Above the Sky Island, the True Self Is God

Once again back in the Soul World, Sean pursed his lips.

The so-called cooperation proposed by [Pride] is what has led to the current situation.

As the one at the head of the Sin, the moment Leon Schneider appeared, Pride had already determined that the other was the vessel of Sloth.

"I will never forget that decaying and powerless magical fluctuation," He said.

The deal between Pride and Sean was simple: Pride would extract the magic of Sloth from Leon Schneider's body, and this extracted magic would be Sean's reward.

To put Sean at ease, Pride showed considerable sincerity—it directly suppressed the Sloth magic that originally controlled Sean. Because its power could not be released without Sean's permission, Pride paid a significant price. It merely used its high-ranking authority as Sin, an authority that only worked on Sin, but required Pride to expend its soul power.

This consumption slows down the awakening of Pride, a fact that Sean, in the Soul World, can clearly feel.

For him, it was entirely beneficial, and even more so, he could use the remaining pressure freely—when the pressure of Sin left his body, Sean, who had taken the initiative in the Soul World, could use it harmlessly.

As for Pride, as long as it makes Sloth unhappy, it will be very happy.

In short, the host and the Sin have reached a mutually satisfactory cooperation.

As for luring Leon Schneider into the trap, it was Sean's little scheme. He originally planned to pretend to Pride to extract more information and then directly defeat Leon Schneider.

Sean hadn't expected the other party to be so careless as to open up their Source of Magic so readily—he had thought he would have to knock the other party unconscious himself.

This even made Sean somewhat suspicious, wondering if this was yet another trap set by the other party.

However, until the magic of [Sloth] was extracted, no other unusual events occurred—as for the few Returners, they vanished into thin air before the pressure of [Pride].

Sin seems to have a special power to harm these half-human, half-ghost creatures.

As for the sudden intrusion of "Sloth" into Sean's mind, he did panic for a moment at first, which was not the situation described by "Pride," but he quickly calmed down.

Because [Sloth] didn't enter his Magic Power Source, but rather... his Soul World!

At this moment, on the edge of Sean's Sky Island, a Giant is confronting a tiny figure.

The Giant and Sean had the same appearance; his face was full of anger, and his tall figure exuded a terrifying aura.

Opposite Him was the boy Sean had seen in Andros's memories, but clearly, the boy was now [Sloth].

[Sloth] Floating lazily in mid-air, a relaxed smile on his lips.

Neither of them took Sin; they simply watched silently.

Sean remained silent, wanting to see what kind of trouble these two Sin could cause.

The first to speak was [Sloth], who stretched and seemed as comfortable as if he were in his own home.

"How long has it been? Oh, oh, let me think... Tsk, brother, I'm so sorry, you know, I'm just too lazy to think, too lazy to remember, I really can't give you a precise number to express how much I miss you—my dear brother, I miss you so much, hahaha."

The smile of [Sloth] is laced with hysteria and endless mockery, and if you listen carefully, you can also hear a hint of resentment towards [Pride].

[Pride] snorted coldly and walked forward, causing the lava pool beneath his feet to ripple violently, and even the wind to pick up.

He walked up to Sloth, but not a single hair of the latter trembled, even though His body was only the size of Pride's pupil.

Its crimson pupils rippled like the magma of the world, and a terrifying aura surged forth as if it were a tangible force. [Sloth] could no longer maintain its motionless state; its hair danced wildly, and its entire body swayed.

However, He showed no panic. Instead, He laughed loudly, "Wow—wow—my most powerful brother, this familiar and powerful force terrifies me! Haha, it makes me extremely happy! This is wonderful, I love this feeling!"

"Traitor—" [Pride]'s voice boomed like thunder from the heavens, "How dare you show yourself before me—"

[Sloth] chuckled mockingly, "Brother, the bridge is still not built. We are all trapped in these powerless and lowly mortal bodies. Show yourself? Ha, that is indeed my hope for a thousand years. But unfortunately, my dear brother, we are bound by you... Frankly, I thought you would awaken sooner and smash my head in, hahaha—"

"Pathetic, pitiful, despicable, [Sloth], you are even weaker and more rude than you were a thousand years ago, burdened with the sin of betrayal. I thought you would at least show greater ambition. Although, no matter what you show, you will die by my hand, I am indeed somewhat disappointed now—oh well, I will kill you casually when the time comes."

As he said this, there was even a hint of disappointment in Pride tone. Even Sean, who was watching from the sidelines, felt an urge to hit him. He was so Pride that he even thought his enemies thought he wasn't good enough. That was arrogance.

Pride's disdain did not Sloth; instead, He laughed happily, "My respected brother, the thing I admire most about you is that you will never change, not even for a thousand years, ten thousand years—which is also the thing I hate most about you."

"Why didn't you say so then, you coward?" [Pride] said disappointedly.

"Speak? Ha, you're so arrogant, as proud as the peak of a dream, will you ever look down at your brothers and sisters?" As she spoke, [Sloth]'s tone finally turned venomous. "You are the original sin of all this, and I am the traitor? No, you will never understand—I look forward to the day you come to kill me."

"Don't expect anything, I can grant your wish right now." [Pride] suddenly widened its eyes, and its huge hand flew up like a mountain and pressed down, a dark mass that almost blocked out half the sky.

Although it was just a wisp of magic, Sloth was not going to sit idly by and wait for its doom. A branch-like wand appeared in its hand. Unlike Grindelwald's tattered wand, this branch was incredibly supple.

Two terrifying magical forces belonging to Sin erupted suddenly in Sean's Soul World. Their magical nature was the same, but the fluctuations they exhibited were vastly different.

Pride's hand pressed down, the howling wind causing the entire cloud layer to tremble. Although Sloth was not the true form, a black particle burst forth from its body. With the blessing of the tree branch wand, it was not directly smashed into dust by Pride.

[Sloth] drew upon Leon Schneider's Obscurus... Sean immediately sensed this familiar power.

Because of the sudden actions of the two great Sin, Sean's entire soul space was shaking, and the huge rift that had appeared on the horizon when he last discussed god-slaying with Pride reappeared.

[Sloth], abandoning its usual listless demeanor, laughed wildly under the immense pressure of [Pride]: "Brother! Your bridge seems weaker than I imagined, hahaha, when his world collapses, you will fall into a deep slumber! Come, grant me a beautiful death, I can't wait!"

"Shut up, traitor!" [Pride] roared and swung out another palm, lava flowing between his fingers, like a world-destroying demon king rising from hell.

The entire space trembled more and more violently. The two Sin, neither of whom had fully awakened, triggered an unimaginable riot. They fought fiercely in Sean's Soul World, and the splashing magical energy was destroying everything like dynamite.

Aside from the Sky Island where Sean is located, a transparent barrier protects Sean and the Sky Island, and nothing from the outside world seems to have a deeper impact on the island except for causing some tremors.

Sean narrowed his eyes. He didn't rush to stop the two of them because he discovered a fact he had never noticed before.

When Sloth entered his Soul World, Sean was flustered. An outsider with great power, who did not have the same restraint on Pride as he did, could very well cause him great harm.

However, to Sean's surprise, he did not sense that the intruder had sneaked into his world.

At first, Sean thought it was because the identity of the [Sloth] Sin was too special, and its power was too great, so his ordinary soul could not perceive a higher level of existence.

However, after the other party appeared in his Soul World, Sean immediately and clearly sensed the other party's presence, even the nature of its magic and the fluctuations of its magic—just like when he had tried to change the nature of his magic under Dumbledore's instruction.

For Sean, the power that [Sloth] can manifest is only the most superficial kind. He can sense the magical nature of Thomas's trio, and he can also sense His.

Sean's Soul World once welcomed a guest—a fragment of Tom Riddle's Residual Soul.

In Sean's perception, there was no difference between [Sloth] and the Residual Soul of Tom Riddle.

So why didn't Sloth notice when Sean entered his Soul World? He clearly sensed Tom Riddle's intrusion.

This question led Sean to discover something else unexpectedly: Sloth hadn't actually entered his Soul World, but rather... had simply taken a shortcut.

Sean finally realized something—his previous understanding was wrong.

He always believed that this space was a unique Soul World belonging to Sean Wallerup. Although this Soul World was part of the Realm of Illusion, due to various special characteristics, this space was independent of the Realm of Illusion.

Just like Harry in the original story—he was unintentionally made into the seventh Horcrux by Voldemort. When Voldemort hit Harry with the Killing Curse, a fragment of Voldemort's Soul Fragment blocked the curse for him, and then Harry went to the Realm of Illusion.

Each person's soul is unique, and by entering this Realm of Illusion in this peculiar way, Harry's Soul World — King's Cross Station —is projected onto him.

But one thing that Sean has always been puzzled about is that in the original book, Harry met Professor Dumbledore, Dumbledore had indeed become a king at that time.

It's not surprising that he can linger in a hazy environment, but how did he manage to get to King's Cross Station, which was a projection of Harry's mind?

Now, Sean finally understands—the unique Soul World projected into each person's heart is not a small space independent of the Realm of Illusion, but is completely connected to the Realm of Illusion!

This is indeed Sean's unique Soul World, but it's not the whole story!

Sean's Soul World is confined to this Sky Island, while the lava outside the Sky Island is the true main body of the Realm of Illusion.

Pride does not reside in Sean's Soul World; it merely has an inseparable connection with Sean's soul and has always lived within the Realm of Illusion.

In other words, this desolate, magma-covered land is exactly what the Realm of Illusion looks like now!

Sloth merely used a path to reach the Realm of Illusion.

Looking at the two Sin engaged in a terrifying battle outside the Sky Island, Sean's lips curled into a slight smile.

He didn't need to worry about his Soul World being destroyed. His opponent was dueling in Realm of Illusion, but this world had already been reduced to ashes. What did it matter to him if it became even more dilapidated?

The Realm of Illusion is merely the boundary between life and death; it is not essential. Sean also understood this: in his Soul World, on his Sky Island, he was the absolute master, and the stability of this space depended solely on the strength of Sean's soul—even if the main world of the Realm of Illusion realm were completely destroyed, his Sky Island would not be affected.

Combined with the spatial rift that appeared during his last conversation with Pride, when Sean re-entered the Soul World, the rift was no longer visible. Either Pride had repaired it, or this world would self-repair.

Sean towards the former.

If that's the case...

Sean licked his lips. Pride wouldn't allow this battle to continue. Clearly, the Realm of Illusion was very important to Him.

In this way, Sean has grasped the lifeline of Pride...

The battle continued, Sean watched silently without uttering a word. Even as the sky nearly collapsed, his Sky Island remained unmoved.

As Sean predicted, Pride glanced at the crack in the sky and suddenly increased its power. This time, it wasn't the original Sloth that could withstand it.

His black figure cracked layer by layer, and the resin wand that had materialized also developed cracks.

Sloth let out a maniacal screech and flung out the wand that was about to shatter. A massive explosion momentarily halted Pride's attack. Then, Sloth charged straight at Sean, who had been watching from the sidelines on the Sky Island.

[Pride] frowned and his palm whistled out.

He understood the entire space better than Sloth. He knew that Wallerup's Sky Island was actually the most stable existence in this world, and that no other being could enter that Sky Island without the permission of Sean's soul.

Sloth will be blocked by that transparent barrier, and you can shatter the magic of Sloth.

One person, one palm strike; one in front, one behind—their target turned to the Sky Island where Sean was located.

Sloth's eyes gleamed with madness. Knowing it couldn't do anything to Pride, it decided to try a different approach: to inflict a severe blow on its host's soul!

If that kid's soul could be annihilated directly, the awakening of [Pride] would be postponed indefinitely.

"Foolishness—" [Pride] was born coldly, and He wanted to crush His foolish brother on that barrier that no one could enter.

"Boom—thud—" A huge impact sound came as [Pride]'s giant hand slammed into the transparent barrier at the edge of the Sky Island.

Then, His expression hardened; He hadn't captured "Sloth" in the photo?

He raised his enormous head and looked around, and then discovered that [Sloth] had actually entered the boy's Sky Island.

The chief Sin's eyes suddenly turned cold. That kid actually put [Sloth] in there?!

He could no longer contain his rage, and his roar shook the entire world, "Mortal, do you know how foolish you are doing?! Expel him, or your soul will be grievously wounded!"

Sloth, on the other hand, first looked back and then understood.

"So you have authority over your own Soul World —hahaha, well done, kid!" [Sloth] shrieked with laughter. "Being around my hot-tempered and arrogant older brother every day must be incredibly annoying for you, right? Oh, oh, I totally understand your desire to destroy everything!"

The black particles on His body trembled, then surged wildly toward Sean: "Don't worry, mortal! I'll be very gentle. I absolutely love a madman like you, ahahahaha."

The black examples abruptly ended, and [Sloth] seemed to be paused in mid-air, as if a pause button had been pressed.

His magic and his body were unable to move, and he could only watch helplessly as Sean walked in.

"I'm so sorry, esteemed Lord Sloth— " Sean gave an apologetic look, then winked mischievously, "Thank you both for reminding me again and again. I've finally realized, this is my Soul World ~"

As he spoke, he flashed a bright smile, then stomped directly on Sloth's face!

"Welcome to my territory, you idiot."

His face wore the brightest smile, yet his feet moved as if crushing a tiny insect, ruthless and rampant.

This sudden change stunned Sloth for a moment, and then it flew into a rage.

He could no longer maintain his usual lazy demeanor. As one of the most powerful Sin, when had He ever been so humiliated underfoot?! The other party was not even a mortal.

Even if one is in a disabled state, this is not something an ordinary person would dare to do.

His eyes turned completely crimson, his body, composed of black particles, became unstable due to his Wrath, and his extremely cold voice even trembled.

"You, how dare you?! How dare you!"

"Mortal! Mortal! You lowly bastard!" He lost the composure befitting a high-level being, falling into a state of hysteria. "I will trap your soul atop the snow-capped mountain at the northernmost edge of this illusion, and let the most biting winds whip you for ten thousand years! Mortal! Mortal!"

Sean's smile widened, and he whistled happily before delivering a hard kick to Sloth's face. "Shut up, you idiot—shouldn't you have at least some basic respect for me? Ha, Sin?"

"You insect! I will definitely—" [Sloth's ] curse came to an abrupt halt, its mouth being directly erased by Sean's magic.

Sean finally grasped the secrets of his Soul World —on the Sky Island, the True Self is God.

This seemed to be an ability etched deep within his soul. When Sean realized it, he naturally grasped this power that should have belonged to him.

At that moment, the thunderous voice of Pride came from outside. With a furrowed brow, He commanded, "Release him, mortal."

Sean had never found the voice of "Pride" so pleasant, so pleasant that he wanted to burst out laughing.

As a mortal, as a lowly being possessed, he finally gained the right to speak with the gods, even if that right was limited to this small Sky Island.

All of this made Sean, who had been carrying a time bomb, extremely happy, so happy that he was somewhat annoyed—ha, why couldn't he make a happy laugh like Grindelwald?

"Hahahaha—" Sean burst into laughter, "Oh my god, oh my god, teacher, I miss you so much, there is so much I want to learn from you."

The Pride voice was now tinged with anger. "I told you to release Him."

Sean laughed so hard he couldn't stand up straight, and the Wallop family villa in the center of the Sky Island seemed to become even more solid with his laughter. The towering iron gate looked as if it were plated with an Shield Charm, and the pale glow showed its unparalleled defensive power.

Sean's laughter lasted for a long time, so long that Sloth's figure crumbled, and Pride's eyes were filled with murderous intent.

He finally stopped, then wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes, and looked at the glaring [Pride] with amusement. "Hey, I said, big guy—this is the traitor you're talking about, and I'm standing up for you! Can you find another host as kind and generous as me in the whole world? Quick, show me your gratitude, all you need is a bow, hahaha."

The face of [Pride] trembled, and His voice carried an undeniable authority. "That is the past of Sin. Mortals have no right to judge my brother, even if it is merely a Residual Soul!"

"Not qualified?" Sean licked his lips excitedly. "When I was stepping on other people's faces, the feeling wasn't much different from now, was it?"

[Pride] He glared angrily. "It's none of your business to speak on matters of the gods!"

"Speak?" Sean looked puzzled. "I didn't plan to say anything."

"Then let Him come out. Only I can judge Sin; I will not allow anyone else to overstep his authority."

Accompanied by the sound of "Pride," Sean happily raised his wand.

Then aim at the [Sloth] statue at his feet, its eyes filled with venomous resentment.

"Avada Kedavra," Sean closed his eyes in bliss.

The unparalleled green light instantly traversed the distance and struck [Sloth] without the slightest deviation.

The roar of "Pride" had no effect; Sean waved his wand with rapt attention, as if directing a Giant to perform a furious hymn.

When the black figure belonging to "Sloth" completely vanished into nothingness, Sean's performance came to an end.

He bowed gracefully to [Pride]: "It's nothing but a token of my respect—"

[Pride] finally snapped out of his rage, but his enormous eyes remained fixed on Sean, and his words were like muffled thunder. "You've crossed the line, mortal."

Sean waved his wand nonchalantly. "I think I'm terribly merciful—well, Professor Dumbledore has had quite an influence on me."

"Do you know what you've done? You know..."

Sean interrupted Pride abruptly, raising his wand to his lips and making a shushing gesture.

"I'm so tired of this pointless conversation, and besides," he flashed a white smile, "I haven't settled accounts with you for lying to me yet."

[Pride] revealed its anger once more. "Deceive? I need to deceive a mortal?!"

"Really? Then why didn't you mention in this collaboration that [Sloth] would infiltrate my Soul World?" Sean sneered.

"That won't affect you at all!" said [Pride].

Sean scoffed. "But as a partner, you should have informed me of all the potential risks. In my opinion, you knew all of this, but you chose to conceal it because you wanted to face [Sloth] personally. Besides, in our last conversation, I asked you about the current state of [Sloth], and your answer was that [Sloth] was still asleep. But the truth is, its level of awakening is even higher than that of its Big Brother."

[Pride] paused for a moment, then said in a deep voice, "He received help from someone."

Sean curled his lip dismissively. "And then?"

You are not qualified to know.

"Pfft, I knew it," Sean laughed mockingly. "Given your deception and incompetence, I've decided to temporarily terminate our cooperation. Oh, and I helped you kill a wisp of [Sloth]'s Residual Soul; you owe me a favor, remember to pay it back."

[Pride] He no longer speaks, but one can tell from the rise and fall of his chest, which is like a mountain swaying, that his heart is not at peace.

Sean ignored him and turned his attention to the remnants of Sloth.

A pure black particle, without a red core, simply floated calmly in mid-air.

"Dinner's ready—" Sean called out to the Obscurus within him.

The Obscurus red core flickered twice quickly, then swiftly crawled over and began to devour its own kind.

A moment later, Obscurus had completely absorbed the dark power into herself, sent a message to Sean.

This mass of [Sloth], drawn from Leon Schneider, Obscurus devoid of any consciousness and exists solely as a manifestation of dark power.

Sure enough, the Returners had gone very far in their experiments with the Obscurus ... Sean thought to himself.

Then, another message came Obscurus, and Sean snapped his fingers in delight.

Its power has been further enhanced, and because this power is completely ownerless, it can lend even more power to Sean.

Double happiness... Sean smiled with satisfaction.

He not only gained control of his own Soul World, but his power in the real world was also enhanced. This time, he really made a fortune.

And that's not all.

Sean had deduced that Pride valued the Realm of Illusion highly, and he finally understood that the lava-covered land was the current state of the Realm of Illusion.

This will be beneficial for his future exploration of mysterious environments.

Oh, right, there's still one gift I haven't opened yet...

Sean looked up at the sky, where a sphere of magic floated—not the power left behind by Pride, but belonging to Sloth.

Sean naturally couldn't absorb this magic into his body. This power wasn't strong, but it carried the fluctuations of Sin — Dumbledore had said that sensing the nature of Sin magic would be of great benefit to him in the future.

Just now, in order to meet with [Sloth], [Pride] even revealed how to analyze [Sloth]'s magic.

From now on, Sean can come in and study it whenever he has free time.

Thinking about his haul, Sean felt a surge of satisfaction and wanted to burst into laughter.

Furthermore, in his mind, the others were not unimportant, but rather not important enough—what truly mattered was that Sean had personally killed a soul burdened with Sin!

He still carries immense pressure, but his body is stronger, his soul is more stable, and his true self has been liberated.

For Sean, this was his biggest takeaway from the trip.

He was even somewhat looking forward to telling Grindelwald about these things, and the old man would surely laugh heartily and then boast about his excellent teaching.

Pride, Sean glanced at the arrogant figure outside the Sky Island, glaring angrily but helplessly, and waved his hand cheerfully. "I'm leaving now, there are still people waiting outside for me to beat up—by the way, train hard, sleep well, eat well, look at the difference between you and your brother, I hope my passive ability can be stronger."

Sean winked one last time. "Good luck, Chief Sin!"

His figure vanished from the Sky Island, leaving only the terrifying Giant standing silently in the lava.

——

When Sean opened his eyes, a deep green curse was already rushing in. Leon Schneider, who was half-lying on the ground, had somehow recovered. His face was full of resentment, and he Killing Curse without hesitation.

But Sean had awakened for this very moment; with a nimble turn, he dodged the Killing Curse that came with great force but missed its mark.

Turning his head, Sean squinted at the panting Leon Schneider, whose face was full of resentment and hatred, and whose eyes were filled with despair.

He lost his source of power, whether it was the Obscurus or the power of Sin, and all of this was because of this kid named Sean Wallerup.

He saw the other person speak with a smile, their voice tinged with amusement. "Oh, I thought you'd go straight to Merlin after you were extracted. Looks like the Returners's skills are pretty good."

"It's all your fault...it's all your fault..." Leon Schneider had completely lost the composure and ease he had shown half an hour ago; his voice was now filled with despair. "I...I'm going to become worthless again, I'm going to become that bottom-tier Mudblood again, I...I don't want to live like this anymore..."

"No, no..." he muttered to himself, then stood up shakily and began to cast various Dark Arts at Sean with his trembling hands.

Sean frowned. He easily deflected the opponent's attack and then said loudly, "I have a question. You're a living person, so how did you get involved with those guys?"

"Shut up! Shut up!" Leon Schneider roared hysterically, tears welling in his eyes. "It's all because of you that I've lost everything!"

"Tsk, looks hopeless?" Sean scoffed, then asked with interest, "Can you tell me about this plan?"

"The plan...the plan..." These words seemed to touch Leon Schneider's most painful spot. He even dropped his wand. "If it weren't for this plan, I wouldn't have lost everything. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have gone back to that place... Aaaaaah, Wallerup, why don't you just die?!"

However, the spells he cast in his current state posed no threat whatsoever; Sean simply waved his wand to deflect the menacing red and green lights.

However, to Sean's surprise, the other party's spell was still quite powerful, even though he had lost the Obscurus and the Sin spell.

Sean wanted to get the other person to use more of their abilities so he could observe what was special about someone who could become Sin Vessel.

Leon Schneider attacked Sean like a madman, even though he didn't inflict any damage on Sean. He seemed tireless, casting spell after spell, until even Sean was somewhat surprised.

The Sin Vessel requires a certain amount of natural Magic Power Source from the wizard? Leon Schneider had just undergone the Obscurus and the extraction of Sin magic, and was in his weakest state in all aspects, yet he was still able to cast so many spells.

That's interesting...

Sean dodged a spell and continued his verbal attack, "Fighting and killing won't solve anything. The Wizarding World also values human relationships. Why don't you tell me what's going on? Maybe I can give you some advice. I always welcome others to abandon the darkness and embrace the light."

Leon Schneider was taken aback for a moment, then revealed an expression of extreme pain.

A deep red magical power suddenly appeared from his wrist and began to spread along his arm toward his heart.

"As expected, there is Unbreakable Vow..." Sean curled his lip.

However, to his surprise, since the other party had triggered the Unbreakable Vow, it meant that Leon Schneider had really considered "abandoning darkness and turning to the light".

This struck Sean as odd. He sensed that Leon Schneider was behaving strangely, too careless and irrational, like a moth drawn to a flame, oblivious to the danger right before his eyes.

Not only in his current emotional breakdown, but also before, the other party took the bait unexpectedly smoothly.

On the other end, Leon Schneider barely managed to suppress the restlessness in his heart; the Unbreakable Vow almost pierced his soul.

He gasped for breath, looking at Sean across from him who wasn't attacking, his face filled with even more resentment and despair.

"Ah, ah, ah—" Leon Schneider let out a roar like the panting of a wild beast, and he fell to his knees with a thud, the stone slab beneath him already soaked with tears.

When he looked up again, his eyes were bloodshot, and tears of despair streamed down his face.

"Why... why?" he said to Sean, trembling.

Sean frowned but did not reply.

Leon Schneider abandoned his attack, as if he were speaking, or perhaps talking to himself. "Why, why must I be bullied by everyone because I was born poor? Why, when I have done nothing wrong..."

"And then?" Sean frowned.

"And then?" Leon Schneider seemed to be asking himself a question, and he gave a bitter laugh. "You were born into the wealthiest family. You were pampered from childhood. People flattered you and praised you. They dared not raise their voices at you because of your parents' power. Even after entering the Wizarding World, you were the center of attention. Dumbledore and Grindelwald favored you. The students all loved and admired you."

"Ha—" he chuckled briefly. "You, we clearly have equal souls, but just because our souls go to different places, you can have everything. How could you understand? Wallerup, how could you understand the pain of someone like me?"

He tore open his robe, revealing his body covered in old scabs. "This is where I came from. A father who only knew how to drink and gamble, a mother who only knew how to change boyfriends constantly. What they had in common was that they would take their anger out on me after a fight. The burns from cigarette butts and the whip marks on my body grew larger with age. All my memories are of darkness—"

Leon Schneider let out a maniacal, bitter laugh, "Can you imagine what it was like when I received Durmstrang's notice? In the darkness, a beam of light shone in, and I was a wizard, a noble wizard!"

His voice rose, then quickly fell low. "The reality is, this prestigious School of Magic has lost too many students to Newmontgard, so they had to secretly recruit some Mudblood and give me a ticket to the Magical World... Ha, I thought I had entered paradise, but all that awaited me were countless glares, exclusion and bullying from morning till night—oh, Mr. Wallop, who has always been revered, would never have imagined that Durmstrang would so naturally shove a Mudblood's head down the toilet, would he?"

Leon Schneider seemed to have completely lost his mind, laughing maniacally, "Hahaha, I absolutely love my school life... Come on, Wallerup, tell me, what should I do when someone offers me an olive branch? You tell me, what should I do?!"

"I used magic to silence those who bullied me, I used power to make those who hurt me kneel down. Did I do anything wrong? Tell me, where did I go wrong?! Shouldn't I have done it?!"

Sean raised his head slightly and said calmly, "I deeply sympathize with what you've been through—but am I part of the group that bullied you? Did Daisy Potter or Stephanie Ollivander hurt you?"

Leon Schneider emitted intermittent bubbling sounds, his eyes rolled back, and his wand trembled. "Only by fighting you can I continue to possess this power! Only then... only then will I not return to the deepest part of the abyss!"

Sean shook his head. "Putting everything about Hogwarts aside, I believe that when the law fails to bring justice to the parties involved, private revenge becomes justified, even noble, from that moment on. I don't deny your actions—however, when you use your own suffering to whitewash your violence against the innocent, I lose all interest in your tragedy—"

Leon Schneider stood there, stunned.

Sean raised his wand with disgust. "Your abyss is none of my concern—and I don't mind letting you continue to wallow in your pain, you coward."

Here comes the promised 10,000 yuan a day! 10,000 yuan a day!