A ruined Hogwarts

Looking up at the eagle head sculpture close at hand on the stone platform, Owen smiled and said, "I choose to exchange the knowledge of the future for an answer."

The ground shook again, and the five surrounding bookshelves sank suddenly, sinking into the marble floor without leaving any trace. At the same time, the black quill quickly scratched across the parchment and wrote the answer to a question.

Looking at this spectacular momentum, even with Owen's determination, he couldn't help but feel a sense of heartache, as if his heart was held by an invisible big hand. That was the knowledge he was about to put into his pocket, and so much was gone in one fell swoop!

"Continue, I still make the same choice." Owen glanced at the surrounding bookshelves and said firmly.

Although the best choice is to exchange his existing knowledge, because it can be replenished, Owen can always clearly realize that only the knowledge in his brain belongs completely to him and is his support. . And those books outside, no matter how profound and precious they were, didn't really belong to him at the moment, even though Metis said Owen was going to get them.

And, allowing a magic item to drain away the knowledge from your mind? Who knows if it might draw something else away! Owen couldn't trust him unreservedly, even if it was something left by Ravenclaw!

"Besides..." Owen glanced at the eagle head sculpture again, with a knowing smile in his eyes. He may have understood the meaning of this test.

Five more bookshelves sank into the ground, and he said calmly: "Continue!"

The rumbling sound is endless, and there are fewer and fewer blank questions on the parchment. By the time the parchment was filled with beautiful fonts, half of the surrounding bookshelf had been reduced.

"I'm done, Metis." Owen took a step back, his smile flawless and elegant.

The parchment burned quietly on the stone platform, leaving not even a trace of ashes in the end. The sapphire eyes of the eagle-head sculpture flickered for a while, and a pleasant female voice with a hint of joy came out: "Congratulations on passing the test. You are the thirty-third one in so many years."

An illusory ancient book with a white shimmer slowly floated out from the stone platform. The pages of the book were opened with a splash, and a page with complicated mysterious black patterns on the edge floated towards Owen, floating up and down in front of him. Several lines of blue ancient runic writing appeared on the page, flickering as if they were alive.

"You have been recognized. Please put your right fist on your chest, swear an oath to Ravenclaw, and then leave your name in the Book of Inheritance." Metis said happily.

"Oath and then signature?" Owen tilted his head back slightly and looked at the handwriting on the page.

"I will carry out the will of Ravenclaw and uphold wisdom and justice; I will inherit the wisdom of Ravenclaw and remain curious and awe; I will pursue knowledge until death..."

Owen looked deeply at the eagle-head sculpture, and Metis's voice came slowly: "This is not a magical oath, it is just an oath to your heart, a self-created creed... Ravenclaw hopes that his The inheritors must have their own perseverance.”

"Tsk, tsk, although this creed is quite normal, even if I don't agree with it in my heart, it doesn't matter if I lie to you for the sake of inheritance. It has no magical effect anyway..." Owen stared at the sapphire eyes of the eagle head and said slowly, "But words can't be said. You can't make random promises, what if they come true?"

He looked at the pages in front of him again and curled his lips slightly: "Besides, all the books have warned us not to leave our names or marks that represent ourselves in magical places, because you don't know if it will Is it a contract or a curse..." Especially some bastards like to hide the contents of the contract in inconspicuous patterns, or shrink it so much that it cannot be distinguished by the naked eye!

"Do you think Ravenclaw would harm his own students?" Metis just asked, "You are too cautious, little one." She said, and the ancient book that glowed with white light slowly turned the pages, allowing Owen to I saw a personal name before him.

"Ravenclaw may not harm me, but you may not." Owen saw everything and just said with a smile.

"Then, make your choice." Metis did not force it. The gorgeous door quietly appeared behind Irving, and it was the door he walked in. “Get a legacy, or leave it.”

Owen stared at the eagle-head sculpture that was always solemn and indifferent, and then looked up at the beautiful but stern face of the Ravenclaw statue. After smiling, he turned around and walked towards the gorgeous bronze door without hesitation. .

Under Metis's silent gaze, the door slid open silently. Owen waved his hand, then walked in directly.

There was a moment of trance before Owen's eyes, and he looked around, only to realize that he still saw a familiar circular room in front of him. Snow-white clouds were floating in the sky outside the transparent dome, and the sunlight shining in was bright and warm.

Melete squatted on his shoulder, raised her little paws and patted his cheeks with her soft flesh pads, her golden eyes full of doubts and curiosity. After noticing Owen looking at her, she yawned, jumped off his shoulders lightly, and walked slowly towards the marble statue of Ravenclaw with elegant cat steps.

Owen blinked, wiped his cheeks that were imprinted with pink plum blossoms on the pads, and then turned to look at the door behind him. It was obvious that he had just walked out of it, but it seemed as if he had just walked into this secret room.

There seems to be no change in the circular room, but it also seems to have changed a lot. The surrounding bookshelves stood there silently, but those that sank into the ground have returned. The books suspended in front of the statue have disappeared, and the Métis eagle-head sculpture remains silent and solemn.

"Welcome, inheritor." Métis's voice came from the sculpture, still as graceful as a song.

Owen looked at everything around him and said suddenly: "The test just now was an illusion?" He had even forgotten Melete at that time.

"Everything is an illusion, but how can it not be real?" Metis said softly.

"Then I passed the test?" Owen approached with a smile, and Melet was spinning lazily at his feet, rubbing his ankles with her back.

"Yes, it seems that you have discovered the nature of the test a long time ago." Metis said in a brisk tone.

"I just found that this test is not only a test of wisdom and knowledge, but more of a test of character." Owen said in a calm tone, "I think that the self-created curse is a test of reason and awe, caution and harmony. Smart. If anyone is injured while trying to create a powerful spell without any knowledge of himself, he will be eliminated."

"That exam was more about seeing clearly the tester's greed for knowledge between choices. The same is true for the oath, but it also added inner torture."

"Of course, for those who have been extremely sober from beginning to end, all these tests are just tricks that can be seen through." Owen said slowly, looking around at the bookshelves.

"Yes, only those who are persistent and greedy enough for knowledge can find this place, but only the most sober or least greedy among them can get the real inheritance." Metis said in an aria-like tone, "This is That’s how Ravenclaw designed all of this.”

"I'm curious, what would have happened if I had taken the oath?" Owen asked with a half-smile.

"Then you can get the remaining parts of the book collection as you wish." Metis said calmly, "In fact, after you pass the test of your self-created spell, you are already qualified to obtain them. After all, Ravenc The purpose of Lao leaving this secret room is not to seal the knowledge, but to pass it on."

"But you won't leave the most precious part to me, right?" Owen nodded understandingly.

"Yes, in the past thousand years, only six people have truly passed the test." Metis said softly, "Ravenclaw finally understood before his death that the endless thirst for knowledge will only bring tragedy... In a way, she died from her greed for knowledge."

"Therefore, when designing this secret room, she focused the test on character and will."

Metis fell into silence, but the ground shook slightly again. A circle of more ornate black carved bookshelves rose up from under the floor. They were taller and more solemn than the other bookshelves, and the rows of thick books were full of mysterious and ancient historical charm.

"They contain profound knowledge in various fields, including lost ancient books, mysterious and profound spells, and Ravenclaw's own research results, both complete and unfinished." Metis introduced dutifully. .

All books are placed on different bookshelves in different categories, including magic, alchemy, potions, etc., covering various fields.

Owen stood in front of the Charms bookshelf, identifying the titles on the spines one by one. This bookshelf seems to be so big, but there are quite a lot of books inside. It should be the effect of the Traceless Stretching Charm. It is also divided into many small categories, such as spell theory, spell advancement and application, general magic, black and white magic, etc.

Finding Owen standing in front of the Charms bookshelf with great interest, Metis admonished him seriously:

"Please do not rely on the "Seven-Point Construction Method of Magic Runes" you learned during the test, and please do not publish it. It will only kill the wizard's curiosity and creativity, and will eventually become an improvement in the long run. It was a stumbling block, and it was precisely for this reason that Ravenclaw chose to seal it."

"I know." Owen nodded. He didn't value that thing very much.

"You can take a look at the top book "The Mystery of Magic" first." Metis said happily, "I think it should be helpful to you."