Hogwarts: My name is the Unforgivable Curse...

Chapter 346 The Christmas Gift Arrives as Expected

"yes."

Harry also sighed – as someone born to bear the name of defeating Voldemort and having personally experienced two crises caused by Voldemort, Harry could vaguely guess that the reason Voldemort was able to develop such a huge power was not only because of his terrifying personal strength, but also because of the forces that silently supported him behind the scenes.

At least, during the Chamber of Secrets crisis in his second year, he witnessed firsthand how those die-hard pure-bloods worked together so closely that they almost devoured Hogwarts. Their malice towards Muggle-borns was also on full display at that time...

"So when do you and Dumbledore plan to officially eliminate him?"

Seeing that Avada was gradually regaining his strength and trying to stand up, he couldn't help but ask another question.

"It won't be long."

Avada paused for a moment before answering, "If everything goes well, we can probably make it public next year. If not... it will probably be even sooner."

"Even earlier?"

Harry and Ron exchanged a glance, then silently agreed not to ask any further questions.

Although they were still students, they were people who had seen a lot and were able to glean a lot from that short sentence.

Seeing their silence, Avada didn't reveal anything more. In any case, he was certain that Moody was played by Peter Pettigrew, and he would never harm Harry, whether because of his current "own" feelings or the bondage of his oath—ultimately, they had nothing to do with this matter.

After regaining some strength, Avada was finally able to get up from the ground again. Under the still somewhat reluctant gazes of Harry and Ron, he carefully collected the precious items that were no longer Horcruxes, as well as the crystal ball on the table. He then tapped the two instruments with his wand, causing them to fold up and be placed in a suitcase nearby. Finally, he waved his wand again to move the pile of items in the corner, restoring his laboratory to its original state...

After doing all this, he put away his wand, then reached into his pocket and took out a crimson feather, which he held in his hand.

"Alright, now that things are over, I should head back."

He shook the feather in his hand—it was a Portkey specially made by Dumbledore from Fawkes' feather. The phoenix's fire teleportation was already able to overcome most spatial obstacles, and when its feather was made into a Portkey by a world-class wizard using data and technology obtained from decades of studying the phoenix, it probably meant that there was almost no protection in the world that could block it, including Durmstrang and the Room of Requirement at Hogwarts.

"Merry Christmas—I came in a bit of a rush this time and didn't prepare any Christmas presents, but I think getting rid of Voldemort's soul and seeing the relics of the founder of Hogwarts would be a good thing, wouldn't it?"

"certainly!"

Harry smiled and nodded: "This is definitely one of the best Christmases I've ever had..."

"Oh, by the way, Harry and I also prepared a gift for you!"

Suddenly, Ron slapped his forehead, remembering his conversation with Harry that morning: "But you were still in Durmstrang then, the owl couldn't fly over... Could you wait a few more minutes?"

"Do I still have Christmas presents?"

Avada had been so busy these past few days that she had almost forgotten she was also entitled to a Christmas present, so she was somewhat surprised: "Thank you—I do have time, but actually I could sneak out with you guys, there's no need for me to just wait here..."

"That's wonderful!"

Harry and Ron cheered and ran towards the Room of Requirement, one after the other, not forgetting to turn back and wave to Avada: "We'll have to go back to our dorms again—it would be such a shame to come back for Christmas and not get any presents!"

"Okay... slow down a bit."

Avada chuckled and lightly tapped himself, casting a Disillusionment Charm. But just as he was about to take a step, he still felt a tingling sensation all over his body—he had been almost completely still for over two hours.

So, after about five minutes, he finally saw the Christmas present Harry and Ron had prepared for him—a model of a Ukrainian Iron-bellied Fire Dragon. It was about the size of a palm, and while the details weren't perfect, it was at least instantly recognizable as a Ukrainian Iron-bellied Fire Dragon. Moreover, the model could even make some small movements like a real fire dragon; for example, it seemed to be dozing off, its wings folded together, rising and falling with its body…

"We made it ourselves!"

Harry pointed at the dragon model and laughed, "We had this idea after watching your second match—defeat a dragon, of course you should leave some souvenir. That golden egg will probably be recycled as a match prop, right?"

Avada suppressed his urge to complain before taking the fire dragon and examining it closely—he never expected that the fire dragon models from the original story would end up in his hands in this way...

Should we get one for Fleur and Krum too?

"Did you make this yourself?"

While internally criticizing it, Avada didn't forget to give it a polite compliment: "This fire dragon is worthy of being displayed in a model shop! And it really does seem to be the fire dragon I faced—look, the scar on its wing membrane is exactly the same as I remember it..."

"Ha, you found this—we've been studying this photo in the Daily Prophet for days!"

Harry and Ron were quite happy to see that Avada had discovered the little Easter egg he had left behind.

"Thank you so much, this is a wonderful Christmas gift."

Avada played with the dragon for a while longer before putting it away, then clutched the feather Dumbledore had given him: "Well then, I should go back now—Merry Christmas!"

"Merry Christmas!"

Harry smiled and nodded. "I wish you the best in your upcoming matches!"

"And all the things you've been working on with Dumbledore, I wish you good luck as well."

Ron also offered his blessings.

"Thanks to you, it will definitely happen—goodbye."

Avada waved to them one last time, then focused his mental energy on the feather in his hand, triggering a hidden mark on it. Immediately, a burst of crimson flames burst into flames, engulfing him completely in an instant, before dissipating into the air along with the flames...

Meanwhile, thousands of kilometers away, Durmstrang.

On the Hogwarts Express, a fire suddenly burst into flames in Avada's dormitory, and then Avada tumbled out of it. After staggering a few steps and looking around to make sure he hadn't been teleported to the wrong place, he couldn't help but laugh happily.

"This trip went much more smoothly than I expected..."

"I wonder how Dumbledore's talk with that mysterious guy went—all I have to do now is pack up Voldemort and those artifacts and hand them over to Dumbledore, and I'll basically have no other tasks..."

With that thought in mind, he cast another Disillusionment Charm on himself and went out the door, heading towards Dumbledore's office—since the plan had gone too smoothly, the guy impersonating him should still be in Durmstrang, and he couldn't let anyone see through his disguise.

(End of this chapter)