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[Hogwarts] Ch 115: The Meditation Room
🕑 Added 2025-08-02 18:15:02 +0000 UTC— — — — — —
Tom really wanted to shout: "Hey, Fleur invited me to France too, you know! And the adorable clingy Gabrielle Delacour, her little sister, is also there."
But in the end, he chickened out and let the two girls fight over the rest of his summer plans without saying a word.
France could wait. He'd head there once Dumbledore and Nicolas Flamel wrapped up their talks. That way, he could stop by and visit the Veela sisters at the same time.
"Um… just so you know," Tom added meekly, "I can't spend all my time with you two. I still need to study some new spells."
Without proper flight magic, he'd never make it past the fourth trial—and that had been seriously stressing him out lately.
"Hush."
The two little witches waved him off in perfect sync, clearly not interested in his excuses as they continued to haggle like seasoned negotiators.
Eventually, they struck a deal both sides could live with.
Tom would stay in London until July, but Daphne could visit him whenever she wanted. After that, he'd spend the rest of the break with the Greengrass family—right up until his trip to New York. But if he came back early, then he'd have to stay in London the whole time, fair and square.
Once the "war" was over, the girls instantly turned back into best friends, holding hands and gushing over cute Muggle clothes.
Tom gave a faint, helpless smile. So even eleven- or twelve-year-old girls weren't immune to the siren song of fashion and handbags?
Suddenly, a system notification chimed in his head.
[End-of-year summary complete. Please check your annual report and collect your rewards.]
With a thought, Tom opened the system interface.
[Over the past year, you've earned the respect and admiration of your professors and classmates through your outstanding character, relentless hard work, and top-of-the-class academic performance.]
[Congratulations, Host, on completing your first year.]
[Milestone quest "Most Outstanding Student in Hogwarts History" — Phase One complete.]
[Evaluation: Excellent.]
[Rewards: 300 Achievement Points, 1500 Credits, 1 Gacha Pull.]
[First-time Gacha bonus detected—reward tier increased by one level.]
[Note: For some reason, the previous Gacha feature was demolished and a revamped version was implemented.]
"So Gacha has tiers now? "
He didn't have to wait long. The system displayed an explanation:
[Tiers: Basic, Intermediate, Advanced, Legendary.]
[The reward for this milestone was originally Advanced tier. It has now been upgraded to Legendary.]
Tom quickly switched to the other quest—Snape's assignment. It had also been marked complete, and the reward?
Another Advanced-tier draw ticket.
"Thanks, Dumbledore," he thought dryly.
If Dumbledore hadn't gone out of his way to boost Harry, this task wouldn't have been nearly as hard—and the reward probably wouldn't have been nearly as good.
[Host: Tom Riddle]
[Status: Incoming Second-Year Student at Hogwarts]
[Credits: 3,869]
[Achievement Points: 581]
[Unclaimed Rewards: 1 Legendary Gacha pull & 1 Advanced Gacha pull]
After cashing in both quests, Tom's wallet was suddenly very full. Nearly 4,000 credits—more than enough to splurge a little. And he was already halfway to his next landmark in achievement points.
He really wanted to test his luck right now, but a Legendary pull might come with some serious noise. Better to wait.
For now, he shelved the excitement and kept chatting with Daphne and Hermione about summer plans.
In that relaxed, easygoing atmosphere, the train ride seemed to fly by. Before they even realized it, the Hogwarts Express had rolled into London's King's Cross and was slowing to a stop at Platform Nine and Three-Quarters.
The students lined up in neat rows to disembark, but as soon as the doors opened, the order vanished into chaos. Everyone rushed out in search of their families, eager for hugs and summer plans.
Everyone except Harry.
He dragged his feet and sighed heavily. Leaving Hogwarts—the only place he'd ever truly felt safe—meant going back to the Dursleys' prison.
"Tom, let's keep in touch this summer," he called out as Tom passed by.
Tom didn't look back—just gave a casual wave.
Harry watched him go, feeling like the world's biggest loser. If he wanted to improve, he needed to surround himself with people like Tom—smart, powerful, successful. He had nothing better to do this summer anyway. Might as well study, and when he got stuck, ask Hermione or Tom for help.
Ron? Yeah… maybe not. Ron had basically scored worse than him in every subject.
"Tom, I'm so happy to see you again!"
On the platform, Lady Greengrass gave him a warm, graceful hug.
Back at Christmas, her kindness had come more out of politeness. But now, things had changed. Tom wasn't just her daughter's best friend—possibly her future partner—he was also the reason her younger daughter was healthy now and might one day break the Greengrass family curse.
"You've grown even more handsome, Tom," she said with a smile.
Tom returned the flattery without missing a beat. "And you look even more stunning, Auntie."
That earned a delighted laugh from the elegant woman.
"I have a suggestion," she said softly. "Why not come home with us now? Astoria's been asking for you nonstop."
"Sorry, Auntie. Daphne and I already made plans—I'll visit at the start of July."
"I see," she said, nodding. She didn't push. She understood that a boy like Tom—mature beyond his years—wouldn't change his plans lightly.
After a few more words, Tom and Daphne hugged goodbye, then he stepped off the platform and found Hermione waiting for him.
He'd skipped the chance to meet the Grangers during winter break, but this time… there was no dodging it.
The wizarding world didn't really frown on multiple partners. Many pure-bloods, desperate to continue their lines, took on several wives or lovers to increase their chances. It was just how things were.
But the Grangers? They were modern Muggles through and through. If they found out he was basically building a fleet of romantic entanglements, aka a harem...
Well, Mr. Granger might decide to kill someone.
Thankfully, he hadn't said anything yet. No confessions, no commitments. So for now, his conscience was clear, and he could meet them without guilt.
...
The Grangers were warm and welcoming. They couldn't stop thanking him for looking after Hermione at school.
And Tom honestly felt like he'd earned that thanks. He'd helped her not just with her studies, but with her personality too. She wasn't as sharp-edged anymore— well, having a strong personality wasn't bad, but it needed to be aimed outward, not at her own friends.
And apparently, the Granger family's way of saying "thank you"... was to invite you for a dental check-up.
At Mr. Granger's insistence, Tom reluctantly agreed to stop by their dental clinic the next afternoon. To show just how seriously he took this invitation, Mr. Granger cleared his entire schedule—rescheduling all of his patients just to make time for Tom.
As the Grangers' car disappeared down the street, Tom found a quiet spot, spun on his heel, and vanished in a whirl of motion—apparating straight back to the orphanage.
No Trace spells, no restrictions. So freeing.
Normally, traveling from the train station back to the orphanage would've taken nearly two hours—first a metro, then a train, then a bus.
Now? Just a few seconds and he was there.
Hearing noise downstairs, Tom glanced out the window and spotted Seth in the backyard, hitting a punching bag.
After a moment's thought, he decided to go say hi.
"Seth!"
The boy paused mid-punch. At first, he thought he was hearing things, but after Tom called again, he turned—and his face lit up as he dashed over.
"Boss! When did you get back?"
"Just now. I heard some noise in the garden and came to check it out. You already on break?"
"Yeah, we got off Monday," Seth said with a grin, scratching his head sheepishly. "Aunt Allman said you came back for Christmas. If I'd known that, I wouldn't have stayed at school over the holidays!"
Tom chuckled and shook his head. "I was only here for a few days. Left before the new year."
"Huh? Your school starts up that early?"
"Nah, I just spent a few days at a friend's place. How about you? How's the new school? Made any friends?"
"Yeah, a few. And guess what, Tom—I joined the boxing club!"
Seth beamed. "Coach said I've got a great foundation and real potential to go pro, maybe the next Muhammad Ali haha..."
"And it's all thanks to you, y'know. If you hadn't trained me when we were kids, I'd never have had this kind of luck."
"Well then, keep it up," Tom said, giving his shoulder a soft pat. "Alright, get back to it then. I'm heading in to unpack."
...
As Tom walked up the stairs, he'd already made up his mind: he'd use a bit of Re'em blood to boost Seth's physical abilities. Make it easier for him to go pro someday.
They'd grown up together for five or six years. Back in primary school, even when they were outnumbered, Seth never backed down from a fight.
Now that Tom had the power to help his old friend out, why wouldn't he?
---
That night, once everything was quiet, Tom got to work.
He slipped into Seth's room silently.
With practiced ease, he cast a Stupefy spell—knocking Seth out cold. Not even an earthquake would wake him now.
Gently, he pried open Seth's mouth and poured in half a dose of Re'em blood.
Not because he was stingy—far from it. He just didn't want the changes to be too sudden. Better to let the body adapt slowly, rather than transform so fast it'd send doctors scrambling to slice him open for study.
That was exactly why the magical world was so strict about keeping magical artifacts out of Muggle hands. Muggle science was evolving in ways wizards couldn't keep up with—and frankly, it scared them.
The Ministry didn't have a good long-term solution, but they sure knew how to ban things outright. And these days, the rules were tighter than ever.
You couldn't even tell your Muggle spouse that you were a wizard.
Unless your kid got a Hogwarts letter, your family stayed firmly on the 'non-magical" side of the fence.
But Tom didn't give a damn about their rules.
Dumbledore? Sure, he was worth listening to—he had the Elder Wand and the wisdom of an age.
The Ministry? Go fuck yourself.
...
As Seth's skin started to flush with a faint red tint, Tom gave a satisfied nod. Then he disapparated again—this time to a quiet park on the outskirts of town.
At this hour, the only people around were two homeless men asleep on benches.
Tom casually stunned them both.
It was time for his Gacha pull.
He had no idea what kind of prize he'd draw, so better safe than sorry—better to do this somewhere secluded.
"System, use the Advanced Gacha," he commanded.
If the reward was good, he'd roll with the momentum and use the Legendary one next. If it turned out mediocre, well—he'd wait until his luck shifted.
[Advanced pull in progress…]
[Congratulations, host! You've obtained: "Meditation Room." The room has been installed in the Study Space and is ready for use at any time.]
Meditation Room? In the Study Space?
Tom blinked. Why couldn't he physically access the prize? Why'd it go straight into some virtual storage?
"Wait a second... this system better not be pulling some shady freemium stunt. And of course, I can't exactly report it for scam marketing, can I?"
He was suddenly reminded of a certain shady corporation from his previous life—always tricking users into paying for hidden extras. That thought sent a chill down his spine.
Still, he quickly jumped into the Study Space to check it out.
...
When he arrived, Andros was already there, standing in front of a new structure that hadn't been there before.
It was a small, old-fashioned wooden cabin—about the size of Tom's dorm room at Hogwarts, maybe 80 square meters tops.
"Tom, what is this thing?" Andros asked, clearly intrigued. "I tried to open the door, but it won't budge. Even blasting spells didn't work."
"This is the Meditation Room," Tom replied, walking up to the door. "I think it's meant for… well, meditating. Let's take a look."
As he stepped inside, a rush of information flooded his mind. His tense shoulders relaxed—and a wide grin spread across his face.
This was good stuff.
[Meditation Room: No usage cost. Base effect: Increases host's thinking speed by 20% and enhances awareness.]
[Advanced effect: When the host activates Turbo Mode inside the room, duration is doubled while credit cost remains unchanged.]
[Note: The Meditation Room can be made available to your teachers, but only one person may use it at a time.]
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Comments
Camilo S
thanks
Coreal
I’ll try to increase the updates for this book starting tomorrow.
