Chapter 334: Delving Deeper
Chapter 334: Delving Deeper
The goblin eyed Felix with an uncomfortable gaze.
"Crema Vera has spoken highly of you, Mr. Felix Hep", he said, bowing slightly. "It is an honor to work with you. I am Gonuk." As he spoke, he snapped his fingers forcefully, his long nails gleaming, and the goblin's body became blurry.
He turned and walked away, heading towards the three people at the camp—Faisal, Rahman, and Cremi. They were checking their equipment, deciding what to bring inside, including curse detectors, dark magic detectors, and various protective items.
'Goblin Magic,' Felix thought to himself.
Hermione grumbled unhappily, as the goblin named Gonuk completely ignored her, even though he barely had to look up to see her.
Felix whispered, "The goblins of Gringotts are relatively friendly. If you encounter unknown goblins in the wild, you should be cautious, as you can't be certain of their safety."
Hermione thought for a moment and whispered, "The Goblin Rebellion?" Since the treaty was signed, goblins and wizards have generally maintained peace, but there are still a few goblins who deeply resent wizards and seek to overthrow their dominance.
Especially in their own territory, this attitude is unmasked. Many wizard jokes are concocted and spread in goblin taverns, and the reverse is also true.
Cremi jogged over, "These are custom-made dragon-hide gloves, which provide some defense against curses."
"Professor, can I use magic?" Hermione asked, thinking of a crucial question.
"Of course, the Ministry of Magic in Britain has no jurisdiction here", Felix said. "You can try it now."
Hermione hesitated, then took out her wand and cast the Shield Charm, an invisible barrier forming in front of her.
"Very good, just like that."
They entered the pyramid and followed a narrow, winding stone crevice. Everyone held their wands, crouching as much as possible, as standing up straight would cause them to hit their heads on the granite ceiling. They moved forward in silence, the sound of their breathing amplified.
After walking for some time by the light of their wands, the path split into two at a fork.
"To the right is the Pharaoh's Tomb, and to the left is the Secret Chamber we discovered", Cremi explained.
They took the left path. Every dozen steps or so, they encountered a couple of stone steps, and the terrain gradually lowered. Unbeknownst to them, they had been walking for half an hour, delving deeper underground.
Finally, the path opened up into a square space with two conduits.
One side led back the way they came, and the other side, directly in front of them, was a pitch-black opening, darker than the surrounding area, as if someone had poured black ink over it, playing a cruel joke on them.
"That's the corridor we encountered earlier. The black stuff is actually stationary black mist, but if you provoke it—" Cremi said, shooting a golden beam into the darkness.
"Oh, my", Hermione whispered. Large clumps of black mist began to roil, reaching out with tendrils, and loud crackling sounds came from within.
Felix took an eagle-shaped magic lamp from his ring. The bronze eagle flapped its wings gently and spat out a light orb, illuminating the courtyard.
"Is this the magic lamp you mentioned?" Cremi asked Hermione quietly. Hermione nodded, observing the surroundings. The courtyard had pillars that were fused into the stone at each corner, with no additional decorations. The exposed surfaces were etched with continuous grooves from top to bottom.
Felix stood motionless at the entrance, intently studying the black mist as if his gaze could penetrate the darkness and watch an interesting TV show.
The goblin Gonuk stood beside him, carefully inserting his nails into the black mist. After a few seconds, he pulled them out, a thin thread of black mist clinging to his fingertips. "It can disorient and has a slight corrosive effect. It won't affect you in the short term, but breathing it in for too long will be a problem."
"We can use the Bubble-Head Charm", Cremi suggested.
"I don't know how to use it", the goblin grumbled. He took out a silver mask, placed it over his head, and then leaned into the black mist. "Ha, problem solved."
"Mr. Gonuk... is that a silver mask you made?"
"Of course, little girl", Gonuk said proudly. "It's not just a mask. Our people have a natural talent for identifying materials, as easy as breathing for us."
"Even newborns can instinctively distinguish impure metals. We prepare a ceremony for newborns, offering them gold and silver of different purities to choose from. The most talented goblins are trained from a young age."
"Talent..." Felix's eyes shifted, and he snapped back to reality, his mind stirred by Gonuk's words. Wizard children also have various magical talents, such as Parseltongue or Metamorphmagus, but some talents are not as obvious, and some people may never even be aware of them.
Some people are naturally attuned to animals, easily earning their trust. Felix thought such individuals would be well-suited to learn the Wagadu Metamorphosis, a form of human Transfiguration distinct from Animagus, allowing one to transform into creatures like elephants and leopards. The best could even extend this ability to other animals.
Felix believed he would certainly see such magic at the upcoming championship in the new school year.
He also realized that Wizard talents are not limited to this. Some Wizards are more adept at certain types of magic. For example, Harry has a special talent for dueling magic, far surpassing his peers. Ancient Wizards also exhibited this trait.
In ancient times, ancient Wizards would tend to choose apprentices with similar talents, and those who differed greatly, even if highly talented, would not be favored.
Felix drew his wand and thrust it forward. The wand made a "whoosh" as it sliced through the air, and a series of spells flew into the black mist. After a while, the mist gradually dissipated.
"What did you do?" Gonuk asked in amazement.
"Any magic leaves a trace. I just found the key nodes where the black mist was set up", Felix explained briefly. As the black mist cleared, everything in the corridor became visible. With the light from the magical lamps in the courtyard, they could see black stone slabs hanging on the walls.
Hermione cautiously approached, standing at the entrance, and looked at the nearest stone slab in surprise. The patterns on it were very familiar to her. "Ancient Magic? Runic Script Sequence!"
"Yes", Felix responded softly. "Don't go in", he suddenly said sharply, but not to Hermione. Hermione looked to the side and saw Gonuk already moving forward.
(End of Chapter)
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