Chapter 1342: You've Picked the Wrong Opponent
Chapter 1342: You've Picked the Wrong Opponent
Late in the night, the heavy oak doors of Hogwarts Castle suddenly swung open, and a dark figure glided out, resembling a large bat. Unconcerned by the pouring rain, the figure made its way along the path towards the school's entrance.
"Master!"
Pius Thicknesse, cloaked and hidden in the rain, bowed slightly as he greeted the approaching figure—Lord Voldemort.
"You have done well," Lord Voldemort acknowledged as he moved past Thicknesse, heading across the muddy grounds towards the Black Lake. He saw no reason to conceal his intentions from Thicknesse, as there were already Death Eaters aware of his purpose, and keeping it a secret now would be futile.
The two circled the lake in the darkness, the black waters seemingly on the verge of overflowing, the surroundings cold and gloomy.
They stopped, and a white marble tomb came into view. Lord Voldemort raised his old and trusted yew wand, a pleased smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.
With a swift motion, he brought the wand down, and Dumbledore's tomb split open from top to bottom.
Lord Voldemort approached, gazing upon Dumbledore's remarkably well-preserved body, and suddenly, he felt amused.
You are dead, and I am still alive.
And now, your wand belongs to me.
Voldemort reached towards the wand that Dumbledore had clasped to his chest and drew it out.
Snape, standing by, watched quietly as Voldemort elegantly raised the wand and waved it gently, as if conducting an orchestra.
A spell shot out from the tip of the wand, piercing the thick rain clouds above. Countless lightning bolts crackled within the clouds, and soon, a dazzling bolt of lightning struck, illuminating the dark night.
As Voldemort, his eyes closed, sensed the power of the wand, he abruptly opened his scarlet eyes, and disappointment was evident on his flat, serpentine face.
"No," he whispered, "there is no difference. This wand...there is nothing extraordinary about it. I feel no distinction between it and the wand I purchased from Ollivander many years ago. It is merely an ordinary wand."
"Master, perhaps this is not the legendary Deathstick," Thicknesse suggested quietly. "Dumbledore, like yourself, possessed extraordinary power, and I believe he, like you, did not rely on a wand."
"Perhaps it is, perhaps it isn't," Voldemort mused.
He did not turn to look at Thicknesse, nor did he elaborate on his thoughts.
If this were truly the Deathstick, yet it failed to demonstrate the legendary miracles, then there could only be one possibility—he was not the rightful owner of this wand. His own yew wand was utterly obedient to him, but this wand, Dumbledore's former wand, was not.
The Deathstick only belonged to the wizard who had killed its previous owner, which meant that this wand now belonged to Severus Snape.
For him to become the rightful owner of this wand, he would have to kill Snape.
However, before confirming that this was indeed the Deathstick, Voldemort would not kill his loyal servant, as Snape was still valuable to him, especially since there weren't many loyal Death Eaters left from those early days.
If it turned out to be the Deathstick, he would kill Snape without hesitation, as the wand was more important to him.
But if he mistakenly killed Snape and it wasn't the Deathstick, there would be undesirable consequences.
Voldemort was unwilling to take that risk, and it wasn't worth it.
He needed to find Ollivander and confirm with the wandmaker whether this was the legendary Deathstick or not.
And so, Voldemort departed, the newly acquired wand in his possession.
After Voldemort's figure had completely disappeared, Snape lingered by the lake for a moment before waving his own wand to repair Dumbledore's tomb and then quietly returning to the castle, which was shrouded in darkness.
"He's gone," Snape stated calmly as he stood before Dumbledore's portrait, recounting the events that had just transpired. "He split open your tomb and took your wand."
"However, he didn't seem pleased with the wand," Snape added.
"That's to be expected," Dumbledore's portrait replied nonchalantly. "It's not the ancient wand he seeks. I believe he's on his way to find Ollivander to confirm if my wand is indeed the legendary one."
Unfortunately, Voldemort was unaware that Ollivander had been rescued."
"Ollivander has been rescued?"
Snape was equally astonished by this news. "Someone attacked Yaxley's castle, but..."
"It was Mr. Anderson. He acted quickly, and you should thank him. Otherwise, you might have been in mortal danger," Dumbledore said gently.
"Why would I be in danger?" Snape asked, perplexed.
"You should be well aware of the Elder Wand's lineage," Dumbledore explained with a smile. "I'd wager that once Voldemort believed this was indeed the Elder Wand, he would assume that it belonged to the wizard who killed its previous owner. He would eliminate you to ensure he became the wand's rightful master."
Snape remained silent, suddenly realizing something—he had killed Albus Dumbledore.
If it truly was the legendary Deathstick, then his death was certain. Even as Voldemort's favored right-hand man, he would not be spared, as Voldemort would need to eliminate him to gain complete control over the Elder Wand.
However, judging by Dumbledore's reaction to the situation, it seemed unlikely that it was the Deathstick. Otherwise, how could Voldemort have obtained the wand so easily?
Snape breathed a sigh of relief, feeling some sympathy for Yaxley, who had let Ollivander slip through his grasp. Yaxley was probably in for some bad luck.
In fact, as Snape suspected, Voldemort did indeed fly into a rage upon learning that Yaxley had lost Ollivander, subjecting Yaxley to the harshest punishment he had ever received in his life.
Even though Voldemort knew that Yaxley was not entirely to blame—after all, no one could have anticipated that the Order of the Phoenix would launch a surprise attack on the castle in the middle of the night—he couldn't help but feel furious. He was angry not only that Yaxley had lost Ollivander but also that his lair had been so easily infiltrated, and that Harry Potter had been part of the invasion.
How dare he act so boldly instead of hiding like a mouse?
Once Voldemort calmed down, he realized that something was amiss. Right after he had taken Dumbledore's wand, Ollivander had been rescued.
Was this a coincidence?
Voldemort narrowed his eyes as he looked at the wand in his hand. The Order of the Phoenix couldn't have achieved this on their own; they didn't have the audacity or the means to breach the castle's protective magic in such a short time.
But what if the Mudblood was pulling the strings behind the scenes?
It all made sense now.
"Master, if we..."
Voldemort fixed Yaxley with a stare, and the latter shut his mouth in fear. After a moment, Voldemort spoke, "I need you to find other wandmakers. Do not fail me again."
"I'll send people to capture them immediately, but as for the Order of the Phoenix..." Yaxley trailed off.
"What do you plan to do?"
"Getting Harry Potter to walk into our trap won't be difficult. We just need to target his friends," Yaxley said, still trying to prove his worth. "I've heard that Potter is quite close to the big guy, Hagrid. Perhaps we can lure him out by threatening to execute Hagrid."
Voldemort, of course, was well aware of Harry Potter's weaknesses and had his own methods to make Potter come to him. However, he couldn't be sure what would happen if he used Hagrid as bait.
If the Mudblood got involved, would he be able to kill him?
If the plan failed...
No, as long as he could kill Potter, that was all that mattered. As for that damned Mudblood, he could deal with him another day.
Damn that Mudblood! He had indeed become a formidable enemy.
After realizing that he couldn't defeat that equally extraordinary Mudblood through other means, Voldemort grew increasingly wary of him and acknowledged that a duel might be inevitable, just like it had been with Dumbledore and Grindelwald.
And for that reason, Voldemort craved power more than ever before.
(End of Chapter)
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