The doorway stood before them.
It was no longer erased. No longer forgotten.
The stone frame was ancient, but unlike the rest of the chamber, untouched by time.
Faint, twisting patterns slithered across its surface, dark green veins pulsing as if the stone itself was alive.
At its center, a carved serpent coiled around an open eye, its pupil slit and watchful.
Lilith exhaled, still reeling from the effort it had taken to restore this place.
Her mind swam with the strange sensation of reversing Oblivion, of making the chamber remember what it had been forced to forget.
Nero, his Raven Eyes still active, examined the doorway with silent scrutiny.
His silver-irised gaze flickered as he analyzed the flow of magic.
He could see how the stone shimmered with layered enchantments, ancient protections woven so deeply into the door that even time itself had struggled to erode them."
Lilith stepped closer.
She understood.
It was a threshold, one meant for Slytherin's true heir.
She placed her palm against the cold stone and spoke in Parseltongue, channeling principles of Oblivion.
"Reveal what is hidden. Let the legacy be remembered."
The chamber rumbled in response.
A pulse of deep green light radiated from the doorway, flowing across its surface like liquid magic.
The serpent carving shifted, its eye narrowing, its coils tightening, and then, with a slow, grinding motion, the doorway unsealed.
Stone slid apart, revealing a passage.
Beyond the entrance, darkness stretched into unknown depths.
Lilith took a steady breath and stepped forward.
The others followed, their wands illuminating the path as they entered the forgotten depths of Slytherin's true legacy.
The passage led them into a vast, circular chamber, unlike anything they had seen before.
The walls were lined with towering obsidian pillars, their surfaces engraved with serpentine runes.
At the center of the chamber, a raised platform held a stone pedestal, upon which rested a single, ancient tome.
The moment they entered, the torches along the walls flared to life with emerald flames.
Lilith's breath hitched.
This wasn't just a hidden room.
It was a vault of knowledge. A place meant for the true heir of Salazar Slytherin.
Nero's eyes scanned the chamber, his Raven Eyes drinking in the layers of magic saturating the space.
It had been perfectly preserved, shielded from history itself.
"What is this place?" Alaric murmured.
Lilith stepped forward, drawn to the stone pedestal at the center.
She reached out, fingers grazing the surface of the ancient tome.
The moment she made contact, a pulse of energy surged through the room.
And then, a voice.
Deep, resonant, laced with an old power.
"Well done. You have remembered what was lost."
The voice did not come from the walls.
It came from the air itself, vibrating through their very bones.
The green flames flickered violently, and for the briefest moment, the figure of a man appeared before them.
Salazar Slytherin.
He was tall, draped in emerald and black robes, his presence regal and imposing.
His piercing gaze settled on Lilith, not as a ghost, not as a memory, but as an echo of something far older.
"You are my true heir."
Lilith swallowed, her heart hammering in her chest.
Slytherin studied her for a long moment before continuing.
"Blood alone does not define an heir. Legacy is not granted by birthright, it is earned. Those who seek power without understanding are unworthy of my path."
His gaze shifted to the others.
"Yet, you do not stand alone. A true heir does not walk in isolation, but among those who challenge them. That is why you have reached this place."
Lilith straightened.
"I don't seek only power," she said. "I seek understanding."
Slytherin's expression did not shift, but there was something, perhaps approval, in the way the chamber responded.
"Then learn."
The tome on the pedestal trembled, its cover unlocking with a deep, resonant click.
The pages began to turn on their own, revealing symbols, diagrams, and passages written in an archaic script.
Nero stepped forward, his gaze narrowing. "Oblivion magic."
Lilith's fingers traced the text, the words shifting as if alive.
Salazar spoke again.
"This knowledge was sealed away, not to be lost, but to be hidden from those who would misuse it. Oblivion is not destruction. It is the undoing of that which should never have been."
Ember frowned. "That which should never have been?"
Slytherin's expression darkened.
"There are magics older than wizards, deeper than spells. Magic that should never be wielded."
The chamber grew colder.
"The greatest folly of magic is the belief that all things can be controlled. That belief has led to curses that cannot be broken, to wounds that never heal, to knowledge that corrupts those who seek it."
Lilith tightened her grip on the tome.
"Oblivion is the only answer to such magic."
Alaric exhaled sharply. "So that's what this is about. Not just erasing… but removing things that shouldn't exist."
Slytherin inclined his head.
"That is the legacy of my magic."
A heavy silence filled the chamber.
Lilith looked down at the tome, realization settling over her like a weight.
This wasn't just knowledge. This was a responsibility.
Salazar's voice softened, though it remained firm.
"You have begun to understand. But understanding alone is not enough. The path ahead is one of mastery… and consequence."
The green flames flickered once more.
"The choice is yours. Take this knowledge… and carry my legacy forward."
The spectral figure began to fade, his presence dissolving into the emerald glow of the chamber.
But before he disappeared entirely, his gaze lingered on Lilith one final time.
"And remember, Oblivion is not an end. It is a beginning."
His final words resonated through the air, and then, he was gone.
For a moment, silence stretched between them.
Then, without warning, the lingering emerald glow that had filled the chamber surged toward Lilith.
It was not violent, nor did it burn, but it carried weight: ancient, undeniable, inescapable.
She gasped as the magic coiled around her, seeping into her skin like mist drawn into the depths of a void.
A strange, cold sensation spread through her veins, but it wasn't painful.
It was something else entirely. Something deeper.
Nero's Raven Eyes flared to life, widening as he instinctively sought to understand what was happening.
And he saw it.
For the briefest moment, Lilith changed.
Her body became outlined in shadows, something empty, something that devoured all meaning and definition.
For just a breath of time, it was as if she had ceased to exist.
Beyond even the perception of the world.
Nero's eyes struggled to process it, to define it, but the longer he tried, the more his vision blurred, his mind rejecting the impossibility of what he was seeing.
Then, as suddenly as it came, the glow receded.
Lilith staggered slightly, catching herself before she could fall.
A shudder ran through her, but when she lifted her head, her eyes burned with something new.
Something awakened.
The knowledge was now hers. But more than that, her body had changed.
She had become something more. Something tied to Oblivion itself.
The chamber settled. The torches burned steady.
Lilith released a slow breath.
Ember let out a low whistle. "Well. That was intense."
Alaric shook his head. "You think?"
Nero, however, was silent. His Raven Eyes were still active, locked onto the tome.
He saw it now.
The threads of magic woven into the pages. The depth of knowledge hidden within.
This was more than a book.
It was the key to understanding magic on a level few could comprehend.
Lilith turned to them, her expression unreadable.
The weight of what she had uncovered pressed against her, but she did not bear it alone.
Her friends had stood by her, had helped her see what was erased, had trusted her to lead them here.
She met Nero's gaze. His eyes were still glowing faintly, as if trying to grasp the depths of the magic woven into this place.
"Thank you," she said quietly. "For helping me uncover Salazar's legacy."
Nero studied her for a moment before giving a small, knowing smile. "Anytime."
Ember smirked, crossing her arms. "Yeah, yeah, touching moment and all, but can we talk about how insanely cool that was? Salazar Slytherin literally recognized you as his heir. That's insane. I also wonder how this magic is different from the one they used in Gringotts vault"
Alaric let out a breath, shaking his head. "Not just that. This wasn't a test of blood." He gestured to the tome. "This knowledge… it was meant for someone who could understand it. Not just someone born with the right name."
Lilith tightened her grip on the book.
The weight of it felt heavier than it should, as if it carried more than just ink and parchment.
She had uncovered something forgotten. She had proven herself to the founder of her House.
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