Magical Studies at Hogwarts...

Chapter 277 Goal Selection

Old Fu stood quietly with his eyes closed, and after a long while, he sighed. When he opened his eyes again, the bloody and cruel feeling in his red pupils was even stronger.

"Teacher." Upon seeing this, Ike immediately bowed and greeted the old man with his head down. However, the old man waved his hand, indicating that he was alright.

"What is this...?"

"It's alright, it's already working." Old Fu said, holding up a ball of green light in his left hand, which looked even more terrifying.

"You did a good job, Ike, but you didn't expect that there wasn't much essence left in the Fruit of Life."

"According to you, when you picked it, the whole tree was withered, leaving only this one fruit, and right after you picked it, the tree turned to ashes."

"Do you know what this means?" Old Fu asked, touching his bald head.

"I'm sorry, teacher, I don't know," Ike replied, bowing his head.

"This means that the reason you can still see that tree is entirely because of this fruit," Old Fu chuckled and said. "Remember, nothing in this world is permanent, not even the Fruit of Life from mythology."

"That tree has lived for so many years and was already on the verge of death. I guess its last essence was concentrated in this fruit. It should have withered and died when the fruit ripened. If the fruit of life had been picked then, it would have preserved all its energy."

"Unfortunately, after all these years, you are the only one who has successfully found it."

"What you don't know is that precious magical plants like the Fruit of Life all have the same characteristic: once they mature and leave the mother plant that nurtured them, they begin to lose their energy until it turns into nutrients for the mother plant."

"This fruit may have vaguely known this, and in order to survive, it gradually returned its energy. After so many years, it's already quite remarkable that it has left this much."

Old Fu seemed to be in a good mood, with a smile on his face the whole time, and he even styled his bald head so that it reflected light.

Hearing this, Ike felt relieved, raised his head, and said with a humble expression, "Congratulations, teacher."

"Hehehe..." Old Fu chuckled, walked over, and patted Ike on the shoulder.

"Now, I feel full of power, and that damned old villager is no match for me!"

"Then, teacher, should we change our plans now?" Ike asked softly.

"The plan?" Old Fu pondered for a moment, then shook his head. "Let's proceed according to the original plan... What we need is a sure victory."

"But we haven't found any clues about the Elder Wand..."

"No rush. Although that poor wretch never said a word before he died, I've already got some leads on the location of the Elder Wand..." Old Voldemort interrupted Ike, "I'll handle this myself..."

"Right now, we have a lot to do, and you have a heavy burden on your shoulders..."

"It is my honor to serve my teacher!" Upon hearing this, Ike immediately straightened his back, and a determined look naturally appeared on his face.

Seeing this, Old Fu nodded secretly, patted Ike's shoulder twice, and said earnestly, "You are my most trusted student and my most capable assistant."

"So, there's no need to say things like that anymore. I've got it all in my mind..."

"Teacher..." Ike's body trembled slightly with excitement, and tears welled up in his eyes.

"Alright, alright, go ahead. Don't forget the task I just gave you: teach those disgusting bugs a lesson they won't forget..."

"I will, teacher!"

Old Fu laughed happily, then chased Ike out. As he left, Ike looked reluctant to part with him and even secretly wiped away a tear from his eye.

Old Fu naturally noticed this, and as he left the basement, his signature laughter still echoed behind him.

Ike closed the door and went up the stairs. As soon as he stepped into the castle's huge living room, he saw Bella sitting alone in a chair, bending her hair.

"Young master." She nodded slightly as she saw Ike enter, which was her way of greeting him. Ike didn't seem to mind and sat down in his chair.

"Looks like you've already notified those guys?" Ike asked.

Bella nodded slightly.

"Very good... So, any news about those guys from the Order of the Phoenix?"

"Little master, as you know, those guys are like disgusting cockroaches. They run so fast that often, by the time we get the message and head over there, they've already vanished without a trace..." She shrugged. "Finding them isn't an easy task."

"Besides, Snape already said that their hideout is the Black family's old house. If you want, young master, you can go there directly."

"Ha!" Ike chuckled, leaning back in his chair and tilting his head slightly. "If I remember correctly, you're also from the Black family, aren't you, Lestrange?"

"That's right," Bella replied.

"So, you don't know where you've lived all your life?"

“Young master, you know…” Bella looked slightly troubled, “The Fidelity Spell is the most secretive magic. Once that house was enchanted, no one but those authorized to use it could find it…”

"Even though it's a place I've lived in for over a decade, I can't find it. Now all I can remember is its name."

"Ah, this is a bit difficult..." Ike scratched his head, his tone filled with helplessness. "Looks like we'll have to find another way to complete the task assigned by the teacher."

"Yes, little master, otherwise I would have killed those disgusting bugs long ago, before you even got angry!"

Ike fell silent, leaning back in his chair with a thoughtful expression on his face. Seeing this, Bella chuckled lightly, as if acting strangely, and then stopped.

She took out a magic wand and started trimming her nails.

After a while, Narcissa came in and couldn't help but feel puzzled when she saw her like this. She looked at Bella, who grinned silently and then nodded towards Ike. Narcissa immediately understood.

He also slowed his pace and quietly sat down next to Bella. Bella casually cast a spell to block out the sound, and the two began to chat.

"Bang!"

Suddenly, Ike slammed his hand on the table in front of him and stood up abruptly. This sudden movement naturally caught the attention of Bella and Narcissa.

Bella dispelled the magic and asked directly, "Little master, have you thought of a way?"

"Of course!" Ike said excitedly. "Since the problem is that those Phoenix guys are too fast, why don't we find a way to stop them from running away?"

A fleeting hint of mockery crossed Bella's face, but her words revealed a strong thirst for knowledge.

"Young master, what is the solution?"

Ike smiled broadly, slowly sat back down, and scratched his slightly messy hair.

"It should be almost time for Hogwarts to start soon, Bellatrix..."

(End of this chapter)