"Tom, let's go back."
Dumbledore had been listening to Wade and Tom's conversation the entire time.
Only now, after they had finished discussing the serious matter and started bickering, did he speak again.
Then he looked at Wade, a trace of delight appearing in his eyes.
For some reason, Wade seemed slightly different today compared to before.
Even his smile seemed more natural.
"Go back? I don't have a problem with that, but what about this guy? Is his task finished?" Tom pointed at Wade.
"I'm almost done too. Let's head back. After what happened to you, I'm not quite as confident in my magic anymore." Wade rubbed his chin. "You know how popular I am at school. I have plenty of close friends. If someone else ends up having the same problem, it'll be troublesome."
"Then let's go back together. I really don't feel comfortable with you staying outside either," Dumbledore said cheerfully. "We'll go to the nearest wizarding inn and use the fireplace. Before I left, I specifically left a Floo connection open to my office fireplace."
"Let's go, then..." Tom picked up his bag and walked ahead without looking at Wade.
Dumbledore sighed, then said to Wade, "You really should give Tom a proper apology once we get back."
"Of course, Professor," Wade agreed readily.
Tom, walking ahead, pretended not to hear.
"How did your trip go?" Dumbledore asked.
"Pretty well. We didn't finish exploring everything, but I'm quite confident that I can release her now," Wade replied.
"Heh... I imagine you also said you were quite confident before casting magic on all of us, didn't you? You really never learn," Tom called back sarcastically from ahead.
"If you have a complaint, come over here and say it. Why are you walking so far away? What are you, some sulking little girl?" Wade said.
"Shit! What kind of disgusting comparison is that?!"
Tom cursed, but eventually stopped walking.
Once Wade and Dumbledore caught up, Tom asked seriously, "Can you really be sure that this... Senior is trustworthy? The whole thing sounds incredibly suspicious."
"I'm not sure," Wade answered honestly.
"You're not sure, and you're still helping her?" Tom stared at him in shock.
Wade merely shrugged.
"I owe her."
Tom gave Wade a sidelong look. "Why are you acting like you're some kind of good person?"
"Because I am a good person," Wade said solemnly.
Dumbledore sighed and automatically filtered out their bickering.
"Don't worry. I'll help you."
Wade nodded.
By saying that, Dumbledore was making it clear that he would help keep an eye on the Senior when the time came.
That was also one of the reasons Wade had taken the opportunity to involve both Dumbledore and Slytherin.
In truth, it was not that he distrusted any particular person.
He distrusted everyone equally.
That was why he tended to consider most things from the perspective of interests and benefits. Still, his actions had not yet reached the point of complete selfishness.
A large part of the Senior's overwhelming strength came from the massive amount of "residue" inside her body amplifying her power.
And to release her, Wade would have to remove all of that excess residue.
At least half of it would end up inside him.
With the Hogyoku, Wade would not suffer the same fate as the Senior.
All of that power would eventually become his own.
And once the excess residue was removed from her body, the Senior would no longer be as powerful as she currently appeared.
With one side growing stronger and the other weakening, even if she turned hostile afterward, Wade, backed by Dumbledore and Slytherin, would not necessarily have anything to fear.
Considering the benefits he could gain from rescuing the Senior, Wade did not mind taking the gamble.
Whether she turned against him after being freed or not, the odds were overwhelmingly in his favour.
Tom opened his mouth, but in the end said nothing more.
Not knowing the full truth, he had never seen Wade "trust" anyone this much before.
...
After travelling directly to Dumbledore's office through the fireplace, Wade finally returned to Hogwarts after more than a month away.
"Do we need to gather everyone together again and remove the magic?" Dumbledore asked.
"No. I already set it up so that once I return within Hogwarts's boundaries, the nightmare magic on everyone will dissipate on its own," Wade explained.
"Really?" Tom asked doubtfully.
"Yes. Hogwarts isn't just an ordinary castle. It contains an enormous amount of magic, and that magic permeates the entire castle. So when I cast the spell, I borrowed a little of Hogwarts's magic and used it as the trigger for dispelling the magic."
Tom fell silent again.
Only someone like Wade would think of using magic in such a way.
The more Tom understood, the more he felt the gap between himself and Wade, and the more despairing he became.
"All right. Stay in the castle for now. When the time comes, come find me," Dumbledore said to Wade.
"All right." Wade nodded.
Tom pulled a timetable from his bag and handed it to Wade. "Here. You haven't chosen your electives yet, have you? How are you planning to explain all the elective classes you've missed?"
Wade smiled. "Actually, as far as the professors are concerned, I've never missed a single elective class."
"Hmph. Figures..." Tom remembered how Wade's magic worked and understood that this bastard definitely had a way to slip seamlessly into classes he had never attended before without anyone noticing.
"In fact, even if I never attended any of my electives, no one would notice."
Although Wade said that, under Dumbledore's gaze, he still obediently unfolded the elective form in his hand.
"Hm? Why is this form so crumpled?"
"I crushed it. What about it? This was the form that made me realise something was wrong," Tom said.
"So that's what happened..." Wade said in understanding. "Looks like my magic still has loopholes."
Since he needed to choose his electives, Wade did not leave right away. He picked up a quill and began ticking the courses he wanted.
"Hm... this one looks good. Oh... I'm interested in this one too..."
Wade looked over the available electives and started to hesitate.
There were several classes he was interested in, but because some were held at the same time, he could not choose them all.
"Why not... take all of them?" Dumbledore suddenly leaned over with a smile.
"All of them? But the times overlap," Tom said in surprise.
"I have a way..." Dumbledore said mysteriously.
The corner of Wade's mouth twitched slightly.
Dumbledore might have looked mysterious, but Wade already knew exactly what method he meant.
A Time-Turner.
For other top students, a Time-Turner might be extremely useful.
But for Wade, it was not particularly necessary.
After all, the thing was too risky.
Using it just for a few subjects he could easily master through self-study was not worth it in Wade's eyes.
Wade had never been interested in things that carried high risk for little reward.
"No. I won't take all of them. I can study the other subjects by myself."
Wade casually selected a few courses, then handed the form to Dumbledore.
Dumbledore was the Deputy Headmaster, so the elective forms would eventually end up in his hands anyway. There was nothing wrong with giving it directly to him.
"Aren't you curious what my method is?" Dumbledore asked in confusion.
Wade was usually extremely curious, yet this time he showed no interest at all. That only made Dumbledore more curious.
"The only way to let me attend all of those classes at once would be to manipulate time. Those who play with time eventually end up being played by time. I have no intention of becoming one of them," Wade said, waving a hand.
Dumbledore looked at Wade in surprise.
He had not expected Wade to actually guess his method.
"But if you study them on your own, you won't be able to sit the exams for those subjects," Dumbledore reminded him.
"Professor, I don't study in order to pass exams."
Hearing this, Dumbledore clapped his hands approvingly.
"Quite right, quite right. Knowledge is meant to enrich oneself, not merely to pass examinations. I was mistaken."
After leaving Dumbledore's office, the lantern monster immediately began shouting happily.
"Great Lord Wade! And his loyal little brother! When did you two go inside? How come I didn't see you?"
Tom clicked his tongue when he heard that.
After going out for a while and coming back, the title of "Great" had returned to Wade, while Tom had once again been reduced to the "little brother."
"Shut up, Jack!" Tom snapped irritably, already annoyed by the noise.
"Jack? You named it Jack?" Wade asked curiously, looking at the lantern monster.
"It wasn't me! Dumbledore gave it that name..." Tom said impatiently.
"Oh... what a pity. I thought you'd suddenly developed some taste," Wade said regretfully.
"You call that having taste?" Tom retorted. "Forget it... what you were just talking about with Dumbledore, that thing about time..."
"Yes, the power of time. As for anything involving time, I suggest you don't get too curious," Wade warned.
Tom was clever enough to connect the dots from their earlier conversation and understand what Dumbledore's supposed method was.
"He really has a way to go back in time?" Tom's eyes flickered.
"Don't even think about it, Tom. Going back in time is not a good thing. Put it this way, if you went back to the past and casually kicked a stone lying by the roadside, it could create a butterfly effect that causes certain people in the future to disappear entirely," Wade warned again.
"All right..." Tom said helplessly.
If even Wade was wary of such power, then Tom had even less confidence that he could control it. For now, he could only put the idea aside.
As they walked back towards the dormitory, Tom finally felt himself relax completely.
The guy beside him might often act like an absolute bastard, but at crucial moments, he was unexpectedly reliable.
"So... when are you going to stop doing everything on your own?" Tom could not help asking.
"I can answer that right now, Tom. Starting from this moment." Wade turned to face him. "I used to think I could handle everything myself. But... reality has proven me wrong. There is nothing particularly impressive about one person becoming powerful. Making everyone around you powerful, now that is something truly impressive."
Tom instinctively straightened his back.
"What do you want us to do?"
"First, all of you need to become stronger. Starting today. Go back and notify everyone. We'll meet in the club room tonight. Oh, and only tell the core members."
Tom's eyes widened.
"You mean..."
"I was too one-sided before. Some things can't wait until every preparation is perfect before they begin. Listen carefully, Tom. It's time to begin the plan to establish Hydra."
Tom stared at Wade's retreating back in astonishment.
He suddenly felt that something subtle had changed in Wade after this trip.
It seemed...
He was more willing to trust others than before.
After all, the old Wade would never have been willing to start the Hydra plan this soon.
Because he had trusted no one.
____
[]~(￣▽￣)~*
Read 12 Advance Chapters—P@t- Captain69