Hogwarts: Lacus doesn't want to be a witch who destroys nations.

Chapter 107 Late Night

Lux took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down. She took Eve's cold hand and walked quickly toward the castle.

"Go straight to Professor Dumbledore's office—" Lux whispered to Eve, practically dragging her through the empty corridor.

She knew that Dumbledore, as the vice-principal, had his office in the main tower of the castle.

The castle corridors were silent at night, save for the sound of their hurried footsteps and the crackling of torches. Most of the living figures were dozing, while a few who were awakened watched the two girls running wildly in the dead of night with curiosity.

Finally, they stopped in front of the oak door with a griffin knocker, and Lux ​​raised her hand and knocked.

Dumbledore's calm voice came from inside very quickly: "Come in."

Lux pushed open the door and pulled Eve inside.

The vice-principal's office was smaller than Dumbledore's later principal's office in her memory, but it was equally filled with all sorts of wonderful silverware and books.

Dumbledore was sitting behind a desk piled high with parchment when he saw Lux and Eve, and his expression was instantly filled with surprise and concern.

"Miss Lux?" He immediately stood up and quickly walked around the desk. "Merlin—who is this—and who is this?"

""

His sharp gaze swept over Eve, and he clearly noticed Eve's vampire features immediately.

"Professor! Listen to me, we just got back from the Soviet Union, and something terrible has happened! Grindelwald got his hands on something, something extremely terrifying!"

Dumbledore's brow furrowed immediately. He gestured for Lux and Eve to sit down and waved his wand to summon two steaming cups of honey tea.

"Calm down, child, speak slowly. The Soviet Union? How did you get there? You spent your entire Christmas holiday—"

Lux took the teacup and drank a few sips, quickly organizing her thoughts and deciding to conceal LeBlanc's part, focusing only on the runes.

This matter cannot be hidden any longer.

"Due to some accident, I ended up in a Soviet border village via the Floo Network, where I encountered a dark wizard who was Grindelwald in disguise."

Dumbledore's eyes sharpened instantly: "Grindelwald? He went to the Soviet Union?"

"Yes! He brought me and Eve," Lux said, pointing to the vampire beside her.

"He was exploring all over the Soviet magical world, and then, just tonight, he attacked the Moscow Ministry of Magic again and stole something—a crown."

She described in as much detail as possible the chaotic battle that took place in the vault, how Chevanov was turned into a monster by the power of the crown, how Grindelwald fought against him, how the saints appeared, and finally—

"That crown harbors a power called runes, and Grindelwald successfully absorbed it. His power became completely different, far more terrifying than before."

Dumbledore listened quietly, his expression growing increasingly serious.

A hint of confusion flashed in his eyes when Lux mentioned runes.

"Runes?" he repeated softly, his fingers tapping unconsciously on the table.

"An ancient, tangible source of power? I've never seen anything like it in any reliable historical documents or magical tomes. Lux, are you sure this isn't some kind of hallucination or misleading effect created by a dark magical artifact?"

Dumbledore's skepticism was understandable; it sounded like a fantasy.

Lux panicked: "Professor! It's true, Eve has a small rune on her."

She pointed to Eve, "She was originally a witch who was transformed into a vampire by the power of runes, while Grindelwald wields the power of the Keystone Runes, which are far more powerful."

Dumbledore's gaze returned to Eve, with an unprecedented scrutiny.

Eve seemed to sense the pressure, baring her teeth slightly and letting out a low, threatening hiss, her body emanating a faint scent of blood and magical energy.

Dumbledore's wand twitched slightly, but made no aggressive move; he simply sensed the surroundings more carefully.

After a moment, he slowly nodded, the doubt in his eyes lessening, replaced by deep shock and worry.

"Incredible—an energy form I've never sensed before, primal, pure, and deeply integrated with her vampire nature. If this truly is what you call a rune, then what you call the Conqueror—"

Even Dumbledore couldn't imagine how powerful that force would be.

"If Grindelwald fully masters it, Professor!" Lux's voice was urgent. "We'll be powerless to stop him! We must do something before he completely absorbs that power!"

Dumbledore remained silent for a long time; the only sound in the office was the soft hum of silverware turning.

"Runes—" he murmured to himself again. Suddenly, as if he remembered something, he abruptly raised his head and looked out of the castle window.

"The ancient magical field of Hogwarts Castle itself has always had some strange, incomprehensible energy fluctuations. I always thought it was protective magic left by the four founders or the natural dissipation of ley lines. Could it be—"

He abruptly turned to Lux: "Lux, can you sense it? Is there something similar inside Hogwarts—"

Rune fluctuations?

Lux was taken aback. There were indeed two small runes deep in the Forbidden Forest and in the direction of the Black Lake, but Lux had always thought that Dumbledore was unaware of them. It turned out that he had regarded them as part of ancient magic.

"Yes!" Lux answered confidently, "At least two, one deep in the Forbidden Forest, and the other at the bottom of Black Lake."

"It seems that Hogwarts holds more secrets than we thought."

He looked at Lux. "Can you—safely approach them? Or rather, can you prove you have the ability to contain them without being harmed?"

Dumbledore needed more solid evidence to believe in all this absurdity and to assess its danger.

Lux nodded: "I can demonstrate; the Forbidden Forest rune is more active."

"Alright." Dumbledore decided immediately. "Let's go to the Forbidden Forest now. I need to see the so-called runes with my own eyes. As for Miss Eve—"

He looked at Eve, "Please stay here for now, okay? The house-elves will bring you some food that vampires can eat, but please don't hurt them."

Dumbledore tried his best to make his tone sound calm. The vampire in front of him was the most dangerous he had ever seen, and even he himself felt a sense of threat.

Eve looked at Lux, who nodded: "You stay here, I'll be back soon."

Eve calmed down, patted Lux's head, and then curled up in an armchair.

Dumbledore and Lux ​​quickly left the castle, stepping through the snow towards the dark Forbidden Forest.

Dumbledore did not use the glow-in-the-dark technique, but relied on his familiarity with the terrain and the moonlight to guide him. The deeper he went, the colder and quieter the air became, and the stronger the aura of some enormous life force grew.

Finally, Dumbledore stopped beside a stream that was almost entirely covered in ice and snow.

He pointed to a twisted, empty space ahead: "It's nearby. I sensed unusually active magic there many years ago, but I never imagined it was for this reason—be careful, what's guarding it might have become enormous because of the runes."