Chapter 624 Arch

Harry did not hear Ronald's explanation. His eyes were still staring obsessively at the constantly fluttering curtains, as if attracted by some mysterious force.

Ronald glanced at Neville, who understood, and suddenly walked over to Harry, picked him up, and took him back to the stone bench at the bottom without any explanation. Everyone climbed all the way up and soon returned to the door. Ronald looked back at the place called the "Death Hall" and looked around at the surrounding environment. He nodded with satisfaction, then withdrew his gaze and winked at Ginny beside him.

Ginny nodded, then raised her wand, drew a mysterious symbol in the air, and then decisively printed a burning X on the door. With a rumble, they returned to the dark circular room again.

Ronald squinted his eyes and stared at Harry, sensing the thoughts in his mind, and said slowly: "This so-called 'Hall of Death' is probably the only thing most wizards know about the Department of Mysteries. After all, , it was once used as a death chamber and is full of horror and mystery. Although knowledge about it is not taught at Hogwarts now, the legends and stories here are still circulated among the young wizards."

He paused and continued: "For young wizards, or weak-willed wizards, they can easily be confused by the illusions on the other side of the veil. Those who have never been in contact with death will make decisions based on their own understanding of death. attitudes—either extreme fear or indifference—to interpret these visions. And those who have had a brush with death, either themselves or by witnessing the death of others, may be so drawn to the veil that they cannot move away. Open your eyes."

Speaking of this, Ronald's voice suddenly became low and sad: "And those wizards who have lost their loved ones may hear the whispers of the dead here. The curtain will give you the illusion that the dead you miss are here. Be on the other side.”

Harry came to his senses in a daze, with a bit of fear and confusion on his face. That room almost made him forget the purpose of coming here. He seemed to be still immersed in those illusions and the Whispering Minister.

Ronald walked up to Harry with a calm face and pressed his shoulder hard with his left hand, "Harry, I just sensed your thoughts. You seem to think the curtain is 'gentle'? This means that for you, death is not scary, On the contrary, it is a kind of comfort. You just had a strong desire to pass through the curtain. I understand that you have shouldered too much burden, experienced too much pain, and longed to see your loved ones. But this also represents your I was subconsciously tempted by death!"

Hearing this, Harry nodded subconsciously in agreement. However, at this moment, Ronald slapped him on the shoulder suddenly, waking him up from his lost thoughts.

"Harry, this is absolutely no excuse for you to escape reality and evade responsibility!"

Harry's shoulders were twisted in pain, but the pain was like a sobering drug, making his brain clear again. He finally recalled that dream - Sirius was imprisoned, restrained, and subjected to endless torture, but he was stupidly obsessed with the mysterious curtain.

Ronald let go of his hand, and Harry staggered back a few steps, rubbing his red and swollen shoulders with shame. He didn't dare to look at Ronald, and his eyes unconsciously glanced in the opposite direction to the door just now.

"Thank you...I'm fine, let's continue." Harry's voice was trembling.

Ronald nodded to the others, motioning for them to follow Harry's pace. The wall began to rotate again, Harry pushed the door open again, and a brand new scene unfolded in front of them.

"This is it!" Harry's voice was full of excitement, his eyes were fixed on the diamond-bright jumping light, and an inexplicable feeling of familiarity surged in his heart.

As his eyes gradually adapted, he could see the whole room clearly. Countless clocks are hung on the walls and bookshelves. They vary in size and shape. Some are solemn and elegant, some are small and exquisite. There are floor clocks and travel clocks. They are either hung between bookshelves or stand on the entire wall. On the table as long as the room, these clocks seem to be telling the story of time, and the rapid ticking sounds they make converge into a unique symphony that fills the entire room [like Cheng Yu's subtle footsteps on the market] . The diamond-like bright jumping light came from a towering bell-shaped crystal glass dome at the end of the room.

"We have to hurry up." Ronald frowned unconsciously, obviously unable to stand the noisy sound.

He looked around, trying to find a relatively quiet place, but quickly gave up. There are ticking sounds of clocks everywhere, as if time is infinitely magnified here.

"This way!" Once he knew that they were taking the correct route, Harry's heart beat violently and he couldn't wait to move forward. He shuttled along the narrow gaps between the tables, just like he was in a dream. Did the same thing. Ronald and others followed closely behind, their steps light and fast, for fear of missing something.

As they approached the towering bell-shaped crystal glass dome, Ginny suddenly pointed to its center and exclaimed: "Oh, look!"

In the flickering light, they saw a small, jewel-bright egg floating in the air. It exudes a faint light, as if it is a treasure left in the world.

Just as they were staring at the egg, it suddenly cracked open. A beautiful hummingbird breaks out of the egg, its feathers shine with brilliant light, and its wings flap gently, as if it is about to fly into the sky. However, as the air flow fell, the bird's feathers became dirty and wet again. It struggled to fly, but eventually landed at the bottom of the glass cover and was locked in the egg again.

"Keep walking, don't stop!" Ronald urged.

He noticed that Ginny seemed to be deeply attracted by the process of turning the egg into a bird, and her steps became obviously hesitant, so he gently patted Ginny on the shoulder, "We will have plenty of time to visit here later, and I can even take you there myself." Come, but now, we have more important things to do."

Ginny nodded, took her brother's arm obediently, and pressed against him tightly, completely different from her usual lively and independent image. However, "others didn't seem surprised by this - the brother and sister had obviously fallen out this semester.

Several people quickly passed through the narrow gap between the tables, walked past the bell-shaped crystal jar, and came to the only door at the back. Ronald opened the door, and a quiet atmosphere rushed in.

The room behind the door was in stark contrast to the previous room, filled with bells and bustle. The room was as tall and empty as a church, filled with tall shelves displaying many small, dusty glass balls. There is a small yellowed label inserted under each glass ball, which seems to tell their own story.

The candles on both sides of the wall emitted a faint blue light, adding a mysterious color to this dim passage. Harry and Ronald led the others through two rows of towering glass balls, their footsteps echoing in the quiet space. Occasionally, a few glass balls shone softly as they passed by.

"Pull 97 is here." Ronald's voice suddenly sounded, breaking the silence around him. He stopped and turned to Harry.

Harry seemed a little at a loss at this moment. He looked around. The scene in front of 820 gradually overlapped with the memory in his dream, but only that important figure was missing.

"I don't understand... This is the place in my dream, but Sirius is not here. Maybe he..." Harry's voice gradually became deeper, with a hint of confusion and loss.

"Harry." Ronald called softly, bringing Harry's thoughts back to reality. He followed Ronald's line of sight and saw Ronald pointing at a dusty glass ball placed on the shelf. "Bring that to me, don't touch the other things." There was a hint of caution in Ronald's tone.

Although Harry was a little confused as to why Ronald didn't do it himself, he still walked forward obediently. When he got close to the glass ball, he discovered that it was not as cold as he imagined. Instead, it gave off a warm light, as if it had been exposed to the sun for a long time. There is a yellowed label inserted on the shelf under the glass ball, which records a date and some mysterious abbreviations in exquisite fonts.

S.P.T to A.P.W.B.D.

The Dark Lord and (?) Harry Potter.

Harry read the words on the label and felt an inexplicable premonition in his heart. He carefully held the glass ball with his fingers and felt the faint heat emitting from it.

Harry was expecting, even a little eager for something dramatic to happen. He hopes that this seemingly ordinary glass ball can reveal the true purpose of their trip and bring some value to this long and crisis-filled journey. He slowly took the glass ball off the shelf and stared at it with wide eyes.

Nothing happened, and Harry handed the crystal ball to Ronald in disappointment.

Ronald took it carefully, brushed off the dust, and looked at it carefully. Suddenly, he motioned for everyone to come closer, blocking others behind him, with a trace of vigilance on his face. .