"I think Muggle food is still better."
Kasenhis glanced toward the end of the Great Hall, noticing that the sky outside had already darkened without him realizing it.
"Actually, I've recently found a few places that might be possible entrances to the Chamber of Secrets. I need you to come with me to investigate."
Kasenhis felt a little guilty toward his taste buds and stomach, but still stuffed another bite of fried fish into his mouth.
After all, it was the only source of protein on the table. Newest update provıded by 𝔫𝔬𝔳𝔢𝔩~𝔣𝔦𝔯𝔢~𝔫𝔢𝔱
Soon enough, Dumbledore dragged a half-full Kasenhis out of the Great Hall.
Kasenhis could already predict just how starving he would be after marathoning around the castle all night with Dumbledore.
Hopefully, some Muggle restaurants would still be open by then.
Though, if none were open, no problem—he could always hop to the other side of the world where it was still daytime and grab something there.
Anything was better than sneaking into the Hogwarts kitchen to eat grass.
"The place I'm taking you is one of the most magical rooms in Hogwarts. Perhaps, through this room, we can directly locate the Chamber of Secrets, the Basilisk, and Tom."
Dumbledore said as they made their way up the staircases.
"Yeah, yeah, I get it. What I'm more curious about is… how much longer do we have to walk?"
Kasenhis panted, struggling to keep up with Dumbledore.
"Oh dear, such poor stamina for someone so young. You built your office that massive—do you not take a morning jog around it?"
"I built that space to store my alchemy machines, not to torture myself." Kasenhis said.
"But I distinctly remember you being quite entertained when Harry and Neville were running marathons inside your office." Dumbledore said with a knowing tone.
"I said I wouldn't torture myself, not that I wouldn't torture them. Young people need to exercise—it's good for them. But me? I… I'm not a young person anymore. At this point, our age gap is hardly even a 'generation gap' anymore."
Kasenhis grumbled, gripping the staircase railing for support.
"Ah yes, one of us is over a hundred years old, the other is twenty-six—and that's not a generation gap?"
"Great job with the sarcasm, really impressive. But I'm done wandering around with you. Just give me the exact location already."
"You absolute menace!"
"Think of this as me helping you get some exercise—not bad, right?"
"Next time you get one of these brilliant ideas, could you at least let me have a proper meal first? Seriously, the way this is going, we're about to fight a Basilisk and I'm going to end up a starving corpse!"
"Believe in your magical abilities."
"More than that, I believe in my blood sugar levels. If I pass out from hypoglycemia inside the Chamber of Secrets, are you even going to carry me back out?"
"Hmm… depends on my mood."
"Dumbledore, you know, I'm a very polite person. I never curse unless absolutely necessary. But you… you are no longer within the bounds of ordinary human decency. At this point, you're just pretending to be human."
It wasn't until they had walked all the way from the Great Hall on the ground floor up to the 7th floor that Dumbledore finally decided to speak like a normal person.
Dumbledore led Kasenhis down a corridor, stopping in front of a large tapestry.
"This tapestry… has it been here since the time of the Four Founders?"
"…I was reading the other day, and apparently, Hogwarts Castle was actually owned by Salazar Slytherin?" Kasenhis asked.
"I mean, the Slytherin House crest has some great design work. So why is this tapestry so hideous? How did Slytherin—a man who owned this entire castle—allow something this ugly to be hung inside his own home…?"
"If the tapestry could hear your thoughts, it might just be offended."
"Wow, you really have zero respect left for the Four Founders, huh?" Kasenhis teased.
Dumbledore shook his head. "I wasn't talking about Slytherin—I was talking about the tapestry, right?"
"So? Are you saying this tapestry is sentient?"
"I'm not sure yet. But this is a magical room—one that grants wishes." Dumbledore explained.
"Oh, so you brought me here because you want to wish for a room that magically leads to the Chamber of Secrets?"
"Why not? Give it a try. All you have to do is walk back and forth three times, while thinking about the room you need."
"For example, you could think, I need a room that directly leads to the Chamber of Secrets." Dumbledore said with a smile.
"Oh, I see now. So you had the stamina to walk all the way from the ground floor to the 7th floor in one go, but somehow, you don't have the energy to walk back and forth in front of this tapestry three times?"
"Come now, no need to be so aggressive." Dumbledore chuckled.
"Apologies, but my level of aggression is directly proportional to my hunger level. If you want to experience the gentler version of Professor Kasenhis, I suggest letting me eat first."
Kasenhis grumbled as he begrudgingly started pacing in front of the tapestry.
"Did you also buy a fake copy of Hogwarts' a history or something? Have you actually tested this before?" Kasenhis asked.
"Try thinking of a different room."
With no other choice, Kasenhis sighed and walked another three laps.
This time, the Room of Requirement actually appeared.
Curious, Dumbledore pushed open the door and stepped inside—after all, he was quite intrigued to see what kind of room Professor Kasenhis had in mind.
Long, awkward silence.
After a moment, Dumbledore turned back and asked, completely deadpan,
"So… the room you wished for is just an empty, unfinished space that you can customize yourself?"
"…Yes. Is that a problem?"
Kasenhis responded, completely serious.
"…No, nothing at all."
Dumbledore shook his head and quietly stepped back out.
Meanwhile, Kasenhis leaned against the hallway wall, making no effort to step inside and start decorating.
After all, he was still starving.
Instead, he was deep in thought—if this Room of Requirement was truly as magical as Dumbledore claimed, then why couldn't it create a room leading directly to the Chamber of Secrets?
But in reality, the answer was quite simple.
According to Dumbledore, this tapestry and the Room of Requirement itself were constructed during the era of the Four Founders.
And as the actual owner of Hogwarts Castle, Salazar Slytherin himself would have definitely known about the existence of this magical room.
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