Hogwarts: What are the four great masters doing?

"of course."

Ryan nodded.

He knew the way to destroy a Horcrux—a sufficiently destructive spell would do it.

Of course, his current magic power is not enough to release and control these spells.

But even so, he had more than one way to destroy the Horcrux.

For example, a powerful toxin that is strong enough, or a weapon containing special magic power... Ryan has more or less of these things in his vault.

But Ryan chose not to destroy it, and the reason was simple.

"The tiara is Mr. Ravenclaw's proudest work."

Ryan said seriously.

In fact, he still feels that there might be a treasure left for him by Ravenclaw inside the crown.

So personally, he would rather find a way to erase the soul inside the Horcrux rather than destroy it directly.

And Dumbledore obviously understood.

“It’s always hard to let go of things left behind by loved ones…”

He said this with some sigh.

Ryan nodded: "Besides that, there is another reason why I didn't destroy it - that is, the soul in the Horcrux is very strange, it..."

Ryan thought for a long time before saying, "It's crazy, violent, evil, but also stupid... Please forgive my choice of words, but it is indeed unintelligent and chaotic."

In fact, his words were already reserved.

After obtaining the crown, Ryan also studied this Horcrux in his spare time when studying the Marauder's Map.

And the result was just as he said, the soul inside the crown had absolutely no wisdom at all.

It only whispers evil words, repeating the same phrase over and over again.

And obviously, this is inconsistent with what Ryan knows about Horcruxes.

"You should know that the soul within a Horcrux is part of the creator's soul. Normally, it should possess the creator's memories and wisdom, and can even be considered a living being... But this Horcrux made me wonder if the dark wizard who created it was mentally retarded."

Ryan explained to Dumbledore.

"Oh..."

But then, he saw Dumbledore's helpless smile.

"Actually, I don't know what you're talking about, Ryan."

The old wizard obviously did not intend to hide his ignorance in this regard: "Horcrux - it is an ancient spell, and very evil... So as far as I know, the complete method of making it has been lost for a long time."

"My old friends and I did learn about its existence during our research on magic, and we also have a rough idea of ​​how to create it, but that's just a rough idea... We're not sure about the exact details of the spell or the effects of the Horcrux after it's created."

As soon as these words came out.

Ryan realized that this seemed to be the case.

The inventor of the Horcrux curse was the despicable Hercule - a dark wizard from ancient Greece, even older than the Big Four.

In today's magical world, even the ancient magic from the time of the Four Giants is almost extinct.

Under such circumstances, the Horcrux spell should of course be lost.

but...

"How did Tom Riddle know about it and find out the specific method of making it?"

Ryan couldn't help but have such doubts in his mind, and he asked Dumbledore about it.

After hearing this, Dumbledore said gently, "I have some guesses about how Tom knew about the existence of Horcruxes. Perhaps I should meet an old friend to confirm this later."

"But where he found the specific method to make it... I don't know."

Dumbledore shook his head. "As for why the soul within the crown is so stupid..."

He did not keep anyone in suspense, but directly stated his guess.

"I think... Tom might have made more than one Horcrux."

"?"

When Ryan heard this, he was stunned on the spot.

"more than one?"

He repeated this sentence in disbelief, somewhat unable to understand it.

So, he said carefully: "Mr. Principal, one of my elders once studied Horcruxes... You should know who he is..."

"Oh, of course."

Dumbledore looked serious.

He obviously knew that the elder Ryan was talking about was Salazar Slytherin.

And this is indeed the case.

Ryan knew very well that Slytherin not only studied Horcruxes, but also studied them very deeply.

He had captured more than one wizard and extracted their souls for experiments.

Of course, in order to ensure that Gryffindor would not roar "The stinking snake has had another attack, take my sword" while slashing at him, Slytherin chose the most vicious dark wizards as the experimental subjects.

Thousands of years ago, this kind of dark wizard was not difficult to find.

Therefore, Slytherin's innovations in the magic of Horcruxes almost surpassed Hercule himself!

And of course, he would not hide this knowledge from Ryan.

So Ryan said seriously: "Mr. Principal, I have to tell you - the process of making a Horcrux is very painful... not only for the 'sacrifice' who was killed, but also for the maker himself."

He still remembers the judgment Slytherin gave him after studying the Horcruxes.

"The pain of having one's soul torn apart far exceeds the limits of all known suffering."

At that time, even Slytherin made such a heavy comment.

So it was hard for him to imagine that someone could endure the pain of having their soul torn apart more than once and create multiple Horcruxes... Even 'despicable Herpo' had never done such a crazy thing!

But after listening to Ryan's explanation, Dumbledore's expression remained unchanged.

He looked at Ryan: "I understand what you mean, Ryan."

"But you don't understand Tom... In fact, few people truly understand the depths of his heart!"

He continued to sketch the image of Tom Riddle for Ryan.

"After graduation, Tom twice asked to stay at Hogwarts to teach... Of course, he was not granted his wish each time."

"The first time, he was still quite normal."

"But when I saw him again ten years later, I'm sure he had become a little... weird."

Dumbledore recalled the scene at that time.

The ugly and strange changes that had taken place in the genius wizard who was once handsome, intelligent, ambitious and had a strong charisma.

"As you said, his personality has become violent, manic, and even a little...stupid."

Dumbledore looked at Ryan and said solemnly.

"I don't know what happened during those ten years, Ryan - but after confirming the fact that Tom made the Horcrux, I can assure you that Tom at that time...his soul must have been extremely damaged, and it was by no means as simple as just missing a piece."

Thus, Ryan understood the source of Dumbledore's speculation.

"Do you think it was the repeated tearing of his soul to create Horcruxes that caused Tom Riddle to become what he was?"

Dumbledore said cautiously, "I think this is the most likely possibility. If not, then it can only mean that he has suffered some kind of vicious and extremely strong curse during these ten years."

"But what I need to tell you is that Tom Riddle is indeed a genius wizard. His magical powers upon graduation... were already very advanced."

Dumbledore's meaning was clear.

He didn't think there were many people in the entire wizarding world who could successfully curse Tom Riddle, let alone turn him into that horrible state.

So, Ryan went quiet.

He also began to think about the possibility that Dumbledore had mentioned.

"There's no precedent for repeatedly cutting up a soul to create a Horcrux."

"But my elders once analyzed the possible 'side effects' that might occur when making Horcruxes."

Ryan recalled what Slytherin had taught him.

"The biggest possibility of making a Horcrux is that it will cause 'amnesia'!"

"Besides that, other flaws include 'weak mana', 'soul collapse'..."

He thought about it, but could not recall that among the side effects of the Horcruxes mentioned by Slytherin, there was 'lower intelligence' or 'uglier appearance'.

However, he also believed in Dumbledore's judgment - this most powerful wizard of the contemporary era might not be as good as the Big Four, but he was also at the top of the magical world.

Since he determined that Tom Riddle was likely to have split more than one piece of his soul, then this matter should not be false.

So Ryan didn't dwell on this issue anymore.

Or rather, he felt relieved.

He really didn't want to destroy the tiara directly, and he was also worried that Dumbledore would ask him to do so.

And if Voldemort only had one Horcrux, then destroying the diadem would mean killing the Dark Lord.

But now, since Dumbledore is sure that Voldemort must have more than one Horcrux - then Ryan naturally does not have to destroy the crown.

"In the summer, perhaps I can take you to see someone who may be able to separate Tom's soul from the crown."

After learning the secret of Voldemort's immortality, Dumbledore was obviously in a good mood.

"... Nicolas Flamel?"

After hearing this, Ryan almost instantly guessed who Dumbledore was talking about.

The crown is Ravenclaw's most proud alchemical prop, and when it comes to alchemy, the best alchemist of this era is obviously Nicolas Flamel!

"Oh, Ryan...it's not really a surprise to be honest."