Hogwarts: Oh no, I've become Voldemort!

Professor McGonagall practically forbade students from going anywhere that wasn't connected to their dormitories, classrooms, or the auditorium. Not to mention, this girls' restroom wasn't just anywhere; it was right next to the scene of the first attack—

“We can use the invisibility cloak at night, just like today,” Harry said.

“It’s different inside the castle than outside. And you can’t talk to Myrtle while wearing the Invisibility Cloak; she definitely won’t like that,” Cyrus said. “She’s too sensitive; she’ll cry and make a scene over the smallest thing, which will definitely attract the professors. You know what they say, Harry—the murderer always returns to the scene of the crime—and then we’ll be speechless.”

Harry and Ron both let out a sigh.

Cyrus certainly had ways to get them to talk to Myrtle away from the professors' eyes, but not yet; he still had one last preparation to make.

Having sacrificed so many lives of the eight-eyed giant spiders, the Philosopher's Stone seemed to be taking shape, but it would still take some time for it to completely solidify. He still needed to find an opportunity to hide the unformed "life" in the crucible into the Room of Requirement, waiting for the moment of its true transformation.

And it won't be long.

-

"I'm afraid it won't be long before Tom takes action."

Dumbledore stood on the edge of the Black Lake, gazing at the ancient and massive castle shrouded in darkness. At the other end of the Forbidden Forest, the first rays of dawn were slowly beginning to dispel the darkness, and a light mist permeated the forest. However, it would still take some time before the sky was fully bright.

Dumbledore was waiting.

More than a month has passed since he left Hogwarts, and he certainly hasn't been idle.

These past few days he first visited the school board members, trying to persuade them to withdraw their previous proposal. This was much easier than he had imagined, because several board members agreed to Malfoy's proposal not because they really wanted to get rid of him, but because they were threatened by Malfoy and forced to sign.

Dumbledore has now received the documents from the Board of Governors agreeing to his continued tenure as Headmaster, but he has not revealed this information, nor has he returned to Hogwarts.

He was waiting for the right moment to avoid alerting the enemy.

And he believes that time will come soon.

Even when he wasn't at Hogwarts, Dumbledore still had various ways to gather information about the school. Not to mention that three of the four Headmasters, led by Professor McGonagall, were loyal to him, even Snape had no reason to betray him and return to the Dark Lord's side.

Not to mention, the Board of Governors' decision actually has no impact on the fact that he is the true "Headmaster" recognized by Hogwarts Castle.

It might seem like he was driven away, but in reality, the mechanisms, portraits, sculptures... everything in the castle was loyal to him. His words to Harry, "I will only truly leave this school when everyone here betrays me," referred to more than just Harry.

Now, Dumbledore is waiting for a signal. He believes that Tom Riddle, given his character, will not give up so easily, and that in the next attack, the other side will definitely reveal his true colors.

However, before that, he had one last preparation to make.

He turned around, and the dawn light rose behind him, as if he were draped in a cloak of morning light.

Chapter 78 Heading to the Secret Chamber

Ministry of Magic.

When Fudge leisurely arrived at the Ministry of Magic, Dumbledore had already been waiting for him in his office for quite some time.

"Dumbledore?"

Fudge was startled, feeling the fear a primary school student might have when meeting their homeroom teacher.

"You... how did you get here?" He looked very uneasy and awkwardly placed his top hat on the coat rack.

During the month or so that Dumbledore was gone, Fudge felt an unprecedented sense of freedom. He didn't need to seek the other's advice; he made all the decisions himself. To be honest, for the first time in all his years in office, he truly felt like he was the Minister of Magic.

Previously, he was more like Dumbledore's puppet.

Time has passed, and it seems that nothing has gone wrong, right?

Fudge doesn't want to see Dumbledore return.

It's actually better for him without Dumbledore. Although it was Malfoy who drove Dumbledore away, Fudge himself has now become a beneficiary, and naturally feels a little guilty when he sees Dumbledore.

“I’ve come to pick up a few things, Fudge. I think—Voldemort—”

Fudge's face paled, and he said tremblingly, "Please don't mention that name, Dumbledore."

Dumbledore said sternly, “I know that this name has brought too much panic and death in the past, but now it is just a name. To fear it will only exacerbate the fear itself and will do no good.”

"I... I think we should talk about what brings you here," Fudge said, sweat beading on his forehead, before skipping over the topic.

Dumbledore had no choice but to continue, "I wonder if his wand is still kept in the Ministry of Magic? Has no one come here to steal it?"

The Ministry of Magic has a special department dedicated to safeguarding the wands of criminals. Many wands belonging to Death Eaters imprisoned in Azkaban are still well-preserved by the Ministry.

The Ministry of Magic typically doesn't punish pure-blood wizards by breaking their wands, because for a pure-blood wizard, obtaining a new wand is extremely easy. Not everyone believes in the principle of wand choosing the wizard.

"Yes, that person's wand is certainly kept under the most secure guard, but..."

“I just wanted to confirm, Fudge. Also,” Dumbledore winked, “I wanted to get something for another student ahead of time.”

-

The waters of life need some processes and steps to solidify into the Philosopher's Stone, but once the biggest problem is solved, the rest is nothing.

Two days before the mandrake was fully mature, the crimson "Fountain of Life" in the crucible finally coalesced into a bright red, but somewhat murky, irregularly shaped prism.

It resembles a small piece of red crystal, or a ripe pomegranate fruit.

"It finally worked."

Cyrus held the Philosopher's Stone in delight. The magic within it was enough to concoct an endless supply of elixirs of immortality, and turning stone into gold was a piece of cake. He tried it briefly and immediately turned a table into gold.

It wasn't just the exterior; when Cyrus cut the table open, even the inside turned into gold.

Then, he extracted a bottle of blood-red potion from the Philosopher's Stone and drank it down in one gulp. As the scalding blood flowed into his throat, Cyrus clearly felt a life force spreading within Ginny's body, filling the void of life she had previously lost.

The Philosopher's Stone is truly complete.

However, whether the Philosopher's Stone could actually create a living, breathing body remains a mystery. Voldemort did try to use the Philosopher's Stone, but ultimately failed.

But Cyrus no longer had time to wait.

The afternoon before the mandrake ripened, Harry and Ron found an opportunity to go to the bathroom. Cyrus didn't want them to discover the location of the secret chamber at this crucial moment, especially since—

“Hermione has something to say to you in the infirmary,” he murmured, casting a Disillusionment Charm on himself, clutching the Marauder’s Map tightly in his hand.

By this time, his breathing had become increasingly heavy.

He knew it wasn't nervousness, but excitement.

“McGirl is patrolling on the third floor. I need to make a noise to lure her there.”

Cyrus walked briskly through the castle, and as he turned a corner on the fifth floor, he encountered Lockhart, who was fiddling with his hair as he walked back to his office. Then he saw Harry and Ron sneaking away from the Gryffindor group and turning into a side path.

"Wouldn't it be better if we brought Mr. Riddle along?"

He heard Ron whisper to Harry.

"I mean, he and Myrtle were students of the same generation. Perhaps Myrtle would be more open to someone who had a similar experience to her."

“But we’re too late,” Harry warned. “Ginny isn’t in the same year as us.”

“You’re right,” Ron said. They didn’t even have a chance to go back and get the Invisibility Cloak.

Cyrus brushed past the two of them, and suddenly Harry stopped and looked back.

He seemed to see a familiar shadow, and a strange feeling welled up inside him—as if at this moment, he had brushed past his destiny.

But there was nothing there, only a ray of sunlight shining in, and dust motes dancing gently in the empty corridor.

"What's wrong?" Ron asked.

"It's nothing, let's go."

They didn't dare linger too long, but Cyrus deliberately made a noise as he turned the corner, attracting McGonagall's attention.

"Potter! Weasley! What are you doing?" Professor McGonagall's lips tightened into a thin line as she looked sternly at the two of them. "I heard you two seem to be heading somewhere?"

“We want to—we want to—” Ron stammered, “we want to go—to see—”

“Hermione,” Harry said. Ron and Professor McGonagall both looked at him.

“We haven’t seen her in a long time, Professor,” Harry said, stepping on Ron’s foot. “We were just about to sneak into the hospital to tell her the mandrake is almost done and not to worry.”

Cyrus heard that McGonagall was so moved by the two of them that she almost cried. He continued on and dispelled the illusion spell at the door of the bathroom.

He glanced up at the walls of the corridor; the words he had left behind were still there, as if no one in the entire castle could ever clean them up.

This time, he needs to leave something new behind—

"Her remains will remain in the secret chamber forever."

The bright red words, as if written in blood, pierced the hearts of everyone who saw them with fear.

Chapter 79 Growing Up Amidst Secrets and Lies (Resurrected!)

Cyrus went into the restroom.

"You're here again?" Myrtle happened to be in the washroom today. She looked unhappy, tilting her head and glaring at Ginny. She didn't particularly like this prettier girl.

“You can be quiet, Myrtle.” Cyrus pointed his wand at her and flicked it slightly. “Distract us.”

Myrtle immediately acted as if she hadn't seen him at all, and dazedly crawled back into the toilet where she usually stayed.

Cyrus strode to the tap that wasn't producing water, spoke in Parseltongue, and the secret chamber opened.

He traversed a long, sticky slide, walked through a muddy stone tunnel littered with rat carcasses, and opened the second door in Parseltongue…

During this process, Cyrus deliberately freed Ginny's soul. At this moment, the little girl watched with teary eyes as Cyrus finished doing everything and finally stepped into that long, dimly lit room.

She was like a detached soul, a player unable to control their character, passively watching everything Cyrus was willing to show her—