Despite being a Ravenclaw, Allen was a wizard of formidable ambition and character. Unlike the stereotypical members of his House who might retreat or over-analyze in the face of physical danger, Allen had absolutely no intention of backing down from the challenge set before him.
He gripped his mahogany phoenix-feather wand, pointing it at the miniature tower model on the screen, and quietly whispered the command: "Locomotor."
A focused beam of blue light shot from the wand tip, striking the model squarely. A twenty-sided bronze die, inscribed with ancient Latin script, rolled magically out of the tower model, spinning rapidly before settling. The final face displayed the number "III."
In synchronization, the tower model on the screen slid forward three intersecting light rails. The die, as if time were reversing, was then instantly drawn back into the tower model along the same trajectory.
"Rowena Ravenclaw, the builder of this tower, truly mastered time magic? But isn't this essentially a Muggle board game called Dice Tower…" Allen's random thought was immediately eclipsed by a startling reality: the actual tower he was standing in suddenly began to float and glide, precisely mirroring the model's movement.
Outside the windows, the view transformed into what looked exactly like the real, terrifying blackness of the cosmos. "Is Ravenclaw's tower genuinely floating among the stars right now?"
For a disconcerting moment, Allen found himself entirely unable to distinguish between magical illusion and true physical reality.
The temperature inside the tower began to plummet drastically. Allen instinctively drew his wand and pointed it at the vast, medieval hearth. "Incendio!" A massive, roaring fire instantly blazed in the fireplace.
Yet, the areas unprotected by his temperature-regulating robes—his pale blond hair and eyebrows—were already dusted with frost. Despite the roaring heat from the hearth, Allen felt an overwhelming chill radiating from beyond the magical light, as if he were suspended in the absolute zero of space.
The most urgent task was to continue the Space Travel Game. Allen realized that, despite his vast knowledge, the one thing he genuinely feared was the sheer, terrifying unpredictability of the unknown. In this particular, magically rigged situation, he could only rely on pure, unadulterated luck to avoid disaster.
Without hesitation, Allen pointed his wand at the tower model and shouted, "Go!"
This time, the twenty-sided bronze die rolled, the top face settling on the number "VII," a significant advance. The tower model moved along seven diagonal beams of light.
The actual tower containing Allen continued its silent, terrifying glide. It soon stopped again, but the sky outside the windows was now filled with an incandescent, violent red light. In the blink of an eye, the environment had switched from absolute cold to scorching, fiery heat.
In just a fraction of a second, the edges of the tower closest to this incredibly hot, unknown planet began to visibly sag, slowly melting despite the protection of the magical shield. It was obvious that immediate evacuation was essential if the tower wasn't to be completely incinerated.
Desperate to finish the game as quickly as possible, Allen immediately struck the tower model with another spell. This time, the die landed on "VI!"
"Ah, the Goddess of Misfortune must be watching me…"
The tower lurched, crossing through a dense asteroid debris field. The powerful outer magical shell was instantly compromised, shattering under the impact of metallic debris that penetrated its shields.
Allen, however, had long since understood that these rapidly shifting, extreme environments were not truly real, but rather hyper-realistic simulated effects generated by incredibly complex magical arrays. Nevertheless, he dared not test the consequences of remaining in one of these simulated extreme conditions for too long.
Just then, a groaning, grinding sound echoed through the tower's main hall. The massive fireplace wall slid open, revealing a large, organized stockpile of various materials, all glowing with different, vibrant colours. Behind the materials stood a gigantic, ancient Alchemical Furnace. The message was clear: to continue the game, the damaged tower required immediate repair.
The task was infinitely more complex than simply casting a rudimentary Reparo! Many parts of the tower had been fully vaporized or destroyed by the previous two catastrophic "steps," vanishing without a trace. Repairing the tower required reinforcing the damaged sections, which meant he couldn't create matter from nothing.
This wasn't like fixing Harry Potter's spectacles with a simple charm that uses invisible material from an intact part; such a charm is ineffective against high-level magical artifacts. Even a first-year wizard, no matter how gifted, could not simply replicate the magical level of an adult, master craftsman.
It appeared that the Ravenclaw founder who designed this challenge had overlooked the difficulty curve inherent in her own design.
Suddenly, a thin, rolled-up parchment appeared on the stone study table. Allen picked it up, realizing it was the tower's detailed Structural Design Plans.
Allen stared from the scroll to the massive pile of material, his mind whirring. His photographic memory was perfectly suited for this structural analysis. The actual difficulty of these tasks was heavily inflated by their obscurity; an ordinary young wizard, even several years older, would likely fail due to a lack of highly specific, obscure extracurricular knowledge.
Had Ravenclaw erected a magical barrier that could pierce the Occlumency spell? And had she specifically tailored the difficulty to his unique, massive knowledge base? The thought was profoundly unsettling.
Ignoring the metaphysical puzzle, Allen knew he had to prepare the repair materials now. He moved into the supply room, comparing the damaged sections of the tower with the required building materials, consulting the intricate atlas provided by the tower. Then, he retrieved the insights of the ancient alchemist Jeber from his system storage and quickly sat down to study the complex, necessary transfiguration methods.
Learning on the fly, Allen successfully ignited the furnace, transforming some raw materials into the suitable size and texture required for the repair without compromising their magical integrity. He quickly amassed the necessary building materials.
Although he suspected the extreme exterior scenes were unreal, the tower had sustained actual, physical damage, exposing the interior to the simulated environments. As a precaution, Allen cast an additional Bubble-Head Charm on himself to ensure an oxygen supply, should the tower's atmosphere fail entirely.
Allen used a Levitation Charm to send some of the materials floating out of the tower via a breach. There was almost no gravity outside the tower, and Allen and the materials floated together. He had to constantly wave his wand to prevent the building components from drifting beyond the tower's magical protective field.
It was incredibly difficult for Allen to stabilize himself and exert magical force in the simulated vacuum, but after summoning his Neptune flying broomstick, he solved the problem, using the advanced broom's inherent anti-gravitational stabilization charms as a platform.
Under the influence of continuous, precise repair spells, the materials sprang into place one by one, seamlessly restoring the damaged sections to their original appearance. The only noticeable difference was that the newly constructed sections appeared slightly shinier than the original, centuries-old tower.
Exhausted from the constant spell-casting and physical exertion, Allen paced back and forth between the interior and exterior of the tower, directing the repairs.
At one point, he even took out his portable tea set from storage and brewed hot, strong black tea without milk, taking a brief, restorative rest. After repeating the intense process several times, he finally completed the monotonous, demanding task and successfully repaired the tower.
Recovering his breath from the intense exertion, Allen raised his wand and cast another spell to continue the game. This time, the Goddess of Luck finally seemed to smile upon him: the dice landed on a massive "XX" (twenty) on the model.
Neither the model nor the tower moved again. Suddenly, Allen found himself enveloped by a shimmering light barrier, and the cold, stern female voice was heard once more:
"Riches or Continuation? You may choose only one. If you leave with the riches, you may never return to this place. If you choose to continue, you risk gaining nothing. Please make your choice within three minutes."