Return of Salazar Slytherin

"Uncle Salazar, do you think Mother will be very angry?" 

Though she had already mentally prepared herself, as they neared the dungeon where Rowena resided, Helena found it increasingly difficult to suppress her nervousness. 

The mistake she had made was one that would be hard to forgive, even for a biological daughter—let alone an adopted one taken in from the same bloodline. 

Rhys pondered for a couple of seconds.

He felt that Helena was probably overthinking it.

No matter how angry Rowena had been, after a thousand years, her anger should have long since subsided.

Besides, even when she was alive, she had always tried to cover for Helena, even going so far as to lie in front of her old friends—Rhys, until the moment of his "death," had always believed that Helena had simply gone off to travel the world. 

"I am a sinner…" Helena continued to murmur beside Rhys. "It was my vanity, my own mistake." In front of her uncle, Helena could finally lower her usual facade, allowing herself to reveal her most vulnerable side without restraint. 

"Don't worry, it'll be fine," Rhys comforted her warmly. "You're a ghost now—there's nothing Rowena can do to you… probably." 

Helena: "…" 

Uncle Salazar's response left her momentarily speechless. But… it did seem to make some sense? 

After thinking it over, Helena finally let out a sigh. "I'd rather Mother just give me a good beating."

This time, it was Rhys who fell silent—after all, he had actually been beaten by Rowena before. 

"The women of the Ravenclaw family are all nothing but trouble," he couldn't help but mutter, rubbing his forehead. 

Helena cast him a puzzled look, not understanding why he had suddenly said such a thing. 

Before long, they reached the castle's dungeons and arrived at the sealed entrance. 

"Are you sure you're ready? You can still turn back now." Before undoing the seal, Rhys gave Helena one last chance to reconsider. 

Helena's ghostly form became less transparent—a curious trait of ghosts, as their emotions could be observed quite visibly. 

After taking two deep breaths, Helena steadied herself. A determined light shone in her eyes. "Please open the seal, Uncle Salazar. I am ready." 

Beyond the seal was her mother—she was going to see her! 

At that moment, Helena even felt as if her heart, which had been still for a thousand years, had begun to beat again. 

Rhys lifted the seal, and not far beyond it, he saw that familiar silhouette—Rowena Ravenclaw, still lingering near the entrance, as if unsure of what she was doing.

Upon seeing that familiar yet distant figure, Helena's spectral form began to tremble uncontrollably. 

"Salazar, what are you doing here?—" Sensing Rhys's approach, Rowena Ravenclaw turned around with curiosity, but the moment her gaze landed on him, she froze. 

The ghost standing behind Rhys had a face she knew all too well… 

For the first time, Rhys saw such an incredibly complex expression on someone's face. 

Unlike all the scenarios Helena had imagined, Rowena simply remained silent for two seconds before speaking in a calm tone, "Ah.. you're ...here." 

No blame, no sorrow, no anger—just a greeting as plain as water. Yet those words made Helena's eyes well up with large, pearl-like tears. 

Like a gust of wind, she swept past Rhys and threw herself into her mother's embrace. Rowena's ghost held her the same way she had when Helena was a child, closing her eyes. 

Rhys quietly stepped back, giving the mother and daughter, separated for a thousand years, a moment of their own. 

After a short while, a light breeze brushed against Rhys's hair. When he turned around, he found Rowena and Helena standing side by side behind him. 

"Finished talking?" 

"Mm." Rowena nodded. "Thank you, Salazar."

"No need to be so formal," Rhys shook his head. 

"Nana told me a lot…" Rowena hesitated for a moment before continuing, "You're saying she was…?" 

Rhys nodded and shared his theory with Ravenclaw. He didn't want Helena to die in vain, nor did he want the Bloody Baron to bear false blame. 

Upon learning that her daughter had been murdered for wealth, Rowena pressed her lips together tightly. 

"Rest assured, I will find the descendants of the culprit and settle this account with them," Rhys waved his hand, making a promise to Ravenclaw. 

He had seen through Rowena's heart—beneath her cold exterior, she deeply cared for her adopted daughter. More importantly, someone as proud as her would never swallow such an injustice.

If he didn't promise to help her, who knew what kind of trouble she might stir up? 

What if she broke the seal in a fit of rage just to seek revenge?

Would Rhys have to block the entrance himself? 

Rowena Ravenclaw was absolutely capable of doing something that reckless. 

"…Thank you." Hearing Rhys's promise, Rowena did something extremely rare—she thanked him again. 

"Heh~ The capable should do more work, after all!" Rhys replied without a shred of modesty, directly classifying himself as the most capable among the four founders.

Rowena's face twitched. The capable one? You?!

But after thinking it over carefully, it actually made some sense—Godric and Helga's fates were unknown, she herself was trapped within the seal, and yet Salazar was still alive and kicking, seemingly reborn.

Rowena Ravenclaw suddenly felt a little disheartened.

While Rhys and Rowena were talking, Helena had been quietly listening by the side. Seeing that the conversation had stalled, she took the initiative to change the topic.

"So, Uncle Salazar, how did you do it? A thousand years have passed, Mother and I have become ghosts, but you look like a child?"

Rowena was also very interested in this question.

"You should know about the origins of wizards," Rhys glanced at Rowena and said slowly, "I managed to get hold of a small fragment of that origin and used it to create a special potion. It allowed me to enter a long hibernation, gradually reversing my aging over time."

Rowena's eyes widened. She was a great researcher after all.

Magic itself had originated from a meteor shower.

When magic-infused meteors fell to the earth, the first magical beings were born, and from that moment, magic began to take root in the world.

Some humans consumed magical creatures or their remains, while others discovered and merged with magic-infused meteors, giving rise to the first wizards and deities. They passed down this innate power, allowing magic to flourish across the world.

Compared to wizards, deities—under the influence of these magical meteors—gained near-immortal lifespans. This was the power of the Origin Fragment. Perhaps it came with a price, but with benefits so immense, few could resist its allure.

However, as time passed, obtaining a piece of a magic-infused meteor became increasingly difficult. Rhys' fragment might very well be the last Origin Fragment in the world.

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