"HP: Too Late, System!"Chapter 280: Let's See Who Dares Pick the Food Ingredients
During the oath, no one sensed the slightest trace of magic. Clearly, it was just a bit of slogan-shouting—nothing more. Everyone let out a collective sigh of relief, silently agreeing that only Professor Holmes could dream up such a prank.
Myrtle caught their expressions and seemed to know exactly what they were thinking, but she still wore a sulky pout as she declared, "Given your lack of respect for the great guide, Myrtle, you'll be facing your first challenge before you even set foot in the Chamber. Please gather behind the statues."
Everyone obeyed, moving to the back of the statues, where a massive stone archway stood. The walls around them were covered in murals depicting the founding of Hogwarts.
It was obvious: to enter the Chamber, they'd need to use magic to open the arch. Instinctively, everyone looked to Myrtle for guidance.
She circled the stone arch in triumph, her voice brimming with pride. "Originally, you'd just have to pick your subject, answer a question from the archway, and breeze through the first round. But now, things are a bit more… complicated. See those round tiles on the floor around the arch? Give one a tap with your wand."
Percy was the first to act—he cast an Ironclad charm on himself, then gingerly tapped the nearest tile with his wand. The others raised their wands in unison, wary of whatever might happen next.
As soon as the wand touched the tile, a white light traced the cracks around it. The tile rose slowly, like a lift, until it formed a stone pedestal embedded with a pane of clear glass.
One Muggle-born student stared at the glowing text on the glass, frowning deeply. He couldn't help but wonder if he'd stumbled onto the wrong film set.
"This is…?"
Everyone turned to him. "You know what this is?"
He gave a wry smile. "I think I do, but I'm pretty sure this sort of thing doesn't belong in the wizarding world."
Myrtle piped up from above, "That person said this is an examination system. Just select your subject, and you'll get a hundred questions—one point each. Only if you score ninety or above will you see the spell that unlocks the real challenge.
And see that hourglass timer? That's how long you have to finish. Any unanswered questions when time runs out are counted as zero."
A collective groan rippled through the group. This definitely wasn't a Dumbledore challenge—it had Holmes written all over it. Who would've thought the reward for passing your exams was… taking another exam? If they'd known, they might not have tried so hard for those Outstandings.
But now that things had begun, no one was about to back down—especially not when it came to their best subjects.
Following Percy's lead, each person chose a tile and began answering questions.
Meanwhile, Myrtle floated overhead like a spectral invigilator, weaving through the air as she kept a watchful eye on everyone.
Elsewhere, in the closest classroom on the second floor, eight large mirrors had been set up—one of which displayed a live feed of the Chamber's entrance hall.
As this was the first run, all the professors involved in designing the challenges were present, each monitoring their own section and making mental notes of what might need tweaking.
Douglas had become the unofficial consultant for the entire operation, since most of the creative ideas had come from him.
"I think Herbology, Care of Magical Creatures, and Potions could be combined into a single comprehensive challenge," he suggested. "Each subject's round can offer three rewards. In the first round, they choose freely, but the second round will really test their Potions knowledge.
If they know their potion recipes well enough, they'll notice the connection between the rewards in both rounds. If they choose correctly, they'll have the chance to brew a perfect potion."
Professor Sprout and Hagrid were still considering the logistics when Snape gave a rare approving nod, a sly smile beginning to form—only for Douglas to add,
"Of course, we could toss in a few edible ingredients among the materials. Who knows, maybe they'll end up cooking something delicious."
At this, Snape's face fell in an instant. He let out a frosty snort. "I will not permit anyone to use a cauldron for… culinary experiments!"
Professor Sprout's eyes sparkled. "I could mix in some edible plants with the magical ones—see who has a sharp eye for the difference. Don't worry, Severus, I'll make sure the students have a proper pot for cooking."
Hagrid chimed in enthusiastically, "Brilliant idea! I'll slip in some food ingredients among the magical ones too—let's see if they can spot them."
Snape's eyes narrowed, his voice icy. "I will not be including any odd ingredients in my section. But I'll be watching to see who dares to pick food from my list."
Douglas just shrugged. "No problem. Potions class has already given them top-notch knife skills."
The temperature in the room seemed to drop several degrees.
Professor McGonagall cleared her throat. "Douglas, do you have any suggestions for the Transfiguration challenge?"
Douglas blinked. "Absolutely. I think we should eventually merge everything into one grand finale—Transfiguration could conjure up magical creatures and mix them in with real ones. Charms and Astronomy could team up to create a virtual starry sky—give them a real sense of awe…"
As the Heads of House and professors discussed the next round of challenges—
Elsewhere in the castle, Malfoy ran into Neville and immediately launched into mockery mode.
"Oh, look at us—real wizards. Yet some people spend every morning swinging a sword around. If you didn't know better, you'd think that sword was his wand!"
He and his cronies burst into laughter.
Neville was at a loss for words, unable to come up with a retort.
A classmate at his side couldn't stand it and shot back, "Are you talking about Professor Holmes?"
But Malfoy was ready. He smirked, "Of course not. What Professor Holmes does is sword dancing—his technique is beautiful. My father says it's probably an ancient wizarding art, passed down from centuries ago.
But him—he just flails around, swinging in one direction. Looks like Professor Holmes saw early on you weren't cut out for wizardry.
Otherwise, why did he give the rest of us magical items but only teach you swordsmanship?"
Egged on by the crowd, a challenge was quickly issued: the two would duel on the Quidditch pitch.
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