Chapter 28 – About Merula

Introduction

Hello everyone, welcome to our Walkthrough for Chapter Twenty-Eight of Year Five of Harry Potter Hogwarts Mystery. Last time, you gave the vault portrait to Madam Rakepick and found out that a dragon is most likely guarding the next cursed vault.

Because of that, you tried your best to learn as much as you could about those creatures. Both Bill and Merula helped you, and together, you managed to prepare properly for facing the dangers of the next cursed vault.

Summary

Walkthrough

You can start things off by getting the lessons out of the way. Head to the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom when you are ready.

To unlock the Homenum Revelio Lesson, you need to acquire a total of nine stars from Defence Against Dark Arts classes. As always, pick the class duration you prefer and hit the Start button to begin.

In general, there should be plenty of bonus progress actions during these classes. Prioritize them to save energy.

As usual, focus on completing the mini-tasks to earn some additional Courage points.

Head back to the classroom once you obtain enough stars to unlock the lesson.

To learn Homenum Revelio, you need to obtain five stars within three hours. Since all of the stars are needed to pass, it is recommended to avoid starting with an empty energy bar.

Follow the same steps you did during the previous classes and you’ll be done quickly and easily.

During the lesson, you’ll be asked a question about Homenum Revelio.

Eventually, you’ll be tasked with casting the spell. Trace the wand movement on the screen to do so.

If you are successful, the spell will reveal Ismelda. There is no doubt that this will come in handy on one of your future adventures.

Once you are done, hit the Collect button to claim your rewards.

You’ll earn an additional reward for completing the lesson. You can claim it in the Defence Against the Dark Arts section of your Hogwarts Record.

For the second lesson, proceed to the History of Magic classroom.

To unlock the Werewolf Code of Conduct of 1637 lesson, you need to earn nine stars from History of Magic classes. Like before, pick the class duration you prefer and hit Start to begin.

As always, prioritize bonus progress actions whenever they are available.

And give it your best to succeed at all the mini-tasks for some extra Knowledge points.

Once you obtain all nine stars, head back to the classroom to attend the lesson.

To complete the Werewolf Code of Conduct of 1637 lesson, you need to earn five stars within eight hours. All five stars are needed to pass.

Approach this lesson in a similar manner to the previous classes and you shouldn’t have any trouble completing it within the time limit.

When you are done, hit the Collect button to claim your rewards.

You’ll get an additional reward for completing the lesson. Collect it in the History of Magic section of your Hogwarts Record.

Now that you’re done with the lessons, you can focus on the story part of the chapter. Proceed to the Hog’s Head Inn to meet Merula.

Upon arriving, you’ll be able to check out what some of the characters have to say to you.

Merula will be surprised to see that you’re recognized by many of the patrons, and she’ll be curious to know if you visit the place often.

You have three options to respond with. She’ll react differently depending on your answer, but in general, this choice won’t have any significant impact on the story, so pick whichever option you like.

Apparently, Merula doesn’t want others to see you two together, which is why she wanted to meet in the Hog’s Head Inn.

And it looks like she wants to talk to you about the Cursed Vault.

Since she was never actually in any of the vaults, she’ll want to learn as much as possible from you. She even got a notebook and a quill to write down the details.

There are two ways you can react to this, you can either taunt her or console her. If you like Merula, it is recommended to go with the second option, otherwise, go with either one.

Shortly after, you’ll offer to train her to face the cursed vault. Naturally, she’ll find that funny at first.

This is why you’ll need to explain things to her. To complete this task, you need to earn at least one out of five stars within three hours.

There are bonus progress actions tied to Merula and your character. Prioritize them to save energy.

Once you are done, Merula will agree to let you train her for facing the cursed vault.

The first part of the training involves visiting the Cursed Corridor. Head there when you are ready.

When you get there, you’ll notice that Merula is a bit disappointed. Apparently, the corridor failed to meet her expectations.

Shortly after, you’ll decide to search the corridor and see if you can find anything interesting. You need to earn five stars within one hour to complete this task. One star is required to pass.

There is a bonus progress action tied to Merula. Focus on it if you want to save a bit of energy.

Sadly, you won’t be able to find anything in the corridor, which will leave Merula saddened.

Still, she’ll be eager to continue her training and prepare as much as possible.

You’ll suggest dueling a beast, which is the closest thing to dueling a dragon.

If Merula was the one dueling a troll with you, she’ll be sure to mention it.

In the end, she’ll agree to your proposition, but she’ll want to have her dueling instructor at her side.

Proceed to Forest Grove for your next task. Once you arrive, Torvus will greet you and tell you some nice news.

You’ll explain the reason why you need his help.

He’ll be curious to know if that’s why you arrived with your friends. You have three options to respond with.

While all of the options lead to the same outcome, it is recommended to go with the first option if you care about Merula. Otherwise, you can pick whichever option you prefer.

After talking for a bit, you’ll tell Torvus that you need his help to practice some dueling and prepare for a dragon that is guarding the cursed vault.

However, Merula will want to see you duel Torvus before she’s ready to do so herself.

Dueling a Centaur is your next task. The task window will display the recommended attribute levels and the cost of each attempt.

Torvus can be quite unpredictable, but the good thing is that his attributes are quite low, which should give you a significant advantage. One way to defeat him is to constantly go Aggressive and use Depulso during each turn.

Torvus will praise you and say that you’ve become quite powerful, which will slightly upset the Most Powerful Witch at Hogwarts.

Sadly, her duel won’t end up with the same outcome as yours.

Torvus will give you a useful piece of advice before you part ways.

Proceed to the Training Grounds for your next task. When you arrive, you’ll be able to check out what some of the characters have to say to you.

Bill will be very surprised to see Merula and you together.

You have two options to reply to him. This is one of the most IMPORTANT choices of this chapter. If you protect Merula’s vulnerability, it will open some additional dialogue options later on, and in general, she’ll trust you more.

It is highly recommended to pick this option. The only reason not to do that is if you really dislike her or if your Empathy level is below the recommended value.

You’ll then tell Bill that you want to hold a spellcasting competition, and you’ll explain the details to both of them.

Bill will not be too excited about this. Merula, on the other hand, will be eager to compete against you.

Competing against Merula requires earning five stars within three hours. Only one star is needed to pass.

It is highly recommended to fully complete this task because there is a waiting period afterward. There are bonus progress actions tied to Bill, your character, and one of the training dummies.

Once you are done, Bill will announce the winner of the competition.

Merula, of course, won’t be satisfied with this outcome, which will lead to a hilarious scene.

In the end, you’ll agree that she won. After all, she needs to be confident to face whatever dangers await in the next cursed vault.

Shortly after, she’ll offer to train you. You have two response options, but the next task will be the same regardless of your choice. However, if you like Merula, it is recommended to go with the first option.

There is a waiting period of five hours before you can proceed. Since you will likely be low on energy at this point, it is recommended to wait and let your energy recharge in the meantime.

Head to the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom once the waiting time is over.

It seems that Madam Rakepick let Merula use her classroom.

You’ll talk for a bit and then she’ll tell you what she’s planning to teach you.

Your character will be dreaded by the thought of learning such a spell.

You’ll tell her that Madam Rakepick already tried teaching you one of the Unforgivable Curses and you refused.

Merula will be very surprised to hear that.

And despite trying to explain how horrible that curse is, she’ll want to hear more about it.

So, the next task involves talking about the Unforgivable Curses. Completing it requires earning five stars within three hours. Passing, on the other hand, only requires one star.

There are some interesting lines of dialogue after completing actions here, so be sure to check them out.

Once you finish the task, Merula will offer to teach you a different spell. You have two options to respond with. It is recommended to go with the first option, but even if you refuse, the next part will play out quite similarly.

The spell she is planning to teach you is Fiendfyre! You’ll try to talk her out of it since that spell can potentially cause a disaster.

And Merula being Merula will ignore your warning and proceed with casting the spell.

However, the spell will go horribly wrong and the fire will quickly start spreading.

Thankfully, Madam Rakepick will arrive just in time to douse the flames and prevent a potential disaster.

Merula will tell her you refused to learn the Killing Curse. Madam Rakepick won’t be too surprised by that.

Soon after, you’ll get to socialize with Merula. Proceed to the Great Hall when you are ready.

Once you’re there, you will notice the speech bubbles above some of the characters. Tap on those if you are curious to see what they have to say.

You’ll ask Merula to tell you the truth about her parents because so far, you’ve only heard rumors about them and you want to hear her side of the story.

However, she won’t really be sure if she should share this with you, so you’ll need to do some convincing.

The task window will display the recommended attribute levels and the cost. When you are ready, hit Start to begin.

This acts pretty much like a Meal with a Friend. Simply pick the options that will convince Merula to trust you and you’ll be done in no time.

It’s worth noting that the attribute requirements are fairly low, so the task isn’t too difficult. Below are the questions and the answers to them.

• You’ve helped me. But so what? – So, I’ve proven myself to you. (Knowledge)
• Are you going to judge me? – Of course not! (Empathy)
• Where would I even start? – Wherever you’re comfortable. (Courage)
• I don’t trust people easily. – You can trust me. (Empathy)
• Would it end our rivalry? – I would like our rivalry to end. (Knowledge)
• Why do you care? – I care about you, Merula. (Courage)

This is the part where the previous choice will take effect. If you protected Merula’s vulnerability earlier, she’ll decide to share some things about her past with you.

She’ll then share her story with you. It’s quite sad and disturbing, and perhaps after hearing it, you’ll be able to understand her more.

She’ll start by saying that her parents weren’t the nicest of people. After all, they were both Death Eaters.

You’ll ask her how she found out about that. She’ll say that one day, she saw the Dark Mark on her mother’s arm while she was tying her shoelaces.

One day, Merula asked her mom about it. Her mother told her everything about the Dark Lord.

You’ll then learn that Merula was an only child. She didn’t have any siblings. Unfortunately, her parents were too ambitious, and they didn’t have much time for her.

She’ll say that she is likely ambitious because of her parents. You will tell her that ambition in itself isn’t bad. She will look down and say that striving to reach new levels of cruelty isn’t exactly a good thing.

You’ll be quite sure Merula isn’t like that. She will admit that sometimes she can be cruel. You will ask her if she thinks that people can change.

She will calmly say that her parents couldn’t change, which is why they are locked in Azkaban.

You will ask her how old she was when they went to prison. She’ll say she was ten and a half. You’ll wonder what it is like for her, without them. You will also be curious about where she goes during the summer break.

Apparently, she goes back home to an empty house. Her aunt often visits her while she is at home.

You will learn that Merula’s aunt doesn’t live with her. Apparently, victims of her parents and of other Death Eaters know the name ‘Snyde’, and they know where she lives.

Because of that, Merula rarely goes out. You’ll figure out that she must feel very lonely at home. Merula will look down and admit that you are right about that.

After telling you all of that, she’ll offer to put an end to your rivalry once and for all.

You’ll be quick to agree to her proposition. After all, breaking the curse and saving all of the trapped students is all that matters now. And both of you are in this… together!

With this, Chapter 28 of Year 5 will come to an end. Hit the Collect button to claim your rewards. You will receive 250 Coins and 2000 Experience points.

What a chapter! You were finally able to learn more about Merula and her reasons for being the way she is. And it looks like it wasn’t a complete joke when she called herself the Most Powerful Witch at Hogwarts.

The next cursed vault is right around the corner! Are you prepared for it? And who will accompany you on this dangerous adventure? Find out in the next chapter of Harry Potter Hogwarts Mystery!

Thank you for reading.