Chapter 57: I Will Definitely Win!
"Phoenixes are creatures that are reborn from the ashes." Dumbledore seemed to notice Lyra's confusion. He slowly sat down in his chair and looked at the phoenix. "Fawkes is no different."
"He will be reborn from the ashes very soon."
"Is... that so?" Lyra nodded and carefully pulled out the chair opposite Dumbledore to sit down.
"Shall... shall we begin..." she said, placing the two circlets she had been holding onto the table.
"After putting this one on... you can... extract your memory..." Lyra pointed her index finger at one of the circlets.
"Then I... I'll put on the other one to check... if there are any... problems with the memory."
"I understand," Dumbledore nodded gently. "After all, the principle comes from the Pensieve, doesn't it?"
"No... strictly speaking... it's the combined effect of the Memory Formation, the Transmit Formation, and the Connect Formation... The Pensieve only possesses... Ah, sorry." Lyra looked at Dumbledore and quickly shook her head. "Let's... let's begin..."
Dumbledore nodded slightly and picked up his wand.
What... what is he doing?
Lyra froze for a moment, then watched as Dumbledore raised his wand and gave it a flick. A wisp of silver memory slowly drifted from his temple.
With a slight frown and a tap, the wisp of memory floated toward the circlet and merged with it.
Can you... do it like that?
Lyra stared at Dumbledore in astonishment. Isn't this the formation item I made? Why... do you know how to do that?
For a moment, Lyra felt betrayed... Although feeling betrayed by a formation item was strange, she definitely felt it.
"I just gave it a try," Dumbledore said leisurely. "Because that is how a Pensieve is used."
"Is that so..." Lyra pressed her lips together. She had been so focused on going back to study Riddle's diary that she hadn't remembered to try using the Pensieve.
But does that really work?
Lyra pressed her lips together and put on the circlet in front of her.
A moment later, she slowly took it off.
Surprisingly, there were no problems at all... The Transmit Formation had successfully transferred Dumbledore's memory of the Defense Against the Dark Arts class to this circlet.
But Lyra didn't feel happy... Probably because of the circlet's betrayal.
She looked at Dumbledore and found that the Headmaster seemed bored while waiting for her and was playing Wizard's Chess by himself.
Wizard's Chess... I haven't played with anyone yet...
"Oh~ Miss Hamilton, did it work?" He looked up slightly, his wise eyes full of warmth.
"It worked," Lyra nodded and said, "Th... thank you..."
"This is also for Hogwarts, isn't it?" Dumbledore smiled and tapped his wand, moving a chess piece forward.
"Do you play Wizard's Chess?"
"N... no." Lyra wouldn't tell Dumbledore she didn't play because she couldn't find anyone to play with.
"Would you like to play a game?" Dumbledore asked casually.
"N... no thanks." Lyra quickly shook her head. "I don't know how..."
"I don't play much either," Dumbledore waved his hand. "Mainly because I can't find anyone to play with."
So we are the same... Psh psh psh! Who's the same as you!
Lyra didn't want to be the same as Dumbledore!
But... Lyra did kind of want to play Wizard's Chess... She had heard Lord Grindelwald talk about it before; it was said to be the best game for training strategic thinking.
I need to train my strategic thinking too; it will definitely be useful for Lord Grindelwald's cause in the future...
Definitely not because she's never played and is a little curious.
"How about a game?" Dumbledore chuckled, seeing Lyra looking longingly at the chessboard while hugging the circlet. "Just to humor an old man."
You clearly said earlier that you were old and needed to rest early... But since you're begging me so much, I'll play one game with you.
Just one.
"Alright... alright then..." A hint of joy appeared on Lyra's face. "But I... I really don't know... how to play."
Even if I lose to Dumbledore in a bit, it's not because he has more strategic thinking! It's just because I haven't played before, just that... Lyra had already found comforting words for herself before even starting.
Losing to others doesn't matter, but I absolutely don't want to lose to Dumbledore.
"It doesn't matter." Unaware of Lyra's thoughts, Dumbledore waved his wand to reset the board. "As I said, I rarely play."
Looking at Dumbledore's sincere appearance, Lyra decided to trust him for once.
Since neither of us knows how to play, do I have a chance to win?
With this thought, Lyra pursed her lips and sat up straight, ready to play seriously.
.....
That damned Dumbledore! I should have engraved an Imperius Curse on the circlet just now!
Lyra watched her chess pieces being utterly decimated by Dumbledore again, a visible flush rising on her face—not from shame, but from anger.
He clearly knows how to play Wizard's Chess very well!
"Ah, it seems I've won again, Miss Hamilton," Dumbledore said, looking refreshed.
Why did you have to say 'again'?
Lyra gritted her teeth. "You... you clearly know how to play..."
"Ah..." Dumbledore paused and looked at Lyra. "That seems to be the first time I've heard anyone say that."
You... you did it on purpose, didn't you?
Seeing the sly glint in Dumbledore's eyes, Lyra felt he definitely did it on purpose!
"Thank you for playing with me," Dumbledore continued as if he hadn't seen Lyra's expression. "I haven't had this much fun playing in a long time."
"Haha... ha..." Lyra laughed awkwardly. Does your happiness have to come at the expense of mine?
"Well then, Miss Hamilton, it seems very late now." Dumbledore glanced at the clock in the Headmaster's office. "Perhaps you should get some rest."
It really is late... Lyra glanced at the hour hand pointing to 1 AM, feeling even more disgruntled.
I actually wasted precious time meant for studying Magic Formations to play chess with Dumbledore!
And most importantly, I actually lost!
Lyra stood up slowly, let out a soft breath, and whispered, "Then I... I'll... take my leave."
"Mm, good night, Miss Hamilton. I had a very pleasant evening." Dumbledore nodded gently, watching Lyra walk to the door of the Headmaster's office.
That damned Dumbledore... he must be mocking me... Lyra stood at the door, gritting her teeth. Just you wait, don't let me find a chance to defeat you. When that time comes, I'll make you play a game with Lord Grindelwald...
"Oh, wait a moment." He suddenly called out to Lyra as if remembering something.
"Eek!" Lyra trembled and turned her head. "What... what is it?"
Did Dumbledore see my thoughts? Was it Legilimency? I didn't feel anything...
Instead, she only saw Dumbledore's smiling face.
"Would you like to play chess again when you have time next?"
Her mouth twitched slightly. "We'll... see."
Next time, I definitely won't lose!
Click.
As the door to the Headmaster's office slowly closed, Dumbledore chuckled softly and waved his wand to put away the chessboard.
He hadn't lied to Miss Hamilton; it seemed it had been over seventy years since he last played Wizard's Chess against someone.
It was just that that opponent was much more skilled than Miss Hamilton.
Then his gaze fell on the Pensieve... Was Miss Hamilton's inspiration really just from the Pensieve?
He couldn't help but ponder again.