Chapter 215 Finding Regulus
Dumbledore knew he had to be cautious. The temptation of power was infinitely seductive, and the more talented a wizard was in their magical path, the more likely they were to stray.
For most wizards, magic is simply waving wands and casting a few spells.
Only a few wizards with superior talents truly understand the essence of magic and what power it could bestow upon them.
Immense power and unbridled ambitions can only bring disaster and destruction.
Voldemort is the most obvious example. His excellent talent in magic and being one of the descendants of Salazar Slytherin made him believe he was unique.
He felt superior; arrogance took hold of his heart, to the point where he considered himself a god.
Everything he did was egocentric and he did not consider the feelings of others. On his dark path of growth, he never came to know what love is.
Reflecting on the things he did in the past, like the rampant murder of others and the defense of pure-blood wizards over half-bloods and Muggles, these things were not as idealized as Voldemort and the Death Eaters made them sound.
For Dumbledore, the reason why Tom did this was simply because he wanted to. He wanted to prove he was different.
Therefore, he abused his magic regardless of life.
To attain eternal life, he even split his soul to create the Horcruxes.
More than twenty years ago, Dumbledore was fully aware of the instability of his soul when Riddle, who had been missing for a long time, returned to Hogwarts with a new appearance and applied for the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor.
Dumbledore then suspected that Riddle was conducting some malevolent research in dark magic, and later there were hints that he was creating Horcruxes.
The worst scenario unfolded, and Dumbledore did not know how many times Voldemort had split his soul.
This malevolent dark magic turned him into an unkillable monster.
Dumbledore looked back at Evan. So far, he had destroyed two Horcruxes.
All these things revolving around this child, are they just coincidences or...?
Besides these "coincidences," what astonished Dumbledore was that Evan had already found the path of fortitude, and all of it happened in a short time.
Evan was as good as Tom Riddle in his school days, far superior to his peers.
The only thing to be thankful for was that he was different from Riddle. He had a complete family, friends, knew what love was, and understood the meaning of life.
Judging by what he had demonstrated, Evan seemed unlikely to become the second Voldemort.
A smile crept onto Dumbledore's lips. He knew what had happened at Hogwarts a few days ago, though it had not been revealed until the end.
What pleased him the most was Evan's decision regarding the life and death of Peter Pettigrew.
Even in the face of the Acromantula threat, Evan did not abandon Pettigrew to escape but insisted on taking him along.
Dumbledore was greatly pleased with Evan's performance that night.
He thought that perhaps he should offer more help to that child.
He was growing older, and in case he failed to find all of Voldemort's Horcruxes, Evan would become an indispensable force.
In the midst of the island, Evan released his control over the Stone Giant and estimated his magic consumption. With his current ability, it was still impossible to transform that blue rock into something more complex, but it had been a great success simply to activate it.
He wanted to try other spells. If not for everyone being there, he would have attempted the Diabolic Summoning Spell recorded in the book "Secrets of the Darkest Art." Reading that book had been the first time he encountered that spell.
On the island, more and more Inferi were emerging from the lake in all directions.
Under their attack, everyone fell back and gathered around the stone basin.
The Inferi were difficult to destroy, their magic had been drained, and Sirius, Evan, Harry, and Hermione were using various spells to slow their advance.
The pressure kept mounting, and when everyone was on the verge of collapse, Dumbledore took charge, wielding the same spell as Evan.
He waved his wand, and four heavy, dark boulders floated up from the ground, transforming into four gigantic monsters with a deafening roar.
These were not Evan's incomplete monsters. They were exact replicas of real Trolls, barely showing signs of pre-transformation. The four monsters bellowed brutal roars, clutching thick clubs in their hands.
Evan looked at Dumbledore in astonishment and noticed that he was looking back calmly, signaling for him to pay attention to his next move.
The wand in his hand moved in a peculiar way, as if conducting an orchestra.
Under Dumbledore's control, the monsters surged from the center of the island in the four directions, sowing chaos among the Inferi.
Several thunderous crashes were heard. The Trolls were so mighty that many Inferi were hurled directly into the Black Lake.
The awe-inspiring scene filled them all with a profound joy deep in their hearts.
The Trolls were engulfed in Inferi, but they did not retreat. They fiercely battled against them.
Evan gazed at Dumbledore in disbelief. He could barely fathom the amount of magic such a unrestrained action would consume.
After Dumbledore took charge, the pressure was much less intense. They focused on finding Regulus among the Inferi.
Evan's eyes scanned a pale, gloomy-faced Inferius, looking at them in an indescribable manner.
It's hard to find the word to express it, but it was absolutely dreadful.
At that moment, Kreacher suddenly shouted, "Young Master Regulus! Kreacher has found the young Master Regulus!"
Evan hurriedly looked in the direction the house-elf was pointing. He saw the body of an 18-year-old youth who had just emerged from the lake wearing a black wizard's robe different from the surrounding Muggles, with the distinct Black family emblem on his chest.
Regulus bore a striking resemblance to Sirius in his younger years. Influenced by magic, he remained almost unchanged since the moment before his death. He appeared darker than Sirius but also healthier and less emaciated.
His body was somewhat swollen from being in the water for a long time.
Like the other Inferi, he looked dazed and walked towards the pile of stones in the center of the island, not recognizing the people in front of him.
He was not the hero who bravely defied Voldemort, but an Inferius who, under the control of magic, guarded Voldemort's Horcrux.
"Regulus!" exclaimed Sirius in anguish, his heart-wrenching voice echoing in the dark cave.
Before anyone else could react, he had already leaped. He rushed desperately among the Inferi, trying to free Regulus.