days at Hogwarts

Chapter 649: Destroying the Horcrux

A tiny amount of fierce fire spewed out from the tip of the staff, and wisps of flames wrapped around the golden ring, like poisonous tentacles sprouting in spring.

The ring sensed danger and began to vibrate violently. The dark magical energy rising from it merged with the soul fragments, forming a black mist visible to the naked eye, which was surging in the office like a cloud.

The former headmasters on the wall huddled together. Old Headmaster Black, who was born in Slytherin, was heartbroken and cursed angrily. The other portraits were stunned. This evil magic was beyond their imagination.

Tom Riddle's handsome face at the age of 17 vaguely emerged in the mist, and he let out a sharp and shrill roar.

"Dumbledore! Dumbledore..."

Harry clenched his teeth tightly together and his pupils contracted slightly, as if he wanted to imprint Tom Riddle's current appearance in his mind.

Loren carefully observed the state of the curse on the inside of the ring, which had been burned into wisps of black smoke by the fierce fire.

The old principal had a precise control over the Lihuo. Under his control, the Lihuo threads clung to the ring, tightly entwined and contracted. The metal ring soon glowed red and was annihilated before it had time to melt.

The screams and curses in the office stopped abruptly. The phoenix Fawkes shrank into the Sorting Hat with his head buried under his wings, but he raised it slightly and looked at the cracked black gem vigilantly.

Harry also noticed the black gem. The ring band was burned to only scattered ashes, but the gem was intact. The triangular eye logo engraved on it gave him a familiar feeling.

"It's the symbol of the Deathly Hallows..." Dumbledore seemed to see his confusion, "The triangle on the outside represents your invisibility cloak, and this one is the legendary Resurrection Stone, which symbolizes the ring in the center."

Harry suddenly remembered that Hermione had once told him that the Resurrection Stone could...

His eyes gradually became eager and his breathing became slightly rapid.

Loren was silently drinking tea and eating cookies beside him. These were special snacks provided by the principal's office and were much better than those in the candy store.

"I think you have all heard the story of the three Peverell brothers and the Deathly Hallows. The second of the three brothers once held the Resurrection Stone and called back his wife who had died young from the underworld..."

Dumbledore did not finish the story. There are many versions of the story of the three death brothers, but the ending is not much different. Cadmus Peverell lived in regret and pain all day after his resurrection, and finally committed suicide unbearably unable to bear the torture.

He looked into Harry's eyes and asked softly, "Just as your invisibility cloak cannot hide you from everyone's prying eyes, the Resurrection Stone cannot truly resurrect the dead, but it can at least allow you to meet the dead. Do you want to try?"

Harry stared at him blankly, opened his mouth, but could say nothing.

Of course he wanted to meet his deceased parents. Even the illusion in the Mirror of Erised could make him forget about food and sleep...

But he is no longer the kid who just entered first grade.

The memory of the encounter with Voldemort's wand in the cemetery outside Little Hangleton came to his mind. Looking back now, he could no longer remember the panic and anxiety between life and death. Instead, his parents' faces and voices became bright and vivid again. The surging thoughts came like a wave, making him feel panicky.

The eagerly beating heart made his vocal cords tense and stiff. Harry was silent for a moment, shook his head, and said in a slightly hoarse voice: "Professor, just like you said, the Resurrection Stone can't resurrect my parents. It will only disturb their souls."

"What about you?" Dumbledore's eyes fell on Loren.

Loren shook his head calmly.

Seeing the reactions of the two, Dumbledore smiled gently: "Emotions are stronger when they are restrained, and love becomes stronger when it is brewed." This sentence is a little difficult to understand, and it sounds like it is full of deep meaning. Harry showed a confused expression at the right time.

Loren chose to ignore it directly. The best way to deal with the Riddler is not to guess.

He took a sip of tea and asked, "Professor, why did you start destroying Horcruxes on your own initiative? Is there an emergency?"

He had collected several Horcruxes, but except for the locket, Dumbledore chose not to destroy them on the spot, trying to find a way to remove the fragments of Voldemort's soul and preserve the founder's relics intact.

"Time is of the essence."

"what?"

"Harry's 17th birthday is coming up."

Harry was stunned for a moment, his mind drifting away.

17 years old, the age he had been looking forward to the most. 17 years old meant that he no longer had to go back to the Dursleys, 17 years old meant that graduation was approaching, 17 years old meant that the protection left by his mother in his body was about to disappear...

……

Hundreds of miles away, in a dimly lit room, a Death Eater named Severus Snape lowered his head and said calmly:
"Yes, 17 years old... That night, after the accident, Dumbledore used blood ties as a bond and cast a spell to strengthen the protection in Potter's body. All those with bad intentions could not find his trace through magic, so even if he left Hogwarts, he would be safe."

"You mean, as long as we wait until next summer vacation, my dear Harry will be exposed to us and meet us with great anticipation?"

Voldemort said with interest, leaning back in the soft sofa, playing with the wand in his hand with his long, pale fingers.

Made of snake wood, with a basilisk fang core, it was commissioned by a wand craftsman in the United States. The reward was the first killing curse of this wand. The green light was tragic and very beautiful.

"Potter is not worth our attention at all. What is worth paying attention to is Dumbledore and the Ministry of Magic." Snape said softly.

"Dumbledore..." Voldemort stroked the patterns on the wooden staff with his fingertips. His snake pupils shrank into a vertical line. The hatred that had almost condensed into substance escaped, and then he smiled contemptuously.

After a period of investigation, Voldemort has found out the ownership of the Elder Wand. Although he is a little angry that his plan has failed, he is also glad that he knows Dumbledore better. Dumbledore's magic power is far inferior to his own, and he can only compete with him with the help of other things.

When he was resurrected in Hangleton Cemetery, Dumbledore, holding the Elder Wand, managed to gain the upper hand after a short stalemate. When he was in the Department of Mysteries at the Ministry of Magic, he could only flee in panic as he was chased by himself, and only with the help of the power in that room could he complete the interception...

"Dumbledore is old! If it weren't for the protection of Hogwarts' ancient magic, it would be difficult to break from the outside..."

Listening to his resentful voice, Snape didn't care and still lowered his head: "Let's start with the Ministry of Magic. After Scrimgeour took office, he didn't execute our companions, nor did he send them to Azkaban. They were secretly detained in an attempt to interrogate them for information and extort a large sum of money to arm the Ministry of Magic..."

"That sounds like good news. Do you have any plans?"

"Those idiots we recruited from the border can be of some use. We need someone to draw the Aurors' spells. They will only ruin the reputation of the Death Eaters anyway..."

"..."

(End of this chapter)