New Variables

I didn't hang around by the lake. Mission complete, right? I headed back to the castle, the little vial with the Mermaid Tear feeling like a warm, pulsing weight in my pocket. The whole walk back to the dungeons was a blur; my mind was already busy processing what just happened.

Back in my four-poster bed, my own little sanctuary, I finally took a good look at the new data. The game's lore was totally incomplete. It just listed 'Mermaid Tear' as a crafting item but left out the part about how you actually get it. It wasn't some random drop from a monster; you had to earn it by completing a social quest.

So, some groups work on a tribute system, I thought, filing the info away. It's not about money, but about giving them something with real artistic or emotional value. The 'tear' only dropped because my music box made them feel something. A whole new crafting mechanic. Super annoying, but, hey, noted.

The tear itself was a total paradox. In my hand, it felt warm, which was a weird contrast to the angry, chaotic energy coming off the Whomping Willow branch I'd snagged. My new wand wasn't just gonna be a tool; it was gonna be a balancing act between rage and sorrow. Honestly? That was pretty exciting.

The next morning, I walked to the Great Hall with a new sense of purpose. I had the parts for a Legendary-tier wand, minus one key piece, hidden in my robes. I felt more equipped, but also way more aware of how complex this game really was. The other students running around the halls weren't just background characters anymore; they were dynamic variables, each with their own schedules and potential quests that could totally mess with my own. It was an inefficient system, but it was the one I was stuck with.

I took my usual seat at the end of the Slytherin table, my eyes automatically finding the Trio over at the Gryffindor table. Harry looked worried, Ron was busy with a Chocolate Frog card, and Hermione was reading. Their status hadn't changed:[Idle]. They weren't on the final quest yet, which meant the Cerberus whisker was still[LOCKED]. That was good. It meant I had time.

My quiet people-watching was interrupted.

"You've been spending a lot of time by the lake."

I looked up. Liam Finch, the Ravenclaw kid, was standing right by the Slytherin table, holding a stack of books. Super weird, and a major break from school etiquette. The other Slytherins were giving him dirty looks, but Liam didn't seem to notice. His curiosity was way stronger than his sense of self-preservation, I guess.

"It's a lake," I said flatly. "It's nice to look at."

"Of course," he kept going, his eyes sharp and focused. "But your research has shifted. You went from studying kinetic magic and angry plants to ancient Merfolk treaties. That doesn't line up with any of our classes. It's almost as if you're working your way down a list of ingredients. A very specific, very dangerous list."

Geez, he was getting way too close. His non-stop logic had led him to a conclusion that was scarily accurate. He knew I was on a quest, and he was tracking my progress.

Before I could even think of what to say, another voice cut in, cool and a little bored.

"Finch, are you lost?" Cassia Rosier said, looking up from her breakfast. "I believe your table is on the other side of the hall. Or has your need to know everything finally broken your sense of direction?"

Liam went red, totally startled by a pure-blood Slytherin talking to him. "I was just... asking a question, Rosier."

"And you've received your answer," Cassia said, her eyes flicking from Liam to me and back again. "She has diverse interests. Now, run along before you get yourself into trouble."

Liam was obviously out of his league here. He gave me one last, frustrated look before turning and scrambling back to the safety of the Ravenclaw table.

I looked at Cassia and raised an eyebrow.

"Don't look at me like that," she said, taking a small sip of pumpkin juice. "He was being super annoying. And drawing attention. Ravenclaws are like gnats; once they find a puzzle, they never leave you alone. You need to be more careful. Your little... 'hobbies' are starting to get people's attention. And not just nosy Ravenclaws."

It wasn't a friendly gesture. It was a strategic move, with a warning attached. Cassia was protecting a potential asset—me—from some random variable. She was still playing the game, just on a much higher level than Malfoy.

"I'll keep that in mind," I said.

I finished my breakfast in silence, my head spinning. My quest for gear was supposed to make my life simpler, to give me the power to control this world's mechanics. But it was doing the exact opposite. It was dragging me deeper and deeper into the messy, unpredictable social side of the school.

I wasn't just a player anymore. I was a piece on the board, and other pieces were starting to move because of me.