"Wha—?!"
Avada rushed inside. After weaving past several piles of clutter, he finally saw Baron crouched anxiously beside a man in black wizard robes who lay unconscious on the floor—Professor Baker. Beside the professor's limp hand, a fist-sized black crystal orb had rolled to rest, glinting faintly in the dim light.
"Something's wrong! Baron—get back!"
The instant Avada swept Professor Baker and the black crystal orb with his Magical Perception, every hair on his body stood on end. His face drained of color as he shouted his warning.
Startled by the urgency in Avada's voice, Baron leapt back several steps and hastily drew his wand from his belt.
"What happened?"
He lowered his voice, asking with wary confusion. In Baron's understanding, Professor Baker was unquestionably a competent and kind teacher. His position as a board member of the International Dark Magic Defense Alliance, Dumbledore's trust, and the breathtaking duel shown during the opening ceremony—all of it pointed toward Baker being utterly safe and reliable.
Even if they did not yet understand why he had collapsed in the Room of Requirement, by any logic, he should be helped, not feared.
But Avada didn't answer immediately. He too drew his wand, advancing toward Baker step by cautious step, voice grave:
"See that black crystal sphere next to Professor Baker? I suspect it's a Dark object."
"And I'm certain it wasn't here before. That means Professor Baker brought it in—or made it himself."
"You're sure?!"
Baron's pupils shrank sharply. He looked shaken. A board member of the Dark Magic Defense Alliance possessing Dark artifacts—if word got out, the whole Wizarding world would erupt.
Avada let out a thin, bitter laugh. He had already talked it down so as not to terrify Baron outright. That orb wasn't just a Dark artifact…
Looking into the sphere's immense magical void, the swirling gold of spiritual energy, and the impossibly intricate patterns of magic around it—patterns he recognized—Avada quietly exhaled.
It was a Horcrux.
A Horcrux belonging to Professor Baker.
There was no doubt: this Horcrux was iron-clad proof that this trusted professor had committed murder and delved deep into the darkest corners of magic for years. Avada had spent an entire term studying the nature of Dark magic. Paired with his memories from the original story and his own research into spiritual power, he would never mistake a Horcrux for something trivial or easily created.
In his understanding, only the most wicked Dark wizards—those whose souls had already been corroded to the extreme—had the ability to fracture their souls through murder and create Horcruxes.
Otherwise, if every killing naturally split one's soul, then Aurors and Order of the Phoenix members would all be walking spiritual wrecks.
And now he finally understood why Baker's spiritual signature had felt so wrong before. His soul must already have been split at that time—merely concealed by some method.
"You really think it's a Dark object? What did you see?"
Baron examined the orb for a long moment yet detected no trace of Dark magic. He turned back, baffled.
"You sure you're not mistaken?"
"Retreat immediately, Baron."
Avada's voice was deadly serious.
"We need to get out of the Room of Requirement. Then go find the nearest professor. I remember Professor Flitwick's office is on the eighth floor—come with me before Professor Baker wakes up!"
"Even if you don't trust me, you can at least trust Professor Flitwick, right?"
The tension in Avada's voice snapped Baron fully into awareness. He still didn't understand how Avada had identified the orb, but he trusted that Avada wouldn't panic without reason.
"Alright, we'll go togeth—"
"Mm…"
Before Baron finished speaking, a low groan came from behind them.
Professor Baker was waking.
His eyes fluttered open as he braced himself with one hand and slowly sat upright.
"RUN!!"
The two boys turned pale in unison and bolted toward the exit of the Room of Requirement!
But the true horror unfolded at once.
No matter how wildly they sprinted, the distance to the door did not shrink—in fact, it continued to grow farther away.
In Avada's magical sense, the structures that represented "space" had twisted into a tangled mass—a colossal, invisible labyrinth trapping them inside.
"It's over…"
Avada stopped running, despair washing over him. He raised his wand, prepared to fight to the death. Seeing Baron beside him doing the same with a face as white as parchment, Avada could only let out a strangled laugh.
He wanted nothing more than to go back in time and throttle his past self.
Back then he'd thought, "No way I'll die before the end of first year, right?"
Damn you for tempting fate!
"Hmm?"
Professor Baker stood fully now, looking around with a hazy, unfocused expression. Soon he noticed Avada and Baron, who stood as though preparing to battle a dragon.
"You… how… are you here…?"
His speech came slowly, hoarse and uneven, as if he hadn't spoken for years.
Avada and Baron exchanged a look.
They might still live.
"Ahem."
Baron quickly stepped forward, his face instantly rearranging into believable concern—so genuine that Avada's skin crawled.
"Professor Baker, are you alright? When we entered the room, we found you collapsed on the floor!"
"Merlin's beard, thank goodness you're awake. We were debating whether to fetch another professor, but we also didn't want to risk exposing the room… It's fortunate you woke up on your own!"
Avada's face twitched. Goosebumps erupted across his arms.
This boy really was born for Slytherin.
"I… woke up?"
Baker stared dazedly at his own hands. After a long silence, he replied slowly:
"Yes… I woke up. You two are…"
He looked up and studied them for a long time. Recognition slowly replaced confusion.
"Right… Avada Kendavia and Baron Shafiq. My students. I am… Hogwarts' Defense Against the Dark Arts professor… Benjamin Baker. And an adventurer… and a board member of the Dark Magic Defense Alliance…?"
He clutched his head, staggering a little as he rose. Avada and Baron tensed instinctively.
"Speaking to students… ah…"
He looked at them again and forced a stiff smile.
"Thank you for your concern. I'm fine. Just… encountered a small mishap. Nothing to worry about."
"You two carry on with whatever you were doing. I'll be off—professors have plenty to attend to…"
As his final words faded, the twisted space in the Room of Requirement silently unwound itself back to normal. Professor Baker shuffled toward the door, wobbling but stable, and stepped out. He even closed the door politely behind him.
Leaving the two boys staring at each other in stunned silence.
"What… what was that?!"
Baron finally dropped his act entirely, collapsing onto the ground with a long, shaky exhale. Only after several breaths did he look up, bewildered.
Avada remained silent, though inwardly he already understood: this must be the after-effect of completely fracturing one's soul. In his perception, Baker's spiritual power had noticeably diminished, and the essential magical void that defined conscious beings had shrunk significantly.
"Oh, right—"
Baron suddenly looked at Avada with curiosity.
"Did Professor Baker just say your real name? You're called Ava—"
"Don't say it."
Avada shuddered again.
"I'll explain later. Let's leave first. You go find Professor Flitwick—I'm heading to the Headmaster's Office to find Dumbledore. Professor Baker's condition is far beyond what any single professor can handle!"
"Alright."
Baron understood the urgency and didn't press the matter of Avada's name. He got to his feet and moved toward the exit alongside Avada—
When a hurried, familiar voice called out behind them:
"Mr. Ken, Mr. Shafiq—please wait a moment!"