Harry Potter: The Bard of Hogwarts

Sometimes, it's not that everyone loves solitude.

Often, it's that in situations beyond our control, we train ourselves to get used to being alone.

---

Hogsmeade Cottage.

In the second-floor bedroom, Ino used Transfiguration to make a life-sized bed for the little doll and added some matching miniature furniture.

After completing all this, he opened another suitcase gifted by Nicolas.

The suitcase was made from the hide of a Tebo wart hog. Although it looked very vintage in design, even traceable back to the Middle Ages, its practicality was quite impressive.

The Tebo wart hog is a magical creature highly prized by wizards. Its hide is not only often used to make shields but is also one of the materials used in crafting Invisibility Cloaks.

Compared to Invisibility Cloaks made from Demiguise fur, those made from Tebo wart hog hide are considered even more precious, likely because of their strong defensive properties.

Perhaps because it was just a suitcase, Nicolas hadn't activated the invisibility function of the Tebo hide.

But these are minor details, and Ino didn't mind them. It was something he could easily take care of later.

Besides, he had already planned to replace his current suitcase.

Now, with such a ready-made high-end product, all it needed was a bit of processing. Its secrecy and defense capabilities would far surpass those of his previous suitcase.

But that's a matter for later. For now, he intended to see what Nicolas had left inside the suitcase.

---

Ino opened the suitcase.

Following the ladder, he entered the suitcase's undetectable extension space.

The space was not large, measuring only a few dozen square meters, about the size of a single room.

The layout inside was rather sparse, with only two pieces of furniture—a pair of walnut bookshelves placed against the wall.

One of the ten-foot-tall bookshelves was filled with various old books with worn covers, while the other housed dozens of dolls in different shapes and sizes.

Ino was familiar with these dolls—they were the same little ones that had served tea and water earlier.

However, their capabilities were not limited to that.

During his previous conversations with Nicolas, he had learned about these little creatures' abilities.

Not only could they handle daily chores, like house-elves, such as doing laundry and cooking, but they could also serve as excellent alchemy assistants, even independently crafting alchemical items.

But what puzzled him was that they were now lying quietly on the bookshelf.

---

It seemed that Nicolas had anticipated this and left an unopened letter beside the bookshelf.

A few minutes later, Ino put down the letter in his hand with a helpless sigh. He now understood Nicolas's intent.

He also understood why these alchemy-capable dolls were here instead of being donated to Beauxbatons as part of Nicolas's legacy.

"It really is a case of equivalent exchange..." Ino sighed wistfully.

These dolls didn't rely solely on magic to function, unlike wizard chess pieces or other alchemical tools.

They depended on the Philosopher's Stone—or more precisely, on life force.

A wizard could trade one year of their life for one year of the doll's vitality.

With such a steep price, it wasn't hard to understand why Nicolas Flamel didn't want to leave them at Beauxbatons.

Life for life—it's a price not everyone can afford.

If they were just simple toys, it wouldn't be a big deal—nobody would foolishly waste their life on them. But these dolls were nearly the equivalent of alchemists.

If these things ever got out, the number of wizards reported missing each year would likely double.

But despite the harsh conditions, Ino felt a sense of joy, even excitement, as if they had been made specifically for him.

Why? Because of the unique properties of the fantastical world and the ability to reverse time.

As long as he entered the fantastical world, even if he filled all these dolls with vitality, it would only cost him a few decades of his lifespan.

When the story ended, he would return to his original state, just like before entering.

It was like a looped system—he could even be more at ease than Nicolas Flamel. He could keep these dolls around permanently without suffering any loss.

"Why bother with an alchemy factory! I am a walking factory..."

Ino cheerfully gazed at the little dolls before him.

With these little guys, why waste time hiring alchemists?

Forget mass-producing magical mirrors—if he really wanted to, he could dominate any alchemical market, even the wand market.

But that was just a fleeting thought.

His original intention with the magical mirrors was simply to make the magical world more vibrant and colorful.

If it were just about money, he wouldn't have involved so many people in the first place.

---

Half an hour later.

Ino climbed out of the suitcase's undetectable extension space. The sky outside had already darkened.

Under the night sky, Hogsmeade appeared peaceful.

The rows of houses, occasionally lit by a few lamps, made the village look truly cozy.

After taking one last glance at the scenery outside the window, Ino withdrew his gaze and headed straight to his bed.

The half-month of travel had made him miss the feeling of sleeping at home.

---

Morning.

Ino slowly opened his eyes to the sound of light tapping.

In front of him was a strange owl.

Though he didn't recognize it, he opened the window to let this distant messenger inside.

It wasn't until he opened the window that he noticed several letters already piled up on the windowsill.

They must have accumulated while he was traveling in France.

After tidying up the scattered letters on the windowsill, Ino brought a bowl of fresh water and some nuts to treat the special guest.

As the owl happily enjoyed its meal, Ino noticed the letter tied to its leg, sealed with wax bearing a large "H." The letter's origin was immediately clear.

But he couldn't help but notice that, perhaps because the current headmaster hailed from Gryffindor, the wax seal was in a bright red color.

Opening the envelope, as expected, it was the fourth-year admission letter. Most of the textbooks hadn't changed much, but some core subjects had upgraded materials.

Books like The Standard Book of Spells, Intermediate, Intermediate Transfiguration, and Advanced Potion-Making had all been updated.

"Fourth year already..."

Looking at the letter in his hand, Ino couldn't help but feel a little dazed. Unknowingly, three whole years had passed.

It seemed like just yesterday he was hiding under a bridge, secretly practicing the Fire-Making Charm by himself.

A sense of the fleeting nature of time and the changes it brings washed over him.

---

After a brief moment of nostalgia, Ino turned his attention to the few other letters scattered on the windowsill.

One was from Newt, mostly detailing the academic community's response to the birth of a phoenix, with some people even beginning to research it.

But Ino scoffed at such ideas.

With sincere intentions, not to mention birthing a phoenix, even just condensing the core emotions of fire would block all possible paths.

The known phoenixes were all born from pure emotions: one from a Quidditch player's unwavering persistence, Fawkes from the great sacrifice of Dumbledore's ancestor, another from the extreme curse of the Dance of the Snowflakes, and another from the hope for peace of over ten thousand people in Rohan...

All these examples stem from pure emotions.

Even the slightest hint of other thoughts would prevent the flame from condensing its core.

Putting down Newt's letter, Ino picked up the next one, surprised to find that it was from Harry.

Harry's letter wasn't long; it merely described a dream he had:

A faceless Dark wizard killed a Muggle, who was then swallowed whole by a snake.