Chapter 22: The Disillusionment Charm

Everything around him remained the same. 

But this time, Hofa no longer noticed the sound of church bells or the surrounding scenery. 

Three consecutive deaths had left him highly focused. 

It seemed that merely knowing the spell was not enough. He had to cast it perfectly to escape this strange realm. 

Hofa reflected on the details of the spell he had just cast. The Disillusionment Charm was undoubtedly not a simple spell. 

Otherwise, it wouldn't be completely absent from the library's records. 

When casting high-level spells, he needed to be fully focused. 

He thought of the Milarepa meditation technique, which enhanced mental clarity, and decided to try it without hesitation. 

Good news—the meditation technique still worked in this state. 

With the help of the meditation technique, all distracting thoughts were swept away, and Hofa's will sharpened like a blade. 

In the repeating memory, the Black wizard climbed up, entered the room, and opened the secret passage. 

Hofa prepared himself. The moment he regained control of the body, the Black wizard's eyes sharpened. 

The growl came, and the red tongue shot out. 

Hofa immediately drew his wand, pressed it to his side, and calmly chanted, 

"Disillusionment." 

It felt like a bucket of icy liquid being poured over his head. This time, the giant lizard's tongue missed the Black wizard's torso, smashing the marble globe and other decorations in the room instead. 

It hadn't touched Hofa. 

His body began to develop transparent holes, which gradually expanded. Hofa disappeared into thin air like an ice cube melting under the sun. 

The massive lizard slowly crawled out of the passage. It was at least eight meters long, extremely fat, with three bulging eyes scanning the room. But it couldn't detect the Black wizard pressed against the corner. 

Hofa had succeeded! 

He had successfully cast the Disillusionment Charm! 

Adrenaline surged through him. The thrill of life and death brought an exhilarating rush to his head. 

In his disillusioned state, Hofa didn't dare move. He bit his lower lip, arched his feet, and forced himself not to make a sound. 

But in the next second, a shrill scream erupted. 

"Ghost! There's a ghost!" 

The blonde mistress, who had been sprawled on the floor earlier, clutched her silk and screamed, hurling wine bottles at Hofa in panic. 

She scrambled backward, utterly flustered. 

One of the bottles hit the invisible Hofa and shattered on the floor. 

Hofa's heart sank. He realized his mistake—he had focused solely on the Disillusionment Charm and completely forgotten about her! 

This damned woman… 

Sure enough, the giant lizard's eyes immediately turned toward the broken glass on the floor. 

Then, its barbed red tongue lashed out like a blade, sweeping through the air in a wide arc. 

Crack! 

A clean, swift strike. 

... 

When Hofa returned to the starting point again, he was completely calm. Not even the pain of decapitation could affect him now. He continued to practice the meditation technique, his mind sharp as a blade. 

Merely successfully casting the Disillusionment Charm wasn't enough. It seemed he still hadn't met the synchronization condition. 

He would try again. 

A minute later, he stood at the entrance of the secret passage once more. 

This time, he divided part of his attention to closely monitor the woman in the corner. 

The growl came, and the woman woke up. 

She saw "Hofa" and began to scream. 

Hofa calmly stepped aside, aligning himself with the woman, the passage, and the lizard in a straight line. 

The red tongue shot toward him. Hofa abruptly bent over. 

The scarlet wind brushed past his waist, heading straight for the screaming woman. 

Hofa rolled to the side, and the scream was abruptly cut off. 

The lizard's tongue pierced the woman's neck, wrapping around her and lifting her into the air. 

"Disillusionment!" 

In that brief moment, Hofa chanted the spell. 

As the lizard's tongue retracted with the woman's body, Hofa instantly turned transparent and vanished. 

The three-eyed lizard chewed on the woman like a grasshopper, slowly crawling out of the passage. 

It frantically scanned the room with its eyes, seemingly puzzled. 

There had been two people here just now, but now there was no one. 

Watching the scaly creature pass within a decimeter of him, Hofa's focus intensified. He realized he couldn't stay here for long. If he were discovered again, he'd have to endure the pain of being pierced once more. 

He wanted to leave, but then it occurred to him that leaving wouldn't fulfill the synchronization condition. 

Someone had placed this giant lizard here to guard something. Hofa grew curious about what the Black wizard had been trying to steal. 

Squeezing through the gaps in the lizard's forked tail, the disillusioned Hofa slowly made his way down the secret passage along the wall. After all, this was just a memory—there would be no consequences for observing. 

In the center of the dark chamber, he saw a square stone pillar with a silver-white necklace hanging from it. 

The necklace looked strangely like a key. 

Before Hofa could examine it closely, a force pulled him away from the body. 

He floated upward, losing control. 

In his final glimpse, the Black wizard reached out and grasped the necklace. 

... 

Hiss! 

It was like waking from a dream. 

Hofa suddenly emerged from that strange space. 

He jerked his head up, finding himself sitting in a dimly lit underground room. The solid ground beneath him and the simple raised platform he leaned on felt reassuringly real. 

He looked at his hands—there was no hindrance. 

He had returned to Hogwarts, to the Violet Society's secret chamber. 

Believe it or not, he had just died four times in a row. 

This was an experience he hoped never to repeat in his lifetime. 

The only good news was that he had now mastered the Disillusionment Charm! 

The joy of finally obtaining the spell he had longed for for months was indescribable. It even overshadowed the madness of dying four times. 

While experiencing the pain of being pierced in the illusion, Hofa had almost cursed out loud. 

But now that he was out, he felt he should sincerely thank the masked woman for giving him the opportunity to learn the spell. 

Of course, in his excitement, he also wanted to vent about the suffering he had endured in the illusion. 

But when Hofa stood up, he realized the masked woman was no longer in the underground room. 

The room was empty, save for the faint crackling of the fire basins. 

There was no one to thank or vent to. 

This left Hofa feeling uneasy. 

She was gone? 

What did this mean? 

Had she left because he hadn't woken up yet? 

Hofa tried to find her but couldn't. The room was only about 100 square meters, square and simple, with nothing but stone and fire basins. 

There were also a few scrolls sealed in the corner, unchanged from when he had entered, except for the missing person. 

However, when Hofa returned after searching, he noticed a small hourglass beside the stone platform. 

He had been so focused on finding the woman that he hadn't noticed it earlier. 

Picking up the hourglass, he saw that the sand had already run out. 

Beneath it was a note with just a few words: 

[No need to come back.] 

No need to come back… 

Hofa's expression turned strange. 

What was going on? Had he done something wrong? 

Why was he being told not to return? 

Hadn't he learned the Disillusionment Charm? 

Or did she think he had died too many times and failed the test? 

Damn it… 

Looking at the sand in the hourglass, Hofa was baffled. 

Couldn't she just give him a clear answer? 

He couldn't figure it out. 

This only deepened his curiosity about the Violet Wizards' Society. 

The entire club consisted of just one person, a masked member, and they possessed a magical artifact that allowed such immersive learning. 

What kind of organization was this? 

He slowly circled the room, observing the portraits of members under the crackling fire basins and feeling the quiet, solitary atmosphere. 

He noticed the scrolls piled in the corner—the very artifacts he had used to learn the Disillusionment Charm. Hofa swallowed hard and walked over. 

He took a closer look. 

The black scrolls in the glass cases seemed ordinary at first glance, but Hofa could sense the ancient magic surrounding them. 

He instinctively reached out to touch the glass cases. 

But in that instant, his hair stood on end as a feeling of being watched washed over him. 

He turned his head and saw that all the eyes in the portraits were silently staring at him—eyes that had been still just moments ago. 

Hofa quickly retracted his hand and backed away to the door, step by step. 

The eyes in the portraits didn't move, but their gazes followed him to the door. 

There was something wrong with this club… 

Hofa swallowed hard and quickly pushed open the portrait to leave. 

Only then did the feeling of being watched disappear. 

Wiping the cold sweat from his forehead, Hofa felt a newfound sense of awe for this place. 

... 

Standing at the door, Hofa closed his eyes and practiced the meditation technique for a while, gradually calming his mind. 

Whatever secrets this club held, they were none of his concern. If he hadn't passed, so be it. His goal had been achieved. 

He had learned the Disillusionment Charm. 

Suppressing his lingering doubts, Hofa couldn't resist tapping his arm with his wand. 

"Disillusionment!" 

It felt like a stream of cold liquid flowing from where the wand touched, spreading throughout his body. 

It was as if someone had cracked a dozen cold egg whites over him. 

Something magical happened—his body took on the colors and patterns of the school's background wall, turning him into a human chameleon. 

Hofa completely vanished into thin air. 

He covered his eyes with his hands, but it was pointless. Through his arms, he could still see a group of wizards chatting and laughing about fifty meters ahead. 

A fresh, exhilarating feeling surged through him. He wanted to throw his arms up and cheer. 

He stashed his wand and swaggered through the school. 

This exaggerated, over-the-top posture was something Hofa would never normally adopt, but now he was utterly delighted. 

As he passed the two senior wizards, he overheard their conversation. 

"Did the president change the password today?" 

"Yeah, it's 'Bloody Underwear.'" 

"Wow, the president has some weird tastes…" 

Hofa covered his mouth, trying not to laugh, but he ended up making a snorting sound. 

The two wizards were quite sharp. They turned around. 

"Huh? Did you hear something?" 

"You're imagining things. There's no one here." 

Then, one after the other, they climbed into a portrait of a rather flamboyant man. 

Hofa thought his deaths hadn't been in vain. Now, as long as he wanted, he could enter any club room that was normally off-limits. The protections were useless against him. 

It felt like the entire world had opened its doors to him. 

A few steps further, he turned a corner. 

Whoa! 

Hofa saw a familiar face. 

Aglaia was also in the club tower area. 

She strode confidently ahead, followed by a group of senior students. 

The seniors were pleading with her. 

"Miss Delacour, please stay. Our Calvin Transfiguration Society offers great benefits." 

"That's right, we can make you vice president if you're willing." 

"Or even president if you're a bit older…" 

Aglaia turned around, hands on her hips, and snapped, "Get lost! You can't even turn stone into gold. Your transfiguration skills are pathetic!" 

With that, she stormed off, muttering, "Thirteen transfiguration clubs, and none of them are any good. Hogwarts is such a trash school." 

Then, "Ouch!" 

In full view of the senior students, Aglaia tripped over nothing and fell flat on her face, sprawling awkwardly on the ground. 

The seniors were shocked and rushed forward. 

"Are you okay?" 

"Miss Delacour!" 

"Miss Delacour!" 

Aglaia scrambled to her feet, her face dark. "What did you see?" 

The group exchanged glances. 

"Uh…" 

"Nothing." 

"Nothing at all." 

"If even one word of this gets out, you're dead," she coldly threatened before hurrying away. 

Turning a corner, she let out a muffled groan and ran off, covering her face. 

In the corner, the invisible Hofa nearly died laughing. He had to lean against the wall to keep himself from falling over. 

This was too good! 

Too good!