Chapter 27. Evolutionary Algorithm

"Isn't Harry a Potter? You should know more about him than we do..." Jess scratched his head.

"Harry's situation is a bit complicated. He... ran away from home when he was very young. We couldn't find him for a long time," Dumbledore's face showed a touch of sadness, "We even thought he might die already."

"So you only recently discovered that Harry is still alive?" Jess seemed to understand.

"Lily and James both missed Harry a lot, but as you can see, Harry sees us as strangers. We didn't know how to get closer to him," Dumbledore explained.

"He has always been quite aloof," another classmate recalled Harry's demeanor when he first transferred.

"Maybe the people who adopted Harry have some misunderstandings about us," Dumbledore shook his head. "After Harry disappeared, we couldn't find him, and we certainly didn't do a good job."

"It's my fault as his mother, but we want to make amends," Lily said, her beautiful emerald eyes filled with tears and a whirlwind of complex emotions. "Harry... what kind of person is he? Is he a good boy?"

"Of course," Mr. Cotton chimed in, relieved, "He's a very smart and hardworking student, and he's also very kindhearted."

"And he's really cool! In that game, he even saved me!"

"Initially, when he first came, he was quite aloof, right?"

"Yes, he didn't talk to anyone at first. But I felt like he's actually a good person... maybe just introverted and not good at socializing?"

"He's still introverted now. But he's improved a lot compared to six months ago."

"And his grades are excellent. He's a wizard, but he takes our courses seriously..."

"Indeed, he's a very lively student. He also says he really likes physics." The physics teacher nodded in agreement. "When he first joined our class, his grades weren't great, but he caught up quickly."

The classmates chatted, sharing many details about the past six months with Dumbledore and Lily.

Listening to the students' accounts, Dumbledore was surprised to find that the Harry they described and the Dark Prince they knew seemed like two completely different personas. Lily felt a mix of relief and regret. They had given this child a chance, hadn't they? But he ran away on his own and committed even more terrible deeds, even killing Sirius.

"Has he been attending school here for the past six months?" Dumbledore asked.

"Of course, including the summer vacation. He even attended summer school with me," a studious girl replied.

This group of Muggle high school students who had been with the Dark Prince for the past six months provided a lot of useful information to Dumbledore. He asked for more details but couldn't find any suspicious signs. All indications suggested that the Dark Prince was just attending a Muggle school.

Just then, there was a knock on the classroom door, and the discussion inside came to an abrupt halt as everyone turned to look at the entrance. Harry walked in.

"Hi, Harry," Mr. Cotton greeted him.

"It's perfect. If you want to know something, you can just ask him. Harry is a very good person," Jess said to Dumbledore.

"..." Harry felt awkward.

Who would have thought that the two key figures in this war, the two sides of this conflict, would meet like this in a Muggle school classroom?

In the gaze of Dumbledore and the others, Harry walked quickly to his seat. "I just came to get something and I'll leave right away. You can continue."

" What's this?" Dumbledore asked, trying to break the awkward atmosphere.

"It's a computer, a kind of... calculating device," Harry said, trying hard to resist the urge to Disapparate immediately.

"What can you do with this?" Dumbledore continued to inquire, perhaps as a way to get closer to Harry. After all, they needed something from him now, and it wasn't wise to confront him directly.

"Didn't you want me to deal with those zombies? There are some parameters for magical rituals that need to be calculated."

To be honest, ever since he learned coding, Harry had started to think that his father's decision not to install a computer in the castle was a huge mistake. He had actually used a calculator, a calculator! to calculate all those magical ritual data. If he had a computer to do the calculations, it would have been much faster.

Dumbledore was sincerely curious now. "How do you use this? Can you show me?" It seemed like a cute excuse to get closer to Harry.

"..." Harry hesitated.

"Can I see it too? How do you use a computer?" Hermione couldn't help but join in, her brown eyes filled with curiosity.

"Alright..." Harry finally agreed.

Later, a group of Aurors arrived to complete unfinished tasks, erasing the memories of Muggles involved and then safely returning the teachers and students to their respective homes.

The newly risen moon hung outside the classroom window, and Harry was still in the room, typing away at his computer, clicking the mouse, and opening a code file he had been working on a few days ago, titled " ."

Harry quickly typed on the keyboard, making changes to the code, and then he pressed the Enter key, and the program immediately started running.

"Evolutionary algorithm... This design is quite interesting," Dumbledore commented, adjusting his glasses.

Dumbledore and Hermione had been curious and had been asking questions all along, so Harry explained the principles of the code to them, saying, "This algorithm is designed for the weak to perish, the strong to survive and reproduce the next generation. Only the best solution can survive till the end. This way, we can find the best parameters for magical rituals."

"The weak perish, only the strong survive... Perhaps that's how nature works," Hermione mused.

Harry couldn't help but think of his father's immortality ritual; it had been his father's philosophy all along.

"In nature, perhaps, but human society shouldn't be like that. Filtering people out isn't the way to go," Dumbledore said, his blue eyes gleaming with wisdom behind his half-moon glasses. "It shouldn't be like that for society to deserve the term 'civilized.'"

"Civilized..." Harry sighed as he looked at the screen, where lines of calculations were being outputted. "When they were killing each other, I didn't think they were very civilized either." Harry was still thinking about what he had seen earlier, his classmates, who he had been with day in and day out, suddenly turning into monsters, friends breaking ties, couples turning against each other, and killing each other. Thinking about what his father had said earlier, Harry admitted that his father had a point, but he instinctively didn't like that interpretation.

"Harry, you've known them for half a year now. Are they normally as ruthless and cruel as they were today?" Dumbledore asked gently.

"No..." Harry blinked, still staring at the computer screen with lines of code running, his thoughts elsewhere. "If it were my foster father, he would probably say that human nature can't withstand tests, and they only reveal their true selves in such moments."

"Tom would indeed say that," Dumbledore said with a slight smile.

"He doesn't like being called by that name," Harry tried to protest.

"Oh, as long as you don't tell him," Dumbledore winked mischievously. He continued, "Speaking of your classmates, haven't you seen them voluntarily doing good deeds?"

"Of course, I've seen that too," Harry nodded, gradually understanding Dumbledore's point.

"There is darkness and light within human nature; it depends on how the environment guides them," Dumbledore continued. "Just like your code algorithm, it needs guidance to produce the results you want."

"Yes... so it's not really their fault; it's the Death Eaters' fault," Harry said quickly, his mood suddenly lightening, and some of the heavy questions in his mind found answers. "The Death Eaters force them to choose, and a bad environment magnifies the darkness in human nature."

Harry continued to modify the code while thinking, and many of the things that had happened before could be explained this way.

And blaming human nature had no meaning; human nature couldn't change. Blaming the environment made sense because the environment could be changed.

Like a sudden clearing of the rainy clouds that had been lingering in his heart, the chains that had bound him seemed to loosen in this moment of enlightenment. Harry felt somewhat relaxed, his emerald-green eyes sparkling. He confidently pressed the Enter key, to run the next section of code.

This conversation had made the atmosphere more harmonious. Dumbledore extended another olive branch, saying, "What materials do you need for your magical ritual? We can help you prepare, and it might be faster."

Harry thought about the growing index of soul zombies; he did need it as soon as possible. He tore a page out of his notebook, flicked his fingers, and a pen appeared in his hand. He quickly wrote down a list and handed it to the headmaster to prepare.

The night had grown late, and the group of them remained in this Muggle school. Harry's computer was still running code, and he took the opportunity to stand up and stretch his legs. As he passed by the classroom next door, he heard Lily's voice coming from inside. Harry stopped in his tracks.

"You said you encountered Harry?!" a male voice, which Harry could recognize as James Potter's. Harry wasn't very familiar with this person, as he hadn't seen him at Hogwarts before. He recalled their last encounters, when he had been subjected to the Cruciatus Curse, and his father had brought that person to help save him. Or in st. Mungo, Harry tried to save him.

Memories of the Crucio curse hit Harry, and the lingering effects it had left on him seemed to intensify. Harry trembled slightly, remembering that at that time, he had been in extreme pain, as if in hell... and then he had heard James's voice, providing the power of his magic core under the Dark Lord's coercion, and even donating his own blood. Fortunately, James's memories of that incident had been erased by the Dark Lord. Harry was somewhat relieved because he wasn't sure how to face this person otherwise.

Harry's reminiscence was interrupted by voices from outside the door once again.

"Calm down! I understand how you feel, but Harry—" Lily's voice.

"Sirius... Sirius, did he kill him? Is it true? Did you ask him?" James's voice sounded pained, almost on the verge of tears.

"We haven't talked about that. Now is not the time to discuss this. Anyway, only Harry can help with the psychevors," Dumbledore said calmly. "I understand you don't want to meet him; you don't have to. We just don't need any additional complications right now."

Harry didn't want to hear any more. He turned and left, accidentally stepping on a raised wooden board, making a creaking sound. He inwardly cursed.

"Harry!" Lily Evans, who had come out of the room, called after him.

James followed Lily, looking in their direction from afar. He didn't approach. His eyes briefly met Harry's, and then he quickly lowered his head, avoiding eye contact.

"Oh, by the way..." Harry spoke up, "Sirius is still alive."

"What!" James exclaimed, "Are you serious!?"

Harry nodded matter-of-factly, "The Dark Lord sent me to hunt him down, but I didn't kill him. Instead, I fabricated the scene, sealed his memories, and sent him to the Muggle world. As long as he doesn't continue to be active in the wizarding world, the Dark Lord will think he's dead."

James was overwhelmed by the enormity of the information, and he was nearly moved to tears. His dearest friend had come back from the dead, and Harry hadn't done what he had initially thought.

"So where is he now?" Lily regained her composure, restraining her trembling as she asked.

"He's probably still in the United States. His memories are only sealed, and they can be restored. After we deal with the soul zombie matter, I'll go and bring him back," Harry promised firmly. He knew that the Dark Lord would likely be angry about this, but Harry didn't want to owe anyone any more. Whatever the consequences, he had decided to take them on himself.

Harry still remembered how Regulus had accidentally discovered Lord Voldemort's greatest secret, realizing that Voldemort's true goal was eternity. Regulus, after careful consideration, contacted his brother. These two brothers, who had been estranged for many years, met again. Regulus hoped that Sirius would tell Dumbledore this secret.

This secret was known to no one, not even the core Death Eaters. Anyone who learned Lord Voldemort's secret had to die. Moreover, the immortality ritual was about to be completed, and at this critical moment, Lord Voldemort could not tolerate any mistakes.

So Voldemort reacted swiftly, immediately launching a pursuit of the Black brothers. Regulus died at the hands of Voldemort himself, while Sirius was captured by Harry.

As the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts, Sirius had multiple interactions with Harry before and knew the true identity of the Dark Prince. Therefore, he instantly recognized Harry and berated him on the spot for being a cowardly hound who had dared to escape from Hogwarts and return to aid the tyrant, helping his master achieve immortality. Dumbledore had indeed misjudged him. He was magically bound, furious at his inability to avenge Remus. He knew Harry had come to kill him, just as Harry had killed Remus.

"You're going to kill me, aren't you? People like you will never understand; heroes never fear death. Just like you killed Remus, go ahead, coward!" the bound man spat out indignantly.

However, Harry simply sealed his memories with an expressionless face, placed several anti-magic tracking spells on him, and sent him to the Muggle world. For safety, Harry had specifically chosen a country far from the reach of Voldemort's influence, which happened to be the United States. He had done this many times recently, going against his father's orders to kill. He had become increasingly adept at it.

This incident occurred at the end of June that year. So when the new school year started in September, Hogwarts had a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, which was not surprising at all.