Who let this Dementor into Hogwarts!

Chapter 240 Preserve Humanity, Preserve Yourself
"I knew it!"

The count said angrily that it was angry with itself—why did it have to make Cohen's fun?

“Hahahaha…” Nico was amused by Cohen and the Earl’s banter, and laughed so hard he was shaking. Because it was a copied memory, he didn’t need to consider his weak body when making big movements.

“You two seem to get along very well.” Nico was pleased to see Cohen had a companion he could play around with—even if that companion was an owl. “But we need to deal with your problem as soon as possible—although it may not have any obvious effect on you on the surface…but this kind of subtle influence is the most difficult to deal with—some people gradually become completely different from who they used to be over time, and they don’t even realize it.”

“Professor Dumbledore told me about it,” Cohen said, his playful mood vanishing. “He said it was to purify my soul and prevent me from becoming…evil?”

The air was silent for a while.

“I’m sorry, that was the first and last lie I told Dumbledore,” Nicolas Flamel said sadly. “My child, I’m not sure you know this, but I still have to tell you this terrible news…”

"Am I already evil?" Cohen asked.

“That’s not the case right now. What I’m saying is that there’s no question of ‘purity’ in your soul,” Nico said softly. “After I saw the Philosopher’s Stone being completely absorbed by you, I understood that the Dementor that possessed the majority of your original soul… has been completely purified by the Philosopher’s Stone.”

"Why didn't you tell Dumbledore?" Cohen asked, puzzled.

“Because Dumbledore has some flaws,” Nico said. “As his friend, I know that—even though he’s hailed as ‘the greatest wizard of the century’—and I certainly agree—he’s not a perfect person.”

“We were pen pals for a while. Back then, he was young and had a youthful vigor about magic, society, and life.”

"But when he raised the topic of 'for the greater good,' I realized he had gone astray. He was a persistent man—and at that time he had also found someone who shared his interests..."

“Grindelwald,” Cohen said. “I’ve heard about it from my owl.”

"Huh? Really?" The count blinked. "When did I say that?"

“You said last time you'd help Dumbledore steal Grindelwald’s underwear,” Cohen reminded him.

“Oh…” the count suddenly realized, “but he wasn’t swayed by that, so I guess he’s already succeeded…”

“You guys…” Nico was a little unsure whether she should continue to participate in the discussion.

“Oh, it’s alright, please continue,” Cohen said. “Regarding the discussion about Dumbledore’s character…”

“Dumbledore is very difficult to persuade,” Nico said, “and very farsighted.”

"Is 'visionary' a compliment?" Cohen asked doubtfully.

“Far-sighted people are always indifferent,” Nico said. “Dumbledore believed in love because the death of his family caused him pain. He was afraid of that pain and also afraid of causing others that pain. So he blinded himself, locked himself in Hogwarts, and from then on, trapped his body and locked his soul.”

“So the reason we can’t tell Dumbledore about this…” Cohen pondered, “is because Dumbledore won’t listen to advice, and if I deviate from his expectations…”

“Dumbledore was willing to believe you because he felt you possessed a human soul, albeit a broken one, but at least a human soul,” Nico continued. “I told him I could help you purify your soul so that you could be included in his predetermined future.” “Huh?” Cohen looked at Nico in the picture frame. “Doesn’t that sound like you’re conspiring to trick a villain…”

“This is my decision, regardless of my stance.” Nico shook his head. “Dumbledore is a good man—perhaps there is no other wizard in the world as upright as him… Not everyone can stay in a school and teach after having the power to overturn the world.”

"You're helping me because I'm the only surviving 'man in a bottle'?" Cohen asked curiously.

“It’s not just that,” Nico said. “Dumbledore is worried about you because if you choose the wrong path… it will be troublesome. Dumbledore had a similar experience—the dark wizard known in the British wizarding world as ‘Mysterious Man’ was once Dumbledore’s student.”

“I know that,” Cohen nodded.

“He was born of a potion,” Nico said. “He was a child born of a Muggle, seduced by a witch with a love potion—Dumbledore believed he was cold-blooded because of his ‘birth.’ The product of the love potion cannot understand what ‘love’ is. Dumbledore denied his soul, from beginning to end.”

"Coincidentally, in the eyes of wizards, Dementors are also a terrifying and ruthless species. Your soul is taken from them, and if you are eventually assimilated by the Dementor part of your soul, it is easy to predict the final outcome—"

“But you don’t think so,” Cohen said.

“Yes,” Nico said. “I believe that the good or evil of a person or a creature is not always determined by the soul or species. Evil is the standard of human judgment, and its most obvious criterion is ‘whether or not one is aggressive’—and when this is applied to a single creature, it is ‘whether or not one has an uncontrollable aggressive instinct’.”

"Compared to those simple-minded Dementors, you have a way of thinking that is no different from humans, or rather, 'humanity,' and you can control your instincts... That's enough."

Nicole looked gently into Cohen's eyes and paused for a moment.

"So we've come to the most crucial point—how to help you maintain this 'humanity'."

human nature……

Cohen does feel that he sometimes thinks inhumanely—but because his behavior is very 'human,' Cohen doesn't pay much attention to it.

"In a desolate place, when you have an irreconcilable conflict with a strange wizard, what is the first thing you think of?"

"Nico asked."

"Escape?"

Cohen replied.

But in reality, if such a situation were to actually occur, Cohen would pounce on and devour the soul of that troublemaking wizard.

“You’re thinking in a ‘human’ way,” Nicole said. “That means you think I expect this outcome—but actually, failing to meet my expectations won’t have a negative impact on you.”

“You are actively disguising yourself as human, Cohen.”

(End of this chapter)