I, Hogwarts Second Time Around.

Chapter 568 Dumbledore's Will

Hermione's plan was still very necessary.

After all, Hogwarts contains many treasures.

Merlin's Chamber of Secrets treasure has yet to be retrieved.

After careful consideration, Owen decided to agree to Hermione's plan: "Hmm—you can do this."

Hogwarts' underground network is intricate and labyrinthine, connecting the castle with multiple secret passages to the outside world.

As long as Voldemort isn't in the castle, there's not much danger.

Furthermore, he considered that as their studies progressed, the members of Dumbledore's Army (DA), including Hannah, Luna, Neville, and others, were finding it difficult to achieve new breakthroughs and growth in regular coursework. Rather than letting them spend boring time in the classroom, it would be better to let them learn through practice and grow in battle.

"And what about you, Owen?" Hermione looked at him, staring intently.

"Me?" Owen pondered for a moment, then slowly said, "After this matter, I will go to the Divine Tower in the cave. It is the last Divine Tower recorded by the [Chosen Ones] Order."

It's the Tower of Divinity, which was later modified by Hogwarts after a past heir defeated its enemies. The ancient magic may be gone, but it certainly holds some secret—I want to see it no matter what.

"Is it dangerous?" Hermione asked again.

"Probably not, you can ask Principal Dexter. But the situation inside is complicated. This Divine Tower is quite different from the others. It probably requires some kind of test or something." Owen shook his head. "I don't know the specifics either, but anyway, this is the last one, and the one I have to go to."

"Okay," Hermione said somberly.

She can't go with us this time.

She has her own things to do.

As they were talking, Professor Sprout suddenly appeared at the entrance of the chapel.

"I want to talk to you all," she said. "Owen, Hermione, and Harry and Ron."

"Yes, Professor," Hermione said obediently, rising to her feet.

The group then followed Professor Sprout out of the chapel, across a crowded open space, and arrived at a barn near the forest. Far from the hustle and bustle of the school, it was exceptionally quiet and mysterious.

Inside the barn, the air was filled with the aroma of hay and fresh ingredients. This was a place used by the Muggle government to store supplies and food for schools, and wizards rarely came here.

Only a few house-elves come here.

As the group entered the barn, they bumped into several little elves preparing food, including Dobby.

"Oh—sir!" Dobby jumped up excitedly as soon as he saw Owen, his big eyes sparkling with joy.

He's now a well-known Pokémon, famous throughout the Muggle world. Although most Muggles can't tell the difference in appearance between Dobby and other Pokémon.

Seeing this, Professor Sprout smiled and said to Dobby, "Dobby, thank you very much for your hard work, but now I need to speak with these students alone. Could you take your companions and leave for a moment?"

"Of course, Professor." Dobby nodded, and then left the barn with the other elves.

After the elves left, Professor Sprout waved his wand gently, and several seemingly ordinary but actually exceptionally comfortable armchairs appeared out of thin air in front of them. He then gestured for them to sit down.

Harry, Owen, Hermione, and Ron sat down one by one, puzzled.

As soon as they sat down, with a slight breeze still lingering in the air from their movements, Professor Sprout spoke in a solemn yet gentle tone: "Albus left you some relics."

"The headmaster left us his belongings?" Hermione asked immediately, surprised.

Professor Sprout nodded gently, his gaze sweeping over everyone with a warm expression. "Yes, while we were carefully sorting through Albus's belongings, we found his will—those things could have been given to you a month ago, but because of a certain special item, Mr. Theseus Scamander studied it for a long time but couldn't find a way to destroy it, so it was delayed."

"What is it?" Harry asked almost simultaneously with Hermione, his voice tinged with urgency.

"Wait—" said Professor Sprout, then reached into her cloak and pulled out a drawstring pouch. From it she took out a roll of parchment, unfolded it and read: "The will of Albus Percival Woolfrick Bryan Dumbledore—My Deluminator is left to Ron Billies Weasley, that he may remember me when he uses it."

Professor Sprout pulled something out of his bag: it looked like a silver lighter, but with a flick of the wrist, it could absorb all the lights in a spot and then relight them. The professor leaned over and handed the deluminator to Ron, who took it and examined it in his hands, looking utterly dumbfounded.

"This is a very valuable item," the professor said, looking at Ron. "It's unique, and I believe it was designed by Albus himself."

"I know the professor," Ron said blankly. "I just don't understand why the headmaster would give this to me?"

Irving took the Deluminator from Ron and examined it carefully.

It contains very faint ancient magic, and the patterns on its surface also show traces of Nirvana, clearly indicating that Dumbledore modified it later.

"Where the treasure is, there the heart is too," he murmured, then returned the Deluminator to Ron.

"What do you mean?" Ron asked.

"It can take you home," Owen explained. "No matter where we are, as long as we say your name, the Deluminator will produce a blue orb of light that illuminates you, and you'll know our location. Then you can Apparate over there."

"It has the technology of Victor's Warp, and it also has the technology of Nicolas Flamel."

"In short, Dumbledore probably gave him to you because of your experience of being captured and taken to the Tower of Divine Gift in Brazil. Hopefully, it will always guide you back home."

"Is that so?" Ron exclaimed, holding the Deluminator in both hands and examining it closely. "Oh—I never knew Dumbledore valued me so much!"

"Dumbledore certainly values ​​you, Ron," Harry said, patting him on the shoulder.

Professor Sprout nodded, then looked at Hermione.

"I leave my copy of 'Hogwarts: A History' to Miss Hermione Jane Granger, hoping she can find the answers she seeks in this book."

The professor then pulled a small book from the bag. It was a very worn book, its cover mottled and peeling in several places. This was very likely the one Dumbledore bought during his school days.

Hermione took the book without a word, placed it on her lap, and looked down at it.

"Hogwarts: A History of the School" is a book about Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, spanning over 1000 pages. It's Hermione's favorite book, and she frequently uses it to discuss various aspects of Hogwarts—the three most frequently mentioned being the enchanted ceiling of the Great Hall that displays the outside weather, the inability to Apparate within the school, and the malfunction of electronic devices within the school.

Hermione had known this book by heart for a long time.

I really don't know why Dumbledore would give her this book.

"Why would Dumbledore give you this book?" Harry knew, of course, that Hermione had read this book quite a bit.

Over the past few years, Hermione has often talked about what she has learned from this book.

"Didn't you previously think that this book made no mention of Hogwarts using house-elves to serve its students? You even said it should be called 'A Revised History of Hogwarts,' or 'A Biased and Selective History of Hogwarts, Covering Up the School's Dark Side.'" Owen looked at Hermione and said, "I think the one you're holding now is the one Dumbledore added. Perhaps it contains some entirely new information."

"I will read it carefully several times," Hermione said firmly.

Professor Sprout nodded silently, saying nothing more. They had been studying the book carefully for a month, but had not found any new content. Perhaps, as Harry and Owen had guessed, there was some kind of magical mechanism hidden within, and they had not yet found the key to unlock it.

"What I leave to Harry James Potter is a ring I received from an old friend. Wear it at the end. It will guide you on your way forward."

"A ring?" Harry was taken aback.

Just as he was about to ask further questions, a sudden stinging sensation spread across his forehead.

Owen's expression instantly turned serious. He could hardly believe his eyes—the ring that Professor Sprout had taken out was the Horcrux they had been searching for all along, the Gaunt Ring!

"This—Dumbledore already received the Gaunt Ring from Barty Crouch Jr.?"

"I think so," Professor Sprout said.

"Mr. Theseus Scamander has been studying it for a long time over the past month, but still hasn't found a way to destroy it."

"That's easy," Owen said. He then gently handed the Gauntlet ring to Hermione. Their eyes met at that moment, and without a word, they understood each other perfectly.

She reached into the pocket at her waist and rummaged around for a while.

A dozen seconds later, a weapon forged from pure silver, with a ruby ​​inlaid at the end of the handle, resembling a medieval straight sword, appeared in her hand.

"This is... the Gryffindor sword?" Professor Sprout was taken aback. "So this sword has been with you all along."

"It was Professor Dumbledore's arrangement, and Granger inherited Godric's legacy, so the sword chose to stay with her," Owen explained.

"Oh—I don't blame you. It's just that Mr. Theseus Scamander has tried many ways to destroy Horcruxes, and he naturally thought of the Gryffindor sword, but he hasn't been able to find it yet."

"Alright, now's the time. Hermione, you'll have to destroy it," the professor said.

Hermione nodded heavily, raised the Gryffindor sword, and aimed it at the ominous Gauntlet ring on the ground.

Perhaps knowing its days were numbered, the ring suddenly stood upright and began to spin rapidly, attempting to escape its inevitable end.

Unfortunately, the power of the remnant soul within the ring was insufficient to move the ring itself; at most, it could only make it rotate.

Hermione gave the ring no chance to breathe, and the Gryffindor sword in her hand slashed down fiercely.

A "ding" sounded.

The sword and the ring collided, instantly unleashing a thick cloud of black mist.

Through the smoke, they saw a face—Voldemort's face, grotesque and terrifying—slowly dissipating amidst heart-wrenching screams.

"Is this the last Horcrux?" Harry's voice trembled slightly, his face as pale as paper.

Owen gazed at Harry, his deep eyes seemingly holding a thousand words, but in the end he simply nodded slightly without saying anything more.

Then he handed the Gaunt ring to Harry.

If an ordinary item were used as a Soul Weapon, it would be destroyed the moment the Soul Weapon is destroyed. But this is one of the Three Sacred Relics.

There were no marks on the resurrection stone, and even the ring itself showed no signs of damage.

Harry covered his forehead as he accepted the ring.

He didn't see anything; he only felt that the ring in his hand was just an ordinary object.

Owen nodded slightly, understanding that the ring must contain Dumbledore's magic.

As he said—put it on at the end.

Harry will only see his deceased loved ones through the Resurrection Stone when he faces the end.

"Keep it safe, it will be very useful." That was all I wanted to say.

Death needs to be experienced firsthand. Simply telling Harry about it won't make him understand its true meaning. Telling Harry Dumbledore's entire plan might influence his future choices and lead to terrible consequences.

Harry nodded blankly and solemnly put the ring away.

"That's great news," Professor Sprout said with a smile.

"We're one step closer to victory, aren't we?" she said.

Then, he pulled a slightly worn book out of his pocket.

"What I leave to Irving Wendy Rozier Sanchez is a small personal gift—my collection of poems."

Amidst my busy teaching career and college administration, I always seek out some quiet time to read classic works from the Muggle world.

They presented the beauty and profundity of life from different perspectives, giving me endless inspiration and enlightenment.

So I tried to imitate the style of those masters with my clumsy writing and wrote these rudimentary poems and essays.

I also hope that you can find true courage and strength in these poems and essays.

Irving took the worn-out notebook from Professor Sprout.

The cover is made of inexpensive artificial leather, and the years have left mottled marks on it. The edges are slightly worn, but this has not diminished its value. Instead, it has added a touch of rustic and weathered beauty.

Turning to the title page, Dumbledore's familiar handwriting is clearly visible.

Written on yellowed paper.

(End of this chapter)