Chapter 328: What Are You Looking At?
Chapter 328: What Are You Looking At?
The Headmaster's Office was quiet, with Dumbledore deep in thought, gazing at the Time-Turner on his desk.
Kyle looked up and caught sight of a pair of unfinished woolen socks on a shelf behind Dumbledore. The socks were white, and each had a delicate, blue "A" on them.
"Headmaster, do you like the color blue?" Kyle asked suddenly.
"I prefer purple a little more," Dumbledore replied, turning to face him. "Why the sudden question?"
"Nothing, just curious," Kyle shook his head. "Professor Dumbledore, I'll leave the Time-Turner with you, hoping you can fix it soon."
"Thank you for your trust, Kyle," Dumbledore said, his eyes gleaming with a newfound energy.
"I was thinking..."
"Bang!"
Just then, a loud knocking sound came from outside, so loud that it could be described as banging on the door.
Kyle glanced at Dumbledore and was about to open the door when Lucius Malfoy walked in, followed by a timid house-elf wrapped in bandages.
Breaking into the Headmaster's Office at Hogwarts was a first in all these years.
However, Dumbledore showed no anger. He adjusted his glasses and greeted them with a pleasant smile.
"Good evening, Lucius."
"Sorry, I didn't realize your door here was so flimsy," Lucius Malfoy said, showing no remorse and instead, a blatant sense of satisfaction.
He unrolled a long parchment, "You should remember what we discussed before. If you can't stop the attacks, you'll have to step down.
So, this is your suspension order, and you'll see that all twelve board members have signed it. We feel that you haven't been utilizing your talents, and poor Weasley probably thought you would protect him..."
"I haven't forgotten what you said," Dumbledore replied calmly.
"But strangely, I just received letters from the other eleven board members. After learning that Arthur Weasley's son was attacked, they changed their minds and wanted to withdraw their signatures from the suspension order."
Eleven letters were laid out on the table, and Lucius Malfoy's face turned even paler than usual, but he wasn't ready to give up.
"But you promised to resign if you couldn't stop the attacks..." he said with a hint of malice. "Is the great Professor Dumbledore going back on his word?
Of course, if that's what you wish, it's fine. It's just that there might be some unpleasant comments in tomorrow's Daily Prophet, and I hope you won't mind."
Dumbledore's gaze turned slightly peculiar.
He hadn't said a word during the board meeting, so when did he promise to resign?
However, he didn't dwell on it.
"So, have you caught the culprit?" Lucius asked aggressively.
"Yes, I have," Dumbledore smiled.
"Oh? Who is it?"
"It's the same person as last time, Lucius," Dumbledore pointed to the diary on the desk, "but Voldemort has changed his approach this time."
Lucius remained silent, his face stiff as if wearing a mask.
"It's fortunate," Dumbledore stared into Malfoy's eyes and said in a calm tone, "that just ten minutes ago, Kyle... oh, this young man here, single-handedly resolved this incident. I was about to award him the House Special Contribution Award."
"I must say..." he patted Kyle's shoulder, "with this, you've received three House Special Contribution Awards, one each year... You're probably the most outstanding student in Hogwarts history."
"Thank you for the praise, Professor," Kyle said humbly, "but I still have a long way to go."
"If I had received so many House Contribution Awards when I was a student..."
...
The two shared a smile, engaging in a mutual admiration session as if no one else was around. One would praise the other, and the other would return the compliment, creating a harmonious atmosphere.
But someone had to spoil the mood.
Malfoy's venomous gaze swept across the room.
Kyle was getting annoyed by his stare and frowned, placing his hand on the box, "What are you looking at?"
"Huh!" Lucius Malfoy let out a strange laugh from his throat. "I've seen many geniuses, but in the end, they all disappeared, leaving nothing behind. I hope you won't be like them."
Kyle raised an eyebrow... there was more to this man's words.
Since that was the case, he wouldn't be polite.
"Mr. Malfoy, do you know what this is?" Kyle picked up the diary and handed it over.
"It's just a shoddy Muggle notebook."
Malfoy didn't take it, "I won't touch such filthy things."
Despite his words, when he saw the damaged diary, a flash of anger crossed his face.
"It was my negligence."
Kyle took a pair of gloves from the nearby shelf, put them on the diary, and then handed it to Lucius.
"I found this in Ginny's old book. If I'm not mistaken, you must have slipped it in when chaos broke out at Flourish and Blotts."
Malfoy's pale hands clenched into fists and then relaxed.
"Do you have evidence?" he asked in a hoarse voice.
"No, but that's not important." Kyle waved his hand, "What's important is that for Tom Riddle, this diary is as important as his life, because it contains his soul.
Of course, that piece of soul no longer exists, it's gone, leaving nothing behind."
For a moment, the diary seemed to turn into a red-hot iron in Lucius Malfoy's eyes, and he subconsciously threw it away.
Fortunately, his house-elf reacted quickly and caught it.
"Mr. Malfoy, it seems you know who Tom Riddle is."
Kyle smiled, "Regardless, we should thank the person who brought out the diary. He did us a great favor."
"That's right." Dumbledore smiled and nodded, "And he revealed Voldemort's biggest secret. We should really thank him."
Lucius Malfoy's face had lost all color, and his right hand twitched as if he wanted to draw his wand.
But in the end, he restrained himself, turned around, and left in a daze, without saying a word.
"It seems someone will have a restless night." Dumbledore stood up and asked, "But Kyle... can you tell me how you knew about Horcruxes? Even most professors haven't heard of this ancient and evil Dark Magic."
His tone was casual, as if he were asking about lunch.
"The article from 1689?" Dumbledore asked after a moment of thought.
"Yes, and there was a supplementary note in 1691." Kyle said, "Coincidentally, the diary perfectly fits the description of a Horcrux..."
"Oh?" Dumbledore smiled, "I thought the founders told you in the Chamber of Secrets... Would you like some tea or lemonade?"
"Lemonade."
Kyle turned his head towards the window, seemingly interested in the gloomy sky outside, while thinking, "If I hadn't seen that article, then it would have been them."
Dumbledore didn't continue the topic. He walked up to Fawkes and gently stroked the phoenix's feathers, "You were a bit impulsive just now."
"Impulsive?" Kyle asked, "Do you mean I shouldn't have told Lucius about Horcruxes?"
"No, it's unrelated."
Dumbledore suddenly sighed, "It took me two days to knit those gloves. I was planning to give them to someone."
"Um..." Kyle was speechless for a moment, "Should I go after him and get them back?"
Dumbledore thought for a moment and shook his head, "It's fine, I'll knit another pair. I should have plenty of free time from today onwards."
(End of Chapter)
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