【Zhou Jia】self-punisher.

"Of course, it's impossible for that kind of Muggle to enter Slytherin..."

The train passed through a tunnel filled with cold wind, and the temperature suddenly dropped as if it had entered the esophagus of a giant snake.The light leaking in from between the stained latticed glass is mottled like coffee bean residues that have been penetrated through the filter, and there is a rotten smell.The narrow space was packed like sardines with suitcases of different sizes. Students of different grades were mostly dressed in fashionable summer clothes in London. When the train arrived at the station, there were not many opportunities to wear casual clothes.This made the white-haired boy, who was trying to squeeze his way out of the crowd, look even more out of place.

It's not just because he's wearing a shabby black wizard robe - the short cuffs also reveal a cold white wrist.More are the rumors surrounding him, but the boy has long been used to the sight of those secretly watching him.A boy named Karna carried a cage containing an owl the size of a fist, and the excited little briquettes——this palm-sized little guy covered in black feathers just pecked his finger.He brushed the sweat-soaked hair from his forehead, and opened the half-closed trap door of the last car.

It had been four years since he had received his first acceptance letter from Hogwarts.Until now, he had some doubts, whether the messenger had dropped in the wrong mailbox - his parents had always been stubborn in their views, they were firm pragmatists, and the wizarding world was far outside it.Originally, he had no hope of being able to enter Hogwarts, but in the end the school agreed to reduce tuition fees and provide scholarships, which made his father make a decision without hesitation.

As long as it was free, it didn't make much difference to them whether Karna went off to learn how to fix cars or foolishly waved a magic wand to juggle.

As soon as the trap door opened a gap, the earth-shattering laughter gushed out like a tsunami, almost overshadowing the huge collision sound of the train wheel shaft in operation.The luxurious interior is as luxurious as the presidential suite of a high-end hotel. The red velvet cushions are covered with a layer of fresh rose petals. Even the wooden floor that was originally covered with cracks like spider webs is covered tightly by the cashmere blanket that does not stain a trace of dust. .The blond boy with his legs crossed and occupying most of the carriage did not change into a wizard robe, but wore a leopard-print silk shirt and pointed leather shoes. His short, well-trimmed hair was not messy, and he blended harmoniously with the background. One.

"Hey, Karna." The blond boy put his legs down leisurely, leaving a space where only one person could sit.He raised his chin and pointed towards the opposite side, signaling Ozymandis on the opposite side to remove the wine soaked in ice water, so as to leave a place for Karna to put his poor suitcase.

"Sorry for the interruption." Karna closed the door expressionlessly, and was about to go to another box to try his luck again, when his calf was lightly touched by a small trolley full of various snacks.The flight attendant showed a formulaic smile as if he had just discovered him, unfolded the new sweets on the top layer, bent his eyes and leaned in front of Karna, "Honey, do you want to try the new package of chocolate frogs, the improved version?" But there is a completely different experience before, it melts in the mouth..."

"Don't waste your efforts." A head poked out from a box not far away, it was a freckle-faced girl with a ponytail.She cast a malicious look at the boy who was hesitating on the spot, and said with a smile, "He has no money to take care of your business. Even the tuition fees have to be subsidized. Hey Karna, he will help me with my homework next semester to earn some money." Pocket money?"

The flight attendant touched his nose in a sudden realization, and unnaturally put the snack in his hand back into the cart.The door of the closed carriage in front of him suddenly opened completely with a "bang", and dozens of Galleons jingled and fell around the cart like a golden rain.Gilgamesh, who kept his original leisurely sitting posture, rested his chin, put down the wand in his hand, and smiled arrogantly at the flight attendant, "I want everything, move it in for me—be careful of the soles of your shoes."

Ten minutes later, Gilgamesh resists the urge to throw the damned owl, watching as Karna carefully unwraps the cheap chocolate wrappers and diverts the influx of pauper desserts to Ozymandis in disgust. that side.The latter also ate with Karna without taste, and even kindly invited him to join their so-called tea time-of course he completely ignored it.

Many people thought it was incredible that the two of them could be friends with Karna.Chi, the world's vision is too narrow.Of course, Gilgamesh and Ozymandis, who came from the ancient family of pure-blood wizards, were rightly labeled as Slytherin in advance.Even being sorted into Gryffindor by some nasty, unfortunate "accident" at Orientation shouldn't have much in common with poor Muggle-borns.Four years of boring college life passed by in a flash, but Karna did not make him feel tired, which was an experience he had never had in life.

His thoughts didn't stay for long.Karna spread out the crumpled newspaper, and was carefully reading every word on it, from the ridiculous new regulations issued by the Ministry of Magic to the new hairstyles of Quidditch star players, as if studying a paper with incredible seriousness.After finishing reading, he turned to the front page again, and his eyes fell on the black mist at the front.

"Wanted warrant." Ozymandis pointed at the center of the condensed mist with his index finger. When touched, the mist instantly spread to the surroundings, like a disturbed drop of ink, "I heard that there is a vicious The gangster escaped from Azkaban—like an elephant swaggering out of a circus, hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha, been away for three days and almost broke the record for fools kept by the Ministry of Magic."

Karna thought to himself, if the suspect is found according to the appearance of this photo, the little coal ball will suffer.He was about to ask why there was only a black shadow in the photo, but all the lights in the car disappeared in an instant, and his eyes were suddenly pitch black.Karna stood where he was, as if something had leaked from the top of the carriage, and passed right through his body, as if the valve to the winter had been opened, causing his whole body to shiver.The internal organs seemed to have just been fished out of the refrigerator, and the fingers were so numb that they almost lost consciousness.

"Hiss..." A mouth full of fangs was exposed from the suddenly opened hood—if it could be called an organ, it was exactly the same as the photo on the wanted warrant.

The heart throbbed suddenly as if being clenched tightly, and the whole body seemed to be under the petrification spell.But an inch before the fangs were attached, a cluster of bright golden light instantly tore through the void, reflecting Gilgamesh's jewel-like scarlet eyes.He didn't chant a spell, he didn't even move his lips, he just raised his wand indifferently, and the light that erupted from it caused Karna's body temperature to rise sharply.

The rays of light formed a circular arc as if alive, and finally filled the entire carriage, bubbling like flowing liquid gold.Gilgamesh lazily shifted his hands to support his face, and began to silently chant an unknown spell.The incomplete barrier suddenly blocked the black shadows outside, and the shadows that could not find a gap came out coherently like a tide, and rushed towards other compartments silently.

"Oh my god, it's Soul Eater!" Someone screamed in an instant, and the whole car body boiled like a drop of boiling oil.Numerous movable doors were pulled open at the same time, and the students stumbled and escaped from inside.The commotion of the entire carriage shook, and it was almost impossible to hear the content of the emergency broadcast.Gilgamesh put down the wand in his hand, and the thin layer of enchantment turned into golden debris and disappeared in a blink of an eye.

"How are you?" He turned his head and glanced at Karna who was still standing there.Under the re-lit light, the boy wearing the golden earring came back to his senses as if he had just woken up from a dream, as if there was nothing abnormal at all.He wondered inwardly—it wasn't his spell that actually dispelled the Eater of Souls just now, but Karna himself.The moment they touched that body, they receded as if being rebounded.

Karna seemed to say something, but he was interrupted by loud voices, messy footsteps and screams outside the door.Just like mindless scum—Gilgamesh was tired of thinking about writing another application to take the special bus to school next time.Owls, crowds, owls, snakes, owls, screaming children.These always upset him.

"Expect to Patronum!"

Four carriages away from the place where the golden light shone, an equally dazzling silver light suddenly lit up in the originally pitch-black space.After rising slowly from the bottom, it suddenly went straight to the sky, and the shape that hovered upward was a huge python with a body as thick as a train.The burst of light formed a vortex, causing the ghostly lingering Soul Eater to retreat rapidly towards the edge of the vortex, and finally left the originally occupied crowd far away as if burnt by flames.

Although they were not harmed, the students around the light instinctively fled to the surroundings, leaving an empty area in the middle.The young man standing in the center wore a wrinkle-free wizard robe, and a white cloak stretched to the ground on his shoulders.He lowered the wand in his hand as if no one else was there, wiped it clean with a handkerchief slowly and put it back in his sleeve.But it was only for a moment that he could see his face clearly—then the crowd rushed up again, and only his voice could be heard from a distance.

"Arjuna! Where did you learn to use this spell! You are only in the third grade...it's too dangerous, this matter should wait for our teacher to deal with..."

"I'm sorry, I'm presumptuous. It's just that this classmate is about to faint... Don't worry, she couldn't hold on before being touched. It happened suddenly, and I just wanted to try it out. I didn't expect It worked."

"I didn't mean to accuse you...you did a good job." The female teacher's voice stammered a little, "I should say thank you for avoiding a worse situation before I rushed here...after school I will report it to the principal, don't worry, I won't blame... blame you."

"What a showy brat." Gilgamesh sneered, and closed the movable door of the carriage noncommittally, and the noisy voice was completely shut out of the thin plank wall. "Totally unflattering... Hiss, bloody owl."

Karna brought back the little briquette that had almost been murdered, and smoothed its hair with his fingertips.Although he only had a glimpse from a distance, he always felt that the other person's facial features seemed familiar, and his name was also very familiar. "This is probably the habit of pure-blood families—he is also your junior."

Although he didn't mean to be sarcastic when he spoke, the two ancient factions on the opposite side suddenly had the illusion of being shot in the knee.Ozymandis took a bite of a Bibido-flavored bean, but immediately spat it out with a frown. "Oh, you should have heard of him - the prefect of the third year of Slytherin, always very serious, you want to try one?"

Arjuna.

The name instantly matched the image in my impression.However, the reputation among the teachers and students was not as bad as the two seniors in front of me said, on the contrary, it was almost one-sided praise.It is said that a child who is extremely talented in every subject is completely blameless in both academics and popularity-except for divination class.But who can get high marks from a crazy classroom teacher?

Except for Gilgamesh.He was the only student who was well received by the divination teacher and was enthusiastically invited to visit the tea stalk collection room—of course he flatly refused: "The so-called divination and prophecy are all deceitful and boring tricks."

The carriage shook violently, splashing some lemon juice, which wet the hem of Karna's wizard robe.The dense shape seemed to outline a map with blurred edges, which made Gilgamesh raise his eyebrows slightly.Karna didn't care about the insignificant details, he remembered the shape of the snake, as if it was a totem of a foreign race rising from the void.

Dimming light signaled the end of day.The train carrying more than 300 students is like a sleeping snake slough, surrounded by countless tiny fan reptiles and sneaking forward.The dense black night shone with a faint tail light, like a firefly that was about to go out.The tidal gravity pulls the sea towards the distance, and the remaining salt particles break free from the wet sand, as if a frosty crust has condensed on the tidal flat.

The crawling creature hidden in countless corners of the world stretched out, whispering in the direction where the soft white light disappeared.

The man in the hood stood on the top floor of Hogwarts, overlooking the car body that looked like a huge coffin.He dispelled the green snake that was rubbing its head flatteringly at the hem of his clothes in disgust, and disappeared into the night like mist in a blink of an eye.

----------

"It was a serious accident and I am writing to the Ministry of Magic to complain..."

For a whole week after school started, Hogwarts was immersed in a tense atmosphere.Even the most mischievous students had to settle down for several days, the professors were absent-minded when deducting points, and the strictest old teachers even forgot to leave their homework several times.

Chisha Rama opened the door of the principal's office, rubbed his sore brows and was about to go out when he saw the proud student standing one step away.He immediately put away his tired expression, and asked in his usual polite tone, "Have you checked everything?"

"Yes, sir." Karna handed back a long bunch of keys to him—since the administrator of the school fell ill for no reason a few days ago, the duty of inspecting the security of the castle gate has been temporarily handed over to Rama .On the same day, he had a closed-door discussion with the principal, and Rama temporarily let him take over this task.In his eyes, this fourth-grade student is the most stable and reliable student he has ever taught, even far better than most of his colleagues.

"Can I trouble you to run again? Before going back to the dormitory, go to the Slytherin lounge to see if the secret passage next to it is completely closed. I always feel that there are students doing sabotage there recently." He held his hand Leaning on Karna's shoulders, staring into those emerald green eyes, the originally tense expression on his face gradually eased.His lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but he held back in the end.

"Thanks a lot."

Not even the dimmest star is in the silent night sky.The pure white snowy owl, which just returned from afar, flickered its wings and drew smooth lines across the sky. It shook off the wet water droplets that condensed on its feathers, and passed lightly in front of the only window that was still lit.The autumn leaves of sorrel were blown by the airflow brought by it when it flew, and they whirled and stayed in a strand of light drawn from the room.

Karna closed the awning and shut out the remaining light in the castle.The secret passage mentioned by Chisha Rama had been sealed, but the unexpected result was the discovery of a window that had been opened for a while, probably by some student who accidentally opened it when he was out for a walk.It was nearly ten o'clock at this time, and the entire corridor seemed empty without a single sound, so when there were whispers behind him, he paused before turning around.

"good evening."

In the shadow at the corner of the stairs, a black-haired boy with sharp eyes turned obliquely.A silver prefect badge was pinned to his chest, and the serpentine relief shone coldly in the cold light filtered by the dome.He unhurriedly tucked the exposed pocket watch strap into his cuffs, and walked down the spiral steps step by step, his heels colliding with the ground to create a hollow echo.

He stopped on the last step, staring at Karna's face from a few centimeters higher angle, as if looking at something unclean.The window behind him was suddenly blown open by the cold wind, making his loose black robe flutter.After keeping his eyes on for a few seconds, his originally complicated expression turned into a friendly one, and his tone was just right so that no one would feel the slightest resentment.

"Nice to meet, Senior Karna."

"Sorry, did I interrupt you to rest?" Karna looked at the dark door behind him - Slytherin's lounge.The sound of closing the window just now may have been a bit loud, and any sound in the arc-shaped room may be amplified countless times.

"Be careful, senior. Uninvited guests are very dangerous." The black-haired boy's tone was light, like a ray of cold wind passing over the surface of a glacier.He took another step forward, and the thick book in his hand was tilted to the side, revealing the faded gilt foreign characters.He bent his fingers, and touched the jewelry hanging under the ear of the other party, "Instead of worrying about trivial matters that have nothing to do with yourself, why not observe the changes around you. If I were you——"

He brushed past Karna, smiling slightly as he paused at his side.

"Get out of this school immediately. This is not a place for people like you."

"Goodbye, senior. Looking forward to meeting you next time."

-TBC-