Hogwarts: My Yorozuya has no taboos!

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"Among the people you know, are there any wizards whose magical skills surpass yours?"

Ares asked again in a tone as gentle as the breeze that lingered over the undulating lawn and the dark blue lake... His eyes were filled with curiosity, and he was all smiles, speaking in a completely casual tone.

Cornelius Fudge rubbed his red, snotty nose, and his brow furrowed slightly, revealing a barely perceptible urgency.

He wasn't very interested in this boring topic... he just wanted to quickly steer the conversation toward what he cared about.

However, he did understand Ares Delfino's "relentless pursuit".

Young people...

They all have a competitive spirit to some extent.

He probably wanted to hear some praise from the legendary wizard Albus Dumbledore himself, perhaps something like—"Oh, I'm afraid not, but in time, I believe you have the potential to surpass me, Ares..."

Things like that.

Let's give them a few words of praise... so we can have a pleasant conversation later?

Cornelius Fudge turned his face toward Dumbledore, gesturing with his eyes for Dumbledore to "give him some face".

But when he noticed the increasingly displeasing expression on Dumbledore's "old face," the Minister of Magic felt a sense of confusion.

It was a...very solemn and serious face.

The peace and tolerance that Dumbledore once possessed were gone, replaced by a sharp edge that revealed his true nature... He gazed at Ares with deep eyes.

How perceptive!

Ares silently praised Dumbledore in his heart—he knew his seductive tone hadn't fooled Dumbledore...

Dumbledore noticed...or guessed something.

"If the magical skill you're referring to is the kind I understand..."

Dumbledore said in a flat, emotionless voice,

"My answer is the same: Ares Voldemort possesses dark magic powers that I could never have (Fudge protests loudly)."

"A mysterious person?"

Ares nodded, a knowing smile playing on his lips.

"Yes, yes—his dark magic skills, that's right... How does he compare to Grindelwald?"

Grindelwald?

Dumbledore's expression grew even more serious... even somewhat surprised and doubtful.

"He...it's hard to compare, Ares."

"Oh, please don't, Professor Dumbledore...we're just chatting, not giving a formal academic presentation."

Ares asked in a light and enthusiastic tone,

"Just tell me how you feel—"

A moment of silence.

"If you absolutely must have an answer, Ares—"

Dumbledore spoke.

"Grindelwald was fond of dark magic, but the main reason was that he preferred the destructive power of dark magic—he thought that creating more thorough destruction would intimidate people and make them submit."

Voldemort was also fascinated by dark magic, but he placed greater emphasis on its cruelty, using brutality and violence to instill fear. (Fudge protested again, his fat body trembling several times.)

"If they were both... of course, just hypothetically—"

Ares nodded knowingly, then asked,

Who will win?

"I think it's Voldemort."

After a few seconds of silence, Dumbledore's eyelids twitched slightly, and he spoke calmly.

Since things had already come to this point, Dumbledore wouldn't mind adding a couple more comments.

"Grindelwald is too arrogant, while Voldemort is clearly much more cunning... If their magical powers are roughly equal, perhaps Voldemort will be the one who survives in the end..."

"Ah, I see."

Ares understood and nodded with a smile. But then, he became determined to get to the bottom of things.

"Anything else, Professor Dumbledore... besides those two?"

"If you absolutely have to find one—"

Thoughts flickered in Dumbledore's deep blue eyes. He knew that neither Grindelwald nor Voldemort were the answers Ares sought... He pondered, hesitating.

"You just mentioned his name when you were praising my insignificant contribution to the magical world."

"You mentioned...Nico Flamel?"

"Ah—countless riches and longevity!"

Fudge, who was anxious about how to interrupt the conversation, couldn't help but become interested.

"Strictly speaking, Flamel is far stronger than Voldemort or Grindelwald, and of course, he surpasses me—"

Dumbledore glanced coldly at Fudge, then calmly addressed Ares,

"Fleming possesses the Philosopher's Stone... As the minister said, he has a lifespan that is difficult for others to match. During this long lifespan, through dedicated research and study, Flamel has mastered more magical knowledge than anyone else."

"But he's not that great, is he, Dumbledore?"

Fudge clicked his tongue and asked casually,

"I saw him twice after he came to England to retire and settle down... Oh, he's aged so much, and so has his wife—"

"nature."

Dumbledore stopped under a crooked willow tree, ignoring the swaying branches, and gazed meaningfully at the thoughtful Ares.

"Even the Philosopher's Stone cannot truly grant immortality... It merely keeps Flamel and his wife physically alive."

But... I believe that with your current level of magical skill, Ares, you must understand—the soul, as time goes by, also ages... gradually losing control of the body and magic, and eventually leaving this world.

No one lives forever... What did the Muggle scientists say again, Ares? "Our planet and the entire universe will one day perish."

Life is wonderful because it is finite.

Ares nodded calmly, still deep in thought.

"I'm glad we were able to reach an agreement on this—"

Ares's assertion lessened the shadow in Dumbledore's eyes considerably. Ignoring Cornelius's winking and gesturing at him, he became intrigued.

"at last..."

Dumbledore smiled.

"It might be you, Ares?"

"Me? How should I put it?"

"The magic you used to stop the train from going out of control... ah, and of course, the one before that—you know I'm referring to when you were in fifth year, when you used a single spell to deflect all the spells that attacked you from dozens of Slytherin students—"

Dumbledore smiled approvingly.

"I didn't realize it back then, but after seeing the train... was that a derivative application of the Space-Time Extension Charm?"

To be precise—

Ares nodded slightly, making no attempt to hide anything.

"It utilizes the strong interference effect of the Seamless Stretch Spell on space, as well as the definition of 'spatial energy' in the Gamp Law, to perform refined and controllable deformation of space."

"Ah, I understand... Excellent, Ares—"

Dumbledore's bright blue eyes gleamed as he inquired with great interest.

"Besides an extremely profound understanding of the Seamless Stretch Charm and the Gamp Law, this controlled transformation requires even greater magical power—I mean, the ability to manipulate and... [quantity] of magical power?"