Time crept forward slowly. Harry and Sir Podmore crouched at the bathroom entrance, listening intently to the voices drifting from within. The more they heard, the deeper their frowns became. These two were clearly planning something dangerous and had even arranged to meet a Ravenclaw student to execute their scheme.
However, they seemed locked in disagreement about the specific details of implementation.
Shaking his head, no longer interested in the tedious debate unfolding inside, Sir Podmore first glanced at the trembling house-elf beside Harry, then shifted his crimson gaze to the boy.
Under his soul shock, that house-elf wouldn't dare fabricate lies. But if what it claimed was true, they needed to prepare immediately.
"Since we already know where they plan to act, there's no need to stay here." Sir Podmore's spectral form gradually faded, leaving only a pair of translucent blood-red eyes emitting eerily luminous light in the darkened corridor.
"Put on your invisibility cloak. We'll go wait in Ravenclaw Tower."
"Perfect timing—we can gather a few allies along the way. If we really need to fight later, it's wise to have backup."
Looking at those disembodied blood-red eyes floating in mid-air, Harry couldn't suppress a shudder. Steadying himself, he wrapped both himself and Dobby beneath the invisibility cloak and followed quietly.
He briefly considered activating the badge to notify Professor Kahn, but thinking about the Professor's Apparition capabilities, it wouldn't be too late to signal him when genuine danger materialised.
On the other side of the castle, Dumbledore's narration was drawing to a close.
"So Harry is one of Voldemort's Horcruxes?" Frowning deeply, Evans stared penetratingly into Dumbledore's eyes, summarising what he'd just learnt.
"To be precise, it's a fragment of Voldemort's soul that has already fused with Harry." Dumbledore clarified carefully, "The creation of a Horcrux can't be accomplished through coincidence alone. It requires a series of complex, deliberate rituals. Harry, at most, can only be considered a semi-finished product."
"But even so, that fragment has completely merged with him. Even I haven't conceived a method to separate them."
"So you want to rapidly cultivate Harry so he can directly confront the fragment within his own soul?" Evans asked quietly.
"Yes." Dumbledore nodded gravely. "And it's not just the fragment in his soul. Those Horcruxes Voldemort created should also be destroyed by him whenever possible."
With these words, Dumbledore straightened up, waving his wand twice through the air. A semi-transparent projection materialised, displaying several blurry objects in succession.
"Horcruxes are among the most profoundly evil magical creations in this world. They require murdering innocent lives, literally tearing apart one's own soul, and undergoing a series of complex, twisted preparations before finally creating a Horcrux."
"As containers for soul fragments, there's always a special connection between Horcruxes and the original soul."
"This connection is normally very weak. If Horcruxes are scattered across different locations, even the Horcrux owner can't sense their specific whereabouts."
With a casual wave of his wand, in the projection before them, the originally scattered objects suddenly converged together, emanating a faint, pulsing glow.
"But within the same general area, when the number of Horcruxes reaches a certain threshold, they can resonate. If the Horcrux owner has already been resurrected, they can clearly perceive the locations of these Horcruxes."
"The reason I want Harry to destroy the Horcruxes is to see if we can sever his connection with the other fragments."
"Moreover, if he can destroy several more Horcruxes, that soul fragment residing in his body might distance itself slightly from his own soul."
"At that point, perhaps we can discover a method to separate them."
Having finished this explanation, Dumbledore waved his hand to disperse the projection and released a weary sigh.
"But I think if we can cultivate him into a true powerhouse and have him defeat Voldemort in honourable combat, the fragment in his soul should also dissipate naturally."
"If not, at least we'll weaken that soul's strength enough that he has a fighting chance to resist."
"After all, he still carries the protective magic his mother left when she died—perhaps it will prove effective."
Having said this, he looked directly at Evans, a bitter smile tugging at his lips.
"Now you should understand why I didn't want to share this with others."
Looking at the conflicted expression on Dumbledore's weathered face, Evans remained silent for a long moment, then nodded slowly in understanding.
If Harry was indeed Voldemort's Horcrux, that meant as long as Harry lived, Voldemort could never truly die.
If news of this leaked, who could predict what disasters might follow?
Someone who harboured intense hatred for Voldemort might learn this information and, to be absolutely certain, infiltrate the school and find an opportunity to murder Harry. Then all of Dumbledore's meticulous arrangements over these years would crumble to dust.
Moreover, observing Dumbledore closely, he seemed to carry genuine guilt regarding Harry's situation.
Perhaps sensing Evans's unspoken thoughts, Dumbledore spoke softly, "I naturally feel considerable guilt. Part of the reason the Potter family suffered their tragedy was my miscalculation. And these dozen years of relative peace were purchased entirely by him and his parents."
"The magical world owes their family far too much. If possible, at least during his student years, I wanted to let him live somewhat peacefully." Dumbledore's expression suddenly became peculiar. Probably recalling that Harry's two years had been anything but peaceful, he hesitated awkwardly, then spoke again more carefully:
"If he can't live peacefully and happily, then at least his experiences should be... interesting?"
"..." Evans silently regarded Dumbledore's transparent excuse-making.
First year he'd had to confront Voldemort at term's end; second year he'd faced a basilisk and another Horcrux—this student life was indeed extraordinarily "interesting".
However, now knowing the truth about Harry's situation, he could roughly comprehend the plan Dumbledore had casually mentioned earlier.
But understanding was one thing—he still felt Dumbledore was dancing precariously on a knife's edge.
With this thought, Evans couldn't restrain himself from asking, "Isn't your plan excessively risky?"
If he wasn't mistaken, Dumbledore intended to exploit the connection between Horcruxes to package up all the Horcruxes currently in Hogwarts and eliminate them simultaneously.
Even the death curse on a single diadem had left both him and Nicolas Flamel unable to break it easily. Where did Dumbledore get the confidence to resolve them all at once?
"There's definitely considerable risk, but as long as it's executed smoothly enough, the potential results are worth taking this gamble."
Having said this, Dumbledore's eyes suddenly sparkled with mischievous amusement as he looked at Evans.
"Moreover, since you already know so much, you should participate in what comes next, shouldn't you?"
"For example, later, you'll be the one to restrain our Professor Lockhart and Ms. Umbridge. How does that sound?"
Evans: "???"
After all that elaborate explanation, he was here to recruit him as backup muscle?
He wondered if it was too late to claim he hadn't heard anything just now.
However, looking at Dumbledore's half-smiling expression radiating innocent expectation, Evans finally nodded with helpless resignation.
"What's the specific plan? You should tell me now, right?"
"Of course." A knowing gleam flashed in his azure eyes. Dumbledore lowered his voice conspiratorially and slowly began describing his deviously clever little scheme.