Nothing is True, Everything is Permitted

"Aren't you a wizard?"

After the flustered boy had hurried away, Harry realized it only in hindsight. "I mean, you aren't from a wizarding family?"

"Of course. Is there something wrong with that?"

Ezio looked down at his own attire. "Wizards don't dress like this, either."

"Neither do ordinary people." Harry suddenly smiled. "But you're really amazing. You actually managed to learn magic just by reading books."

"Spells before the fourth year are quite simple. As long as you recite the incantation correctly, flick your wand the right way, and practice for a while at most, you can master them."

Ezio said it very casually, and in truth, it was quite easy. "Maybe you can give it a try." He pulled a book from his pocket with the title The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 1 written on it.

"Like this?" Harry took the first-year charms textbook. It wasn't that he hadn't flipped through the Hogwarts materials, but he hadn't dared to practice magic at his aunt and uncle's house. He had even found the name of his owl, Hedwig, in a History of Magic textbook.

"Lumos, the Levitation Charm—you can try these two introductory spells to get used to casting. If there's anything you don't understand, you can ask me."

"That's great!" Harry said happily, then pulled his wand from his pocket and began to try, unable to wait.

"Lumos!" he chanted quickly. This spell was printed in the first section of the first chapter; he remembered the incantation without even opening the book.

However, the tip of his wand only flashed slightly and did not emit a sustained light.

"The phrasing and the emphasis are in the book. The casting gesture is a firm, slight flick forward. If you visualize the content of the light in your mind while casting, it will be easier. This applies to the Levitation Charm as well; you can imagine that you have already made something float."

"Good idea!" Harry nodded after listening to Ezio, then closed his eyes to imagine the scene. After a moment of gathering his focus, he opened his eyes and spoke according to the incantation method written in the book: "Lumos."

A white magical glow lit up at the tip of his wand. After his first successful cast, Harry's excitement was visible to the naked eye.

"Simple, right?" Ezio put away the Household Magic Compendium he had been reading and swapped it for another book.

"It's really not hard. I think I can even control the size of the light!"

The light at the tip of Harry's wand grew and shrank, making him grin from ear to ear.

After fiddling with his wand alone for a long time, Harry finally withdrew his attention. Seeing Ezio looking down at a book again, he tilted his head to look at the cover.

"Hogwarts: A History?" Harry asked curiously. "I remember this book isn't in the school's textbook list."

"Mm, extracurricular reading. I bought quite a few. I also learned about your situation from the modern chronicles of the wizarding world."

"You must have had great grades when you were in school, right?" Harry suddenly felt the nervousness one experiences when facing a top student.

"No, quite the opposite. I have always been homeschooled and haven't spent a single day in school." Ezio shook his head. Although Giovanni was a fool who would burn dinner, he knew a great many things. He was a professional in the assassin's trade, but if he were sent to a university, he could also be an excellent professor. "My father was my teacher; he taught me many things."

A flash of envy crossed Harry's eyes, but it dimmed shortly after, revealing a hint of complexity. He suddenly felt that the two of them were somewhat similar.

"Your father must have been amazing." Harry looked up and gave an encouraging look. He didn't know why he did this; perhaps he hoped Ezio could move past this sorrow.

"Of course. He raised me all by himself. Although he would burn the food when cooking, I know he tried his best." Ezio couldn't help but smile slightly, as if some familiar scenes flashed through his mind again.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know..."

"Don't always apologize, Harry. That's a bad habit." Ezio waved his hand. "We must be clear about our goals and know what we are going to do. For example, I came to Hogwarts to learn magic and make myself stronger, but also to collect clues. Sooner or later, I will find out the truth of the matter."

Seeing Harry nod, Ezio continued, "What about you, Harry?"

Harry fell into silence with complicated feelings because he couldn't give an accurate answer himself. He knew Voldemort was the murderer who killed his parents, but having never received his parents' love, he didn't know the heart-wrenching pain of loss. He knew he should hate Voldemort, but he didn't know how he should hate him. This hatred had no accurate or clear concept in his heart yet; he had only learned the truth of his parents' death a mere month ago.

"Maybe you'll figure it out later, but I want to say one more thing." Ezio roughly guessed Harry's thoughts and understood why, but this wasn't what Ezio wanted.

"What?" Harry asked curiously.

"If a guy doesn't even dare to avenge the blood feud of his parents and relatives, there is no difference between being dead and being alive—unless your parents didn't care for you or love you. Once you figure out why your parents died and why you survived, perhaps you will have your own answer in your heart."

"Is... that so?"

Harry was a bit bewildered. He couldn't figure these things out for the time being; after all, he was currently just an 11-year-old boy who had just left his foster home, not an adult with a complete worldview and set of values.

"Take your time with these things; you don't need to rush right now." Seeing the thoughtful look on Harry's face, Ezio stopped the topic. Some things shouldn't be said too much; Harry had to realize them himself, and he would only understand after witnessing them firsthand.

"Have you thought about which house you will be sorted into after going to Hogwarts?"

"What house?" Harry asked with a blank expression. He was completely in the dark about these things.

"Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, Slytherin—the four houses of Hogwarts. Every student will be sorted into their own house after entering Hogwarts. The names of these four houses are determined by the names of the four founders of Hogwarts."

"Godric Gryffindor was an outstanding dueling master, so Gryffindor House focuses on accepting young wizards who have courage and an adventurous spirit in their bones."

"Rowena Ravenclaw was a wise scholar. Ravenclaw House focuses on accepting wise minds. If you have a strong thirst for knowledge, Ravenclaw is a great place to go."

"Helga Hufflepuff's kindness and universal love are qualities many wizards lack. Although Hufflepuff House seems not to be picky about any young wizard, it won't accept you if you don't have a kindness from the bottom of your heart."

"Salazar Slytherin, on the other hand, is an orthodox wizard in my eyes. He pursues power, doesn't care about the evaluations and gazes of others, and has his own clear goals. Victory—or rather, success—is the goal he pursues. Although he has the lowest reputation among the four founders, Slytherin is also the house I most want to go to."

"Why Slytherin? I remember Voldemort was in Slytherin, right?" Harry asked with some confusion. "You're so smart, isn't Ravenclaw good?"

"What do we learn knowledge for, Harry?" Ezio looked into his eyes. "Learning is to give us enough knowledge to deal with unknown difficulties; learning is to give us the power to accomplish something. Knowledge is a tool, not the goal—unless you want to be a nerd with nothing but academic research in your head."

"Oh, okay, yes, that seems a bit terrible." Harry nodded after thinking it through. He found it hard to imagine himself becoming a bookworm; that would be too painful.

"That's why I chose Slytherin, because I know what I'm going to do. One day in the future, the moment I find the truth of the matter, I will personally kill the guy who killed my father."

"I have long been prepared for revenge, Harry."

Stared at by Ezio's gaze, Harry moved his neck uneasily.

"But killing is against the law, Ezio." Harry said in a low voice; he was still a good, law-abiding child.

"If the law cannot bring me fairness and justice, at least I haven't seen the Ministry of Magic take any action on this matter; it is possible that the person who did this is a high-ranking official within the Ministry of Magic."

Ezio spoke in a deep voice: "Nothing is true, everything is permitted."

"We cannot live forever in a world where the framework is defined by others. What difference would that make from being a puppet?"

"We must grasp the power that allows us to be free. Each and every one of us is a free individual."

"If it weren't for Voldemort, would you have a mother and father who loved you, Harry? Although I only had a father, I know he loved me, even if he never said it out loud."

"Avenging him is the only thing I can do for him as a son."

Ezio's voice grew heavy. He had no other capital in the wizarding world, so if he wanted to accomplish anything, he had no choice but to enter the game himself.