Gringotts.
In front of Vault 713.
After the lead goblin opened the vault door, he turned and stood to the side, waiting.
Victor Wick glanced at him, then stepped into the vault.
With a single look, he saw an object wrapped in brown cloth sitting right in the center of the floor.
Because the vault was empty except for this one item, it looked particularly conspicuous.
Victor picked up the bundle and gently peeled back a corner of the cloth. He immediately saw a dull red hue and rows of dense, intricate rune sequences.
So, this was the Philosopher's Stone!
'Before I hand it over to Dumbledore, maybe I can study the rune sequences on it first...'
'At a critical moment, I might even be able to catch Voldemort off guard with it!'
Stowing the Philosopher's Stone away, Victor strode out of the vault.
Seeing Victor emerge, the goblin said nothing and simply resealed the vault.
This was merely a temporary vault rented by Dumbledore. Now that the item had been retrieved, its lease had come to an end.
"My own vault is on this level as well—Vault 777. Since we're already here, I intend to deposit some money," Victor said, pulling out a heavy coin pouch.
The solemn-faced goblin immediately beamed with joy at the sight of the pouch.
"Certainly, sir! As long as you have brought your key!" the goblin's voice was high and shrill. "Please, step this way!"
However, just as the goblin turned to lead the way, two streaks of green light suddenly erupted from the shadows!
Victor's firewall instantly triggered an alarm and deployed automatically!
Thud! Victor kicked the goblin over. The Killing Curse aimed at the creature missed its mark.
As for the Killing Curse aimed at Victor, most of its power was stripped away the moment it struck his firewall!
Victor drew his wand and tapped the air. The now-dimmed Killing Curse transformed into a line of rune sequences and vanished instantly.
He looked toward the shadows where the spells had originated. A dark figure was darting away!
Without hesitation, Victor raised his wand and launched a counterattack!
Victor's method of casting was unlike any traditional wizard; he required no incantations or specific gestures!
He only needed to activate the corresponding rune sequences, and the magic would manifest!
Consequently, his casting speed was far superior to that of traditional wizards!
As a row of runes flashed rapidly across his wand, it was as if the wood had transformed into a submachine gun with the trigger held down!
A barrage of red spells rained down toward the shadows like a torrential downpour!
To this day, only the Voldemort of the past and the current Gellert Grindelwald could handle this style of casting with ease.
Sure enough, the dark figure in the shadows let out a scream. After managing to return two wildly inaccurate spells, they dove behind a stone pillar!
The relentless stream of red light slammed into the pillar, quickly blasting a large crater into it!
If this hadn't been Gringotts, where the structural durability was exceptionally high, the man would have been riddled with holes along with the pillar long ago!
Meanwhile, the goblin Victor had saved finally regained his senses and hurriedly pulled out a whistle to blow!
In an instant, a piercing alarm echoed throughout the depths of Gringotts!
Ignoring the alarm, Victor gave his wand a light flick. Several of the flying spells glowed with prominent rune sequences, suddenly banking mid-air to strike the dark wizard hiding behind the pillar!
At the same time, Victor transformed a nearby chain into a giant serpent shimmering with an eerie luster, which quickly slithered toward the pillar to coil around it!
If only Gringotts didn't prevent Apparition, Victor was confident he could have taken the intruder down right then and there.
But even so, it didn't make much difference. The individual was pinned down firmly by Victor's magic! Capturing them was only a matter of time!
Furthermore, Gringotts security reinforcements would be arriving any moment!
The opponent seemed to realize the gravity of the situation and suddenly stepped out from behind the pillar!
It was a wizard clad in a black cloak, his face completely obscured by black cloth.
Victor was slightly surprised. The very magic that had just forced the opponent to flee in terror was now being neutralized silently?
Clatter!
The giant serpent instantly reverted to its original form, its links scattering across the floor...
Having effortlessly dispelled Victor's magic, the dark wizard flicked his wand rapidly. Several Killing Curses, far more powerful than the initial ambush, streaked directly toward Victor's face!
Victor's pupils constricted. He could tell that the power of these Killing Curses far exceeded the defensive capabilities of his firewall! Moreover, the ease with which his spells had been dispelled felt strange.
'How did this person's combat power go from weak to strong? It's as if they were replaced by someone else!'
Caught off guard, Victor's offensive was broken...
Victor's wand pointed quickly to the ground. A pale blue wall of light, floating with rows of Ancient Rune sequences, rose rapidly. When the Killing Curses touched the wall, their trajectories were instantly diverted!
Every curse aimed at him veered away, flying harmlessly toward the ceiling!
However, the opponent didn't panic at all, firing several more Killing Curses at Victor.
This time, the curses seemed fundamentally different. The wall of light in front of Victor was shattered instantly!
"Something's not right!" Victor could now confirm it with absolute certainty.
The casting speed and skill level the intruder displayed moments ago couldn't even be compared to this!
It was like fighting two entirely different people!
Victor exchanged several more moves with the opponent... and the more they fought, the more familiar it felt.
The casting habits... the technique... the tactical intelligence...
'This... isn't this the Dark Lord!?'
Aside from the magic being significantly weaker, every other aspect was pure Voldemort!
Once he realized this, Victor quietly abandoned several powerful spells he had been preparing...
'Until I uncover Voldemort's secret, I absolutely cannot finish him off now.'
History had proven that Voldemort likely couldn't be killed by conventional means! He needed to observe further... to avoid startling the snake.
'Besides, if he purposefully exposed himself before me... then...'
Seeing the look of surprise on Victor's face, the cloaked figure let out a strange, cackling laugh. He transformed into a cloud of black mist and lunged into the group of security goblins that had just arrived.
The black mist tore through them, leaving screams in its wake...
Then, the cloud of mist sped away along the Gringotts tracks.
Among the group of fully armed goblins, five or six lay on the ground, their fates unknown.
Victor watched the direction the black mist had vanished, his expression looking quite grim...
...
"What kind of person is that Professor Wick?"
At that moment, Harry and Hagrid were carrying a mountain of supplies, strolling through the streets of Diagon Alley.
They had already purchased most of what they needed.
In Harry's hand was a large cage containing a snowy owl, a birthday gift from Hagrid.
The owl now had a new name—Hedwig.
"Him... he's a man who deserves a lot of respect," Hagrid said, his eyes filled with admiration. "If it weren't for him, many people wouldn't be alive today..."
"Was he a fierce fighter during the war?" Harry asked curiously.
"Not exactly... almost no one saw him fight in that war. However, no one would ever suggest he lacked courage. That's because he was lurking right in the heart of the enemy! How could someone without courage dare to do such a thing? He's the bravest man I've ever met! Though, there are still those who think he was a Death Eater, a loyal servant of You-Know-Who who just tricked Dumbledore and the Ministry. But I think they're all talking rubbish! Harry, don't you go listening to those people's nonsense in the future!"
Hearing this, a tall and noble image of Victor began to form in Harry's mind...
At this moment, he finally understood the words Victor had spoken to him.
"Hagrid, I won't. I know Professor Wick is a good man," Harry murmured. "He saved so many people, yet he still feels remorse for not being able to save my parents... I can't imagine how difficult it must have been for such a good person to endure being by Voldemort's side..."
Hagrid shuddered. "Don't say the name, Harry..."
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