The sun had just peeked over the horizon, dispelling the darkness of the night before. Occasionally, early-rising students would make their way to the library or the greenhouse at this hour, striving to improve their grades.
However, someone who would arrive at the infirmary this early was undoubtedly a rarity.
Taking advantage of the spare time, Maca leaned against the window and cast a fleeting glance at Luna before turning the pages of the book once more.
However, the previous content had come to an abrupt halt after mentioning the journey to the Ghostly Marsh. What followed was not only separated by many years but also displayed a significant change in writing style...
How many years had it been since I last closed this diary?
Who knows?
Previously, I had thought that I no longer wanted to continue writing. What was the point of all this writing? The damned ones were dead, and even the ones who shouldn't be dead had met their fate. I was the only one left.
But about three years ago, I had a revelation. I had to write, and I must write. I was writing for myself.
Yes, I was writing for you.
Firstly, I want to tell you that Rowena deceived me... of course, she also deceived you. The reason she left those vague clues was probably to lead the "Chosen One" into this colossal deception without them suspecting.
I don't understand why she did it... maybe all geniuses are just one step away from madness?
Everything that has happened in these years cannot be conveyed to you in any form because once you "know," there's no turning back.
I can only say two things:
First, immediately halt that plan. Second, apart from the Book of Truth, do not touch any of the clues left by Rowena.
If you can't do these two things, then the only future waiting for you is the desolate silence I see before me...
Don't doubt it; what Rowena left us is a catastrophe a thousand times worse than the havoc caused by the Monument of Deceit! If you don't want to watch the world decay in an unknown erosion, ultimately turning into endless silence, remember every word I've written!
As for Voldemort...
After reading so much of the previous content, you should already understand that until you find a way to solve the Monument of Deceit, he must "stay alive."
Yes, I'm sure you've guessed my meaning.
Honestly, just Voldemort alone is nothing. With your current power, killing him would simply require a bit more effort. And if you figure out how to use the power of rules, even a Level-One Rule could easily kill him a thousand times, ten thousand times.
I will compile a table of all the rule runes I've learned and set guidance for each one to help you understand and assimilate them more quickly. I'll also leave you with a spell to locate the whereabouts of Voldemort's main body using a soul shard, ensuring you can find him at any time.
But you must remember, Voldemort absolutely cannot die!
Speaking of which, it's thanks to Voldemort having created more than one Horcrux that the Monument of Deceit cannot completely corrode his soul. If his soul were to reunite even for a moment, just before his death, the Monument of Deceit would break the seal set by Salazar Slytherin and spread "chaos" throughout the world once more.
Yes, it's Salazar Slytherin!
Though the actual circumstances and evidence are lacking, based on my conjecture, Salazar didn't leave Hogwarts because of trivial matters like whether to admit Muggle-born students. He most likely left because he discovered Rowena's mad plan and decided to take the Monument of Deceit far away from that castle.
Remember? The location of Hogwarts, the castle you're in right now, was originally chosen by Rowena!
Honestly, I didn't want you to go looking for a way to solve the Monument of Deceit. For us, keeping Voldemort's soul shards and letting him live or die, that's just fine. If you feel he's interfering with your life, then go kill him again. This kind of life is much easier than taking the risk of solving the Monument of Deceit.
Take good care of every friend you have, especially Luna. That's our only wish... speaking of which, when I go back this time, I should be able to see her again, right?
I'm really looking forward to it...
In the final pages of the "Book of Sins," apart from the "Rule Rune Guidance Table" mentioned in the text and a small searching spell, there was also an extremely complex runic diagram.
When Maca focused his attention on the diagram, a spherical runic array composed of magical threads immediately appeared on the book page.
It looked very familiar indeed; it was the same three-dimensional runic array that Maca had seen floating around the other person's body last night.
As for its function, could it be used for something other than time travel? Perhaps, this was essentially leaving a backdoor for oneself.
However, it was evident that this array was a failure... or rather, it had significant flaws.
Recalling the last moment's scene, the bloody spectacle, no one would consider that a successful journey through time.
The content of this final passage contained a great deal of information and had a clear key point. But what exactly did it mean when it said, "once you know, there's no turning back"? That remained unknown.
"The world decaying in an unknown erosion? Turning into endless silence?" Maca murmured to himself as he closed the book.
At this point, Maca believed about seventy percent of it. Not for anything else, but because the "future" described in this book was just too realistic, and many descriptions about himself matched his imagination perfectly.
If he were to go through all of that, his reactions would likely be no different from what was recorded in the book.
So, should he completely trust this diary called the "Book of Sins"?
Although it was a magical book, the parts with magical traces were limited to the final "Rule Rune Table," and the rest was just ordinary feather pen handwriting...
"Ugh... Maca?"
Luna's call woke Maca from his contemplation. He raised his head and gave Luna, who was still half-asleep, a gentle smile.
"Good morning, Luna," he said. "How do you feel? If there's anything uncomfortable, you must speak up."
Luna sat up, rubbing her eyes in a daze against the soft mattress.
"...I'm feeling quite well?" She still had that dreamy look, as if the life-threatening ordeal from yesterday had happened in a dream.
Maca couldn't be reassured, so he used magic to check Luna again and then went to fetch Madam Pomfrey, who had just arrived at her office, to reexamine Luna's injuries.
When Madam Pomfrey opened the door again and assured them that Luna was recovering very well, Maca finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Now that everything was normal with Luna, Maca decided that he needed to have a conversation with Dumbledore, the elderly wizard with exceptional wisdom and life experience, whether or not he should reveal the matter of the "Book of Sins."
At the very least, that plan could no longer proceed easily...
Now, let's redirect our attention back to Hogwarts.
The second task had actually already concluded. Despite the panic under the Dark Mark, thanks to Dumbledore's decisive actions, the young wizards and witches had already settled down.
Now, the most urgent matter at hand was for everyone to know what had happened in the maze. This also meant that Ron, for the second time in his life, had become the center of attention, just like Harry.
The first time, of course, was when he claimed to have been "attacked by Sirius Black" in his dormitory bed.
Harry noticed that Ron kept telling the story differently each time, with slight variations.
At first, he stuck to the facts, much in line with the few words spoken by Krum. In Professor McGonagall's office, Dumbledore had used magic to hypnotize the hostages, reassuring them that they were absolutely safe and likely to wake up on their own during the competition.
However, a week later, Ron began telling a thrilling kidnapping story, claiming that he had fought a horde of terrifying maze creatures barehanded, and they had first forced him into submission before imprisoning him.
In reality, he was the only one still sound asleep until the champions were rescued. Even Lavender's little sister, Gabrielle, the cute little girl, had been wide awake when she was rescued.
But his tall tales seemed effective; at least others weren't aware of the truth.
Now, Ron had become quite conspicuous, and Padma was more enthusiastic towards him. Every time they met in the corridors, she took the initiative to speak with Ron.
"Don't worry, I've got my wand hidden up my sleeve! Just like Maca!" he assured Padma Patil, "As long as I want to, I can easily subdue those big guys."
"What do you plan to do, snore them into submission?" Hermione said with annoyance.
She had become Viktor Krum's darling, and everyone teased her about it all the time. But her irritation was not because of that. Of course, why specifically, only a few people knew.
Ron blushed under Hermione's sarcasm, and from then on, his stories reverted to the public version of being magically hypnotized.
After entering March, the weather improved slightly. But every time they went outside, the biting cold wind still stung their cheeks.
Moreover, the owls couldn't deliver letters on time because the fierce winds kept pushing them off course.
During Friday's breakfast, a brown owl landed in front of Harry. It looked disheveled, with half of its feathers blown askew by the wind.
Harry had just torn the envelope from it when the owl hurriedly flew away, clearly afraid of being sent out to deliver more letters.
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