When the system prompt—silent for an entire year—suddenly sounded again, Reyes instinctively focused his attention inward, toward the system that existed within his mind.
Academy Effect?
The unfamiliar term immediately made him think of something else.
In Teamfight Tactics and the Soul Fighter Arena, there were many different city-states. Each city-state granted players unique buffs and special effects during a match.
Now, it seemed that this same concept had been converted into something called an Academy Effect.
If his guess was correct, then being sorted into different Hogwarts houses would trigger different Academy Effects.
The idea immediately sparked Reyes's curiosity.
Unfortunately, it seemed he would have to wait until the Sorting Ceremony was completed before discovering what his Academy Effect actually was.
Just as he finished thinking this, another voice spoke in his mind.
It was the Sorting Hat.
Compared to the clear and mechanical tone of the system prompt, the Sorting Hat's voice felt softer and far more emotional, carrying a subtle personality that made it sound almost alive.
"A mature way of thinking far beyond your peers," the Sorting Hat murmured thoughtfully, "combined with astonishing talent and an exceptionally strong will. It is truly not easy to determine the true desires hidden deep within your heart."
The hat paused for a moment before continuing.
"But for the great Sorting Hat, such things are not a problem."
"Let me take a closer look…"
"Hmmm… this truly is a difficult choice."
"There does not seem to be a clear inclination in your heart. Are you planning to let me decide your Sorting entirely on my own?"
The hat chuckled lightly.
"It has been a very long time since I have encountered such an interesting and unusual young wizard."
Reyes remained silent while listening to the hat's thoughts.
"You possess a rather contradictory personality," the Sorting Hat continued slowly.
"An ancient aura flows through your bloodline, yet you do not seem to care much about the glory that comes with that lineage."
"You possess an almost unimaginable passion for magic and an intense desire to pursue it."
"But whenever you chase power, you deliberately leave a margin for emotion."
The hat paused again, as if digging deeper into Reyes's thoughts.
"Oh?"
"Hidden deep inside your heart… there is also a sense of heroism."
"It has been buried for a long time and concealed extremely well. But even so, it is far stronger than I initially expected."
Reyes blinked in surprise.
The Sorting Hat continued speaking as if analyzing him piece by piece.
"At some point in your life," the hat said slowly, "you must have greatly admired the protagonists of heroic stories."
"You once wished to experience their extraordinary adventures—their victories, their hardships, their moments of glory."
"But your rational thinking constantly reminds you not to try becoming a hero."
The hat's tone grew slightly gentler.
"I do not know why your heart contains such complicated and tangled thoughts."
"And there also appears to be a strange sense of urgency pushing you forward from behind."
"But I must remind you of something."
"You are only an eleven-year-old wizard."
"There is no need to force yourself so much."
Reyes blinked again after hearing the Sorting Hat's advice.
Then he shrugged casually and muttered under his breath.
"I made an agreement with my cousin."
"I have to reach the level of an adult wizard before she allows me to move out and live on my own."
"So… I'm actually in quite a hurry."
The Sorting Hat snorted softly.
"I will not recklessly invade a young wizard's privacy," it said, raising its voice slightly.
"But do not think you can fool the Sorting Hat so easily."
Then it fell silent again, as if continuing to examine Reyes's thoughts.
"Anyway… let me think carefully."
"Ravenclaw would certainly like a clever student like you."
"Slytherin would also be pleased to have a shrewd young wizard with ambition join their ranks."
"But the hero's dream buried deep within your heart… as well as your courage and spirit… those qualities also fit perfectly with Gryffindor."
The hat's voice gradually dropped into a thoughtful whisper.
Reyes tilted his head slightly.
"So you're not considering sending me to Hufflepuff?" he asked curiously.
The Sorting Hat chuckled.
"If you truly wished to go to Hufflepuff, the house would certainly welcome an excellent young wizard like you."
"But you do not possess a clear preference for any of the four houses."
"And because of that…"
"As the Sorting Hat, I must fulfill my duty perfectly and place you in the house that suits you best."
The hat fell into deep contemplation.
After a moment, it made its first decision.
"Hufflepuff… eliminated."
"Next… Slytherin."
The hat sighed slightly.
"Your ambition simply is not strong enough. If you were placed in Slytherin, you would not be able to fully develop your potential."
That left two options.
"Hmmm…"
"Gryffindor… or Ravenclaw."
The hat hesitated again.
"You would achieve success in either house."
"In Gryffindor, you would be able to release the desires buried within your heart and perhaps become the hero you once dreamed of."
"But in Ravenclaw, your creativity, intelligence, and curiosity would be allowed to flourish fully."
The Sorting Hat sounded genuinely troubled now.
"This is truly making things difficult for me…"
From Reyes's perspective, quite a bit of time seemed to have passed.
Outside, the Great Hall must have been waiting for the result.
But the Sorting Hat was still muttering endlessly.
Then suddenly—
The hat burst out laughing.
"Hahaha!"
"I remember now!"
"Among the four founders of Hogwarts… there was one whose personality was also extremely contradictory."
"Although Rowena Ravenclaw herself might not have liked her own contradictions, it must be admitted that it was precisely the collision between her emotional sensitivity and her rigorous rational thinking that made her one of the wisest and most visionary witches of her era."
The hat paused briefly.
"Of course… those same contradictions also brought her certain heartbreaks that could never be repaired."
"But still…"
The Sorting Hat suddenly raised its voice.
"RAVENCLAW!"
"That is the house that suits you best!"
"You will find everything you seek there."
"Your dilemmas will find answers."
"Your contradictions will find resolution."
"And perhaps…"
"Even that hidden hero dream deep within your heart will one day come true."
The hat's voice rang proudly through the hall.
"After all—who would dare claim that Rowena Ravenclaw was not the hero of her own era?"
With that final declaration, the Sorting Hat loudly announced Reyes's result.
"RAVENCLAW!"
Applause immediately erupted from the Ravenclaw table.
The cheers were not overly enthusiastic, but they were polite and welcoming.
At the same time, several new system prompts echoed in Reyes's mind.
"Congratulations to the host for completing the Sorting."
"The system is now officially activated."
"Academy Effect: Ravenclaw Vision has been enabled."
"Personal Attribute Panel unlocked."
"Rune Mall unlocked."
"Please proceed to the Rune Mall to claim your Sorting reward."
Reyes heard each notification clearly.
However, he was not in a hurry to check them.
Instead, he calmly removed the Sorting Hat and placed it back on the stool before walking toward the Ravenclaw table under the applause of the Great Hall.
As he moved, his wizard robes slowly shifted color, turning into Ravenclaw's signature deep blue.
The Ravenclaw house crest also appeared on his chest.
While walking, Reyes muttered quietly to himself.
"So the hidden heroism…"
"I thought I had completely forgotten about those things after becoming an adult in my previous life."
"It's impressive that the Sorting Hat could still detect it."
He shook his head lightly.
"But being placed in Ravenclaw simply because my inner conflicts resemble Ravenclaw's own personality…"
"I'm not sure whether that should be considered a compliment—or an insult to Ravenclaw."
With that thought, he sat down in an empty seat near the back of the Ravenclaw table.
As he settled in, he noticed Neville Longbottom sitting at the nearby Gryffindor table.
Neville looked a little disappointed.
Clearly, he had hoped they would end up in the same house.
Reyes waved to him with a friendly smile.
"Cheer up, Neville," he called out.
"Even if we're not in the same house, we're still Hogwarts students."
"We'll have plenty of classes together."
Neville nodded awkwardly but seemed to feel slightly better after hearing that.
Afterward, Reyes greeted several of the Ravenclaw students sitting around him.
Among them, one student immediately caught his attention.
The girl sitting across from him.
She had striking features and stood out from the rest of the students.
Reyes remembered her clearly because she was the only East Asian student among the first-years this year.
Her name was Natasha.
Natasha leaned forward slightly and smiled.
"You're really something," she said.
"The Sorting Hat struggled with your Sorting for six whole minutes."
"I heard that's already the longest Sorting time this century."
She tilted her head playfully.
"If you had lasted just a little longer, you might have broken the seven-minute mark and become the student with the longest Sorting in Hogwarts history."
Reyes laughed awkwardly.
"I don't think that's anything to be proud of."
"Because of me, the entire banquet was delayed by six minutes."
"I'm actually a little embarrassed about that."
While the two were chatting, the final student stepped forward for Sorting.
Less than a minute later—
"SLYTHERIN!"
With that announcement, the Sorting Ceremony officially came to an end.
This year's first-year intake consisted of more than 150 students.
Among them, Hufflepuff had received the largest number.
A full fifty-two students had joined the house.
Ravenclaw, on the other hand, had the smallest group.
Including Reyes, there were only twenty-seven students.
After Professor McGonagall collected the Sorting Hat and left the stage, Professor Dumbledore stood up from the high table at the front of the Great Hall.
The entire hall quickly grew quiet.
Dumbledore spread his arms with a warm smile.
"Welcome!" he said cheerfully.
"Welcome to Hogwarts and to the start of a new school year!"
"Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say just a few words."
He cleared his throat dramatically.
"They are…"
"Nitwit!"
"Blubber!"
"Oddment!"
"Tweak!"
He clapped his hands together happily.
"Thank you!"
For a moment, the hall fell silent in confusion.
Then the food suddenly appeared across the long tables.
The Start-of-Term Feast had officially begun.
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