— — — — — —
In the headmaster's office, Dumbledore calmly faced the questioning from Bones and Fudge.
He answered everything he could.
As for the things he couldn't say, playing dumb had always been one of Dumbledore's greatest talents. It was half the reason so many people liked to call him a senile old man.
In short, his explanation boiled down to this,
Pierce felt overwhelming guilt over the chaos he had caused. His sense of responsibility was simply too strong, so he chose to end his life by jumping from the building.
As for President Quahog, he had still been inside the office when Dumbledore left. After that, where the man went… Dumbledore had no idea.
When dealing with ordinary people, the Ministry often skipped procedures and ignored evidence. Suspicion alone could be enough to convict someone.
But who would dare treat Dumbledore that way?
Forget conviction. They couldn't even use investigative methods on him. Veritaserum, the Imperius Curse, Legilimency… no one dared try any of it.
Dumbledore, however, cooperated quite readily. He even took out his wand and handed it to Bones.
Bones accepted it and began reciting a long incantation.
A faint golden aura flowed from the tip of the wand as the spell triggered a reverse trace. One by one, echoes of spells the wand had cast appeared briefly in the air like fragments of light.
After a thorough check, they found nothing that suggested mind-affecting magic. There wasn't even much Dark Magic recorded.
Until a flash of green light suddenly appeared.
Fudge nearly jumped out of his skin.
"That one was used on Grindelwald," Dumbledore explained calmly. "When I saw Ariana in the Great Hall that day, I lost my composure. My apologies."
Fudge quickly waved his hands. "It's fine. Using an Unforgivable Curse on a Dark Lord is perfectly reasonable. Albus, you did the right thing."
They talked for quite a while, but nothing useful came out of it. Instead, Fudge actually felt relieved. His tense shoulders loosened a little.
"Albus, I don't really have a choice here. I hope you understand."
"The external pressure is enormous right now. A lot of people are waiting for the Ministry's response. The proper procedures can't be skipped."
He hesitated before continuing.
"Today's talk… well, it's not enough. Tomorrow you'll need to come to the Ministry. The Wizengamot will require a formal… ah… questioning."
By now Fudge had figured it out.
Riddle had sent him here purely for appearances. The goal was to leave no angle for others to attack Dumbledore.
Realizing that, Fudge actually felt a little disappointed. At first he'd thought Riddle might be plotting something, maybe using this opportunity to bring Dumbledore down.
If those two giants clashed, wouldn't the prestige of the Minister for Magic naturally rise a bit?
Turns out he'd been overthinking things. The two of them clearly hadn't fallen out.
Dumbledore nodded in understanding. "I'll cooperate, Cornelius. This time I've caused you quite a bit of trouble. If you run into a problem you can't handle, feel free to come to me."
Fudge forced a smile, nodded, and left.
Before departing, Bones hesitated for a moment, then stepped closer to Dumbledore and spoke quietly.
"Albus, next time you act, I hope you'll think carefully about the consequences. You might be able to handle the aftermath, but the Ministry can't. The entire wizarding population could be affected by what you do."
"Don't worry, Amelia," Dumbledore replied firmly. "I've already thought everything through. I don't believe there's any consequence in this world that the few of us can't handle."
Bones wasn't quite sure how many people were included in that "few of us."
But she had said what needed to be said.
What Dumbledore chose to do next wasn't something she could interfere with anyway.
Still, she couldn't help feeling amazed. The change in Dumbledore was astonishing. In the past, how could anyone have imagined such a bold declaration coming from that gentle, humble old man?
---
"Sis… did Tom really take a whole week off?"
Inside the Slytherin common room, Astoria hugged a plush unicorn and asked weakly. Her finger kept poking the toy's belly without thinking.
Daphne was curled up on the sofa reading the latest issue of The Quibbler. Without even looking up, she replied, "Yep. At least a week. No idea what he's busy with, but we should try not to bother him these days."
When it mattered, the eldest Miss Greengrass could actually be quite sensible.
The problem was that those moments didn't happen very often.
"So what am I supposed to do on cold nights?" Astoria's white ahoge drooped completely.
Both Greengrass sisters had ahoge. Daphne's was bright gold, while Astoria's was snowy white.
Tom had once tried everything to tame those stubborn tufts of hair. Hair gel, pressing them down with his hands for minutes at a time… none of it worked. In the end, nothing succeeded unless he used magic to forcibly glue them down.
"Hehe."
Daphne's eyes rolled slightly as she instantly realized why Astoria looked so miserable.
She tossed the magazine aside and, ignoring Astoria's protests, pulled her into a tight hug, rubbing her cheek against the girl's face again and again.
"I get it now. You're scared of sleeping alone in that creepy environment at night, aren't you?" Daphne teased softly. "Don't worry. You've got your big sister here. I'll keep you company. Be good, Astoria. No need to be afraid."
The tone she used sounded exactly like someone comforting a little child. A few of the girls nearby couldn't help smiling, and at the same time they felt a bit envious of the sisters' relationship.
They had older sisters too.
But the way they got along with them… well, that was another story entirely. Most of the time, it turned into a fight the moment they met.
What none of them saw was Astoria rolling her eyes so hard they nearly reached the ceiling.
Who asked you to keep me company?
You kick the blanket in your sleep, and you roll around all night. One moment your head's on the pillow, the next morning who knows where you've ended up.
What she really wanted was to be Tom's body pillow—waking up every morning after he'd drained almost all his magic just to keep her warm and make sure she stayed healthy for the week.
"Tom… please come back soon."
The little witch sighed inwardly. Accepting her fate, she closed her eyes and let Daphne continue tormenting her.
...
..
Meanwhile, in Nicolas Flamel's manor—
The basement had been completely sealed off. Layers of isolation wards cut it off from the outside world, turning the place into Tom's retreat.
Originally, he had planned to push through in one go and figure out the mysteries surrounding Quetzalcoatl and Quahog.
But after sharing a connection with Usaki, he'd gained an entirely new insight.
No matter what secrets America might be hiding, they couldn't compare to improving his own strength.
Tom replayed that feeling in his mind.
After their minds connected, it was as if he had possessed a Rayquaza's body and personally taken part in the battle with Quetzalcoatl.
The fight itself wasn't particularly worth discussing. Usaki had crushed it completely. She was already stronger than Quetzalcoatl to begin with, and she kept stacking Dragon Dance.
Just one Meteor Shower nearly blasted the serpent straight out of the sky.
What Tom was really savoring was the way a Rayquaza used its power.
It was almost instinctive, like moving an arm or leg. Completely different from how wizards used spells.
What do the laws of the magic have to do with me? I create my own power.
That philosophy ran completely opposite to Ravenclaw's teachings.
What those ancient giants had studied was how to link magic to the world itself, letting the rules of nature work for them.
Researching the essence of magic was really about understanding how magical power resonated with the outside world. Wizards used that connection to manipulate reality itself.
Usaki's approach was the exact opposite. She dug inward, unlocking the potential of her own body instead of borrowing anything from the world.
Of course, part of that difference came from their nature.
Tom thought about it for a while.
His situation was already completely different from that of an ordinary wizard. He couldn't rely on the experiences of people like Andros or Ravenclaw anymore.
To be honest, even he wasn't sure what he counted as now.
A wizard?
Or a magical creature?
His bloodline had become far too mixed. If anyone else tried to fuse so many different bloodlines without the help of the system, they would have exploded long ago.
Yet in his case everything had merged perfectly, without the slightest negative effect.
With that question in mind, Tom sought out Ravenclaw and asked her to analyze his situation. He wanted to know which path he should choose.
"Why do you need to choose at all?" Ravenclaw said with a smile.
She leaned casually against the sofa, stretching slightly. Her long hair slipped across her shoulders as she moved, and every gesture carried an effortless charm.
Tom's expression didn't change.
This woman was insufferable. She was obviously trying to disturb his focus.
"Everyone's energy is limited," Tom said calmly. "Even mine. If I try to master everything, the result will be mediocrity across the board. I'd spend who knows how many years fixing that mistake later."
"You really are… frighteningly calm," Ravenclaw said with a soft laugh, shaking her head.
Though she called it frightening, the admiration in her eyes wasn't hidden at all.
What Ravenclaw liked most about Tom wasn't his astonishing talent. It was this steady, rational mindset. With him, she never had to worry about reckless mistakes or arrogance.
Well… arrogance might still be an issue. The boy could get smug a little too quickly.
Ravenclaw straightened up, and the playful smile on her face vanished. In the blink of an eye, she became the calm, intellectual older-sister type.
"Originally, I planned to wait before telling you this," she said. "But since you've already noticed… we might as well talk about it now."
"Tom, strictly speaking, you're not really human anymore."
She held up a hand before he could react.
"Don't glare at me. You know that's not what I meant."
"Of course, you're not a magical beast either. That title would be insulting. I think 'magical being' is a more appropriate term."
"A magical being?"
Tom rubbed his chin, considering the phrase for a moment. Then he nodded. "Not bad. But I think there's a more accurate way to say it."
Ravenclaw raised an eyebrow with curiosity. "Oh? And what would that be?"
Tom grinned proudly.
"A magical demigod. I'll be a god of magic eventually anyway, so for now, 'demigod' seems perfectly accurate."
Century King, Legend, Wizard King, and finally, God of Magic. That was the system's new wizard ranking. Tom was sure he would reach the final level.
"..."
Ravenclaw stared at him, completely deadpan.
"You're not even as good as your pet, Mr. Demigod. But I'll give you this—you've got demigod-level shamelessness."
.
.
.