Hogwarts doesn't need a savior

Hidden beneath a smile that didn't reach his eyes, his deep gaze moved between the two of them and then quickly turned away.

"It looks like you've made a decision."

"If it weren't for this, I wouldn't have asked you to come."

"Is there no other choice?"

"There is no other option, it just takes a different form than you might expect."

"Well, maybe we could talk alone?"

Dumbledore's eyes swept over Euphemia and Rosier who was heading towards Grindelwald.

This also includes Grindelwald, who was sitting on the ground, taking out a bottle of potion and drinking it in big gulps, not at all concerned about his manners and image like when he was young.

"Of course." Lin En smiled and nodded, "Fei, wait for me here for a while. I don't think it will take too long."

Euphemia hesitated to speak and silently took two steps back.

As she watched, the two of them walked towards the castle in the distance - although it would be more appropriate to describe it as ruins.

Just a few uncontrolled magical aftermaths left this former prison with few intact parts.

Walking on the lawn, Dumbledore looked like he had a lot to say.

But in the end, he just said slowly: "I know you must have some energy left."

"That's just your guess." Lynn smiled.

"It's an inference," Dumbledore corrected. "Every move Gellert made afterwards was a life-threatening one, but you left a lot of room and didn't even try your best. This might be what made him most unhappy." He thought of his old friend's unwillingness and relief in the last moments.

After a short pause, he sighed, "Your growth is much faster than I expected. It's like you've returned to your school days. You've reached new heights before you know it, and even every day is different from the day before."

"Can I take this as a compliment from your teacher, Professor Dumbledore?" Perhaps feeling Dumbledore's sincerity, Lynn did not deny anything, but asked back frankly.

He hadn't called Dumbledore that for a long time. The last time was before he graduated from Hogwarts.

Dumbledore shook his head: "Perhaps admiration is more appropriate. I cannot deny that as your teacher and headmaster, I have not taught you much. Whether it is magic or other aspects." He had some different thoughts on the practice he started twenty years ago.

But his ideas were destined to be different from Lin's.

"I am very grateful for your teaching and arrangement." Lin En smiled meaningfully, "If you hadn't asked me to leave England, I wouldn't have seen so many sights and made so many friends - although I know you just wanted to stop me from killing people."

"At that time, I did feel that you were not a traditional Hufflepuff," Dumbledore said. "Your style is stronger than any Hufflepuff I have ever met, although your friends often think you are very gentle."

His tone now was like he was having a heart-to-heart with a student who had graduated long ago, and the content of the conversation was indeed like that, except for the faint tension that permeated the two of them and never completely dissipated.

As both of them had many secrets in their hearts, they rarely had the opportunity to have such a frank conversation - even in the few in-depth conversations they had previously had and which ultimately led to a consensus.

It was more like a preparation for a transaction, or a test to verify certain conjectures.

The atmosphere is not so harmonious now, but there is less concealment and hypocrisy.

"Your evaluation is still so sharp." Lynn responded calmly, "But this is not contradictory. People always have some edges and corners, just like Gellert. When we first met a few years ago, I gave him a poem, and it applies to you too."

"Which poem?"

"Don't go gentle into that good night."

"I think I've heard of a Muggle poet."

"And he was a hard-drinking alcoholic—so he died young, and didn't live to see his old age."

"Perhaps this is also the result of his roar against the god of death? His words came true."

“But it’s also very interesting, and leaves people with a lot of speculation - a life that ends in one’s thirties always makes people look forward to those impossible ‘ifs’ and better things.” Lynn said with emotion, his eyes full of amusement.

"Are you hinting at something, Lynn? Or... are you throwing me a difficult question?" Dumbledore heard the hidden meaning in his words. "You are also in your thirties now, and younger than the whiskey poet. You are more worthy of our expectations - although you have already reached a height that countless people can never reach in their lifetime. This is the preference of magic for you, and it is also the result of your own efforts."

“It depends on whether the old man will burn and roar at the end of the day,” Lynn said, punning, “or go resignedly into the good night.”

"What's your suggestion?"

"What matters is what you think." Lynn looked at him calmly, "Are you going to try to stop me? This may be your best and last chance."

They stopped outside the castle gates, where the grass was lush and green.

Chapter 397: The Wizard's New World

As Lynn said, this is the best opportunity.

Even if he had some spare strength and backup plans, this would still be his weakest moment for quite some time.

Once you miss it, there probably won’t be a next time.

Dumbledore looked into Lynn's eyes silently for a long time, with his hands hanging at his sides and his long gray beard fluttering slightly in the wind.

He was caught in a fierce ideological struggle.

Lin En was not in a hurry either. He stood there leisurely, as if he was not worried at all that he might face successive battles with two legendary wizards in a short period of time.

As time passed, beads of sweat accumulated on the old man's forehead. Although his robes were exquisite, they did not have the magic that Euphemia had personally added to them, and could not withstand the scorching sun at all.

But he didn't have time to think about that now.

After hesitating for a long time, he finally gave up Lin En's provocative yet tempting proposal.

Maybe he was afraid that Lin En might have some unexpected tricks up his sleeve, or maybe he considered that Voldemort was currently the biggest and most important opponent, or maybe it was because this teacher-student friendship was neither pure nor deep.

He put away the old wand in his hand, and said in a difficult tone: "Although you are indeed very special, I still want to know why you planned all this?"

"reason?"

"Yes, reasons. Morality is not the reason that can drive you to do this. Many times you are very similar to me, and you only deal with things that you see and care about. I am not wrong."

"You understand me quite well." Lin En smiled and said straightforwardly, "Yes, the reason why I do this is certainly not just to gain moral satisfaction - to be exact, it's just for convenience."

"So, what is the real reason? I don't see anything that requires you to start over, whether it's the traditional system like the Ministry of Magic or pure-blood doctrine."

Dumbledore looked at Lin En seriously. What he said was probably what was in his heart, and it was also the real reason why he chose to turn a blind eye to many things for more than ten years.

He doesn't do anything unnecessary. Maintaining the status quo is indeed not the best option, but it is the least bad one.

Ever since his sister died in that accidental duel, this has been his life motto for a long time - passively accepting rather than taking the initiative.

That's why Riddle became Voldemort.

Lynn is well aware of this and doesn't take it seriously.

"Excuse me, Dumbledore." He thought for a moment and said in the most polite tone possible, "You expect a world without change and progress. This is chronic suicide. Even though the wizarding world today seems peaceful, it is not without results."

As it turned out, these words were still quite damaging, making the old man feel a long-lost sense of awkwardness.

"That's a bit harsh," he said with a wry smile.

"Harsh? I think that's putting it mildly." Lynn curled her lips. "You consider yourself to be a Muggle-savvy wizard, but your understanding of Muggles is actually no deeper than that of others."

"…What do you think?"

"You do know a lot about the superficial aspects of Muggle society, even better than many Muggles. But Muggle society is not clothes, nor is it the London Underground, nor is it even Queen Victoria whom you visited back then. You have never tried to understand the nature of those who are different from us. You are as arrogant as those pure-bloods."

Lynn said calmly, "Hundreds of years ago, Muggles began to make progress and changes beyond the imagination of wizards. You and Grindelwald saw threats, but I saw knowledge and wisdom that was different from magic but helpful."

"So it's the restrictions of the Statute of Secrecy that you object to?"

"The Statute of Secrecy is just a minor issue and is not worth my fuss. What I want to change is the stagnation and procrastination of the wizarding world that has remained almost unchanged for hundreds of years."

"So... do you want to spread your ideas to the entire magical world? The idea that "magic is mysterious"?"

Dumbledore looked a little bitter.

He saw the matter-of-fact look in Lin En's eyes.

"This is just part of it, and it's not just my goal," Lynn said. "My partners and I must not only complete ideological guidance, but also specific, material practices, moving from traditional self-containedness to true modernity - this is an evolution and change covering the entire wizarding society."

Dumbledore frowned. "In your eyes, what is the boundary between tradition and modernity? What about the products that combine magic and technology that you design and create?"

"You've hit the nail on the head." Lin En looked happy for the first time. "They are the most conspicuous external forms, but the real key is not one or some new things, but the trend of development and the whole society's understanding of development."

"You've confused me."

"That's why I said you don't really understand Muggles, nor their society, history, and culture." Lynn had expected this and took out a book and handed it to him. "I know you like reading stories more than theories."

It was an English edition of Goethe's Faust, and it even came in a brand new binding, obviously prepared in advance for this purpose.

It was as if he had anticipated the content of this conversation.

This surprised Dumbledore.

"I'll read it." He took the book, "but not now and today. I want to know your answer more."

"My answer is also in the book." Lin En stared at Dumbledore intently. "You are a wizard who was born in the 19th century, grew up in the 20th century, but took the initiative to retreat to the Middle Ages or even earlier. So it is difficult for us to reach a consensus, but I am still willing to share my views with you."

Dumbledore was not offended, but accepted the comment calmly - even as if it was a matter of course.

In a way, this is also his assessment of this older, more conservative self, just with different content, but it does touch on things he has been reflecting on for many years.

For example, the indulgence and connivance of Tom Riddle, who was not yet Voldemort, even though there was a more imminent threat from Grindelwald at that time.

"I am also curious about your ideal wizarding society."

“It is not an ideal society. It only exists on the other side, which can be approached but not reached.”

Lynn said solemnly, “What we can do is to keep the wizarding community motivated to explore the mysteries at all costs and by all means - this is also what the protagonist of this book wants to express, to make everything solid disappear into thin air.”

"..."

Dumbledore held the book in his hand in silence, feeling an inexplicable heaviness and a faint smell of blood.

This was the first time he had insight into Lynn's thoughts and touched this soul that had always been far away from him.

The people before us are not the two ambitious young geniuses from a hundred years ago, but leaders of a new generation who have truly gone through a long journey and have gathered many supporters behind them.

He felt a heavier sense of oppression and impact than Grindelwald did back then.

It's not from magic, but something that is more difficult to fight back than magic.

After a long moment of contemplation, he closed his eyes.

"Gellert will indeed recognize you. So are you prepared to start a war like you did seventy years ago?"

"You still don't understand me, Dumbledore." Lin En smiled and shook his head, "Otherwise I wouldn't ask this."

"Then what do you want to do?" Dumbledore's eyes sharpened, like an old lion that still had some power.

“What I want to do is simple.”

Before he finished speaking, terrifying magical power surged out, and the raging lava fire covered the castle and the surrounding land. In a moment, everything was annihilated in the flames.

"Gellert Grindelwald died here, his body is gone, and he will never appear in front of the world again."

In the rolling heat wave, Lynn's whole body was dyed golden red.

"...No wonder you are so confident. It looks like you will surpass me soon."

"My magic is not prepared for war, at least not for a war that aims to destroy the existing order." Lin En said calmly, "I don't need to do this, although I am not afraid of any form of war."

Dumbledore gave Lynn a long look.

"Gellert is dead, and he died here." He said in a deep voice, with a stronger tone, "I believe you are not the next Tom - don't make me regret this decision."

"You will regret many things in your life, but this will never be one of them." Lin En smiled, "I will let you see a new world that you never dared to imagine back then - try to live longer."

"I am not Nico, and I do not need that long of a lifespan." Dumbledore shook his head, "But I can certainly wait until you fulfill your promise - after you have dealt with Voldemort and those really difficult threats."

Taking one last look at the flames rising from the castle, the white-haired old man performed the Apparition.

Like worrying that you might change your mind.

Chapter 398 Prisoners and Heroes (Two in One) (End of this Volume)

After Dumbledore left, Grindelwald, who had been adjusting his condition in the distance, came over slowly with the help of Rosier. Looking at the gradually extinguished lava fire, his face did not look good.

"You burned down my house without even telling me?" he asked unhappily.

Lin En raised his eyebrows and asked, "Why don't you come and send Dumbledore away? You don't really think I can beat you up first and then beat him up, do you?"

"...That's not very realistic." The handsome old man suddenly became a deflated ball, "What did you, a little devil with a lot of bad intentions, say to him?"

"Nothing much, just told him that Gellert Grindelwald died in the fire today."