Chapter 481: The Profound Meaning of Voldemort (Edited)

Harry: !!!

For him, this news was incredibly unimaginable. Lord Voldemort, the dark lord, had ever considered teaching? What magical reality!

Seeing Harry's expression, Lupin understood that he had misunderstood.

"Voldemort's purpose in coming to Hogwarts wasn't to educate and teach," Lupin snorted. "He wanted to expand his influence among young wizards."

"If he had been a professor at Hogwarts for six or seven years, there would have been no need for a wizarding war. The Order of the Phoenix wouldn't have been a match for the Death Eaters. Voldemort was someone extremely influential."

"The Order of the Phoenix?"

"The group Dumbledore formed during the war to fight against Voldemort's Death Eaters, I, Sirius, and your parents were all members of it."

It was the first time Harry had heard of the Order of the Phoenix. The name, its purpose, and the fact that his parents had been part of it deeply fascinated him.

"Can I join?"

Lupin stared at Harry and said, "The Order of the Phoenix disbanded after Voldemort's fall. I hope it's never reassembled."

Although Dumbledore sometimes summoned former members of the Order of the Phoenix to assist him, the organization was currently dissolved. The only reason Dumbledore would reassemble it would be if Voldemort resurfaced.

"Let's set that aside," Lupin said, waving his hand. "Anyway, remember that if Voldemort becomes a professor at Hogwarts, it will become the den of the Death Eaters."

The curse Voldemort had cast wasn't just out of anger. Voldemort knew very well that Dumbledore always distrusted him, that distrust had existed since Tom Riddle was a student. It didn't make sense for it to disappear after his graduation, especially since he and his followers weren't well-reputed after graduation.

His main goal in coming to Hogwarts was to hide one of his Horcruxes. As for teaching, he had already prepared himself to be rejected.

Angry? He surely would be, but he didn't have the time or inclination to curse specifically about that. Voldemort's purpose was to undermine Hogwarts' potential. The Defense Against the Dark Arts subject was of vital importance. If teachers were changed frequently, it would affect the quality of teaching and ultimately diminish the graduating students of Hogwarts' ability to fight.

He was prepared for both scenarios. If he could become a professor, he would develop his influence among the students. If he couldn't get the position, he would completely destroy the future of that subject.

The end result was obvious: the future of the Defense Against the Dark Arts subject had been ruined. You only had to look at the kinds of teachers who had been teaching since Harry started school. Anyone from Quirrell to Lockhart could become a professor.

While Lupin chatted with Harry, he organized things in his office and occasionally made some playful comments with Sirius. After putting the last books back in his suitcase, he patted Sirius on the shoulder, indicating it was time to leave.

He looked at the wall clock and said, "Our carriage should be here soon. Well, goodbye Harry, it was a true pleasure to teach you. It's time for us to go."

"We'll see you again," Sirius said as he hugged Harry and ruffled his hair. Then, together with Lupin, they left the office.

After Sirius and Lupin left, Harry was alone in the office. He looked around and saw the empty office, which made him feel a void inside.

He felt like he was the only one in the world.

He sat in the chair Lupin used to occupy, and his mind began to recall all the moments of the past school year, from the Boggart to the nighttime training, from the first time he heard Sirius's name to the special Christmas...

When would they meet again? Harry wasn't sure, but he knew it wouldn't be during this year's summer break. Sirius had just told him that he had something very important to do, and they probably wouldn't be able to meet or even communicate.

He wasn't sure if he would spend the next Christmas with Sirius. Harry looked expressionlessly at the old office floor. In that moment, out of the corner of his eye, he saw something unusual on Professor Lupin's desk.

He lifted his head and noticed that the desk drawer was open, as if he had forgotten to close it. Harry approached and discovered a piece of old, crumpled parchment, stacked in the drawer.

Harry's heart began to beat rapidly.

He quickly pulled the parchment out of the drawer and examined it carefully, confirming that it was the Marauder's Map he had lost. Had Professor Lupin found it? No, maybe it had been Sirius...

It didn't matter who had found it; the fact that it was placed here in this way was a hint: the Marauder's Map now belongs to you.

An overwhelming joy seized Harry's heart as he quickly tucked the Marauder's Map into his robes. At that moment, the office door opened again, and Professor Lupin, panting, stood in the doorway, showing a somewhat forced smile to Harry.

"I never imagined our reunion would be just minutes later," he joked with an old joke to ease his own discomfort. Then his face showed an expression of discomfort and conflict, and with an unnatural tone, he asked Harry, "Harry, um... it seems I left a parchment on my desk, have you seen it?"

"You mean this?" Harry resisted the urge to keep it and, somewhat reluctantly, pulled out the Marauder's Map from his pocket.

"Yes, that's it, thank you, Harry. Well, now we really say goodbye..." Lupin took the map from Harry's hands, hugged it, and then hastily left the office.

After Lupin left, Harry sighed and leaned against the window, looking expressionlessly at the sky outside.

...

Outside the school gates, Sirius struggled to fit two large suitcases and two small ones into the carriage's trunk. Footsteps were heard, and Lupin ran to the door holding a parchment.

"Do you know how hard I've been working?" Sirius complained in disgust to his old friend.

"You should have known that leaving this here was a unilateral decision on your part," Lupin frowned at Sirius. "You must understand that we're dealing with something serious, and the fewer people who know about it, the better. This object could..."

"Professor Dumbledore, what are you doing here!"

Lupin stopped talking and looked at the elderly man who was behind him.

"I came to bid you farewell," Dumbledore said with a kindly smile on his face, his eyes behind his half-moon glasses were inscrutable.

"Thank you for your kindness." Lupin and Sirius maintained their composure, looking relaxed and calm.

"Now I can rest easy." After chatting with them for a while, Dumbledore patted them on the shoulders. "Have a safe journey!"