The wand was not raised.
This time, it seemed neither of them had any intention of attacking the other.
Just as the Dumbledore who emerged from the door said, he knew himself well, so regarding another self, if that truly was himself, he could also judge that the other would not attack again.
Facts proved this point.
"One question for one question." The Dumbledore who came out from the door spoke softly, the Elder Wand in his hand didn't seem to be a fake, which made Snape's gaze shift constantly between him and the Dumbledore beside him—perhaps the first-year Little Witch Hermione didn't understand what an Elder Wand, such a Deathly Hallow, truly meant.
But he stood before the door.
And the Bronze Gate could even "replicate" the Elder Wand.
This indeed overturned the entire Wizarding World's understanding—precisely because of this, although not intervening, and remaining vigilant, Snape also perked up his ears wanting to seek answers.
This was an expressionless eavesdropping.
"A very reasonable trade." The real Dumbledore, upon hearing this, also nodded lightly, "You answer me this question, and I will answer a question you want to know the answer to." He looked at "himself" standing in front of the Bronze Gate, a vortex swirling behind him; within his deep eyes, there was a hint of arrogance.
Regarding this.
The evil Dumbledore who emerged from the door did not seem to mind.
The strong rule.
He thought it was quite reasonable. In the Wizarding World, those wizards with great magical abilities and vast knowledge often occupy a commanding position, securing the initiative.
This is a natural law of survival.
In the harsh competitive environment, only wizards who adapt and continuously enhance their strength can survive, and only those powerful wizards have the right to make the rules.
Now.
In the delicate balance.
The real Dumbledore, as the victor of the last battle, of course, had the right to set the rules for communication between the parties; this was something the Dumbledore who emerged from the Bronze Gate was very aware of.
"Is it resetting or reincarnation? Is it rebirth or replication?" The real Dumbledore did not elaborate much, merely asking the question he most wanted to know.
He believed the other self could understand his meaning and what he wanted to know.
"It's convergence, it's gathering." The evil Dumbledore pointed at his temple, complex flows of light in his blue eyes, he also believed his concise and clear words could be understood by the counterpart.
And indeed, it was so.
Upon hearing those words, the real Dumbledore's eyes flickered slightly, yet he still nodded calmly, evidently having gathered the information he wanted from the simple response of the other self.
"Huh?"
But Hermione couldn't understand.
Snape, with a furrowed brow, was also utterly confused. Compared to the two Dumbledores, his knowledge was indeed still too lacking.
It wasn't Snape's fault.
After all, every art has its specialization, and wizards have their limits, plus he was quite young, utterly unable to analyze the Bronze Gate, and his limited knowledge of Alchemy could not help him grasp any clues to organize his thoughts. Right now, he was filled with doubt, wondering whether the Dumbledore beside him was really the one who walked out of the Bronze Gate.
This would further affect his thinking ability.
At this moment.
"Tell me, how did you manage it? In such an era." The Dumbledore who emerged from the door also opened his mouth and asked the doubt and confusion in his heart.
His gaze fixedly stared at the real Dumbledore.
He seemed to care deeply about this point.
"Manage what?"
The real Dumbledore asked, fingers gently rubbing the knot on the wand. He was also observing the evil Dumbledore's wand, able to sense his connection with that wand.
He believed the other could feel a similar connection—this was absolutely a very mysterious thing, also meant that the two wands were, in a sense, the same wand.
There was only one Elder Wand in the Deathly Hallows from beginning to end.
This made the real Dumbledore somewhat thoughtful.
"You know what I'm asking about—Legend." The Dumbledore from the Bronze Gate sighed, then spoke again, feeling helpless against the other self's feigned ignorance.
Indeed.
He didn't believe the self outside didn't know what he was asking, so the reason for doing so was probably to delay time to do some thinking.
"Obviously, I, you, and all of you have taken vastly different paths; there will always be some people, some things, that can make fate undergo unpredictable shifts, right?"
The real Dumbledore provided an ambiguous response. For Hermione and Snape, this answer might still confound them, unable to understand what the two were talking about.
However.
The Dumbledore from the Bronze Gate was different.
After hearing it, he was obviously taken aback.
"Then you're quite fortunate indeed."
A long sigh carried a hint of unwillingness, but more was a kind of helpless emotion. This Dumbledore looked at Hermione and Snape.
Hermione only felt her mind hazy for a while.
"I see."
The Dumbledore who walked out from the Bronze Gate again sighed and spoke.
Hermione was still bewildered.
But Snape was already furious.
"Get out of my head!"
His face instantly turned pale, his slender fingers gripping his temple tightly with both shock and anger. Obviously, the Professor of Potions realized what had just happened.
The Dumbledore from the Bronze Gate had intruded on his and Hermione's minds—clearly, it was because he couldn't invade the mind of the Dumbledore beside him that he opted for this alternative action.
Honestly.
For a few seconds, Snape still felt somewhat confused, but now he clearly realized that the Dumbledore emerging from the Bronze Gate was definitely not the one he perceived. Indiscriminately invading someone else's mind was something the real Dumbledore would never do.
He would only suspect Dumbledore of occasionally doing it secretly. The Dumbledore from the door raised an eyebrow slightly, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes. The real Dumbledore had already raised the Elder Wand.
"This is a bit too much."
His warning made the Dumbledore from the Bronze Gate stop his offense.
"I'm sorry, it was the quickest way to understand things." The Dumbledore from the Bronze Gate apologized, his tone also carried some guilt.
However.
Snape thought he was surely pretending.
"This is an intrusion!" Snape's lips trembled, his dark eyes surging with overwhelming anger. He glared at the Dumbledore from the door, raising his wand.
It was just not very threatening.
"What happened? Did he invade our minds and look for something in our memories?" Hermione also seemed to realize what the previous situation was.
"He was looking for the details of why you became legends." The Dumbledore from the door replied, but by now, there wasn't the slightest hint of guilt in his tone.
However.
His face still bore a gentle smile. That smile made Hermione's skin crawl—it was too similar, yet completely different, from the demeanor of the Headmaster she knew.
"Your failure has a reason."
The real Dumbledore sighed at himself standing outside the Bronze Gate.
"Heh."
The other just chuckled softly.
"Be careful, Albus, there's also a possibility of being abandoned, then, you would only be part of us." After saying this, the evil Dumbledore turned and walked toward the Bronze Gate.
Without any hesitation.
The chaotic vortex whirled rapidly, like a greedy mouth devouring him. The gate emitted a dull roar, then returned to silence as if nothing had happened.
There was no new Dumbledore, nor Snape or Hermione stepping out from it—the vortex still spun, but seemingly entered a state of delicate balance.
Of course.
No one knows whether anything will change in the next moment.
And while Snape and Hermione were still worried.
"Thank you."
The real Dumbledore spoke softly—he knew what his other ruthless, domineering, decisive self had done, it was in this final moment that he provided a bit of help to reduce trouble for him.