Extra Chapter

(Author's Note: Hello, readers! The following is a little something new I'm trying out. It's a "4th wall break" scene where our protagonist directly addresses some of the comments and criticisms you all have commented till now. Think of it as a fun, meta way to dive deeper into her character and motivations. I hope you enjoy this little experiment! )

She watched Cassia rejoin the circle of Slytherin elites, the invisible [Quest Offered: The Power Play] notification fading from her vision. She had her path. An alliance was the smart, political move.

But looting a dungeon is always faster.

All she needed was a map. And tonight, she was gonna go get it. The library's Restricted Section was waiting.

She paused her train of thought, a metaphorical record scratch in her mind.

Okay. Hold up.

I can feel you all out there. The Watchers. The Readers. The peanut gallery that's been following along since I woke up in this place. I know what you're thinking because I've read these kinds of stories too. So let's just clear the air, shall we? A quick FAQ session before we get to the good part.

She leaned against the cool stone wall in her mind, crossing her arms and addressing the unseen audience.

"First question, I guarantee it: 'Evelyn, you're so powerful! Why are you still using a wand? Why not just go full-on archmage and use wandless magic?'"

"Look," she thought, ticking a point off on her finger, "one, it's a rookie mistake. Wandless magic is a firehose. It's great for raw power, like knocking down a door, but it has zero precision. Transfiguration is like magical surgery. You need a scalpel, not a sledgehammer. The wand is the scalpel. Two, and this is the big one, are you insane? An eleven-year-old walking around flinging high-level spells without a wand? I might as well paint a giant, glowing 'I AM A MASSIVE ANOMALY' target on my back for Dumbledore to notice. The whole point of a good playthrough is stealth and efficiency. My current cover as 'talented but clumsy' is perfect. Try to keep up."

She held up another finger. "Alright, point two, about Professor McGonagall. 'She'd never take points for a first mistake! She's not Snape! She would have guided you!' You're right, she's not Snape. If she were, she'd have given me detention for a month for breathing too loud. But you're not seeing what she saw. A normal student's mistake, like Seamus Finnigan's, is a 'poof.' It's a harmless backfire. My 'mistake' turned a matchstick into a high-velocity projectile that ricocheted around the classroom. That wasn't a learning error; that was a critical failure resulting in area-of-effect damage. She wasn't punishing me for getting the spell wrong; she was punishing me for reckless endangerment. Any good moderator would. It's basic classroom safety."

She held up a third finger.

"Next up: 'Why not just run to Dumbledore and tell him everything? Quirrell is possessed, the Stone is here, Voldemort's on the move!' Seriously? Have you met Dumbledore? The guy is the ultimate puppet-master NPC. He already knows something's up. His entire game is built around testing his chosen 'hero'. If I go in and dump all the endgame spoilers on his desk, I don't get a 'Thank You.' I get a one-way ticket to a magical psych ward while he tries to figure out how I broke his script. Plus—and this is important—it denies me my loot. My primary quest right now is [The Grind for Gear], not [Solve Everyone Else's Problems for Free]. Our objectives do not align."

She tapped her chin, anticipating the last big one.

"And finally, 'Why are you so cold? Why not make friends with Harry and the gang?' This isn't a dating sim, people. This is a survival RPG with permadeath. Right now, everyone is a collection of stats, potential threats, and possible assets. Harry is the Main Character, Ron is the 'Heart' class, and Hermione is the walking encyclopedia. They're a unit. I'm a solo player on a resource run. Maybe we can team up for the final raid boss, but for now, trying to join their 'party' would just slow me down and get me noticed. We can work on the 'Friendship' stat in the expansion pack."

She dropped her mental arms and gave a decisive nod.

"Okay? We all on the same page now? Good. The peanut gallery can quiet down. I have a library to rob."

And with that, her focus returned completely to the task at hand, the shadows of the dungeon shifting around her as she began to move toward her first real objective.