A Certain Magical Hogwarts

Chapter 1071 Land of Death

Harry has gone missing.

Silent and without a trace, as if they had vanished from the face of the earth.

Earlier, when Mad-Eye Moody arrived at 4 Privet Drive with the Order of the Phoenix, he did not find him.

Moody assumed that Harry had already used the Portkey to go to the Order of the Phoenix headquarters.

But after contacting them, they discovered that Harry hadn't arrived there either.

Moody searched every corner of the house again.

Fearing Harry might drown or be dismembered, they even checked the toilet and refrigerator, but he was still nowhere to be found.

Given Moody's Magic Eye, which can see through invisibility cloaks, even Harry's invisibility cloak would be no problem.

He couldn't possibly be hiding in a room wearing an invisibility cloak.

Therefore, it can be basically concluded that Harry is indeed not in the room... missing.

As we all know, as a wizard, one needs some reasoning skills, and is also quite capable.

Harry's disappearance wasn't particularly complicated; anyone with a modicum of intelligence could figure out what went wrong.

First of all, Harry will not leave the house on his own initiative.

They were there to pick him up, and Dumbledore had repeatedly told him not to leave the protective spell's range.

Moreover, there are members of the Order of the Phoenix protecting the neighborhood, such as Mrs. Figg next door.

She kept watching, but didn't see Harry go out.

Harry himself cannot Apparate; he is still a minor, and his use of magic would be detected by the Ministry of Magic.

These important departments are now all led by wizards from the Order of the Phoenix.

Harry neither walked out of the house nor Apparated out of the room.

Lily's protective charm has not yet disappeared, ensuring that Death Eaters cannot invade.

Therefore, Harry could only go to the Order of the Phoenix headquarters using the Portkey, as agreed, after Mad-Eye Han arrived late.

The fact that his luggage was not in the room further confirms this.

But there's no Harry at Black's old house, so there's only one possibility:

The door key has been tampered with.

The key to the door was made by Dumbledore and was personally handed to De Darrow before being issued.

Therefore, the problem must lie with De Dallo or Hestia, who was traveling with him.

Using their brains to make meticulous deductions, they quickly identified the suspect.

After examination, it was confirmed that Haisjia was indeed the one with the problem; she had been afflicted with... the Soul-Stealing Curse.

There's a reason why the Imperius Curse is listed as one of the three unforgivable curses.

That's right, in terms of fatality rate, it's indeed not as good as Avada Kedavra.

In the battle for the title of "King of Torture," it is far inferior to the Cruciatus Curse.

But it can manipulate souls.

Avada Kedavra is for killing, the Cruciatus Curse is for torment, and the Imperishable Curse is for control.

A wizard who is skilled in the Imperius Curse can achieve complete control over a person, and the controlled person will find it very difficult to break the spell on their own.

Most importantly, it is difficult for outsiders to detect.

The Confusion Charm can also control a wizard to some extent, but it can't achieve the same smooth effect as the Imperius Charm.

Now that the method of the crime has been determined, the whole matter becomes clear:

After being taken into custody, Hesitia took the door key and observed the area for a while.

Dedalo, trusting his companions, didn't pay much attention.

On his way there, Mad-Eyes felt he was being followed, so he took a slightly longer route, which is why he was late.

This is very much in line with Moody's character; he is such a cautious wizard.

However, this "caution" came a little too late, forcing Harry to use the switched Portkey.

So the question is, who was the wizard who kidnapped him?

William pondered this question on his way to Privet Drive.

He guessed they were Death Eaters.

This isn't the first time a Death Eater member of the Order of the Phoenix has used the Imperishable Curse.

For example, Stoddill Podmore.

Two years ago, during the summer vacation, he was controlled by Lucius with the Imperius Curse and then infiltrated the Department of Mysteries.

Upon arriving in the living room, Dumbledore looked at William and said with a grave expression:

"It wasn't Voldemort, it was Tom who did it."

The principal's words were concise, yet incredibly contradictory.

In a sense, even with the name change, Tom is still Voldemort.

But in the past four years, the two have become different things, because "Tom" has more often referred to the sixteen-year-old Tom.

Most people would definitely not understand it, but William happens to be the one who can.

"Tom isn't dead? That can't be!" William denied.

While in Ilhamton, USA, he repeatedly examined Tom's body.

After Tom died, they stayed to guard his body for a period of time.

If Tom still had Horcruxes, he definitely couldn't have remained hidden forever; he would have quickly reappeared as a ghost.

William was certain that Tom had definitely broken free of the Horcruxes and was in a "killable" state at the time.

"Tom must have been resurrected somehow," Dumbledore sighed.

"I saw Hestia's memories. Tom first controlled her, and then lived in her house for a while."

Tom didn't erase this memory; it seems he deliberately let them know.

William raised his eyebrows.

"Tom left you a letter at Hestia's house."

Dumbledore took out the letter, and William took it and read it carefully.

The letter contained very simple information:

First, I want to thank William for impersonating a "Taglian" and deceiving him, which helped him grow.

With that tone full of resentment, William sounded like a complete scumbag.

Is he a jerk?

No way!

Then, Tom said that he had dismantled the Horcruxes, so William could go and kill Voldemort without worry.

Finally, he mockingly suggested that he borrow Harry to search for Death.

After it's finished, it will also help kill Harry, clearing away this soul so that William can kill... Voldemort without worry.

Aside from its sarcastic remarks, the letter mostly urged William to kill Old Voldemort as soon as possible.

(Voldemort: wdnmd!)

This is even closer than "closest friends and relatives".

"Tom's going to find Death?" William was somewhat surprised by this news.

"He probably intends to use the piece of soul from Harry's forehead to represent one of the 'Three Brothers'," Dumbledore speculated.

"He might have made another Horcrux, which would complete the trio."

The three came from one soul, were as close as brothers, and thus fulfilled the conditions for seeking Death.

Is this some kind of crazy tactic?!

William was utterly stunned. Now, even going to find Death could be done by exploiting a bug?

"Has Tom found the entrance to the Land of Death?"

William saw Grindelwald and went in search of Death.

He didn't manage to gather all three brothers, and instead set off alone.

This suggests that there is more than one way to find Death, and even the entry point is not fixed.

"Tom is clearly searching in the way the three brothers did," Dumbledore replied.

"Then there is only one entrance, in a city of seven hills."

"The city of seven hills... Rome?!"

This wasn't the first time William had heard the word.

The last time I saw it was in that book, "The Glory of History - (Pure-Blood Families)," when I was looking for the entry for Gaunt.

When the story introduces Barbling's father, Kovinus Gaunt, it mentions that he disappeared in the city of the Seven Hills.

Historically, the most famous of the "seven hills" is Rome.

"Not Rome, William," Dumbledore said softly. "I've investigated for a long time, and it actually refers to Constantinople."

The entrance to the road to death is right there.

William suddenly realized... No wonder Dumbledore and Grindelwald planned their quest for the Holy Grail, with Constantinople as the final destination.

Rome is not the only city known as the "City of Seven Hills".

For example, Constantinople, or even Lisbon on the Atlantic coast.

"Now that we know their purpose, should we stop them and rescue Harry?" William asked.

Harry must be kept under control.

He was the most important link in killing Voldemort.

And with Tom taking Harry away, who knows when he'll be back?

If he dies and Harry stays in the underworld and can't come back, then Voldemort won't need to be killed!

"I know the entrance is in Constantinople, but I don't know its exact location," Dumbledore shook his head.

"And given Tom's speed, he'll definitely catch Harry, return to Constantinople immediately, and then open the gates."

If we go now, we probably won't make it in time.

"What should we do then?" William asked.

"I have a better way to enter the land of the dead than Constantinople," Dumbledore said softly.

"William, do you remember those four golden coffins?"

……

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(End of this chapter)