Chapter 246: Room of Requirement
Chapter 246: Room of Requirement
Silke didn’t interrupt his thoughts, and before long, Sherlock suddenly looked up, his eyes shining brightly.
“I remember reading about a legend in the book Hogwarts: A History.”
“There’s a magical room in this castle called the Room of Requirement. If someone in need stands in front of this room and paces back and forth, it will appear and provide them with whatever room they desire.”
“The last clue mentioned a hidden room, which could very well be this one!”
With that, Sherlock walked over to the blank wall and began pacing back and forth, silently repeating to himself, “I need a room.”
After three rounds of pacing, a door suddenly appeared on the wall.
Seeing the door, Sherlock’s face broke into a relieved smile.
“Exactly! The prophecy must be referring to the Room of Requirement.”
Silke’s expression also relaxed, but she wasn’t overly optimistic. She spoke calmly.
“We’ve found the Room of Requirement, but the question remains: which room is Federick in?”
Finding the Room of Requirement didn’t narrow down their search; it made it even more challenging, as no one knew what kind of room Federick might choose.
But the more critical the situation became, the calmer Sherlock remained. He stared at the suddenly appeared door and said softly.
“I remember you mentioned that if we could decipher the information tied to the straw in a single day, it meant the straw wanted us to find it, not to keep hiding?”
Silke nodded slightly.
“If it wants us to find it, it won’t hide in a place we could never guess. And through the Room of Requirement, the room must be one that perfectly suits it and provides it with benefits.”
Sherlock stroked his chin, recalling the Goblin’s Underground Chamber from last year.
“It prefers darkness, especially pitch-black darkness. Such an environment is where it can perform at its best.”
With that, he stood in front of the door to the Room of Requirement and began pacing again.
‘I need the darkest room possible.’
On the third round of pacing, the door to the Room of Requirement seemed to shift, showing a clear change.
Sherlock then activated his Control Magic, trying to glimpse what lay beyond the door.
But just like when he tried to see behind the twelve Black Doors in the Ministry of Magic’s Department of Mysteries, he saw nothing—only void.
This indicated that the Room of Requirement, like the Black Doors, was a portal to a space that wasn’t simply on the other side of the wall.
Sherlock wasn’t too disappointed; he had only been making an attempt. Since he couldn’t see through the door, he decided to go in.
“Wait for me outside.”
He said seriously to Silke.
Before Silke could frown and accuse him of being ungrateful, he quickly added,
“Don’t get angry yet. I won’t close the door. You need to guard it to prevent it from escaping.”
Silke's voice grew even colder.
"You don't know how to capture it. Even the most powerful Patronus Charm can only suppress its power. It has no physical form, and normal means are completely ineffective against it."
Sherlock's expression remained calm.
"You're the expert when it comes to deciphering prophecies, but I'm the one who knows how to fight. Think about it, last year, you were the one who captured it, but it suffered a major blow at my hands. Given its actions from when it appeared until now, it's not a fool. With no support and the same strength as last year, do you really think it would be foolish enough to come after me for revenge?"
Silke fell silent, acknowledging the logic in Sherlock's words. If there had been no change, Fidelius, with its centuries of wisdom, would not likely walk into a trap.
"I don't plan on resolving this in one go", Sherlock said, placing his hand on the doorknob. "You keep an eye on the entrance. If it tries to escape, stop it. I'll go in first to probe and see what kind of support it has now."
With that, he pressed down the doorknob and gently opened the door.
Behind the door lay a suffocating darkness, like a black hole that devoured all light. Even the sunlight from the corridor couldn't penetrate it.
Silke, having accepted his plan, stood guard at the door without insisting on accompanying him. She watched as Sherlock stepped into the darkness.
As soon as he took a step forward, the darkness completely enveloped him, even his voice was swallowed up.
At that moment, the Crescent Mark on his left arm began to throb with a familiar burning sensation. This sudden pain invigorated him!
In the years since Sherlock had come to this world, the Crescent Mark had reacted only a few times.
The first time was when he encountered Voldemort's Horcrux Diary, the second time when it guided him to Sally's Magic Notes hidden in the library, and the third time when he found the Horcrux Goblet in the Lestrange Family Vault.
Now, with the mark reacting again, he couldn't help but think of a Horcrux!
From past experiences, the mark's primary reaction was to Horcruxes. Both Horcruxes Sherlock had found so far had elicited a response from it.
Of course, there was a small possibility that something Selena wanted to leave for him was hidden in the Room of Requirement.
However, Sherlock leaned more towards the former. The likelihood that a Horcrux was hidden in the Room of Requirement was greater!
But now was not the time to dwell on such thoughts. He focused his mind, fully extending his Control Magic to search for the Horcrux, but first, he needed to address the immediate situation.
The room, shrouded in darkness, was vast. Even with his Control Magic fully extended, he couldn't reach the edges.
Without drawing his wand, he cast a spell into the air.
"Lumos."
A dozen faint lights flickered around him for a moment before being swallowed by the darkness again.
Sherlock narrowed his eyes and began to retrieve the bag, scattering the wands.
Using Control Magic to cast spells directly was possible, but using a wand would conserve more energy.
As he scattered over a hundred wands, a faint, blurry orange light slowly appeared in the distance.
(End of Chapter)
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