Mysterious Journey

Chapter 808 Rowena Ravenclaw's Conjecture

“Oh, Professor Flitwick, are you really planning to live in the common room?”

At the Ravenclaw table, Professor Flitwick hesitated for a few seconds, a worried look on his face.

“I mean, the Ravenclaw bronze eagle knocker might not be as…interesting as you think… It’s just a door knocker, especially lately, the eagle knocker seems a bit strange, occasionally asking questions that even I find difficult to answer. On the other hand, Hogwarts actually has dedicated quarters prepared for professors…”

“You don’t need to be so formal, just call me Nicolas, Filius.”

Nicolas Flamel paused slightly, shifting his gaze away from a figure sneaking away from the Ravenclaw table. He raised an eyebrow with interest, turned to Professor Flitwick, and said with a smile.

“Rather than a life of routine, I look forward to challenges that can stump me. Besides, if it’s a matter of alchemy, maybe I can help repair it? Everything about Rowena Ravenclaw is anything but dull.”

In fact, the bronze eagle knocker involved a small wager.

According to a prior private agreement, if he could answer the bronze eagle knocker's question today, then Aileen Kaslana would tell him all the details about those disaster prophecies. Ever since he heard about those futures from the girl, Nicolas Flamel had been feeling uneasy, especially since some of the descriptions sounded too much like the Philosopher's Stone after it went out of control.

Nicolas Flamel frowned slightly, the fragmented information the girl had previously described flashing through his mind.

Losing their souls, relying only on instinct and the remnants of their bodies, undead creatures called zombies…

If this was really a disaster caused by the Philosopher's Stone he left behind, then as the creator of the Philosopher's Stone, he naturally couldn't rest peacefully as originally planned—at least not until he solved this hidden danger could he leave.

Of course, this small wager was only between him and Aileen.

In front of Dumbledore and the Hogwarts professors, there was naturally another set of logical explanations.

“It’s truly fascinating…more than a thousand years ago, Rowena Ravenclaw…what kind of magic did she enchant onto that eagle knocker, allowing it to constantly update itself, while still maintaining its original core… You should understand, it's a fatal attraction for every alchemy enthusiast…”

Nicolas Flamel looked at Professor Flitwick, who seemed about to say something but held back, and politely asked in a soft voice.

“So, besides that, is there anything else that is inconvenient?”

“Well… if you insist—”

Professor Flitwick shrugged, not pressing the matter.

“In any case, there are quite a few empty rooms in the castle, you can change your mind at any time.”

He wasn't worried that the centuries-old wizard wouldn't be able to sleep comfortably. As the head of Ravenclaw House, he was actually a bit worried about his own house's students. If they were unlucky, they might have to sleep in the corridor again.

Unlike usual, today’s question from the bronze eagle knocker wasn't meant for the students to answer.

Dumbledore had already communicated with him in advance before tonight's dinner.

As the greatest alchemist of the past five centuries, Nicolas Flamel hoped to have a “simple exchange” with the legendary Rowena Ravenclaw, through the answers of that thousand-year-old bronze door knocker—for a great alchemist like Nicolas Flamel, such an opportunity was reward enough.

Naturally, facing the request of the Hogwarts Headmaster, the proud bronze eagle knocker agreed to this special challenge.

It would follow Hogwarts' tradition and history, making an exception to prepare a question for Nicolas Flamel… With the help of a certain little angel who wished to remain anonymous, the bronze eagle knocker had already completed the update of its basic question bank.

As the professors left their seats, a cacophony of scraping and clattering filled the Great Hall.

The students stood up one after another, swarming towards the double doors leading to their respective dormitories. The flow of people in the hall was distinctly divided into four streams according to color, passing through the Entrance Hall and gradually heading towards the stairs.

“This way, Luna. We’re going to the Hufflepuff side.”

Aileen didn't follow the Ravenclaw crowd towards the door. Instead, she took Luna's hand and quietly mingled into the Hufflepuff line. “Don't space out. The eagle knocker definitely won't open tonight. You don't want to sleep in the corridor, do you?”

“You can’t defeat an entire house…”

Luna stood still, quietly glancing at Professor Flitwick at the Ravenclaw table, and said softly.

“Even if they don’t like you, they are still Ravenclaw, and Professor Nicolas Flamel is here today! What if the house door really opens tonight, we'll be considered out of bounds—”

Last night, before Aileen returned to the dormitory, Professor Flitwick specifically found Luna for a serious conversation.

In summary, he hoped that Luna could keep Aileen on the Ravenclaw side as much as possible, and not let her be snatched away by the girls from the other three houses. After all, since last year, Aileen had been similar to the “Fat Lady” of Gryffindor, almost equivalent to half of the Ravenclaw common room’s mobile access control.

“Yeah,” Aileen said, casually responding, “Yeah, and Nicolas Flamel…”

“So, how about…”

“But! Professor Flitwick didn't ask you to do it for sure, right?”

Aileen flicked Luna's forehead, glanced at the little moon, who was surprised and speechless, and said helplessly.

“If you still feel embarrassed, just say that I 'invited' both of you to Hufflepuff House for the night. Anyway, today is a special situation, precisely because the other party is Nicolas Flamel, so it won't open no matter what—”

“Don't always flick my forehead! Otherwise, I won't help you deal with Hermione next time!”

Luna covered her forehead in pain, her dazed gaze slightly returning to her senses, and blinked her eyes in confusion.

“Wait, what did you just say—we?”

Only then did she notice that besides her and Aileen, there was another Ravenclaw girl who hadn't left the Great Hall with the main group, but was standing timidly not far from them, watching the “senior” schoolgirls flirt.

The Russian freshman who just enrolled this year, her name seems to be… Danilova?

“Of course. It's not the Hogwarts way to treat guests by letting people sleep in the corridor just after the start of the school year. Besides, Professor Alexei specifically instructed that if possible, try to let Little Danilova get to know more friends.”

As the child of a former Soviet nuclear physicist, Danilova may not be too monstrous in terms of knowledge level for the time being, but some basic mathematical and physical common sense is still quite solid—compared to Aileen, who comes from an economics major, this little witch from a Russian scientific family is actually more suitable as the first batch of testers for the [Magic-Science] theory.

Aileen briefly explained a few words, waved to the little witch not far away, and showed a gentle smile.

“Come over here, Danilova. I'll take you to visit the Hufflepuff House common room.”

Soon, the three of them arrived at the Hufflepuff table, joined Hannah and Hermione, and then the five little witches began to walk towards the Entrance Hall as planned. Along the way, Aileen and the other wing-women explained the origin of the little tail, as well as gossiping and answering some rumors about Nicolas Flamel and the Ravenclaw common room.

“So, from the beginning, you didn't intend to let Mr. Nicolas Flamel enter the common room?”

Luna Lovegood frowned slightly, and asked softly, seemingly lost in thought.

“Not really, of course he can later,” Aileen shook her head, “But not tonight. Whether considering it from the perspective of maintaining Rowena Ravenclaw's legacy, or from the struggle between Beauxbatons and Hogwarts, it's not possible…”

“Beauxbatons Academy of Magic?” Hermione asked curiously.

“That's right, Mr. Nicolas Flamel is not a Hogwarts graduate, he's French.”

Aileen raised a finger and said with a serious face, "Since a long time ago, there has been competition between the French and British magical worlds. Perhaps he doesn't think so, but if he gains the upper hand in the initial confrontation, then a less pleasant 'remote dialogue' story will be left in future magical history records."

“But isn’t he over six hundred years old?! What problem could…”

Hannah said in a very worried tone. At this time, they passed through a door hidden behind a tapestry and began to walk down a narrow staircase towards the lower levels of the castle—Hannah has always been a qualified Hufflepuff when it comes to finding her way in the dungeons.

“Yeah,” Aileen said casually, “But age can only allow him to absorb more knowledge, right? Moreover, can the question posed by the bronze eagle knocker be answered by magic books alone? You should know what I'm talking about. As the math editor of *The Quibbler*, you know best what the overall math level of the wizarding world is like."

"But you also said that Professor Nicolas Flamel is from France."

Hermione shook her head, quickly retorting, "Professor Alexei said in class before that France is the kingdom of mathematics in the non-magical world, and I don't think a renowned alchemist would be stumped by the question you came up with."

“That question definitely can’t be solved—”

Before Aileen could answer, Danilova's timid voice came from behind Hermione.

"But, I think my dad might have some ideas. His friends and teachers seemed to have discussed similar questions at home before. If they are given some time, they should be able to try to get closer to that answer..."

"That doesn't fit the eagle knocker's logic. The eagle knocker won't ask an unsolvable question."

Luna said seriously. She had heard many stories about Hogwarts from her father since she was a child.

Among them, the bronze eagle knocker in the Ravenclaw House common room was undoubtedly the easiest to exist as a short story or a daily small test between father and daughter—Hogwarts' eagle knocker is difficult, but it is definitely solvable.

“Of course, in most cases, it is indeed as you said. But—”

Aileen nodded, raised her finger and shook it left and right, and continued mysteriously.

"Don't forget, the bronze eagle knocker at the entrance of the Ravenclaw House common room is still essentially derived from Rowena Ravenclaw's alchemical achievements. The knowledge, cognition, and certain concepts built into it, rather than having a fixed explanation, can be said to be existing a piece of information that fits Rowena Ravenclaw's understanding and can be learned and accepted."

"Therefore, in other words..."

Aileen glanced at Hermione, who seemed to understand but didn't quite, and the corners of her mouth curved slightly.

“It can be a conjecture that has not been proven, but cannot be disproven either. And the proof process, unless the person concerned writes it out for you, this is an unsolvable challenge method before the second person answers it completely..."

Just like Fermat's Last Theorem, which has plagued the mathematical world for centuries.

Pierre de Fermat only needs to propose this hypothesis, and then write on the side of the book—"I have discovered a wonderful proof, but this margin is too narrow to contain it." – and he can always stand in the position of a pioneer amidst the doubts of countless mathematicians in later generations, smiling and waiting for people to constantly challenge and think.

If Aileen didn't remember correctly, according to the original world trajectory, the proof of Fermat's Last Theorem would have to wait another two years.

Unless someone successfully disproved this conjecture, from the moment Pierre de Fermat passed away, Mr. Fermat would forever be invincible. No one can defeat a past soul.

Aileen's eyes flickered, recalling the stories she had found in the books during these times.

Whether it's the exchange rate set by Gringotts Wizarding Bank thousands of years ago, and the number of extra-nuclear electrons in Sickles and Knuts; or the conversations and wishes left in some documents by the four founders of Hogwarts more than a thousand years ago...

"Hogwarts, ancient magical civilization, is not as simple as people think..."



At the same time, Nicolas Flamel and the Ravenclaw students walked up the rotating long staircase together and came to the platform in front of the Ravenclaw common room, gently knocking on the sleeping bronze eagle knocker.

Under Nicolas Flamel's curious gaze, the bronze eagle knocker woke up, opened its mouth and emitted a soft and pleasant female voice.

"There are four houses in Hogwarts, and each house has its own color. If one day we decide to use the colors of the four houses to mark and divide every inch of the school, can we color those territories with common borders with different colors using only four colors, and… why?"

(。?vェv?。)

The smile on Nicolas Flamel's face gradually disappeared.

After a few seconds of silence, the old man, under the expectant gaze of a group of little girls, slowly turned to look at the Hogwarts Head Girl standing beside him, and asked in a gentle tone.

"Where is that velvet sleeping bag you mentioned on the way here usually stored?"

————

————

Goo-ah~ Another 4000-word small chapter~