Chapter 21: Chapter 21
"How is there an individual luxurious apartment at Hogwarts?" Hermione asked as she eyed the interior of the Room of Requirement Harry had selected.
She hadn't forgotten what she just learned about Harry's past but was too distracted by that sudden shift in style.
Harry chuckled lightly as he pulled her towards a couch. "It's called the Room of Requirements. I learned from the house-elves that it exists and how it works. You have to move three times up and down in front of the Portrait of Barnabas the Barmy and think about what you need. This room will appear. As far as I can tell, it follows the usual limitations of Gamp's Laws."
"This is amazing! Can it— Hermione tried to question him before she stopped herself, "No, that's not the topic right now. How bad were they? What did they do to you?"
Harry sighed as he enjoyed the feeling of Hermione's slender body cuddling into him, which she probably didn't even realize she was doing right now. "I won't share any details with you. Like I said, there are Mind Readers around, and the Walls have eyes and ears. Every portrait or ghost is reporting to Dumbledore."
"If there are mind readers, they can just pluck the information out of your head." She pointed out.
Harry had been prepared for that as he pulled out a book from his robes, which had been in reality inside his inventory. "Here is an introduction to the Mind Arts. It covers both defense, which is called Occlumency, and offense, or rather Legilimency. I have already learned both."
"Wait, you can read my mind too?"
"Without my wand, only the surface thoughts." Harry lied; since absorbing Ddraig, he could do everything without a wand. Still, his wand gives him a powerup and eases control.
"Which number am I thinking of?"
"42, the Answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything!" Harry laughed.
"You really can read my mind..." She eyed him warily. "Wait, you read The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy?"
"Yep, and don't worry. I don't read your mind without permission. You are far too important to me to ever break your trust in me." He had seen the look on her face and didn't want her to mistrust him. "Once you mastered the first two levels of Occlumency, you should be able to know when someone enters your mind. At least in most cases."
Hermione blushed as she took the book from him and looked uncertain. "I don't know what I should ask… What can you even tell me? How have you been? Are you prepared for the first task?"
"It was intense. I learned a lot and improved even more. Don't worry, a dragon won't stand a chance against me." Harry replied confidently. That's not boasting but a fact; he has so many ways at his disposal to overcome the task that choosing which one is far more trouble.
After all, he didn't want to show off too much.
No need to scare Dumbledore or Voldemort with too much power.
After all, by using enough boosts, he could turn a Bombarda into a nuke. Still, the promised doubling of power with each boost has been a blatant lie.
It could power up anything, but it didn't actually double.
Which he should have realized earlier, or Issei would have been completely broken.
The Guy had at some point over 45 Boosts, which would grant a multiplier far higher than a Super Saiyan God Goku combined with Kaioken.
"Are you sure, Harry? If you learned Occlumency and Legilimency, then you shouldn't have had a lot of time to practice anything else. They sound like complex pieces of magic. If you want, I can help you to find a way to overcome a… DRAGON?" She shouted as she realized what he said the first task was, "How do you know it's dragons?"
"Oh, Dumbledore isn't the only one who has spies on the Hogwarts grounds." Harry said he could really create a spy network by using snakes and his Parseltongue ability but had no need for it to find out about the dragons since he had his metaknowledge.
At least if the man ever dives into Hermione's mind, he would get paranoid.
"Let me guess, you won't tell me what these spies are?"
"Nope."
"Will you get back to classes?" She asked hopefully, "I would love to spend some more time with you again."
"Has Ron been an ass to you?" Harry asked worriedly; her tone felt lonely. Had she suffered while he was gone?
"He… We haven't spoken in a while. He got really angry at me when I didn't let him copy from my homework. Sometimes I feel like it's the only reason he is even friends with me." She said sadly, "Not even once did he ask me how I am doing…"
"Because it probably is." Harry said, pissed off, the more context he had to his own interactions with Ron, the more he felt the boy never had been his friend. Why should it have been different with Hermione? "I don't want to be controlling or anything. But I don't believe Ron truly sees us as friends. Maybe try to make some closer friendships with the girls in our year? I won't be getting back to class this year; in fact, I am much faster at my own pace than by doing coursework. How about you start your Occlumency as soon as you can? It helps a lot!"
"I will try." She sighed sadly.
"Mione, don't be sad. You can see me whenever you want! As far as I can tell, you are my truest friend. I will always have time for you." Harry admitted, "If you need any help, just tell me. But I think it's better if you return to the common room soon; classes are about to start. Not that I don't enjoy cuddling with a beautiful girl."
That's the moment Hermione noticed in what kind of position she had been with Harry the entire time, her face turning a shade of red he had never seen on her before.
———
The bright red and blue lights illuminated the Room of Requirements as the magic circle expanded and fully activated.
A bright flash later, the light show ended.
"Well, that's nostalgic. The feeling of these Wards. Properly controlled, and they could even restrain a Satan. Didn't expect someone would ever summon me in Hogwarts again; your kind shouldn't possess any more of our summoning rituals." A deep, smooth voice said.
In the center of the room stood a middle-aged-looking man with a mixture of red and blue gelled hair. His left eye is blue, while the right one is red. He gives off a mysterious atmosphere.
"Didn't know that. I found this book in an old storage unit amongst thousands of others." Harry held up a copy of 'Grey Ranking.'.
"Some idiot must have been too lazy to do his job properly. Your Wizardingkind has been pretty much put on a blacklist for Devilkind. While it's not forbidden, all knowledge for the necessary summoning rituals had been removed from your world. Even at Hogwarts. At least it was supposed to have happened. That copy is centuries outdated, but still from after the ban. Most of the rituals aren't even supposed to work anymore." Grumbled the man.
"Well, it was in a collection of trash. Could be from a Muggleborn who found it in the non-magical world and threw it away after trying a few rituals that didn't work." Harry mused politely, "After recognizing your name, I couldn't pass on the chance to summon the legendary Devil who formed a pact with Faust. It's an honor to meet you, Mephisto Pheles!"
Harry had really no idea how that book, 'Grey Ranking,' landed in the Room of Hidden Things, but he wouldn't complain. It's a collection of summoning rituals intended for magicians that wished to make a pact with a devil.
As far as he understood, an updated version gets released regularly by the Magician Organization Grauzauberer that had been founded by Johann Georg Faust and is now under the leadership of Mephisto Pheles.
"Sucking up to me will get you nowhere, kid. What the hell even are you? Some kind of freaky wizard-dragon hybrid with a sacred gear. A Longinus even. And something completely unknown to me, a bit like Senjutsu but quite different too." It was as if Mephisto was looking through him as the demonic power washed over Harry.
And he even detected Harry's Nen. Sure he hadn't tried to hide it with Zetsu, but it was still unexpected that his detection magic was able to pick it up so detailed.
"Well, what should I say? I am unique."
"So why did you summon me? Need help taking over your part of the world or something? Want the number for a succubus establishment?" Mephisto asked, bored.
"I want to become a high-class devil and have my own peerage." Harry stated bluntly as he stared at Mephisto.
The Old Devil stared back at him for a moment before replying, "Sorry, kid. My peerage is complete. You should try summoning one of the young ones. They will welcome a Longinus Wielder with open arms. I can give you some recommendations if you want!"
Harry simply shook his head. "Sorry, you seem to misunderstand. I have no interest in serving some spoiled high-class brat as their slave. I summoned you to become a high-class devil. I know you did the same for Tannin."
Mephisto now stared at him baffled before he began to laugh, "Good joke, Kid. Next time try something more believable."
"Not joking. I am ready to pay the price." Harry replied, still calmly.
"Do you realize how much political theater it took to get Tannin directly his king position? And he was one of the Five Dragon Kings and had the backing of quite a few Dragons! And that's only after paying my price and becoming the queen of my peerage. How will a brat like you pay for that? Going to commit suicide and offer your Sacred Gear?" Mephisto asked, as he pointed out the ridiculousness of Harry's request.
Harry pulled a thick black book out. "This is a tome about Earth Devil Slayer Magic. I gained it by trading with a different universe. That magic, like dragon-slaying magic against dragons, contains anti-devil properties. But more importantly, Devils themselves are far more effective in using it. A form of anti-devil magic that isn't holy magic! And it's magic from a different universe. The best of it, the user gains a resistance to the magical element!"
It was only a moment, but Harry saw the greed in Mephisto's eyes; if his senses weren't enhanced, he would have missed it. "Even if it's real. It's still only one book. That isn't enough. If I negotiate secretly with the four Satans, I could make a deal since you are a Longinus Wielder, and they wouldn't want you to join another faction. But it would cost me quite a bit."
"Well, you should already be aware that it's real. Your Detection Magic already noticed another power I learned from a different universe. I can also feel the lie detection magic you are using since the beginning. Now tell me what else you could want. Isn't a completely unknown magic system and devil-slaying magic already quite a lot?" Harry asked, not showing any nervousness.
"Hmm, it's a lot. But we both can gain something else that would make the deal far easier to complete. It would be beneficial for both of us. Become my student!"
( End of Chapter )
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