The returning frog cub picked off the little lotus leaf from its back, found a random spot on the bed, and climbed up.
It looked absolutely exhausted.
Lucas shook his head, pushing aside the mess of thoughts swirling in his mind, and turned his eyes to those scarlet ones resting on the table.
There were two ways to use this pair of Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan. One was to go full-on transplant mode—swapping out your own eyes for these, which came with a hefty dose of trauma and drama. The other was fusion—quiet, painless, and experience-free.
Honestly, in a place like Hogwarts, even swapping out your eyeballs wasn't completely impossible. With enough magic, you could probably do it. But still, it would be way too shocking.
So yeah, it wasn't even a question. Lucas obviously chose the second option.
There was just one thing bugging him—Sharingan powers ran on chakra, a special kind of energy only ninjas had. Lucas didn't have any of that. At most, his body was fused with the massive magical energy he got from the Dragon Slayer Crystal.
Well, whatever. Might as well fuse it now. No good letting it just sit there—it could get damaged or something.
With that in mind, Lucas selected the fusion option.
Instantly, the pair of Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan turned into a white light and shot into his pale blue eyes.
The two guys in the dorm were still too busy gaming to notice anything weird going on.
A warm rush of heat swirled through Lucas's eyes. When he opened them again, the pale blue color was gone—replaced by a spinning crimson with intricate tomoe patterns.
The two tomoe, then three, spun rapidly and gradually morphed into a sickle-shaped design.
As the motion slowed and stabilized, the world in front of him changed completely. The enhanced vision let him see even the tiniest specks of dust in the air—like he'd gone from 360p to 4K Ultra HD overnight.
Lucas grabbed a mirror and checked himself out. With the scarlet Sharingan patterns glowing in his eyes, the corner of his mouth lifted into a grin.
The old Lucas had always looked calm, noble, friendly—even gentle.
But this version? With his sharp features and these cursed eyes? He looked downright dangerous.
There was a flicker of coldness behind those eyes. Something dark.
Then again, these were eyes born from someone who'd lost all hope in the world. That kind of pain doesn't vanish easily.
With a single thought, it was like flipping a switch—his Sharingan faded, and his eyes returned to their usual calm blue, as if nothing had happened.
"Huh… it drains magic when activated."
Lucas focused for a moment and noticed that the Dragon Slayer Crystal's magic inside him had dipped ever so slightly. Barely noticeable—like a drop in the ocean.
He'd already gotten a feel for the Sharingan's dynamic visual abilities. Now it was time to test the rest.
Eyes turning red once more, Lucas glanced over at Malfoy and Crabbe, who were still busy building blocky houses on the console.
"Hey, Malfoy!"
"Wha—"
Malfoy looked up, startled—but then froze the second he locked eyes with those crimson orbs.
Crabbe, who peeked over to see what was going on, wore the same blank expression. Their eyes glazed over, and soon both were staring ahead, drool slowly dripping from the corners of their mouths.
They looked like toddlers zoning out in front of a screen.
"Perfect test run."
Lucas smirked. Coming to the Slytherin house had been the right call—pure-blood wizards like Malfoy were ideal guinea pigs for all kinds of experiments.
Illusion magic was one of the Sharingan's specialties, and almost every Uchiha was a genjutsu master—minus the duds, of course.
Then something caught Lucas's eye.
There were tiny energy flows running through Malfoy and Crabbe's bodies.
"Wait a sec… is that… magic?"
He leaned in, intrigued. The Sharingan could see chakra flows in a ninja's body, sure—but apparently, it could see magic too.
Which meant... with good observation, he could analyze a wizard's spellcasting just by watching them do it.
That's crazy strong.
Only now did Lucas start to grasp just how terrifying the Sharingan really was.
He sighed, turned his gaze toward the dormitory door, and recalled a few odd rumors about the Slytherin common room.
Maybe—just maybe—with these eyes, he could uncover something.
It was late now. The castle had gone quiet.
Every so often, fish swam past the windows of the Slytherin common room, casting ripples of green light across the stone floor under the pale glow of the moon.
Lucas, now standing in the lounge, scanned the room with his Sharingan activated.
The dark was no obstacle for these eyes.
And suddenly, things normally invisible started to pop into view.
Lucas stopped walking. His scarlet pupils locked onto the statue of the snake head in the center of the common room.
Magical currents shimmered over the golden snake, patterns dancing around its surface.
Blue streams of magic connected the snake's head all the way down into the stone floor below.
"Man… Slytherin really is the most mysterious of the four houses."
He chuckled to himself, remembering those spooky stories told by older students.
Apparently, over ten years ago, people in the Slytherin dorms would hear strange, raspy hissing noises at night—like a snake slithering through the dark, hunting its prey.
Lucas, who knew all about the Basilisk, figured the stories were probably true.
After all, the founder of Slytherin had once bred a Basilisk in some hidden chamber deep under the school.
Basilisks were magical beasts born from chicken eggs incubated under toads. If you made eye contact with one directly—you died. Indirect? You got petrified.
"I wonder… would the petrification curse even work on my eyes now?" Lucas muttered, rubbing his chin.
That secret passage under the statue probably led straight to the Basilisk's lair.
"Should I try it?"
Now that he had Kamui—space-time ninjutsu—even if things went sideways, he could escape. And besides, the Basilisk should still be asleep.
If he remembered correctly, it wouldn't wake up until Tom Riddle's diary showed up.
The thought sparked something in Lucas. His eyes gleamed.
He still hadn't found a magical creature worthy of a summoning contract.
Why not the Basilisk?
If he couldn't tame it, he'd just throw it into an illusion and make it submit.
There was only one problem.
Anyone who looked the Basilisk in the eye died instantly. Indirect glances turned you to stone.
But then, a flash of inspiration hit Lucas.
He grinned.
He had just the idea.
And the Basilisk?
Oh yeah—it was almost time.