78: Preparation Before Confrontation

Ivan did not participate in the following events.

He returned to his dormitory to rest and wait for the results of the professors' search.

However, things did not develop as Ivan expected. Dumbledore and the other professors could not find any trace of Quirrell.

They had searched almost everywhere, including the Forbidden Forest, the Black Lake, and the castle.

Ivan also reminded Dumbledore to check the Room of Requirement, but unfortunately, they still found nothing.

'What's going on?'

Ivan thoroughly experienced the troubles brought by the butterfly effect: "Did Quirrell really run away?"

'No!!!' As soon as this thought emerged, Ivan immediately denied it: 'Voldemort's goal is the Philosopher's Stone. If he doesn't get the Philosopher's Stone, where can he go?'

Even if Voldemort's target had expanded to include Ivan, staying in Hogwarts would be his best choice.

Voldemort had no reason to leave.

However, it is certainly not difficult for a great wizard—even one reduced to a lingering form like Voldemort—to evade others' searches if he is determined.

If Voldemort wanted to hide, even Dumbledore himself would likely come back empty-handed.

And now, there is something even more troublesome.

~~~~~

"The troll sneaked into the safest place in Britain, Hogwarts."

"A first-year student defeated the troll."

"Who will protect Hogwarts from the threat of dark wizards?"

~~~~~

The newspaper published a lot of news about the troll incident, most of which questioned whether Dumbledore was still capable of serving as the headmaster of Hogwarts.

~~~~

"We all know that Dumbledore was the greatest white wizard of this century."

~~~~

"But now, there are less than ten years left before the end of this century," Hermione read the negative news about Dumbledore in the newspaper: "We can't entrust the safety of children to an old man over 100 years old."

"Ugh!"

After the voice fell, Hermione slammed the newspaper on the table heavily, and the young witch said angrily: "It's nonsense."

"It's been almost a week, and the comments in these newspapers are getting more and more excessive!"

Parvati agreed: "They only say sarcastic remarks, question this and that, but no one has ever proposed what to do."

During this period, all the heads of houses lived with the students to ensure their safety.

Hermione could see that Professor McGonagall was visibly losing weight because of her hard work day and night.

Wizards are also human. After seven or eight days of exhausting work, their bodies will not be able to bear it.

"Why is it like this?"

Harry was very confused. He didn't understand why these news reports spoke so negatively about Dumbledore.

"Scoff~ Are they wrong?"

At this moment, Malfoy came over, the smile on his face impossible to hide: "Dumbledore has been old for a long time. Who knows what the school will become in his hands!"

"My father is discussing this matter with the school governors. Maybe in a few days, Hogwarts will have a new headmaster."

Malfoy's words aroused the dissatisfaction of many students, especially the Gryffindor students, who were even more agitated.

The Weasley brothers glared at him, and many people looked like they would rush forward and beat Malfoy to the ground as soon as someone spoke.

"Malfoy, let me guess why you came here at this time."

Harry looked around pretentiously: "Oh, by the way, it turns out that Ivan is not here."

""Pfft~~~""

It seemed that Harry had learned to be more sharp-tongued, possibly influenced by Snape, and at this moment, he managed to hit Malfoy's sore spot, making Malfoy so angry that he wanted to strangle him.

Malfoy subconsciously looked around and confirmed that Ivan was indeed not present.

"Y-You won't be proud for long, Potter!"

Malfoy continued, "Wait until Dumbledore is kicked out, and then it will be his turn..."

"Whose turn?"

Ivan's voice interrupted Malfoy's pleasant fantasy.

Malfoy trembled all over, and cold sweat broke out on his back.

"I-Ivan.."

'Damn it!' Malfoy thought, realizing he had miscalculated. He had considered that Ivan was away, but hadn't expected him to come back at this exact moment.

"Okay, go back."

Ivan didn't do anything to Malfoy. He merely patted his shoulder and gestured for him to return to the Slytherin table.

"Ah.. Okay." Malfoy didn't hesitate and quickly ran away from Ivan.

"Hahaha..." Harry laughed. "It's you, Ivan. That guy Malfoy actually said that Dumbledore would resign as headmaster."

Indeed, the current rumors were very unfavorable for Dumbledore.

But how could the greatest white wizard be defeated by a few rumors?

Only a spoiled kid like Malfoy, coddled by his family, would believe that Dumbledore could be replaced because of this.

"Huh?" Hermione noticed that Ivan's face looked a bit off and asked, "What's wrong, Ivan? Is something bothering you?"

"No way?" Parvati said in horror. "Is it really true, what Malfoy said?"

"How is it possible!" Harry immediately became anxious. He looked at Ivan, hoping to get a definite answer.

"It's impossible for Hogwarts to change headmasters just because of that," Ivan reassured them.

Others might not know, but Ivan was well aware of Dumbledore's weight in the wizarding world.

There is only one person in this world who could influence Dumbledore's decisions, and that was Dumbledore himself.

Unless Dumbledore was willing, no one was qualified to tell him what to do.

However, the problem now lies here.

'Voldemort has been gone for almost ten years, and I didn't expect his followers to still have such a great influence.'

'No, it should be that these people have been holding grudges for a long time,' Ivan thought to himself. 'They didn't cause trouble before because Dumbledore was so highly respected. Now that there's an opportunity, they're acting immediately.'

These people's little schemes are despicable, but Ivan had to admit that Voldemort had truly exploited Dumbledore's weakness.

"Too many parents have sent howlers holding Headmaster Dumbledore accountable," Ivan explained. "Just now, the Ministry of Magic notified the headmaster to come over, demanding that he explain the situation and give an account to the parents."

In this situation, if it were Ivan in Dumbledore's position, he would make those who complained understand the power of magic in no time!

However, Dumbledore was a saint, unwilling to use force to coerce others.

Tsk.

Voldemort knew Dumbledore's style all too well.

Taking advantage of the emotions of the parents and aligning with the Ministry of Magic's orders, Voldemort easily managed to lead Dumbledore away.

Old Dumbledore had already anticipated this moment.

He found Ivan and the other professors and asked them to take care of Hogwarts during his absence.

'If nothing unexpected happens, the unexpected will come.'

Ivan was certain that all of this had been planned by Voldemort from the beginning: If he wants to take action, there's no better time than now.

Ivan doesn't know what Voldemort will do.

But Ivan is not afraid of Voldemort.

As the saying goes, magic is power.

Ivan is confident that he can fight Voldemort, who has not yet resurrected.

Especially considering the support of the other heads of houses and Harry's protection against Voldemort, Ivan told himself that there was no reason to lose.

'The most important thing is that all of us can attend the final feast safely.'

Ivan thought that Voldemort had no idea how powerful the power of fate was, and he was destined to lose to him.

"You seem out of it. Are you really okay?" Hermione asked.

"Don't worry," Ivan replied reassuringly.

Ivan had been keeping a close watch on Hermione, Neville, and the others these days.

If Voldemort harmed anyone else, Ivan would be angry at most.

But if Hermione were hurt, Ivan feared he might truly lose control and unleash the Obscurus.

So he had been extremely cautious recently, strictly forbidding them from going out at night and completely prohibiting magic practice in the Room of Requirement.

"I don't understand why everyone is so dissatisfied with Dumbledore," Hermione said.

"Who knows?"

Ivan did not answer Hermione's question directly; he simply said, "Just like people are afraid of Voldemort, but not afraid of Dumbledore, who is more powerful than Voldemort."

"What?"

Ivan's words left Hermione, Harry, and the other young wizards dumbfounded.

They had never thought of it that way.

"Yeah," Hermione muttered. "Dumbledore is more powerful than Voldemort, but everyone..."

"But they never take Dumbledore seriously, right?"

Ivan added, finishing the little witch's sentence.

He shook his head and said, "Alright, everyone, go back to your dormitory early tonight. Don't wander around."

"Ivan, do you think something will happen tonight?" Harry asked.

"If I were Quirrell, I would definitely take action at this time," Ivan replied.

"Because Dumbledore is not here?" Hermione questioned.

"Yeah."

Ivan nodded. "After all, no one wants to face the greatest white wizard of the time."

"Hermione," he said, beginning to organize the things on the long table, "let's go."

"Wait for me."

Seeing Ivan get up to leave, Hermione hurriedly followed.

Neville and Parvati were also there. The four of them were part of a small group, always advancing and retreating together.

Ivan planned to return to the dormitory to rest.

If nothing unexpected happened, there would probably be a fierce battle tonight.

Therefore, Ivan needed to conserve his energy and adjust himself to be in the best condition.

Soon, the time came to 7 o'clock in the evening.

In Ivan's dormitory, Neville and Parvati were playing wizard chess, and Hermione was reading a book to pass the time as usual.

Ka-ka-ka-ka-ka~

It was pitch black outside the window, and the wind was strong, making the windows rattle.

Ivan frowned slightly; he was beginning to doubt whether Voldemort was really going to make a move.

According to Dumbledore, he should be back by 8 o'clock tonight.

"There are less than 40 minutes left. If Voldemort doesn't take action, he'll miss the best opportunity."

Ivan thought this as he looked at the dark window again.

Unfortunately, just like before, he couldn't see anything.

'I'm completely in the dark.'

There was no way around it; Tom Riddle and Harry were the protagonists of this world, and their influence was quite significant.

Ivan's prediction was still valid in the general direction.

But it was almost impossible to analyze the fate of the two.

At least for now, Ivan couldn't reach the level of prying into Voldemort's fate.

Bang!

Suddenly, the door was pushed open, and everyone was startled. Hermione and Parvati pointed their wands at the door reflexively.

"Harry?"

Seeing that it was Harry standing at the door, the girls did not lower their wands.

This was Ivan's request.

Because of the existence of Polyjuice Potion, simply looking at someone's appearance could not prove their identity.

"What happened, Harry?"

Ivan could see the traces of magic left by the potion on the wizard, and the Harry in front of him was indeed himself.

"Ron!"

"What about Weasley?"

"Ron is missing!"

Harry's news surprised everyone present. Hermione asked, "Are you sure he didn't just run off somewhere to play?"

"Here!"

Harry took out a note with a paragraph written by Ronald on it.

Ivan took the note and read it.

To summarize the content: if they didn't want Ronald to get into trouble, Harry was to go to the Forbidden Forest alone to meet him.

'Voldemort has made his move.'

Ivan frowned slightly, quickly understanding Voldemort's intention: 'Kidnap Ronald and lure Harry to the Forbidden Forest.'

As for how Ronald was kidnapped...

'It was likely the Imperius Curse.'

Ivan did not blame Ronald for being careless. An 11-year-old wizard would have been a fourth-grade primary school student in his previous life.

"Hermione, go inform Professor McGonagall."

With Dumbledore not here, the top fighting force at Hogwarts consisted of the four Heads of House and Ivan.

It was simply impossible for Harry to go to the Forbidden Forest alone.

"Ivan!"

Harry was visibly nervous. "If I inform the professor, will it be..."

"Harry."

Ivan said calmly, "If we inform the professor, Weasley might be in danger, but if I don't, both you and Weasley will be in danger."

By informing the professor, Ronald's safety was uncertain, but at least Harry's safety could be ensured.

"I know you can't accept it, but courage is not a reason for recklessness."

If it weren't for Ivan, Harry would have likely rushed into the Forbidden Forest alone. Two young wizards unprepared for such a dangerous situation would have stood no chance without proper support.

Ivan didn't see anything wrong with making the decision to involve the professors.

Harry was not particularly cunning or calculating. It was already impressive that he was willing to take risks for his friend's life.

"Fortunately, you still knew to come find us."

Ivan patted Harry's shoulder, signaling him to calm down and reassuring him, "Don't worry, Ron will be sitting next to you at the final dinner."

"Really?"

Harry felt relieved upon hearing Ivan's assurance.

Ivan's predictions had been so accurate that it was hard to doubt them, and Harry's trust in Ivan was unwavering.

"Let's go."

Ivan waved his wand, and a ball of silver-white light flew out from the tip.

This was the Patronus Charm he had just learned. Since he was not yet proficient, the Patronus was not fully formed, just a ball of silver light.

The Patronus had the function of transmitting messages, and the person Ivan intended to notify was Snape—the most capable professor in Hogwarts besides himself.

"Let's go."

"Ivan?"

"We must make more preparations, Harry."

Ivan didn't elaborate as he led Harry towards the Forbidden Forest.

He had asked Hermione to find Professor McGonagall, not to have her come to the Forbidden Forest to rescue them, but to remain at Hogwarts to prevent Voldemort from using another tactic to lure others away.

Voldemort wanted the Philosopher's Stone, and his target had been under the trapdoor on the third floor.

But that was the original plot, and Ivan was not certain that Voldemort would still follow that plan.

Moreover, the Philosopher's Stone was with Ivan, so going after it would be pointless for Voldemort—he would come up empty-handed.

As for calling Snape, it was for added safety.

Ivan wasn't afraid of Voldemort and was prepared to face him directly, even bringing Harry Potter, who was Voldemort's nemesis.

However, having Snape as backup would certainly be more reassuring.

_________

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