Hogwarts: Dumbledore reigned over the wizarding world

Chapter 101 Vaughan: Albus, you are a devil!

"Professor Quirrell and Snape?"

"Yes!" Vaughn said seriously, "Of all the professors, only these two are the most abnormal. Quirrell is because of his quirk. To be honest, the weather is so hot, and he still wears a big turban every day. It's really suspicious."

"I doubt Professor Snape because he is so hostile to Harry and almost wishes Harry would die. But again, Dumbledore believes him."

So, there is actually no progress at all.

Hermione scratched her hair in annoyance. "What did Dumbledore say?"

Vaughan didn't hesitate to throw dirty water: "Our dear headmaster didn't say anything. He indulges himself in desserts and knitting every day. Tracking down dark wizards is not as important to him as coming up with new knitting patterns."

"Oh my God, how could he do this!"

Hermione looked incredulous, "He's the headmaster, how could he be so irresponsible?"

"My dear, you should have seen that he was unreliable when he led us in singing the school song on the first day of school!"

Hermione wanted to restore some dignity for the headmaster, but after thinking carefully about what she had seen and heard over the past few months, she really couldn't say against her will that Dumbledore was a responsible headmaster.

At least Hermione had a lot of opinions about the handling of the Philosopher's Stone.

She kicked a stone away in frustration. "Why did he have to hide the Philosopher's Stone in the school? Why did he protect Snape? Why did he recruit someone like Professor Quirrell... I'm sorry, I shouldn't have lost my temper."

Vaughan hypocritically comforted her: "It's not your fault, it's all Dumbledore's fault!"

……

"Why do you blame me?"

In the headmaster's office, Dumbledore's pale beard trembled as he questioned Vaughn, who was rummaging through his bag across the desk, checking today's gains.

In the corner, Snape, standing in the shadows, uttered a loud grunt.

That was a very blatant mockery.

Dumbledore frowned as he watched Vaughan take out the fairy jar and slowly admire it under the lamp. He couldn't help but accuse him, "It was you who deceived them. How cruel must you be to dump all the problems on someone without any burden..."

"He's over a hundred years old, isn't he?"

Vaughn interrupted him, "I'm tired of hearing that excuse. Please change it next time! Also, if you hadn't been so determined to test Harry, I wouldn't have had to lie to my girlfriend... You don't have to stare so wide-eyed. If you, as the headmaster, can't stand such intimate terms, please change the school rules to prohibit romance. Thank you."

"Perfect—sharp!"

From the shadows, Snape drawled his admiration.

"Thank you for the compliment, Professor." Vaughn nodded gracefully and continued, "If you hadn't wanted to test Harry, Quirrell would have been killed by us long ago, and Voldemort would have turned into a wisp of smoke and rolled back to Albania. Albus, all this stems from your willfulness. At least Professor Snape and I have always been opposed to this."

"Very correct!"

Snape was beaming with joy. Vaughn's words hit the nail on the head. He had always thought that testing Harry was a boring thing - don't get me wrong, he wasn't thinking about Harry, he simply felt that with Harry Potter's brain, the so-called test might be a waste of time.

"Ahem!" Dumbledore coughed loudly and glared at Snape.

The Potions Professor snorted, his face became long again, and he stopped provoking.

Dumbledore scratched his cheek. Facing Vaughn's words, he really couldn't refute anything, so he could only abruptly change the subject: "Have you collected all the materials?"

Vaughn tutted, but stopped arguing. "I've collected them all. They're basically magical beasts from XX to XXX levels in the Magical Department's classification system. Their temperaments and magical abilities have been carefully selected. While retaining their ferocious nature, their lethality isn't too lethal. They're all excellent material."

As he spoke, he took out the "materials" from his bag, including the fairy glass jar, and placed them one by one on the table in front of Dumbledore.

Except for the fairies disguised as decorations, who were very comfortable lying still, all other magical animals appeared to be very energetic.

Several vixens were locked in cages, banging against each other desperately, occasionally baring their teeth at Vaughn and Dumbledore.

A group of glowworms like big bubbles floated up and down in the air. There was a grindylow trapped in each bubble. They squeaked and stretched out their long and sharp claws, trying to poke the glowworm and escape from it.

Several darts appeared with a whirring sound, ran onto Dumbledore's desk, and gathered around the candy dish to peck at the cockroaches in it.

Dumbledore was delighted by the variety of magical creatures, some free and some bound:

"Excellent, Vaughn. These are all excellent materials. They will surely greatly enrich the surprise adventure we have prepared for Harry. I am planning to call this level 'Micro Forbidden Forest'. It is simple and straightforward and closely follows the theme. What do you think?"

Vaughan said dryly, "It's pretty average."

"What? Very good? Oh, thank you for your approval, my dear." Dumbledore wiped the corners of his eyes tremblingly and looked at Snape with a smile.

Snape: "...boring!"

"Thank you too, Severus, but I'm not asking for your opinion. What I want to ask is, have you prepared all the ingredients for the potion?"

Snape's answer was dry and malicious: "It's complete, and in excess. Potter will definitely have an unforgettable experience. It might even poison him to death!"

"Okay Severus, very good."

Dumbledore nodded with satisfaction and clapped his hands. "Alright, gentlemen, everything is ready. Now we just have to wait for the final construction of the mechanism to be completed. Then we can start planning Harry's trial..."

"What a disgusting name."

"Come on, Severus, you're being so mean and mean now. You should learn from me and be more open-minded."

"Shut up!"

"It's such a headache, Vaughn, you must never become like him in the future!"

"Yes, Vaughan-Weasley, you have to be careful not to become a stupid and neurotic old man like Dumbledore. It's so sad!"

Vaughan was too lazy to pay attention to the childish bickering between these two guys whose combined ages were almost 150 years old (Dumbledore was born in July 1881 and was currently 7 years old; Snape was born in January 110 and was 1960 years old).

He asked, “When exactly does the plan start?”

"Early May, Vaughan."

Dumbledore smiled and said, "This will give Harry a month's spare time before the final exams in June, allowing him to prepare for them with peace of mind."

Vaughan: "...Albus, you're a monster...but I like it!"

When I came out of the principal's office, it was already dark.

Vaughan stretched as the door behind him opened and closed. He turned around and saw Snape coming out with a suitcase.

The suitcase belonged to Snape and contained some potion ingredients that Vaughn had found today.

Vaughn greeted him. "Professor, how are the wrinkled figs? I picked them out from the pile to ensure they're potent enough."

Hearing that the drug was effective enough, Snape's face finally managed a smile:
"You have good taste, Potter is blessed."

Vaughn was speechless.

He felt that if this could be achieved, Snape would definitely wish that the ingredients used to brew the potion would be ten or even a hundred times more effective.

Vaughn didn't want to hear Snape's malicious fantasies about Harry, so he changed the subject: "Professor, have you had dinner yet? I'm just about to go to the dining room, would you like to join me?"

"No, I'm not hungry. I need to go back and make the potion. The whole process will take at least 12 hours, so I need to take good care of it."

"Do you need my help?"

"No!" Snape refused, his cold expression somewhat crumbling, with a hint of excitement: "This is a gift I prepared for Potter, how can I let you do it?"

Vaughan: "..."

He had clearly mocked Dumbledore before, but now he is more active than anyone else.

Fine!

Just be happy!
After bidding farewell to Professor Snape, who was full of energy and vitality, Vaughan walked slowly towards the restaurant.

As he passed the courtyard, he saw in the distance that the lights of the Quidditch pitch were still on.

Above the stadium shrouded in darkness, one could vaguely see someone flying back and forth at high speed.

Vaughan stopped a passing Lion cub and asked him who was still at the ballpark.

The little lion replied admiringly, "It's Harry. He works so hard and has been training until now."

Another little lion sighed and said, "It's a pity that we lost the first game last year and are now ranked second. Unless we win the final game against Slytherin by a large margin, there's no way we can shake Slytherin's first place score."

In the Hogwarts Quidditch Cup, there is no such thing as wins, draws, or extra games - after all, the semester is limited, and at the end of the semester, everything has to give way to exams - so its rules not only count the wins in the round-robin matches, but also the total score.

Slytherin is currently undefeated, having caught the Golden Snitch in every game and is far ahead in the overall score.

The regretful little lion looked at Vaughan with complicated eyes. It was this guy who made Gryffindor's most promising year become a bubble again.

Unfortunately, he had seen Vaughn's spell skills and heard the rumors about Slytherin House, so he didn't dare to say anything harsh. He waited for his companions to answer and then left together.

Vaughan looked at the Quidditch pitch again and tutted:
"Harry is so aggressive, is he trying to beat me? Sigh, after finishing my work, I wanted to take some time off..."

Vaughan is determined to win the House Cup. Even if others don't think Gryffindor can create a miracle, Vaughan will not open champagne at halftime.

That night, he found Flint and, in the other's frightened yet wise look, ordered:

"I want to participate in team training, give me a good strategy."

"what?"

"The situation is different this time. Harry is now able to participate in Gryffindor's offensive system. I ask you to come up with a better way to restrict him."

"what……"

"Also, I don't want anyone else to know about today's conversation. All tactical considerations are your own decision. Do you understand?"

Marcus Flint, the scapegoat, moved his lips, but in the end he didn't dare to say no.

……

As mentioned before, no student likes the Easter holidays.

This damn holiday is not so much a vacation as it is a carnival for professors to assign homework. In order to make full use of every minute of the little wizards and squeeze every bit of energy from everyone, almost every professor has tried his best.

Especially this year, in order to improve the quality of homework and eliminate plagiarism, the professors even forced the young wizards to use special parchment.

They were enchanted to resist not only the automatic answering quill, but also the prying eyes of anyone other than the owner.

So, this holiday seemed like a nightmare to Ron!
On the last day of the holiday, Ron was sweating profusely as he scribbled furiously at his desk. Occasionally, due to errors in his "wand divination", the answers he wrote down were judged to be wrong by the parchment, and he would throw a tantrum in frustration and rage.

Hermione was annoyed by his noise, and finally, when he jumped up and cursed again, she said angrily, "Can you be quiet for even a minute? Instead of complaining about your wand, why can't you calm down and think carefully about the questions and answer them yourself instead of using... Divination?"

Ron said confidently: "But I can't answer any of the questions!"

"Oh my god, then why do you still go to watch Harry train every day? Two weeks, that's enough time for you to review the first year curriculum again!"

"Nonsense!" Ron refused to believe it and justified his visit to watch Harry's training: "I didn't go to watch Harry for fun, I went to encourage him. This is the last match of the semester, a life-or-death battle. Harry is under tremendous pressure, and someone must cheer him up!"

As he was speaking, the door of the common room opened and Harry dragged his tired body in. He looked like he was about to die, with a pale face and chapped lips.

The two quickly put aside their quarrel, Ron ran to help Harry onto the sofa, and Hermione went to pour a cup of tea.

"Harry, how are you? You look terrible." Hermione asked with concern. "Did training go well?"

Harry nodded and opened his mouth to say something but no sound came out.

He was not panicked. He had experienced this situation many times recently and was used to it. It was caused by flying around all day, talking loudly and being exposed to too much wind.

After taking a sip of tea, his dry throat felt moistened and he felt a little better. He then said in a hoarse voice, "Slytherin has developed a new tactic. Angelina secretly saw it yesterday. Wood and I have been thinking about how to crack it all day."

Upon hearing about the new tactics, Ron immediately became excited and wanted to know the details.

Hermione stopped him: "Don't you see how bad his condition is? Can't you let him rest?"

Exhausted, Harry nodded gratefully to Hermione, then asked his two friends, "What about you? How are you doing today?"

Ron said sullenly, "Not very good. She won't let me visit you. All I have to keep me company is homework."

Speaking of homework, Harry suddenly felt that it would be better for him to die on the court.

No matter how tiring the training is, you can't avoid homework.

He didn't want to think about this terrifying thing, so he turned to Hermione: "What about you? Are you still investigating the professors?"

Ever since Hermione and Vaughn's trip to the Forbidden Forest over a week ago, she had resumed her investigation of Dark wizards.

Harry is still very concerned about this matter. After all, he is still under the "curse" of the dark wizard!

"Yes, Harry, I recently followed up with the professors again..."

Hermione said.

Before he could finish his words, Ron's eyes widened in shock. "Following? When? Aren't you supervising Harry and me doing our homework every day?"

"Of course, it's when Harry goes to train every day and you join in the fun, Ronald Weasley! Also, don't be too surprised why I have so much time. If you don't do your homework for ten minutes and then stare blankly for an hour, you'll find that you have more time than you can use!"

When Hermione got angry, she was like a ferocious little lion, leaving Ron speechless.

Harry also scratched his face uncomfortably.

In terms of being distracted while doing homework, he and Ron were almost exactly the same, so naturally he didn't dare to offend Hermione and attract her attention.

Fortunately, Hermione didn't dwell on the issue.

She continued, "Based on our previous investigations and the feedback I've received recently, the other professors can basically be ruled out as suspects. Between Snape and Quirrell, I'm more inclined to believe that Professor Quirrell is the dark wizard!"

This answer did not satisfy Harry and Ron.

"why?"

"Yeah, that old Snape... I mean, you saw how Snape treated Harry. He almost wished he would die. In comparison, Professor Quirrell was so good to Harry. He was even Harry's admirer!"

Harry scratched his face again, feeling a little embarrassed.

"That's the problem." Hermione's eyes sparkled as she looked at Harry. "Harry, do you remember what you told us about the day you first entered Diagon Alley?"

"Well, of course I remember. I'll never forget that day."

Harry replied, his expression a bit bewildered. "Why do you ask?"

Hermione didn't answer directly, but said, "I find that we have been wandering in misunderstandings. We always want to find out who the dark wizards are by observing the suspicious behavior of professors, but the fact is that we don't have that ability or vision."

"So I tried to think from a different perspective. Since we can't judge professors based on their current behavior, can we investigate their past whereabouts and analyze them?"

"Harry, the day you went to Diagon Alley was also the day Hagrid took the Philosopher's Stone from Gringotts, and the day the Gringotts theft occurred. Of all the professors in Hogwarts, how many did you meet that day?"

"I..." Harry was stunned for a moment, then suddenly realized what Hermione meant. His eyes widened: "...There's only one, the Leaky Cauldron, Quirrell!"

Hagrid takes the Philosopher's Stone, Gringotts is robbed, and Quirrell is in the Leaky Cauldron.

Everything that seemed like a coincidence suddenly became a thread at this moment.

Seeing Harry's surprised expression, Hermione nodded in satisfaction. "Yes, I investigated. During that time, except for Professor Quirrell and Professor McGonagall, all other professors were at Hogwarts and never left. Excluding Professor McGonagall, only Quirrell was there. The time and place are extremely consistent with the theft at Gringotts."

Neither Ron nor Harry questioned the exclusion of Professor McGonagall.

Her strictness and fairness had long been ingrained in people's hearts; even though Harry and Ron had been scolded and reprimanded by her, they never harbored resentment towards her. The two looked at each other in bewilderment.

Harry still didn't give up. "Was Snape at Hogwarts at the time? Maybe he sneaked out?"

"Yes, he's there!" Hermione opened her bag and pulled out several newspapers and records, unfolding them for the two to see. "These are the 'Extraordinary Potions' newspapers from those days, as well as the school owl usage records. Snape was arguing with someone over the newspapers those days. The reason was that Vaughn was about to enroll, and some pharmacists who opposed Vaughn's magic extraction method were clamoring for Hogwarts to rescind his admission."

"Look here. On the day of the Gringotts theft, Snape used owls 46 times, covering almost every time of the day. Unless he could write a letter and invade Gringotts at the same time, it definitely couldn't be him!"

Harry and Ron looked over the records.

It was indeed as Hermione said, Snape used owls very frequently during those days, and the fierce "war of words" in the newspapers was also consistent with this frequency.

The Owlery at Hogwarts is enchanted, and all owls that inhabit it have a contract to authenticate their presence, with their entries and exits automatically recorded.

Harry felt his mouth dry and was stunned for a long moment before he raised his head with a complicated expression.

Although he was still reluctant to admit it, after listening to Hermione's analysis and the corresponding evidence, no matter how unlikely it was, at the moment, Quirrell was indeed the most likely suspect.

This made him feel particularly absurd and unreal.

Because all along, perhaps because of the similar situation, he was once as weak as Quirrell, bullied and looked down upon, so he has always sympathized with Quirrell.

Quirrell was also the professor in the school who valued him the most and was the most friendly to him.

Dust-forgotten memories emerged again, and he seemed to see again the terrifying figure wandering in the corridor on the fourth floor on Halloween night last year, with powerful and evil magic that distorted the light around it.

My forehead ached slightly because of this.

Harry touched the scar on his forehead, lay down on the sofa, and asked Hermione: "Then, what should we do?"

The unexpected truth made him very confused and he couldn't even make up his mind.

Hermione sighed, "Nothing much, there's nothing we can do."

"what?"

"These are all speculations, Harry. We have no evidence. No dark wizard has appeared since Halloween. We can't use such reasons to question a professor. Not only will we fail to expose him, but we will also alarm him!"

Harry's forehead was bulging with veins, and he was a little emotional: "Are we just going to watch?"

Unexpectedly, the usually reckless Ron also agreed with Hermione this time: "Harry, Hermione is right. We have no evidence. It is impossible to identify a professor based on speculation. It's just like in Muggle society. Even if you know someone is a bad guy, you can't do anything to him without evidence."

Harry gasped heavily. He didn't want to hear such words. He only knew that he felt very uncomfortable, like angry and disappointed.

Although it was not very strong, the fact that someone who was usually very nice to him secretly wanted to harm him undoubtedly hurt him.

He sat down for a while, then stood up and paced back and forth. After thinking it over, he could not bear it any longer. "If you don't do it, I will do it. I will go find Professor McGonagall and Dumbledore!"

After saying that, he hurried out of Gryffindor Tower.

Ron shouted quickly, "Harry, don't be impulsive, wait for me!"

Followed.

Hermione sighed and followed behind. In fact, when she deduced the "truth", she told Vaughan the first time.

Vaughan didn't say whether her speculation was correct, but simply asked her, "How are you going to prove it to Dumbledore and the professors?"

She couldn't prove it, and she didn't think Professor McGonagall would listen to a student.

Sure enough, when Hermione followed and rushed to Professor McGonagall's office, she heard the stern voice of the Vice-Principal:
"Mr. Potter, what evidence do you have to prove that Professor Quirrell is the dark... dark wizard on Halloween night?"

"I……"

"Mr. Potter, is this your new trick to avoid doing your homework? Honestly, you're incredibly bold. No student has ever dared to use slandering a professor as an excuse!"

"I'm not, I didn't—"

"Oh, so Mr. Potter, have you finished your homework?"

Harry: "..."

Outside the door, Ron's hand froze as he was about to knock, and Hermione covered her face.

The words "Have you finished your homework?" extinguished Harry's anger.

He should be thankful that Professor McGonagall still expected him to do well in the Quidditch match after Easter, so she rarely showed favoritism and concealed the matter.

If it were usual, the punishment of double homework would definitely be inevitable.

Along with his anger, Harry's dependence on adults was also extinguished.

On the way back, he said angrily to his two friends, "I shouldn't have relied on those adults. They have been searching for such a dangerous dark wizard for half a year and still haven't found him. Since they don't believe us, then we should do it ourselves!"

Ron was stunned: "What do you mean by yourself?"

"Of course, we're keeping an eye on Quirrell!" Harry said solemnly with a determined expression, "Ron, Hermione, from today on, we have to keep an eye on Quirrell's every move. He's definitely not going to give up the Philosopher's Stone. Sooner or later, he'll give up and reveal his true colors."

"Since the adults can't be relied upon, we will guard the Philosopher's Stone!"

Ron swallowed his saliva. He had never met the dark wizard face to face, but he had heard Harry talk about him more than once. Unlike Harry who was ignorant of magic, Ron knew very well how powerful and crazy a dark wizard who dared to cast the Killing Curse in Hogwarts was.

But he was a Gryffindor after all.

It would be impossible to ask him to give in and show fear of a "mere" dark wizard.

So he quickly thought of a way to reduce the risk:

"Harry, I think we need to tell Vaughn about this. We can't rely on the professors. Only Vaughn can help us now. At least he stopped that dark wizard before!"

Hermione couldn't help but roll her eyes. "Don't you always hate asking your brother for help?"

"These are two different things." Ron said righteously, "I didn't ask him for help normally because of my dignity. Now I want to ask him for help because of the safety of both of you. As long as I can keep you safe, what does it matter if I sacrifice my dignity?"

Hermione: "..."

Harry's eyes sparkled with emotion.

……

The next day at noon, Ron appeared stealthily outside Vaughn's dormitory door.

Guoguocha greeted him with her paws.

Perhaps because he needed a favor, Ron didn't scold it this time.

He even brought a bag of dried fish for Guoguocha, but Guoguocha didn't even smell it and just swept it away with her tail in disgust.

Ron told Vaughn what had happened and what they were planning, then looked at him expectantly: "You'll help us, right?"

In the spacious dormitory that originally could accommodate 4 or 5 people, but now only Vaughn is there, the shimmering light reflected from the Black Lake makes everything seem quiet and mysterious.

Vaughn sat behind his desk, half his face hidden in the darkness, making it difficult for Ron to see his expression. He could only see that he had his chin supported by one hand, and his eyes seemed to be filled with interest.
"What if I say 'no'?"

"Merlin!" Ron opened his mouth wide. "Harry is your friend, Hermione is your girlfriend, and I, your brother..."

"Ha—Ronald Weasley, we grew up together. How many times have you admitted that you are my younger brother?"

Ron blushed. "Why all that nonsense? Are you going to agree or not?"

"Huh? Is that how you ask for help?" Vaughn played with his quill and said with a smile, "I don't quite agree. I'll give you another chance."

Ron's cheeks tightened, and he gritted his teeth.

But he didn't resist in the end, and squeezed out a mosquito-like voice from between his teeth: "Brother! Brother! Please help us!"

Seeing him hesitant, Vaughn laughed heartily. Seeing Ron on the verge of collapse, he finally nodded. "No problem, my dear brother. Even though you're stupid, bad-tempered, and smelly, like a stone in the toilet, as a brother, I will never dislike you or give up on you."

Ron: "...I've never met a brother like you!"

"Well, now you see, Ronald. Speaking of which, if you were so reluctant, why didn't you let Hermione tell me?"

Ron snorted, "I was the one who proposed it, so I can't just hide behind it!"

Tsk!
It seems that he really underestimated this guy's courage and responsibility. Bravery and brainless recklessness are two different concepts. In the past, Vaughn always felt that Ron was a bit like the latter.

After sending Ron away, Vaughn went straight to the principal's office.

He told Dumbledore, who had just finished lunch and was enjoying dessert, that Harry and the other two had decided to monitor Quirrell.

Dumbledore was not surprised. "As expected, Vaughn. Harry is not one to give up easily. He can be reckless at times, and it is precisely because of this flaw that he needs to be tested."

"But in my opinion, your and the professors' 'inaction' has seriously damaged Harry's trust in you, and may even cause him to consider you less and less in his future actions."

"I'm happy to see this change." Dumbledore smiled. "In the past, I loved to show off my wisdom and tried to fit everyone into my plans and rhythm. Until I experienced setbacks, I tried to compromise and let a free soul develop according to its subjective will. It opened my eyes to more possibilities."

Sitting across from him, Vaughn narrowed his eyes slightly. "This so-called free soul, can't it be me?"

"That's right, dear!"

"Tsk——"

"I have indeed learned a lot from you, child. In the past, I always thought I was right. I looked down on others with pride, manipulated them, and got used to their dependence on me, and I also made them accustomed to relying on me..."

He shook his head. "Actually, I know you've always disapproved of me testing Harry. Unlike Severus who simply found it boring, your opposition stems from a difference in philosophy. You believe that no one can always control everything, especially trying to control one, or many, living beings."

"Life cannot always operate within a prescribed framework; it will find its own way out... You once said this, and it's very philosophical, even surpassing many adults."

"So, I'm very happy that Harry can break free from his dependence and try to act and think independently, even if it's a little reckless."

Vaughan listened silently for a moment, then said mockingly, "But now they seem to be turning their dependence on me!"

Dumbledore smiled and said, "It doesn't matter. When the time comes, you will be like me and leave school due to sudden matters, allowing Harry and the others to happily embark on their independent adventure."

Insidious old man!
Vaughn curled his lips and grumbled maliciously, "Honestly, your transformation makes me feel like you're laying out your final plans."

This was originally just a complaint.

But the next moment, Vaughan was stunned to see Dumbledore spread his hands. "You could say that this consideration was one of the reasons that led to my change of mind."

The office suddenly fell silent because of his words.

After a long moment, Vaughn frowned and said, "Destiny?"

"Yes... fate, a premonition, a feeling that I will embark on another journey in the future..."

"When will you die?"

"do not know."

"What did he die of?"

"do not know."

Vaughn looked at Dumbledore speechlessly. "How can this be considered a prophecy if you don't know anything? I also know that I will die one day. As long as we are human, we will wither one day!"

Dumbledore smiled and stroked his beard. "It's different, my dear. You don't have a talent for divination, so it's hard for me to describe the feeling to you. It's like... like you're struggling with a difficult problem, your mind is completely muddled, and then, without warning, you suddenly get the answer, and your mind becomes clearer than ever before."

"I have a strong, almost instinctive feeling that one day in a few years, because of something, my life will come to an end."

Vaughan tried hard to think, but still couldn't imagine what that state was like. Just listening to Dumbledore's analogy, he felt that it was more like the old man had a mental problem.

And this guy even took the opportunity to mock his talent for divination. How hateful!

Normally, Vaughan would have fought back, but today he rarely held back and asked Dumbledore, "Is there any way to avoid this?"

To Vaughan's surprise, Dumbledore acted nonchalant. "Why should we avoid it?"

Vaughan frowned and looked at Dumbledore in surprise: "The Albus Dumbledore I know is not someone who is willing to succumb to fate!"

Dumbledore laughed heartily. "Child, human nature is very complex and contradictory. No label can accurately summarize a person's character and ideological tendencies."

"Yes, I really don't like to submit to fate. Whether it was Grindelwald or Tom decades ago, I always liked to rebel and fight again, letting fate develop in the way I envisioned."

"But that's because the vortex of fate stirred up by Grindelwald and Tom has such a huge impact. If no one intervenes, countless innocent lives will be killed. So I have to fight. But if it's just the life and death of Albus Dumbledore, such a trivial fate, why should I resist?"

He smiled and picked up a cockroach and put it in his mouth. "As you said, as long as we are human, we will die one day. The difference is that some people die in a warm bed, while others die on the battlefield."

"Remember what I said? Death is just another great adventure."

Vaughn remained silent, unsure how to evaluate this attitude: open-minded? Or escapist?

Compared to the contradictions shown by Dumbledore, Vaughan felt that he was more pure - he would never pin his life and future on an ethereal, intangible concept.

He feared fate, but what he feared was the knowledge and power contained in it, not fate itself!

After a moment's silence, Vaughn asked, "Then whose vortex of fate is it that gives you a premonition of death?"

Dumbledore once said that fate is like an evil god. In every era, a child of destiny is born, who will stir up waves and whirlpools in the web of fate, fight each other, and implicate innocent people.

If we follow the "original" plot, Dumbledore's death must be because of Harry and Tom.

But now, that’s not necessarily the case.

Hearing his words, Dumbledore paused, a smile on his old face: "Sorry, dear, I don't know."

Vaughan fell silent, his eyes lowered.

Did Dumbledore really not know?
He remembered what he had seen before, the magic that Dumbledore used to observe the Web of Fate. Perhaps Dumbledore could not make predictions, but by observing the Web of Fate, he could still trace the root cause.

His “I don’t know” may just mean that he is unwilling to say it.

Perhaps the person who caused him to have a premonition of death was right next to him...

……

At night, the Black Lake outside the Slytherin Common Room was deep and dark, and even the pale blue light of the magic flames could not dispel the darkness.

Vaughan lay in bed, looking up at the tassels hanging from the curtains above his head, still thinking about the premonition of death that Dumbledore had mentioned.

In fact, he always remembered one thing.

Dumbledore had once told him that the vortex of Harry and Tom's fate was disturbed when he established the Committee on Werewolf Affairs.

Vaughan's understanding of fate is very limited, but the interaction of any thing in the world more or less follows the same logic - anything that can affect one vortex must mean that another larger vortex is forming.

It wasn't the Werewolf Committee that interfered with Harry and Tom's fate.

But it was Vaughan Weasley who personally pushed for its establishment!
Vaughan has always known what he needs and what he is pursuing.

Vaughan actually doesn't like the current magical world.

In his opinion, the development potential of the wizarding world has not been stimulated at all. This power and knowledge system, which is completely different from the natural science of Muggles, has always been passively managed by lazy wizards.

Magic and alchemy have been around for thousands of years, but even in modern times they have not been organized into a rigorous and precise system, and the lifestyle of wizards seems to be still stuck in the Middle Ages.

Especially the so-called "International Statute of Secrecy", this law that completely separates the magical world from the Muggle society is simply a step backward in time!

(End of this chapter)