Morning at the Main Hall
The students began to buzz about a secret room in the school's basement.
"Did you hear? Yesterday I saw a strange sealed room!" said a Serpentis student.
Very quickly, the rumor spread throughout the school, and the Phoenixes group heard it too. The entire Academy was abuzz: the library basement housed the "Echoing Chamber"—a place where a bizarre counter-spell incident once occurred. No one knew the full story, only that rumors claimed that on a moonlit night, the walls there "breathed," and the mirror "spoke back" things the viewer had never said.
Rissy ran from a group of friends toward the dining table:
"Hey, have you guys heard the latest news?!"
"What rumor is it?" Neval asked, chewing on a pastry.
"You're really into the gossip, aren't you?" Juston said, raising an eyebrow.
"In the Serpentis House basement, there's a strange sealed room, suspected to hold Regort's secret," Rissy replied.
"Near the Serpentis area?" Neval inquired.
"No. It's close by. The library basement."
Juston noticed Rissy's eyes were more excited than curious. He frowned:
"Hey, don't tell me... you're suggesting we go down there tonight?!"
"I'm not suggesting... just hinting," Rissy replied calmly.
Scaffil overheard, glancing over:
"If that door hasn't been opened, there's a reason."
Rissy responded innocently:
"Well, we won't open it, we'll just... peek."
During the History of Magic class
Rissy sat spacing out, pondering how to get into the sealed room and how to sneak out of the dormitory.
Professor Roven slammed a book down on Rissy's desk, startling her.
"Can you tell me what you are thinking about?"
Rissy was taken aback, unsure how to hide her secret.
"I... I'm trying to memorize the lesson, sir."
"What have you memorized so far?" Roven continued to press her.
Rissy's eyes darted toward Detus as if seeking rescue.
Detus smirked, holding his book open for her to see.
"The history of magical wolves, sir," Rissy answered.
"Alright, sit down. But it's not the history of wolves, it's the origin of wolves." The professor turned back to the podium.
Neval muffled a laugh, nudging Juston's shoulder:
"No matter how much she hates him, she still has to rely on the enemy."
Juston chuckled and looked back at Rissy. Rissy blushed speechlessly, giving Neval a slight glare.
Lena whispered to Rissy, just loud enough for her to hear:
"You're unbelievable, you said you hated him, but you still asked for his help."
"Should I have asked you? You're sitting right here, opening your book for me would have gotten us both in trouble," Rissy retorted, annoyance in her voice.
That Night at the Phoenixes Dorm
When everyone was asleep, the group crept towards the door. As Juston reached for the doorknob, the phoenix emblem on the ceiling continuously flapped its wings. The sound wasn't loud, but if it continued, the whole dormitory would wake up.
"It's not working. It won't let us leave," Neval whispered to the others.
Lena immediately cast a spell that prevented anyone outside from hearing any noise. She knew it was dangerous because the spell could last ten hours, but there was no other way.
"Hey! That spell is dangerous! If they wake up, we're done for!" Rissy worried.
"It's fine. Ten hours from now is 7 AM. That's when the phoenix calls us to wake up anyway," Neval explained to reassure Rissy.
They hurried through the corridor. Their footsteps were even and silent. Four shadows glided across the hallway under the dim moonlight. No one knew. No one could bother them. And no one knew what they were doing.
"Hurry up, Neval. You're too slow," Rissy urged her sluggish friend.
"Being as fast as you is a sure way to get caught," Neval replied.
At the Library
The room was pitch dark. Only the oil lamp in Juston's hand provided light.
"Exactly... where is that room?" Neval asked.
"The library basement. But I don't know where it is," Rissy said.
"There must be a small clue for us to find," Lena said, her eyes filled with knowing and suspicion.
"Then I'll go look for the basement," Rissy turned to leave.
Lena pulled her friend back:
"Don't bother. I read books here often, so I know."
"Then where is it?"
"Maybe you should look for a clue rather than just stand here and ask," Juston said to Neval.
"So what clue should we be looking for?"
"Perhaps a symbol. Or a specific number," Lena said as she began searching among the bookshelves.
"So we have to look through every book?" Neval wondered.
"No. Anything related to the history of Regort," Lena replied while checking the book spines.
"This morning I heard a Serpentis student say she saw the sealed room," Rissy mentioned, hoping to provide some helpful information.
"Really? How did she see it?" Juston turned to Rissy.
"She said that as she was heading back to her dorm, a stream of light flashed across the corner of the wall and a message appeared: 'Open the door.' Then a door appeared in the corner of the wall and vanished again," Rissy recounted what she had learned that morning.
"So it's diagonally offset from the Serpentis dormitory," Neval began to deduce.
"If it's nearby, then it... has something to do with Serpentis?" Lena mused.
Juston approached a bookshelf in the middle of the room:
"The Serpentis bookshelf should give us a clue, I think."
He pulled out the thickest and strangest-looking book. The spine looked like slithering snakes, and the cover was deep blue.
Juston opened the book. He noticed something protruding from the middle page. It was an old, black metallic bookmark with a metal snake coiled around it.
"What is that creepy thing, Juston?" Neval stared at it, wide-eyed.
"A bookmark. The thing people use to mark book pages," Juston replied, holding the bookmark up to inspect it.
A small, faded symbol was etched onto the snake's head.
"Look! A symbol on its head!" Rissy pointed at the snake's head.
When Juston held the oil lamp close, a faint symbol glowed on the head of the metal snake. " VII ".
Rissy's eyes flashed:
"That's a Roman numeral. And... it's the number 7."
Neval pondered for a moment:
"Number 7...? Ah, I remember now! In the Ancient Serpentis Runes class the other day, Professor Roven mentioned that the symbol 'VII' was the ancient code for the Serpentis House. In the Middle Ages, Serpentis used the 'VII' symbol to indicate areas or secret arts related to intellect and secrets—often associated with the seventh wing in their forbidden vault."
Lena took the book from Juston's hand to look. A number appeared on the book's spine.
"This is a hidden number, right? 1429."
"1-4-2-9," Rissy read the numbers one by one.
Juston tried adding all the numbers together:
"1+4+2+9 = 16. And 1+6 = 7. Ah! It's the number 7 again."
"So it's connected to the bookmark," Lena said, holding up the bookmark.
Neval pulled an old map from his robe pocket.
"This is a map of Regort. I brought it with me in case I got lost. Do you think it's useful?"
Juston took the map from him. He looked at it and suddenly realized:
"Wait a minute! The number 1429 isn't just an ancient code, it's the actual coordinates of the bookshelf in the library: row 14, column 29, located right next to the West wall corner."
All four children turned to look at the Serpentis bookshelf area.
"Look! Row 14 is slightly offset from the half-brick!" Neval pointed toward the central shelf.
The group approached the shelf. When they placed the bookmark on the ground, the snake's head rotated directly toward shelf 14–29, the metal heated up, and then the stone floor cracked into a small spiral shape. The bricks in the center sank down, revealing a narrow staircase leading into the basement.
Cold air rushed up, carrying the scent of damp, rusted iron. Below, they only caught a fleeting glimpse of ancient Serpentis runes carved around the walls, flashing and then fading as if "identifying who was stepping down."
All four children stepped down into the basement. The chamber was cold, with moss-covered walls that suggested it had existed for decades. A mirror was hung on the central wall, framed by iron snake heads.
"Is that a mirror?" Neval asked, his eyes wide with disbelief.
"Yes. A mirror," Rissy replied.
Then, the bricks in the center of the floor suddenly sank down. Before them was no longer stone, but a pool of water in the middle of the room. The air in the cellar was thick like smoke. Amidst the damp walls, the sound of dripping water echoed steadily, gradually overwhelmed by another sound—very faint, very long. It began like wind blowing through a crack in the stone, but grew clearer, a slight hiss that curled like a whisper.
"Sss'rith... ssha..." — The final sound dissolved into the moisture, flickering as if alive. The four stood silently, looking at each other; Rissy felt the ground beneath her feet tremble slightly, and Juston heard his heart skip a beat. From the stone floor, thin ripples spread out, reflecting the pale light onto the water pool.
The hiss sounded again, clearer this time, as if slithering around them—a drawn-out voice, choked midway, then echoing back from the cellar ceiling. It was not a human voice, but something older, living between the crevices of stone, speaking with breath and shadow.
Neval's face was pale:
"W-What is that thing?"
Before anyone could answer, the surface of the water pool suddenly rippled as if something was underneath. Then, tiny water droplets flew up from the pool, combining to form a shimmering, three-dimensional egg.
The three children stepped closer to look. Moments later, the egg fell back into the water, leaving glittering silver words carved on the water's surface: "Lena Julier."
Then, footsteps from the library neared their location. Headmaster Lourie and Annatrist appeared.
Annatrist sternly asked them:
"Why are you students down here at this hour?!"
The question made them too scared to speak.
"Curiosity, right? I heard rumors about this room this morning. Don't even try to lie to me," Annatrist said with a tone of exasperation mixed with fear of something.
Not scolding like Annatrist, Lourie slowly asked:
"Tell me, what did you see down here?"
The four of them looked at each other. Juston stepped forward to answer:
"Professor, when we came down, the bricks in the middle of the cellar sank and water rose. The droplets flew up from the pool to form a 3D egg, then dissolved back into water, and the surface of the pool carved the name Lena."
Lourie looked at Annatrist with a puzzled expression:
"An egg? What is its purpose after all?"
Annatrist shook her head:
"I think you and I need to speak privately." Then she turned to them: "As for you students, hurry back to your dormitory and do not tell anyone about what happened today. If this occurs again, I will restrict your movements."
All four of them nodded and hurriedly ran back to the dormitory.
At the Dormitory
The four children rushed back into the dormitory and quickly latched the door. Their faces were flushed from running. They looked at each other and laughed.
"Ha! We got caught!" Juston said, still panting.
Rissy sat down on a chair in the common room. "At least we found out some new things."
"But what on earth did that pool of water mean?!" Neval wondered.
Lena: "Perhaps it was an omen. I don't think it was normal at all."
"So what was it an omen about? Why did it carve your name?!" Juston countered.
Lena hesitated: "How should I know that!"
She then looked towards Juston's robe pocket and noticed a sharp corner sticking out.
"Hey, what did you stuff in your pocket?"
Juston quickly touched his pocket under the watchful eyes of his friends.
"Ah.... this..."
He hastily pulled his friends into a secluded corner where no one could see:
"It's the book from earlier. I brought it back so we could study it."
Neval's eyes widened. Lena frowned. Rissy softly gasped:
"What?!"
Lena quickly covered her friend's mouth.
"Keep your voice down, Rissy! I didn't use the spell on everyone!"
Rissy nodded.
"How did you bring it back?"
"My robe pocket is quite roomy. It's probably starting to fall apart. The stitching is loose," Juston scratched his head.
Neval came up with an idea.
"Let's hide it. Wait until no one's around to read it. Then we'll return it tomorrow night."
"At night? Do you want to be grounded?" Rissy didn't want to be scolded again.
Just then, the Phoenixes Prefect (Scaffil) stepped out of his room:
"Aren't you guys going to sleep? It's late!"
"We're getting ready."
They looked at each other and returned to their room. The book was carefully hidden by Juston in a box under his bed, so no one would find it.
In the middle of the night, a faint blue light suddenly glowed from inside the book, unnoticed even by Juston.
The Next Morning
Before going to class, the four checked the book again. While they were trying to open the box, the sound of a door opening faintly echoed, and Scaffil walked in.
Neval jumped up in surprise:
"P-Prefect...?"
"Isn't this the time you're usually having breakfast in the hall? Why haven't you left?" Rissy tried to divert Scaffil's attention.
Scaffil approached with a serious expression.
They stepped back, shielding the book so Scaffil couldn't see it.
Scaffil stopped, folding his arms and looking at what they were hiding:
"Don't think I don't know anything. You snuck down to the library last night because of the morning rumor and got caught by Annatrist, didn't you?"
All four looked at each other, flustered and speechless.
"H-How did you know?"
"Because the four of you snuck out without the phoenix's permission, and this morning it recorded it in that book."
They walked out to the main common area. A large book hovered in mid-air, and a pen with a phoenix feather on its tip lay on the book's surface.
"What is that thing?"
"That book is used to record the mistakes of every Phoenixes member. And your names are in it."
Unable to deny it any longer, they had to admit the truth:
"Yes. We snuck out to the library last night."
"Alright. Fortunately, no harm was done, so I will forgive you. I won't inquire about what you're hiding anymore. But if that thing affects anyone in the school or yourselves, I will confiscate it immediately, and you might be grounded for a week if you injure anyone," Scaffil warned them.
"But please don't tell anyone about this," Neval pleaded.
Scaffil hesitated for a moment, then nodded:
"Alright. I won't tell anyone about this. But don't let the students find out. If it turns into a rumor, the consequences will be severe."
The four nodded. He left, leaving the four stunned, looking at each other.
"Alright, let's head down to the hall. I don't want to be scolded anymore," Rissy said, her face heavy, as she left.
During Thaumic Resonance Class
In the classroom, a female professor with long, low-tied black hair, who looked gentle but whose single frown was enough to silence the entire class, walked back and forth on the podium holding a long wooden ruler—She waited for her students; if anyone was missing, she would not teach until they appeared.
Juston gently tapped Neval's arm:
"What are we learning in this class?"
Neval turned to look at Juston, then looked back at the professor:
"Why don't you ask the professor?"
Juston forced a smile:
"Well, the professor looks too intimidating to ask."
Neval nodded:
"It might sound weird. In this class, we learn how to sense the 'magic frequency' of objects and creatures. It's like everything has its own magic vibration. Students have to place their hands on 'Resonance Stones' and try to distinguish their elemental type. If they get it wrong? The stone cracks and sprays glittery dust in their face. Very embarrassing."
Juston frowned:
"That scary?"
Neval was about to answer when the ruler banged, "Bang!", startling him. The professor slammed the ruler right onto Lena's and Rissy's desk. She was annoyed that her students were late for class. At the back of the class, a student rushed in, hugging his books.
Detus shook his head and sighed at Regurn's tardiness. As Regurn was about to sit down, the professor immediately scolded him, making him stand straight:
"Hey! Don't you see me standing here? Why are you late for my class?"
Regurn stammered an answer:
"Professor... I couldn't come early because I had a stomach ache."
"Well, eat less next time. Sit down!"
Regurn flushed and sat down. The professor placed the ruler on the desk and opened her thickest book.
Neval whispered to Juston:
"The professor specializes in ancient magic research, but she's extremely difficult."
Juston nodded slightly.
The professor stood in the middle of the podium:
"Today we will learn about Thaumic Resonance. Every object, creature, and piece of magic carries its own magic frequency—a form of ultra-low vibration invisible to the naked eye. We call this phenomenon Thaumic Resonance, because when two compatible frequencies meet, they will either amplify or cancel each other out. Those who master resonance can determine an object's nature without using a query spell... and can neutralize an opponent's spell before it even forms. The Resonance Stones you are touching are conductors of magic, exposing the vibration that is usually hidden. If the stone vibrates strongly or changes color abnormally... it is not the stone's fault." — She glanced around the class. "It's because your own frequency is unstable. Now let's practice to understand better. We will practice 'Frequency Matching'."
The professor handed each student a different Resonance Stone shard.
The Task: Use personal magic "adjustment" to make one's frequency match that of the stone.
Sign of Success: The stone glows gently or vibrates evenly.
Wrong Frequency: The stone shuts off, pops faintly, or changes color strangely.
Practice Method:
Each student is given a Resonance Stone.
Place the stone on the desk or in the palm of your hand.
Close your eyes for a few seconds to "lower your magic pulse."
Use the core energy inside to adjust the frequency → causing the stone to glow or vibrate gently.
She took a stone, placed it in her hand, and squeezed her eyes shut. The previously normal stone suddenly vibrated slightly in her palm, causing the whole class to gasp.
Finished, she opened her eyes, put the stone down, and began having each student practice.
"I have finished it. Now it's your turn, close your eyes and begin."
One student asked:
"So if we just close our eyes and sit still, our magic pulse will lower?"
Professor Elvira shook her head:
"Nonsense! Lowering your magic pulse is not like falling asleep or deep meditation. It's like you stop stirring water, letting the surface flatten → magic is the same:
The Standard Procedure
Close your eyes for 3 seconds – Not to "concentrate," but to cut off all external stimuli. – Magic will shift from a dispersed state → to gathering slightly.
Regulate your breathing for 1–2 breaths – Exhale a long breath → the magic pulse slows down. – This is the primary step to "lower the pulse."
Sense the energy flow in the center of the chest or abdomen – In your world, wherever the core magic lies, choose that spot. – When sensed, the magic frequency stabilizes.
Only then will the stone start to react – The light will be softer, not vibrating strongly like when the magic is chaotic.
"It's not something that happens automatically just by sitting still. Now, which student will volunteer to try?"
She glanced at Rugi:
"I invite the short-haired girl!"
Rugi was startled and stepped up to the podium. She held the stone, closed her eyes, and sensed it.
"Yes, sense it... thoroughly, carefully... and the magic pulse will be lowered," the professor instructed.
The stone didn't vibrate gently like Elvira's, but slightly illuminated with blue streaks.
"Yes, well done!" she exclaimed.
Then the whole class experimented. Some had their stones explode and spray glittery dust in their faces. Juston made his stone glow too brightly, causing the professor to remind him:
"I said just enough, not destroy its frequency structure."
On Lena's side, she closed her eyes, and the light was just enough, but the color looked less bright than Rissy's. Rissy wondered:
"Why is your color so dull? It's completely different from ours."
Lena shook her head. Elvira heard that and went to Lena's desk. Indeed, her color was a bit dark, and the professor frowned:
"Dark light doesn't mean darkness. It just means there are many unawakened layers inside you. Don't worry—but don't underestimate it."
After that, the professor left. Lena pondered for a moment, unable to fully grasp the meaning of the professor's words.
In the Evening
At this time, the whole school was having dinner in the hall, but Juston, Neval, and Lena were eating hastily and less than usual, as if they had a scheduled appointment. Rissy, however, remained calm, prompting Lena to gently advise:
"Rissy! Did you forget what we need to do tonight?! Hurry up and eat, don't be so relaxed!"
Rissy froze for half a second, then suddenly remembered. She quickly put down her spoon, drank some water, and pulled Lena's hand:
"Sorry, I forgot! Let's go now before it gets late."
At the Phoenixes Dormitory
When Lena and Rissy returned to the dorm, they saw Juston and Neval sitting with the book in their hands, ready.
"When did you guys get back?" Rissy asked innocently.
Neval sighed: "Since you were still praising the soup!"
Rissy just laughed and sat near them.
"Alright, I'll open it!" Juston said. Then he opened the book. A gentle breeze blew out from the book onto their faces.
"Oh, that's strange," Rissy exclaimed softly.
"I have an idea," Lena took the book from Juston. Without fumbling through pages, she gently placed the bookmark onto the spine of the book facing down on the table, as if placing a seal of intention. The bookmark was no longer a common marker but a spiritual key.
Lena held out her wand:
"Aperio!"
The book automatically opened to the very page they needed to explore. The group gasped. Their eyes widened, staring at the page.
"Serpentis History?" Juston read the title on the page aloud.
"Perhaps this is what we need to find out," Lena set the book down for them to see clearly.
Neval leaned down and read aloud:
"Serpentis was founded by Serarclap—a talented, pure-blood wizard with many spells. This is also the first house founded among all four houses. Serpentis is intended only for those with talent and high possessiveness but who are not overly selfish and must be very discreet about their secrets or true nature. Usually, the inner world of each Serpentis student is quite reserved, difficult to discern. Due to its talent, this house often has its own separate path, unlike the others, so Serpentis has quite a lot of mystery, questions that need answers, and above all, their main goal is constantly changing."
As soon as Neval finished reading, the book quickly flipped its pages to the very end. On the last page, it was no longer intact but torn, leaving only a short fragment, charred around the edges.
Juston picked up the fragment of paper. He flipped it over and over, but there was nothing!
Rissy narrowed her eyes at the paper fragment and suddenly had an idea:
"It looks like someone used a spell to hide the text. If you hold it close to the flame and then move it away and squint, you'll see the words there."
Juston handed the paper fragment to Rissy because she was sitting across from the fireplace. Rissy took it, squinted, and struggled to read each word:
"The thing that... ordinary people don't... need... is the thing we need..... Ah! I can't see anything anymore."
Neval snatched the paper fragment. He did exactly what Rissy did but could only read the first word or two.
Just then, all the Phoenixes students returned from class, chatting lively in the hallway. They quickly clipped the paper fragment into the book and put it away.
"Remember! Absolutely do not tell anyone about this!" Juston reminded them.
"We know."
The Next Morning
When Neval woke up, the first thing he saw was male students teasing each other with a thick book in their hands. Neval quickly woke up, no longer drowsy. He was afraid they had taken the book. Perhaps Neval was more vigilant. The book they were holding was merely a book of spells. Neval sighed, but when he turned towards Juston's bed, a male friend was holding the book with the intention of opening it. And, above all, Juston wasn't there! He quickly got out of bed and rushed towards the book to retrieve it.
"Excuse me. But could you please not open that book?"
Another boy ran up and hugged Neval, preventing him from getting the book back.
"What are you doing?!"
"What are you hiding in this book that you won't tell everyone?"
"Nothing! It's just... that book is quite bad for you to read."
Just then, Juston walked in and took the book back from the other boy. Neval was also released, his face sulky like a pouting child. Juston nudged Neval's shoulder:
"Come on, Neval, they were just checking."
Upon hearing this, the students became curious about Juston's book.
"So can you tell us what's in that book?"
Juston looked at Neval, then immediately turned to them:
"Just a book about Serpentis students. I found it interesting, so I brought it back to read."
Juston avoided their suspicious eyes with that simple yet somewhat truthful statement.
Noon at the Main Hall
While everyone was having lunch, Rugi from the Serpentis side called Rissy's name. The four of them turned around, and Rugi asked them:
"Hey! The night before last, did you guys sneak into the library to find the rumored basement?"
Their eyes widened. Clearly, only the headmaster, Annatrist, Scaffil, and the four of them knew what happened that night, so how did Rugi know?! They turned to Scaffil, who was eating, to ask:
"Scaffil! Did you tell anyone about what happened that night?"
Scaffil paused for a moment before realizing what they were talking about:
"The library thing? I didn't tell anyone."
The four sighed again. They turned to ask Rugi where she got the information.
"Hey Rugi! Where did you get that information?"
"At the Serpentis dormitory door. There was a paper drawing of the four of you in the library with a caption, so we knew," Rugi replied casually.
They jumped up, left the main hall, and ran towards the Serpentis dormitory area. As they ran, the four wondered:
"A piece of paper? Who did that?!"
"I don't know! Besides us, who else knows how it happened?"
At the Serpentis dormitory door, they saw a piece of paper drawing the four of them holding the book, about to step down into the cellar. The bottom line of the paper was written in red ink with the names: Lena - Neval - Rissy - Juston.
"Who drew this?" Rissy said, her eyes hollow, both surprised and frustrated.
"It seems the wall where this paper is hung is the same place where the Serpentis student saw the flash of light," Juston suddenly recalled Rissy's earlier story.
Neval looked at the drawing with a confused expression:
"Someone is definitely behind this. A mysterious person. I don't think it was a Serpentis student or any other student who did this, because the time we went down to the cellar was when the professors seemed to have gone to sleep. Yet Lourie and Annatrist knew we were there."
Lena nodded:
"That makes sense. So now we need to go ask the Headmaster?"
"Yes. But the professor's face the other day still makes me shiver when I remember it," Neval said, his face clearly showing his fear.
"But if we don't ask, we won't know."
"Then let's go," Rissy replied. She pulled them towards the Headmaster's office.
After They Arrived
Lourie was holding a cup of hot tea to enjoy. The sunlight gently shone on his beard. The weather was truly pleasant! They had arrived. Lourie saw them and put his teacup down.
"What brings you students here to see me?"
The four looked at each other, unsure what to say.
"We... we came here to ask the professor a few things," Rissy stammered.
Lourie nodded kindly, his voice gentle:
"Go ahead and ask. I will answer."
His words made the children less afraid.
"The other day, how did the professor and Annatrist know we were in the library?" Juston asked.
Lourie slightly furrowed his brow, sighing as he tried to recall. Then he turned to look at the children:
"A letter was sent to me. The sender's name was not filled in. It just said to come to the library immediately."
They narrowed their eyes:
"A letter?"
"Yes. Is there anything else you wanted to ask?" Lourie looked at them with a hint of suspicion.
Lena smiled slightly:
"No, Professor. We were just curious."
They immediately left. In the hallway, questions about the letter were raised:
"Who wrote that letter after all?"
"The important thing is how did 'that person' manage to send a letter to the headmaster?"
"Wasn't there no one around when we left? Neval, did you pay close attention?"
"Very close, I didn't see anyone."
Those questions inadvertently fell into the ears of someone unbeknownst to them. At the end of the hallway, a gust of wind blew from somewhere, unnoticed by them or anyone else.