"How did I find you?" Cappadocia let out a cold sneer. "That doesn't matter. Right now, you should be more worried about what's going to happen to you."
"Hmph!" Voldemort gave a cold snort. "If you've got the nerve, then kill me."
"Kill you? Do you take me for an idiot?" Cappadocia kept sneering. "Do you think I don't know the secret of Horcruxes? Even if I killed you, you'd just come back as this half-dead ghost thing again."
Voldemort's soul shuddered violently. He had never imagined his greatest secret would be exposed in an instant.
"Then what exactly do you want?" Voldemort could not help trying to tempt him. "As you can see, I'm nothing but a useless soul right now. You can't kill me, and you can't get anything from me. Why not let me go? Perhaps we can work together in the future."
If the other side had been an ordinary wizard, Voldemort felt he could still try to control or threaten him with magic. But this muscular old man in front of him was another matter entirely. Voldemort was genuinely worried the man might just crush him to death.
"Work together? We can start working together right now." Cappadocia gripped Voldemort and gave him a shake.
"Right now?" Voldemort was dumbfounded. "I don't believe you're the sort who would trust me so easily. I..."
"Shut up!" Flames burst to life across Cappadocia's arm.
Voldemort felt the big hand at his throat turn into a branding iron. The searing pain was so intense he almost cried out.
But the pain came quickly and vanished just as fast. Before Voldemort could even scream, it was gone, and Cappadocia casually tossed him aside.
"Thanks to the inspiration from your Dark Mark, I came up with this spell," Cappadocia said. "From now on, you're my dog."
A glaring dark-red handprint had appeared on Voldemort's neck, flickering now and then with a fire-like glow and an unmistakable heat.
"Wh... what? You bastard..." Voldemort trembled as he felt the mark at his neck and spat out the curse in fury.
The moment the words left his mouth, the mark suddenly turned bright red, and a terrible heat scorched Voldemort's soul, making him roll across the ground in agony.
"Watch your mouth. You're my dog now, and dogs that bark wildly get whipped. If a dog tries to bite, then it gets killed and eaten." Cappadocia sneered. "Now, tell me where all your Horcruxes are."
"You... what are you trying to do?" Voldemort panicked. If the locations of all his Horcruxes were exposed, then his weakness would be completely in someone else's hands. He would be controlled for the rest of his life.
"What am I trying to do? Is that your place to ask?" Cappadocia said dismissively.
A Voldemort who could casually abandon even his lair and pet was not someone Cappadocia dared underestimate. He needed some leverage that could truly threaten Voldemort before he could feel safe using him.
Horcruxes were an excellent option.
"No, I'm not telling you." Voldemort understood that as long as he still had Horcruxes as his final trump card, he had not truly lost. But if even that last card was taken away, then he really would become nothing but a dog.
"You think you have a choice?" Cappadocia stretched out a hand, and the mark at Voldemort's soul-neck released even more intense heat, forcing a heart-rending scream from him.
This pain was far worse than the Cruciatus Curse among the Unforgivable Curses. Even Voldemort could hardly endure it.
And yet he still kept his mouth shut, refusing to reveal anything about his Horcruxes.
"Still won't talk? I've got plenty of time to work on you slowly." Cappadocia looked coldly at the screaming, writhing Voldemort and spoke with disdain.
Perfect timing, really. He had been bottling up a bellyful of frustration after taking a loss at Odin's hands, and now Voldemort had kindly given him an outlet.
"You'll tell me. I guarantee it."
...
Meanwhile, at Hogwarts.
News that a massive tree had suddenly appeared near Hogsmeade had already reached Dumbledore by owl.
A tree by itself was nothing unusual, and even a giant tree would only be visually startling. But this tree had grown far too quickly. Although it had stopped growing for now, no one could say how tall it might eventually become.
The reason Hogwarts and Hogsmeade remained hidden from Muggles was a concealment spell centered on Hogwarts that covered a vast surrounding area.
It was a very ancient spell, an advanced application of the Muggle-Repelling Charm, one that ensured even Muggles flying overhead would not be able to see ancient Hogwarts.
But as time had passed, the farther one got from the magical center, the weaker the concealment became. That was why many of the surrounding all-wizard villages had been abandoned.
At the same time, in areas higher than Hogwarts Castle, the effect of the spell had also been weakened again and again.
If that tree kept growing, then before long it would exceed the limits of the spell and be seen by Muggles.
Finding a tree would not matter much by itself, but Hogsmeade and Hogwarts would be exposed along with it.
"We need to consider right now how to deal with this tree. Destroy it, or find some way to hide it," Dumbledore said to Professor McGonagall, who had come to discuss the matter with him.
"We still don't know what kind of plant it is. Perhaps we should study it first before deciding," McGonagall said. "Pomona would probably be very interested."
"That could be dangerous," Dumbledore said with some concern.
Plants in the magical world were no pushovers. Quite a few of them posed a threat to Muggles and wizards alike.
Take the plants in the Hogwarts greenhouses. Mandrakes hardly needed mentioning. A mature Mandrake's cry alone could be fatal. Venomous Tentacula carried deadly poison. Devil's Snare was not only immensely strong, it also concealed itself and launched ambushes.
And then there was the Whomping Willow. That thing could literally smash a person into pulp.
You could say that any newly discovered magical plant was among the most dangerous things in the wizarding world. One careless mistake could get a researcher killed.
"That is rather dangerous," McGonagall agreed with a serious nod.
Setting aside any other possible ability, if that enormous tree had the same kind of power as the Whomping Willow, then its sheer size alone was enough to terrify anyone.
"But research is still important. We can't simply give up because it's dangerous..." Dumbledore was in the middle of speaking when the staircase at the entrance to the Headmaster's office began to move, and a girl with a slightly awkward expression walked in.
The girl was wearing Auror robes, and that face was not entirely unfamiliar to Dumbledore and McGonagall.
"You are... Tonks?" Dumbledore searched his memory for a moment, then recognized her. "So you're an Auror now. What is it?"
Hogwarts students who became Aurors were always academically strong, so Dumbledore still remembered her somewhat.
"Professor Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, I have something very important to tell you," Tonks said nervously.