Chapter 48 — Weekend Hours
And just like that, the incident was resolved.
As Professor Corvey had predicted, the merfolk didn't dare truly challenge Dumbledore.
In the end, they slunk away with their princess in tow.
What Russell found amusing was that, even as she was dragged back toward the lake, the mermaid princess kept glancing over her shoulder at Cedric—as if trying to etch his face into her memory.
"I'm never going near the Black Lake again. Never," Cedric vowed solemnly.
"I hope you actually stick to that," Russell chuckled.
What made it funnier was that he remembered: during the Triwizard Tournament, there would be a task involving diving into the Black Lake.
"What's so hard about that? Starting tomorrow, we practice spells somewhere else," Cedric said firmly.
He was genuinely traumatized—worried the princess might lurk somewhere to spy on him again.
Corvey and Dumbledore had already left, leaving the two boys to stroll back toward the castle on their own.
"By the way," Russell suddenly said, "I told you earlier I'd take you to a pretty great place. Remember?"
"Of course. Why?" Cedric blinked.
"Tonight at eight. Wait for me outside the kitchen."
---
Later That Night…
"My Merlin—this is the place you mentioned? This is amazing!"
Cedric's voice echoed with disbelief.
"How did you even find this?"
"Pure luck," Russell shrugged.
"I was running from Filch and wishing for a place to hide… and then this room just appeared."
They spent the evening exchanging the spells they knew and even came up with a few simple combo techniques—like opening with Lumos to blind an opponent, then following with Expelliarmus.
Their spell repertoire was limited, so they had to be creative.
Not like Voldemort, who would open a fight with a straight-up Avada Kedavra.
No combos. No warm-ups. Just murder.
Russell had to deal with the diary tonight, so he left before ten.
Since it was Cedric's first time in the Room of Requirement, he stayed a bit longer to explore.
Russell consulted Morgan on a few magic-related issues. As expected of an archmage, her understanding of magic was far beyond anything found in books.
Just as he was about to wrap up the conversation, a new line of text suddenly appeared in the diary:
"What stories about me have survived through the ages?"
It sounded like she'd been holding this in a long time and didn't want to miss a chance to chat.
"There are two endings that get passed around. One says you returned to Avalon.
The other says you were turned to stone for abusing dark magic and sealed away.
Judging by the current situation, the second one seems to be the correct version."
"Why can't both be true?"
"What do you mean?" Russell frowned.
The writing vanished.
In its place appeared a monochrome scene—
a crowned witch clutching her abdomen, facing down two wizards.
Names were labeled above their heads.
The crowned witch was Morgan—no surprise there.
But the male wizard's name made Russell freeze:
Merlin Ambrosius.
As for the woman beside him—her name was Viviane.
Viviane?
Russell racked his brain and still couldn't recall who she was.
"Viviane is the Lady of the Lake of Avalon.
She bewitched Merlin, then the two of them ambushed me and sealed me away."
"She did it to avenge King Arthur?"
"Of course not.
She merely wanted to wrest control of Avalon from me.
She wanted to become Avalon's ruler."
"Looks like she succeeded."
"Not completely.
She only managed to steal half of Avalon's authority."
"So now you're asking me to help you take the other half back, right?"
"You're overthinking it."
After those four words, she fell silent.
Fine.
Russell knew he wasn't anywhere near Merlin's level yet, but with his status panel helping him, he refused to believe he couldn't eventually reach—or surpass—Merlin.
With that thought, he immediately resumed practicing.
Concealment Charm EXP +1
Concealment Charm EXP +1
…
---
"Didn't we come out to play? Why'd you drag me here?"
Russell muttered under his breath.
Both of them were currently bent over in Professor Sprout's greenhouse, clearing weeds in misery.
"Sorry, brother. I couldn't just let you go have fun while I worked alone," Cedric said shamelessly.
Russell was about to complain when Professor Sprout's cheerful voice rang out:
"Children, you've worked hard. Take a break and have some tea."
He wasn't truly unwilling to help—he just despised being tricked by Cedric.
Besides, helping out had benefits: house points and a chance to drink Professor Sprout's specially cultivated tea.
Sure, Russell could come mooch tea anytime if he wanted to…
but he didn't have the face for that.
"Oh, Russell!"
Sprout suddenly brightened.
"The biting rose has bloomed for the first time. Want to come see?"
Russell slapped his forehead.
Because he had two other biting roses growing in the Room of Requirement, he had practically forgotten about the one in the greenhouse.
"Isn't she adorable?"
Thanks to carrying Russell's scent, the rose didn't reject him—
in fact, it leaned in affectionately when he stroked it.
Cedric reached out to pet it too—
and it immediately snapped its half-grown teeth at him.
He barely dodged in time.
"Not adorable at all."
"What next?" Cedric asked, genuinely pondering it.
"What do you usually do on weekends?" Russell asked incredulously.
Did Cedric spend weekends studying?
"Watch Quidditch practice, play Wizard Chess, read… mostly just those."
"Damn, Hogwarts has no entertainment," Russell sighed.
"There's also swimming in the Black Lake… but I'm NEVER doing that again," Cedric added with a shiver.
Talking as they walked, they drifted farther from the castle and soon reached the shadow of the Forbidden Forest.
"Cedric, have you ever gone inside?"
"No. It's against school rules—and dangerous. I heard there are werewolves."
"True. Let's learn a few more spells before we try. At least Protego or Disillusionment."
"Makes sense."
"But…" Cedric said, suddenly tempted,
"The Weasley twins told me the edges of the Forest aren't dangerous.
You can even find rare potion materials there."
"In that case…"
The two exchanged a look—and their plan was set.
They would only explore the outer edge.
But just as they were about to step forward,
a thunderous roar sounded behind them:
"Don't go in."