Everyone has a dark place in his heart.
Someone once said that where there is light, there must be shadows, but shadows are always hidden behind them and are often not as clear as light.
But if you suddenly turn around, you will find that you are actually so close to the shadow, as if you would fall into it with just one step.
"Hermione, look at me."
In the Room of Requirement, Maka sat across from her. At this time, there were only these two chairs in the room, and even Harry, Ron and even Luna could only wait quietly in the corridor outside.
It could be seen that Hermione looked very uncomfortable, and she might not be mentally ready to tell some of the truth at the moment.
In other words, she didn't want Maka to know that she was actually jealous of Luna.
However, Maka didn't ask anything.
"Look at me, breathe in, breathe out... don't think too much and really relax. Now I'm going to ask you some simple questions, I think this should help you regain your composure."
In this empty room with only two people, Maka's voice seemed particularly clear.
Hermione heard that he seemed to be making his voice as soft as possible, and his slightly relaxed vocal cords vibrated with the airflow to produce a familiar pronunciation and tone, with his usual easy-going style.
Just this way of speaking made Hermione feel extremely at ease.
"So..." Maka asked calmly with a smile on her lips, "Does raising a swallow-tailed dog require a license issued by the Ministry of Magic?"
"need."
“What fertilizer is effective in increasing the growth rate of Noctiluca?”
"Moonchimon's excrement."
“Can mandrake leaves be used in cooking?”
"Can."
"Which 14th-century member of the Wizarding Council defined 'man' as 'any creature in the wizarding world that walks on two legs'?"
"Chancellor Buldock Muldoon."
“What was the trade name of a chocolate buttercream sandwich bar launched by Mars Magic Foods in 1990?”
"Mars Rod."
"The fifth use of dragon blood..."
When Maka asked these questions, her tone was very gentle, but her speaking speed was quite fast.
Obviously, he knew that Hermione would be able to answer these questions, which almost covered everything from many subjects to common sense in life. And if you want the other person to fully concentrate and think uninterrupted, the rhythm of his asking questions must be fast.
In fact, Maka originally wanted Hermione to clear her mind as much as possible, but this method similar to the ancient wizard's meditation is not easy.
For this reason, Maka simply did the opposite and completely filled Hermione's mind with a large number of fast-paced questions.
And this would save Hermione from having to think about anything else.
Seeing that Hermione had gradually entered a state of full thinking, Maka knew that the effect he wanted had been achieved. However, although there are actually only two steps that Maka has to do, the second step is much more difficult than the first step.
While continuing to ask Hermione all-encompassing questions, Maka suddenly took out her staff and placed the top of the staff between him and Hermione.
The next moment, I saw a looming rune suddenly outlined on the top of the staff, and it continued to spread out layers of fluctuations invisible to the naked eye.
This is the soul rule rune, and it is the one that Maka learned from the Bewitching Tablet. Through countless studies and what she gained from Sarah, Maka has initially understood its meaning.
Through this rune, he can arouse the desires of others, but if used in reverse, it can also appease some abnormal desires.
Yes, based on Luna and Ron's hurried narration, Maka already knew something about Hermione's strangeness.
After a moment, Maka canceled the transmission of magic power, and the soul rule runes quietly dispersed. And when the spreading invisible ripples disappeared, he also put away the staff.
"The last question," Maka said softly, "Who wrote the sentence 'When you are staring at the abyss from a distance, the abyss is also staring at you'?"
"Wha...what?"
Hermione suddenly opened her eyes and looked at Maka with a puzzled expression.
"Well, I think you are indeed a qualified resident of the magical world," Maka suddenly leaned back in her chair and said in a relaxed tone, "The words just now were said by a famous Muggle scholar, his name is 'F. Riedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche'."
"...'The abyss is also staring at you'," Hermione chewed on this sentence and couldn't help but feel sad. "This is really a chilling sentence."
"In fact, not necessarily," Maka shook her head and said, "If you regard something as an 'abyss', then it will truly become an abyss. And when fighting against the abyss, the process of fighting will often turn into something else. An abyss①…”
While Hermione was listening in rapt attention, Maka stretched out her hand and waved it in front of her eyes, as if to tell her not to be so nervous all the time.
"So, um... Although this may be inappropriate for me to say, but..." Maka said seriously, "Just face your inner thoughts. You don't have to choose to only let yourself be concerned about other people's feelings. pain."
Hermione was startled when she heard this, and there was a moment of hesitation in her eyes, but soon more determination emerged.
"This really... shouldn't be yours to say!" She pursed her lips, and a hint of red gradually appeared on her lips that were just a moment ago pale, "But since you said so... then Maka, can I punish you? You?"
"Well… "
This time, Maka was a little stunned, but he nodded immediately.
The next second he nodded, a slap suddenly appeared in his field of vision and began to enlarge at an extremely fast speed. He leaned back almost reflexively, and grabbed the opponent's wrist.
"Oh, sorry! My body started to move involuntarily..."
Maka quickly let go of her hand and smiled awkwardly.
"Come on, you can do it again. This time I will not hide."
But Hermione, who was sitting opposite her, curled her lips, crossed her arms and snorted softly.
"Forget it," she said with some dissatisfaction, "compared to this, you should think about what to do next... Among Ron and Harry, I think Harry is the one with the problem, what do you think?"
Seeing that Hermione was talking about the main topic, Maka also put away her smile and put her thoughts on something more serious and important.
"Yeah, that's what I thought too."
"Then... what happened to Harry? Why did he..."
Of course, Hermione knew nothing about Herbo's resurrection. In fact, she knew very little about the rumors about Haierbo. After all, there was not much information about those things in ordinary magic books.
"I already have some thoughts on this matter," Maka said, "I was just in a hurry to help you solve the problem, and Harry hadn't had time to deal with it yet."
"Then-" Hermione frowned slightly, "Where are they now?"
"It's just outside," Maka said immediately. "Don't worry, the sound inside can't be heard outside, because the inside and outside of the Requirement Room are not in a continuous space at all."
"Have you warned Ron?" Hermione couldn't help but worry.
But Maka just shook her head.
"I think it might be the right choice not to remind Ron," he said, then paused and added, "After you go out in a while, you pretend that you haven't returned to normal and take Ron away from Harry. Lead away. And I am responsible for Luna... "
"No," Hermione immediately interrupted after hearing this, "You don't need to take care of either of them, especially Luna, just leave it to me... That's it!"
After speaking so quickly, she even deliberately glanced at Maka a few times, the meaning of which was self-evident.
Seeing this, Maka couldn't help but smile bitterly to herself - come on, the persuasion just now made Hermione stronger than before.
"Okay, okay!" He had to surrender, "Then my idea will be used as a backup plan... Then, leave the rest to me."
After the two of them discussed each other in the Room of Requirements, Maka immediately stood up and walked towards the door together with Hermione who also stood up.
…
"Crack."
Hermione unscrewed the brass doorknob, and then she opened the door and walked out.
"Hermione, are you okay?" Ron was the first to see the door being opened. As soon as he saw Hermione coming out, he hurriedly walked over, "Well, it seems much better..."
While he was speaking, Harry, who was not far away, immediately turned his gaze over, looking at Hermione a little hastily.
"Oh, I guess I didn't—"
Hermione first smiled at Ron and walked towards him. But when she looked over the other person's shoulder and "happened" to see Luna coming over, the smile that had become natural suddenly stiffened.
"Don't, don't come here!"
At this time, Maka also appeared at the door of the Room of Requirement. But he deliberately didn't look in Harry's direction, and instead focused his gaze between Luna and Hermione.
"Calm down, Hermione." He slowed down and said slowly, "It's okay, you can do it... You just buried the thought in your heart too deeply. Only by facing it squarely can you escape from its shackles... "
At this point, he turned to Luna and said, "Don't worry, get closer to Hermione. This can help her get rid of her troubles."
However, Luna only took one step forward, and Hermione ran to the other end of the corridor like a frightened rabbit.
Maka immediately winked at Ron, who was still in a daze.
"Why are you still standing there, chase her!" He said, patting Luna on the shoulder again, "You go too, try to approach her slowly."
After saying that, he turned around suddenly and actually waved his hand in Harry's direction.
"Harry, come with me!"