Magical Studies at Hogwarts...

Some dialogues in Chapter 349

When I saw Lao Fu again, it was already the morning of the next day.

Ike returned to Malfoy Manor last night, close to dawn, and, still awake, simply sat at the long table and waited quietly. Before long, as the sun rose, the once silent manor regained some of its vitality.

"Looks like you didn't gain anything this time." Old Fu, still wearing that somewhat worn-out robe, sat leisurely in the main seat, touching the top of his head as he spoke.

"Yes, teacher..."

Ike bowed slightly and recounted to Old Voldemort everything he had seen and heard in Avalon, omitting the trip to Gloucester and the final, perhaps negligible, compensation.

Old Fu remained silent for a long time after hearing this, sitting motionless in place. Ike also remained silent, staring intently at a very exquisite pattern on the long table in front of him.

Time passed second by second, and the other people in the manor also appeared, but seeing the scene before them and feeling the oppressive atmosphere, they all silently slowed their pace.

After a long while, Old Fu slowly opened his eyes, looked at the people standing quietly by the long table, waved his hand to let them all leave, and then said to Ike, "Let's leave it at that. Don't think about that anymore. We no longer need the power of ancient magic."

"Okay, teacher." Ike nodded, hesitated slightly, and asked, "So, teacher, what's our next step...?"

"Let's... stick to the plan and end it all this June."

Old Fu narrowed his eyes, a flash of ruthlessness appearing briefly in his bloodshot pupils.

Ike bowed slightly, then stood up, lowered his head, and said, "Then I'll set off now, teacher."

"Go..."

On the same day that Ike returned to Malfoy Manor, Dumbledore also completed his third "teaching" of Harry.

Of course, the atmosphere at the beginning of the "teaching" session was not harmonious, because Harry had completely forgotten the homework Dumbledore had given him. Admittedly, given Ron's undeserved misfortune at Christmas, it was understandable that Harry forgot, but afterwards, he focused his energy on finding out Malfoy's whereabouts.

Dumbledore was indeed somewhat disappointed by this.

But what other options did he have? The "teaching" had to continue.

This time, Dumbledore presented two more memories. One belonged to a very old house-elf named Hodge, whose owner was the former owner of the Slytherin locket and Hufflepuff cup; the other belonged to Dumbledore himself, a memory of Voldemort's job search in his youth.

"You need to be careful, Harry."

After reviewing the two memories, Dumbledore said with a serious expression, "Pay attention to these two stories, and even the details in the ones I showed you before."

"Without a doubt, Tom has committed another murder, but unlike the Riddle murders, this time it's not for revenge, but for profit. He needs Slytherin's locket and Hufflepuff's cup."

"And before this, we didn't know if he had done anything like this..."

"Voldemort definitely did it!" Harry interrupted angrily before Dumbledore could finish speaking. "He was that kind of evil person!"

"Very good, I hope you always keep that in mind." Dumbledore nodded, paused, and then continued, "As for the second memory, the one where Tom came to Hogwarts wanting to become the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, there are still some things I have doubts about, so..."

"So you need Professor Slughorn's memory?"

"Yes," Dumbledore said, "that's the final piece of the puzzle. I believe it will answer all the questions and give us the power to defeat Tom completely."

At this point, Dumbledore lowered his head slightly, looking down at Harry with a serious and earnest expression on his aged face. He gently pushed up his glasses and said in an unquestionable tone, "So Harry, this time I expect you to complete the assignment I've given you diligently and obtain that memory."

"Can I trust you, Harry?"

"Of course, sir, I will!" Harry responded instinctively, only breaking free from the suffocating atmosphere when Dumbledore nodded in satisfaction.

Seeing this, Dumbledore said nothing more, simply waving his hand and letting Harry leave. He watched Harry walk out of the headmaster's office and disappear down the spiral staircase, his gaze still lingering on him.

"I thought you would tell the child everything, Dumbledore." A voice sounded from behind, waking Dumbledore from his deep thoughts.

He slowly sat back in his chair, and with a flick of his wand, a dish of honey tarts and a cup of hot cocoa appeared on the table. He picked up a candy, popped it into his mouth, and savored the sweet taste with his eyes slightly closed before speaking, "I won't place all my hopes on one person, Phineas."

"Ha!" Principal Phineas Nigellus Black, whose portrait was on the wall, sneered upon hearing this. His voice was extremely unpleasant and immediately woke up several former principals who were already asleep.

Phineas, a typical member of the Black family, did not back down even when facing multiple opponents. He used vicious language to leave the other headmasters speechless before turning to Dumbledore, who had been watching the spectacle for a while, with the arrogance of a victor. "You should have more faith in that child, Dumbledore. The prophecy has given you the answer. All you have to do is make the prophecy come true."

“We all know what those prophecies are about, Phineas,” Dumbledore said, shaking his head. “Prophecies point to the outcome, but for now, the process is what matters most…”

"Are we just going to do nothing and wait for the child to accomplish what the prophecy foretold?"

"That's not realistic, Phineas."

"So, you're willing to give up everything for this?" Phineas roared.

Upon hearing this, Dumbledore fell silent for a long while before shaking his head and saying, "Not everything, Phineas. I only did what I thought I should do."

"you……"

Before Phineas could say anything, Dumbledore simply waved his wand, and a red veil flew onto the portrait, obscuring him.

The next second, Phineas's voice disappeared.

With another wave of his wand, the enormous red velvet curtain slowly closed, completely obscuring the portraits of the former headmasters on the wall, and the headmaster's office fell silent once more.

After sitting in the chair for a while, Dumbledore picked up the glass of cocoa on the table, which had been cold for a long time, drank it down in a few gulps, popped a candy into his mouth, and then walked toward his bedroom.

As she walked, her clothes transformed into comfortable pajamas, and a warm nightcap landed on her head. Her glasses and wand left her body, floating lightly onto the bedside table.

Lying in bed, the blanket naturally covers me, and I stretch out my arms from under the blanket, crossing them in front of my chest.

His hands were somewhat white, like an old man's, with many age spots visible on them.

That's all...

(End of this chapter)