HP: Alchemy? Nah, It's Crafting

Chapter 394 - 394: 394: The Resurrection Stone

"...Damn it, that's weirdly reasonable!"Kasenhis couldn't hold it in anymore as he spoke.

"And so, he continued investigating the events of the past. He learned who the Muggle gentleman Merope Gaunt had chosen was, and discovered that the man shared the exact same name as him..... Tom Riddle."

After speaking, Dumbledore paused for a moment, then picked up the small liquor flask beside Kasenhis's bed to moisten his throat.

"By then, his magic was already very powerful, so he brutally murdered old Tom Riddle, his biological father."

"Afterward, he sought out his mother's family, the Gaunts. By the time he found the Gaunt family home, it had already fallen into ruin. The only one left there was the so-called family head, drunkenly stumbling about in a hazy half-conscious state."

"Seeing that his only remotely respectable blood relative was such a useless wreck, we can all guess what Tom did. Once again, he decisively ended someone's life."

Kasenhis sighed emotionally.

"What a tragic family drama. But why are you telling me all this? Wasn't your main topic supposed to be Horcruxes?"

Dumbledore lowered his hand slightly, signaling for Kasenhis not to rush him.

"The secret regarding the Horcruxes should lie within the Gaunt family home. Let's think back for a moment. How many of Tom's Horcruxes have we encountered so far?"

Kasenhis looked at the ceiling.

"His diary, and that locket."

"That was no ordinary locket. It was Slytherin's locket, carrying profound significance. From those two Horcruxes alone, we can tell that Tom disdains using ordinary, meaningless objects as Horcruxes."

"And speaking of significance, in his eyes, the Gaunt family, as the direct descendants of Slytherin, would naturally possess certain meaningful relics."

Dumbledore explained slowly.

"Oh.... so you spent all this time telling me a giant pile of nonsense just to arrive at the conclusion that Voldemort's Horcrux might be hidden inside the Gaunt family home? Couldn't you have just gotten to the point directly?"

Kasenhis asked with a completely baffled expression.

"If I had simply woken you up with a Cooling Charm, Apparated with you to the Gaunt family home, found the Horcrux, destroyed it, and then returned, the whole thing would've taken less than five minutes and left you completely confused. What meaning would there be in that? You wouldn't understand anything. It would just be a nutritionless stream of information—like an elementary school student's diary, tediously recording what they ate, what they drank, what classes they attended, and what games they played, before ending with a sentence like 'Today I was very happy.'"

"What meaning would that have?"

Dumbledore's combo attack left Kasenhis utterly speechless. In the end, he could only give a thumbs-up.

"You're right. So, are we heading out now?"

Dumbledore nodded.

"The sooner we go, the sooner we return. We might even make it back in time for breakfast."

As he spoke, he placed a hand on Kasenhis's forearm. With Apparition activating, the two instantly appeared inside a ruined manor the next moment.

"So this is the Gaunt family home? The layout's not bad."

Kasenhis casually glanced around at the lighting before patting a nearby load-bearing pillar.

"The materials are fairly solid too..... oh right, speaking of the house..."

Dumbledore looked over at the suddenly silent Kasenhis in confusion.

"What is it?"

Kasenhis awkwardly chuckled twice.

"When I fought Voldemort back at Malfoy Manor, I used quite a few explosive spells and alchemical methods..."

"They can just repair it afterward. The Malfoy family is rich anyway," Dumbledore replied casually.

"I don't think this is really a matter of repairs... with explosions of that magnitude, if they still want to live there afterward.... they'll probably need approval to fill in an entire lake first."

Kasenhis said awkwardly.

"Fill in a lake....."

Dumbledore glanced out the window.

"There has indeed been quite a lot of rain recently. But those were necessary sacrifices. They'll understand you."

Kasenhis shrugged helplessly.

"I should probably go back later and restore the terrain for them. That's extremely easy for me now."

"That's work for later. As for the work right now..."

Standing in place, Dumbledore lightly sensed the magical fluctuations around them. Very quickly, the corners of his mouth slowly lifted.

"This trip wasn't in vain."

Kasenhis walked over toward Dumbledore.

"So you've already sensed it?"

Dumbledore nodded.

"Indeed..... a concentration of Dark Magic so dense it's nauseating."

He slowly walked toward what looked like an abandoned study bathed in sunlight. The bookshelves inside appeared to have been thoroughly looted, leaving only a small box sitting atop the desk, as though no one had ever touched it.

There wasn't even a speck of dust on the box.

Dumbledore strode toward the desk, then after thinking for a moment, used the Elder Wand to touch the small box.

He frowned slightly.

The Elder Wand lightly slid across the surface, and the box slowly opened, revealing a ring inside that wasn't entirely extravagant in appearance.

Watching Dumbledore's actions, Kasenhis frowned.

Then, completely unguarded, he directly picked up the ring and stupidly prepared to put it on his finger.

"Dumbledore?"

Kasenhis called out to remind him. Seeing no response, he directly reached out and patted Dumbledore on the back.

"Have you gone crazy? This thing looks dangerous no matter how you look at it, and you were just about to put it on your hand?"

Kasenhis immediately blurted out.

"There really is magic on it..."

Dumbledore said something completely obvious.

"It's Voldemort's Horcrux. It'd be strange if it didn't have magic on it."

Kasenhis replied helplessly.

"What I mean is... it has..... you wouldn't understand. If this thing could let you see your family again one more time, would you choose to wear it?"

Dumbledore placed the ring back into the box as he explained.

"What do you mean?"

Kasenhis fell silent for a moment before asking.

"This is called..... the Resurrection Stone."

Dumbledore stretched out a finger and lightly tapped the face of the ring with his fingernail.

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