HP: The Root of Everything - The Magician

Greed arises when faced with something desired.

In terms of its existence, Griffin can bring a sense of redemption as warm as that of Wiener.

In terms of value, Lake wants to possess the Griffin, the only mythical creature of its kind in existence.

Hermione stood aside, watching with a smile as Venus and Nexus, disguised by the Polyjuice Potion, appeared. While the Mythical Griffin was precious to others, it was quite ordinary to her, a 'youngest' magician.

With the power of magic, as long as we keep researching it, there is no magic that cannot be achieved.

Viner's greed for Griffin was obvious. After regaining his senses, he pulled out his wand from his robes and cast a binding spell on Hermione.

The instant Hermione was imprisoned, Viner took out a spatial storage box and tiptoed toward the sleeping Griffin, her heart pounding with anxiety: [If I can trap it with this box, I can capture this griffin.]

Lake stood still, watching over Hermione Granger, who had collapsed and was unable to get up after being bound by the curse.

As Wiener drew closer, Lake's anxiety grew.

Just as Viner was about to touch the sleeping Griffin, Hermione, who was struggling on the ground, spoke up: "Who are you? You're not Ravenclaw students!"

"Are you trying to steal Griffin? But there's only one Griffin, how are you two going to divide him up?"

Upon hearing this, Lake turned to look at Hermione, his brows furrowing.

He and Vena had already discussed how to divide it, but the actual situation was quite different now. After seeing the extraordinary, golden form of the mythical griffin, no one would want to kill it, dismantle it, and then sell its parts as magical materials.

When Hermione asked how to divide the spoils, Lake's mind began to wander.

Not only him, but Viner felt the same way. There was only one Griffin, and this seasoned dark wizard wouldn't honor the agreement to split it in half with Lake.

So, Lake couldn't resist taking action.

He took out his wand from his robes and pointed it without hesitation at Viner, who was on her way to capture Griffin: "Avada Kedavra..."

The moment the green light appeared, Lake was suddenly attacked without warning. With a single blow, the wand in his hand, which was about to unleash the death curse, was destroyed.

As Lake was being sent flying backwards, he managed to grab the edge of the tower with both hands just before falling off the rooftop, thus avoiding a fatal crash.

Having lost his wand, Lake hung precariously on the edge of the tower, his heart filled with terror: [What happened? There are only three people on this rooftop, including me. Who attacked me?]

Viner was harvesting griffins, Hermione was bound to the ground by a binding spell, and Lake couldn't understand who had attacked him.

But he couldn't think about that now; getting ashore was the most important thing. Just as he had climbed halfway up the roof, a foot suddenly appeared and kicked him hard.

Lake stared intently, then was immediately incredulous: [What...Vina? How can there be two Vinas?]

It was Viner who was reaching for him, and it was also Viner who was approaching Griffin with the spatial box.

On the rooftop, Hermione, bound and gagged, also looked rather strange.

Lake didn't see who attacked him, but Hermione, as a third party, saw it all clearly. She saw another Vic emerge from the invisibility of the Disillusionment Charm and then attack Lake with his wand in the corner of the rooftop.

The invisible Venerer kicked Lake, then stepped on Lake's hands, which were hanging from the top of the tower.

At this moment, Venerer, like a victor, looked at Lake hanging at his feet and said with an evil smile, "My dear Lake, are you confused? How can there be two of me? Hahahaha~~~"

"Special magic isn't just something you have; I have it too."

"The reason I've been able to roam the world of dark magic alone for so many years without dying is because of my 'Double Clone Magic' technique."

"My magic can create a false clone, a warm clone, a clone connected to my own consciousness."

“If the clone is not a false entity, but has flesh and blood, then it will be no different from me.”

Vena looked at the shocked Lake at her feet and laughed arrogantly, "Haha~ You didn't expect that, did you? From the very beginning, from the moment you entered Hogwarts, it was this fake clone by your side."

"And the one stepping on your hand now is the real me."

At this point, Wiener softened her tone and said with a hint of apology, "Sorry, Lake, thank you for leading me into Hogwarts, well... die now."

Viner raised her foot and kicked Lake hard off the rooftop of the tower.

With his wand destroyed, Lake, who couldn't cast spells without a wand, was doomed. Venere watched as Lake fell into the darkness below before turning away, satisfied.

Then, Venerer waved his wand, and the clone of Venerer holding the spatial box disappeared, leaving only the box lying on the ground.

Viner stepped forward, picked up the box, and took over from the clone, continuing to carefully approach the still-sleeping griffin.

Hermione, lying on the ground, wasn't worried about Griffin's safety; instead, she had a big smile on her face.

This smile was Hermione's smile, born from witnessing the incredible and special magic beyond the books.

Hermione asked Vina, who was passing by, with certainty, "The clones created by your Doppelganger spell can't possibly exist forever, right?"

Upon hearing the question, Venere saw that Griffin was still fast asleep and showed no signs of being disturbed, so she stopped and began to explain to Hermione, the little witch.

Sharing happiness is worse than enjoying it alone; sharing your achievements with others is something to be incredibly proud of.

So Wiener crouched down in front of Hermione and said smugly, "Not bad, little witch..."

"You're right, my dual clone has a time limit; it can only exist for one hour."

"So, you lied to that Lake just now?" Hermione couldn't help but expose him after hearing this.

Wiener nodded: "Yes, I lied."

"It was I who infiltrated Hogwarts with Lake, but it was my clone that emerged from the tunnel."

"When my clone left with Lake, I myself emerged from the tunnel and then searched for the griffin alone in Hogwarts Castle."

"When the clone's time limit is about to expire, I will replace the clone and appear next to Lake. Then, when I have time, I will create a new clone where Lake cannot see me, while I... continue to hide using the Disillusionment Charm."

Having said that, Vena said excitedly, "Well, little witch?"

"Isn't my double clone spell, which I developed based on the copying spell, pretty good?"

Hermione nodded very seriously.

Hermione was very interested in both Lake's [treasure hunting magic] and Vina's [dual creation magic], and she really wanted to learn them.

You should know that these two spells are spells that have never been recorded or even existed in Hogwarts's library, which has been accumulated over thousands of years.

She wanted to learn; Hermione really wanted to learn.

Hermione, with her big, bright eyes, looked at Vigna and grinned, saying, "Unexpectedly, there's an unexpected bonus tonight."

"Sir, I'm starting to become interested in you."

"Now, I'll give you a few choices. First, teach me your clone magic."

"Second, I'll beat you into submission, and then you'll teach me."

"Third, cut off your head and soak it in a jar to keep it alive. I will slowly interrogate your brain."