Jealousy. It's an experience familiar to anyone who has truly been in love.
When a woman gets jealous, she becomes unreasonable. But when a man gets jealous, he becomes dangerous.
The object of his jealousy usually remains unharmed. But the unlucky souls who become the outlet for his anger? They're in for a world of pain.
Take Rey and Terence Barrow, for example.
Rey never imagined he would become the victim of Salazar Slytherin's jealousy. He had absolutely zero improper thoughts about Godric Gryffindor. If Slytherin didn't believe him, Rey was willing to swear a magically binding oath.
But, ha. Slytherin didn't even give him a chance to explain before dumping him here. As for Terence, he was just collateral damage.
Looking at the barren valley entrance before him, and then at the noble Sir Barrow beside him—who had lost all aristocratic composure and looked ready to cry—Rey could only sigh.
"This Valley of Evil Spirits... doesn't look very welcoming."
And judging by Terence's reaction earlier, this was a last-minute destination change triggered by Slytherin's jealousy. Rey figured the difference between this place and the "Ghost Fortress" Terence mentioned was significant.
"Not very welcoming? It's basically Hell!"
Terence Barrow finally snapped out of his daze, regaining his signature look of disdain. It seemed he was blaming Rey entirely for being sent here by his teacher.
"Hell? Does such a place exist on Earth?"
Rey asked himself. In the 21st century, the Earth's surface had been thoroughly mapped, and Rey had never seen an environment like this. But this was the magical world; common sense didn't apply.
At least he had Terence Barrow with him. Whatever this place was, Rey doubted Salazar Slytherin intended to kill his own student.
Seeing Rey so unbothered, Terence finally couldn't hold back and sneered, "Ignorant!"
"Terence, look at the bright side. Being here gives you a few days to cool off. When you get back, I bet Helena will come looking for you."
Rey laughed off Terence's insult and deftly changed the subject to Helena. Terence was a man in love; mention Helena, and his IQ and aristocratic bearing instantly dropped a level.
Sure enough, as soon as Rey finished speaking, Terence perked up. "She'll really come looking for me?"
Men. Once they fall in love, no matter how smart they used to be, they turn into idiots.
Terence was an idiot right now, deep in the mire of love. Rey simply used his obsession with Helena to diffuse the tension.
"So, the most important thing right now is to complete the task Professor Slytherin gave us. Don't you think, Terence?"
---
With the tension eased, Terence Barrow poured out everything he knew about the Valley of Evil Spirits like spilling beans.
But as Rey listened to Terence's explanation, he frowned.
The Valley of Evil Spirits, originally called Ghost Valley, was a gathering place for spirits.
All kinds of ghosts resided here. Human ghosts, animal ghosts, even magical creature ghosts. They gathered here, lingering in the valley, unwilling to go to Hell and unable to ascend to Heaven.
With so many ghosts, the dark energy in the valley gradually thickened. By now, it was virtually a forbidden zone for the living.
As for the Specter Bead, it was something generated within the bodies of a select few ghosts.
"How do we identify which ghosts have a Specter Bead?"
Identification seemed key. However, Terence's explanation surprised Rey.
"You don't need to identify them. The first ghost you encounter after entering the valley is the target you must defeat. Defeat it, and you'll get the Specter Bead."
"The ghosts here can be defeated? Like people?"
Rey was confused. In the Harry Potter universe, weren't ghosts intangible spirits immune to physical attacks? Peeves was a poltergeist, which was different, but regular ghosts like Nearly Headless Nick couldn't exactly be punched.
"The ghosts in the Valley of Evil Spirits can be defeated like humans. That's the main reason they can't leave the valley."
Seeing Terence explain in such detail, Rey asked, "Have you been here before?"
"I read about it in my teacher's library, but I've never been here," Terence replied impatiently.
---
The valley entrance was massive. Rey and Terence walked side by side.
Standing outside, the interior was obscured. As they walked forward, they realized the true entrance was over two hundred meters away.
A colossal archway was carved into the center of the mountain, large enough to fit a fifty-story building.
This was the true gate to the Valley of Evil Spirits.
It was awe-inspiring. Rey could only describe it as shocking. Through the archway, he could catch glimpses of the valley inside.
The sky inside was the color of a burning twilight. The ground was littered with dry bones and jagged rocks. A few sparse trees stood like charred skeletons, devoid of life. Even before stepping through the arch, Rey felt the aura of a death trap.
Inside and outside the archway were two different worlds: life outside, death inside. Terence's comparison to Hell wasn't an exaggeration.
Rey and Terence exchanged a glance, then stepped through the archway together.
The tunnel looked long and wide, but the moment they stepped in, space warped. In a single step, they appeared inside the dead lands of the valley.
Unexpected. The transition felt similar to the spatial magic of the tent.
As soon as they entered the dead zone, a figure appeared about five hundred meters ahead.
Calling it a person wasn't quite right. It was a ghost. Its feet were a swirl of black mist, floating more than a foot off the ground as it drifted toward them.
It appeared to be female. Slender and tall, with pale, thin limbs. She wore a tattered black cloak with the hood up, and her face was obscured by a swirling mist, making her features impossible to see.
Before long, she was less than ten meters away. She stopped there, neither advancing nor retreating, as if waiting for something.
Ghosts are essentially manifestations of energy, usually somewhat transparent. This woman was no exception, though she looked much more solid than the ghosts at Hogwarts.
"Is this the target?" Rey asked.
"No. She's just a Guide Spirit. We have to follow her to find the target."
Terence Barrow explained, his eyes fixed intently on the female ghost, trying to pierce the mist veiling her face. But the fog showed no sign of thinning. Seeing her face seemed like wishful thinking.
Rey was puzzled. Terence wasn't a lecher; he only had eyes for Helena. His obsession with seeing this ghost's face must have a specific reason.
After a moment of fruitless staring, Terence sighed and took a step forward.
With that step, the Guide Spirit finally moved. She raised her hands and pulled back her hood.
The mist vanished instantly, and Rey's heart skipped a beat. The ghost's face was horrifying. Her eyes were mismatched in size, she had no nose, her ears were shriveled stumps, and her skin was flayed and peeled back in strips, constantly oozing blood. It was a gruesome sight.
Terence jumped in fright, but then he visibly relaxed. He took a few more steps forward, and the ghost floated to his side, standing parallel to him.
Rey could tell Terence was scared by the ghost's appearance, but his subsequent relief was unnatural.
Something fishy was going on.
"Terence, don't you think it's time you explained?" Rey was certain Terence was hiding something.
Sure enough, hearing Rey's question, a relaxed Terence smiled. "Of course. It would be my honor to enlighten you now."
---