The Old Ones of Hogwarts

Chapter 232, Section 231: The Little Wizard's Retribution

Chapter 232, Section 231: The Little Wizard's Retribution

The ancient time converter that Ian returned to Hogwarts was actually the same one that Dumbledore found when he was young, and it was also the ancient time converter that he used Big Ben to connect history.

Such a strange coincidence certainly makes one wonder. Is it all some kind of carefully orchestrated destiny? Or is there a deeper secret hidden behind it all?

Ian had a very strong premonition.

He believed there was definitely a reason for this.

Whether God plays dice or not is perhaps unknown and unverifiable, but the statement that there are absolutely no coincidences in the wizarding world is an absolute truth.

All coincidences are merely the fabrication of fate, and wizards are beings capable of touching upon this level. Therefore, coincidences can certainly be traced back to their origins in the wizard's worldview.

Ian wasn't the only one who firmly believed this; Albus Dumbledore and Nick Flamel were also among them. Moreover, when the young wizard claimed to know who could explain the coincidence, both Albus Dumbledore and Nick Flamel realized that Ian's certainty must be related to some of his past experiences.

That's why.

That's why Nick Lemaître asked if it was dangerous.

Albus Dumbledore was even more direct. He looked down at the young wizard before him, his eyes flickering slightly, and asked, "Your ancient time-traveling device came from Merlin?"

The old headmaster hadn't witnessed the events of the past, but he always possessed an almost scripted insight. In fact, this conclusion wasn't hard to deduce from Ian's mention of seeing Merlin in ancient times. After all, time-travel devices were extremely valuable in any era.

Ian could only turn to a hundred people for help in any given era.

Faced with the old principal's inquiry.

Ian did not hide anything.

"Yes, Headmaster, I won this time converter from Merlin." Ian looked down at the ancient time converter with its golden appearance in his hand.

"You actually won the bet with Merlin?" Nick Lemaître was immediately taken aback and clicked his tongue in surprise. "I see. No wonder you said Merlin probably didn't want to bless you."

This alchemist's imagination was somewhat limited, perhaps because Merlin's reputation in this era was so great that he didn't dare to imagine that Ian could defeat Merlin with magic.

The little wizard offered no explanation.

Some things don't necessarily need to be shown on the spot.

Leave it there for now.

It's perfectly acceptable to take it out and store it when you're in a good mood.

This is the real method of "managing pretentious behavior".

"I'm a little confused right now. How can the same time converter exist at the same point in time?" Ian looked at Albus Dumbledore.

"And it will return to a certain era and become one of your collectibles?" The young wizard's curiosity was innate, and he tried to sort out the increasingly confusing information.

Dumbledore smiled slightly, his blue eyes gazing at Ian through his half-moon spectacles, his gaze deep and calm. "Ian, the power of time is far more complex than we imagine."

"It's not just a simple division of past, present, and future. Sometimes, the traces of time overlap and appear in ways we can't predict."

"Do you remember what I told you earlier? As long as the effects haven't arrived, everything will be fine. That principle still applies now."

"Just like you and me, or anyone else, we can use the time converter to appear in two places at the same time. Many Hogwarts students have also used it to take two classes at the same time."

"If we can do it, why can't an object?" Headmaster Albus Dumbledore's words were quite philosophical, and also conveyed the idea that all things are equal under the passage of time.

The young wizard listened thoughtfully.

While Ian was still absorbing the earnest teachings of Headmaster Albus Dumbledore...

"Alright, alright, you can talk about these things later. It's time to clear up this old man's doubts," Nick Lemaître decisively interjected.

He was indeed becoming increasingly unable to contain his curiosity.

"Little Ian, are you saying that you believe Merlin knows the answer, and that since he lived for nearly 2000 years, you can still find traces of him in our time?"

It wasn't that Nicolas Flamel couldn't accept someone being older than him; he was simply curious about why Merlin had been able to live for so many years, first and foremost ruling out Horcruxes and Philosopher's Stones.

After all, Merlin would never use such a cowardly method as Horcruxes, and the Philosopher's Stones that could sustain such a long consumption of energy must have left a mark on history if they were made.

Regarding questions about the Philosopher's Stone, Nicolas Flamel possessed almost complete information on every Philosopher's Stone from every era. This stemmed from his inquisitive nature after seeing the pile of discarded Philosopher's Stones the young wizard had brought out. Of course, whatever his reasons for researching this information, it ultimately convinced Nicolas Flamel that Merlin had only crafted three Philosopher's Stones, and that he had given them to others, either to avert extremely terrible disasters.

“I don’t need to look for him, because he may have always been right beside us.” Ian stated his guess decisively, looking at the two elders in front of him, “Lirim, that Ravenclaw student who entered the school as a descendant of the Ollivander family, gives me the feeling that there is definitely something wrong with him.”

The little wizard's tone was full of certainty.

A barely perceptible glint flashed in Dumbledore's eyes, but he didn't show much surprise. He simply nodded slightly, signaling Ian to continue.

“I’ve seen Merlin from the past, and I remember his magical aura,” Ian said in a low voice. “And Ririm… I’m pretty sure his magic is the same as Merlin’s.”

This is the conclusion Ian reached after repeatedly recalling and comparing things—and not just Rirem, but also Arthur King, the alchemy professor who suddenly disappeared and resigned last year.

Tsk tsk.

The more Ian thought about it, the angrier he became.

In the past, Merlin accused him of being an old monster who turned into a child to deceive others. But it turned out that the thief cried foul, and Merlin was the one who liked to turn into a child to deceive people!

"Is that so... Now that you mention it... Hmm, we can investigate." Dumbledore still didn't respond directly, but he seemed to find Ian's speculation interesting.

At that moment, Nicolas Flamel, who was standing to the side, suddenly laughed, his eyes sparkling with excitement.

"Funny, so very fun!"

Nicolas Flamel rubbed his hands together, his face full of eager anticipation. "Merlin! He's the legendary King of Wizards! Who wouldn't want to see him for themselves?"

"I remember this classmate, Ririm. He asked me about wand making... If Ririm really is Merlin, then he must actually possess alchemical skills far superior to mine!"

The more you talk about it...

The more excited Nicolas Lemaître became, the more excited he became.

Surprisingly, even a master alchemist couldn't resist the "idol filter" for Merlin. Of course, it's also possible that Nicolas Flamel wanted to truly exchange and discuss alchemical knowledge with Merlin.

people.

People always feel a competitive urge to compare themselves to those who excel in their own areas of expertise. Nicolas Flamel's previous composure and calmness were all because he had no rivals who could rival him.

But Merlin is different.

Nicolas Lemaître truly wanted to engage in philosophical discussions with the "wise men."

It wasn't just the young wizard who could sense his emotions; Dumbledore also glanced at Nick Flamel, a helpless smile in his eyes.

"Nick, calm down. We don't have solid evidence yet." It was the old principal; such explosive news and situation still didn't cause him much of an emotional reaction.

Stay calm and rational.

This is Albus Dumbledore's most distinctive characteristic when facing almost anything—of course, things related to Ariana rarely caused him to lose control of his emotions on a few occasions.

In response to Dumbledore's words.

"But Ian's intuition is always accurate, isn't it?" Nick Flamel had a lot of faith in the young wizard. After all, a good alchemist must have very accurate intuition.

At this point, his intuition told him that Ian was right, so the alchemist stared intently at Ian with an excited expression.

"Little guy, how do you think we should verify this guess?" He rubbed his hands together, looking eager to try, as if he wanted to find that first-year student immediately.

After a moment of contemplation, Ian said, "If Ririm really is Merlin, he certainly won't reveal himself easily, but we have enough means to make him show his true form."

His words carried a certain firmness.

however.

"Do we have such means?" Nick Flamel's cloudy eyes were filled with confusion. He looked around at the alchemical tools, but couldn't find anything that could work on a legendary wizard.

Well, he had never studied similar items at all. After all, if he hadn't joined Hogwarts this year, he wouldn't have believed that legends still existed in the end times.

"Forehead……"

Ian turned his head and saw that Headmaster Dumbledore was also staring at him.

"So I have a way to expose his true colors?"

He corrected his wording. Dumbledore didn't ask what kind of method it was; he simply idly spoke while toying with the Elder Wand.

"Go find him, Ian."

The old headmaster's tone was calm, but the way he handled the Elder Wand was quite intriguing. Clearly, even the greatest white wizard of this century wasn't truly unmoved.

Everyone has their own pride.

Albus Dumbledore might also want to learn magic from Merlin… well, that's a humble way of putting it. Ian felt a distinct sense of the old headmaster's boundless energy.

"Okay, Professor."

Ian put down the ancient time converter in his hand and was about to turn and leave when Nicolas Flamel suddenly called out to him.

"Wait a minute!"

The latest novel is first published here!

As he spoke, Nicolas Flamel ran over to his pile of alchemical artifacts and began rummaging through them. Ian stopped and looked at Flamel with a puzzled expression.

Ian thought he was going to prepare some powerful magical artifact, but to his surprise, the alchemist pulled out an exquisite glass bottle from a robe that had been taken off and not washed.

He held the bottle carefully, approaching Ian's robe and pressing the opening against the hem. There, magical fluctuations emanated from the bottle's opening.

"What is this?"

Ian asked with some curiosity.

He saw countless tiny particles flowing into the bottle.

"Your robe has rainwater from over a thousand years ago on it," Nicolas Flamel explained, his eyes gleaming with excitement. "I want to collect some samples to study the composition of rainwater from that era. This is a rare opportunity! We can not only understand the environment of the past, but also accurately determine the date of Merlin's time!"

Nicholas Lemaître's voice carried an undisguised excitement.

Ian shook his head helplessly, thinking to himself: Truly befitting the attention to detail and thirst for knowledge of an alchemy master, and also befitting the boredom one would expect from a man who is several hundred years old.

perhaps.

Neither Ian nor Nick Flamel, nor even the almost supernaturally intelligent Albus Dumbledore, realized at this moment what the small bottle of rainwater Ian brought back truly meant.

The changes it will bring.

No one could have predicted it.

……

Nicholas Lemay carefully stored the bottle containing the rainwater collected from the past.

Ian led the two elders toward the Ravenclaw House lounge.

The sun had not yet risen, and Hogwarts was naturally quiet, with only the occasional chirping of birds and the echoing footsteps of three people outside.

Ian walked along the corridors of Hogwarts toward the Ravenclaw common room.

He couldn't contain his curiosity.

"Shouldn't we call the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor?" Actually, the young wizard was curious about Grindelwald's current situation, and this indirect approach was too simplistic.

Dumbledore certainly understood what he meant, but the old headmaster did not answer directly. He simply smiled slightly, a rather complex light flashing in his eyes.

"You'll find out when he gets back."

The irrelevant response left Ian with many thoughts.

But he didn't want to press the matter further.

Soon, the three arrived at the Ravenclaw common room. A tranquil and mysterious atmosphere permeated the room; pale blue chandeliers cast a soft glow, illuminating the neatly arranged bookshelves and comfortable sofas. It was early morning, the sun had not yet risen, and the entire common room was empty.

Passing the sofas and bookshelves in the lounge area, and past the statue of the Ravenclaw ladies, they headed straight for the dormitory area. At this hour, most students were still asleep, but Ian could sense the rustling of pages and whispers coming from many of the dormitories. Clearly, the Ravenclaw students had begun their day of intense study.

Occasionally, faint magical light would peek through the cracks in the door.

"It's so good to be back."

Ian stopped in front of his dormitory room and briefly assessed the situation inside.

Sure enough, Michael was still fast asleep, while William was already sitting at his desk, engrossed in his studies. He didn't disturb them, but instead turned his gaze toward Rirem's bedroom door.

"Are you ready?"

Ian asked in a low voice, his hand already gripping his wand tightly.

Dumbledore and Nicolas Flamel exchanged a glance but did not draw their wands. Dumbledore even considered knocking politely, but Ian had his own judgment.

No one understands the Wizarding King Merlin better than him!

If you alert Merlin, he'll turn into Merlin and run away! Although we haven't spent much time together, Ian feels he already knows this Wizarding King very well!

Therefore.

He waved his wand and whispered, "Open the Alohomora!"

Magic enchanted with spells is always effective.

The dormitory door opened in response.

In the dim light, it seemed as if someone was sleeping on the bed.

And at that very moment.

Ian was about to say something to the two elders when he noticed that Nick Flamel and Dumbledore's expressions suddenly changed drastically, and the two of them retreated towards the door without regard for their image.

"What's going on?"

Ian's intuition was a beat too slow.

It was as if some kind of interference had occurred.

This caused a bad feeling to arise in his heart.

next moment.

"Splash~"

Suddenly, a crack appeared in the ceiling above my head.

This is the Yellow River flowing down from the sky—the word "yellow" here is literal, describing the color of the water, turbid and surging, a yellow liquid cascading down like a waterfall.

Good morning, Ian.

A voice rang out in the room.

Malicious.

evil.

That's how it sounds to Ian, at least.

"Two thousand years of accumulation, can you stop it?"

this day.

Perhaps Hogwarts is truly unclean.

(End of this chapter)