Chapter 366: Destruction
Chapter 366: Destruction (Please Subscribe, Favorite, and Vote)
"Parseltongue? You?" Dumbledore's sky-blue eyes, visible through his half-moon glasses, showed a hint of confusion.
"It’s just a habit of mine to try and master unknown languages. At the time, I thought it was a special ability of Slytherin and believed it held some powerful force within it", Liam said with a smile, meeting Dumbledore's gaze. "But it turned out that Parseltongue had no special powers; it was just a unique language. Once I realized this, I stopped learning it. However, I did pick up a few basic Parseltongue words during the process, so I thought I’d give it a try."
"Trying is better than doing nothing at all", Dumbledore nodded. He then gestured for the other three to leave. "Right now, more people might not be better. Voldemort is skilled at manipulating minds, and I’m worried that having too many people here could have a negative effect. So, you three should head downstairs."
Sirius Black and the others nodded and led Kreacher down the stairs. Hermione glanced at Liam with a hint of worry as they went down, but Liam smiled back to reassure her.
"Young people are truly wonderful, aren’t they?" Dumbledore's voice came from behind once everyone had left. He had placed the Pendant Box on a broken cabinet and winked at Liam. "Alright, let’s get started. Do you need any preparations?"
"Professor, I need a moment to prepare", Liam said, pulling out eight silver nails from his Spatial Bag and arranging them in a circle around the Pendant Box on the cabinet. He then used a red string with a rune stone to wrap around the nails, connecting them together.
"An Eastern method, I see?" Dumbledore leaned in to examine the runes carved on the stone. "I can sense that this targets the soul. Very good, we must be cautious when dealing with Voldemort." After feeling the setup, Dumbledore nodded in approval.
Once Liam finished setting up the ritual array, he stepped back, and Dumbledore moved forward, standing beside the cabinet. He drew Gryffindor's Dagger and pointed it at the center of the ritual array, where the Pendant Box was. The Pendant Box trembled slightly as the dagger approached, but having been stored in the cabinet for over a decade without absorbing much human life or soul energy, it could only tremble in response to the threat.
"We must destroy such dangerous things as soon as possible", Dumbledore murmured, looking at the trembling Pendant Box. He then turned to Liam.
"Liam, when I count to three, use Parseltongue to open the Pendant Box, and I will strike the soul of Voldemort hidden inside with this dagger."
"Alright", Liam nodded in agreement.
"Then, let’s begin." As Liam drew his wand and took position, Dumbledore started the countdown. "One... two... three... Liam!" Dumbledore shouted, pointing the dagger at the Horcrux.
Upon receiving Dumbledore's command, Liam immediately hissed in Parseltongue, "Open!"
The small golden lid of the Pendant Box snapped open. Two glass panes revealed a pair of living eyes, black and bright, like Tom Riddle's eyes before they turned red and slit-like.
A sinister black mist began to rise from the Pendant Box, and Liam immediately felt an immense pressure from the Magic Array. The malevolent force was so strong that it partially broke through the array’s defenses and leaked out.
"I see into your heart, Albus Dumbledore", a hissing voice emerged from the Horcrux. The defenses Voldemort had designed in the Pendant Box began to activate. Although he couldn’t tamper with the artifact itself, he had made the soul fragment within it capable of launching an attack, targeting the most vulnerable aspect of the soul of anyone who tried to destroy the Horcrux.
"You are an unfortunate soul, yearning for a happy and harmonious family, yet forever denied it. Your closest friend betrayed you, leading to the death of your sister. And the only living relative you have, even when standing right before you, refuses to acknowledge your existence. Now, everything you do is merely to atone, but you can never protect what you hold most dear, Albus Dumbledore!"
From the two small windows of the Pendant Box, a pair of eyes emitted a bizarre, soap-bubble-like substance. This form quickly rose from the Pendant Box and transformed into the image of a young girl.
Liam had never seen this person before, but he knew it was Ariana, Dumbledore's prematurely deceased sister and a perpetual wound in his heart. The sight deeply affected Dumbledore, and Liam could see tears streaming down his cheeks.
Oh no, Liam thought, and he immediately channeled all his magical energy into the ritual array, suppressing the Pendant Box's power in an instant. He bit his tongue and shouted the Thunder and Lightning Chant. "Professor, act now!"
With the Horcrux's soul weakened, Dumbledore immediately broke free from Voldemort's Horcrux influence. A flash of light, and the dagger in his hand plunged into the Pendant Box.
Liam heard a metallic clink, followed by a prolonged, soul-piercing scream. Instinctively, he cast a defensive spell, but the Horcrux did not launch the expected final attack. The girl's illusion vanished, leaving Dumbledore standing there with the dagger, staring down at the Pendant Box.
Liam's gaze also fell upon the Pendant Box. He noticed that the glass of the two small windows inside had been shattered, and the eerie eyes were gone. The Pendant Box's silk lining emitted wisps of smoke, and the fragment of Voldemort's soul that had been contained within had disappeared. The oppressive atmosphere in the room dissipated along with it.
"Professor?" Liam asked, concerned, as Dumbledore stood there motionless. Dumbledore wiped his face and straightened up.
"You heard everything, didn't you?" the Headmaster asked in a low voice.
"This—", Liam didn't know how to respond and stood there awkwardly.
"It's alright, don't worry", Dumbledore reassured him, noticing Liam's tension. "There's nothing about my past that I can't share. You rarely hear about it because I'm quite old, and most of the people who knew these things are no longer around."
Dumbledore gave a bitter smile. "To be honest, I was initially concerned about you. You remind me of myself when I was young, driven by a mad pursuit of knowledge—"
For the next five or six minutes, Professor Dumbledore recounted his youthful missteps. He looked into Liam's eyes and said earnestly, "You are better than I was at your age, but I still hope you remember to always pay attention to those around you. Don't wait until you lose them to regret it."
Liam nodded seriously, understanding that these were the lifelong lessons of an elder. Dumbledore had shared this with him purely out of concern for a younger generation, hoping they wouldn't make the same mistakes.
"Alright, I think we've been here long enough. Let's call Sirius Black and the others upstairs. They'll be worried if we don't", Dumbledore said once he had finished speaking. He instructed Liam to go downstairs and fetch the others.
Liam nodded and headed downstairs to call the others.
(End of Chapter)
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