Elijah picked up a Time-Turner.
This device was engraved with the Hour-Reversal Charm. In theory, as long as someone mastered the Hour-Reversal Charm, they could travel back in time even without a Time-Turner. In reality, however, things were far more complicated.
Aside from the spell itself, the sand inside the hourglass was also magical. The flowing grains seemed almost like a manifestation of time.
During the battle in the Department of Mysteries years later, the glass case standing before Elijah would be shattered, and the Time-Turners would vanish from the world entirely.
Any power connected to time was bound to be mysterious and formidable, and Elijah naturally hoped to become someone who could master it.
Of course, the Time-Turner had enormous limitations, so great that it could even seem somewhat useless. Still, Elijah was unwilling to give up such an opportunity. Sometimes, even a few hours could change the course of many things.
The third door Elijah opened led somewhere he had never fully understood before.
Among the twelve doors, he already knew seven. The Hall of Prophecy represented the future, the Time Chamber represented the past, the Brain Room and the Planet Room represented thought and the universe, the Death Chamber represented death itself, and the locked door, according to Dumbledore, symbolized love.
The door he had just opened revealed something entirely different.
Inside was a dazzling collection of colorful atlases.
"What is this…?"
He walked in slowly and discovered strange models filling the chamber. Various magical plants, magical creatures, and even wizards themselves were displayed throughout the room like records in a museum.
From ancient times to the present, magical species had continuously evolved and gone extinct. Yet if one attempted to trace the origin of magical mysteries, no clear beginning could be found.
At that moment, Elijah realized what this hall represented.
Magic itself.
It was a question destined to remain unanswered. No one truly knew where magic originated.
Elijah noticed several manuscripts scattered around the room. He guessed they had been left behind by the Unspeakables who guarded this place.
Unspeakables were the most mysterious profession within the Ministry of Magic. Besides protecting the secrets of the Department of Mysteries, they were responsible for researching the phenomena occasionally found within it.
Over the years, however, many mysteries had simply been accepted as unsolvable. Most modern Unspeakables were now occupied with the Hall of Prophecy or with observing the strange brain kept in the Brain Room.
The manuscript Elijah found was extremely old. The parchment was dry and brittle, threatening to crumble the moment he held it. The ink had faded badly, but he could still make out a few words.
[Magic—also known as Aether—is a power capable of altering reality. However, the existence of magic itself is unreasonable. Nature possesses fundamental laws, but magic seems to originate from beyond those rules, breaking them and establishing new ones…]
[Regarding research on □□□—]
The rest of the text was impossible to read.
Elijah tried casting Reparo, but the spell had no effect.
He placed the parchment back where he had found it.
There was no point wasting too much effort on the manuscript. If it had contained anything truly valuable, the Ministry would have preserved it carefully instead of leaving it here.
After leaving the Hall of Magic, Elijah continued checking the other chambers one by one.
Several doors remained completely sealed. Forcing them open would likely cause a major disturbance. Moreover, Elijah had no idea what lay behind them and wasn't willing to risk opening them recklessly.
"The key to Vault 12 isn't here in the Department of Mysteries," Elijah muttered as he stepped back into the dark corridor, idly turning the Time-Turner in his fingers. "So where could it be?"
Although the key to Vault 12 was related to the secret of Ancient Magic, it was still, at the end of the day, merely a key to a Gringotts vault. It wasn't surprising that it had nothing to do with the Department of Mysteries.
Still, this meant Elijah had lost the only search area he had.
Searching the entire Ministry of Magic was clearly unrealistic. The building was far larger than it appeared, and many places bore traces of the Undetectable Extension Charm. Finding a single key here would be like searching for a needle in a haystack.
More importantly, he no longer had the time.
He could sense the magic sealing the fireplaces in the main hall being broken, which meant the Aurors were already on their way.
"Better leave now."
...
"Now I know why Mr. Elijah wanted you to learn the Patronus Charm," Hermione said as she and Ron helped Harry sit up on the Hogwarts Express. "He must have predicted something like this would happen."
Professor Lupin, who had just driven away the Dementors, handed Harry a piece of chocolate he had purchased earlier.
He had not yet recovered from the relief of seeing Harry safe when Hermione's words caught his attention.
"Someone knew this would happen beforehand?" Lupin asked.
Ron and Hermione suddenly remembered there was a fourth person in the compartment.
"It's… one of our friends," Ron said quickly. "Yes, a friend! He thought that since the Ministry sent Dementors to search for Sirius Black and Tom Riddle, Harry might be in danger. And those things can't exactly be trusted."
Ron grew more confident as he continued.
"So he suggested Harry learn the Patronus Charm in advance. The spell you used just now. It's the only thing that can drive Dementors away."
"It seems your friend is quite farsighted," Lupin said kindly. "Dumbledore doesn't like them either. By the way, Harry, if you want to learn the Patronus Charm, you can come to my office."
He smiled slightly.
"I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Remus Lupin, and if everything goes well, I'll be your Defense Against the Dark Arts professor this term."
"Thank you, Professor Lupin," Harry said weakly.
He still felt embarrassed by what had happened. Dementors amplified a person's fears, but none of the others had fainted the way he had.
The train began moving again.
By the time night fully fell, they finally arrived at Hogwarts.
Harry was sent straight to the Hospital Wing for examination, while Hermione was summoned alone to Professor McGonagall's office.
"Miss Granger," Professor McGonagall said, pursing her lips in her characteristic way, "I have something to discuss with you regarding your course schedule for this term."
She pulled out a timetable and handed it to Hermione.
Hermione looked down at it.
"Nine o'clock… Divination, Muggle Studies, Arithmancy… Three classes at the same time?"
"That's correct," Professor McGonagall replied. "Last term you were the only student who selected every available subject. Given your academic performance and dedication, the professors unanimously believe you're capable of handling them all."
Although McGonagall's face remained composed, Hermione could tell she was pleased.
"But how can I attend three classes at once, Professor?" Hermione asked. "Percy said you had a way to solve that problem, but he wouldn't explain how."
"Of course he wouldn't," McGonagall said.
For a moment Hermione noticed the faintest upward twitch at the corner of McGonagall's mouth and wondered if she had imagined it.
"Information about the Time-Turner is restricted," McGonagall continued. "It's only granted to a very small number of exceptional students. After you submitted your course selections last year, I wrote many letters to the Ministry before they finally agreed."
She took out a small golden hourglass.
"You simply turn it to move back in time, though only for a maximum of five hours."
Her expression turned serious.
"The Time-Turner is an extremely dangerous magical object. Last term, Albus used one to capture Tom Riddle. I hope you understand how serious this is."
"Headmaster Dumbledore used this to catch Mr. Riddle?" Hermione asked in astonishment as she stared at the tiny object.
Professor McGonagall nodded solemnly.
"Now listen carefully. I want you to remember the rules for using a Time-Turner."
"First, you must never use it for anything other than studying…"
Hermione carefully picked up the Time-Turner.