Although Lin Yue understood what this room was trying to make her do, she had no intention of following the wishes of the room's designer. Just moments ago, at the three-headed dog, she saw the left-behind harp. The moment she saw it, her brain analyzed that it couldn't possibly have been conjured by Hermione and the others; even Hermione didn't have that level of Transfiguration skill.
So that harp could only belong to one person, the one who wanted to steal the Philosopher's Stone, Professor Quirrell. Therefore, she could deduce that Professor Quirrell had already entered the forbidden area. Thinking further, it was likely that Hermione and the others had also entered the forbidden area... Her heart raced, and the feeling of her brain buzzing returned instantly.
With a detached expression, Lin Yue raised her head and strode across the room, her wand pointed directly at the wooden door in front of her.
" Bombarda!"
Boom! With Lin Yue's magic continuously pouring out, the wooden door was instantly sent flying. However, before it flew away, it visibly held its ground against her for two seconds, clearly still under the effect of a protective spell.
As soon as she stepped into the next room, Lin Yue saw Hermione and Ron. At that moment, Ron was lying on a giant chessboard, already unconscious, while Hermione was beside him trying to wake him up.
Hearing footsteps, Hermione looked up in a panic. When she saw it was Lin Yue, she breathed a sigh of relief but immediately became even more anxious.
"Lin Yue! What are you doing here? Hurry, go find a professor, quick!"
Hermione shouted anxiously, but Lin Yue seemed to be oblivious, expressionless as she stepped onto the chessboard.
As if sensing a new presence entering the chessboard's area, the originally shattered pieces quickly reassembled, and soon both sides' pieces were rearranged.
Hermione and Ron found themselves trapped among the pieces, which completely ignored their presence.
Although Hermione still wanted to shout at Lin Yue to come back, it was clearly impossible now; the pieces were ready, and Lin Yue had to play this game no matter what.
What gave her some reassurance was that Lin Yue's wizard chess skills were quite good. She had heard Harry and Ron mention that Ron had played ten games with her, and he had lost all ten.
Lin Yue's emotionless gaze swept over the opposing pieces, which were on high alert, and then over Hermione and the unconscious Ron beside her.
There were no obvious external injuries on Hermione, and she seemed quite alert, so she was likely fine. Although Ron had fainted, Hermione's demeanor didn't seem too urgent, indicating he probably wasn't in serious trouble either.
Just moments ago, Hermione had suggested going out to find a professor, and with Harry not being there, it meant Professor Quirrell had gone deeper into the room, while Harry had chased after him, leaving Hermione to seek help. In an instant, Lin Yue's mind processed the most likely scenario.
The chances of Harry facing Professor Quirrell and surviving were extremely slim. This conclusion automatically formed in Lin Yue's mind, and she then walked toward Hermione and Ron with a vacant expression.
Just as she was about to pass through the middle of the chessboard, clang! The pieces in the front row quickly drew their swords to block her path. With a detached gaze, Lin Yue raised her wand and spoke in a flat tone,
"Wingardium Leviosa."
All the pieces in the vicinity were lifted into the air by the levitation spell. Hermione stared blankly at the scene before her, recalling the day Lin Yue had forcefully pulled down a wall.
With an expressionless wave of her wand, the pieces that Lin Yue had levitated instantly crashed into the wall behind Hermione and Ron, shattering into pieces with a series of loud impacts.
She crouched down in front of Hermione and pointed her wand at Ron's chest, saying,
"Rennervate."
Taking a deep breath, Ron suddenly opened his eyes. The first thing he saw upon waking was Lin Yue, and he asked the same question as Hermione.
"Lin Yue?! What are you doing here?"
Lin Yue's tone was flat and mechanical as she spoke, "I came because I was worried about you."
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
Hearing Lin Yue say the word "worried" made Hermione feel a mix of disbelief and joy as she looked at her.
Lin Yue noticed Hermione's gaze and turned to her, pausing for a second when she saw the tear stains on her face.
Not knowing how to comfort her, she reached into her robe pocket and pulled out a tissue, handing it to Hermione.
"Here, wipe your face."
Although Lin Yue's voice remained mechanical and stiff, Hermione still sensed warmth in it with a bittersweet smile, Hermione took the tissue and wiped her face, softly saying thank you.
Ron, lying on the ground, silently averted his gaze, thinking that if he were in a hospital bed in the infirmary right now, he might feel more at ease. If it really came to it... he would be willing to play another game of chess; he was feeling quite awkward now. Fortunately, his awkwardness didn't last long. After watching Hermione wipe away her tears, Lin Yue stood up without hesitation.
Seeing her about to move forward, Hermione quickly called out, "Lin Yue! There's danger ahead; the one who wants to steal the Philosopher's Stone is right there. Come back with us to find the professor!"
Hermione's eyes and words were filled with a pleading emotion. Although she knew Harry was also up ahead... the thought of Lin Yue going there made her heart ache like a knife. She didn't want Lin Yue to go; this thought was crystal clear in her mind. As for the fact that the potion in another room had already been consumed, it was something she had anxiously pushed aside.
"Harry's chances against Professor Quirrell are extremely low," Lin Yue reiterated the conclusion in her mind.
Then she looked at Hermione and added, "Hermione... wouldn't want Harry to die."
This sentence came out haltingly from Lin Yue's mouth. Although she could analyze the conclusion that this sentence represented, she couldn't fully grasp the emotional factors behind it. The lack of emotional understanding in her mind was still quite severe, so she couldn't refine her earlier analysis. Chose the wall next to it.
" Bombarda, Bombarda, Bombarda!"
A continuous stream of Bombardment Spell shot out from Lin Yue's wand tip, and the wall, which had protective enchantments, gradually could not withstand the force, with shattered stones beginning to fly in all directions.
Finally, after a full eight Bombardment Spell, the wall in front of Lin Yue was destroyed, leaving a large hole. Stepping through the hole she had created, Lin Yue faced yet another wall.
Without even glancing at the table nearby that held potions, Lin Yue continued to cast blasting curses at the wall with an indifferent tone.
Accompanied by the violent sounds of explosions, Quirrell, who was holding Harry and showing him the Mirror of Erised in the innermost room, along with Voldemort on the back of his head, were momentarily stunned.
This sound... could it be Dumbledore?
Bang! With the final explosion, a girl’s figure emerged from the gap in the wall.
Harry turned around and saw Lin Yue, his pupils shaking, and he no longer felt anxious; instead, concern for his friend filled his heart.
"Run! Lin Yue, run!"
Hearing his shout, Quirrell and Voldemort on the back of his head finally reacted, "Catch her!"
A sharp, hoarse voice rang out, and Lin Yue's gaze locked onto the back of Quirrell's head, as the voice came from there.
Quirrell received the command and immediately raised his wand,
" Colloportus!"
Lin Yue looked at the spell beam rushing towards her with an incredibly calm mind. She sidestepped, and the spell beam struck the ground behind her.
"Wingardium Leviosa."
Upon hearing her incantation, Quirrell instantly became tense, gripping his wand tightly in preparation for a counterattack. He hadn't forgotten how masterfully this little girl wielded the levitation spell. The last time in the Forbidden Forest, he had nearly died under her levitation spell; if it hadn't been for his master saving him, he would have been dead then.
However, contrary to his expectations, Lin Yue's levitation spell was not aimed at him but at Harry, who was still recovering from his surprise and concern about Lin Yue's sudden appearance. He felt himself being lifted into the air, and the next moment, Lin Yue pulled him behind her.
"Grab her! Grab them! The Philosopher's Stone is in that boy's pocket!"
A sharp, hoarse voice rang out again, and Lin Yue's gaze was fixed intently on the back of Quirrell's head.
Quirrell received the order and no longer hesitated. With a wave of his hand, a series of killing curses shot straight towards Lin Yue.
“Wingardium Leviosa.” Lin Yue pointed her wand at the ground, then swiped it upwards. Instantly, the bricks on the ground floated up and formed a wall in front of her, effectively blocking the killing curses fired by Quirrell.
If it were just Lin Yue, she could certainly engage Quirrell in a direct duel, but with Harry tied up behind her and unable to move, she had to prioritize defense.
Continuously using the levitation spell to raise new bricks to repair the "wall" in front of her, Lin Yue turned to Harry with a blank expression and said,
“Get the ropes off you and run with the Philosopher's Stone.”
Harry looked at Lin Yue, who was blocking him, gritted his teeth, and with all his strength, he struggled to break free from the ropes. He then got up and ran towards the gap that Lin Yue had just blasted in the wall.
He understood that only when he was out of the way could Lin Yue retaliate without concern. If he was there, she would have to think about his safety, which would only hinder her.
Slightly tilting her head, Lin Yue caught a glimpse of Harry leaving through the large hole in the wall. She suddenly waved her wand forward, and the "wall" in front of her immediately collapsed into countless bricks, hurtling towards Quirrell.
Quirrell rolled on the ground in a panic to dodge the countless bricks coming at him but was soon hit by a tooth that resembled a big stick.
Seeing that his attack had succeeded, Harry immediately shrank back behind the large hole in the wall. He could escape from this room without any problem, but he absolutely could not abandon Lin Yue and run away.
Dodging two beams of green light, Lin Yue threw four blazing flames around Quirrell, forcibly wrapping him up.
“Wingardium Leviosa.”
As she recited the levitation spell again, the flames produced by the blazing fire instantly shot up and began to spin wildly around Quirrell under Lin Yue's control, forming a fiery tornado that enveloped him.
The temperature in the room rose sharply, and even Harry, standing in another room, felt the scorching air coming through the large hole in the wall.
Quirrell, at the center of the fiery tornado, screamed in agony as he was burned, casting various curses desperately outward. However, whenever he could see, he couldn't hit Lin Yue, and now trapped in the tornado, he couldn't see anything at all, making it impossible for him to hit her.
Lin Yue dodged left and right without any change in her expression, maintaining the fiery tornado's continuous burning and spinning. Quirrell's screams did not evoke any emotional response from her.
There was no thrill in defeating an enemy, no anxiety or panic about killing someone, and certainly no pity.
In Lin Yue's view, she had not violated the rule that required a life to be paid, so she should not have her life taken away. Now that Quirrell wanted to violate that rule and take her life, she could resist in any way she wanted.
Quirrell's spellcasting gradually slowed down within the fiery tornado; his body had been severely burned and was even starting to carbonize.
Voldemort roared angrily from the back of Quirrell's head, breaking free from Quirrell's body and flying outward. Lin Yue's gaze shifted to the black smoke that had emerged from the fiery tornado, which vaguely resembled a human head.
Voldemort—Lin Yue's brain quickly identified the figure and made a judgment: he could break through the flames, so he was not afraid of physical attacks, and she could not inflict effective damage on him for the time being.
Retracting her gaze, Lin Yue forcefully waved her wand downward, causing the flames of the tornado to pour downward. Quirrell screamed as if he was completely burned to ashes from head to toe.
Hearing Quirrell's screams from the room behind him, Harry unconsciously swallowed hard. Was it really Lin Yue... Looking up, he happened to see the black smoke that had just passed through the wall, and he immediately recognized it—Voldemort!