Chapter 281 Good Times
Levi's request to travel together was approved by Headmaster Dumbledore, but the two of them could not leave the school immediately.
Dumbledore needed to organize his memories and figure out where to start looking for the Horcrux.
Levi was also a very busy person. Seven days a week, from Monday to Friday, either he had to teach others classes, or he had to attend classes himself.
Busy! Everyone is busy! It is good to be busy!
Although he was running around frantically, for Levi, the second semester of the second year, and even the future third year, would be a peaceful and good time!
A report from last semester, along with the exoneration of Sirius, meant that Voldemort and his minions had been dealt with thoroughly, and no trouble would come knocking for the next year and a half.
Voldemort's lingering soul was outside, barely surviving, and even though Grindelwald had broken out of prison, he didn't seem ready to cause trouble.
Now the journey to destroy the Horcrux was about to begin. With him, a Transmigrator, and the White WizardDumbledore taking action together to deal with Voldemort's Horcrux, wouldn't it be a piece of cake!
It probably wouldn't take long before the end of the second year to completely destroy all the Horcruxes!
Voldemort, the second-generation Dark Lord, was no longer taken seriously by Levi!
If one did not consider the lingering soul of Voldemortinside Harry Potter's head, the rural terrorist Voldemortwas simply not worth worrying about at all!
"This should be the normal performance of a Transmigrator!"
Levi sometimes thought to himself:
Why would a Transmigrator who had mastered all intelligence and even possessed a Cheat stubbornly drag it out until the seventh year to solve a sub-standard villain like Voldemort?
The matter of dealing with Voldemort was cast to the back of Levi's mind in the blink of an eye.
For him, experiencing the wonder of magic, exploring the mysteries of magic, earning more Academic Credits, and doing what he wanted to do—only thus would his transmigration not be in vain!
"Professor Keens, I have finished grading the papers!"
Early in the morning, Levi's class representative, Hermione, hugged a stack of papers and placed them beside Levi.
"Hmm, thank you for your hard work, class representative. This Professor is very gratified!"
Levi responded with a pretentious air, acting just like an old pedantic man, which made Hermione's eyebrows and eyes curve with a smile.
Pulling Hermione to sit beside the Ravenclaw long table, the little witch, as a student of Gryffindor, had a slightly blushing face and felt a little embarrassed.
On the contrary, the senior students of Ravenclaw had long heard about Hermione, the little witch who was in Gryffindor House yet exceptionally passionate about studying. Now seeing her in person, they all greeted her warmly.
"Thank you, thank you, seniors!"
Hermione expressed her thanks obediently, and her good-girl appearance made Levi chuckle endlessly from the side.
"What are you laughing at," Hermione turned around, blushing, and said fiercely to Levi out of shame and anger, self-taughtly using the two-finger Zen pinch on Levi's waist.
"Ah!"
Levi instantly screamed as if he had suffered some cruel torture, frightening Hermione so much that she pulled her hand back.
When she realized that nothing was actually wrong with Levi, she immediately glared at him with a pair of beautiful eyes, as if her eyes were saying: You just wait for me!
The surrounding Wizards watched the two of them bickering with auntie smiles on their faces, obviously already shipping Levi and Hermione!
After a long while, Levi picked food for Hermione and brought her drinks, finally coaxing the little witch back into a good mood.
Although he promised verbally that he would never be like this again, in reality, Levi was thinking in his heart:
Hermione acting like an overbearing girlfriend was quite a treat to tease, and he would dare do it again next time!
"Hermione, how is your Ancient Runes study going?"
After breakfast, on the way to class together, Levi asked Hermione about her progress in studying Ancient Runes.
During the Christmas holiday, he had arranged for Hermione to wear Ravenclaw's Diadem. Relying on the amplification of wisdom, she had already been able to completely control emotional magic.
However, wanting to class-change into an Arcanist was not enough just by completely controlling magic; it also required the Wizard to study Ancient Runes and construct Spell Templates by themselves.
"Ancient Runes are almost learned, but as for other Ancient Runes, I've only just started dabbling in them!"
Hermione answered enthusiastically.
Whenever chatting about studying, the little witch was always so spirited and forge ahead with determination, never disappointing anyone.
"That's good! However, to class-change into an Arcanist, the Cruciatus Curse that needs to be endured causes too much damage to you!"
"I plan to research some Potions that can enhance physical fitness and strengthen the spirit for you to take when you class-change; otherwise, the risk is too great!"
Through the deduction and calculation of the two tower spirits, the little witch's physical constitution and mental strength simply could not compare with Levi, who had lived two lifetimes and was enhanced by multiple expertise and talents like a cheat.
Forcibly casting Cruciatus Curse to cause soul damage and create gaps for embedding Spell Templates would very likely cause soul injury due to a slight mistake.
The terrifying encounter of Neville's parents made Leviextremely cautious about things like soul trauma.
He himself was thick-skinned and durable, and could class-change into an Arcanist quite recklessly, but it wouldn't do on the little witch Hermione.
He had to re-deduce the process of class-changing into an Arcanist and specifically research Potions and Spells to assist the class-change.
If the success rate wasn't raised to nearly 100%, he would absolutely not be willing to let Hermione take risks.
"Is it not even enough to rely solely on my own study? Do I still need to drink Potions?"
Hearing Levi's words, Hermione couldn't help but be shocked by the difficulty of class-changing into an Arcanist.
She had thought that following Levi's guidance, changing her worldview on magic, learning enough knowledge, and enduring the pain brought by Cruciatus Curse would allow her to class-change into an Arcanist!
But thinking of the powerful magic displayed by Levi, especially since she had searched through other magicbooks and had never seen records about Arcanists, she felt that it was quite normal to have to drink Potions to class-change!
Levi nodded with a serious expression. There were many unreplicable conditions for his successful class-change, which were not universally applicable at all.
On the contrary, if a little witch like Hermione could successfully class-change into an Arcanist, it would mean that Arcanist class-changing could be popularized throughout the Harry Potter world.
Only with a magical profession like the Arcanist, where knowledge is power, could its popularization transform everyone's wisdom into power for Levi to use.
Levi already had two tower spirits as assistants, but after experiencing the convenience of tower spirits, he still needed group wisdom as an auxiliary force.
Levi knew this very well, just like the several tasks he assigned to the tower spirits.
Optimizing the zero-ring and first-ring Spell Templates would take about a year to complete.
If the entire Wizarding World completed the Arcanistclass-change, relying on the power of the group, he probably wouldn't need to wait that long at all.
He could even directly adopt the wisdom achievements of others, without the need for long-term deduction and optimization, and use them right out of the box.
And the wisdom and inspiration of others were things that magical artificial intelligences like tower spirits completely lacked!
Similarly, there were several tasks currently being executed by the tower spirits.
Collecting scientific data such as bloodlines and genes, as well as magic knowledge, did not require the tower spirits to do it bit by bit at all. Levi could give an order and have his Arcanist disciples and descendants help him complete it.
The deduction of the meditation method was even more so. Tower spirits, lacking true wisdom and inspiration, had no clue whatsoever when deducing the meditationmethod.
But if there were a massive number of Arcanists assisting, relying on everyone's wisdom and inspiration, even if they couldn't deduce the meditation method, it would definitely not be in such a clueless state as it was now.
After all, tower spirits were only assistants.
The main body of magic use was people, Wizards.
If Levi wanted the future of magic to be even more brilliant, he must rely on smarter and more knowledgeable Arcanists to assist him in completing it!
Although the year and a half of good times was long, in Levi's view, this little time was far from enough; he still had too many things to complete!
Optimize Spell Templates and advance to a second-ring Arcanist;
Collect bloodline and gene data, research Basiliskbloodline, as well as Slytherin bloodline research, and carry out Bloodline Warlock class-change;
Try to create the meditation method, accumulate magicwith cultivation methods, strengthen the soul, and rapidly enhance strength with cultivation methods;
Research universal Arcanist class-change methods to reduce the difficulty and risk of class-changing;
Serve as the Professor of the Defense Against the Dark Arts class, acting as both a Professor and a student, and go to the library to read, taking up a lot of time just to earn Academic Credits;
Travel through the entire wizarding world with Dumbledore, and while destroying Horcruxes, enhance his influence throughout the Wizarding World;
And even ponder the contradictions and conflicts that might erupt between Wizards and ordinary people in the future.
Levi didn't even care about Voldemort because, compared to the major war that might happen between ordinary people and Wizards, a rural terrorist was really nothing at all!
Busy, Levi was truly so busy!
He even had the thought of researching avatar magic, because he was truly spread too thin!
Chapter 282: Borgin and Burkes
On a Saturday morning, the White Mist was thick and white.
Levi stood beside Hagrid's hut, bidding a reluctant farewell to Hagrid.
The reason Hagrid was so reluctant to part was that he had not seen his baby Dragon, Norbert, for a long time!
Originally, this weekend was the time Levi and Hagrid had agreed upon to visit the Dragon and take care of Norbert.
However, a weekend without any classes was undoubtedly very suitable for Levi to follow Headmaster Dumbledoreand embark on the journey to find the Horcrux.
After much persuasion, Levi finally coaxed the sniveling "idiot" boy, Hagrid, back into his seemingly small yet actually tall wooden house.
After quite a while longer, Dumbledore's tall and aged figure emerged from the white White Mist.
"You have come!"
"I have come."
"You shouldn't have come!"
"What do you mean I shouldn't have come? Levi, what are you talking about?"
Dumbledore looked at Levi with a puzzled expression, thinking to himself that even if most Wizards were eccentric, had Levi gone mad at such a young age?
"Hehe~ It's nothing, it's nothing, let's go!"
Levi gave an awkward smile, thinking he had triggered some martial hero mod, and quickly changed the subject, asking Dumbledore:
"Headmaster, where are we going to find those Dark Artsitems?"
"And how are we leaving Hogwarts? Apparition?"
"That's right," Dumbledore stated the destination of this trip:
"Without a fireplace, without a Portkey, the two of us can only walk out of the range of Hogwarts and use Apparitionto go to Diagon Alley!"
"Levi, how is your practice of Apparition? Do you need me to take you along with Side-Along Apparition?"
Dumbledore estimated that with Levi's mastery of magic, a Spell like Apparition—which required specialized classes from the Ministry of Magic and a license to use—he must have practiced in private.
However, he didn't care at all that Levi violated the regulations of the Ministry of Magic; after all, he was a Headmaster from Gryffindor House.
Merely violating the regulations of the Ministry of Magicwere all minor issues in the eyes of Headmaster Dumbledore!
Carefully observing the expression of Headmaster Dumbledore and guessing that this mischievous old Headmaster was not entrapping him,
Levi breathed a sigh of relief inwardly and replied with a smile:
"No problem, Headmaster! During the holidays, Professor McGonagall and I have already performed Apparitionseveral times!"
"Then let's go!" Dumbledore laughed heartily, knowing that the young wizard Levi would not let him down.
The two immediately waved their respective wands and cast Apparition. Space distorted like a water pipe, swirling Dumbledore and Levi across space.
"Pusichu~"
As the sound of air being displaced rang out, two figures appeared out of thin air before the Leaky Cauldron.
Levi stepped forward wanting to push open the doors of the Leaky Cauldron, enter the bar, and say hello to Tom the bartender.
"Wait, Levi, I need to disguise myself first!"
Saying this, Dumbledore waved his Elder Wand, and black robes appeared out of thin air on him and Levi. The hoods on the robes cast a patch of darkness, covering both of their faces.
"Your identity and mine are somewhat special. Once we appear in a crowd, we will both become the focus, but the matter of searching for Dark Arts items cannot be known by more people."
Draped in black robes, the tall Dumbledore explained to Levi through the robes with a muffled voice.
"But a Wizard as tall as you is rare in the wizarding world, right?"
Levi asked somewhat speechlessly after hearing Dumbledore's explanation.
Could it be that in the Headmaster's eyes, the Wizards of the wizarding world were all drooling Down syndrome individuals?
"Oh, right, wait a moment," Dumbledore's voice was filled with sudden realization. Waving his wand once more, the high-heeled boots on his feet turned into flat shoes.
As a result, Headmaster Dumbledore's height suddenly went from nearly two meters down to around one meter eighty. Although still tall and thin, he looked much more normal.
"So Professor, you usually wear high heels just to show that you are very tall?"
Levi asked Headmaster Dumbledore with a peculiar expression.
He hadn't expected Old Dumbledore to have such a side to him. No wonder he could Spell thousands of magical youths and captivate Grindelwald!
So in some people's eyes, Dumbledore was a tall, mature woman!
"Ahem, I'm just used to dressing like this," Dumbledoreseemed to notice Levi's peculiar expression, coughed, and explained with difficulty.
However, his perception was exceptionally keen, and seeming to sense what Levi was thinking, he asked in a lingering tone:
"Levi, are you thinking about some impolite things?"
"No, haha, let's go in quickly!"
Levi quickly brushed it off with a laugh, while secretly running Occlumency underneath to guard against someone using Legilimency.
The two walked into the Leaky Cauldron, draped in black robes without attracting anyone's attention, and went straight through the bar's courtyard into Diagon Alley.
"Follow me," Headmaster Dumbledore pulled Levi's arm and led him turning into Knockturn Alley.
Levi was pulled forward by Headmaster Dumbledore, walking while listening to Headmaster Dumbledoreexplain the reason for coming here:
"Tom, Voldemort's real name is Tom Riddle. After graduation, he once applied to stay and teach at the school, wanting to serve as a Professor for the Defense Against the Dark Arts class."
"But the Headmaster Armando Dippet at the time rejected him on the grounds that Tom was too young."
"Tom left the school, traveled outside for a period of time, rejected a job offer from the Ministry of Magic, and came to the Borgin and Burkes magic shop here in Knockturn Alleyto find a job."
After hearing this, Levi nodded and spoke along with Headmaster Dumbledore's words:
"So Headmaster, we are going to visit Mr. Borgin?"
"That's right," Dumbledore's wise and sharp eyes scanned the Dark Wizards passing through Knockturn Alleyimperceptibly while admonishing Levi:
"Borgin and Burkes is a shop dealing in Dark Arts items. During Tom's time working here, he must have come into contact with many Dark Arts items and Dark Wizards."
"Starting from the Borgin and Burkes shop is the easiest way to find clues about Dark Arts items!"
As the two spoke, they had already arrived at the Borgin and Burkes shop located in Knockturn Alley.
This was Levi's first time coming to this "notorious" dark shop. Looking up, on a black-painted wooden sign, pale green verdigris formed the store name:
Borgin Burkes
On both sides of the entrance were two outward-bulging curved large shop windows, the glass covered with thick dust, and the light dim.
Looking closely through the dust, the shop windows displayed shrunken heads and cursed accessories, exuding a sense of eerie creepiness even from afar!
Dumbledore bent down and pushed open the glass door. The verdigris wind chimes hanging at the store entrance tinkled, reminding of the arrival of guests.
"Welcome, two esteemed guests!"
Levi followed Dumbledore into the shop, glancing at a Hand of Glory displayed on the counter cabinet, when he suddenly heard an enthusiastic and greasy voice ring out.
Following the sound, he saw a hunchbacked man appear behind the counter, reaching out to smooth back his greasy hair.
This person's image, just like his voice and hair, was slick and greasy!
"What would the two of you like? Or do you have any trinkets to sell?"
Borgin looked at the two guests draped in black robes, showing an enthusiastic yet slightly flattering smile, and asked Dumbledore and Levi.
Hearing this, Dumbledore waved his black robes with the hand holding his wand, and the shop's door automatically closed with a bang, while the transparent glass shop windows instantly became shrouded in a layer of black curtain.
"Who are you? What do you want?"
Seeing this, Borgin was startled in his heart, immediately picked up his wand vigilantly, and even took two steps back, asking Dumbledore and Levi with a nervous expression.
"Do not be nervous, Mr. Borgin, we have come to your place simply seeking answers to some questions."
Headmaster Dumbledore's voice came from behind the black robes, his tone gentle and calm, sounding right away like a benevolent elderly man.
Hearing Dumbledore's voice, Borgin's nervous expression relaxed, but was immediately followed by a fierce look as he said impatiently:
"This is a shop for buying and selling things, not a place for chatting and questioning. I don't have any answers, get lost before I take action!"
Chapter 283: Those Who Know the Times, Wei Junjie
"No, is this guy really this brave?"
"Could it be that he doesn't know Headmaster Dumbledore could scatter his ashes to the winds with a single wave of fire?"
Levi suddenly felt that Harry Potter daring to jump on Voldemort and throw punches wasn't even a true warrior.
The Mr. Borgin right before them was the true brave hero!
Dumbledore didn't take Mr. Borgin's verbal offense too much to heart.
Against someone like Mr. Borgin who was obsessed with the Dark Arts and had degenerated of his own accord, Headmaster Dumbledore had plenty of strength and means at his disposal!
It was just that Levi was following by his side, and right in front of Levi, it wouldn't look good for Dumbledore to use Legilimency to forcibly read Mr. Borgin's memory.
Otherwise, Dumbledore would have already obtained the information he wanted.
But even so, Dumbledore still had a way to get the news he wanted.
He raised his palm, about to flip back his hood, reveal his true identity, and question Mr. Borgin directly.
At worst, after the questioning ended, he would use a Memory Charm to make him forget this memory—Headmaster Dumbledore planned inwardly.
But just as he was about to raise his arm, he found that Levi had stopped his movement and shook his head at him.
Did Levi have a way?
Headmaster Dumbledore's actions unconsciously slowed down.
"Mr. Borgin," Levi stepped out after stopping Dumbledorefrom exposing his identity.
He also deliberately spread his hands wide to show that on his hands, aside from an eagle-decorated ring, there were no weapons whatsoever, including a wand.
"You said this is a place to buy and sell things, so I wonder if news can be bought and sold as well. I am willing to pay for it, and this humble one has quite a bit of family wealth!"
As Levi spoke, he waved the sleeve of his black robe and gently brushed it across the counter, and a huge pile of Galleons appeared on top of the counter.
A golden radiance refracted from the Galleons, and in an instant, the dilapidated and gloomy shop became resplendent and magnificent!
"S—So much money!"
Mr. Borgin's pair of triangular eyes stared fixedly at that pile of Galleons. His Adam's apple bobbed slightly as he unconsciously swallowed a mouthful of saliva, his constricted pupils seeming to turn into sparkling gold coins one by one!
"There is an old saying in the East: Those who adapt to the times... ahem, money makes the mare go. I believe these gold coins will definitely be able to open Your Excellency's mouth!"
Levi's colonel accent almost slipped out of place, but fortunately his financial power was strong enough that no one cared about his near-slip of the tongue.
"What would you like to ask?"
Mr. Borgin with difficulty dragged his eyes away from that pile of gold coins, his face full of greed and reluctance to part, yet he still put on a fawning smile, lacking even a shred of hesitation or resistance.
Hearing this, Levi did not voice his question, but instead looked toward Headmaster Dumbledore.
Was this Levi's method—tempting with money and driving with benefits?
Forget it, if they didn't have to resort to violence, it wasn't a bad method after all!
Although Headmaster Dumbledore was surprised by Levi's operation, he was even clearer on what they came here to do today.
"I would like to ask Mr. Borgin, back when Tom Riddle was working here for you, who were the people he came into contact with? What rare items did he acquire?"
While asking, he simply applied Legilimency to discern the truth or falsehood of what Mr. Borgin was about to say.
As for Mr. Borgin, Dumbledore wouldn't have the slightest bit of trust in him, and deeply knew that for such a person, telling lies was as simple as eating and drinking water.
"Who are you? How do you know that name? What are you poking around into his past for?"
"I don't know, I don't want to say anything!"
To Dumbledore's surprise, facing his question, Mr. Borgin's face was actually filled with panic. Not only was he unwilling to say anything, but he even turned the tables and questioned Dumbledore back!
"Hmph! It seems Mr. Borgin does not understand what it means to be the knife and cutting board while others are the fish and meat, nor does he know what it means to adapt to the times, Wei Junjie!"
Headmaster Dumbledore hadn't said anything yet, but Levi was already a bit impatient; after all, he had started his colonel-style speech.
In his view, pulling out so many Galleons to buy news from Mr. Borgin was already giving him plenty of face.
Otherwise, a Dark Wizard like Mr. Borgin who was involved in gray industries and had no telling how many laws he might have violated,
only deserved to be locked away in the Bestiary's dungeon, tortured under the Cruciatus Curse curse, controlled by the Imperius Curse curse, and squeezed dry of all his grease and wealth!
"Rejecting a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeiture!"
Levi coldly tossed out a single sentence. Without seeing him wave a wand or hearing him chant any spells, Mr. Borgin felt an invisible giant hand abruptly clamp onto his skull!
The invisible giant hand's five fingers, like steel bars, gradually exerted force. Amidst the intense pain, Mr. Borgin seemed to hear the creaking, shattering sound of his skull!
What kind of magic is this?
Could he be trying to crush my head?
"I'll talk, I'll talk!"
Under the threat of death, Mr. Borgin finally relented amidst cries for mercy.
Seeing this, Dumbledore glanced at Levi, and Levi also slightly relaxed his invisible Mage Hand.
Feeling the invisible giant hand ease its force, Mr. Borginswallowed his saliva as if he had just cheated death, and spoke with difficulty:
"The person you two are asking about is You-Know-Who. He did indeed work here as a shop assistant for a period of time back then."
"I took a fancy to his handsome appearance, extremely high eloquence, and persuasiveness, and frequently sent him out to visit old Wizards, persuading them to sell the ancient magic treasures in their homes to the shop."
"He did extremely well; his speech was Attract, polite and elegant, and he always helped me acquire other people's collections."
"Only what I don't understand is that clearly he was doing so well, and I never shortchanged his wages either, yet on a certain day, he suddenly resigned from here!"
"Perhaps from that time on, You-Know-Who had already determined his dark ambitions and goals?!"
After hearing this, Headmaster Dumbledore and Levilooked at each other in dismay. Hearing Mr. Borgin's account, the two of them could already guess:
Voldemort must have found a precious collection that could be used to make a Horcrux, which was why he chose to resign after succeeding.
"Before Tom left your place, which Wizard was the last one he came into contact with, and what collection did you want to acquire from that Wizard?"
Although Levi knew the answer, he wanted even more for Mr. Borgin to speak the answer out of his own mouth and tell Dumbledore face-to-face.
"I... I don't remember clearly!"
But what Levi hadn't expected was that even now, Mr. Borgin still dared to pull this stunt in front of him!
That evasive look in his eyes, that hesitating tone—how was this not remembering clearly? It was clearly fearing Voldemort's existence and not daring to tell the truth!
"You fear Voldemort, yet you don't fear me!"
Levi was instantly so angered that his teeth itched, if not for taking Dumbledore, who was standing right beside him, into consideration.
He really wanted to give Mr. Borgin a Divine Punishment on the spot, to make him understand what it means that Voldemort was far away at the horizon, while he, Levi, was right before his eyes!
"Wait," Headmaster Dumbledore called out to stop Levi, who was preparing to take action.
By now, how could he not understand that if he wanted to know what precious collection Voldemort had gotten his hands on and made into a Horcrux, he had no choice but to use some methods on Mr. Borgin.
But with him, this Headmaster, tagging along, how could he possibly let Levi, a young wizard, be the one to use those dark methods?
The moment Levi saw Headmaster Dumbledore call out to stop him, his heart suddenly grew anxious, and he almost thought Dumbledore's good-natured personality was acting up again.
Yet he thought Dumbledore said to him:
"You go wander around this shop for a bit first; I have some things I want to talk about with Mr. Borgin alone!"
Hearing this, Levi glanced sideways, noticing the tip of the Elder Wand exposed from beneath Dumbledore's robes.
He instantly understood tacitly, without even glancing at Mr. Borgin, and turned around to wander about leisurely just like a customer.
Chapter 284 Look Before You Leap
Who knows what methods Headmaster Dumbledoreused, but by the time Levi returned, he had already obtained the information and memories he wanted.
"Mr. Borgin, the money on the table will be used to buy this cabinet!"
Carrying the dark Vanishing Cabinet, Levi came before Mr. Borgin, said that to him amidst his slightly dazed look, and put the cabinet away.
Vanishing Cabinets must be used in pairs, connecting each other like a portal to transfer people or objects.
The Vanishing Cabinet he put away, and its matching other cabinet, was placed inside the Room of Requirement at Hogwarts.
In the original plot, it was precisely with the help of this pair of damaged Vanishing Cabinets that Death Eaters were able to teleport into Hogwarts, causing the fatal fall of Headmaster Dumbledore.
Such a huge defense loophole was naturally not something Levi would leave behind.
Furthermore, for things like Vanishing Cabinets resembling spatial gates, even with the Spatial MOD, Levi wanted to get one to study.
Although he obtained the blueprints for the Vanishing Cabinet from the heritage of teacher Nicolas Flamel,
still, to fully understand such a portal-like alchemy item, having a physical object in hand was better.
Having obtained Mr. Borgin's memory, Levi and Dumbledore left the shop.
"Does the Professor have nothing to say?"
Walking in the dark and narrow alleys of Knockturn Alley, Levi imperceptibly dodged a Dark Wizard who looked like a homeless person, and turned his head to look at Dumbledore.
He thought Dumbledore would talk to him about from whose hands Voldemort seized what kind of precious collection.
Or earnestly chat with him about how he shouldn't have used magic earlier to force Mr. Borgin to spit out the truth.
"Mm... wait," Dumbledore waved the Elder Wand slightly, making the people around unable to hear his and Levi's conversation, and then said:
"What do you want to talk about, Levi? Do you feel you shouldn't have used magic to threaten Mr. Borgin?"
Compared to what Voldemort used to make a Horcrux,
Dumbledore now cared more about Levi's mindset, as well as his thoughts when waving his wand and using magic.
"Then do you think what I did was right, Headmaster?"
Levi asked Headmaster Dumbledore in return; he didn't feel at all that there was anything wrong with using magicto threaten a person like Mr. Borgin.
But Headmaster's attitude was something he had to consider—if Headmaster considered him the third Dark Lord, the impact on his future actions would be huge!
"I remember you once said: My magic is not tyranny, but the language to justify my origin!"
Headmaster Dumbledore did not answer Levi's question, but instead, like recalling a memory, repeated what Levihad once said and asked in turn:
"Levi, when you waved your wand earlier, did you feel you were using tyranny to oppress Mr. Borgin?"
Hearing this, Levi pondered for a moment and replied:
"Before today, I didn't know Mr. Borgin, and we have no grievances. Although he seems to be doing some illegal business, legally speaking, it shouldn't be up to me to discipline him."
"However, if I couldn't ask out of Mr. Borgin what Voldemort used back then to make Dark Arts items, innocent people would definitely be harmed! I had to do this!"
Levi likewise did not answer Headmaster Dumbledore's question, but he spoke out all of his inner thoughts.
"Indeed! Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown! To protect the people we care about and protect the innocent people, our hands inevitably become stained with sin and blood!"
Dumbledore sighed and said with emotion.
The 'we' in his mouth probably didn't just refer to himself and Levi, but perhaps pointed more toward a certain old friend who used excessive means.
"But Levi, you must understand that even if sometimes we have to do so, we must control our emotions well, and even less can we turn the original intention of protection into an excessive vent of emotions!"
"magic is a magical power, and even more a destructive power. Once trapped in some illusory lofty ideal, magicthat cannot be self-controlled will only bring consequences that you will regret too late!"
"Levi, do not abuse your magic; otherwise, when you regret it too late, everything will already be too late!
This is the only advice I, this old man, can leave for you!"
Having finished speaking, Headmaster Dumbledore fell into silence. Walking by his side, Levi could not see Dumbledore's expression clearly even though he was wearing a robe.
However, he could still feel an extremely intense sorrow and grief from Dumbledore!
"Professor, I will remember your words."
Levi knew that Headmaster Dumbledore was grieving the death of his sister, but he didn't know how to comfort him, so he could only say:
"In the future when I use magic, I will definitely look before I leap, not let emotions dominate, and abuse magic."
He felt that Headmaster Dumbledore's words made complete sense. The tragedy of the Headmaster's life originated from that magical melee involving his brother, himself, and Grindelwald!
Amidst the melee, Headmaster Dumbledore's sister accidentally broke into the battlefield, was hit by someone's Spell, and ultimately passed away!
This was the root cause of the rupture between Dumbledore and Grindelwald, and also the fundamental reason for the formation of Dumbledore's current personality background.
No matter how powerful his magic power was and how many magics he mastered, Dumbledore was trying his best to restrain himself, not letting his powerful magic be manipulated by emotions and abused!
The two walked out of Knockturn Alley in silence. After arriving in Diagon Alley, Levi still couldn't help asking:
"Headmaster, who on earth is the person Mr. Borginconfessed about? Where are we going next?"
"No rush," Headmaster Dumbledore recovered from his sadness, but was no longer in a hurry. He glanced at the sun and asked strangely:
"Levi, aren't you hungry? I always feel hungry in the Headmaster's Office, fortunately it just takes a knock on the table, and House-elves will serve me sweet pastries and candies!"
Is it possible that you eat too much sugar, got diabetes, and that's why you frequently feel hungry?
Levi muttered inwardly, but still followed Headmaster Dumbledore into the Leaky Cauldron.
One tall and one short, the two wearing black robes sat next to a wine table. Because their features could not be seen clearly, they were very conspicuous among the bar's customers.
However, everyone didn't care much; there were plenty of weirdly dressed people among Wizards, let alone wearing robes, there were even those wearing skirts!
"Welcome, what would the two like to eat?"
The hunchbacked boss Tom, with a rag draped over his shoulder, stepped forward to greet the two and asked.
Hearing this, Levi suddenly felt a bit hungry. Possessing the Giant Physique trait and dragon heart, this young wizard didn't look big in size, but actually could eat a lot!
Especially since he noticed that Headmaster Dumbledorewas a bit gloomy, so he intentionally said:
"I want some ham and eggs, a large piece of fine fried steak, with all the side dishes, poured with thick gravy!"
Hearing the dishes Levi ordered, and glancing at the two wearing black robes whose appearances couldn't even be seen, Boss Tom, afraid that these two people would dine and dash, couldn't help reminding:
"Sir, this will cost quite a bit of money!"
"I know, bring another large glass of Butterbeer, the person opposite is treating, he has money," Levi said loudly on purpose.
"Ah? Me?"
Hearing Levi's words, Headmaster Dumbledore, who was immersed in grief, couldn't help snapping back to his senses.
Hearing that Levi ordered a bunch of things, expensive ones at that, and wanted him to treat, he was instantly startled!
It wasn't that Headmaster Dumbledore was stingy; having been headmaster for so many years, his vault had plenty of Galleons, he didn't even know how much money he had, nor did he touch money, let alone care about money.
But the problem was that every time he went out, unless money was specifically needed, he rarely brought money.
Just like today, when he came out with Levi to search for Horcruxes, the money he carried on him was just a few Sickles.
Now that Levi wanted him to treat, if he, this old Headmaster, couldn't even afford a student's meal, wouldn't that be too embarrassing?!
Thinking of this, whatever sadness, whatever grief, were squeezed away into thin air by the awkwardness of having no money!
In a sense, Levi instantly comforted Dumbledore!
Chapter 285 Old House-elf Hokey
Levi didn't even need to see the old Headmaster's expression to feel his embarrassment.
What he did was truly not right.
But falling into a state of embarrassment was still better than constantly sinking into sorrowful memories.
"Forget it, I'll treat!"
"Also, give my old gentleman here opposite me a serving of treacle tart, fruit cream cake, chocolate balls, and another cup of milk with sugar!"
Levi would never deliberately make things difficult for Old Dumbledore, and seeing that he had shaken off his sorrowful emotions, he immediately changed his words.
He even hadn't forgotten to order a sugar-exploding diabetes set meal for Old Dumbledore.
That was only because Headmaster Dumbledore had a vast ocean of magic flowing inside him.
Otherwise, if he ate according to the set meal Levi ordered, Old Dumbledore would kick the bucket before Voldemortcould even resurrect!
"Ha-ha, I'm so sorry, I forgot to bring money today!"
Headmaster Dumbledore never expected that he would have a day where a student treated him to a meal. Could this be the legendary joy of family harmony?
Dumbledore, who had no descendants, felt a strange yet warm feeling in his heart for the first time!
Perhaps because of Levi's interruption, or perhaps because eating sweets secreted dopamine, Headmaster Dumbledore's mood improved visibly.
He also became much more talkative, and even proactively brought up their next objective:
"After we finish eating, according to Mr. Borgin, we have to go to Smith Manor. That is the old mansion of the late old witch, Hepzibah Smith."
"Hepzibah Smith?"
Hearing Headmaster Dumbledore say this, Levi couldn't help muttering this extremely unfamiliar name.
Even though he had once used the Pensieve to organize his memories of Harry Potter, he still felt this rare name was extremely unfamiliar.
He only vaguely remembered that Voldemort seemed to have relied on his youth and good looks to please an old rich woman—a blood descendant of Helga Hufflepuff—so that he could obtain Hufflepuff's golden cup and turn it into a Horcrux.
Tsk, thinking about it, Voldemort had it pretty tough too!
To please a wealthy woman, who knew how much price he had paid, and who knew if Hufflepuff's blood descendant knew how to play with wealthy women's steel wool balls!
Levi's heart was filled with wicked thoughts, guessing maliciously.
"Mm," Dumbledore knew that the young wizard Levicouldn't possibly know such an old witch, so he took the initiative to introduce:
"She is a blood descendant of Helga Hufflepuff, one of the the Four Founders of the school, and also a wealthy collector who has collected many antiques related to the the Four Founders."
"Tom is a blood descendant of Salazar Slytherin, one of the the Four Founders. He has always been proud of this point and regards it as the highest bloodline glory!"
"I think if he wants to make Dark Arts items, he will definitely use those antiques related to the the Four Founders!"
Speaking of this, Headmaster Dumbledore's tone sank uncontrollably.
As someone from Gryffindor House and also the Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, he found it simply unacceptable that the relics of the the Four Founders were made into Dark Arts items!
And what's more, they were made into Horcruxes, filled with filth and sin, which could only be created by killing people!
While finding it hard to accept, Headmaster Dumbledore's heart was also filled with relief.
He was glad that the sword of Gryffindor had always been hidden inside the Sorting Hat and had not fallen into the hands of Voldemort.
Otherwise, he could hardly imagine how unacceptable and heart-wrenching it would be if Gryffindor's sword were made into a Horcrux by Voldemort!
Levi didn't speak anymore either. His view of Voldemorthad never changed: purely a toad—it doesn't bite people, but it disgusts them!
After finishing their meal and paying Mr. Tom a Galleon, Levi took the returned change and teleported with Dumbledore to Smith Manor.
The woods were deep and quiet, with dense ancient trees. A two-story old mansion in the forest was covered with withered yellow leaves.
The uninhabited Smith Manor perfectly matched Levi's imagination of an old witch's secluded dwelling place.
If a family of four were to move in, it would be just about enough to shoot an American horror movie!
"Ding-a-ling!"
While Levi was still guessing whether anyone was living in this house, Headmaster Dumbledore had already rung the doorbell.
"Creak!"
The door of the old mansion was pushed open, revealing a crack half a face wide. An ugly, aged, wrinkled, and short figure stared with turbid large eyes, peering out vigilantly through the crack:
"Who are you? What are you doing here?"
Seeing that the person who opened the door was a House-elf, Dumbledore combined the information he had collected, lifted his hood, revealed his true face, and said:
"I am Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I want to talk to you about your late master, the old Madam Hepzibah Smith!"
"Master?!"
Headmaster Dumbledore shouldn't have mentioned old Madam Smith. The moment he brought up this deceased old witch, it was as if he had triggered some switch in the House-elf inside the door, instantly plunging it into intense sorrow and self-pity:
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
The House-elf frantically smashed its head against the wall behind the door, wailing miserably as it banged:
"Hokey killed the master, Hokey is a bad House-elf! Hokey should be put to death! Woo-hoo-hoo ~ Sorry master!"
Headmaster Dumbledore and Levi hadn't expected this. Just mentioning old Madam Smith, why would it make this House-elf blame itself so much?
Moreover, judging by what it said, was it this House-elfthat killed old Madam Smith?
After a long while, the House-elf Hokey inside the door finally calmed down and opened the door for Headmaster Dumbledore and Levi.
"After the master left, only I am left living here. Sorry, there is nothing to entertain you with!"
"This is not the Smith family being impolite, it is Hokey's fault! Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Entering the spotless reception room, just as Dumbledoreand Levi sat down, the House-elf Hokey, draped in old coarse sackcloth, hunched over and looking extremely aged, started punishing itself again!
Levi and Dumbledore couldn't help looking at each other in dismay, both feeling that it was somewhat tricky.
They could both guess that the death of old Madam Smithdefinitely had unusual circumstances.
It was very likely that old Madam Smith wasn't killed by the House-elf Hokey, but died at the hands of Tom Riddle.
However, a House-elf's subservience was deep-rooted. Regarding the matter of killing its master, it was even more remorseful to the extreme, wishing it could commit suicide to die!
Had it not been for the ironclad rule set at the birth of the House-elf race—because Wizards feared they wouldn't be able to endure torture and choose suicide—prohibiting suicide, Hokey would have long ago smashed itself to death alive!
"Forced Calm." With no other choice, Levi had to wave his right hand wearing the eagle ring, using the spell to force Hokey to calm down.
"..."
Even though Forced Calm was only a Zero-circle Cantrip, the effect of the spell was still extremely powerful!
Hokey's aged face suddenly became numb, and the entire House-elf's expression grew dull, standing blankly there without moving.
"A peculiar spell," Dumbledore praised, giving Levi an appreciative look as he commented, and then turned to ask the expressionless Hokey:
"Do you remember Tom Riddle, who came here to visit your master before your master died?"
"Remember," Hokey answered coldly and mechanically.
"That's good. Can you tell me which of your master's collections Tom Riddle paid more attention to? For example, antiques related to the the Four Founders of Hogwarts?"
Headmaster Dumbledore asked Hokey the question he was most concerned about.
"The master's family has always passed down Hufflepuff's heirloom—the golden cup, and also Slytherin's locket. These are the relics of the the Four Founders that the master spent money to acquire."
"After Tom Riddle came to the master's place, he was very interested in these two alchemical antiques, but the master was unwilling to sell them, and in the end it was dropped!"
Hokey pondered for a moment. Fortunately, it wasn't senile yet and quickly recalled the two alchemical antiques that Tom Riddle had focused on.
These were the two!
Headmaster Dumbledore and Levi thought in unison.
Levi was looking for the process with the answers in hand, and instantly remembered that these two alchemical antiques were precisely the relics of the the Four Foundersmade into Horcruxes.
Headmaster Dumbledore, analyzing based on Voldemort's personality, felt that nothing was more likely to be made into a Horcrux by Voldemort than Hufflepuff's iconic golden cup and Slytherin's locket, this heirloom of the Gaunt Family.
Especially Slytherin's locket; Voldemort's mother originated from the Gaunt Family, and the Gaunt Familywere the blood descendants of Slytherin.
But this family, because they advocated so-called noble bloodlines, chose in-breeding within the family, leading to their demise, and even the relic of Slytherin's locket was sold off!
"Where are these two things now?"
Headmaster Dumbledore asked Hokey impatiently. Just a little more, and he would be able to find Tom's two Horcruxes once again.
"Gone? After the master passed away, Hokey sorted through the master's relics and couldn't find them. Hokey is a bad elf! Woo-hoo-hoo! Bang!"
Halfway through answering Headmaster Dumbledore's question, the effect of the Forced Calm spell wore off, and it prepared to beat its head against the ground to punish itself again.
Fortunately, Levi was quick-eyed and quick-handed, casting Stupefy to make Hokey pass out.
"Gone? Yes, if they were made into Hor... Dark Arts items, Tom would not leave them behind; he would definitely find a place to hide them!"
Hearing Hokey's answer, Headmaster Dumbledoreinevitably revealed a look of disappointment and couldn't help muttering to himself.
He also knew that Voldemort wasn't some fool. How could he make the relics of the the Four Founders into Horcruxes and still leave them in place, waiting for him to come knocking on the door to destroy them?
Being able to know what Voldemort turned into a Horcruxnow was already a stroke of immense luck!
No matter how dejected Headmaster Dumbledore felt, he knew he shouldn't expect too much.
"Professor, should we continue asking?"
Seeing that the two Horcruxes had finally come to light at this moment, Levi was extremely happy in his heart, but on the surface, he calmly asked Headmaster Dumbledore for instructions.
Chapter 286 Headmaster Showdown
" Alas ~, she is also a pitiful person blinded by false memories! "
Hearing Levi's inquiry, Headmaster Dumbledore sighed and asked Levi to wake up the House-elf Hokey.
After she woke up, Dumbledore asked her again if there were any other missing items from Smith's collection besides Hufflepuff's cup and Slytherin's locket.
The House-elf Hokey's answer was, of course, no.
Sitting aside, Levi sighed in his heart upon hearing Headmaster Dumbledore's inquiry; Old Dumbledore truly lived up to being the White Wizard, being so cautious in his thoughts.
" Hokey, there is something I must tell you: Your master was not killed by you! "
" Your memory has been tampered with! "
" Do you need me to help you change the real memory back? "
After a round of questioning, Headmaster Dumbledoreasked the old House-elf Hokey with pity.
" What you said is true? Master was not killed by Hokey?! "
Hearing Dumbledore's words, Hokey was full of disbelief, and her entire spirit instantly changed!
However, when she heard Dumbledore's proposal, she seemed to think of something and said with a depressed face:
" But Hokey did not protect Master well, Hokey is still a bad Pokémon, Hokey should be punished, Hokey should be put to death! "
" Hokey should not have her memory corrected, she wants to punish herself! "
As she spoke, Hokey screamed, hitting her own head as if punishing herself, and disappeared with an Apparition!
" Alas~ " Headmaster Dumbledore sighed again, seeming to age a lot all at once. This was not only Tom Riddle's sin, but also his sin!
Listening to Headmaster Dumbledore's sigh and witnessing the tragedy of the House-elf Hokey firsthand, Levi felt more and more that Voldemort deserved to die!
Damn Voldemort, how many people have you harmed?!
" Let's go, Levi, don't disturb her anymore! "
Headmaster Dumbledore's words were filled with exhaustion; even knowing which two relics the Horcruxes were could not cheer him up.
Levi followed Headmaster Dumbledore out of Smith's residence. Neither of them spoke, walking quietly down the path in the woods like this.
Withered leaves and dry branches rustled under their feet, and besides the footsteps, there was no other sound.
" Levi, it seems that you and Miss Granger are advocating in school to improve the treatment of House-elves? "
After walking for a long time, Headmaster Dumbledoresuddenly stopped and asked Levi with a hopeful tone.
" That's right, " Levi guessed that Headmaster Dumbledore would ask this, and of course he knew that nothing could be kept from Old Dumbledore at Hogwarts.
" Both Hermione and I believe that slavery should not exist in the wizarding world, but the servility of life forms like House-elves towards Wizards is almost rooted in the instincts of their bloodline and soul, which cannot be changed simply by abolishing slavery. "
" Therefore, the idea of the two of us is to change the treatment of House-elves so that they are not abused by Wizards, and gradually turn the status of slaves into a job, letting them serve Wizards in exchange for compensation. "
" You also know that in the decaying and outdated wizarding world, initiating even the slightest reform is a very difficult thing! "
" If Hermione and I want to implement this idea, I'm afraid it will take a long time of effort, and perhaps only after achieving extremely great achievements can we rely on fame and strength to accomplish this! "
Levi did not conceal his and Hermione's thoughts, nor did he conceal the difficulty of accomplishing this matter.
In front of Headmaster Dumbledore, some things needed to be covered up, while others completely didn't need to be hidden at all.
After hearing Levi's words, Headmaster Dumbledore was filled with a myriad of emotions for a moment.
Before learning of Grindelwald's prophetic dream, he had always thought that the wizarding world would continue like this forever, even with Voldemort stirring up trouble.
However, after learning of Grindelwald's prophetic dream, especially after just listening to Levi's words, Headmaster Dumbledore suddenly realized that the reform of the wizarding world had already begun long ago!
Levi's inventions, his fearless and rebellious personality against power, and his and Miss Hermione Granger's pity for House-elves...
Everything was the sprout of reform in the wizarding world!
What's even more rare is that Levi's reform ideas were never radical or reckless.
Even if he wanted to liberate House-elves, he did not choose to resort to violence, but chose to persuade Wizards to improve the treatment of House-elves.
Changing the situation of House-elves from abused slaves to a job serving Wizards—such a gentle and practical reform could be foreseen to succeed!
" Levi, you are truly the one in the future who will bring hope to the wizarding world! "
Headmaster Dumbledore suddenly said to the bewildered Levi, his eyes filled with hope as he looked at him.
" Headmaster, why are you suddenly praising me? "
Levi was a bit embarrassed by Headmaster Dumbledore's praise, and he felt that Old Dumbledore's praise seemed to have a hidden meaning.
" The thing is like this, Levi, " Headmaster Dumbledore no longer kept it from Levi, and right in this deserted forest, he told the two prophetic dreams of Grindelwald.
" So Professor Gellert von Vitez is Mr. Gellert Grindelwald! "
After listening to Headmaster Dumbledore's words, Levisaid with a look of "sudden realization".
His pretentious expression left Headmaster Dumbledorespeechless. He didn't know who it was last semester that came to his Headmaster's Office to probe Grindelwald's identity, almost making him think Grindelwald's disguise had been exposed.
From that time on, Headmaster Dumbledore had guessed that Levi might already know Grindelwald's identity.
" Regarding the future, when Wizards will be exposed in front of ordinary people and the Statute of Secrecy will fail, what do you think, Levi? "
Headmaster Dumbledore turned his head and asked Leviwith burning eyes.
" How can I see it? I can only look at it standing up! "
Levi rolled his eyes and said indifferently, finally understanding why Headmaster Dumbledore praised him so much.
Turns out he was regarded as the leader of future reform!
Headmaster Dumbledore was half choked by Levi's indifferent words, but he also suddenly realized that Leviwas only a thirteen-year-old young wizard right now.
" When Hermione and I were researching the hero king game console, we also deduced that if ordinary people's technology reaches a certain level, the Statute of Secrecywill be very difficult to maintain. "
" And the human or ordinary people group has very serious xenophobic thoughts, especially since Wizards can manipulate ordinary people's minds at will, and only need a simple Spell to toy with ordinary people at will! "
" For ordinary people, this is simply intolerable! "
" If there is no oppression from external forces, ordinary people and Wizards are probably bound to have a war. The result of the war is unknown, but the destruction will definitely be huge! "
Levi stated his own speculation, which was the reason why he no longer took Voldemort, that rural terrorist, seriously.
Compared to the war that might sweep across the world in the future, the terrorist attacks made by Voldemort were merely a superficial scab.
" Fortunately, didn't Mr. Grindelwald's second prophetic dream already show that some Lizardmen would appear? "
" This is the common enemy of Wizards and ordinary people! "
After learning of the second prophetic dream, Levi also breathed a sigh of relief in his heart.
Sometimes, the appearance of an enemy is not necessarily a bad thing. Although he didn't know whether the Lizardmen in the prophetic dream were friends or foes, for the peace of humans and Wizards, they had to be enemies.
Headmaster Dumbledore also had such concerns and couldn't help but pour them out in front of Levi:
" But are the Lizardmen necessarily enemies? "
" As a magical life form, they might also unite with us Wizards, or with ordinary people, to deal with us Wizards! "
" If Wizards are attacked from both front and back, and gain an enemy who knows magic, wouldn't that be... "
Before Headmaster Dumbledore finished speaking, he was coldly interrupted by Levi, who said with an indifferent face:
" Lizardmen or whatever else, they will definitely be enemies. Even if they are not enemies, there will be Vampires, Werewolves, demons... or even angels acting as the common enemy of Wizards and ordinary people! "
" If Wizards and ordinary people do not want a war to break out, they definitely need a common enemy! "
" To give a simple example, Nazi Germany during World War II targeted Jews internally and launched wars externally, all to find a common enemy for all forces within the country! "
" Once the enemy appears, all the forces of Nazi Germanytwisted into a single rope. "
" Wizards and ordinary people want to closely unite, and they also need a targeted object, an enemy! "
Speaking of this, the indifferent expression on Levi's face slightly eased. He also knew that the example he gave was very bad, so his tone turned:
" Professor, actually we should hold an optimistic attitude towards the future. Perhaps this enemy doesn't need to be created by us and will actively appear! "
" After all, judging from the prophetic dream, the Lizardmen seem to be strangers coming to our world through the world gate. "
" And such strangers are not only the Lizardmen. "
" If they want to obtain land and resources to survive, they can only squeeze the survival resources of Wizards and ordinary people. "
" Wizards and ordinary people whose interests are damaged will only regard beings like Lizardmen as enemies. After all, Wizards and ordinary people have no conflict of interest, but Lizardmen will solidly harm the interests of both! "
" The contradictions arising from the distribution of interests are the most fundamental and irreconcilable contradictions! "
"... " Hearing Levi's analysis, Headmaster Dumbledoreopened his mouth, but didn't say anything more.
The relationship between Wizards, ordinary people, and Lizardmen analyzed by Levi was cold and realistic, full of interests and calculations, and had nothing to do with the power of love he had always advocated.
Headmaster Dumbledore wanted to persuade Levi to be more broad-minded, to deal with future crises with love and tolerance, and to add some room for mitigation to the future.
However, the crisis was imminent, and the conflicts and wars about to break out were also realistic and cold.
Facing it with an attitude of love and tolerance, can one really get the desired result?
In the survival crisis involving the Wizard community, Headmaster Dumbledore, who had always insisted on love and justice, was also rarely confused!
Chapter 287: Hard-to-Find Horcruxes
Headmaster Dumbledore moved his lips slightly, but ultimately did not offer any persuasion.
Matters of the future would ultimately need to be dealt with by the future Levi.
His thoughts might be suitable for the past wizarding world, but Levi's cold and wise thinking was much better suited for the intricate and complex future world.
The two continued walking forward, tacitly choosing not to discuss matters of the future again.
A prophetic dream was ultimately just a prediction; what the future would actually turn out like depended on how people in the future would act.
Saying too much now would only mean using present thoughts to influence and hinder future actions.
Just as they were about to walk out of the forest, Headmaster Dumbledore stopped once more, gazed at the flock of birds fluttering up from the woods, and asked:
"Levi, where do you think Tom would hide Hufflepuff's Cup and Slytherin's Locket?"
Levi feigned deep thought for a moment, and instead asked Headmaster Dumbledore:
"Professor, before answering your question, I need to ask: is Hufflepuff's Cup, as the name suggests, truly a cup made of gold?"
"Slytherin's Locket, which would be regarded as a precious treasure and worn on the chest by a Slytherin who valued bloodline and glory, must also be extremely gorgeous and valuable, right?"
As soon as Headmaster Dumbledore heard this, he guessed what Levi wanted to say, and replied affirmatively:
"That's right, these two items being collected by Old Mrs. Smith means they are both extremely precious relics of the the Four Founders!"
The mastermind has seen through everything!
Upon hearing this, Levi was instantly possessed by the Death God elementary schooler, crossing his arms with his left hand, supporting his chin with his right hand, and analyzing with gleaming eyes:
"Such a precious antique, even if it has been made into a Dark Arts item, couldn't just be casually tossed away anywhere!"
"If someone were to pick it up and remelt it into precious metal, temperatures of over a thousand degrees—let alone having Dark Arts cast upon it—couldn't be withstood even if a Merlin were trapped inside."
"Voldemort will definitely find a remote and heavily guarded place to store it."
"Headmaster, since you investigated that the diary was kept by the former Death Eater Lucius Malfoy before being brought into Hogwarts,"
"then is it possible that the cup and the locket were also given by Voldemort to some Death Eater for safekeeping?"
"Of course, you shouldn't put all your eggs in one basket; Voldemort certainly wouldn't use just one method to preserve Dark Arts items."
"Perhaps, he might also hide them in a place unknown to others, a place only he knows!"
"Voldemort really goes to great lengths to hide things! I wonder why these Dark Arts items are so important to him that he would go to such meticulous lengths to hide them!"
Listening to Levi's analysis, Headmaster Dumbledorenodded repeatedly; a young wizard's fresh brain was simply much easier to use than his own muddled old brain!
Following Levi's line of thought, Headmaster Dumbledorebegan to ponder which Death Eater had gained Tom's trust the most, making Tom willing to entrust a Horcrux to them and hide it away.
He also began to recall Tom's life and activity trajectory: were there any places that Tom knew about, which others could possibly not know?
After pondering for a moment, Headmaster Dumbledoreshook his head.
The first line of thought had traces to follow; Dumbledorethought of a few people, and with patient investigation, clues could be found.
But the second line of thought truly had no traces to follow. If the place where the Horcrux was hidden was known only to Voldemort, then even if he had watched Voldemortgrow up, it would be impossible to know where this place was!
One person hides an item while ten thousand search for it. Even with clues, wanting to find a Horcrux in this vast world was exceedingly difficult!
However, the child Levi was still too smart; he had already guessed that the so-called Dark Arts items were definitely not simple.
Hopefully he didn't know of the existence of Horcruxes yet, and even more so, wouldn't be interested in this extremely dark and evil magic!
Headmaster Dumbledore kept the two lines of thought for finding Horcruxes in mind. Finding that Levi had grown suspicious of the true identity of the "Dark Arts items", he decided to temporarily stop searching for Horcruxes.
"It's getting late, Levi, we should head back to school!"
Glancing at the setting sun tilting westward, Headmaster Dumbledore invited Levi to perform Apparition together and returned to Hogwarts.
The setting sun melted like gold, and rosy clouds spread over the spires. Hogwarts Castle was immersed in the orange-red twilight, its tower silhouettes majestic, and the window lattices glowing with a warm light.
As soon as Levi landed, the familiar environment made him relax a great deal. He lazily stretched, and with a casual expression, turned his head to say to Headmaster Dumbledore:
"Professor, the two of us have been busy all day and gone to so many places, but I still feel that the school is the most comfortable!"
"I feel the same way; this is the only place that can be called home!"
Hearing Levi say this, Headmaster Dumbledore also said with deep emotion:
Usually, staying at the school didn't give much of a feeling, but having just left for a day, after Levi brought it up, his feeling became all the more obvious.
Casting a spell to remove his black robe, Levi and Headmaster Dumbledore walked side by side toward the school. The young wizards they met along the way all greeted Levi and Headmaster Dumbledore.
"Levi, where on earth did you go today? Why couldn't I find you anywhere?"
"Ah, Professor, you're here too! Hello, Headmaster!"
"Hello, Headmaster!" × 2
little witch Hermione walked out from the stairway with two useless followers, and caught sight of Levi right away.
Hermione spoke eagerly to Levi, not even noticing Headmaster Dumbledore standing right beside him.
Until Levi revealed a playful smile did Hermione notice that Headmaster Dumbledore was standing nearby, watching her and Levi with an auntie-like smile. She hurriedly greeted Headmaster Dumbledore together with Harleyand Ron.
"Hello to you too! Miss Granger, Mr. Weasley, and Harley!"
Headmaster Dumbledore also greeted them with a smile. Knowing that the children were not very comfortable with him here, he said to Levi:
"I'll return to the Headmaster's Office first; I'll have someone inquire about the follow-up of the matter!"
"Then you go ahead and be busy," Having acted for a whole day, Levi didn't want to deal with Old Dumbledoreanymore.
The four young wizards watched Headmaster Dumbledoretrudge up the stairs, and Hermione resumed her previous inquiry, asking with concern:
"Levi, where did you go all day today?"
"How come I didn't catch a glimpse of you all day? Were you moving about together with Headmaster Dumbledore?"
Levi smiled and nodded, responding to the little witchwhose eyes were full of him, giving a half-true, half-false, vague reply:
"I visited a few of his old friends with the Headmaster. As you know, I've just become a Professor of the Defense Against the Dark Arts class and lack experience, so the Headmaster took me to learn some experience."
"So that's how it was," Hermione felt relieved after hearing the reply. She was afraid that Levi would quietly stir up some big incident or encounter some danger again; fortunately, it ended in a scare without any real harm.
"Professor Dumbledore's old friends—Merlin, wouldn't they all be over 100 years old then?!"
Harley's focus was still on age; he still couldn't accept that Wizards could live to be over three hundred years old. Britain back then was still under the Hanoverian Dynasty, with George I alive!
"Alright, Levi and Headmaster Dumbledore must have gone out to handle serious business. The two of you stop asking! Have you both forgotten that Malfoy is currently tackling the trials!"
Chapter 288: Malfoy Takes the Challenge
"Is that so?" Levi found himself intrigued by Ron's words. "I didn't expect our Young Master Malfoy to actually have quite a bit of courage!"
"Speaking of which, if even Malfoy dares to take the challenge and undergo the test, why don't you three Gryffindor Wizards dare to step into my trial classroom?"
Standing in a different position changes one's perspective on things.
In the past, when he was a student, Levi could ostracize Malfoy alongside the trio without a second thought.
But now, as the Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor, he naturally hoped the young wizards from all four houses would take his classes seriously and actively participate in his trials.
As soon as Levi spoke, the three young wizards beside him couldn't help but display different expressions.
Harry Potter's face was full of embarrassment; he was currently in a state of content passivity.
Ever since the first half of the school year, when Levireported the truth and cleared his godfather Sirius Black's name, he had been in a constant state of pure bliss.
Especially after spending a joyful Christmas holiday with his godfather, this sense of happiness reached its absolute peak!
It was the first time Harry Potter realized that a person could actually be this happy!
So he could actually have such a wonderful godfather!
So this was what it felt like to be doted on unconditionally!
Every day, he thought of nothing else—aside from attending classes and doing homework, he used the hero king game console his godfather bought him to send messages and make video calls!
Sirius Black also wanted to make up for Harley's lost childhood, and they talked about absolutely everything. Acting as both father and friend, each saw only the other in their eyes, almost as if they were "in love"!
In this state, the focus of the so-called savior Harry Potterwasn't on his studies or life at Hogwarts at all.
Combined with the second half of their second year being what Levi considered "peaceful times," Harry Potter had nothing urgent to do and was no different from any other young wizard.
Levi noticed the embarrassed smile on Harley's face and didn't say anything.
Training the Boy Who Lived was Old Dumbledore's top priority. There was no need for Levi to urge him; once Old Dumbledore finished dealing with the Horcrux matter, he would definitely send Harley into the trial classroom.
"Can I take the challenge too? Wouldn't that be inappropriate?"
Hermione's face was full of hesitation, her tone carrying a hint of awkwardness.
She felt that having learned so much knowledge and mastered so much magic alongside Levi, taking part in the trial would be unfair to the other young wizards.
"What's wrong with that? Isn't the knowledge you've mastered and the magic you've learned something you worked hard to gain?"
Seeing the conflicted look on Hermione's face, Leviguessed what his little witch was worried about and offered a laugh of reassurance.
"Alright, I'll give it a try in a bit!"
Upon hearing this, a bright and lovely smile instantly appeared on Hermione's face.
She had long been eager to try the trial set up by Levi, brimming with the desire to show him the fruits of her studies and earn his warm praise.
"What about you, Ron? Why don't you give it a try?"
"If you're the first to pass the trial, the reward I promised won't be discounted in the slightest just because you're my friend. I guarantee it'll be paid in full!"
Having comforted Hermione, Levi looked curiously at Ron. Didn't this guy love showing off the most?
Ron gave an embarrassed smile. How could he admit that he was so addicted to playing the new hero king game, playing online with others every day, that he was utterly lost in bliss?
He had to admit, the online multiplayer feature Levi added to the second-generation hero king game console was absolutely incredible!
Nowadays, when it came to playing King of Heroes, Ronwas completely unrivaled in the entire Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Unbeatable on earth, challenged only from the heavens! Ron, who was experiencing the loneliness of a top master, finding the online feature was like Scabbers the rat falling into a jar of Every Flavor Beans!
"I've been pretty busy lately, pretty busy!"
Ron gave a sheepish smile and offered a weak explanation.
"It seems you all have your own reasons. Oh well, let's go check out Malfoy's progress through the trial instead!"
Levi saw through Ron's insincerity, but didn't press the matter.
Others might not understand the trio, but how could he not?
Once Malfoy achieves some progress in the trial, those three—especially Harley and Ron—definitely won't want to be left behind and will surely follow suit.
Now it just depended on whether Malfoy would disappoint them!
The four arrived near the Defense Against the Dark Arts class room.
At this moment, the wall next to the trial classroom door displayed Malfoy's progress through the challenge.
He could be seen wearing an alchemy amulet, shielded by Mage Armor, waving his wand as he cast Impedimentaand Stupefy to hold back the swarming Cornish Pixies and Red Caps.
"That Draco is really crafty! He actually copied Cedric's tactic of equipping alchemy amulets!"
Outside the trial classroom door, Slytherin's Troll PrefectMarcus Flint—who was on very bad terms with Levi—shouted excitedly.
"It's also because the amulet crafted by Professor Keens is outstanding enough, which made clearing the third act of the first stage so easy!
I heard that even many people in the Ministry of Magic's Auror Strike Force bought one to wear!"
Gemma Farley, who was also a Slytherin Prefect, had words full of admiration for Levi Keynes.
It was hard to tell whether she had noticed Levi and his group walking over.
As soon as Levi, Hermione, and the other two reached the trial classroom door, they noticed a large crowd gathered, mostly Wizards from Slytherin House.
Hearing their chattering and seeing their excited expressions, it was clear they were all there to cheer Malfoy on.
"Since when did Malfoy's popular appeal become so good?"
Levi whispered curiously in Hermione's ear, his warm breath turning the little witch's ears bright red.
But before Hermione could answer, Ron, who overheard Levi and Hermione whispering, couldn't help but answer on her behalf:
"Isn't it because Draco Malfoy bragged that he would be the first to beat the trial, redeem a Firebolt from you, and join Slytherin's Quidditch team?"
"When the Slytherins heard Malfoy say that, of course they supported him. Ravenclaw's team beat them to a pulp in the last match!"
"Now that they heard a Firebolt could be obtained, they naturally all came to join in the excitement!"
Ron's answer was full of sarcasm and delivered intentionally loud, causing all the surrounding SlytherinWizards to glare at him angrily!
But Ron had learned to borrow authority; he ducked behind Levi, and when the other Slytherin Wizards saw Levi there, even though they were furious inside, they instantly reined in their temper!
"Everyone's welcome to take the trial. Which stage is Draco on now?"
As a Professor, Levi naturally didn't mind the students' squabbles, but instead cared about Draco Malfoy's trial progress.
"He's almost cleared the first stage, Professor!"
Gemma Farley, who possessed an elegant aura and noble demeanor, hurriedly led Levi to the wall where the details of the challenge were clearly visible.
Levi gave Gemma Farley a friendly nod and looked toward the wall. In the display, Draco Malfoy had already repelled the Cornish Pixies and Red Caps, successfully passing the first stage.
"Phew... gasp..."
Panting heavily, Malfoy gripped his wand tightly and cautiously walked through the forest path.
Continuously casting Spells had nearly exhausted his magic power, and his body was worn out.
Looking ahead, at the end of the forest path, as if a layer of mist had been wiped away, an idyllic village appeared like an earthly paradise.
The gurgling streams, countryside landscape, and beautiful, peaceful scenery caused Malfoy to unconsciously lower his guard.
"This must be a rest area in the trial, right?"
Thirsty and exhausted, Malfoy couldn't help licking his dry lips, preparing to head into the village to see if there was clean water to drink.
But the moment he stepped onto the wooden bridge, another alchemy amulet on his body was triggered!
Malfoy looked closely and broke into a cold sweat; a sharp arrow was currently being blocked outside by his Mage Armor!
If he hadn't been rich enough to buy multiple amulets, he would have been pierced through by the arrow and lost his life right then and there!
Damn that Levi—the trial he set up could actually kill someone!
Scared out of his wits, Malfoy opened his mouth to shout "Exit," but suddenly heard an unfamiliar voice:
"Wait, everyone don't attack! It must be an unfamiliar hero who has come to save us!"
"Don't attack, don't attack!"
Malfoy couldn't help looking toward the sound. He saw a kindly old man with gray hair, dressed in simple clothes and leaning on a walking stick, stepping out from the hidden thicket to stop the others who were preparing to shoot arrows at him.
Chapter 289: The Legend of the King of Heroes
"Hello, unfamiliar hero. I am Jack, the chief of Tomato Village. What happened just now was merely a misunderstanding, I am truly sorry!"
The grey-haired old man, leaning on a cane, spoke to Malfoy with a face full of apology.
That familiar demeanor and appearance inexplicably reminded Malfoy of Headmaster Professor Dumbledore.
"You! You nearly killed me just now!"
Malfoy said testily. Even facing old Village Chief Jack, who looked similar to Dumbledore, he couldn't help complaining loudly!
Didn't Levi Keynes say that this trial would be more alarming than dangerous?
His head was nearly shot through by these people; how could this be called more alarming than dangerous?
Malfoy made up his mind that once he left this trial classroom, he would definitely tell Professor McGonagallabout this, deduct a huge number of house points from Levi, and put him in detention!
Maybe he could even get his position as the Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor revoked! Hmph!
Snorting twice in his heart with smugness, Malfoy saw that the other side had the advantage of numbers, and since these people were likely not real humans, he said indifferently:
"Fine, I forgive you!"
"Is there any water? This young master is dying of thirst!"
"Yes, yes, please follow me." Old Village Chief Jackwelcomed Malfoy into the village according to the fixed programming set by Levi.
Malfoy followed behind Old Village Chief Jack, holding his wand tightly and subtly inspecting the village's surroundings.
The place seemed to have just suffered an attack; most of the houses were collapsed, bloodstains and huge claw marks could even be seen on the walls, and some places were still smoldering.
Faint groans and cries for help echoed through the village; it seemed there were still injured people left unattended.
"No wonder these people looked at me with such vigilance!"
"Wait, no, these are all golems crafted by Levi. They just look almost like real people!"
"Speaking of which, does Levi sell these golems? If he does, I could customize a few pretty girls to be maids at our manor?"
As Malfoy walked behind Old Village Chief Jack, his thoughts began to stray off course.
"Hero from afar, please have some water!"
The old village chief painstakingly drew water from the old well at the village entrance, poured it into a wooden cup, and handed it to Malfoy.
"Mm." Putting on the airs of a young aristocrat, Malfoy took the water cup as if it were his due, frowned as he inspected how clean it was, and only then drank the water.
However, seeing Old Village Chief Jack drenched in sweat, Malfoy—who was not entirely bad at heart—felt a little embarrassed after all and said:
"You drink too, you drink too. Chief, why do you keep calling me a hero?
Could it be that you, too, see that this young master has extraordinary talent and was born to be hero material?"
Malfoy completely forgot that the people in front of him were all golems crafted by Levi; being called a hero a few times made him puff up with pride, totally oblivious to everything else.
"It seems the hero does not know," Old Village Chief Jacksaid, as if a switch had been triggered, beginning to introduce the background of the entire trial:
"A long, long time ago, our Hero Continent was not called the Hero Continent. Back then, there were no extraordinary miracles in the world, and everyone was just an ordinary person!"
"But later, a terrifying Demon King descended from beyond the heavens. Bloodthirsty, cruel, and vicious, he used terrible Dark Arts to corrupt the living beings of the world, making them bloodthirsty, brutal, and unfeeling, taking pleasure in slaughtering all living things. People called them the Demon Kings Army!"
"It was also at this time that, at some unknown point, a group of people possessing extraordinary power appeared in the world—warriors who could manipulate fire and frost, possessed immense strength, or wielded extraordinary martial arts..."
"These people held justice in their hearts and loved mankind with compassion, resisting the Demon Kings Army all over the world and eradicating all kinds of terrifying monsters. Under their protection, the people were able to survive, and so they were called heroes!"
"And the great hero destined by legend to defeat the Demon King and wipe out the Demon Kings Army is the legendary King of Heroes who has never yet revealed himself!"
"This old man saw that your attire is extraordinary and the weapon you use is even more peculiar, able to summon a strange shield to block arrows. Possessing such extraordinary power, you must undoubtedly be a hero!"
"Hero, please forgive us. The village was attacked by monsters earlier, and everyone was terrified. In our panic, we shot arrows at you!"
"However, the power attached to those arrows only harms monsters and will not harm ordinary people or heroes, so please rest assured, Hero!"
Malfoy listened quietly to Old Village Chief Jack's introduction, not expecting that for a mere small trial, Leviwould actually fabricate an entire backstory.
And why did this backstory feel inexplicably familiar, giving him a sense of déjà vu?
Could it be that the inspiration for the hero king gamedesigned by Levi came from this?
Or was this the backstory of the hero king game itself?
Thinking up to this point, Malfoy instantly felt an intense surge of excitement as a loyal fan of the hero king game.
Being able to become a hero, eradicate the Demon King and the Demon Kings Army, and save the world—for a chuunibyou teenager like Malfoy, this was simply beyond thrilling!
"That's right, I am a hero!"
Malfoy puffed out his chest, held his head high, and spoke with his nostrils pointing to the sky, looking utterly smug, wishing he were glowing all over!
"I knew it! I knew the heroes would come to save us! Wonderful, Tomato Village is saved!"
Hearing this, Old Village Chief Jack's emotions immediately peaked; he threw away his cane, raised both arms to the sky, threw his head back and howled, tears and snot streaming down his face, looking utterly ecstatic!
This instead caught Malfoy off guard, leaving him at a loss as to how to react, while an odd feeling stirred in his heart:
So this is what it feels like to be trusted and idolized?!
Is this the kind of life that the Boy Who Lived Harry Potterlives every day?
"Hero! Oh Hero! Please save our Tomato Village!"
Old Village Chief Jack was extremely agitated. Rushing in front of Malfoy at extraordinary speed, while Malfoylooked on completely dumbfounded, he grabbed Malfoy's hands and begged frantically:
"Originally, our Tomato Village was an isolated paradise, peaceful and serene, where everyone lived and worked happily in harmony!"
"However, ever since a Snake Monster appeared in the forest outside the village, vast numbers of the Demon Kings Army and monsters have been attacking our Tomato Village, killing our people, destroying our fields, and not even letting us eat our sweet, red tomatoes!"
"We had no choice! Even when we fought back with all our might time after time, all we got in return was even more ruthless retaliation!"
"Just moments ago, the Snake Monster even led an army to attack us!"
"Hero, you have finally arrived! I beg you, please save us!"
Chapter 290: Time-Limited Quest
Outside the Trial Classroom, Levi, Hermione, and the others saw every scene of Malfoy undergoing the trial with utmost clarity.
"Levi, is this the backstory of the King of Heroes game?"
As the winner of the first King of Heroes Cup, Ron asked the question everyone was most curious about.
"That's right. In the future, besides battles, the King of Heroes game will also add a role-playing story mode."
"Everyone can embody a hero, defeat the Demon Kings Army in the game, vanquish the Demon King, save the suffering people of the Hero Continent, and even become a true King of Heroes in the game!"
Facing the group of young wizards looking at him curiously, Levi explained the story's background.
Seeing that everyone was particularly interested, Levishifted the subject and pointed at the Trial Classroom:
"However, the story inside the Trial Classroom ends once the Snake Monster is defeated!"
"And the Snake Monster is merely an ordinary officer in the Demon Kings Army. If you all want to defeat the even more terrifying Demon King, I'm afraid you'll have to study magic hard!"
Listening to Levi's narration, everyone felt a daze, as if a truly terrifying Demon King was waiting for them to defeat.
Although they felt Levi's story was mostly made up, at the thought of being able to defeat the Snake Monster, gain Levi's reward, and become a hero through hard magicstudy, they couldn't help but get excited, resolving to study magic diligently!
Levi observed everyone's expressions and nodded secretly to himself. Designing the trial and the King of Heroesbackground story like this was meant to subtly plant a thought in everyone's minds:
I must study magic hard, become a hero, defeat the Demon King, and save the world!
Under the influence of such thoughts and mindsets, no matter how many Voldemorts or Dark Lords appear in the future, there will always be people daring enough to resist and defeat them!
I guess this counts as edutainment!
Levi thought to himself with great pride, while the second stage of the trial began to show on the wall in front of him.
At the pleading of the old village chief Jack, Malfoy agreed to help the local villagers defeat the Snake Monster.
Before that, however, Tomato Village still needed Malfoy's help to recover from the previous attack.
"So the first act of the second stage tests brewing Potions!"
"Then I probably won't pass this stage!"
Watching Malfoy gather herbs everywhere to brew Potions and heal the people injured by the monster attack, Harley couldn't help saying outside the Trial Classroom.
Because of a certain Potion Professor who closely resembled an Old Bat, Harley was exceptionally resistant to and hated the subject, despite being extremely talented at brewing Potions.
Seeing that the first act of the second stage began with gathering herbs and brewing Potions, Harley immediately felt a headache.
"Levi, is there no time limit for this trial?"
The clever Hermione, however, saw the real difficulty of the second stage at a single glance.
"Smart! That's precisely the key to clearing the second stage!"
Levi snapped his fingers and praised Hermione, looking at her with full admiration.
Hearing Levi say this, the people around pricked up their ears to listen carefully in order to glean intelligence about the trial.
"Gathering herbs, brewing Potions, and treating the wounded—that's the test of the second stage's first act. Its purpose is to treat the villagers and restore Tomato Village's fighting capacity."
"Only with enough people can they handle the upcoming attack, gain everyone's help, and pool their strength together to defeat the Snake Monster!"
"And the second act of the second stage tests a Wizard's everyday magic, such as the Mending Charm, Scourgify, and the Food Engorgement Charm. Only by rebuilding Tomato Village with these Spells will there be sufficiently strong defensive measures."
"As for the third act, it's a sudden attack. The key to this attack lies not in its suddenness, but in its timing."
"If a young wizard can quickly clear the first and second acts, they will have enough time to handle the attack in the third act and safely pass to the third stage."
"However, if the third act's attack occurs before the young wizard completes the first and second acts, then the result will naturally be..."
Failure!
The surrounding Wizards blurted out the word for Levi. They hadn't expected that the second stage would actually be a time-limited quest.
Before this, first-year Ginny Weasley had also failed the trial, but everyone had thought it was due to Ginny's insufficient strength that she failed under the golem's sudden attack.
Now it seemed that if one made good time completing the first and second acts, then with the help of everyone in Tomato Village, even a first-year young wizard could possibly clear the second stage.
Considering what Levi had set—to maintain fairness, the lower the year and the weaker the Wizard, the lower the difficulty of the trial.
Perhaps those who cleared the trial first wouldn't be the upperclassmen in sixth or seventh year, but rather lower-year students in second, third, or fourth year who had decent strength.
Under everyone's anxious gaze, Malfoy leisurely began his task in Tomato Village, clearly unaware that this was a time-limited quest.
Thus, when the third act began and the Werewolves and Banshees attacked, Malfoy hadn't even finished the first act's Potion task.
Watching the herbs he painstakingly collected and the Potions he brewed knocked over nonchalantly by the Werewolves and Banshees,
even though Malfoy was frightened to the extreme, he still chose to resist in a fit of rage. The result was self-evident: after throwing a brief fit of rage, he was thrown out of the Trial Classroom by the golem!
"...Ah! Help!"
Believing he was about to die in the jaws of wolves, Malfoyshouted for help with his eyes tightly shut in terror as soon as he was teleported out!
After waiting a moment without feeling any pain, Malfoyopened his eyes in pleasant surprise, only to see the surrounding people looking at him mockingly, with some even failing to hold back their laughter!
"Hey, Malfoy, you didn't wet yourself from fright, did you?!"
As if discovering a whole new world, Ron pointed at Malfoy's Potion-drenched trousers and mocked loudly.
"Hahaha~" Seeing this, Harley couldn't help grinning broadly and laughing too.
"Scourgify." Levi waved his wand, resolving the predicament for Malfoy, and voluntarily explained on behalf of Young Master Horse Dung:
"That's Potion spilled on him!
But Draco Malfoy, when facing an enemy, is your chosen form of resistance closing your eyes and waiting to die?"
"Do you still remember that you are a Wizard holding a wand?"
"And can you remember that you are taking a trial, not traveling to another world for sightseeing?
If you don't make good use of your time while doing tasks and gather all the strength that can help you, do you think you can defeat the Snake Monster by yourself?"
Levi put on a full Professor's posture and gave Draco Malfoy a stern scolding.
Draco Malfoy couldn't even say a word in objection, as Levihad just bailed him out and stopped the rumor that he had wet his pants from spreading freely.
"Alright, although Draco failed the trial, his courage is commendable. I hope everyone won't recklessly mock others!"
"After all, some people don't even have the courage to attempt the trial. What right do they have to mock those who failed?"
Levi stopped the others from laughing, then immediately added a pointed remark that instantly turned Harley and Ron beet red, making them itch to take the trial on the spot.
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