Professor Vampire.

Chapter 49: The Power of Detention

"Almost forgot, Professor Dracula, you're not just a vampire, but a genuine count as well."

Dumbledore paused for a moment, then shook his head with a smile. "What does that old noble spirit say? That you should treat women and children with special care?"

"I remember in my time it was about grace, dignity, and responsibility," Dracula said, crossing his arms casually. "Even though I don't care much for these so-called noble virtues, it doesn't mean I'm willing to push such things onto a newly admitted child."

Dumbledore looked at Harry, who was distracted by the Mirror of Erised, and a thoughtful expression appeared on his face.

"Professor Dracula, don't underestimate the threat of Voldemort," he said quietly to Dracula while observing Harry. "No one survives the Killing Curse, except for two people—Voldemort and Harry."

"But Harry was not truly struck by Voldemort's Killing Curse. Lily's love for Harry invoked an astonishing protective magic that rebounded Voldemort's Killing Curse. So the person who was truly hit by the curse was actually Voldemort himself."

Dumbledore was explaining the fearsome nature of Voldemort, but Dracula's attention was drawn to something else.

"So you're saying that Harry's mother, merely with the emotion of 'love,' possessed the ability to resist Voldemort?" Dracula's brow furrowed. "Headmaster, don't you find that ridiculous?"

"Don't underestimate anyone's potential, Professor Dracula," Dumbledore said seriously. "Human potential is boundless. Especially in urgent situations, people can unleash unprecedented power for those they deeply care about."

"That's the power of bonds," Dumbledore added.

Dracula looked at Dumbledore's earnest expression and felt an extreme sense of absurdity.

Is Dumbledore simply losing his touch, or have I been asleep for a hundred years and fallen behind the times? When did a wizard's potential become so great that emotions could influence their power?

If that's the case, wouldn't those deeply in love or tenderly connected, like lovers or a mother and child, possess the power to threaten even grand wizards?

It seemed extremely unreasonable to Dracula. He knew that sometimes the gap between wizards was as insurmountable as a chasm.

Thus, Dracula did not accept Dumbledore's explanation for Harry's survival from the Killing Curse and preferred to find his own answers.

"Let's skip this topic. I'm not interested in studying your wizards' emotional lives," Dracula said dismissively. "Tell me why you think Voldemort survived his own Killing Curse."

Dumbledore shook his head helplessly.

"Actually, I initially thought Voldemort was truly dead and felt relieved for a long time. Until I discovered that the curse on the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts professor still existed... You should understand that one condition for the curse's existence is the survival of the caster."

"And this year's arrival of Quirrell and the coveting of the Philosopher's Stone precisely confirmed this," Dumbledore's expression grew solemn. "Voldemort never truly left; he's just waiting for the right moment to return!"

"So you set up a trap with the Philosopher's Stone and conveniently created an opportunity for Voldemort to train Potter?" Dracula asked.

"Exactly. As I suspected, Voldemort is still very weak and can only rely on others to act," Dumbledore said. "Given Voldemort's arrogant nature, if he were not weakened to a certain extent, he would not rely on Quirrell but would personally invade Gringotts to steal the Stone."

"I assume you know that the Philosopher's Stone is Nicholas's life," Dumbledore's narration made Dracula's expression slightly cold. "If Voldemort were in his prime, he would certainly not return empty-handed, and Nicholas's elixir of life would lose its chance to continue."

"Your arrangement has placed Nicholas in a very dangerous situation. If he doesn't care about his own life, do you?" Dracula questioned.

"Don't worry, Professor Dracula. There's no need for such risks," Dumbledore said nonchalantly, with a smile. "The Philosopher's Stone in Gringotts was always fake. The real one has been with me all along!"

Dracula looked at him in surprise and nodded slightly.

"Nicholas told me about your discussion at the Garnier Opera House," Dumbledore's face softened with a gentle smile. "He no longer wishes to die. Once this matter is over, the Philosopher's Stone will be handed over to you."

"Professor Dracula, it seems you haven't abandoned your sense of humanity, have you? The bond between friends is also a form of the power of connections."

"I've said, I'm not interested in your theory of bonds." Dracula shifted his gaze, naturally changing the subject. "You still haven't said, how do you think Voldemort survived the Killing Curse in your speculation?"

Dumbledore turned to look at Dracula, his eyes deep.

"I wonder if Professor Dracula has heard of an extremely evil and forbidden dark magic—Horcruxes!"

...

Hogwarts has an active Horcrux.

The young Voldemort, who had taken the form of a Horcrux diary, Tom Riddle, was foraging in the Forbidden Forest.

He extended an ethereal hand, grabbing a passing wild rabbit. The rabbit struggled wildly.

A swirl of dark mist appeared, and the rabbit quickly lost its strength, becoming shriveled and lifeless.

Voldemort's ethereal body seemed to solidify a bit.

At that moment, he suddenly furrowed his brow and opened the blank diary he was holding.

"Absorbing the life energy of animals is useless; what you need is a wizard's life force."

Two lines of elegant ink appeared in the diary.

"I know that, no need for you to remind me," Voldemort said impatiently. "With Dumbledore and that Dracula still suspicious of Quirrell and even wary of me, when will I have the chance to absorb a wizard's life?"

The ink in the diary reformed: "Give me to any student, and I can lure them into giving up their life force."

"No need. Do you think I don't know? You just want me to leave the diary," Voldemort sneered and said, "Remember, you're just a Horcrux, and all you are is a part of my memories before I turned sixteen! All you need to do is obey me, obey your master soul!"

With a snap, Voldemort closed the diary and walked deeper into the Forbidden Forest.

There, a pure and beautiful creature resembling a white horse was lowering its head with a graceful unicorn and drinking from the flowing stream.

"Avada Kedavra—"