"I... I've sprouted?"
Grindelwald's words made Voldemort freeze. He lowered his head to look at his body, and sure enough, fresh green shoots had sprouted from his ghostly form.
The tender shoots swayed in the wind, looking full of life.
"What is this thing?" Voldemort cried out in alarm, magic surging all over his body as he tried to destroy the sprouts.
But it was useless. Judging by the feedback from his magic, those sprouts had actually become part of his body.
"It's those two soul fragments!" Voldemort suddenly understood. It had to be whatever was brought in when those two soul fragments fused into him.
"Don't look at me. I don't know anything," Grindelwald said as he quietly retreated a little farther.
Those sprouts gave Grindelwald a dangerous feeling. They were the kind of thing even an Eternal Wizard could do nothing about. Grindelwald certainly had no intention of ending up covered in them himself.
"You..." Voldemort roared, then his body suddenly stiffened. The sprouts all over him began to sway, releasing waves of power rich with life.
That power had taken root inside Voldemort and was spreading through his body.
It was eroding Death God's magic.
"Damn it. Get out of me!" Voldemort fought the life force inside him. That force did restrain Death God's magic to some extent, but its level was still beneath it, so the two sides clashed head-on and quickly fell into a temporary stalemate.
Two sharply divided colors warred inside Voldemort's body, continuously devouring each other as each tried to take complete control of the vessel.
"I didn't expect him to still have the strength to resist after being pushed this far."
A figure appeared beside Grindelwald. A shovel rested on his shoulder as he smiled at him.
"Leonard William... just how did you pull that off?" Grindelwald stared at Leonard with a complicated look in his eyes.
His hand twitched with the urge to strangle this danger in the cradle.
This was Voldemort, Death God's heir, a true Eternal Wizard. Even he could not withstand this bizarre erosion, and Grindelwald had no confidence that he could either.
"Oh, you don't need to worry about that. It's a very complicated mechanism. The key is still Voldemort's Horcruxes." Leonard shrugged. "You don't have Horcruxes, so there's nothing to be afraid of."
Grindelwald did not know whether to believe him.
It sounded reasonable enough. With his vision, he could naturally tell that in this trap meant to capture Voldemort, the figure on the throne, the Obscurus, the Basilisk, and Voldemort's soul fragments were all indispensable.
But who knew whether Leonard was lying, or whether what he was showing was really all there was?
After living this long, Grindelwald had at least that much caution.
"Were you the one making Voldemort lose focus over and over during the battle?" Grindelwald asked directly.
"That's right. That was part of the preparation I made earlier." Leonard smiled faintly. "Now every part of the plan is linking together perfectly. It's time to harvest."
As he spoke, he jumped down into the cavern, kicked Voldemort to the ground, then found a spot and cheerfully started digging a hole.
The dozen or so Obscurus went silent, sank into the earth, and disappeared.
"What are you doing?" Even though he stayed wary the entire time, Grindelwald still could not help paying attention to Leonard's actions. "You're not planning to bury him, are you?"
"Of course. If you plant a seed in spring, you get a whole crop in autumn. Now if I plant one Voldemort, I'll soon harvest lots of Voldemorts."
Leonard dug happily, but the meaning in his words sent a chill through Grindelwald's body.
Magic too subtle to notice gathered above Leonard's head. Grindelwald did not hesitate.
He was going to kill Leonard completely.
This person was too dangerous to be left alive. If those bizarre-sounding words of his ever came true, then no one would be able to stand against a whole crop of Eternal Wizards.
Even if the Voldemorts he grew did not possess the strength of true Eternal Wizards, it would still be a disaster. One Kapadosia had already been troublesome enough for him. If too many beings like that appeared...
Grindelwald could not help shivering.
Growing Eternal Wizards from seeds sounded absurd, but he had already seen things even more absurd than that. One more made no difference.
Go die together with your evil little trick.
Grindelwald steeled his heart, and spiked magic was just about to strike down.
Then suddenly, Leonard, who had been happily digging, coughed up a mouthful of blood. His body went limp, and he dropped to his knees.
Grindelwald: ???
He stared at his own hand in disbelief, thinking, I haven't even done anything yet, so why did you collapse?
Had he awakened some ability to kill with thought?
"Cough... cough... so it's finally come..."
Leonard did not even glance at the baffled Grindelwald. His body abruptly broke apart, turning into a Living Wood Vine that withered and died.
The one who had come here had never been his true body. Grindelwald feared him, but did he not fear Grindelwald just as much?
The plant throne in the distance collapsed as well. That too had been fake. The real plant throne, with Fleur on it, was hidden deep within the Chamber of Secrets.
Grindelwald stood there in confusion, looking at the cavern, which had been crowded just moments ago and was now suddenly empty. The plants had all receded, leaving only him and Voldemort in the cavern.
"What exactly is going on?" Completely at a loss, Grindelwald walked over to the deep pit Leonard had dug, planning to take a look at Voldemort's condition. Suddenly, a strange wave of magic swept through the air, magic intertwined with both life and Death God's aura. Grindelwald's expression changed drastically, and he flashed back at top speed.
When he appeared again, he stared fixedly at Voldemort.
The sharply divided colors on Voldemort's body had begun to merge together in a strange way, and his expression shifted back and forth between clarity and confusion.
But from the look of it, the power in those sprouting shoots seemed to be weakening. It looked like it was running out of momentum.
Was something wrong with Leonard's condition?
Grindelwald fell into thought.
From what Leonard had just implied, it seemed he had come under attack from someone.
...
Meanwhile, outside Hogsmeade Village, at the original site of the Shrieking Shack.
The enormous World Tree had been uprooted entirely. Its crisscrossing roots formed a dense net over a vast mass of earth and stone, and those roots were covered in dazzling starlike patterns that made one dizzy at a glance.
Those starlit patterns fought against the pulling force, but even they could not stop the tree from being ripped up by the roots.
The force dragging it out was simply too overwhelming, and strands of blood-red magic had wrapped around it, preventing those patterns from taking effect.
Odin, wearing Nicolas Flamel's face, stood with his hands clasped behind his back, looking at the World Tree with a smile. At his side stood the beautiful Dis and a thoroughly obsequious Karkaroff.
Behind them, a group of battle-ready Einherjar stood expressionless, waiting for Odin's command.
"Karkaroff, you've done well. Not only did you lay the magic to excavate the World Tree in advance, you also informed me in time. You've saved me quite a bit of effort," Odin said in satisfaction.
"This is what I ought to do, Father God." Karkaroff was clearly thrilled, but he remained humble.
"No matter what, merit should be rewarded. Once the World Tree returns, I will allow you to enter it and receive its baptism. You won't become an Eternal Wizard, but ancient magic will favor you, and your power will come infinitely close to eternity."
Odin was in an excellent mood, and the reward he promised was exceptionally generous.
Karkaroff was overjoyed when he heard that and immediately cried out, "Thank you, Father God!"
Dis, standing nearby, looked worried. "Father God, if you do this, won't it damage the World Tree?"
"Damage?" Odin sneered. "It's what he deserves, isn't it? A traitor ought to be punished."
Karkaroff, standing to the side, suddenly gave a little shudder.
He himself was a traitor too, just one who had betrayed Voldemort. Now that he had a powerhouse like Odin backing him, he would have to be insane to betray him as well.
The massive World Tree was drawn in tighter. Odin smiled faintly and said, "There. The World Tree's main body has been bound. At a time like this, its consciousness is probably writhing on the ground in agony, isn't it?"
"Thank you for your concern, Mr. Odin, but I'm not quite that fragile."
A face suddenly emerged on the uprooted World Tree. Leonard looked at Odin mockingly, then broke into a dangerous smile.
Odin's brows furrowed. Just as he was about to speak, the World Tree, bound by magic, suddenly burst with blinding light.
Boom.
A gigantic sphere of pure silver light appeared on the ground, like a fallen sun. The light and heat given off by that magical impact condensed without dispersing, covering only this one area.
By the time the light and heat faded, a smooth, deep crater had appeared in the earth, and much of its surface had vitrified into glass under the extreme temperature.
Only Odin remained in the air.
There was not a single wound on his body. That terrifying magic and heat had not even disturbed his clothes.
But now only he remained.
The beautiful Dis, and every single Einherjar, Karkaroff included, had been annihilated completely.
Odin's face darkened, because he realized he had been played.
"You actually detonated your own main body. Don't you want to live anymore?" Odin said through gritted teeth.
"Cough... cough..."
Leonard's coughing echoed through the air. Tree roots and vines gathered together to form Leonard's face, but his condition looked poor, and he could barely maintain his shape.
Even so, his expression was utterly delighted, full of joy.
"Well? Did you like the gift I prepared for you?" Leonard asked with a broad grin.
"A gift? It was nothing more than an insignificant greeting." Odin's expression slowly settled into calm, joyless divinity. "You actually used ancient magic as an attack. Did it never occur to you that I am the Eternal Wizard of ancient magic?"
No, he was not merely like a god.
He was a god.
In legend and in history alike, he had always regarded himself as the king of gods.
"Hah. I never expected that tree's self-destruction to hurt you. I only used it to clear away those annoying flies," Leonard said with a laugh. "I'd wanted to get rid of all that ancient magic for a long time anyway. This way I could at least put it to some use."
"Is that so? Then how do you plan to face me?" Odin raised a hand, and countless silver-white spears appeared behind him. "Where is your real body? Come out yourself. I can at least give you a quick death."
"Real body?" Leonard's face showed a mysterious smile. "Why don't you guess?"
The instant the words left his mouth, the ground trembled.
Odin seemed to sense something and suddenly whipped around, only to see, far off in the direction of Hogwarts, a giant tree soaring into the sky.
That tree was suffused with an ancient aura, but also carried the broad, embracing feeling of a whole world.
More importantly, its branches were half withered and half flourishing, the two states clearly divided yet interwoven.
Life and death had actually reached perfect harmony in that tree.
Odin's pupils shrank, and he cried out, "Impossible! That's Death God's power! When did you..."
"Just now, at the moment I shook off the ancient magic." Leonard's smile never changed.
Because Odin existed, Leonard had been unable to become an Eternal Wizard of ancient magic. And because his body had contained so much ancient magic, he had also been unable to transform into any other kind of Eternal Wizard.
"Impossible. Death God's power is already approaching completion. You couldn't possibly seize his power," Odin said through clenched teeth. "And after blowing up your main body, you should be extremely weakened."
"Well, Mr. Voldemort does love playing little tricks. Since he split his soul to make Horcruxes, he was incomplete to begin with. I helped make him whole, so taking a little compensation is only fair."
Leonard answered Odin's question with obvious amusement. "Besides, who told you that tree was my real body?"
His true body had long since become Leonard himself. That so-called World Tree main body had merely been a "system" carrying a massive amount of ancient magic.
Even if he lost the "system" and the ancient magic, his authority as the World Tree would not disappear.
"All right. That's enough talking."
Leonard's form slowly became solid and real.
A crack finally appeared in Odin's expressionless face.
"You're stalling for time?" he said darkly.
"Don't look so surprised. Weren't you doing the same? I saw it. Your power was already about to reach the roots of my real body."
Leonard snapped his fingers. "But now you've lost your chance, because the fruit has ripened."
The moment he finished speaking, the half-withered, half-thriving World Tree swayed slightly and shook loose several fruits.
Those fruits flew into the air and transformed into illusory human figures, black as ink like wandering spirits.
And their faces were unmistakably Voldemort's.
"I planted one Eternal Wizard. It's only natural that I should harvest several more, right?" Leonard said happily as he looked at Odin's pitch-black face.
With the World Tree's energy reserves, supporting weaker Eternal Wizards was absurdly easy.
This might have been a qualitative leap in magical power, but the World Tree's capacity to absorb and store magic was still enough to produce multiple Eternal Wizards.
"Accept a righteous group beating, Odin!" Leonard shouted gleefully, pointing at him. "From here on out, this is my era!"
"No! I refuse to believe this! I planned for so long. This should not be my ending!"
Odin was furious. Silver-white magic erupted in the form of lightning, and the dark clouds still lingering in the sky answered it, spreading an overwhelming and terrifying pressure.
"Mhm, mhm, I know. It's been hard for you." Leonard nodded with exaggerated seriousness. "I'll give you a dignified death. Then I'll take back the power that belongs to me."
He waved a hand, and dozens of Voldemorts lunged at Odin like hounds.