As the stone wall slowly shifted aside, revealing a hidden compartment, Hermione's eyes widened in shock. Her lips parted in disbelief.
"H-How did you know there was something here?" she asked, staring at Kai.
Kai calmly explained his reasoning but deliberately omitted any mention of the prophecy. Instead, he told her how he'd noticed the clue in the corner through the photograph.
It wasn't that he wanted to keep secrets from Hermione—but the Old Man had once warned him: in the magical world, the fewer people who knew about prophecy, the better. Those who meddled with such knowledge often met with disaster.
He was living proof.
In magic, it was wiser to believe in fate's riddles than to dismiss them entirely.
Still, lying to Hermione made his chest ache unbearably, as though his heart would burst apart at any moment—but his expression remained utterly composed.
That was the price of their Soul Oath.
Unaware of the storm beneath his calm, Hermione beamed at him, her eyes sparkling with admiration.
"Kai, you're brilliant!"
"But your parents… they hid this place well," she added, frowning in confusion. "How could they be sure you'd ever find it?"
Kai's gaze lingered on the contents of the hidden compartment. His voice was quiet. "Maybe… they never intended for me to find it."
"Why not?" Hermione asked softly.
Kai didn't answer. Instead, he reached into the compartment and retrieved a small velvet box, resembling something you'd find in a jewellery shop. Despite the decay surrounding it, the box was spotless—protected by the sealed space.
He glanced briefly at Hermione, then opened it.
Inside lay a ring.
It was entirely silver, its band wide and ornately carved with intertwining patterns of astonishing craftsmanship. The ring's face bore an intricate emblem—the same design carved on the wall.
Now, under proper light, Kai could finally study it in detail. The background of the emblem was a tangle of lines—impossible to distinguish if they represented weeds, strands of hair… or veins.
And in the centre, raised and prominent, a sharp-edged C intersected by a pointed V—clearly the crest of a noble family, though entirely unfamiliar.
The sunlight streamed through the window, catching the silver, sending a cold gleam across the ring.
The same silver light from the prophecy, Kai realised.
"What a beautiful ring," Hermione whispered, her gaze drawn to it. Little girls, after all, had a natural fondness for pretty things.
Kai shot her a helpless look. "If you like it, I'll give it to you."
As he reached for the ring—
"Be careful!" Hermione shouted suddenly.
The moment his fingertips brushed the metal, a sinister blood-red glow flared across the ring's surface. Startled, Kai instinctively tried to fling it away, but before he could, the crimson light snaked along his skin. He felt a sharp sting at his finger—a single drop of blood drawn forth and absorbed by the ring.
Instantly, the blood-red glow receded, vanishing into the metal. The ring fell silent.
Hermione's eyes were wide with alarm. "W-What was that?!"
Kai frowned, examining the now motionless ring. "A type of magic… likely a targeted enchantment," he murmured.
He had sensed it—a magical fluctuation distinct from typical Dark Magic. Not a curse as most would know it, but something older, more complex—a branch of Black Magic separated from traditional schools.
His curiosity deepened regarding the true identities of Kai Adler's parents.
"Targeted at whom?" Hermione pressed.
Kai smiled faintly and plucked the ring from the box. This time, it remained inert in his palm.
"Anyone who tried to claim this ring—except me."
"Didn't you say your parents might not have wanted you to find it?" Hermione frowned.
"Exactly. That's why I believe this was a test," Kai replied. "If I was capable enough to bypass their protections, I deserved to learn whatever comes next—whether that's strength, magic, or wit."
"And if you couldn't?" Hermione's brow furrowed.
"Then… I'd live a simple, ordinary life as a Muggle," Kai shrugged.
Hermione hesitated, biting her lip. "Your parents… who were they really?"
Kai gave a weary smile. "I wish I knew."
He searched the hidden compartment—empty apart from the ring's box.
The trail ends here?
He racked his mind, recalling every detail of the prophecy—the abandoned house, the silver light beneath the sun… There had to be more.
Hermione seemed to have reached the same conclusion, her expression falling. "We… we can't track down your parents with just a ring…"
Then her eyes lit up, her entire face brightening with sudden realisation. "The photo!"
"What photo?" Kai asked, startled.
"The one of you and your parents!" she exclaimed, practically bouncing in place. "Every picture in the album—it's always the three of you. But… who took the photos?"
Kai's eyes sharpened. She had a point.
"With all these protections, curses, and hidden compartments… your parents were no ordinary people," Hermione reasoned. "The person behind the camera wouldn't be ordinary either, right?"
But almost immediately, her excitement deflated. "But… we don't know who that is…"
Kai, however, chuckled softly. "That's the clue," he said. "Our Hermione really is the smartest witch at Hogwarts."
Her puzzled expression melted into a brilliant smile at his praise.
"I'll look for more clues!" she declared, rushing off to comb through the room once again.
Kai shook his head with quiet amusement, letting her enjoy the victory.
"Hey… what's this?" Hermione's curious voice called from beneath the hidden compartment.
She crouched beside the floorboards, pointing at a stray strand of hair.
"Why is there a hair here? It wasn't there earlier… Kai, don't tell me you're going bald like my dad?"
Kai laughed under his breath. "Uncle Granger isn't bald, is he?"
"He wears a wig," Hermione muttered with a pout. "You didn't know?"
Kai crouched down beside her, carefully plucking the hair from the floorboards.
"I didn't know," he replied, examining the strand. His expression grew serious. "But I do know whose hair this is."
"Whose?!" Hermione gasped, instinctively patting her own brown curls. "It's not mine, is it?"
"If it was yours, I'd be keeping my distance." Kai's tone lightened briefly, but his gaze sharpened as he stood. His eyes swept the cluttered room until he focused on a pile of debris near the wall.
A flick of his fingers sent the junk scattering, revealing claw marks etched deep into the wallpaper and plaster beneath.
Hermione's breath caught. "What… what did that?"
Kai's expression darkened. "They did."
"Someone's been here," he continued grimly. "They found the hidden compartment—but couldn't claim the ring because of the curse."
He straightened, taking Hermione's hand. "So they waited—for the rightful owner to come."
Realisation dawned on Hermione's face. "You?"
Kai nodded. "Bait."
The little girl's eyes narrowed in determination. "Then let's get out of here—quick!"
They hurried toward the door, but the moment they stepped outside, both froze.
Blocking the only exit stood more than a dozen towering figures. Some bore sharp, predatory features with faintly European or Germanic complexions—others looked like vagabonds from across the continent.
The leader, a hulking brute with dark eyes, stared straight at them.
Hermione squeezed Kai's hand, tense but refusing to retreat.
"Who are they?" she whispered.
Kai exhaled, brushing the loose hair from his fingertips as a faint, mournful howl echoed in his ears—the last sound from the prophecy resurfacing.
"The owner of that hair," he murmured darkly. "They're Werewolves."