Sherlock Holmes at Hogwarts.

Chapter 448 The truth has surfaced

Hearing Harry's somewhat naive question, Dumbledore couldn't help but sigh.

"Yes, Harry, we all know it's terrible."

Horace was horrified when he heard that someone had to be killed to make a Horcrux, but Riddle didn't care at all.

In order to create more Horcruxes, he didn't care about committing murder after murder.

In fact, we all know that the reason he was so feared was because he had personally killed hundreds of people over several decades.

Harry shuddered at the words.

He killed over a hundred people single-handedly; that's terrifying!

Sherlock hesitated, but ultimately said nothing.

Dumbledore paused, then said to Harry:

"As for the Philosopher's Stone you mentioned, we know that's exactly what he did two years ago."

But I think the Philosopher's Stone is ultimately not as appealing to Voldemort as the Horcruxes…

At this point, Dumbledore turned to Sherlock, "Sherlock, I think you know perfectly well, don't you?"

Sherlock said crisply and decisively:

"The elixir of immortality can indeed prolong life, but one must take it consistently to remain immortal."

Once the medicine runs out, becomes contaminated, or the magic stone is stolen, then immortality becomes a joke.

In other words, achieving immortality through that method means becoming completely dependent on drugs.

Judging from Voldemort's personality, this was something he could not tolerate.

"That's absolutely right. Voldemort would never allow himself to be controlled, not even by drugs."

Of course, if it were just to get rid of the half-dead state he was in after attacking Harry, like he was two years ago, he would be willing to have it.

But that was only to regain his physical body.

After that, he will definitely continue to rely on his Horcruxes.

At that time, he would need nothing else; as long as he could regain a human body, he would be immortal.

Or rather, closer to immortality than anyone else.

Harry nodded, indicating that he understood.

Dumbledore's expression became excited again:

"In fact, with this crucial memory that you obtained, the truth has finally come to light."

We are now closer than anyone else to the secret of how to defeat Voldemort.

You all heard him say: 'Wouldn't it be better to divide it into more pieces, making you stronger...? Isn't seven the most magical number...?'"

"It's obvious that this depraved guy actually split his soul into seven pieces."

Sherlock's voice was filled with barely suppressed anger.

Sherlock cannot tolerate the idea that someone would deliberately kill, split their soul, and create Horcruxes just to gain immortality.

It was at this moment that he made a decision.

Voldemort must be destroyed!

"You mean he really made seven Horcruxes?"

Harry was even more shocked upon hearing this. "Has he gone mad? Sir, you mean they could be hiding anywhere in the world..."

“Sherlock, Harry, I’m glad you both see how serious the problem is.”

Compared to the surprised Harry and the furious Sherlock, Dumbledore appeared remarkably calm:

"But I want to correct one point: it's not seven Horcruxes, it's six."

Perhaps it is more accurate to say that Sherlock divided his soul into seven parts.

As for the seventh part of the soul, however broken it may be, it remains within his resurrected body.

This part of him existed as a ghost during his years of exile; without it, he would not be himself.

This seventh part of the soul will be the final target that anyone who wants to kill Voldemort must attack—the part within his body.

“But what about those six Horcruxes?” Harry said impatiently, “how can we find them?”

"Don't rush me, Harry, have you forgotten... your good friend has already destroyed one."

"Yup!"

Harry looked at Sherlock with eyes full of admiration.

Tom Riddle's diary was destroyed by Sherlock with the sword of Gryffindor.

"Even so, we cannot celebrate too soon."

If the theory about seven soul fragments is correct, then there are five Horcruxes left.

Harry immediately started racking his brains to think of something.

Horcruxes, also known as soul fragments, can split a complete soul and then hide it in an object.

Voldemort created six Horcruxes, which can be anything.

The only remaining Horcrux is Riddle's diary, which was destroyed by Sherlock.

Dumbledore said the truth had come to light, but Harry was still completely confused...

and many more!

Harry turned sharply to look at Sherlock.

With Sherlock around, I don't need to think about anything at all.

To his surprise, Dumbledore did the same thing at that moment, looking at Sherlock and asking expectantly:
"Sherlock, what do you think?" "Sir, unfortunately I don't know enough about Voldemort to make an accurate deduction, so I can only offer a few directions for your reference at the moment."

“No problem, I think the direction you’ve given me will be of great use to me—this has been proven time and again.”

"From what I understand, Voldemort was a proud, arrogant, and superior person."

Therefore, his selection of Horcruxes would never be like choosing a door key, opting for easily overlooked everyday items such as old tin cans, empty medicine bottles, or broken shoes.

His first Horcrux was that diary, which he himself had told us in his memories. The diary proved that he was the heir of Slytherin, which was of great significance to Voldemort.

Therefore, I infer that Voldemort would choose items with special value, especially those with commemorative significance, to serve as Horcruxes.

"for example……"

Sherlock looked intently at Dumbledore. "Sir, I'm afraid you must answer two questions for me first."

"Just ask."

"First, did all four founders of Hogwarts leave behind relics? Second, did each founder only have one relic?"

Dumbledore was taken aback for a moment, then a smile appeared on his face.

Soon, that slight smile turned into a loud laugh.

Harry looked at Dumbledore in surprise.

He had never seen Dumbledore so happy.

Whether it's Gryffindor winning the Quidditch Cup, winning the House Cup three times in a row, or even recently obtaining Slughorn's memories.

Dumbledore laughed so hard that tears streamed down his face.

"Sherlock, Sherlock..."

Dumbledore placed his hand on Sherlock's shoulder. "Because of you, I am becoming more and more confident about the future."

“That’s for sure,” Sherlock said without any modesty. “It is the misfortune of criminals to be enemies with Sherlock Holmes.”

“You’re right. Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, Slytherin—every founder of Hogwarts left behind relics.”

But I'm certain that the only known relic of Gryffindor is intact, and that you used it in your second year.

"The Gryffindor Sword..."

"Yes."

"Then what about the Sorting Hat? Didn't you say the sword was Gryffindor's only relic?"

"Oh, I misspoke. The Sorting Hat was indeed the hat that Gryffindor used during his lifetime."

Later, the four founders of Hogwarts infused their own ideas into the system, enabling the Sorting Hat to group students into different houses based on their talents and qualities.

But don't worry, it's still in my office.

"Then the rest is obvious."

“Good. From now on, I will carefully search Voldemort’s past to see if I can find any traces of items, such as Hogwarts relics, that disappeared around him.”

“I have another suggestion,” Sherlock added, “the ring Voldemort was wearing.”

Professor Slughorn apparently didn't notice this, so the details of the ring aren't very clear.

But as I just said, that ring was of great significance to Voldemort—a fact that can be inferred from his behavior.

Therefore, I have reason to infer that he also turned it into a Horcrux not long afterward.

"It's so good to have you, Sherlock."

Dumbledore looked at Sherlock, his eyes overflowing with affection.

"As I said before, Voldemort wanted to return to Hogwarts twice after graduating."

In retrospect, one of the reasons was naturally the desire to expand their influence through the school.

Another reason is the desire to find the belongings of the other founders.

“A very reasonable deduction,” Sherlock nodded. “Then things are quite clear now.”

Sherlock stood up and said, as if summarizing:

"Sir, I'm afraid you'll be searching for Voldemort's past for some time to come."

“You’re right. In fact, I started working on this two years ago when you gave me the diary.”

But then other things came one after another, but fortunately you managed to resolve them all.

At times like these, I'm always grateful that you're on the side of justice, which allows me to have more time.

Harry understood that Dumbledore was referring to Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew.

Thinking about it carefully, if it weren't for Sherlock, Hogwarts would have been in turmoil all year, just like in the second year.

However, Sherlock raised an eyebrow. "So, you've landed another big job this year?"

Dumbledore: '(°ー°〃)
"Can you tell me how you figured it out?"

"You're in too much of a rush."

Sherlock sighed. "Harry had only been in Dursley for a month when you wrote to tell us you were coming here."

From the moment you picked us up until we arrived at Slughorn's house, you seemed calm, but some details revealed that you were in a hurry.

For example, after obtaining the memories, he couldn't wait to check them out at his house.

The closer I am to someone, the easier it is for me to see these things.

"Also, your attire clearly indicates you've come from afar."

Dumbledore glanced down at his black traveling cloak and couldn't help but smile:
"Now that you mention it, it really is simple!"

“I’ve heard that kind of talk countless times, sir.”

(End of this chapter)