inch, not even a tremor.
There was a two-second silence in the corridor. Herman pushed the door again, but it remained unmoved.
Harry's voice drifted over from the side, carrying a clearly suppressed laugh, "This door is locked, otherwise anyone passing by could just push it open and go in."
Herman remained in the shield-holding stance, his ears slightly burning, but he didn't turn around. "I know, I was just testing to see if there were any traps."
He sheathed his shield and stepped aside to make room for Harry. "Could you please unlock this? I'm holding something and it's inconvenient for me to cast spells."
Harry stepped forward, took out her wand, and pointed it at the lock. A faint gray light shone from the tip of the wand. " Alohomora."
As she chanted the incantation, a crisp click came from inside the lock, as if something had loosened on the inside.
Harry put away her wand and glanced back at Herman:
"Luckily, this lock is just a regular lock, without any magical protection, otherwise it would have been really difficult to open."
Herman nodded, gripped his short sword tightly again, took a step forward, and placed his hand on the door.
He took a deep breath and pushed open the door.
The door hinges emitted a deep, drawn-out creak that sounded particularly jarring in the silent corridor.
The door was opened wider and wider, and a strong, fishy stench poured out from the crack, like damp dog fur mixed with raw meat and some other stale smell.
Herman took a step forward, and the light from the oil lamp shone into the space inside the doorway, illuminating the gravel on the ground and the dirty floor, as well as six wide-open eyes staring at him.
Three dog heads, each large enough to swallow him whole, six eyes glowing a dark yellow in the eerie blue firelight, pupils contracted into vertical slits, staring at him without blinking.
They had clearly heard the commotion outside the door long ago; all three mouths were slightly open, revealing jagged, sharp teeth, and saliva dripped from the corners of their mouths onto the ground with a soft sound.
The three heads were huddled together, motionless, probably not yet having decided who would speak first.
Herman stood in the doorway for about two seconds, then took a step back and closed the door.
The wooden door slammed shut with a dull thud, shutting out the stench and the six eyes behind it.
He turned to look at Harry and Draco, his expression calm. "There's no danger, just a dog with three heads. It's not very big, just big enough for one of my heads to fit in one bite. They probably haven't decided who will eat me yet, so they haven't started eating."
Draco didn't believe it. She frowned, took two steps forward, pushed open the door that Herman hadn't fully closed yet, and peeked inside.
Then her movements froze for about a second, and then she recoiled as if bounced back, slamming the door shut with a loud bang.
She turned around, her expression mirroring Herman's from before. "It is indeed very large."
Herman, seeing Draco's forced composure but clearly weak legs, suddenly felt much better. He turned to Harry and said, "Why don't you take a look too? Don't you like dogs?"
Harry glanced at him, neither replying nor refusing.
She stepped forward, pushed the door open a crack, and squeezed in sideways.
Herman and Draco stood outside the door and heard a low snoring sound coming from inside, followed by the sound of claws scraping the ground, and then a very restrained, almost inaudible gasp.
A few seconds later, Harry stepped out, and the door closed behind her.
Herman noticed that Harry's expression hadn't changed much, but her breathing was a beat faster than before. She reached up and brushed a stray strand of hair behind her ear, then said, "Actually, I don't really like these weird-looking dogs either. Three heads are a bit too much."