Good News and Bad News

Hermione took the key, inserted it into the lock, and gave it a sharp turn. With a click, the lock popped open.

They pushed the door open, and the room was pitch black; they couldn't see anything.

But as soon as they stepped inside, the room suddenly came brightly lit, illuminating a shocking scene.

They stood around a huge Wizard's Chess, with black chess pieces in front of them, all taller than them, and seemingly carved from black stone or something similar.

At the other end of the room, facing them, were some white chess pieces.

"Do we need to play chess?" George asked, frowning.

"That should be it. Probably if you win, the door to the opposite room will open." Fred nodded.

Cedric and William exchanged a glance. He raised an eyebrow and chuckled, "There's no doubt it's Professor McGonagall's doing."

William shrugged. "Professor McGonagall, she always manages to come up with something new."

"Then who's coming down?" Qiu asked.

"I'll do it," William said.

They all knew how to play Wizard's Chess, and Cedric used to be the best at it.

However, since William spent two years in the time loop, he had some free time and spent his time playing Wizard's Chess with people.

From then on, Cedric was no match for William.

Moreover, William also spent two weeks studying at St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries and the three-time Wizard's Chess Champion, making his skills unmatched among his peers.

William knew several tricky tactics, and his forte was the Scotland Game and the France Defence.

However, he still plans to start with Scotland Game, as the France Defence sounds ominous and gives the impression of a shoddy construction project.

William and his companions each took the place of six pieces on the board. The six pieces that had left turned around, facing away from the white pieces, and left the board to watch the game from a distance.

The rule of the game is that white moves first. Soon, a white piece moves forward two squares.

William began directing the Black pieces in battle, while the others silently followed his commands.

William repeatedly used his black queen to capture his opponent's pieces.

Each time, the Black Queen would fiercely knock the White pieces to the floor, then grab the opponent by the foot and drag them off the board, heading towards a corner, before returning after a while.

For some reason, William always felt something was off whenever he saw this, as if the king was being cuckolded.

After playing for a while, William basically grasped his opponent's skill level. It wasn't particularly high; he could beat anyone with a slightly better skill level.

That's true. If the opponent were an AI of AlphaGo's caliber, William would also tremble and helplessly say, "I can't do it, I can't do it, I can't win, I really can't win."

When William led the knights to stand before the White King, the White King removed his crown and threw it at William's feet.

They won, and the white pieces bowed and retreated, making way for them.

But William did not leave immediately; instead, he continued to observe the chess pieces.

"What's wrong?" Cedric asked, walking over to William.

"I'm thinking these pieces... it's probably more than just Professor McGonagall using Transfiguration."

William pointed to the chessboard.

"Transfiguration Transfiguration an object, but for it to move, it requires the manipulation of a wizard."

Professor McGonagall was already asleep at this point. This enormous chess piece not only moved on its own, but it even played chess with us... This alone is Transfiguration couldn't accomplish."

"You mean..."

"These chess pieces must be the product of Transfiguration and Alchemy."

"Leaving aside the Transfiguration, the Alchemy processes involved really intrigue me." William touched the white king.

A Ravenclaw is someone who is always curious about what they don't know.

In this respect, William is undoubtedly qualified.

If he also learns this alchemical technique, he can create a batch of similar puppets to fight in his place.

The Wizarding World is undoubtedly dangerous, so increasing our combat strength is always a good thing.

For example, in the Gringotts incident, William couldn't always happen to receive support from Nicolas Flamel and Dumbledore.

A wizard's true strength lies in his own power, and Alchemy is one such form of power.

"I remember," Hermione suddenly said. "According to ' Hogwarts: A History,' this ancient castle contains a large number of statues and armor."

These things have been lying dormant in the corner, but when the ancient castle of Hogwarts is attacked, they will awaken, obey the headmaster's orders, defend the castle, protect the students, and fulfill their duties to the school!

William nodded and smiled, "That's right, it's a protective spell called ' Piertotum Locomotor.' I think Professor McGonagall probably created some gadgets based on those things."

So... what do you mean?

William laughed, and not only him, but Fred, George, and Cedric all laughed.

They came here on an adventure, so naturally they should get something out of it; they can't have come empty-handed, right?

"Once we figure it out, we can make a batch of powerful dolls and sell them," George chuckled.

"What if Professor McGonagall finds out?" Hermione asked, her face showing concern.

"Hermione, Professor Dumbledore does everything with a purpose."

Since he set up these levels, they certainly weren't just for fun or interest.

I guess he wanted to train the young wizards so we could learn more. We are learning, and these chess pieces are for that purpose."

"That's right, move them all out!" Qiu said earnestly.

Hermione was speechless; she always felt that these people were the Gryffindor.

The group hurriedly placed the stunned chess pieces into the pockets enlarged by the Undetectable Extension Charm.

Before leaving, William also packed the white king, who had removed his crown, into the bag.

Without the White King, probably no one can get through this chessboard to enter the room.

The pieces stood there dumbly, their instructions were to let the winner pass, but there was no instruction that the winner couldn't move the pieces.

The Black Queen stood alone, watching William and the others leave with an expressionless face.

What a pitiful queen!

Soon, they entered the next room, but it was empty.

As William said, this was a level that was not yet fully set up, and the previous key location lacked the tools to grab the key.

It seems Dumbledore is still considering it.

The group opened the next door. There was nothing scary here, just a table with seven bottles of different shapes on it.

As soon as William and his companions crossed the threshold, a burst of flames erupted behind them, sealing the entrance.

This flame was unusual; it was purple. At the same time, black flames leaped up from the doorway leading forward, trapping them in the middle.

"Oh, I have good news and bad news. Which one do you want to hear first?" William stared at the ball of black fire.

"I always like to suffer first and enjoy later, bad news!" Fred said.

"The bad news is... this is Fiendfyre, a form of Dark Magic, extremely dangerous; contact with it means certain death."

"What's the good news?"

"The fire is well under control and shows no signs of getting out of control. We are still safe."

George shrugged. "That's hardly good news. I thought you were going to say you could control this flame."

William rolled his eyes.

Do you think I'm the kind of person who would study Dark Magic?

"Yes!"

William suddenly smiled, "You're so good at judging people!"

Although he hasn't studied it yet, he will definitely do so in the future.

Every master of magic is also a master of Dark Magic, including Dumbledore and Professor Flitwick.

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