Outside the Illusory Realm, Tver blinked twice, sensing that the magic within the orb had finally stabilized.
The little wisp flew out of the orb and returned to his right forearm, and everything that had happened inside the Illusory Realm flowed straight into his mind.
It seemed the sudden surge of magic inside the orb was an imprint left behind when Voldemort created the Horcrux.
Because of the Horcrux's inherent restrictions, the fusion of the two souls had triggered that imprint.
But now, not only had Marvolio successfully absorbed the soul within the Golden Cup, he had also broken free of the Horcrux's constraints.
In short, both Marvolio's soul strength and magical power had increased by a significant margin.
"Tver, what was that just now?" Cynthia asked anxiously from his side.
"Marvolio succeeded," Tver said with a pleased smile, lifting his wand.
He cast Transfiguration once again, this time restoring the magic to its soul-like state.
That said, part of the energy within the orb had always been pure magic to begin with and could not revert into a soul.
As Marvolio's soul form slowly took shape, a small cluster of magic continued to flicker and bounce beside it.
"Hah… this actually feels pretty great," Marvolio said after regaining consciousness, letting out a long breath.
"What's different from before?" Tver asked as he took out the Philosopher's Stone.
Marvolio absorbed the life force from the stone in Tver's hand, his eyes half-lidded like a kitten enjoying a massage.
"It feels incredibly light. Before, it was like my soul was constantly being held back by something. Now it's as if the shackles are gone. Both my soul and my mind feel a lot freer."
"But what's that?" he added, staring curiously at the gray-black mass of magic drifting above his head.
"That should be the force left behind to restrain the soul when a Horcrux is made. Even Voldemort would be wary of his own fractured soul," Tver explained.
"Then that's a good thing," Marvolio said at once, immediately drawing it in and absorbing it.
"My magic's gone up again," he said happily.
As the life force continued to flow into him, his body grew more solid. The hazy quality in his voice faded, replaced by a steadier, more substantial presence.
Tver couldn't help but reflect on Voldemort.
"Looking at it this way, Voldemort lost so much of his magic and soul, yet he still retained enough strength to stand against Dumbledore."
"If he hadn't made Horcruxes, he might have surpassed Dumbledore long ago and become the greatest wizard in the magical world."
Marvolio waved his now-solid hand dismissively.
"Most of the magic consumed in creating Horcruxes is generated by the severed soul fragments themselves. Even if the main body expends some, it can recover."
"Besides, you know as well as I do that Dumbledore's strength never came from sheer magical reserves. It's his freedom in wielding magic and the wisdom in his mind."
"Even if you gave Voldemort another hundred years, no matter how strong he got, he'd never grasp that."
"You say that like you could," Cynthia couldn't help but quip.
"Hey!" Marvolio immediately raised a finger and wagged it playfully.
"I've completely cast off Voldemort's imprint now. Give me a real body, and I can live on as Marvolio."
"Not as a fragment of Voldemort's soul!"
Tver copied the gesture, raising a finger and giving it a small shake to temper his excitement.
"But that's where the problem lies. There's still a difference in strength between you and Voldemort."
"According to the professor, even if you both obtain bodies, the weaker soul will still be constrained by the rules of this world. It won't function as a true physical body, more like an empty shell that merely houses a soul."
Marvolio froze. His research in this area didn't go as deep as Tver's, and he truly couldn't wrap his head around what that meant.
"What difference does that make? Everyone in this world is nothing more than a body carrying a soul. Some people don't even have one."
Just like those whose souls had been sucked out by Dementors, they could only act on instinct. The core of who they were was already gone.
"It's mainly an issue of compatibility, but it's not a big problem," Tver said reassuringly. "As long as your soul is stronger than Voldemort's, then he'll be the one who doesn't fit."
"So is this basically one of the world's rules?" Cynthia asked curiously. "That the same soul isn't allowed to have two bodies?"
"Based on my current research, you could say that," Tver nodded, though he still didn't sound entirely certain.
The deeper he went into magical research, the more clearly he could sense the absolute, unquestionable rules governing this world.
Take death, for example. Recently, everything he had learned about it revolved around taboos.
No one had ever truly broken them, as if there really were a god of death watching over all life in this world.
Marvolio curled his lip in irritation.
His body had already fully recovered to its previous state, and the magic flowing within him felt stronger than ever. He even had the faint impression that, against the current absurdly powerful Tver, he might not be without a chance.
"Any so-called god of death who makes rules like this must have found some way to live forever," Marvolio scoffed. "And he's terrified others will figure it out, so he does everything he can to keep everyone else restricted."
"Stop throwing a tantrum," Tver said helplessly as he restored the furniture to its original arrangement. "We'd be better off thinking about how to gather the remaining Horcruxes."
"The one at the Black family house is already settled. I've spoken with Sirius, so there shouldn't be any issues."
"Voldemort's Nagini hasn't become a Horcrux yet, but it won't be long. When the time comes, we can just go together."
"The hardest part is Harry. There really will be a good opportunity soon, but are you sure you can draw out only your own soul, and not Harry's?"
"I can't," Marvolio said bluntly as he flopped down into a seat.
"I have no idea how tightly the two souls are tangled together. If they don't interfere with each other, then it should be fine."
"But if there's a mental connection… heh, that's dangerous. There's a chance even Voldemort and little Potter could start sensing each other's memories."
Tver: "..."
Seeing Tver's indescribable expression, Marvolio finally stopped fooling around.
"They're not really entangled, are they?"
"If influencing each other counts as entanglement," Tver replied, "then yes."
Marvolio immediately collapsed flat.
"I don't care. I have to get the part of my soul that's in Potter's head back. Otherwise, I can't guarantee that I'll be the one who fully resurrects in the end."
"We'll deal with it when the time comes," Tver said, equally troubled. "Harry's soul absolutely cannot be affected. Otherwise, the one showing up at our door the very next day would be Dumbledore."