Hogwarts: Oh no, I've become Voldemort!

"The only thing that can be certain is that if ancient magic falls into the hands of fairies or people with ulterior motives, then the magic world will face an absolutely huge crisis."

Cyrus agrees with this point.

However, if that were all, his trip to Vault 12 would have been a huge disappointment.

He gained almost nothing; he already knew about the existence of ancient magic, so there was no need to confirm it again.

Seemingly sensing Cyrus's thoughts, Percival and Lukewood exchanged a smile and continued, "You must be wondering why we went to all this trouble but didn't store ancient magic in the vault. In fact, ancient magic itself flows within the magic power of your body."

"Flowing right through my body?"

"Of course, young wizards don't acquire magic after attending Hogwarts; they possess magic from the outset, which qualifies them to go to Hogwarts. The same applies to ancient magic. It's because you possess this talent that you're standing here now."

"But how can I unleash its power?"

“All you need to do is feel the difference,” Percival said with rapt attention. “Feel those two completely different magics, and you’ll find that it’s so obvious that even the most ordinary spell can enhance its power.”

"Think about the Prototype you cast. Why was it able to break through the barriers of ancient magic? It's because you contained two kinds of magic when you cast the spell. Now you need to find the difference between them and transform the first one into the magic of ancient magic."

Cyrus closed his eyes to try and feel it, but it didn't have much effect.

"It's not that easy, is it? However, I think the test we left behind can help you a little. Moreover, we will only show you how to make good use of the power of ancient magic after you have completed the test."

"test?"

"The trials we four guardians of ancient magic have set together consist of four parts. But I think you might need to find a book first. It's kept in the Knowledge Pavilion at Hogwarts."

“The Pavilion of Knowledge?” Cyrus only had a vague understanding of the plot of “The Legacy”, and this Pavilion of Knowledge was a place he had never heard of before.

"You'll find it right here at Hogwarts."

The memory has ended.

Thank you for the 100-point reward from the fragrant rice! Thank you, boss!

Chapter 136 The Person Whose Name Cannot Even Be Mentioned

The memory ended abruptly, without giving Cyrus much time to react.

The world in his eyes regained its color, and the ground beneath his feet, like water, slowly swallowed up the Pensieve, as if it were a swamp that devoured life.

However, he did not leave immediately, but stood there for a long time, trying to experience the unusual magic that Percival had mentioned.

Mastering ancient magic has one advantage, not just in increasing the power of spells. More importantly, ancient magic is "invisible" to most wizards. This means that spells cast using ancient magic are very difficult to break, and many counter-spells may be ineffective.

Take Apparition for example. This magic can be countered by Anti-Apparition and easily leaves traces. By observing the location of Apparition, one can deduce the location of Apparition's appearance.

However, if ancient magic is used, perhaps there would be no need to worry about being tracked.

However, as Bosivar said, it is not easy.

The magic within is not so easily seen, which gives one the feeling of "the wise seeking power within".

"Let's see what that book in the so-called Pavilion of Knowledge can offer me," Cyrus said softly. But his brows immediately furrowed.

The Hall of Knowledge is located at Hogwarts. He finally managed to escape from that place, but now he has to go back.

Going back isn't difficult; the challenge is how to avoid being discovered.

Dumbledore's informants and the Marauder's Map are both a problem.

"There should be a way to hide the traces on the Marauder's Map," he thought.

No one has ever done this before. Dumbledore had no reason to do it, and Voldemort didn't even know the map existed. But Cyrus felt he might be able to give it a try.

He had studied the principles of the Marauder's Map before. That map was quite old; it wasn't just the product of the four Marauders, but rather seemed to be something they modified based on.

The main magic on the map is still the Human Trace Spell and the Contract.

The Human Footprint Curse is easy to break, but the contract is the hardest thing to break.

Most of the contract magic in the HP world possesses extremely powerful magical power. Take the Fidelity Charm, for example; even the greatest wizard would find it difficult to break a Fidelity Charm cast by an ordinary wizard.

Dumbledore had already devised numerous schemes to break the Blood Pact, but he ultimately succeeded by exploiting a bug.

"If only I could find a way to get the map," Cyrus thought to himself.

He didn't know whether the map was now back in the twins' hands or had been confiscated by Dumbledore, but judging from Dumbledore's tone at the time, he might have intended to return it to them.

“I remember Sirius sneaked into the castle during Harry Quidditch, and Halloween is another opportunity. At least George and Fred haven’t brought out a map these past two days.”

He calculated.

And Halloween is just around the corner.

In fact, once the twins became familiar with the secret passages on the Marauder's Map, they rarely took it out anymore. Because having a map while exploring the castle at night took away a lot of the fun for them.

They enjoy outsmarting Filch.

As Cyrus was thinking, a strange noise suddenly came from the vault door.

He looked over immediately.

It was a tall, heavy golden door, probably four or five meters high, with the top of the door extending all the way to the dome.

This wasn't the door Cyrus entered after crossing the black space; rather, it seemed to be the door that directly connected to Gringotts' underground space. That door had been very narrow then, but now, having passed the initial test, it revealed its true form.

Now, someone has opened the door from the outside.

If nothing unexpected happens, it will probably be reinforcements from the fairies.

Cyrus gripped his wand tightly, ready for battle.

"Boom!!!"

Suddenly, the entire vault trembled, water rippled beneath Cyrus's feet, and dust rustled down from the dome above.

The next moment, the door, which probably weighed several tons, was blown away by a powerful explosion!

The debris hurtled towards Cyrus like boulders rolling down a mountain, several of them larger than him, their shadows engulfing him.

Cyrus neither dodged nor avoided the blast, but stood upright amidst the impact, pointing his wand out.

"Thunderbolt explosion!"

In an instant, the huge shards of the door that were smashing towards him were blasted into tiny fragments that scattered in all directions like stray sparks.

Then, a huge and ferocious head emerged from the thick smoke and dust, baring its blood-stained fangs and spewing out scorching flames!

The flames instantly engulfed the entire vault like a torrent, and even Cyrus himself disappeared in the flames.

It was another fire dragon, and an extremely old one at that. Its scales appeared loose, white like an old man's hair, and its eyes were cloudy, yet the temperature of its flames was terrifying!

Along with the fire dragon, the fairies also rushed into the secret vault.

However, they didn't charge in armed; instead, they were pierced through the chest by the dragon's claws and their bodies torn apart by its sharp teeth, crashing in in a gruesome manner. On the dragon's outstretched bat wings hung the still-alive elves.

Blood stained its pale wings red!

A young wizard emerged from the flames.

He held his wand gracefully, looking at the dragon with an arrogant expression, as if it were a lowly beast.

"If I had known that Gringotts had dragons, I wouldn't have bothered to go to Knockturn Alley to buy dragon blood."

It's Voldemort!

Although Voldemort attacked Gringotts two years ago, Vault 713 was too far from the dragon's location, and he didn't even know that there was a dragon in Gringotts.

After the raging fire dragon rushed into Vault 12, it rampaged through the "small" space. The dragon's flames were comparable to Fiendfire, burning continuously without stopping for a moment.

It was covered in wounds, and it raised its head and let out a mournful roar.

"Quiet down, you beast!" Voldemort coldly swung his wand, and a black, thorny iron chain sprang from its tip, lashing the fire dragon hard!

The dragon, having suffered pain, should have descended into an even more terrifying frenzy. But faced with Voldemort, it cowered in fear, letting out a low, mournful howl.

Voldemort laughed coldly, his expression not exactly smug, but brimming with arrogance. He ignored the bowed dragon and instead focused his gaze on the fire.

"Come out, Tom Riddle, or rather—"

"Cyrus."

Gringotts was blown up, but it was Voldemort who did it.

Chapter 137 Cyrus: Only Losers Are Called Black Demons

"Come out, Tom Riddle, or, as you'd like to call yourself now: Cyrus?"

Voldemort's voice was hoarse; he spoke softly, yet his voice carried to every corner, as if he were whispering.

There was no other movement from the flames, which slightly displeased him. But Voldemort was not angry; anger was reserved for his lowly servants and the filthy Mudbloods. He was much more forgiving of someone who might be one of his own.

His ten fingers nimbly intertwined, his back against the vault exit, revealing a wealth of emotion. It was as if he had come to reunite with an old friend he hadn't seen in years.

"Tom Riddle is the culprit behind the horrific attacks at Hogwarts this entire school year; he opened the legendary Chamber of Secrets..." Voldemort read aloud from the newspaper article.

"When I saw this news, do you know how surprised I was? I was in the dark jungles of Albania, wretchedly possessing those lowly snakes and rats. But at this time, another person bearing my name was stirring up trouble at Hogwarts and had gained his freedom."

"I am very curious—and eager to know, who you are."

The young wizard's facial features changed, turning into a gray, snake-like face. Of course, unlike the resurrected Voldemort in the original story, he at least still looked like he had a nose.

"Come on, let me see who you really are? Come up to me, don't be shy."