"First off, you're probably wondering why I look like this, right?" Rhys asked as he took a seat. Now that he had finally sat down, he felt much more at ease and began to speak steadily.
Helga Hufflepuff nodded. She was very curious why her old friend, after just a few years apart, looked so young—this wasn't just aging in reverse; it was something else entirely.
Maybe he had invented some kind of special potion that could return the body to its youthful state? Helga guessed.
It seemed like a very reasonable explanation.
After all, Salazar was one of the foremost masters of potioneering in the world. It wouldn't surprise her in the slightest if he'd managed to create such a potion.
Rowena would probably love this kind of potion, Helga thought suddenly, and then another idea followed—maybe she could get a dose of it from Salazar herself.
Who wouldn't want to regain their youthful body in old age?
Even if it didn't extend one's lifespan, it could at least make the final years of life more comfortable. So many bodily functions go unnoticed until they're gone, and only then do you realize how vital they were.
Rhys's voice pulled Helga's drifting thoughts back to the present.
"After I left the castle—" he began. At that, Helga gave a sharp huff again, clearly still upset over his departure years ago. Rhys pretended not to hear it and continued, "I wandered for a while, and by chance, I came across something called an Origin Fragment."
The words Origin Fragment struck Helga like a bolt of lightning. She abruptly stood up, eyes locked tightly onto Rhys.
"You didn't—"
"It's not what you think. I used it to brew a potion," Rhys said quickly.
Only then did Helga relax slightly. If he had directly consumed an Origin Fragment, she would have seriously considered whether she ought to bury him here in this very palace.
She, who had once overthrown the rule of the gods, could never allow herself or her friends to become new deities in their place.
Still, even if it was just a potion, it was hard to be entirely reassured—and what did that have to do with "a thousand years," anyway?
"I got the idea from how snakes shed their skin," Rhys explained. "After taking the potion, I fell into a deep sleep. During that sleep, I would shed a layer of skin every so often. With each shedding, I grew younger—until I became a ten-year-old child. That's when I finally woke up… by then, nearly a thousand years had passed."
Helga Hufflepuff: Huh?
Even in the magical world, Salazar's words sounded bizarre—more like a fable from a storybook. But considering he'd acquired an Origin Fragment, it kind of made sense. That thing, if one were willing to bear its negative effects, could grant immortality just by consuming it directly.
But there was still one big question: according to Salazar's own words, he had slept for a thousand years after taking the potion. So how was he now speaking with her—from a thousand years ago?
Helga was quite certain she hadn't slept for a millennium.
"It's the effect of this palace. I used its power to meet with the you from a thousand years ago."
And got into a few fights, Rhys added silently, though he kept that part to himself.
Rhys then explained the full functionality of the palace ruins in detail to Helga. She listened with growing awe and respect.
"I thought this place was just another undiscovered ruin," she said, eyes wide as she carefully studied the hall around them. "I didn't expect…"
But no matter how hard she looked—even until her eyes started to ache—she couldn't spot anything out of the ordinary. It looked, through and through, like an ordinary ruin.
Eventually, Helga gave up. Instead, she turned to chat with her old friend. "So you went back? As a student?"
Rhys nodded. "As a properly aged young wizard, I showed magical talent in Britain. Naturally, I was accepted into the school—The Book of Admittance was still functioning perfectly, even after a thousand years, haha~"
"Heh~ That's wonderful," Helga said, a heartfelt smile spreading across her face. Knowing that the school she and her friends had founded was still operating a thousand years later filled her with immense joy.
In truth, it wasn't just functioning—Hogwarts could rightfully be called flourishing. It had become the best magical school in the world. Some other schools might not admit it out loud, but deep down, they all understood Hogwarts' status and significance.
"Um… well…" Helga had a question she deeply cared about, but she was also a little embarrassed to ask—since it was admittedly a sensitive topic.
"You want to ask about Muggle-born students, right?" Rhys said, easily guessing her thoughts just from the look on her face.
Helga nodded seriously.
"They've integrated very well. The number of Muggle-born students at the school is no less than in our time. Most of them stay in the magical world after graduation and become part of the wizarding community."
As for those who followed the ideology of pure-blood supremacy, Rhys chose not to bring them up—no need to upset Helga.
"Even Rowena took on a Muggle-born girl as her apprentice!"
Helga: "??"
"Wait—did you just say Rowena? She's still alive after a thousand years?!" Helga was stunned—was I the only one who didn't consider immortality?!
"Well… you can't exactly say she's still alive," Rhys replied, and then explained what had happened to Rowena Ravenclaw and how he had managed to help her regain her sanity.
"You've really been through a lot," Helga said, offering Rhys her sincere gratitude.
"It's Rowena who's had it the hardest," Rhys said, shaking his head.
Helga nodded in agreement.
"I need to go back." Now that she knew about Ravenclaw's condition, Helga immediately decided to end her travels and return to Hogwarts.
"I can't just leave Rowena all alone at the school, can I?" Helga shrugged, clearly intent on going back to help lighten the burden on Ravenclaw's shoulders.
Wait—
A sudden sense of dread crept over Rhys. When Helga stood up, it hit him all at once: her plan was most likely impossible. She wouldn't be able to go back.
This palace had carried him upstream through the river of time, bringing him to this moment a thousand years in the past—but once he stepped beyond its boundaries, time snapped back to the 20th century. He had already confirmed this during his earlier trips.
So what would happen when Helga stepped outside the palace?
Would she still be in the 10th century—or the 20th?
Considering that history recorded Rowena Ravenclaw spending her final years alone in the castle, and Helga Hufflepuff vanishing without a trace during her travels, the answer was painfully clear.
This… was time. This… was fate.
Helga and he were both fish in the river of time. He, a fish from downstream, had brought a "fishing boat" upstream to meet Helga—and then pulled her aboard. Now that the boat had sailed back downstream, Helga had no choice but to go with him.
Realizing this, cold sweat began to bead on Rhys's forehead.
In the end, he did his best to gently and tactfully explain his theory to Helga.
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