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Chapter 240: Nicolas Flamel
Chapter 240: Nicolas Flamel
As Kyle fell, so too did the fragment of the Philosopher's Stone, spinning twice in the air before being caught in a waiting hand.
Kyle pocketed the stone fragment and then looked up to assess his surroundings.
Having anticipated the need for a portal key, Kyle had envisioned various outcomes, expecting to arrive in front of a grand manor or perhaps near a wizarding village...
After all, reclusive old wizards often opted for such locations, like Newt, who made his home in the depths of an uninhabited forest.
But Kyle never imagined he would find himself on a bustling Muggle street...
He stared in surprise at the large restaurant sign before him.
There were many passersby, yet none seemed to notice Kyle's sudden appearance, walking past him nonchalantly as if he had been there all along.
The sound of honking cars filled the air, and Kyle's gaze drifted to the distance.
To his left, he could make out the faint silhouette of a towering spire...
"Paris?" Kyle furrowed his brows, now having a general idea of his location.
As he had known beforehand that his destination was not in Devon but France, his surprise was short-lived, and he quickly regained his composure.
So it was a street—after all, he was a legendary wizard who had lived for over six hundred years, so it was only natural his preferences would differ. Even if he chose to make his home on a monkey mountain in a zoo, it wouldn't be strange.
The most important task now was to find the person he sought.
Kyle paused briefly in thought.
The portal key was likely created by Nicolas Flamel or Dumbledore, so the location should be accurate. And Nicolas Flamel wouldn't be in one of the shops lining the street, so...
"Alohomora?"
Kyle reached into his pocket and retrieved the envelope Dumbledore had given him, quickly opening it to pull out a blank piece of paper.
Although the paper appeared blank, as he opened it, he heard a clear, soft murmur.
It was a number.
"Number 51!"
...
Suddenly, the paper ignited, burning itself out and drifting to the ground.
Just as Kyle looked up, a delicate wooden door with gilded patterns appeared between the restaurant and the record store in front of him, along with light blue walls and spotlessly clean windows.
It looked as if an extra room had suddenly expanded, pushing the restaurant and the record store aside.
Kyle clicked his tongue in surprise. Inside the restaurant, the waiters continued their leisurely chat, and the melodious music from the record store played on without interruption. Clearly, no one inside had noticed anything unusual.
Kyle quickly stepped forward, frowning at the newly appeared door.
There was no handle, only a tiny dent as if something had been knocked into it, which didn't resemble a keyhole at all.
Kyle drew out his wand...
As expected, the unlocking spell had no effect.
"Is this some kind of test?
But Dumbledore didn't mention anything about this..."
As Kyle hesitated, wondering what to do next, the gilded patterns on the door began to twist and entwine, forming a golden cursive script.
"Before you lies a rushing river.
The magic flute's song has destroyed the bridge to the other side.
To continue on your path, you must find four missing twigs...
One was picked up by a knight and taken to the countryside,
One struck a butterfly and was found by a wife;
One witnessed wedding vows... One flaunts its might above heads...
Go now, find them...
Or you can offer your treasure to the mermaids by the shore, and they shall aid your journey henceforth.
The bridge likely referred to this door, implying that to open it, he would have to find four crucial items... and the clues to their locations were in the verses below.
Kyle's eyebrows furrowed in thought as he identified the most critical locations in each sentence.
Magic flute... knight, countryside... butterfly, wife...
If he altered the order and interpretation slightly, they transformed into:
Magic Flute, The Country Knight, Madame Butterfly...
These were all famous operas, although he couldn't quite place the last two just yet, but they were undoubtedly related to opera as well.
"Is it asking me to search for clues in an opera house?"
Kyle remained still and turned his attention to the final paragraph.
Its meaning was explicit, too... He could choose not to search and instead pay his way through.
But the currency referred to here was definitely not Galleons.
Kyle noticed that right below this sentence was the shallow dent, and he seemed to have an idea. He reached into his pocket and retrieved the fragment of the Philosopher's Stone.
Whether it was the size or the shape, this fragment matched the door's indentation perfectly. Without a doubt, this was the so-called "treasure."
"Nicolas Flamel doesn't intend to reclaim the Philosopher's Stone fragment?"
Kyle was a little surprised.
From the looks of it, as long as he could find the clues corresponding to those four operas, he would be allowed to keep this precious fragment of the Philosopher's Stone.
On one hand, he could spend some time searching for the clues, and on the other, there was a piece of the magical stone... The choice was obvious. Kyle raised his hand and decisively pressed the fragment into the dent.
The Philosopher's Stone could indeed drive countless people to madness, but a destroyed stone was utterly useless.
It was like a pair of chopsticks broken into over ten pieces or a Lego brick—completely worthless and wasteful.
If it had any use at all, it wouldn't have been made into a doorkey.
Oh, right, if he took it to Diagon Alley and sold it, he could probably get a good number of Galleons for it.
With the allure of the Philosopher's Stone, he believed that many pure-blood families would be more than willing to shell out a fortune to get their hands on it.
At this thought, Kyle winced a little, contemplating taking the fragment back.
But at that moment, the fragment had already seamlessly embedded itself into the indentation.
...
The massive door slowly vanished, and the room expanded, soon occupying the entire street.
In what seemed like the blink of an eye, the shops transformed into exquisite columns, and the passersby disappeared without a trace.
Kyle found himself in an imposing hall, with warm yellow marble underfoot and walls and surroundings of a shifting cerulean hue.
Moreover, he faintly discerned numerous incomprehensible golden symbols on the walls, unsure if they were meant to enhance the sense of mystery or served some other purpose.
"Aha, Ollym, you lose!"
A familiar voice sounded from the side.
"I told you, the first one to arrive would undoubtedly be this young man... Now, pay up. You owe me two Galleons."
(End of Chapter)
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