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Chapter 1348: Guidance from the Diadem
🕑 Added 2025-01-15 01:32:30 +0000 UTCFinally, Evan was going to get the key of Ravenclaw. Could it be the second Philosopher's Stone?!
Evan had previously speculated that the so-called treasure key should be a Philosopher's Stone or something of similar shape and size.
This was because, at the treasure entrance deep beneath Hogwarts, there were statues of the Four Founders and four stone altars. On each altar there was a circular groove about the same size as a Philosopher’s Stone, seemingly meant for placing the keys.
But after looking around, Evan didn’t see any Philosopher’s Stone or similar object in Ravenclaw’s hands or on the desk.
Lady Ravenclaw didn't seem to have any intention of taking anything out. She just smiled and looked at Evan.
Without a doubt, Ravenclaw’s smile was beautiful, but it carried an air of intimidation—beauty so perfect it felt almost unreal.
Like Professor Dumbledore, her gaze seemed capable of piercing one’s soul, discerning exactly what you were thinking.
From a magical perspective, this meant that she was proficient in soul-type magic, such as the Imperius Curse, Legilimency, and the like.
Thinking of this, Evan instinctively avoided Ravenclaw's gaze.
He rethought the information revealed in Ravenclaw's words just now. Regarding his worry about Voldemort and the evil god being too powerful, Lady Ravenclaw just dealt with it lightly by asking him to focus all his effort on the task at hand. Evan guessed she must already have some plan in place but was unwilling to elaborate.
There were only three things he could do now. First, cooperate with Dumbledore and see if he had any arrangements. Professor Dumbledore couldn’t just do nothing. Second, seize the time and opportunity to improve his own strength in preparation for the final battle.
As for the third, and most crucial task, it was to locate the treasure keys left by the Four Founders. There must be something significant within them.
Thus, Ravenclaw brought the topic back to the treasure, preparing to hand the key over to Evan.
“Godric left you a Philosopher’s Stone, but you may not realize that the stone is not an ordinary one. It contains Godric’s will. That is what sets it apart as a key,” said Ravenclaw calmly. “What unlocks the secret treasure is not some powerful force but the will of the four of us. Therefore, the key I am leaving to you also contains my will. Although it is not a Philosopher’s Stone, it is also a gemstone, prominently set on my Diadem as a symbol of wisdom, it has been preserved on the Diadem for generations."
Evan’s eyes immediately fell on the Diadem in Ravenclaw’s hand.
Aside from the raven on it, there was nothing else—unless you counted the small white gems on the raven’s wings. However, he felt those gems were far too small.
Even though Ravenclaw had emphasized that the keys were defined by the Founders’ will rather than their power, Evan firmly believed the keys had to be about the same size as the altar grooves and were not ordinary objects.
He looked downward. There was an oval groove under the raven sculpture. There should be something there. Evan had seen replicas and portraits of Ravenclaw's Diadem before and knew that this groove was originally adorned with a large sapphire. Could the key Ravenclaw mentioned be that sapphire? If so, where was it?
Wait a moment—was she about to throw another challenge at him?
That seemed highly likely. Aside from Gryffindor, the other three Founders appeared reluctant to simply hand over their keys. Each trial they left behind was more difficult than the last. Even though Evan had already passed Ravenclaw's test and returned the Diadem to her, she still didn’t seem ready to straightforwardly hand over the treasure key...
"You can see that the gem that was supposed to be on top is not there. The Diadem you brought back is not complete."
"I didn't find it from the tree hollow in the Albanian forest, where Helena hid the Diadem," Evan said quickly, his heart sinking. "Before I found it, Voldemort had already taken the Diadem and turned it into a Horcrux."
"That gem wasn't taken away by Salazar's descendant, because it has great power. My will was already inside the gem before Helena took the Diadem. Only my magic can separate the gem from the Diadem," said Ravenclaw. "It must have been taken away by you, by your future self..."
"You're saying… my future self?!"
"Yes, the gem is still on the Diadem in Helena's hand. You have to go and take it away."
Evan didn't know what to say. Sure enough, it was another difficult problem.
Helena was currently in the Albanian forest, a vast expanse of untamed wilderness. Evan had no idea where she might be. How was he supposed to locate the Diadem? He had no desire to spend years pinpointing the location of the tree hollow. Even with the help of a Time-Turner, it would be a tedious and pointless endeavor.
"That is to say, we have to find Helena!" Evan sighed. "She’s hiding in the virgin forest of Albania … and the Bloody Baron..."
He stopped abruptly, remembering that the Bloody Baron was going to kill Helena.
Evan was not sure whether Ravenclaw knew about this. He had become accustomed to the ghosts of the Bloody Baron and Helena, and to the fact that they had died. But now it was more than a thousand years ago, and all these tragedies had not yet happened.
It didn’t seem appropriate to tell Ravenclaw, in her presence, that her daughter was about to be killed.
"I had hoped the Baron would bring Helena back, but it seems that's not the case. Helena's fate was sealed the day she chose to leave Hogwarts. This is largely my fault. I am not a competent mother," said Ravenclaw softly. "If I have a chance, I hope to say sorry to Helena."
She seemed to have known that Helena was about to die, but her expression and voice remained calm, without the slightest ripple. She just silently placed the Diadem in her hand in front of Evan.
"Wear this Diadem, Evan, it will guide you to my treasure key..."
There was a moment of silence, and Evan didn't know what to say. This topic was a bit heavy.
Simple reasoning showed that Helena's running away from home largely indicated that Lady Ravenclaw had indeed failed in her role as a mother. However, as the smartest witch in the world, one of the Four Founders of Hogwarts, and a person who was born without emotions, it was hard to place all the blame on Ravenclaw herself.
Evan couldn't help but wonder again, ‘who’s Helena's father? Is it Gryffindor?’
If it really were Godric Gryffindor, then he would have been quite a failure as a father. However, based on the current situation, it didn’t seem very likely...
Evan wasn't sure if it would make the atmosphere more awkward if he asked Ravenclaw for the answer to this question.
Anyway, this was not something he should be concerning himself with. He was just a fifteen-year-old kid!
Why did he have to think about how to properly raise a child or who the child’s father might be?
With a sigh breaking the silence, Evan picked up the Diadem and placed it on his head. ...
