Hogwarts: Dumbledore reigned over the wizarding world.

Chapter 81 The Mystery of Tom and the Return to Hogwarts

Snape didn't know why Dumbledore wanted Harry to learn Occlumency.

Dumbledore's reasoning was that the Dark Lord and Harry's fates were intertwined, and that they might have some kind of connection on a mystical and spiritual level.

Dumbledore told him that Vaughn believed this connection would allow the Dark Lord to access Harry's memories and thoughts.

This reasoning sounded quite reasonable—at least to Snape, who knew nothing about fate and held it in awe.

Snape was once someone who despised fate.

Until the year Harry was born.

He overheard Silby Trelawney's prophecy.

The one capable of defeating the Dark Lord is approaching... born into a family that has resisted him three times, born at the end of July...

Having only heard these three sentences, Snape, worried about his master's grand plan, rushed back to inform Voldemort before hearing the rest of the prophecy.

Everything seemed like a cruel joke played by fate.

The true prophecy is... that the Dark Lord can choose his enemies, and once chosen, his enemies will possess powers he cannot comprehend.

Misled by Snape, the Dark Lord chose his mortal enemy, and his Killing Curse was reflected back at him by "love magic" that he could not understand.

He died, and so did Lily, who had cast the spell.

Memories of the past surfaced in his cold mind. Snape, who now kept his distance from fate, trembled slightly as he watched Dumbledore deep in thought.

His hands, tucked into his sleeves, clenched tightly: "Has...fate changed?"

"What?"

Dumbledore seemed to wake from a dream and quickly realized, "No, Severus, of course not. It's just that I discovered something on this trip and I want to verify it as soon as possible."

Snape breathed a sigh of relief, then resumed his cold tone, reminding her, "But Potter hasn't fully mastered Occlumency yet."

"That's alright, I'll urge Vaughn to speed things up, and Querinas will need some time to prepare as well."

"...I hope you understand what you're doing."

Dumbledore, feigning madness again, wiped his eyes with emotion and said, "My dear Severus, you still say you don't care about Harry?"

Snape's cheek twitched, he snorted, and strode away.

Once he was alone in the office, Dumbledore's smile faded, and he put his glasses back on.

He opened the map, and magic automatically drew a path on it—all the places he had been over the past few months.

That path extends out of France, leaps directly to Croatia and Hungary, then to Romania and Bulgaria…

Ultimately, that tiny footprint remained in Albania!

Dumbledore stared at Albania on the map, lost in thought for a moment:

"Have you been hiding here all these years? Why? Tom..."

……

As a prominent figure in politics today, Vaughn briefly enjoyed the privilege of not having to return to school.

Therefore, after the inquiry meeting, while waiting for the Wizengamot decision—which usually takes some time—the old wizards, whose lives are incredibly slow-paced, need to go home to rest in order to make up for the energy depletion caused by several days of meetings, and then send letters to vote.

Vaughn has not returned to Hogwarts yet.

He found a luxury hotel on Whitehall Street, above the Ministry of Magic.

Using the magical world's worthless paper, pounds sterling, he booked himself a luxury suite, supposedly a filming location for 007.

Vaughn, who had never lived in London in either his past or present life, was indulging in this rare luxury.

Unfortunately, the experience was not pleasant. He even felt it was not as good as Snape's house in Kirkworth, where at least there was an iron that would automatically iron clothes and clothes would be put on him by himself, making him clean and tidy.

In terms of pure enjoyment, Muggles are no match for wizards who possess a variety of household spells.

Aside from the fact that it's priced in pounds, the service is impeccable.

The next day, Vaughn made his decision for the third time: he would go back and learn household spells. With the help of his butler, he tied his tie, went downstairs, and got into the luxury car arranged by the hotel.

The driver asked, "Mr. Weasley, where are you going?"

Vaughn handed him a note.

He had no plans to travel to the wizarding world today, but instead tried his best to dress like a Muggle. He was going to Granger's house to deliver a letter for Hermione.

The driver took the note, glanced at it, exchanged a few greetings, and then started the car.

Watching the scenery slowly receding outside the window, Vaughn suppressed the urge to chant a spell, feeling somewhat sentimental.

Without realizing it, he had become more and more accustomed to magic.

At some point, like many wizards, he began to see himself as belonging to another class and showed discomfort with everything about Muggles.

Should we consider this as his assimilation into this world?

Under the same sky, Mr. Granger had just finished mowing his lawn.

"Jane, what do you think?" (The Grangers' names are not mentioned in the original book, but judging from Hermione's middle name, Jane is likely her mother's name.)

He looked up and smiled smugly at his wife, who was cleaning the terrace on the second floor.

Mrs. Granger rolled her eyes: "Your daughter trimmed it beautifully with magic at Christmas, and now you've ruined it all."

"Shh—" Mr. Granger hurriedly gestured for her to be quiet. He glanced furtively around before jogging back into the house. "Have you forgotten the warnings from those people in the Ministry of Magic? If a Muggle hears this, Hermione's studies will be over!"

"...You're a Muggle too!"

"No, we are different. Our precious daughter is a wizard, so as parents, we are half wizards."

Mr. Granger was very pleased with himself.

But his smugness soon faded when Mrs. Granger, cleaning the terrace, found several newspapers in the corner where her daughter usually stayed.

As she flipped through the newspaper, she suddenly exclaimed, "Red hair!"

"What red hair?"

"What else could it be? The one Hermione talks about all the time!"

Mr. Granger's face immediately tightened.

He snatched the newspaper from his wife's hand and looked at the photo of the red-haired boy surrounded by a crowd.

Damn it!

Thinking of the name his beloved daughter had been repeating every day during Christmas, Mr. Granger felt a pang of bitterness. He gritted his teeth and said, "Let me see... Vaughn Weasley... It really is that bastard, damn it!"

Mrs. Granger stood on tiptoe beside him, peering closer, but had a different opinion: "He's really handsome."

"...Which side are you on?"

Granger ignored her husband's rant and continued cleaning the terrace: "What a lovely child, no wonder our daughter loves him."

Mr. Granger's face darkened: "He'd better pray I don't see him, or I'll break his legs!"

After saying that, he waited a while, but received no response from his wife.

He turned around and found his wife had stopped what she was doing, looking downstairs with a surprised expression.

"What's wrong?"

Mrs. Granger turned around, stunned: "...The person you wanted to break the leg of is down there..."

"Today is not April Fool's Day, darling."

Mr. Granger smiled, walked to the edge of the terrace, and peered over his shoulder.

Below, a red-haired rascal was smiling and waving at them.

As a father.

If your daughter suddenly tells you one day that she has someone she likes, and that guy even shows up in front of you, what would you do?

This is a problem that every father has to face.

The only difference is that for Mr. Granger, this problem came a little too early... at least 10 years ahead of schedule!

The atmosphere at the Granger house is rather strange right now.

Mr. Granger sat on the sofa, staring intently at Vaughn, who was sitting opposite him with a smile on his face.

Mrs. Granger busied herself bringing snacks and drinks before sitting down next to her husband.

Compared to her husband's stiff expression and attitude, Mrs. Granger was much better. She glanced out the window at the luxury car parked on the side of the road—Vaughn's car—and couldn't help but greet him, "Weasley, I heard from Hermione that your family is a wizarding family. Do you have businesses in Muggle society?"

"No, madam, that car outside isn't mine; it's a limousine arranged by the Muggle Hotel."

Vaughn's smile was well-behaved and clean.

This undoubtedly greatly increased Mrs. Granger's favor towards him, and made Mr. Granger dislike him even more.

He couldn't help but mutter under his breath, "Only luxury hotels can afford to send limousines. Some people are so young, yet they're already wasting their parents' money... Ugh!"

Mrs. Granger gave him a subtle yet ruthless elbow, her smile slightly awkward.

To their surprise, Vaughn, dressed like a rich kid, wasn't angry. "Sorry, I'm not very familiar with Muggle society. To avoid getting lost and attracting attention with my clothes, staying in a luxury hotel is the best solution I can think of."

"Perhaps Hermione forgot to tell you, I am an apothecary with some success in the magical world. Sometimes I will release a batch of potions and request payment in Muggle currency. Some wizards with large sums of Muggle currency really like this method of transaction."

"The money spent on that luxury hotel stay can easily be earned back next time I open a few more potions!"

The Grangers: "..."

It's so sour, it tastes like a lemon!

Mr. Granger's cheek muscles twitched, and in a daze, he seemed to see the red-haired boy opposite him with a face that screamed "I'm rich!"

Those despicable nouveau riche!

However, before he could utter a sarcastic remark, Mrs. Granger suddenly exclaimed, "Ah, I remember now."

As she spoke, she hurried upstairs, quickly returning with the newspaper she had found earlier. After casually flipping through it a few times, she excitedly told her husband, "Look, the newspaper says that Vaughn invented something called Wolfsbane Potion, which has caused a great sensation... That's a magic potion, right?"

She asked that last question, looking at Vaughn with curiosity.

Vaughn nodded: "Yes, madam, it has great political significance. The reason I was able to leave the school this time is because the Wizarding world's legislative body, Wizengamo, held a plenary meeting regarding the Wolfsbane Potion and my proposal. As the proposer and a member of Wizengamo, I also had to attend the meeting."

As he spoke, Vaughn explained to the two what Wizengamo was and the Werewolf Affairs Committee.

Mrs. Granger gasped in surprise, covering her mouth. "My God, so you're a councilor from the wizarding world?"

Even Mr. Granger was startled and quickly picked up the newspaper; he had been so focused on the photos that he hadn't read the contents at all.

Only after reading the reports did he realize that Vaughn hadn't exaggerated at all; just look at what those reports were saying!

A glimmer of hope for the magical world, a tearing apart of the Ministry of Magic, and a struggle for supreme power!

In Mr. Granger's eyes, the Ministry of Magic = the government, the Minister of Magic = the Prime Minister, and the boy in front of him, whom he had just been thinking was a nouveau riche, was actually the Prime Minister's political enemy.

Mr. Granger suddenly wondered if he was under some kind of spell.

Compared to his disbelief, Mrs. Granger accepted it quickly. After all, she had slept with her daughter every night during Christmas to make up for her daughter leaving home at such a young age.

Hermione told her a lot about Vaughn.

Genius, genius, and more genius...

According to Hermione, there seemed to be no problem that could stump this boy who was a year younger than her.

Mrs. Granger knew her daughter well and knew that she was actually very competitive. She had never seen her admire someone of similar age so much before.

Mrs. Granger's attitude became increasingly enthusiastic, and Mr. Granger's stern face became less serious.

Vaughn didn't mind the change in their attitudes.

Or rather, he initiates conversations about himself in order to showcase his strengths.

The Grangers are adults, and adults are materialistic and realistic. It's not that they are inherently like that, but rather that the harsh realities of society have molded them into that way.

Vaughn was certain that if he were just an ordinary little wizard boy, his relationship with Hermione would never have received the support of the Grangers—both out of concern for their age and as parents, they hoped their child could make friends with better people and have a better life in the future.

They might not strongly oppose it, at most because of Hermione's personal wishes and educational philosophy.

Vaughn doesn't like to play dumb to fool others, and he dislikes waiting for conflicts to accumulate and escalate before trying to resolve them, as in some novels, in order to create a show-off effect... That really goes against the normal human thought process!

So, after exchanging a few pleasantries with Mrs. Granger and Mr. Granger, who was finally willing to strike up a conversation,

When asked about the purpose of his visit, Vaughn pulled Hermione's letter from his satchel and then took out two carefully wrapped boxes:

"Sir, Madam, this is my first visit, and I have prepared some small gifts. I hope you will not find them offensive."

"this……"

Before they could refuse, Vaughn had already opened the gift box, which contained ten bottles of potions. He pushed it in front of Lady Granger and said with a smile, "Madam, these are potions I developed myself, the 'Vaughn Beauty' series. They include various beauty and care effects, with immediate results. Instructions for use are included!"

The other gift box contained a pair of exquisitely designed head-mounted goggles.

"Sir, this is an eyepiece I modified last year for research. It provides a 360° panoramic view and X-ray vision. Hermione told me you're a dentist, so I believe it will be a great help to you... By the way, the X-ray vision is only for close-up viewing, so please be careful not to stare at people!"

Mr. Granger, who had just picked up the eyepiece, blushed upon hearing this.

Lady Granger, who was curiously examining the beauty potion, looked at Vaughn in astonishment, "X-ray vision? This…"

Vaughn smiled and gestured, "Sir, you can give it a try."

Mr. Granger awkwardly yet impatiently put on the goggles and looked at his wife—the X-ray vision always sparked the imagination.

But the next moment, he screamed and hurriedly took off his goggles, his eyes bloodshot!

Vaughn explained with a smile, "Sir, in the realm of magic, we believe that everything possesses an aura, especially life. The aura of every healthy life is like the sun... Therefore, it's only suitable for examining teeth!"

The eyepiece is not a gold-plated item; it is simply a product of a Muggle product that has been enchanted.

With use, the spell's power diminishes, and it eventually loses its effectiveness.

However, apart from being momentarily dazzled by what he called a flash of inspiration, Mr. Granger was quite pleased with the gift.

This improved his mood considerably, so much so that when he read his daughter's letter, in which she expressed her wish for her parents to visit the Weasleys during the summer vacation, he did not object.

Or rather, Mr. Granger, who is now gradually becoming obsessed with magic, is actually looking forward to experiencing the real life of a wizard.

Of course, he would be even happier if the experience didn't come at the cost of his daughter's happiness.

Having achieved his goal for the day, Vaughn politely declined Mrs. Granger's invitation to have lunch with him.

After receiving a reply from the couple, he took his leave.

Watching the luxury car drive away, Mrs. Granger rolled her eyes at her husband and complained, "Vaughn is still a child, with a good personality and polite manners. I think he's quite nice, but you have to act all high and mighty!"

"Hmph, don't forget, they're only in middle school!"

"Isn't it normal to date in high school? Besides, when you're glaring at someone, could you at least put down the gift they gave you?"

"...I don't care!"

Mr. Granger gripped the magic goggles tightly in his hand and said forcefully.

But this tough stance quickly crumbled when Lady Granger tried the "Vorn Beauty" potion.

Mr. Granger, who was playing with the eyepiece in the living room, heard his wife scream and rushed to the bathroom. He looked at his wife in the mirror and opened his mouth in surprise.

Mrs. Granger, who was originally middle-aged and whose skin had become rough and loose due to pigmentation, suddenly looked 10 years younger in the mirror.

Her face, now fair and smooth again, was just like the first time he saw her many years ago!

The usually tough Mr. Granger felt weak all over and his heart was pounding like a deer.

For the first time, I felt that Weasley was truly a genius...

Vaughn, whom Mr. Granger considered a "genius," did not stay at the hotel after returning and went directly back to Hogwarts through the Ministry of Magic's fireplace area.

The vote in Wisengam will take a few more days, and now that the last thing is done, he naturally won't stay any longer.

The professors at the school already had some complaints.

When Vaughn emerged from Professor McGonagall's fireplace, he saw the stern-faced lady, her lips tightly pressed together: "Mr. Weasley, when do you plan to return to the classroom?"

Vaughn was a little embarrassed; he had indeed been skipping class for far too long, which was somewhat unreasonable.

"Today, Professor."

"very good."

Professor McGonagall's expression softened somewhat, and she asked with concern, "I read in the newspaper that things are progressing well, right?"

"Yes, Professor, we are now waiting for Wizengamo to make a decision, so I will stay at school and focus on my studies until the vote is in."

Hearing this, Professor McGonagall pursed her lips again—she understood the subtext: once the results were in, Vaughn would have to go to the Ministry of Magic again!

Vaughn quickly made his escape to avoid being lectured by Professor McGonagall, who was in a bad mood.

He went back to his dorm first; the fruit tea was still with Hermione.

The dormitory had been unoccupied for a while, and some dust had accumulated. Warn used several "clean-up" products to clean it thoroughly.

Then he took out his notebook from his small shoulder bag, checked the course, and planned out the time ahead.

There are some courses that, even for someone of his level, would be inconvenient to skip.

For example, classes on metamorphosis, herbalism, astronomy, and so on.

The Transfiguration class mainly consists of the teaching content of Professor McGonagall's Transfiguration Club. Currently, Vaughn's Transfiguration skill level is at the stage of transforming inanimate objects into living ones.

The next step is to delve deeper into living metamorphosis and cross-species transformation.

Herbalism and astronomy classes mainly require hands-on practice. If you miss a class, you can't just read the book and you have to find professors for extra help.

We need to catch up on everything we missed during this time, including Quidditch.

He missed the Slytherin vs. Hufflepuff match last month, and he absolutely cannot miss the Ravenclaw match next month.

Ravenclaw is still quite strong.

He was also counting on completing the main quest to "win the Academy Cup"!

"Regarding magic practice, household spells should be included in the plan. Let me see... Hmm, some spells that have reached LV3 and whose progress has started to slow down can be postponed for the time being. Household spells don't need to be mastered too much, just learn them."

"Then comes the study and experimentation with memory magic. The personality construct is not yet perfect and needs further research, but there's no need to rush that. I already have enough knowledge and understanding of memory. The next step is to observe the effects of dark magic, which can't be rushed..."

"Finally, there's the further development of the wolfsbane potion, and the refinement of the magic extraction method..."

Vonn scribbled and drew in his notebook until it got dark, finally managing to put together a detailed schedule.

He enjoys a structured life and hates surprises!

But accidents always happen unexpectedly...

As Vaughn finished making his plans and prepared to go to the restaurant to find something to eat and deliver his reply to Hermione, he saw an annoying white-bearded old man in the hallway outside.

"...Tsk, what bad luck!"

Vaughn turned and went back to his dormitory, while Dumbledore followed him in with a smile.

"Dear Vaughn, a centenarian has been waiting for you for at least two hours. Shouldn't you be considerate of his hardship and be a little more gentle with him?"

Vaughn rolled his eyes and said, "Serves you right for waiting so long. So, what is it now?"

Dumbledore's smile faded, his expression turned serious. He remained silent for a moment, then sighed, "The plan needs to start sooner. You should focus on training Harry recently and get him to learn Occlumency as soon as possible, so that Tom won't notice anything amiss when he comes into contact with him."

Vaughn is not Snape.

Snape had no idea what Dumbledore was doing, but Vaughn did. He asked knowingly, "You found the place where Quirrell met Voldemort?"

"Yes, in Albania, in a primeval jungle... Tom lived there for a long time, humbly and tenaciously continuing his filthy soul."

As he spoke, a look of confusion appeared in Dumbledore's bright eyes: "What I don't understand is why he would hide in Albania? It is indeed far from England, but it is not a suitable place to start over. For so many years, he could only live off small animals."

Vaughn certainly knew the reason, but he couldn't say it.

This intelligence is inexplicable; it involves secrets from long ago.

Faced with the bewildered Lao Deng, he could only offer a guessing suggestion: "Perhaps it's because that place is more meaningful to him?"

"Oh?"

Dumbledore blinked, then asked with interest, "Do you think that place has anything to do with his past experiences?"

Vaughn shrugged and said, "Just a guess. In everyone's life, there are always some special experiences that even a madman can't forget."

(End of this chapter)