Without a moment's hesitation, Iblis transformed into a nimble little fish and sprinted at full speed toward the deep bottom of the Black Lake. Her figure darted through the water, flexibly dodging the giant octopus's relentless tentacle attacks. Each narrow escape was accompanied by a soft click of her tongue, after which she thrashed her tail even harder and charged forward with all her might.
Free from Herpo's assistance, and in order to conserve precious magic, Iblis had to rely on Transfiguration, moving slowly forward while hugging the cover of the lakebed. Yet while maintaining her transformed state, she could not use other complex charms. Fortunately, her physical strength had increased significantly of late, enough to sustain her through this arduous journey.
She occasionally looked up at the sparkling surface of the lake, secretly guessing that Salazar and the others must have already laid down thorough protective measures. Just as she was concentrating on swimming quickly ahead, a school of merpeople suddenly appeared before her, closely followed by all sorts of creatures from the Black Lake swimming in a mighty procession. Iblis's heart skipped a beat, and she couldn't help clicking her tongue once more, then decisively transformed back into her human form and shouted loudly toward the lake surface: "Ravenclaw! Hufflepuff!"
Chapter 177