Hogwarts: From Luna's House to Godhood Through Intense Competition

"In fact... this kind of thing has happened once before. It was only today that I connected the dots. The power that defeated Voldemort last time came from the power of 'love'."

"What can I do?" Snape leaned forward, his voice urgent. "How can I use 'love'... to defeat Voldemort?"

Chapter 188 Dobby's Memories

Dumbledore hadn't seen Snape look so anxious in a long time.

He could even foresee how Snape would react if he said, "We need to give Harry to Voldemort so that Voldemort can gain Lily's 'love'."

Snape would definitely try his best to stop it, after all, the reason he stayed at Hogwarts was because Harry would also be attending in the future.

To explain this matter clearly, it is necessary to introduce the power of "commands".

At least for now, Dumbledore believes Snape is not suited to pursue the Commandments.

Besides the fact that finding a matching command is an extremely difficult task, Snape's own hatred for Voldemort will also drive him to pay a heavy price.

Besides, even if Dumbledore didn't explain the secret of the Commands, given Snape's abilities, he would very likely connect it to Vizet and obtain the secret of the Commands from her.

Rather than let these things happen for no reason... Dumbledore looked at the glass bottle beside him, which contained Dobby's memory threads.

He cleared his throat and said, “Severus, so far, I’m only certain of one thing—we can defeat Voldemort with ‘love’.”

Snape narrowed his eyes. "I'm also certain of one thing: when you feel hungry, you should eat. It seems I've come to a great conclusion."

"Also, if you feel mentally foggy, I suggest drinking more 'soul-soothing' tonics. Tell me, what exactly should I do!"

“This is a process that requires constantly gathering clues…” Dumbledore picked up the glass bottle and held it tightly in his hand.

"Just like last year, through Vizette and Harry, it was confirmed that Voldemort was not dead... This year is a similar situation, you should understand that, right?"

"Through the snake slough fragments, through a guiding spell, I gleaned some information and determined that Voldemort's weakness was 'love'."

Snape pinched his index finger and thumb together, staring intently at Dumbledore, as if trying to determine if there was any possibility of him lying.

Unfortunately, Dumbledore was also an expert in Occlumency, and was much older, so when he got serious, he wouldn't reveal the slightest flaw.

Dumbledore picked up the glass bottle. "Severus, aren't you interested in Dobby's memories? Perhaps you can get more useful clues from them?"

Snape gave Dumbledore a deep look and said slowly, "Then let's see!"

-------------------------------------

The two stood in front of the Pensieve and, after a dizzying experience, found themselves in a magnificent living room.

Snape said simply, "The drawing room of Malfoy Manor."

They appeared behind the fireplace, with Dobby carefully hiding himself and eavesdropping on Lucius's conversation with the guests.

Snape looked across at Lucius, where a stout middle-aged man stood. "Old Crabbe, Vincent Crabbe's father, like Lucius, escaped trial."

“Very similar…I can tell.” Dumbledore nodded.

Old Crabbe's voice was full of worry: "Arthur led a search of me! Lucius, they fined me a lot of money! Some of your things were also taken away..."

"I understand..." Lucius yawned and gently stirred the black tea in front of him.

He didn't look directly at old Crabbe; the cup of tea seemed more important. "I'll pay those fines for you... after all, you were the one who kept those things for me..."

Old Crabbe quickly waved his hand, a smile spreading across his face. "Ah...we're practically family! I didn't mean that...but thank you anyway!"

“Lucius… but seriously, that Arthur is too outrageous! Shouldn’t we do something…? He’s disgracing our pure-blood family!”

“They are the scum of pure-blood families…” Lucius took a sip of his black tea. “I have something left behind by the Dark Lord here… I might as well let them have it!”

Upon hearing this, Dobby suddenly covered his mouth to prevent himself from making a sound.

Old Crabbe quickly stepped forward and asked in a low voice, "Lucius, are you planning to... frame someone?"

“Framed?” Lucius raised an eyebrow. “I was doing them charity… They lived in such a dilapidated place, and yet they managed to obtain the Dark Lord’s items. Can that be considered framing them?”

Old Crabbe nodded repeatedly, "Yes! It's charity! It's helping others!"

……

The content of the memory has changed, but the person is still in the living room.

Dobby had just finished refilling the incense when Lucius Malfoy and Draco Malfoy stepped out of the fireplace, Lucius looking extremely solemn.

Snape and Dumbledore were not surprised at all to hear Lucius and Narcissa's conversation.

In fact, for those pure-blood families, the absence of dark magic items in their mansions is what makes them outcasts.

Lucius walked toward the study, where Dobby appeared at the doorway, listening intently to what was happening inside.

"The Dark Mark has appeared... Dumbledore saved the Dark Lord..." Snape raised an eyebrow. "It seems... Lucius has encountered the same thing."

“But… Vizet is definitely fine.” Dumbledore stroked his beard. “It’s just an odd coincidence.”

As Dobby was summoned, Draco also entered the study, and Dobby eavesdropped again.

“Professor Snape actually gave him an ‘O’, and he’s Ravenclaw…” Dumbledore smiled.

He added, "But you can't blame Professor Snape. If I were still teaching, I would also be willing to give him an 'O'."

Snape pursed his lips but said nothing.

The most problematic thing is that if you've attended his private lessons and still can't get an "O"!

Lucius and Draco's conversation continued. Dumbledore was fully aware of the relationship between Snape and Lucius, so he remained silent.

Draco turned the doorknob and left the study, his face showing a mix of unease and confusion. No sooner had he left than Dobby reappeared.

He was still standing at the study door, his bat-like ears pressed against the door.

Lucius seemed to be searching for something in the study, followed by a long silence.

Dobby didn't relax at all, maintaining his eavesdropping posture, his ear still pressed tightly against the door.

Even a house-elf was so patient, so Dumbledore and Snape didn't say anything and continued to wait for the subsequent memories to unfold.

After a long while, Lucius let out a long sigh.

"Did the Dark Lord come to warn me? Or... to give me a warning?"

Hearing Lucius mutter to himself in surprise and uncertainty, Dumbledore and Snape's expressions turned strange.

Lucius continued to mutter to himself, "I'm afraid the Dark Lord is playing a long game! He's chosen to hide right under Dumbledore's nose."

Chapter 189 Side Effects of Buffet's Brain-Awakening Agent

“So Vizet was playing a long game… I was kept in the dark.” Dumbledore laughed, a hearty laugh, with tears welling in his eyes.

The owner of this memory—Dobby—took a deep breath and collapsed at the study doorway, looking as if he were terrified.

Tears welled in his eyes, but they were tears of fear; he was terrified that Voldemort had returned.

……

The contents of his memory changed, and after Lucius left, Dobby went into the empty study without permission.

He moved cautiously around the study, seemingly searching for something.

After quite a while, he finally found something in a cabinet.

It was a notebook with a white leather cover, and the name of Lucius's father, Abraxas Malfoy, was also on it.

Snape glanced at Dobby, who was peeking into the notebook, and his tone became subtle. "Peeping into his master's secrets... in the Malfoy family, that's enough to sentence this house-elf to death."

Dumbledore remarked, "To do so much for Harry... Dobby... is probably the most special house-elf I've ever met."

Snape sneered, "To see Vizet faint from fright is certainly quite unusual."

As Dobby flipped through the albumen leather notebook, the two of them also learned about its contents.

Through the contents of the notebook, Dumbledore and Snape finally understood why Lucius mistook Vizzet for Voldemort.

Dobby, who also peeked into the notebook's contents, clearly shared Lucius's idea, using the notebook's contents as evidence to see Vizet as a reborn Voldemort.

Dobby was terrified of Voldemort, which is why he behaved so poorly when facing Vizet, fainting on several occasions after encountering her.

……

Snape could somewhat understand why Lucius would make that connection.

After all, the Dark Mark had actually appeared, and Lucius's feelings toward the Dark Lord were extremely complex.

In his early years, he followed Abraxas Malfoy's last wish and, like other Death Eaters, held the Dark Lord in high esteem.

However, as the struggle unfolded, Voldemort's true nature was revealed more and more. In Lucius's heart, his admiration for Voldemort gradually disappeared and turned into fear.

It was this fear that led Lucius to become one of the first Death Eaters to defect after news of the Dark Lord's downfall broke.

After Lucius betrayed Voldemort, revealed the whereabouts of the other Death Eaters, and subsequently escaped trial, things began to stabilize and improve, but he began to feel uneasy again.

For a long time, Lucius was unable to sleep or think properly, so he had to take dreamless sleeping pills and brain-stimulating drugs to help him expand his family's power.

When the Dreamless Sleeping Potion and the Buffet Brain-Boosting Potion lost their effects, he still needed to ask Snape for help to break free from his dependence on the Buffet Brain-Boosting Potion.

Nevertheless, side effects are inevitable...

As Snape described it, he had taken too many potions and his head was covered in herbs.

Thus, as the Black Mark burned, his anxiety and fear reached their peak, and the side effects of overdosing on Buffalo's Mind-Awakening Essence manifested, Lucius conceived an extreme idea—