"Unbreakable" Vow

Even though he didn't feel any change, and even though his [Pride] didn't react at all, Sean discovered that the nature of his magic had indeed changed.

He didn't know how to describe the feeling, but to use a somewhat inappropriate analogy: his magic had evolved.

Why would such a change occur simply by fighting someone who possesses the power of "Sloth"?

Sean was completely baffled. He didn't know if the change was temporary or permanent, but for him now, the altered nature of the magic didn't seem to pose any obstacle.

The figure in the Black Hood seemed completely unprepared; he had been suppressing Sean, but in just a moment, he lost all his advantage.

A vast, irresistible magical force surged forth like a raging ocean, as if Sean had unleashed a storm that would sweep across the heavens and earth into his tranquil ocean of magic.

"Ugh... Ah—ah!" A desperate roar came from the other side.

Thomas, who was under the control of the Transfiguration, actually let out a roar through the steel mask. It was a desperate roar of all his might but with no way out.

They share a single consciousness, and in critical situations, the magical feedback from one person seems to be reflected in Thomas as well...

Such a thought popped into Sean's mind, but he didn't relax; instead, he unleashed his magic even more violently.

The man in the Black Hood gripped his wand tightly with both hands, and despite stomping his feet hard on the ground, he couldn't stop himself from retreating.

A crease was torn into the ground, and the Black Hood held it back tightly, but the original suppression was gone, and it could only watch as the center of the collision of the spells drew closer and closer.

"Crack—" The wand made a painful cracking sound, and the wooden shaft trembled as cracks appeared one after another.

A blinding white light erupted, the wand shattered completely, and Sean's spell struck the Black Hood in the chest without any resistance.

He was sent flying backward, crashing heavily into a tombstone. After a dull thud, the Black Hood slid softly to the ground, remaining motionless.

Thomas, who was being restrained, whimpered and made sounds of pain.

Dumbledore had been watching this scene intently with his wand in hand, showed a hint of surprise and confusion in his eyes.

He looked at Sean, and just as he was about to speak, he saw that Sean, who had gained a complete advantage and defeated the enemy, simply took a breath to calm down the magical fluctuations.

Then, Sean immediately waved his wand, casting Binding Charm, Petrification Charm, Stunning Spell, and Transfiguration.

The black -Black Hood, knocked to the ground, charred black, his life hanging in the balance, trembled slightly under Sean's spell before being firmly restrained.

While Sean was guzzling Mind Purifier and Nutrient Potion down his throat, he pointed his wand at Thomas was still awake.

The boy's wariness... Dumbledore smiled and shook his head.

"Sean, if you add a few more curses, he might never be able to speak again," Dumbledore said.

Sean was about to deliver the most vicious Stinging Hex to Thomas, turned to look at the old man.

"It can't be that bad, Professor," he said, wiping his mouth and putting down his wand.

Dumbledore descended from the sky and walked to Sean's side, his eyes filled with amazement and admiration.

"Normally it wouldn't be like that, but Mr. Thomas is an exception."

Sean glanced thoughtfully at Thomas, then said, "Because he's the main body?"

Dumbledore neither shook his head nor nodded, but simply smiled slightly, "Yes, and not entirely—and why don't you try to find the answer yourself?"

Sean glanced suspiciously at the old man who was so enthusiastic about riddles. On Dumbledore's wrist, the red magic was still stirring, but it had been suppressed by some means.

After thinking for a moment, Sean put aside his other questions and walked over to the man in the Black Hood.

With the hood, which was mostly torn, pulled open, Sean's pupils contracted sharply.

Hidden under the hood was the face of a thin boy, his eyes tightly closed, his skin pale, whether naturally so or because of the severe injury he had suffered at Sean's hands.

Thin streams of bright red blood flowed from his seven orifices, but a faint breath still lingered between his nostrils.

What shocked Sean was that the boy's head didn't have a normal skull and hair; instead, it looked like a hole had been made in it. Inside the fist-sized hole was a writhing, black, unidentified substance, somewhat resembling Obscurus oil.

Sean tried to peek inside, but as soon as he cast his gaze, he felt as if he were being sucked in.

He quickly took a step back, his eyes filled with surprise and fear.

Dumbledore came to Sean's side and glanced at the mysterious black hole above the man's head.

The old man showed no discomfort, only sighed, "So that's how it is..."

"What exactly is going on, Professor?" Sean asked.

Dumbledore didn't speak, but instead pointed to the man's chest.

Sean looked over and saw that the man's chest, which had been dented by the curse, was twitching slightly.

Sean frowned and waved his wand, tearing open the clothes on the upper body of the other person. Then Sean discovered that the chest he had dented was not seriously injured.

It's like a piece of clay getting punched.

"Hmm? This is..." Sean keenly noticed that the skin movement at the edge of the indentation was not quite right.

"Polyjuice Potion?" Sean looked up at Dumbledore.

Dumbledore remained silent, but judging from his expression, Sean's guess was probably correct.

"This person took Polyjuice Potion? Why...?"

Sean carefully examined the other person's appearance. His hair was somewhat long but sparse. He was fairly handsome, with a youthful look, and appeared to be quite young, a typical Caucasian appearance.

Sean tried to recall the boy carefully, but he had no recollection of him whatsoever.

"Wait a minute..." Sean suddenly paused, then abruptly turned to look at Dumbledore.

"This person, no, this person's appearance, is it [Sloth]?!"

Dumbledore, offering no response or even making any gesture or expression, as if he had nothing to do with the matter.

Sean glanced down at the still-wriggling red magic on the old man's wrist and understood.

"Professor, is it because of your Unbreakable Vow that you cannot give me any relevant information, not even a hint?"

Dumbledore smiled and nodded, "You're very clever, Sean, you figured it out right away."

"Then... Professor? Is that alright?"

Dumbledore seemed to understand what Sean was trying to say. He shook his head. "I know what you're thinking. For example, if you ask a question and I don't answer, it's considered an admission. If I cough, it's considered a denial? Kid, I must say, your thinking is quite flexible. However, Unbreakable Vow doesn't care about such hints, especially if the truth revealed by the cursed person gets closer and closer to the true oath."

Sean pursed his lips with some regret. Although Dumbledore could suppress the oath to some extent, it seemed that was all he could do.

However, this gave Sean another direction: the information about the person in front of him was related to the true oath, meaning he was very close to the truth...

Sean frowned and thought for a moment, then tentatively asked, "If it doesn't involve an oath, then it's fine, right?"

Dumbledore didn't speak, but he winked at him.

"So... Professor, what were you doing before you came here?"

Dumbledore did not react.

"I can't say that... Well, Professor, judging from your expression, it seems you didn't know anything about the Sin of [Sloth] before you met Thomas and the others?"

This time, Dumbledore responded; the red magic seemed to suddenly surge wildly, desperately trying to penetrate Dumbledore's heart.

But the old man raised his Elder Wand, steadily suppressing the red magic, and then he nodded slightly.

Dumbledore didn't know this before...

"So, after you came over, you saw this strange guy, and then used the information you already had to deduce more information, right?"

Dumbledore remained silent again.

Sean frowned and began to think.

Thomas had previously threatened Dumbledore, mentioning that if Dumbledore didn't interfere with their capture of Sean, they would be able to uncover the truth upon returning...

In other words, Dumbledore did cooperate with the Returners to some extent, but it is clear that the Returners did not reveal any truly crucial information to Dumbledore.

However, with Dumbledore's intelligence, he has probably already deduced a great deal of information.

However, bound by his oath, he was unable to reveal to others the information that was so important to the Returners.

Sean scratched his less-than-elegant hair with some annoyance and sighed, "Professor, I must say, this constant riddle-solving is really not a pleasant thing. I can't verify many of the guesses, and I'm definitely missing crucial information."

Dumbledore looked apologetic. "It's truly shameful of me, Sean... I can't tell you whether what you're doing is right or wrong, because it will, well, you know."

"So you came here today just to let me see this scene, and then continue guessing the riddle?" Sean said somewhat irritably.

Dumbledore shook his head seriously. "I don't want my students to be in danger, frankly, Sean..."

The old man showed a look of lingering fear.

"I was terrified."

Dumbledore's answer startled Sean.

He thought he was in grave danger... so he risked his vow to save me...

Is it because of that powerful magic that can alter the path of the Portkey?

"Professor, do you think that the magic that changed the Portkey path was done by someone personally?" Sean asked tentatively.

Dumbledore didn't speak, but his eyes held a mixture of relief and apology as he looked at Sean.

Sean realized that Dumbledore thought he was being targeted by someone at a higher level, possibly the "one" Thomas had mentioned.

He just happened to discover the situation; he never expected it to turn out this way.

Actually, Thomas and his two Sin weren't a huge threat to Sean. The magic stemming from the sin of "Sloth" did shock and confuse him, but Sean still had many tricks up his sleeve.

Of course, Dumbledore's arrival at least allowed Sean to capture the three of them; otherwise, even if he could defeat them, the information here would have been transmitted back by them.

Just as Sean was pondering, Dumbledore glanced in a certain direction.

"Sean, it's time to go."

"Leaving now? Hmm? Is someone coming?" Sean asked.

Dumbledore nodded and said, "It's very unsafe here, and it's easy to be discovered. Remember this: Albus Dumbledore was not involved in any of the things that happened today, understand?"

"What about these three?"

Dumbledore smiled and said, "Someone accidentally triggered the spell. The person who cast the spell came to investigate, but unexpectedly, the person who accidentally triggered the spell was a powerful reclusive wizard. The powerful wizard defeated the three and took them away in an unknown way, without leaving a trace."

Sean: "..."

Professor, you've already made up this story, haven't you?

But Dumbledore's words actually proved that Sean's guess was accurate. The alteration of the Portkey was not deliberately aimed at Sean, but rather a targeted measure laid by the Returners.

Sean glanced at Thomas and the other two, then at the still unconscious Lloyd Couple.

What are Durmstrang and the Returners up to do, making such a move against an ordinary Muggle couple... Could it be that "Sloth" is actually Lloyd Couple, Lonte Lloyd, who has never shown his face?

Dumbledore urged from the side, "Sean, as the Admissions Officer, it's time for you to return to Hogwarts."

"I understand... Can the Portkey still be used?"

After receiving an affirmative answer, Sean stripped Thomas and the other two naked and stuffed them into the ring— the Basilisk was already inside, wearing its glasses and ready to be petrified.

Then, Sean took one last look at Dumbledore, who was still motionless, and disappeared with Lloyd Couple.

The cemetery returned to silence, with Dumbledore remaining.

The old man stared in the direction where Sean had disappeared, his lips pursed, lost in thought.

After standing there for a while, the red magic of the oath on his wrist gradually calmed down and disappeared. Then Dumbledore waved his wand, and a strange wind blew through the graveyard.

As the wind gradually subsided, the magical fluctuations here suddenly became chaotic and disordered.

Then, Dumbledore waved his wand again, and this time, the trajectory of his wand was exactly the same as the spell the boy in the Black Hood had used when he tried to send a message.

After doing all this, he stood there and waited.

A moment later, the air rippled, and then several dark figures appeared in the spot.

"Dumbledore? You were the one who sent the signal?" the leading figure in the shadows said in a hoarse voice.

"What exactly are you doing?" Dumbledore asked in return, instead of answering the question.

The shadowy figure fell silent, scrutinizing Dumbledore.

"Dumbledore— " he began slowly, "Don't you think you should first tell me what happened here?"