Struggling to survive at Hogwarts

Chapter 224 Guilt and Reflection

Is there anyone who can thrive in the Ministry of Magic, the Death Eaters, and Hogwarts?

The answer is undoubtedly Thea.

She is Voldemort's daughter, so she is naturally on the Death Eaters' side.

Unfortunately, she is still a student at Hogwarts, and even Dumbledore wouldn't let her get hurt, because that would only become an excuse for the Death Eaters to wage war against Hogwarts.

Of these three parties, the relationship between the Ministry of Magic and Thea is the most delicate.

She faces the threat of Voldemort, the Dark Lord, above her, and the subtle support of the Malfoy and Black families below, all while maintaining good relations with the heirs of other families…

This creates the special situation where Thea can have three boats on her side, but Thea is not a sea king. She can have all three boats on her side, but she can't hold onto any of them steadily.

Voldemort was too suspicious, Dumbledore wasn't exactly a saint either, not to mention Fudge was a complete opportunist...

It's tough to make a living anywhere!

Thea was pondering this when, out of the blue, Dumbledore suddenly said, "You don't know I'm the Master of Legilimency?"

“I know!” Thea said casually, like a silly child from a wealthy family, but her next sentence immediately made Dumbledore change his mind.

"But I never intended to lie to you."

"Because I know that if I can't even trust you, then who can I trust?"

The girl's face was full of sincerity, but her tone was tinged with self-deprecation.

Anyone who is flattered like this will be stunned for a second, and Dumbledore is no exception.

Then, Thea spoke again.

"Professor, could you please change the decor of this room?"

"I prefer to narrate in a more spacious setting."

Dumbledore smiled slightly, waved his wand, and the office instantly transformed into a scene by the Black Lake, even the stool under Thea disappeared.

"Your shapeshifting ability is amazing," Thea praised sincerely.

Dumbledore nodded slightly, accepting the compliment without blushing.

"Professor, have you ever eaten those chocolate-filled candies wrapped in gold foil?"

Dumbledore didn't understand why Thea's topic had veered off course so quickly, but he still managed to recall the packaged candy from his memory and nodded.

Once the conversation started, the two of them simply found a clean, flat patch of grass to sit down. The moon overhead cast an incredibly realistic moonlight, as if veiling everything in a thin gauze, creating a hazy and tranquil atmosphere.

This kind of environment is perfect for getting people talking.

“When I was very young, I loved chocolate-filled candies, but the orphanage was poor, and Mrs. Green would only give each of us two candies during holidays.”

"Many children would quickly unwrap the candy as soon as they got it and wolf it down in their mouths, but I would quietly run to my room after getting the candy, carefully wrap it up, and count it over and over again."

“At that time, I felt like I owned the whole world.”

Thea spoke with a nostalgic and wistful tone, while Dumbledore, as if sensing something, sat up straight.

"Another tradition at the orphanage is that children can choose their own candy on their birthday. Many children will choose their favorite or the most expensive candy. The younger children usually choose their favorite, while the older children tend to choose the most expensive candy because they can sell it even if they don't like it themselves."

"The most expensive candy can buy several loaves of bread, enough for them to have supper for a week."

"As long as they sell, they won't wake up hungry for a week."

The more relaxed Thea's tone, the more complicated Dumbledore's feelings became.

"On my birthday, I overheard Mary complaining about the children's greed, and I still remember what Mrs. Green said—"

"They are still children, so it's understandable that they don't know any better."

"That's when I realized that choosing chocolate candies meant being greedy and immature. I didn't want to be an immature child. So I never chose chocolate-filled candies again, because they were the most expensive, even though they were my favorite."

"Later, I don't know when it started, I stopped liking chocolate. That cloying sweetness always reminds me of the helplessness I felt when I was hiding behind the door. The candy in my hand felt like a branding iron, burning from my palm all the way to my heart, leaving an ugly scar."

Thea's tone gradually deepened, like a song slowly building up emotions.

"I've always tried to be a sensible child, but little did I know that in other people's eyes, I've become someone everyone can bully. And all my resistance brought me was your comment: 'This child has had violent tendencies since childhood.'"

"Even if you didn't say it, you were practically right."

Unexpected calm.

But Dumbledore felt uneasy. It was as if the climax of the song should have erupted like a landslide and a tsunami, but Thea's calmness was more like the deep sea before a storm, hiding all the sadness at the bottom of the sea with her own strength.

"Feel sorry………"

A genius who had been proud of his talent since childhood, on this ordinary night, under Thea's narration, whether true or false, he slowly lowered his head.

He was apologizing to Thea for his long-standing prejudice.

Perhaps this apology came too late, but it is still indispensable.

“It’s okay!” Thea said cheerfully, as if she were singing. “At least I’ve survived until now, and I’m not even in Azkaban.”

Dumbledore's feelings grew increasingly complicated. Age had brought him many gifts, and he wasn't blind to Thea's scheming, but he couldn't ignore the meaning behind her words.

Thea was implicated by his prejudice for a long time, but what about her father?

Did he also do something wrong in educating Tom?

Was Tom's transformation into the Dark Lord also driven by his unintentional mistake?

As Dumbledore slowly fell into deep thought, from an angle he couldn't see, Thea slowly curled the corners of her mouth into a smile.

She really admires upright people like this!

Their strong sense of social responsibility and mission makes them adept at self-reflection.

In other words, self-reflection is self-criticism.

They were always worried that if they made a single mistake, it would cause the world to end. Although Thea, who wasn't very cultured, didn't understand, she knew that this method was very effective.

Thea's words tonight were half true and half false. The little girl did like chocolate when she was little, and the orphanage did have that activity, but after Thea transmigrated, she no longer liked those cheap chocolates...

She said all this not to whitewash Voldemort, but simply to take advantage of Dumbledore's strong sense of social responsibility and guilt. It would be best if she could transfer this faint sense of guilt to Dumbledore, but it would also be good if she could get through this safely!