Snape's attempt to resurrect the dead failed, as expected.
The soul-binding spell he had spent a long time developing passed right through the ethereal spirit, failing to achieve the effect he had envisioned.
At first, Snape thought the issue lay with the Soul Chain spell itself. However, when he extended the chains into a different unfortunate test subject, he found that the magic was perfectly capable of tearing a soul right out of a body.
By comparing this extracted soul with the one summoned by the Resurrection Stone, Snape discovered that what the Stone called back was not a true soul, but rather a ghostly projection of the deceased mirrored into the mortal realm.
That's right. As one of the three Deathly Hallows, the Resurrection Stone shouldn't be limited to just this.
Snape did not feel discouraged. There had to be a missing link somewhere in the process.
After multiple experiments, Snape began to faintly perceive that there might be some kind of seal placed upon the Resurrection Stone. It was the presence of this seal that severely restricted the Stone's power, preventing it from exerting its true potential.
A look of pleasant surprise surfaced on Snape's face.
If everything he had summoned before was merely a phantom projection of Lily's soul, could that be why her spirit had appeared so pessimistic?
If that were truly the case, he wouldn't have to waste his energy researching how to resurrect the dead from scratch.
Snape temporarily set aside his resurrection experiments and instead began to study the seal on the Resurrection Stone.
Time quickly passed, and soon over a week had gone by.
The "little beaver" had been "heartlessly" abandoned at Nurmengard by her parents for nearly two weeks now.
That noon, before the Grangers headed to Paris to restart their "just the two of us" vacation plans, they bid farewell to the old butler who was preparing to act as their guide. As for Hermione, the Grangers stated they would return to pick her up after a while; for now, they would let the little beaver, who was too immersed in the ocean of knowledge to be pulled away, stay behind.
And so, Hermione was left there in a state of confusion.
When she first heard the news, Hermione was a bit dazed. Wait, what happened to our three-person family trip?
But then she realized that staying here meant not only having an endless supply of magic books to read but also the ability to consult the two Great Dark Lords, Black and White, at any time. Suddenly, Hermione felt that sightseeing wasn't so appealing anymore.
Not to mention, she could cast magic here to her heart's content.
Except... that woman who was so close to Kyle and always stayed by his side was a bit annoying.
Particularly last night when they went shopping in the wizarding district in France. Although Konan hadn't done anything overtly intimate with Kyle, the two of them—both strikingly attractive and wearing matching outfits—looked like a perfectly matched couple as they walked together.
And then there was her: bushy hair, oversized front teeth, following along like an ugly duckling.
Waking up early in the morning, Hermione went to the bathroom to wash up. Looking at her reflection in the mirror, the little beaver gripped her comb, trying desperately to smooth down her frizzy, bushy hair.
But despite her best efforts, her hair looked no different than before.
She glanced at herself in the mirror, then remembered how, during last night's shopping trip, Kyle's gaze had been fixed on Konan seventy percent of the time. Hermione bit her lip, a trace of hesitation appearing on her face.
Finally, she made up her mind and turned to leave the bathroom.
When she returned to the mirror, she held a bottle of Sleekeazy's Hair Potion in her hand, along with a beautiful dress—she usually never wore dresses, finding them far too troublesome.
She had only summoned the courage to buy this outfit during their shopping trip the previous night.
When Hermione arrived at the dining room, Kyle was busy slurping down a bowl of century egg and pork congee specially prepared for him by the house-elves.
Catching a glimpse of the little beaver's figure out of the corner of his eye, Kyle finished his porridge in a leisurely manner before looking up to greet her.
But the moment he looked up, he froze.
Wait, wasn't that Hermione who just walked in?
Who is this beauty in the blue dress standing in front of me?
Since when did this castle get another little maid besides Ajisai?
Noticing Kyle's stare, a cute blush crept onto the little beaver's face. She reached out and waved her hand in front of him.
"It's me. Don't you recognize me?"
Kyle's eyes widened in shock.
This is Hermione?
The Hermione before him looked as if her account had been hacked; she was a completely different person from before. Her hair was no longer a bushy mess like Gryffindor's "Golden Lion King"; instead, it had become smooth and lustrous, cascading down her back like a silken waterfall.
She had also ditched her perennial outfit of casual short-sleeves and jeans for a ruffled dress made of lake-blue fabric, looking exceptionally beautiful.
On top of that, the little beaver had actually done something unprecedented today: she was wearing makeup. Though it was just simple, light makeup, it made her skin look like cream and her eyes shine like morning stars.
Kyle knew that Hermione's features weren't bad; she usually looked plain only because she couldn't be bothered to dress up. Furthermore, the usual Hermione liked to carry a stack of thick books wherever she went. Even though Kyle had given her a small handbag with an Undetectable Extension Charm for her books last Christmas, Hermione still preferred to cradle her favorite volumes in her arms.
According to her, she liked being able to smell the scent of paper and ink.
Being constantly weighed down by heavy knowledge meant the little beaver's temperament could only be described with the word "bookworm."
But now that she had suddenly dressed up...
Though he had long known that if the little beaver took grooming seriously, her appearance and aura wouldn't be lacking, Kyle had never imagined she could be stunning to this degree.
He literally could not take his eyes off her.
Seeing Kyle's stunned expression, a happy smile appeared on the little beaver's face, though there was a hint of nervousness hidden within it. After all, this was the first time in her life she had dressed up so meticulously.
Just then, a dissatisfied cough came from the side, snapping Kyle out of his daze.
Seeing Konan suddenly appear, Kyle rubbed his nose guiltily.
Why did he suddenly feel like a husband who had been caught cheating in the act?
Konan's gaze swept past Kyle to look at the newly transformed Hermione, her eyebrows arching slightly. She walked over to Kyle's side, leaned down, and rested a hand on his shoulder. Pressing her lips close to Kyle's ear, she spoke in a gentle tone: "Miss Granger is very beautiful, isn't she?"
The polite but awkward smile on Kyle's face gradually stiffened.
Normally, if Konan spoke to him in such an intimate way, he would be overjoyed. But right now...
How was he supposed to answer this question without getting himself killed?
Seeing how close Kyle and Konan were, Hermione subconsciously clenched her small fists, feeling a bit wronged. She had put so much effort into dressing herself up, yet the moment Konan appeared, Kyle's attention shifted right back to her.
Noticing the little beaver's expression, a sly smile appeared on Konan's face.
She let go of Kyle, who was still stammering and unable to answer her question. After throwing a provocative glance at the little beaver, Konan wore a victor's smile and walked gracefully out of the dining room.
With a cold face, Hermione sat down in the seat opposite Kyle. She picked up a piece of bread from her plate and took a vicious bite, as if she were biting off the head of a certain scumbag.
Kyle let out a helpless sigh.
He hadn't even done anything; he was just quietly eating breakfast. Why was the little beaver looking at him like he was some kind of heinous criminal?
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