By the time they returned to the children's home, night had completely fallen, and the last trace of twilight had vanished from the horizon. The silhouette of the home appeared exceptionally desolate in the darkness.
Harold sighed softly to himself; the experiences of these past two days were more magical than his entire life combined.
"How do you feel?" Alan asked calmly.
"Not bad," Harold replied casually.
He hadn't bought any souvenirs in Diagon Alley, only a few jumping frogs made of chocolate—though he had already eaten them. Magic actually existed. Unfortunately, he couldn't reveal these things to anyone other than a wizard. This was a world that ordinary people could not touch. It was also a world his former self could never have reached.
Alan stretched. "Goodbye, Mr. Green. I'm going to rest."
A complex emotion inexplicably welled up in Harold's heart. From their interactions over the past two days, even putting aside his identity as a wizard, the child named Alan before him was not ordinary. If not for his young appearance, Harold felt as though he were talking to a peer.
"Alan," he called out to the boy who was about to turn and leave with the birdcage. He pulled a business card from his inner suit pocket and handed it over. "If you need anything, you can try calling me." He paused and added, "The number should also be in the telephone directory, but it's more convenient to just have this."
"Thank you." Alan accepted Harold's business card. He knew Harold was showing him goodwill, and this was beneficial for him as well.
"Ah, one more thing," Harold said, seemingly remembering something before leaving. "If you really do resurrect this owl, could you let me see it?"
Alan thought for a moment and nodded slowly. "Alright." He had nothing to lose by doing so. Besides, he found Harold quite agreeable—even if he was bald.
When Alan returned to the dormitory, his roommate Scott was playing with a dagger he had picked up from somewhere.
"It's a bit rusty," he said. "I'm trying to restore it. What's that?"
He noticed the birdcage in Alan's hand.
"An owl," Alan said as if it were obvious, then placed it in a corner of the room.
"And?" Scott curiously examined the listless large black bird in the cage. "Don't you think you should explain?"
"It's a gift from Mr. Green," Alan explained.
The mystery only deepened.
"Mr. Green?" Scott put down the dagger and frowned, searching his memory. "Which Mr. Green? Among the people we know, there doesn't seem to be anyone named Green."
"Harold Green, the person in charge of this children's home."
Scott finally realized. It wasn't his fault; when Alan had met Harold, he had also almost failed to remember who he was.
"So why would he give you an owl?" Scott became even more confused.
"My back-to-school gift." Alan shook the birdcage, and the tawny owl inside slightly moved its wings.
Scott still didn't understand. Who gives an owl as a back-to-school gift?
"Ah, I see." Scott suddenly wore an expression of sudden realization and leaned in close to Alan, lowering his voice. "Actually, Harold Green is your father, right?"
"Your imagination is too vivid." Alan continued his movements, carefully taking the tawny owl out of the cage. The large black bird lay docilely in his arms, still appearing weak.
"It makes sense!" Scott analyzed excitedly. "A supervisor who usually never appears before us suddenly gives you such a special gift, and it's an owl! This definitely isn't an ordinary gift; it must have a special meaning."
Alan ignored Scott's nonsense and continued to observe the owl's condition. According to the pet shop clerk, this owl had become like this because it was cursed by a dark wizard. It must have suffered quite a bit of torment.
"It looks like I need to prepare the transformation spell as soon as possible," Alan murmured.
"Hey! Are you listening to me?" Scott was still chattering away.
"Go to sleep." Alan put the owl back in the cage and climbed into his bed.
Early the next morning, the first thing Alan did after waking up was look at the owl in the corner. The tawny owl in the cage was lying on its side, its already dull eyes now completely devoid of light. It maintained the same position it had before falling asleep last night, but its chest was no longer rising and falling.
It was dead.
Alan stared quietly at the lifeless owl, his face showing no expression. "As expected, it didn't pull through," he whispered to himself.
Naturally, no miracle occurred. The life of the tawny owl was even shorter than the two days the clerk had said it might survive.
Alan carefully carried the birdcage containing the corpse out of the dormitory and walked into the backyard warehouse. He didn't know if the necromantic creature transformation magic circle had any requirements for the time of death, so it was better to finish it as soon as possible.
In the warehouse, with his previous experience, it only took Alan half an hour to complete the setup of the necromantic creature transformation magic circle this time. But the difference was that this time, Alan intended to add a little extra ingredient to it.
Alan stood beside the magic circle, palm down, and stretched his right arm forward.
"Blood Extraction!"
This was a very simple spell (compared to the Weakening Curse), and Alan had mastered it in just one hour. The effect was simple: to extract the user's blood without causing any wounds.
Accompanied by Alan's incantation, blood slowly dripped from the center of his palm. Drip, drip.
The blood dripped onto the ground and, as if possessed of a life of its own, merged into the magic circle. The circle, originally drawn with red pigment, became increasingly vibrant and began to glow with an eerie dark red light.
After feeling a slight dizziness, Alan stopped the Blood Extraction spell. He didn't know how much blood he had mixed in, but the amount was certainly not small.
Next, he walked over to the cage, picked up the cold, stiff owl, and gently placed it in the center of the magic circle. The result this time should be quite interesting.
"The world of the living has not yet forgotten you; the slumber of death is not your final chapter."
As soon as Alan's incantation ended, the magic circle reacted. Just like last time, the crimson lines flowed slowly, all entering the owl's corpse. However, within the blood-colored patterns this time, a few strands of dark gold filaments were faintly visible.
When the last trace of red light vanished into the owl's body, the warehouse fell into a deathly silence.
Suddenly, the owl snapped its eyes open. In its hollow sockets, two clusters of ghostly blue flames ignited, replacing its original eyeballs.
Alan knelt down in front of it.
"Hoo."
It stood up, staring at Alan with its burning eyes, slowly lowered its head, and lightly touched his fingertip with its beak.
//===================//