As it turns out, there isn't just one way to move a door key.

After Grindelwald's improvements, Elena's homecoming journey was not so uncomfortable - compared to the previous bad feeling of being hooked to the belly button, the "Portkey 2.0" experience using slate as a medium was significantly better.

It was still the kind of rollercoaster that swooped down, and the floor was stuck in it like a quagmire.

They flew forward like a gust of wind, unable to see anything in front of them.

Needless to say, the principle of portability of the Portkey is not a spatial coordinate clip, and Elena has realized it a long time ago, whether it is the Portkey, the Phantom Transfer...... In fact, they are more similar to entering the curved space, moving forward along the invisible path in the "perspective" of the three-dimensional world, and the speed is still there, but it is just a shortcut.

Of course, in terms of results, in the eyes of most people, teleportation is not much different from spatial teleportation.

Before the thoughts in Elena's mind could turn, the journey was over.

With a snap, the stone slab that was supposed to decorate the side of the streets of Salzburg was delicately inlaid into the ground, and the surrounding street slabs were spliced together, and there seemed to be no obtrusiveness in the first place—or rather, the two sides were the same structure.

Just as they had done the same morning, they were back at the gates of Hogwarts.

Beyond the tall stone pillars at the entrance to the castle topped with winged boar sculptures, Hogwarts Castle is now completely shrouded in night, with towers even darker against the dark night sky, and occasionally a window or two casting a fiery red glow above the towers.

"Looks like there's a lot of guests from the school tonight?"

Luna Lovegood looked at the oak gate of the castle and pointed, her voice ethereal.

"I think they don't look a little happy, should we go and see them......"

With Luna's voice, Elena and her party subconsciously turned their heads and looked in the direction of Luna's finger.

In the cold Scottish night air, dozens of "ghost" carriages are parked next to the stone steps - normally they are parked on Hogwarts platforms and do not appear here, except for the start of school and holidays.

"Oh, Luna, the carriage won't be upset—"

Hermione glanced at the carriage in front of the castle and shrunk her shoulders coldly.

"But I know one thing, if you keep standing here, we're going to freeze. ”

After spending more than half a year together, she had become accustomed to Luna Lovegood's occasional fantasy remarks, and although she didn't quite agree with the illusion, Hermione had to admit that in some ways Luna was indeed more perceptive than many people.

Next to Hermione Granger, Hannah rubbed her hands together and nodded in agreement.

She hadn't felt it when she was playing in Salzburg, but for some reason, when she returned to Hogwarts, the exhaustion and hunger that had been hidden in her body all rushed up, and Hannah Abbott now just wanted to hurry into the warm castle, eat a good meal, and then lie down in the middle of the soft velvet quilt and sleep beautifully.

As for whether the "magic carriage" would be unhappy, she didn't have the energy to pay attention to it now.

"I'm not talking about carriages, I'm talking about the big ......," Luna explained earnestly, blinking.

"Okay...... Looks like it's something we can't see again......"

Hermione and Hannah exchanged a look, saw the blankness in each other's eyes, and then said helplessly.

"But—" A hint of stubbornness flashed in Luna's silvery eyes.

"It's okay," before the girl could finish speaking, Elena gently squeezed Luna's cold hand, "The Hogwarts house-elves should go back to take care of them later, and when the kitchen is done—let's get to the castle first." ”

After a slight hesitation, Elena thought for a moment and added.

"They're Thestrals, Professor Apokalis should be able to see them. They do exist ......"

"And what about you? Elena, you can see—"

"Sorry, I'm like Hermione and Hannah and I can't see them. ”

Elena shook her head, swept over Grindelwald on the side, and said calmly with an unchanged face.

"Thestrals are surprisingly magical creatures that can only be seen by those who have witnessed death firsthand. I only know about their existence through books and touches, and that's it. By the way, this knowledge is also mentioned in the 5th grade Magical Beasts Conservation class. ”

Ever since Gellert Grindelwald came into contact with Father Priest, the trajectory of her life has been semi-public.

Perhaps Elena could have relied on her status as a "prophet" to get away with those prophecies about the future, but there was still another hidden danger in her, the one that Dumbledore and Grindelwald might have suspected but didn't say before seeing Quirinus Quirrell, or before that—who the soul in her body was.

Needless to say, as an ordinary girl of eleven years old, there are not many opportunities to witness human death.

In today's relatively peaceful era, except for some specific professions, even adults, the chance to see others die in a lifetime will not exceed a palm.

Elena glanced at Grindelwald nonchalantly, and the old man didn't seem to care about the conversation that took place between the girls.

Even if she deliberately mentioned his name just now, the original Dark Lord just nodded casually and didn't ask too much in detail, and even for a moment Elena felt that she was "self-defeating".

Merely......

Elena's eyes shimmered with a deep light, and she glanced thoughtfully at the old man's back.

It's like her previous speculation about Quirinus Quirrell, in this world, there may be some coincidences, but when they appear one after the other, and can be connected by some kind of logic, whether this is metaphysics or deliberate arrangement, it is better not to be naïve to believe in any fluke.

But—

Is...... Strange......

The girl frowned, took Luna's hand and walked in the direction of the castle, and in the depths of her eyes, there seemed to be the reflection of the "ominous magical creatures" that were tall, rugged, completely black, and had the body of a dragon head and horse.

Theoretically, whether it is in the past or present life, she should not have seen death with her own eyes......

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Update

(End of chapter)