As if he had lost the ability to speak, Harry looked directly at Neil, but his eyes were not focused. After a full minute of stalemate, he raised a trembling hand and pointed to the mirror behind him.

"Did you see that......

Harry stumbled and opened his mouth several times as if he had finally regained the function of his tongue, but even so, his voice sounded like he had just crawled out of a grave.

Neil's eyes flashed with sympathy.

"No, Mr. Potter, I didn't see anything."

Harry was struck by a bolt from the blue, and he hurriedly turned his head back to look in the mirror again, lest the figure inside had really disappeared.

Luckily, when he looked back, the Potters in the mirror were still smiling and waving to him.

"Look! Did you see that? They're here! My family!"

"Be quiet, Mr. Potter. Plus, I really can't see anything."

Despite Harry's excitement tugging at his sleeve and shaking it, Neil's reaction was still very cold—too cold to associate him with the usual flattering Neil Wan. This anomaly made even Harry, who was already in a state of extreme excitement, feel that something was wrong, and the smile on his face gradually disappeared.

He looked between Neil and the mirror in confusion, excitement gradually replaced by confusion.

"I don't understand, you...... You really can't see them?"

"I can't see it, Mr. Potter." Neil repeated it a third time, but perhaps because he saw that Harry had come to his senses, his tone softened, "Now you should understand what I just said, this mirror is dangerous, isn't it?"

Harry's hand pointing to the mirror slowly lowered, and he looked inside again, where the Potters were still there. However, it is unbelievable that this time he did not have the same majestic emotions in his heart as before.

"What kind of mirror is this? Can it make people see the dead?"

He asked.

"Not really." Neil replied, his tone fully restored to his usual state by this time, "It's not hard to guess what you see inside, but imagine if there were so many undead following you around the clock, it would be too scary. Anyway, I can't accept the life of having to let the eight generations of my ancestors visit collectively when I take a bath, so I have to be glad that I am not a girl...... Don't you think so?"

Harry imagined the image for a moment, and couldn't help but smile slightly, he knew that it was a little joke to cheer himself up, and his face must have been terrible. He felt uncomfortable with the subtle difference between his dead family and "magically created fakes that were exactly like theirs".

"You're saying that I don't see their souls?"

Neil shook his head.

"Obviously not. Read the words on the frame, Mr. Potter, and the correct answer will be written on it."

Harry looked up and found the line he hadn't been able to read in the distance. At this distance, he could finally make out what was written on it.

It's just that it's not a complete sentence, it's a long list of incantations of unexplained meaning. Harry narrowed his eyes and read it carefully for a long time before stumbling over it: "Erised

stra

ehru

oyt

ube

oyt

on

ohsi）…… What do you mean? Is it some kind of spell?"

"Turn it backwards, Mr. Potter."

Again, Harry did so, confused, but as he tried to decipher the letters from back to front, a miracle happened.

"I don't show your face, I show the longing of your heart (I

sho

not

your

fe

but

your

hearts

desire）」。」 He muttered to himself, "This is ......."

"A mirror that reflects wishes. It's famous even in Muggle culture, isn't it?" Neil nodded, "The Mirror of Eris will reflect everyone's wishes—any wish. For example, if Miss Granger were standing here, she might see herself holding a lot of awards and certificates; Mr. Weasley, on the other hand, may find himself president of the boys' schoolboys' council, holding the Quidditch World Cup, living in a large luxurious house, or drowning in a sea of chicken legs...... But I don't need to say more, you can guess what happens to those who are addicted to it."

Harry shuddered as he thought back to his state of intoxication and imagined what would have happened if no one had woken him up.

"Why is it here?"

Neil shrugged, "Well, I've heard that the mirror was often used as a hiding place for contraband and classified information in the past, because of its fragile nature that would make people subconsciously reluctant to approach it...... But I think the real reason is that no one wants to see their hideous face when they conduct a search, and it hurts their conscience."

"You're saying someone has something hidden inside?" Harry subconsciously poked his head over to see if there was anything on the back of the mirror, and then suddenly realized that he was making a fool.

"No, I'm just saying it casually, there's no need to think about it so seriously, Mr. Potter. Have you noticed its claw-shaped feet? It's hard to find artisans with such unique tastes in the UK, and only the Nordics love this style." Neil said happily, "So it's more likely that Deng—I mean I don't know any idiot who brought it all the way here, only to find that it was nowhere to go, so he just found a random place to throw it around. You know, it reminds me of a fable that is widely circulated in my hometown, which is about donkey ......"

"Well, I can hear that story from you next time, Neil."

Neil smirked.

"You're right, Mr. Potter, it's too late today. We've been delayed here for too much time - no, I'm not blaming you, if there's anything you can learn from this experience, it's probably worth it tonight."

Harry glanced in the mirror again, but from the angle he was standing now, he couldn't help but laugh self-deprecatingly, "You're right, I really should see the truth - my family is dead and will never come back."

"What? No, that's not what I meant! Well, I mean, I do mean that in a sense, but ......" Neil didn't seem to expect him to be so blunt, scratching the back of his head in annoyance and muttering grumbling, "Damn, if you continue to behave like this kind of sudden *** masochistic remarks in normal communication, no one will want to talk to you again, you know?"

He cleared his throat and adjusted to a serious expression.

"Listen, Mr. Potter, I know you're angry, but you have to be careful. It's okay to be drowned in a chicken leg, but to be haunted by death...... It's not good, it's very bad. After all, the world belongs to the living, and those who forget this will live a ...... It's hard."

Harry nodded in understanding.

"Forget about the mirror." Neil put his hand behind his back and pushed him to turn his back to the mirror, "Go back to the dorm room and get as much sleep as you can before dawn, and don't tell Mr. Weasley about tonight, lest he be sad that you left him alone."

Harry was dazed and took two steps towards the door, then suddenly stopped, and turned his face hesitantly.

"Neil, can I ask you something?"

"Considering the experience of this day, I would like to say 'no' now...... But you ask."

Harry touched his nose embarrassedly, but didn't dampen his curiosity, "I'm sorry, but I really want to know what you can see in the mirror......

Neil seemed to have expected this question. But his face was still full of tangles because of this.

"Nothing—if you must know."

"Impossible!" Harry frowned. At first, he thought that the other party was perfunctory, unwilling to answer this question, which might involve a sensitive part of his heart, but Neil's attitude seemed sincere.

"Really, I can't see anything." He smiled wryly and shook his head, "Maybe it thinks I'm happy enough now, or maybe it just doesn't want to waste time on me - honestly, I always feel like this is looking down on me." I plan to send a letter to Mr. Chancellor tomorrow to protest against this indiscriminate disposition of dangerous objects, and hope that he will have someone get rid of them as soon as possible...... It's best to smash it directly, this plague thing ......."