Harry Potter and the Great Old Ones

Chapter 357 A Trip to Black Lake
Then Tierra herself jumped into the lake.

"Tierra!" Harry said, sounding somewhat angry. "What are you doing?"

“Perfect timing, you still have a little time for your gill sac grass.” As Tierra spoke, gills materialized on her neck, her limbs lengthened, and webbing connected her fingers. Harry noticed Tierra’s smooth, delicate feet—

The feet grew longer, and the toes were webbed, just like duck webs suddenly appeared.

“You, you too?” Harry asked in surprise.

“No, Harry,” Tyella swam a little closer to Harry and whispered in his ear, “it’s flesh magic.”

"Flesh magic?" Harry asked, puzzled. "What's that?"

“This is a type of magic, aside from the three forbidden spells, that, once discovered to be learned, used, or spread, will immediately land you in Azkaban,” Tiera chuckled, swimming forward, and then said, “It’s an extremely evil form of dark magic.”

"Huh?" Harry seemed startled, his mouth agape, wide enough to fit a fist.

“Then, then, then you…” Harry felt his tongue getting tied.

“Harry, do you believe me?” Tyrell asked. “I’ve told you my biggest secret.”

"I," Harry hesitated for a moment, then said firmly, "I believe you, I believe Tyella!"

"Hehe." Tierra chuckled, then pulled Harry along and swam a short distance forward.

“Not everyone who uses dark magic is a bad person,” Tierra said, turning back with a smile. “Harry, I hope you remember that.”

“Mmm,” Harry replied. “Tierra isn’t a bad person.”

“Yes, Harry, and I can also use flesh magic,” Tyrell said with a smile, then suddenly became serious, turned around, cupped Harry’s head in her hands, and stared directly at him—

"W-what are you doing?" Harry was a little nervous by Tyella's series of unusual actions.

“Harry, remember this: what magic do I know?” Tierra asked seriously.

“Blood, flesh magic,” Harry replied, somewhat bewildered.

“Yes, Harry, remember that I have flesh magic, but I’m not a bad person,” Tyella said. “Remember, I’m neither a bad person nor a good person.”

“How could that be?” Harry asked, puzzled. “You’re a good person!”

Harry said somewhat stubbornly.

“No, Harry, you must remember, I am a smart man, I am precocious,” Tyella said, “but I am neither a good man nor a bad man.”

Tyrell gripped Harry's head with both hands, forcing him to look directly at her. "Harry, you must remember this: I am a complicated person who can use dark magic."

“Okay, okay, I got it,” Harry said helplessly, then pushed Tierra’s hand away. “You’re hurting me a little.”

"Sorry, Harry." Tyrell released both hands and said with a grin, seemingly returning to her usual easygoing and quirky self.

“Come on, Harry,” Tierra said with a smile. “Let’s go play at the bottom of Black Lake. I don’t think any of us really got a good look at its beautiful scenery during the competition.”

"Mmm!" Harry happily agreed and swam after Tierra.

They swam through a strange, dark, and hazy landscape, surrounded by complete silence. Harry could only see within a ten-foot radius, so with each stroke of his pen, new vistas would suddenly emerge from the darkness ahead:

The undulating, tangled jungle of black aquatic plants, and the wide, flat mud and sand scattered with glittering pebbles.

They swam deeper and deeper, heading towards the center of the lake. His eyes were wide open, his gaze piercing through the gray, eerie water, looking at the dark figures in the distance, where the water was gloomy and indistinct.

The little fish swam nimbly past him, like silver darts.

On one or two occasions, he seemed to see a big thing moving in front of him, but when he swam closer, he found that it was just a big, dark log or a clump of dense, tangled water plants.

Tierra seemed to be able to see a little further than Harry. Leading the way, Tierra was like a mermaid from a Muggle fairy tale. Her soft skin was dazzlingly white against the dark lake bottom as she gracefully swam among the seaweed and fish at the bottom of the Black Lake.

Harry didn't know why Tyella had such good eyesight at the bottom of the lake. He guessed it might be due to the flesh magic Tyella had mentioned; Tyella always seemed to be able to guide Harry away from obstacles and large creatures swimming in the lake.

For example, that giant squid that often floats to the surface to sunbathe.

Tyrell and Harry first went to the Slytherin common room—

Outside the window.

Harry then realized that the Slytherin common room was so deep underground, with a huge glass window overlooking the bottom of the Black Lake.

Through the glass window, Tyrell and Harry had a clear view of the participants in the Slytherin common room—

Unlike the Gryffindor common room, which is always filled with golden sunlight and warm-colored decorations, the Slytherin common room is a long, narrow, low basement with rough stone walls and ceilings, and round, green-glowing lamps hanging from the ceiling by chains.

Tierra and Harry could see a crackling fire burning beneath an intricately carved fireplace on the right side of the huge glass window, casting the silhouettes of several Slytherin students sitting in carved chairs around the wall.

Because it was lunchtime, the Slytherin common room was rather empty. Tyella and Harry glanced at it briefly before quickly swimming away.

Tierra and Harry swam a little further towards the center of the lake, when suddenly, they saw many rough stone dwellings all around them, speckled with algae.

Harry saw faces in the dark windows...faces that were completely different from the grotesque ones in the painting in the prefect's bathroom...

Clearly, this is a mermaid village near the ruins in the center of the lake.

Tierra and Harry only circled the perimeter briefly before turning back and wandering away.

After all, Tierra had just raided their hideout. If these merfolk found out, Tierra herself wouldn't care, but rescuing Harry without revealing her strength would be quite difficult.

Because the effects of the gill sac grass were about to wear off, Tierra and Harry stopped wandering and swam toward the lakeshore.

As they approached the lakeshore and were about to disembark, Tyrell suddenly grabbed Harry—

“Harry,” Tyrell said to Harry with a smile as she leaned closer.

"W-what's wrong?" Harry asked nervously.

“Let what’s at the bottom of the lake remain at the bottom,” Tierra said with a smile, holding up a finger to her lips. “It’s our secret.”

I'm so sorry, because I'm planting rice tomorrow, I was busy mixing and soaking the soil until 10 PM today, so the update is a little late. I'll express my gratitude in tomorrow's chapter.

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(End of this chapter)