A/N: I do not own Harry Potter nor the Advent of the Archmage. They are owned by J.K. Rowling and Mo Xiang respectively.

Just when he was about to start, when Quirrell was going to restrict the child, he finally processed what was said. He was stunned into inaction. Staring at the smug child in utter disbelief. Even Voldemort was shocked, though we can't see him yet, this child was more prideful than he was.

'Did I hear him right?' Quirrell was mute for a while. This insult was enough to infuriate any self-respecting mage. Who could bear to be so insulted on their capability of utilising magic? It's like musicians being questioned on their ability to play their favoured instrument, or a painter on the message of their art. It was insulting, even from a peer. Yet here he was, being insulted not by a peer. No, but by a child. A first-year student at that. A muggle-born that had no idea magic existed until recently. He dares…

He dares…

"YOU DARE TO BE SO PRESUMPTUOUS, CHILD! You dare question my ability? A filthy muggle-born? I was going to be lenient when capturing you, but you need to be taught a lesson. My Master's only order was to bring you alive, he said nothing on the condition you were brought in. I make sure your body is mangled beyond recognition. You will be begging for death, only to be denied it's sweet embrace"

"I'm guessing that was an insecurity of yours, huh professor? Judging by your violent explosion, I think you really are talentless"

The continued taunts on his ability forced Quirrell to act, almost recklessly.

"Expulso - Difudio - Bombarda - …" So lost in his rage, Quirrell started throwing a flurry of curses and hexes. Some dark, some not, but all painful in their own way.

Link was dodging each spell with what seems to be extreme difficulty and no grace in his movements. Moving away from the spell caster at a slow but steady pace. Scrambling on the floor when he trips, jumping to the floor when seemingly pressed to escape. He managed to cast one spell in a panic, but it fell short landing in the floor between Quirell and himself, a miss! All-in-all, it gave a rather… pathetic impression.

"Who's talentless now, boy? How dare you provoke me, when all you could do is this" Quirrell was taking great delight in this disgraceful display. He could not help gloating. "Even the spell you cast was nowhere near me. You useless waste of magic" Quirrell, who was still in the same position, was growing increasingly smug and infuriated. He has the boy on the run, but he hasn't landed a spell yet. So lost in his euphoria he did not notice this fact. But someone did. He finally spoke when the boy was just out of their spell reach.

"Silence." It was almost whispered, but it resounded within the cavern as though it was the bark of thunder. The 'fighting' came to a halt, even Link stopped and turned towards the spellcaster.

"Master, I will get him soon, I…"

"Do not make me repeat myself, Quirrell"

"Yes, Master"

"Let me speak to the boy"

"Yes, Master" With that, Quirrell, still pumped on the effects of adrenaline, unravelled his turban. Revealing his bald head to the world. With that, he turned. Exposed was a rather terrifying thing. The face of a man, if it could be called that, was growing from the back of his head. It wasn't very discernable, pixelated and blurry, but detailed. You could make out a mouth, a nose and eyes. The eyes, red as blood, displaying a type of pure rage and calm in harmony. As though the wielder of said eyes was at peace with his rage. Calculating, malicious, mad, but sane. A contradiction in every way. They evoked ideas of violence. The eyes are a gateway to a man's soul.

These were the eyes that brought magical Britain to its knees for a decade and a half. A man so dangerous none dare say his name. Even a decade after his supposed demise.

"Let us have a look at this, muggle-born"

Although he said the word normally, it sounded as though it was the vilest insult he could give someone.

"So you are… Voldemort, I presume?"

"How dare a filthy muggle-born utter the name of our Lord. You are to refer to him as the Dark Lord" Quirell interjected, enraged.

"I'll take that as a yes"

"You…" Quirell was seething, he can't wait to attack that brat. He will make sure to torture him slowly. Even Voldemort twitched at the casual manner Link was presenting himself.

"No matter, we shall have the time to properly educate him when we capture him. Kid, why don't you come to look at the mirror"

"No, nope, I'm good thanks. I'll come over when the fight is over"

"You presume to win the fight, even when you know I am here?"

"Of course, how can I be afraid of a wraith so weak he has to inhabit a human. And a human so useless he would resort to Unicorn blood to sustain himself. What a waste of magic you turned out to be"

It was silent for a beat.

Two beats.

Both adults were infuriated. So angry that Voldemort burst out in laughter. Though there was nothing jolly about that sound. It was high pitched and cold. You could perceive the anger and the rage seeping into it.

"RUSH HIM!"

Quirrel ran towards Link, a spell leaving his mouth as he pointed his wand towards the boy.

Rose was rushing as fast as she could to the exit. She noticed that none of the obstacles they faced were active on her way back. That could mean that they were designed to only block one way, or that because they were solved they deactivated. She wasn't sure, but either way, she's grateful. As that meant she was that much faster to reach the end.

On her way, she was still picturing Link right before he went through the flames.

'I'll see you in a bit Rose'

Looking at his confidence, his stability, his reassurance. She can't help but think, that her average-looking friend is more reliable than any other person she knows.

His words alone almost dispelled the fact he was going to fight an adult wizard with possible ties with Voldemort. And he could die at any given moment. And here she is running. With time running out. She has to be quick. She has to be.

RELAX

BREATH

'Alright, I'm good' She finally reached the exit. She looked up, how was she going to go up that chute to the Cereberus? She pondered for a moment. Anxiety and panic eating at her rational thoughts. It took a while before she facepalmed. 'Right… The broom'

She rushed back to the keys room, took a broom and flew back.

She will make it in time.

What is the truth? A human concept created to deal with the world. It is biased. The truth is only what one can perceive. Anything else becomes a lie.

Quirrell, talentless and enraged, and Voldemort, arrogant and a wraith, couldn't… no wouldn't believe anything other than their superiority in this clash. How could they when their opponent is an over-confident first year? One that is performing so poorly. So engrossed in their belief of triumph, Voldemort did not even notice that he wasn't receiving any stray thoughts from the boy's mind; his legilimency not effective against this seemingly pathetic child.

The two didn't know it yet, and wouldn't admit it even if they did, but they were playing right into the boy's hands.

Throughout the entire ordeal, Link was as calm as still water. Every action he did was a step towards an end goal. The subjugation of one Quirinus Quirrell.

He started off taunting him. Anger leads to tunnel vision in a fight. They stop taking into account their surroundings. And if things are going his way really well, anger is the fastest to turn into overconfidence. When one is overconfident in a fight they are more prone to be reckless. To ensure that outcome is achieved, Link flailed around as though he was just lucky to survive. Always managing to evade the attack at the last second.

To further cement this within the psych of the two mages, he made sure that when the little skirmish ended he was close to the door leading to the exit. Giving a false impression that he was trying to escape.

He taunted them once more to ensure that the momentary lull in the fight did not allow Quirel to take stock of his surroundings. He made sure his enemies attention was focused solely on him.

When speaking with Voldemort, Link made sure the wraith did not use his experience to his advantage. Speaking in an arrogant manner was the best way to lure out a prideful man. This plan only worked because he knew Voldemort wanted him alive. So he hoped that he would follow a simplistic approach due to his anger. He hoped this thought would pass through, that as long-range is not working, or at least taking too long, close-range would be better. So he would then run towards Link to catch him.

An adult body is stronger than a child's after all.

As predicted, Voldemort gave the order to chase.

As soon as Link heard the order, he went into overdrive. Time slowed down, or more accurately his perception of his surroundings sped up.

Quirrell took one step in his direction.

Link saw it all. Every twitch of his opponent's body, even if the robe hid most of the obvious signs, there were still some tells that allowed him to almost predict where the leg would land. While running, Link prepared two things to help catch the mage. First, he left some remnants of his magic, or mana as he knew it in his previous life, forming a type of echolocation in his immediate surroundings. It was subtle, people will not notice it unless they were specifically looking for it. And unless Link explains it, even people he faced before would not recognise should they meet once again.

Although such a method is not ground-breaking, the overload of information perceived by the brain in such a small amount of time would probably overwhelm any who does not train in it. Thus it was never conceived as a viable method to create a domain. Luckily, Link is far from normal.

The second thing Link prepared is a lot less subtle.

Quirrell took his second step, he was building speed. His wand was pointed at Link. The beginning of a spell on his lips. If Link were to hazard a guess, he believes it must be the 'Incarcerous' spell. A level-4 binding spell that conjures ropes to tie up the victim. A rather quick spell, with casting time at 0.8s, 0.7 if you were proficient in it.

Halfway through his 'escape', Link threw a seemingly useless spell. It landed on the ground in front of Quirrell. It was a spell he used against the troll. A spell from his previous realm. It depended entirely on the speed of the victim to determine the 'damage' that was done. As this was but the third step, Quirrell was not going anywhere fast enough for it to cause any damage.

It was 'Land-Lock'!

Quirrell took his third step, his leg fell in the area the spell landed. All it did was cause the man to stumble half a step. In theory, all this should cause was a temporary pause in the teachers movement. In actuality, this micro-second of hesitation was what turned the tables of the little skirmish.

His slight misstep caused his hand to loosen his grip on the wand ever so slightly. It distracted his attention from the spell to his feet, elongating the cast time to 1 full second.

Link in the meantime, took his wand and aimed. He cast a simple knockback jinx. Aimed right at the tip of the wand, the angle just right.

"Flipendo"

The spell is relatively easy, a first-year spell, but useful in many things. It also adapts accordingly to the amount of power injected into the spell. The cast time is normally 0.6s. The time it would take to reach Quirrell's wand would take 0.5s. It's already been 0.2s since Quirrel started his incantation. Obviously, with a total of 1.1s for the spell to take effect, it would be too late. Link would be captured by then.

Luckily, Link is a perfectionist. Before he became an Archmage in his previous life, Link was known for his speed-casting ability. He could cast 2-3 spells by the time his opponent casts one. Thus making him one of the most feared mages, even before he was a Level-7 Wizard. In this life, Link did no less than he did before. He familiarised himself with every spell he learnt. He studied it's every aspect, and tried to minimise cast time to at least half it's original duration. With the Knockback Jinx, he minimised it to 0.2s.

With the time reduced to 0.7s, he had 0.1s to spare.

Link's spell hit the wand at such an angle that it would have been blasted up behind Quirrell. Normally it would have broken the wand had Quirrel held it firmly. But with his loosened grip, the wand was blasted up. Due to the angle in which it was hit and the angle in which it was gripped, not only was the wand blasted away, but it took the last 0.1s to flip its end from Link towards Quirrell.

The 'incarcerous' spell left the wand's tip.

That's right. Quirrell is now the victim of his own spell.

When he fell forward, completely tied up, Quirrell did not understand what had happened. It wasn't until he was hit by the 'Body-Binding curse' did he finally react. But all he could utter was a weak:

"...how… when… huh?"

Even Voldemort was stunned by what happened. One second he was facing the mirror, the next he was staring at the ceiling.

Link ignored them. He was slightly disappointed, he expected more from Voldemort.

'Ah well… Now to wait for Rose to return'

He didn't have to fear any questioning, all he performed were 1st-year spells. He did nothing complicated, spell wise of course.

His calculations and strategy were awe-inspiring. But there would be no proof of that. It could all be said to be a lucky shot.

He was heading towards the door to take a seat by it, when he heard a sound behind him.

Flying is such a convenient method of transportation. 'They should allow us to go to class on brooms' was the errant thought that crossed Rose's mind as she raced towards… anywhere she would be able to find a teacher.

She had just reached the stairway when she spotted Professor Dumbledore. She rushed over, speaking a mile a minute trying to convey her dilemma.

"Calm down, Miss Potter. Now, what seems to be the problem? And why are you on a broom in the castle? In matter of fact, why are you up at this hour?"

"There is no time Professor. Quick you've got to help! Quick! Come on"

"What seems to trouble you, I can't help if I don't know what it is I need to help with"

"Link fighting… someone, I dunno, I didn't see… but he's fighting, maybe a teacher. Not sure. But Quick professor, we have to help him"

"Why would Mr. Granger be fighting a professor?"

"We went to the third corridor, we know about the stone. We think someone is trying to steal it. But now Link is fighting, he might get hurt. Please help me" So panicked she was, she didn't notice the Headmaster's eyes widening at that piece. It all clicked. He rushed as fast as he could. Rose followed him, still on the broom. She only dismounted it when they were back at the Key chamber.

'We're coming Link, just hold on a minute"

Turning around, Link focused on what the downed professor was trying to say. I almost sounded as though he could move. Which is impossible, he was immobilized. He cast the 'Body-Bind' curse.

"How did you do that?"

"Why should I tell you anything?"

"Answer him, boy"

"Are you really in any position to question me, Voldy?"

"You believe this weak magic is enough to capture me, Lord Voldemort?"

"Probably not, if you were at full strength. But you're weak now. Easy to capture"

He knows he shouldn't banter with his enemy. He knows it's best to take them out entirely. However, he can't exactly kill them, not when he is supposed to be a child. Not when a single death would bring an incredible amount of suspicions should it be found out. As much as he hated it, he must play the role of the naive child sometimes. Especially when it comes to the question of life and death. This realm is especially sensitive to death. It isn't as common as his war-torn world.

Sure they had war in this realm, and yes there were a lot of atrocities. But there were long periods of peace and none of the killers present in his old realm. There are laws and regulations here that are strictly controlled. Even among those with power.

"You are ignorant of the ways of the world, child. Let me teach you why I, the Dark Lord, am the most feared Wizard in the world. Quirrell, serve me one last time"

"Of course, master, I- Master… what are you doing? no, no NO NO NO, NO MASTER PLEASE… aaaAAAHHHHH…"

Link watched what was happening with quiet fascination. He could, of course, have prevented it, tried to cast a spell that would end what was happening, but again, he'd rather not bring suspicion on him later on. He can't show proof that he killed the teacher. If the Professor is to die, better to be at the hands of Voldemort.

Voldemort was doing something vile here. He ignited Quirrell's soul. The soul is the core of all magic. To be more precise, the combination of soul and body create a phenomena that allows for the manipulation of mana. The soul bears the responsibility of housing the knowledge and control of magic, whereas the body is the medium with which one can interact with the world around. Soul-ignition is a taboo art, as by doing so one could temporarily increase their magic power to incredible heights, a whole level higher. The flip side is that it causes unbelievable pain to the user, and lasts for only 30s. Finally, without fail, every practitioner of the art will die. No exceptions. Very few would ever truly utilise such an art, even as a last resort.

Voldemort, of course, won't feel anything. First, it wasn't his soul that was ignited, second this isn't his body. So, he does not care about what happens to his subordinate.

With the sudden release of mana, the spell holding him down was broken. With a weakening soul controlling the body, Voldemort took full control. So now, Quirrell's body contains mana that is up to level-6 in power, with Voldemort's level-8 knowledge to utilise it.

His threat level rose tremendously.

"I hope you are ready boy, can you keep your arrogant demeanour I wonder…"

"Only one way to find out, let's dance"

After a brief staredown, they both exploded into action. Voldemort demonstrated why he was known as one of the best mages of this realm's history. He started a spell chain, a mage technique that focuses on continuous casting and reduced cast-time. Few in this world are able to achieve it, fewer still are those able to utilise it in such fluidity.

Voldemort was known to be able to chain-spell up to 8 different spells. An almost unprecedented number. On average, the most a normal mage can chain is 3 spells, even then the 'normal' mage is part of the few able to chain cast.

To top it all off, Voldemort's proficiency in this technique allows him to half his total casting time. Is it any wonder that he stood undefeated in the previous war. Even Dumbledore isn't as proficient as he is in chain-casting.

Of course, Voldemort is a prideful man. He would never deem a child worthy enough to utilise that many spells, regardless of how skilled he proves to be. After all, you won't hunt a rabbit with a cannon. 2 or 3 should be more than enough to deal with this nuisance. Also, due to the time constraint from Soul Ignition and the difficulties he faced controlling an adult Wizard as a wraith, he doubts he would be able to exceed 4 spells.

"Expelliarmus, Stupefy, Incarcerous"

He spoke the words almost casually, as though he already expected the 'duel' to end. He was simply waiting for the boy to fall. Then it would be a simple matter of torturing the boy. He lost the possibility of gaining the stone due to this brat's interference. He will have to wait a bit longer to return to the corporal world. He will have 15 seconds to torture the boy before killing him. He will make it last.

What he didn't expect was that Link is far from a typical student. A fact Voldemort will be sure to remember soon after their little skirmish is over. He will come to understand that if he wants to succeed he will have to never underestimate one Link Granger.

His mind in overdrive, Link perceived the world at a faster rate for the second time that day, putting a strain on his mind. Slowing down the world around him. The chain would take 1.2 secs to be completed, 1.5 if you consider the distance needed to cover.

"Wingardium Leviosa"

A simple levitation charm brought a block of rubble in between the two mages, offering sufficient protection from the spells. Right after the block fell to the ground, Voldemort, still surprised, couldn't react in time to the spell used by his opponent. The reason he couldn't counter is simple. It is the fastest spell ever created.

"Lumos Maxima"

Nothing faster than light after all. Normally, such a simple trick would not have gotten the Dark Lord, but he was complacent, careless and misjudged the child before him. Also, as this isn't his body, he can't control it as well as he could his own.

Reflexively shielding his eyes, Voldemort was left wide open for the second spell.

"Obscuro"

Blindfolds flew towards his head, covering his eyes. Although it would be easy to remove them, it would take a second or 2 to do so. Which gave Link sufficient time to commence his backup plan.

Placing his hand on the ground, Link screamed but one word.

"BIND"

Runes started lighting up one after the other in a near-perfect circle around Voldemort. As though in slow motion, Voldemort removed the blindfold just as chains were closing in on him from seemingly nowhere. He only had the time to widen his eyes before he wrapped tightly with these chains, a spell heading right for him, or more specifically his wand.

It was the knockback jinx.

Looking back at the child, a mere child, that bested him, Voldemort was confused even as his wand was blasted out of his hand, again. When did he cast that?

He wouldn't know that a few minutes ago while the boy was putting on a pitiful display of agility, the reason he kept jumping towards the ground was so that he could imprint it with a temporary rune. 15 in total spread around Quirrell, now Voldemort, so that he has a backup, in case things went south.

Things were silent for a few seconds before they both heard the sound of hurried footsteps. That seemed to have snapped Voldemort back to reality. His eyes clouding back into rage, he hissed a warning towards Link, even as he disintegrated the body so that he may escape before Dumbledore comes, as he is sure the old man will have some measure to capture his soul.

"I will get you back for this child. I will make you regret the day you went up against me"

"I'll be waiting" was the calm reply, a mocking smile playing on his face. Irritating the Dark Lord to no end before the wraith flew away, screaming in rage.

With a calm expression, Link turned around to confront the approaching teacher.

A/N: I hope everyone enjoys this chapter. I think it went well. Please share your opinions, Thank you.