A Glimpse of This World

Back in the Hampstead suburban garden, Bates and Wendell went to rest.

In the Granger house's children's study, Hermione slammed a huge book on the table. "Now I finally know what happened in Azkaban that day!"

"The Daily Prophet's Collected Edition... the latest edition?" Loren read out the name of the massive volume.

"I found it at Flourish and Blotts; it reported what happened in Azkaban."

Hermione quickly flipped to the last few pages of the book. "Look here, Fenrir Greyback and two other Werewolf stormed Azkaban but were repelled by the Aurors. Apart from Fenrir Greyback, the other two were arrested on the spot."

"Greyback is a vicious Werewolf who not only attacks people during the Full Moon, but also enjoys it when he is of sound mind. Around 1965, an attack resulted in the deaths of two Muggle children. Greyback was brought to the Ministry of Magic for questioning as a result. Due to the inadequacy and lack of maintenance of the Werewolf Register, the Ministry of Magic was unaware that Greyback was a Werewolf."

"Greyback disguised himself as a Muggle tramp, escaped trial, and took revenge on Lyle Lupin, the nonhuman paranormal expert who almost exposed him, causing serious consequences."

"During the First Wizarding War, he assembled an army of Werewolf and committed many heinous crimes. He disappeared after the Dark Lord was defeated, and this is his first appearance since then."

"We have reason to believe that the malfeasance and negligence of the previous Ministry of Magic officials allowed Greyback to escape justice, and that under the leadership of the current Minister for Magic, Cornelius Fudge— "

What was written at the end... Hermione realized something was wrong as she read on, and quickly glanced at the rest, only to find it was all this kind of meaningless praise and flattery.

She decided to stop reading, slapped her little hand on the newspaper, and said confidently, "They must be trying to rescue some prisoner!"

"It's not hard to see from this report that Greyback is a ruthless criminal. Who would be worth him risking his life to break into Azkaban?" Loren propped his head up and looked at the report, but couldn't find any useful clues.

He couldn't recall any of this part of the plot, but he was still quite concerned about it.

"Perhaps someone else hired them," Hermione turned a few more pages. "Dolores Umbridge, the Deputy Director of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, drafted the Anti-Werewolf Law, which is currently under review and is scheduled to be implemented in 1993."

Hermione frowned. "This would push both the neutral and friendly groups among the Werewolf to the margins of society, only making the Werewolf more dangerous. Dumbledore won't let such a bill pass."

Despite her young age, the little Witch has already shown remarkable political acumen.

"This review shouldn't be conducted by Wizengamot. Werewolf already have a bad reputation, and now that this has happened, the Ministry of Magic officials don't want to be criticized for dereliction of duty like the previous one, so there's a high chance the bill will pass."

Loren had some recollection of this. Lupin was barely making ends meet, but the Anti-Werewolf Law was implemented, and he was completely starving. Dumbledore took him in and made him a professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts.

Then Hogwarts had its best Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor in years.

"Fortunately, Grandpa Bates ' Werewolf Disease has been cured. No, thankfully he's not a wizard, so he doesn't have to survive in the Wizarding World."

Listening to Loren's words of relief, Hermione thought quietly for a moment. Grandpa Bates was kind and lucky, but what about the unfortunate Werewolf in the Wizarding World who were innocently infected? What should be done about them?

Why doesn't anyone listen to their plight and think about them?

She asked softly, "Loren, can your method for treating Werewolf Disease be widely adopted?"

"The materials needed for the ritual are expensive, and no one will pay for them. Besides, only Dumbledore can cast the Human Transformation Spell. If he treats them one by one, Dumbledore won't have anything else to do." Loren shook his head.

"This disease cannot be cured. Once the last one is cured, the first one may relapse, and we'll have to go through it all again. The most important thing is that Nicol is gone, so the Magic Power of the Sorcerer's Stone is no longer inexhaustible, and there's no way to cure Werewolf indefinitely."

He had recently discovered this by chance; previously, when he held the Sorcerer's Stone, he could sense Nicol's will contained within it. That will dissipated shortly after Flamel's upgrade.

According to Flamel, the Magic Power would gradually dissipate, and the Sorcerer's Stone would eventually turn into an ordinary stone. Therefore, over the long years, no Sorcerer's Stone has survived.

"The final version of the Wolfsbane Potion has been finalized, but very few Werewolf can afford it."

Hermione's fingers unconsciously traced the letters of the Anti-Werewolf Law, going around and around.

It turns out the Wizarding World isn't just about wondrous miracles, and wizards aren't just about exploring the mysteries of magic. For the first time, Hermione witnessed the cruelty of the Wizarding World and the harshness of wizarding society.

This is far more brutal and bloody than modern Muggle society. Because of its simple social structure and clear division of labor, every piece of legislation carries significant weight and is clearly targeted.

They beat those people so badly they couldn't fight back, and no one sympathized with them because they weren't even human.

Hermione's bright eyes dimmed, and her thoughts were written all over her face.

Loren didn't intend to offer any advice; this was Hermione's inner light—she sympathized with the weak, was willing to speak out against injustice, and wanted to make the world a better place.

Some say she's a busybody, some think she's impractical, some think she's a saint, but—

This is the wonderful Hermione.

When Loren got home, he saw Bates lying on the sofa, snoring loudly.

Although it wasn't cold, just to be on the safe side, Loren still took a blanket and covered Bates' stomach with it.

Bates felt the movement on him, opened his eyes groggily, and hummed, "Loren... Hagrid's Acromantula is really cute, can you let me have one?"

Loren:...

He moved the blanket up a little and said softly, "There will be a chance. Go to sleep, and you'll see it when you're asleep."

"Hey, even wizards' pets are so amazing." Bates drifted off to sleep again, still half asleep.

Loren went upstairs in silence, wondering if he should keep Bates away from Hagrid next time.

He locked the bedroom door from the inside, drew the curtains, and plunged the room into darkness. He turned on only a table lamp, took something out of his sleeve, and placed it on the table.

A crystalline blue light shone in his eyes, illuminating the thick black ink swirling on the Diary. He had seen this black before, on Harry's scars, and on Quirrell's nape.

Loren quietly looked at the Diary, recalling the feeling of his memory battles with Hermione, building up a defense in his mind. He reflected on his recent state of mind, believing he had no emotions that could be provoked, before cautiously reaching out to open the Diary.

The notebook is a standard-sized A4 size. The faded date on the black cover indicates that it is from 50 years ago. There are no marks on the paper, which has yellowed with age and even shows some traces of dried water.

On the first page, the ink was blurred and indistinct: TM Riddle. The ink, wet with water, blurred into a hazy mess, making the name "Tom" indistinct. At this time, Tom was still a student at Hogwarts, and Voldemort wasn't yet called Voldemort.

Turning the page further, it's all blank except for the last page, which has the name of a newspaper distributor on Vauxhall Road in London printed on the back cover.

If you want to be on the safe side, you should seal the notebook away and hand it over to Professor Dumbledore after the start of the semester.

But he was, after all, a Gryffindor, and his recent conversation with Hermione about Werewolf had left Loren somewhat unsettled. Moreover, this was the first time he had faced Voldemort in a way that allowed him to communicate normally.

Driven by a peculiar impulse, he maintained his mental Occlumency, took a pen from the pen holder on the table, and wrote in his Diary:

"With your intelligence, you can't be blind to the fact that wizards are not capable of ruling Muggle society for long. Fear and slaughter are not the answer for the Wizarding World. What are your thoughts on the future of wizarding society?"

After writing those words, the crystalline blue in Loren's eyes suddenly shone brightly, and a chilling sensation traveled from his eyes straight to his mind.

In an instant, Loren snapped back to reality, his heart filled with horror. Just moments ago, without him even realizing it, he had been emotionally stirred by Voldemort. The Diary, through the emotions lingering from his discussion with Hermione, linked these emotions with his memories of Voldemort, prompting him to express his thoughts on the page.

Fortunately, despite being extremely shocked, he managed to remain calm with the help of the cool sensation in his mind and was no longer swayed.

The ink on the Diary was quickly absorbed by the paper, even the marks left by the pen tip became smooth. A line of text appeared on the Diary:

'It's an honor to speak with you, Loren '

The writing blurred for a moment, as if seeing something astonishing, before slowly revealing ' Morgan '.

He did not introduce himself, but his name appeared in the Diary.

Sure enough, even his memories were examined. As expected of the most skilled Legilimency master, Loren felt nothing at all despite his supposed Occlumency.

Loren calmly looked at the words on it, constantly testing his control over his body, twirling his toes, and slightly curling his fingers to control the frequency of his breathing.

He felt a little relieved after confirming that he was not being controlled.

As he examined himself, the notebook began to vibrate rapidly, and the ink on it began to seep out uncontrollably and irregularly.

The black ink, mixed with a large amount of blood, quickly stained the entire Diary.

An invisible flame ignited the Diary, and the pages curled up from the intense heat, turning into black ash that dissipated into the air.

The Diary burned down to a third of its thickness. Just when Loren thought the Horcrux was about to be destroyed, a gust of wind suddenly blew up from the house, causing the pages of the Diary to turn and rustle.

When I turned halfway through, the entire Diary suddenly cracked in two with a "crash," and the front part was quickly burned to black ashes and disappeared.

The remaining half of the Diary looked very messy, with blood staining the pages and turning the yellowed pages crimson.

Even so, the Diary was not completely free from that invisible flame. The corner of the first page on the remaining half of the Diary was still gradually turning black and turning to ashes.

It seems that the Mars left by that flame mean it's only a matter of time before it reignites, and soon enough.

Loren stood there calmly watching this scene. He guessed that the Diary had done something drastic, having seen the contents of the Book of Abraham, and possibly Mary.

I never expected the curse to come so quickly and so fiercely.

As if panting, after a while, when only half of a page on the Diary was burned away, another line of black writing emerged against the crimson background.

'I offer you my sincerest apologies, Descendant of Morgan, Sage of the New Era.'

In the slightly distorted space, this page turned to ashes and vanished.

Before Loren could even process the meaning of that sentence, new handwriting appeared on the second page.

'My impudent offense has brought about my destruction, and I deserve it. But before that, allow me to tell you something.'

'You are destined to become like me. We will lead the times. Whether we support Pure-blood or protect Muggle, it's just a ripple in the tide.'

Wizards, wielding Magic Power, are destined to rule Muggle. They will lead human civilization towards a more glorious era.

"And even among wizards, there are differences. Some are born more noble; I am, and so are you."

'Join me, and I will guide you on the path to eternal life, to becoming Deity.'

The Diary seemed to be communicating with Loren, or perhaps talking to itself; page by page, the pages were burned, revealing line by line of writing.

Only by becoming Deity can you set the rules, and only then can you maintain peace between wizards and Muggle.

'Don't speculate. Horcrux are just an experiment. True magic isn't in the books.'

Find me, join me.

' Morgan should shine throughout history!'

As the Diary was being written, the remaining half of the pages instantly burst into flames, the paper turning to ash and gradually scattering. From the ashes, a black light shot out and flew out the window.

Loren rushed to the window, pulled back the curtains, but there was nothing amiss in his view. His face was filled with anxiety; he immediately tried to contact Dumbledore.

"Calm down!" Flamel stepped out of the Fantasy Book. "It's just a memory, and most of its main consciousness has been burned away. The curse will follow it, constantly extinguishing it. When it returns to Voldemort's side, all that will remain is a single line of writing that just appeared in the Diary."

Loren breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this. It had all been the Diary talking to itself, so it shouldn't affect the principal's plans.

"I was too arrogant. I thought I had mastered Occlumency, but when someone stirred my emotions and examined my memories, I didn't notice anything." Loren closed his eyes. All along, he had been under Dumbledore's protection and had no idea how terrifying the Dark Lord was.

The most powerful dark wizard, capable of creating an entire Dark Age, could not possibly be someone he could handle in his current state.

Weakness is not a fault, arrogance is.

Flamel walked over to Loren and looked out the window with him. "It was just as arrogant. If it hadn't presumptuously examined your memories, it wouldn't have been cursed."

Loren hadn't expected Abraham's Curse to be so powerful; the Horcrux, which only Fiendfyre and the Basilisk Fang could destroy, was instantly reduced to ashes.

The boundless sky displayed a clear color, with white clouds drifting by, changing again and again. The wind from the wilderness blew into the room, making the curtains flutter and rustle.

Loren's black, wispy hair danced in the wind like a dragon, and the crystalline blue light in his eyes faded. This wondrous magical world seemed to be only now beginning to reveal itself to him.

"Now, I want to know what it means by referring to those ' Sage ' and ' Deity '?"