Staring at the results written on the parchment, Avada fell silent.
Last term, the Repentance magic had allowed Professor Baker's primary soul to return to his body. That result hadn't depended on just one factor—it was a combination of the soul's volume, the total amount of mental power, the binding force exerted by Horcruxes upon the soul, the compatibility between life force and body, and many other elements. Perhaps even that specially crafted black crystal orb, capable of containing a primary soul, had played a part…
But this time, when facing Voldemort, everything was different. His primary soul was abnormally small, his mental power had already mutated, he lacked a physical body altogether, and the diadem itself exerted the magic of a Horcrux. Under the influence of all these factors, Repentance magic could only achieve one thing—forcing the soul fragments to return to his primary soul.
Fortunately, Repentance magic did not function as an area-of-effect spell. Otherwise, the soul fragment within Harry Potter at the scene would also have been affected, creating interference. If that had happened, the outcome would truly have been impossible to predict…
Although the return of the soul fragments could not heal Voldemort's soul or give his intelligence a much-needed boost, the fragments were now firmly in his grasp. Once he regained a body, he could at any time use the fragment that had originally resided in the diadem to create a brand-new Horcrux—one Avada would know nothing about. If he had to investigate that later, who knew how much effort it would take…
Still, Avada was not overly dejected. After all, he had prepared far more than just a single plan.
Drugging the ashes of Voldemort's father, sneaking into Azkaban to tamper with those Death Eaters, destroying all the Horcruxes Voldemort possessed in a single instant during his duel with Dumbledore… The only thing that had failed was the fastest and most convenient method. He still had plenty of other options.
And let's not forget—he held complete data on Voldemort's mental power. With that, he could tailor several counter-spells specifically for him. Once those spells were handed over to the Order of the Phoenix, even an ordinary member would be able to place tremendous pressure on Voldemort—enough to make him question his entire existence.
Still, losing the quickest and lowest-cost solution just like that—six months of work down the drain—was hard to swallow.
"So… I'll try developing it independently."
"Anyway, idle time is still idle time. Without pressure from Voldemort, second-year classes are honestly a bit too boring…"
"But there's only half a year left. If luck isn't on my side, I might not even find a direction."
"Well. I'll do my best."
With a sigh, Avada put the massive tome away once more and left the Room of Requirement.
"Next comes Christmas. Quirrell probably won't be staying at Hogwarts, so I won't be able to keep recording Voldemort's mental power. Still, the data I have now is already sufficient. One or two more classes should be enough to fill in the gaps… So during the Christmas holidays, I'll start looking for new ideas."
"I need to check the Restricted Section… Luckily, I've already worked out the Near Yet Far Spell. Otherwise, just opening the Restricted Section's wards without making a sound would have been a real hassle. And I've also found a way to move within spatial layers—though it's a bit unorthodox…"
He felt that he was gradually being assimilated by Gryffindor.
He had no proof.
So that very night, he got up in the dead of night, locked himself inside a bathroom, and cast Near Yet Far Spell, sending himself into a spatial layer—indulging in the feeling of being some lofty, otherworldly immortal. Then he pulled a broomstick out of his pocket.
A Comet 100 racing broom—the oldest model still in production by the Comet Trading Company, priced at two Galleons and four Sickles.
If he couldn't fly out of thin air yet, couldn't he at least ride a broom?
Naturally, Avada had treated the broom in advance with cold-resistance charms, allowing it to function even in a spatial layer whose environment was nearly vacuum-like.
Thus, while expanding space with the Undetectable Extension Charm, he rode the broom slowly upward, constantly monitoring changes in the surrounding magical environment. He experienced the novel sensation of passing through solid objects like a ghost… and eventually entered the Restricted Section on the fifth floor without encountering any obstacles. To be safe, he cast a Disillusionment Charm on himself before beginning to wander among the bookshelves.
The Restricted Section housed many books with bizarre and dangerous effects. Some would leave strange patterns on your hands at the slightest touch; others screamed the moment they were opened; some even tried to run away on their own. Their covers were equally grotesque—faces twisted into unnatural expressions, long-haired, spiked, bubbling like boiling water. Rumor had it that some even had clusters of eyeballs rolling around on them.
Who knew what went through the minds of the people who created these books? Fortunately, Avada's Magical Perception allowed him to avoid—or temporarily suppress—these troublesome effects.
Even so, after more than half an hour of searching, he returned empty-handed. Slightly disgruntled, he slipped back through space into the toilet of the Hufflepuff Common Room, opened the door, and tiptoed back to the dormitory—after all, to avoid anyone thinking he was constipated because of repeated late-night bathroom trips, he still needed to keep his timing under control.
Once the Christmas holidays officially began the next day, however, and most students had left school, things would be much easier. Even if he stayed in the bathroom all day, hardly anyone would notice.
And so, the next day arrived.
"You're going home this time?"
Avada looked in surprise at Baron, who was carrying a suitcase. Hadn't he stayed at school last term?
"Of course. Last time I stayed just to experience a Hogwarts Christmas holiday. Once the novelty wore off, it was time to go home. Otherwise, I'd only see my parents once a year."
Avada recalled what had happened during last year's Christmas holidays. "I don't think last time was exactly normal…"
"…That's true."
"Alright then. I'll have an owl deliver your Christmas present to your home. Don't ask what it is—surprise. Top secret."
"It's not going to be something that causes a huge mess again, is it?"
"…"
Just like that, Avada watched Baron board the Hogwarts Express with his luggage, feeling a faint sense of loneliness.
With that, nearly all of his friends—his dormmates, Cedric, Cho, Baron, the Weasley twins, and others—had chosen to go home for Christmas. And since very few students stayed at Hogwarts during the holidays to begin with, the only time he might meet someone he could actually talk to would be while cooking or finding food in the kitchens. On top of that, he didn't dare openly sneak into the Restricted Section during the day…
He knew that Harry and Ron would also be staying at school, but they weren't very close. Moreover, according to the original story, the two of them should currently be racking their brains over clues related to "Nicolas Flamel," leaving little time for anything else.
"Fine. I'll go chat with Hagrid now and then, and use the rest of the time for other research."
With another sigh, he returned to the dormitory and began preparing Christmas presents for everyone.
He couldn't send anything too special—mostly homemade pastries, alchemical creations, or books he found interesting. As for the so-called surprise prepared for Baron, it was a bottle of Wit-Sharpening Potion that he had finally succeeded in brewing himself—a potion that had helped him more than once last year.
Notably, he also prepared gifts for Quirrell, Harry, and Ron. The former was meant to further prove his loyalty, while the latter two were intended to help him build a better relationship with Harry, making it easier to secure Harry's cooperation in dealing with the soul fragment inside him in the future.
There was, however, another reason: to prevent Harry from interfering with his nighttime excursions into the Restricted Section. The gift he gave Harry was a book introducing alchemy, with particular emphasis on Nicolas Flamel's contributions—including the Philosopher's Stone.
(End of Chapter)