Wilkes Ronalda's words echoed endlessly in her mind: "The path to the lake's bottom cannot be reached alone." Two days had passed since that night. She still hadn't properly talked to Wilkes. Deep into the eighth night since the curse. The corridors of Hogwarts Castle were silent. Graves Hermione's footsteps on the carpet were barely audible. Gripping only her wand, she slipped through a small southern door and outside. (If no one will believe me, then I'll go alone.) She walked the grass path leading to the southern shore of the Black Lake. The night air was cold, seeping through her robes. The moon was slightly larger than a half-moon. Less than two days remained until the full moon. The rocky outcrop came into view. ——Someone was there. Graves Hermione stopped. Sitting on the rocks. Reddish-brown messy hair. Large green eyes. A small mole on the right cheek. Still holding a Chocolate Frog, Wilkes Ronalda jumped to her feet the moment she saw Graves Hermione. It was Wilkes. She noticed her eyes were completely red only after stepping closer. Cried raw. Even the bridge of her nose was red. "[sad]……I'm sorry" Her voice trembled. "[sad]That moment, I……looked away. The second you asked me to believe. Maybe not even a second passed" Wilkes bowed her head. Her messy hair fell forward. "[crying]I believed you. Really, I did. But I was scared. What if you hated me——that alone made my face move. That one thing destroyed everything" Graves Hermione couldn't say anything. She stood there for a while, looking at the top of Wilkes's head. (……Idiot.) Tears came. She couldn't stop them. Her nose stung, and something spilled from the corners of her eyes. "[crying]Idiot. I'm just as scared" Wilkes looked up. Her green eyes glistened again. Both their faces crumpled at the same time. They didn't cry out loud—just the sound of sniffling echoed across the lakeside in the dead of night. Wilkes wiped her nose with her robe sleeve. Graves Hermione did the same. Standing side by side in front of the rocks, they continued sniffling quietly for a while. (This is pathetic. I can't let anyone see this.) But her chest was warming from within. Graves Hermione wiped her eyes with her sleeve and gripped her wand again. "[serious]Let's go" Wilkes wiped her face with her sleeve and nodded. "[gentle]I'll go with you" --- They stood at the lake's edge. The black water surface reflected the moonlight, glowing faintly. Beyond the water was pitch darkness. Graves Hermione raised her wand. "I'll use the underwater breathing spell, Bubalirius. Jump in right after I cast it" "[serious]Got it. I'll cast it too" "[serious]On three, then" "Um……" "[serious]On three" "「Bubalirius!」" Graves Hermione dove in. Cold. A cold that felt like ice water poured over her entire body. The darkness of the water made her eyes sting. Bubbles. Countless bubbles. Looking to the side, Wilkes was blowing out an enormous amount of bubbles. Blub blub blub. Like a child deliberately sinking in a bathtub. Graves Hermione quickly signaled with her eyes. Stop breathing. Wilkes noticed and clamped her mouth shut. The bubbles stopped. Instead, her cheeks puffed out. Her face was red. She could turn red underwater, Graves Hermione thought. They nodded at each other and began descending deeper. Inside the lake was a different world from outside. Quiet, dark, cold, with a faint greenish light seeping from far away——light leaking from the Slytherin dormitory windows. As they approached the bottom, water pressure increased. Her ears felt strange. Halfway down, shadows appeared. Not just one. Dozens. Gray skin. Green hair. Large eyes glowing faintly in the water. Merpeople——a group of the water-dwellers living in the Black Lake. One of them spread its arms, blocking their path. It was speaking in an ancient language. A low, resonant voice. Graves Hermione dug desperately through her memory. (Let's see, from the ancient language class……"no trespassing" was……maybe……) "Not a place for humans," it was saying. She understood that much. Graves Hermione responded in the same ancient language. Her pronunciation might be off. But she desperately assembled the words. "We are——the inheritors of Everina's will——" The merpeople exchanged glances. A ripple of unease spread through the water. Silence continued. In that moment, Wilkes turned to one of the merpeople and waved with a bright smile. Graves Hermione screamed internally. What are you doing!? But something strange happened. The merpeople's expression softened slightly. One tilted its head a little and lowered its arms. The movement spread like contagion, and the group parted left and right. A path opened. The two swam through quickly. Deeper, deeper down. Between the rocks at the lake bottom was a small door. An old stone door. The handle was rusted, but when Graves Hermione pressed her wand against it and pushed, it opened with a heavy sound. They entered. It was a small room made of stone. Low ceiling, no lamps. But thin light seeped from the walls——light in the shape of letters. Ancient rune script was carved across the entire wall. Graves Hermione approached the wall. She traced one rune with her finger. (I can read it……) With trembling hands, she slowly translated, piece by piece. Her voice came naturally. "[serious]This curse is……not a punishment. It is a——trial for accepting oneself" Wilkes looked up at the wall. "[serious]What comes next?" Graves Hermione moved her finger. Following the letters. "[serious]Those who hide their emotions cannot break it. Only when one acknowledges from the heart their feelings for someone precious does the curse……begin to weaken" Her voice caught midway. (Those who hide their emotions cannot break it.) She'd always smiled saying "I'm fine." Kept saying "no problem." Even when scared, even when hurting, even when about to cry——she'd suppressed her emotions, always pretending to look forward. Was the curse destabilizing her body because of that? She nearly collapsed. Her legs lost strength. Wilkes quickly caught her arm. "[gentle]Hermione?" "[sad]……I've been holding my emotions back the whole time. Maybe that's why the curse got stronger. Maybe it was my fault" "[serious]No" An immediate answer. "[serious]It's the fault of whoever cast the curse. Not yours" It was a very Wilkes answer. Straightforward, clumsy, but somehow the most right. Graves Hermione steadied her breathing and turned her gaze to the right wall. There was more carved text. "[surprised]Could it be……" "[serious]I, Everina Fitchberg myself, burned the curse-breaking documents. I arranged it so only those truly in need could reach this place" Wilkes froze. "[surprised]Wait……so the culprit was——" "[serious]The headmaster who died a hundred years ago. Someone didn't erase the clues——it was a path designed from the start to lead us here" Wilkes's voice rose. "[angry]Then the rumors that Hermione was the culprit were all lies from the beginning! We can prove everything!" In that moment, tears spilled. She tried to stop them, but it was too late. They slipped from the corners of her eyes, trailing down her cheeks. "[crying]……Yeah. That's right" --- Still crying, she stared at the back wall of the chamber. There was a crest carved differently from the other letters. An ornamental shape. A serpent and a book crossed together. Graves Hermione tilted her head. She reached inside her robe. A small family crest sewn into the lining. She confirmed the Graves family crest of her house. It was the same. "[surprised]Could it be……" Next to Everina's name, the Graves family crest was carved. In a stone chamber a hundred years old. "[gentle]Maybe Everina and your family were connected" Wilkes said quietly. "[whispers]I……might have been arranged to come here from the beginning" Her voice echoed through the stone chamber. Baseless anxiety transformed into something else. A quiet strength returned from deep within her chest. There was a reason——I had to do this. Graves Hermione stood up. Power entered her eyes. That's when Wilkes pointed at the very bottom of the wall. "[surprised]Is there more writing here?" Graves Hermione crouched and squinted. Small letters. "[serious]The first trial is acceptance of emotion. The second trial is——" The rest was buried in sand. No matter how much she brushed it away with her fingers, she couldn't read further. "[surprised]What does this mean!?" Wilkes crouched beside her, furrowing her brow. "[serious]……There's more, right?" The curse was only half-broken. --- They surfaced. Cold night air filled her lungs. She took a deep breath. Climbing onto the southern rocks, the two stood side by side catching their breath. Water dripped from their wet robes. The moon was tilting westward. It was past midnight. "You took quite a while" A voice came from the shadows. Silver hair. Cold silver eyes. An emerald earring cuff on one ear caught the moonlight and gleamed. Malfoy Dracona stood on the shore. "[surprised]How long have you been here" "Since before you entered the lake" Wilkes stood up sharply. "[angry]Eavesdropping" Malfoy unusually looked away. Staring at the stones on the shore. "……I was here as a witness" "[cold]I confirmed that it was the headmaster from a hundred years ago who burned the ancient documents. I have proof that the rumors were lies" Graves Hermione brushed her wet bangs aside. "[surprised]……Why go so far" Malfoy was silent for a while. Three seconds. Five seconds. Still looking at the shore stones, she opened her mouth. "[serious]I……am genuinely interested in you. Since before your appearance changed. I didn't want to admit it" Her face was slightly turned away. That profile was more tense than usual. Wilkes's expression changed rapidly. Her green eyes narrowed. Her fists clenched. Graves Hermione was shocked into silence. Malfoy continued. "[cold]I don't need an answer right now" With just that, she flipped her cloak. Walking toward the castle. Her shoulders were slightly raised, her gait different from her usual composed stride. There was tension in someone who had removed one layer of their pride's armor. Her footsteps faded into the distance. Only Graves Hermione and Wilkes remained on the rocks of the southern shore. Only the sound of water dripping from their wet robes. Wilkes said nothing, staring ahead. The tips of her ears gradually turned red. Graves Hermione couldn't say anything either. The moon was sinking into the western sky. Two days remained until the full moon. The words carved on the stone chamber wall——"The second trial is——"——kept spinning in her mind.