"Have a seat," Kyle said, waving his hand with familiar ease to conjure four soft armchairs. "Make yourselves at home."
After all, this was his own dad's office-cum-bedroom, so calling it his own home wasn't exactly a stretch.
Then he turned his head to look at the three fellow troublemakers beside him. "What would you like to drink?"
Dumbledore was already well-acquainted with Kyle's antics. Considering that Kyle had managed to find yet another Horcrux, the Headmaster was in an exceptionally good mood and decided to let the boy off the hook today.
Dumbledore walked unhurriedly behind his desk and sat down. Looking at the four little rascals standing before him, a faint smile played at the corners of his mouth.
"How did you find this diadem?"
Cedric took the initiative to answer Dumbledore's question. "Professor, after fusing with the Hydra's bloodline, I became highly sensitive to the fluctuations of Dark Magic..."
Dumbledore nodded; he was already well aware of Cedric's bloodline fusion. The bloodlines of magical creatures had always possessed many wondrous properties, especially that of an ancient, legendary creature like the Hydra. With such a cheat-like ability at their disposal, the difficulty of locating the diadem amidst the mountainous piles of junk in the Room of Requirement was significantly reduced.
"Dad," Kyle spoke up, "since Voldemort could find Ravenclaw's Diadem, do you think it's possible he also found the relics of the other three Founders and turned them into Horcruxes?"
A look of deep contemplation appeared on Dumbledore's face. The probability of Kyle's conjecture being correct was exceptionally high. Dumbledore knew his former star pupil all too well.
Back when Voldemort was still at the orphanage, he had already displayed a powerful desire to collect things. The objects he gathered back then were items he had stolen from other orphans, which he referred to as his "trophies." Later, after he entered Hogwarts, the objects of his collection shifted to all kinds of awards and accolades.
Ironically, who could have imagined that this model student—who had won so many awards during his school years that his hands grew weary, and who possessed a flawless image in the eyes of every professor—would become the greatest scourge of the British wizarding world more than a decade after graduation?
Dumbledore curled his fingers and tapped lightly on the desk. "As you all know, Voldemort is the heir of Slytherin... If Slytherin's Locket is in Voldemort's hands, it wouldn't surprise me in the slightest."
The Weasley twins looked at each other, exchanging a glance. George raised his arm like a student asking a question. "Then... Professor Dumbledore, what about the Sword of Gryffindor?"
"Mr. Weasley, you needn't worry about that at all." Dumbledore smiled and winked. "The Sword of Gryffindor is very well protected. Voldemort cannot get his hands on it."
He looked at Kyle and Cedric, intertwining his fingers. "What we should be more worried about is your Hufflepuff Cup."
The Cup?
If they were to speculate based on the worst-case scenario, Voldemort might have a total of six Horcruxes.
The First: The diary, which Kyle had reduced to ashes using Fiendfyre.
The Second: The Resurrection Stone ring that Snape had found at the Gaunt Shack.
The Third: Harry, the special living Horcrux.
The Remaining Three: The other three relics left behind by the founders of Hogwarts, excluding the Sword of Gryffindor.
Kyle let out a long sigh, unintentionally contributing to global warming once again.
The human soul was an incredibly delicate thing. Generally speaking, ripping off even a single piece of one's soul to create a Horcrux could cause irreversible damage to a wizard. Yet, the venerable Lord Voldemort actually dared to tear his own soul into seven pieces. Aside from the main soul, the remaining six pieces were made into Horcruxes. Although Harry being a living Horcrux wasn't intentional on Voldemort's part, intentionally splitting off five pieces was still a staggering number.
It was a pity that this world didn't have a concept like "genjutsu resistance" like the Naruto world did. Otherwise, with Voldemort's current fractured soul status, Kyle could drag Old Voldy into a genjutsu with a single glare and butcher him at will.
Back when Grindelwald taught the Fear Charm to Kyle, Kyle had researched further based on it and mastered a whole series of genjutsu-like illusions. Later, in Secrets of the Darkest Art on the bookshelf in Dumbledore's office, he found a spell similar to Tsukuyomi, which essentially completed the final puzzle piece of Kyle's illusionary techniques.
Unfortunately, with the existence of Occlumency in the wizarding world, Kyle's genjutsu was largely useless. He had once tried to cast an illusion on Dumbledore, but even though Old Dumbledore wasn't being serious, his Legilimency—which had practically evolved from an active skill into a passive one—acted like an impenetrable wall, automatically blocking out Kyle's mental intrusion.
Seeing all four troublemakers lost in thought, Dumbledore stopped speaking and began to carefully examine the diadem in front of him.
Ravenclaw's Diadem was covered in rust, completely different from its legendary, jewel-encrusted appearance. This made one highly suspicious of whether Rowena Ravenclaw had simply picked up this piece of junk from some roadside stall while out shopping back in the day, and through word of mouth, it had somehow been distorted into a legendary treasure.
Behind his half-moon spectacles, Dumbledore's bright blue eyes meticulously scanned every detail of the diadem. By now, Kyle had also ceased his speculations regarding Voldemort's remaining Horcruxes, silently watching Dumbledore examine the artifact.
After a long while, Dumbledore gently set down the diadem.
"Can Voldemort's soul shard be destroyed?" Kyle asked expectantly. "Without destroying the diadem itself, I mean."
How could Dumbledore not know what his son was thinking? If they simply wanted to destroy the Horcrux, it would be quite easy. They could just roast it on Grindelwald's "gas stove" until both sides were golden brown, or let the Basilisk, Xinya, give it a round of acupuncture. That would solve it.
However, Ravenclaw's Diadem could increase the wisdom of its wearer, making it a rare and priceless treasure. Although the treasury beneath New Nurmengard Castle held many fine treasures, they paled in comparison to the diadem. Therefore, destroying the diadem just like that would be a terrible waste of a heavenly resource. This fellow Kyle clearly wanted to preserve the treasure, and Dumbledore felt the same way.
The other three troublemakers remained silent, but they all looked at Dumbledore with expectant eyes, hoping to receive an affirmative answer from him.
"Perhaps. I will do my best to try. If all else fails, I can always call in some outside help," Dumbledore said half-jokingly.
Kyle naturally knew who his dad meant by "outside help." Aside from Nicolas Flamel, the only other option was Grindelwald. As for Newt Scamander, the honest tool of a man whom his dad had tricked multiple times, Kyle automatically ignored him. If the two Dark and Light Dark Lords couldn't solve a problem, there was no way looking for Newt would yield results; this wasn't a matter within the domain of Magizoology, after all.
Dumbledore pulled open his desk drawer and dropped the diadem inside.
"All right," Dumbledore said, standing up and issuing an order. "Let's put this matter aside for now and head to the Great Hall for lunch."
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