A Castle, a Prison, and an Old Friend / Just How Sweet Is Toffee...? ...

This time, Harry slept soundly and did not experience any more strange hallucinations.

Perhaps, this is the power of love.

Love is an ethereal thing. When people are surrounded by love, they sometimes cannot clearly sense its existence. However, when they encounter setbacks and blows, or even face life-threatening situations, love can help them recover and turn danger into safety.

Just like the protection Harry's mother once gave him, and the companionship Hermione and Luna Lovegood have shown him now...

The only slight regret is that the effect of this love was far too good, so much so that Harry actually fell asleep almost immediately that night...

Chapter 794 Castle, Cage, and Old Friend

The next morning, when Dumbledore met Harry and his two companions at the agreed-upon location outside the school, even though he had experienced many trials and tribulations in his youth, he was still quite taken aback.

"Harry, I thought you were the only one who had gone through that magical time travel," Dumbledore said kindly, looking Hermione and Luna Lovegood over. "But it's really good this way. No matter how absurd or bizarre the things we do, there's someone willing to do them with us. It's truly an indescribable happiness."

"I wholeheartedly agree!" Harry nodded with a smile. "I'm very happy right now, and I have no doubt about it!"

"Oh, I think we should hurry up and get going," Dumbledore said, a hint of hesitation in his voice.

Harry's happiness was Dumbledore, with his keen insight into human nature, could certainly see, and he could even tell that this happiness was twofold.

That's why he chose to believe Harry, and was even willing to find another person to do so, revealing his inner feelings to Harry and the other two without reservation.

Unlike the tragic fate of Albus Dumbledore, who only met Harry once, Dumbledore was certain that the boy would not go astray... because he was completely surrounded by love, and even more so and more genuinely than Harry Potter!

However, showing off affection at such a young age is really not a good habit; it shows a lack of respect for elders.

"I've made a makeshift Portkey that will help us get to Austria quickly, after which we can Apparition to the foot of the mountains near Nurmengard."

As he explained, Dumbledore pulled a unique Portkey from his pocket... it was a roll of wool socks.

"Sorry, I don't have anything very useful on me," Dumbledore friendly smile.

"It's alright, this is fine." Harry nodded and shook hands with the two girls.

Britain wizards have always used all sorts of bizarre items to make Portkey. During the Quidditch World Cup, the Ministry of Magic even issued Portkey made of broken boots and scrap tires.

Compared to those products that are not only decorated with mud but also have an added odor, Dumbledore's wool socks are really quite good.

Moreover, Harry and his two companions all knew that this was something he held dear, and they certainly had to show him respect.

Then, a flash of light appeared, Dumbledore activated the Portkey, and the four figures vanished from their spot in an instant.

Central Europe, the Republic of Austria, a country once occupied by Gellert Grindelwald.

However, calling it an occupation is not entirely accurate, because Grindelwald merely destroyed the Austria Ministry of Magic and then built a castle in these mountains.

To be fair, Grindelwald's castle is well-located.

Nestled in the mountains of Austria, surrounded by towering snow-capped peaks and rugged cliffs and dense forests, it could be transformed into a Fianto Duri fortress with a single Anti-Apparition Jinx.

However, the promised anti-Apparition spell failed to work in the end, because after arriving in Austria, Harry found out the exact location of Dumbledore's Nurmengard Castle and then activated Apparition on his own.

In the blink of an eye, they had crossed half of Austria, as well as the mountains and walls surrounding Nurmengard, and appeared directly at the entrance of the castle!

Staring at the dark castle entrance and the inscription above the gate written by Grindelwald himself—'For the For the Greater Good' — Dumbledore was momentarily stunned.

He was both surprised that Harry could teleport without being restricted by the Anti-Apparition Jinx, and inevitably, this line of text stirred up memories...

It's always the same; those experiences and emotions from his youth, like vines, tightly entwine his heart—no, they should be entwined his soul, and he can never untangle them.

And Dumbledore will surely carry these burdens with him until his grave.

"This is Nurmengard. Normally we should have come up from the foot of the mountain, but this time we saved ourselves the trouble," Dumbledore explained softly, his eyes filled with reminiscence. "Decades ago, this place was full of traps and guards, but now it has gradually fallen into disrepair... People only know that Europe once had a notorious Dark Lord, but they don't know that he has lived here alone for fifty years."

"Then does that mean this cage is practically useless to him?" Hermione asked in surprise.

"Perhaps the real prison is in your heart," Luna Lovegood whispered.

"Yes... In fact, if he had wanted to, even when Nurmengard was heavily guarded, he could have easily escaped, but he didn't," Dumbledore said with emotion. "Perhaps, as Luna Lovegood said, my old friend was trapped in his own mental prison. Since his imprisonment, we've spent decades debating, even arguing, until we finally reached a mutual understanding, carefully concealing our true feelings while repeatedly testing each other's fragile boundaries... I admit, I was deeply immersed in it..."

Harry could imagine the scene: two no-longer-young best friends communicating through owls, initially with frequent and heated exchanges trying to subdue each other, but later each giving in and compromising until all resentment dissipates, and they tentatively try to reconcile...

Well, if we replace "best friend" with another word in the passage above, it takes on a similar meaning to "suddenly turning around, only to find that person in the dimly lit place."

"If I think about it carefully, the last time I corresponded with him was over a decade ago... just two weeks after James and Lily passed away, and he wrote back to me around Christmas. He did urge me to hurry up and deal with Voldemort, but just as he said... I've always been deeply burdened by mental stress, constantly procrastinating..."

Walking through the dilapidated corridors of Nurmengard, letting the dust drift through this no-longer-glorious castle, I listened as Dumbledore recounted his past with someone...

Many things are perhaps already self-evident.

Harry never imagined that a 'friendship' from his youth would have such a profound impact on Dumbledore!

They climbed the dilapidated stairs and finally reached the top floor of the castle.

There was only one dilapidated cell here, its old bars so rotten they were practically useless. It wasn't locked, nor did it bear any magical protection.

"Is that you, Albus..."

The four had just climbed the last step when an old voice came from the cell.

Trembling, with a barely perceptible expectation... and surprise.

"It's me... Gellert. I didn't expect you to still be so perceptive after all these years." Dumbledore walked to the cell, facing his old friend through the bars.

"Only with you," the old man in the cell grinned, revealing his few remaining teeth, "I know everything about you, from your breathing to your now faltering steps."

He met Dumbledore's gaze with his cloudy eyes, and where their eyes met, a lifetime of memories flowed between them...

Chapter 795 Toffee, just how sweet...?

Gellert Grindelwald...

Looking at the old man before him, Harry truly felt the ravages that time inflicts on a person.

He had almost no hair or teeth left, and his wrinkled skin clung tightly to his cheekbones, making his face look worse than death itself.

His frail body couldn't even fill out the tattered prison clothes; with each breath, the outline of his chest and ribs was clearly visible.

Who could have imagined that the Dark Lord, who once ravaged much of the Europe Wizarding World, bringing nightmares to countless people yet was also adored by many, would now appear in such a state...?

"Oh, let me calculate how long it's been since we've truly faced each other." After a long while, Grindelwald withdrew his gaze and rolled his eyes at the thick cobwebs on the ceiling.

"Fifty years, a full fifty years... What, you've finally dealt with that brat Fu, and now you've finally remembered your old friend who's been abandoned in a corner?"

"No...quite the opposite, I must admit... Gellert, I have failed to keep your wishes." Dumbledore shook his head regretfully. "Voldemort has not been defeated, and he is plotting to be reborn by combining with what he fears most... Once he is fully recovered, he will begin to gather his followers and drag all of Britain back into the quagmire of darkness!"

"But what does that have to do with me?" Grindelwald chuckled wryly. "You want to protect those cowardly and foolish men in Britain, that's your business, just like the burden of your guilt; all I have now is a dirty, cramped skylight above my head and a lonely, swaying shadow."

"That's true, so that's not why I came here to talk to you about this. However... I'm quite pleased to see that you still retain the poetic talent that shone in your youth." Dumbledore smiled nonchalantly, taking a simply wrapped candy from his pocket. "Want to try some? It might make you a little more agreeable."

"Heh... I didn't expect you to bring me a gift, but I'd rather have a stack of parchment—I don't have enough for replying—than... a piece of toffee?"

Grindelwald shakily reached out and took the candy through the gap in the fence. Although he tried to maintain a look of disgust, he eventually peeled it open against his will.

"Ah, that familiar taste..." Before even swallowing the candy, he already couldn't help but show an expression of deep relish. "Damn it, you should have remembered this sooner! All these years, you haven't even given me a single toffee! I can already imagine its taste exploding on my tongue like a magic spell!"

"I knew you'd like it." Dumbledore smiled as he watched the scene unfold before him.

"Heh, of course I'll love it." Grindelwald glanced at Harry and his two companions not far away, a mischievous smile spreading across his face. "I know all too well how sweet this stuff is, just like your little mouth back then~"

He pinched the candy between his index finger and thumb, put it in his mouth, and then closed his eyes to savor the taste.

"Like this, you push it in little by little with your index finger, sucking it with lingering pleasure, and making sure the sunlight shines on the glistening residue left on your nail... Albus, have you ever reminisced about this scene over the years?"

"Oh, this..."

It wasn't Dumbledore spoke, but Hermione who let out a soft gasp unintentionally.

She didn't mean to interrupt the two elderly people's heartfelt conversation; it's just that the feelings they expressed and the words they spoke were simply too...

Anyway, this friendship is definitely not exactly innocent.

"Finally couldn't take it anymore?" Grindelwald said with a slight smile. "Albus, the three children you brought are quite polite; they've actually waited for us to chatter on for so long."

"I wouldn't call it politeness; I was actually quite putting up with it," Harry said nonchalantly.

Of course, what he was suppressing wasn't Hermione's gossipy suspicion, but a hatred that came from the bottom of his heart... no, perhaps it should be said to come from the bottom of his soul!

After actually meeting Gellert Grindelwald, Harry realized that his previous negative thoughts about the man were not simply prejudice.

Because he genuinely felt that he couldn't coexist with this person at all!

It's a hatred that's either a fight to the death or mutual destruction; it's so obsessive that there's no third possibility!

"That look in your eyes... Do you have any elders in your family whom I've harmed?" Grindelwald asked, tilting his head.

Back when he was the Dark Lord, he had harmed countless people, so seeing Harry's hostile attitude towards him, he naturally assumed that the other must be the descendant of some enemy.

However, Dumbledore shook his head.

"No, Gellert, he's Harry, the boy I mentioned to you before. But his situation is quite different; he comes from another timeline and has always had doubts about what's going on between us."

Dumbledore briefly explained Harry's situation to Grindelwald, but all he got in return was a sneer from Grindelwald.

"My dear Albus, is this all you wanted to say to me?" Grindelwald looked at Dumbledore with a sarcastic expression. "The one who once defeated the Dark Lord, the greatest white wizard in the world, the self-important one who's used to having everything under his thumb... Albus Percival Wulfric Dumbledore, I thought you came to this old man, who's almost driven mad by time, hoping to join forces and find a way to snatch the Time-Turner from this brat!"

"After all... haven't you always been dwelling on the past, constantly regretting everything you've experienced?"

"That's a good idea," Harry nodded readily. "You should definitely try it; I'm just looking for an excuse to fight you!"

"Oh? Kid, do you know who you're dealing with?" Grindelwald's cloudy eyes gradually turned dangerous. "Have I been away from the Wizarding World for too long that now even a random junior dares to speak so arrogantly in front of me?"

"Harry, please don't take it too personally. Gellert is a romantic, and he can be a bit outspoken sometimes." Dumbledore quickly stepped in to mediate. "Also... Gellert, you'd better not underestimate Harry. He's not like other young wizards... In his own timeline, Harry is already someone Voldemort fears greatly!"

"Ha, is this some kind of remarkable achievement?" Grindelwald scoffed dismissively. "That brat, I always thought you'd take care of him in six months at most, but you've dragged it out for so long!"

"I already said, Gellert ... I'm not here to discuss Voldemort," Dumbledore voice. "As for Harry ... if I told you he can move freely without being bound by the Anti-Apparition Jinx, and is also Obscurial ... would you acknowledge his power now?!"

"You mean... Obscurus?" Grindelwald suddenly turned to Harry, looking at the wisps of black magic on the other's shoulder, as if he had suddenly realized something.

"Albus, could it be... that you don't want this kid to repeat your cousin's mistakes?"

Chapter 796 A Mistake, The Obscurial, and Love

To be honest, Harry really didn't expect that what he originally came to ask Dumbledore for help with his questions would turn out to be such an unexpected gain.

He actually learned here about Obscurial in the 20th century besides himself... or rather, Aurelius Dumbledore.

It turns out that the person in the Newt Dumbledore family who perfectly controlled the Obscurus was actually Dumbledore's cousin!

His background seemed very mysterious. Dumbledore nor Grindelwald discussed it much in their conversation. Harry only learned that the other man had been a member of Grindelwald's camp back then, and was the most powerful of all the dark wizards!

Beside him, a phoenix reborn from the ashes Obscurus erupts with the power to destroy everything. It can also convert that terrifying power into controllable magic, and a single spell can easily flatten a mountain!

Even these few words of recollection vividly depict Aurelius's power!

Without a doubt, this guy is the wizard Harry had previously imagined—capable of casting forbidden-level wide-area magic!

Whether it was Dumbledore, Grindelwald, or even Voldemort at his peak, none of them could match Aurelius's power!

However, the power of the Obscurus was ultimately a double-edged sword for him, and so... he perished.

"I don't want to blame anyone, but there's no doubt that we've once again jointly caused the death of my loved ones," Dumbledore said softly in a hoarse voice. "Like poor Ariana Dumbledore, Aurelius was also drawn into our conflict, which ultimately led to his tragic end..."

"Yes, yes, yes, it was me who led him astray!" Grindelwald said impatiently. "It was me who guided him to willingly throw himself into darkness and ultimately disappear without a trace, okay? It's all my fault... Albus, you've spent decades arguing with me, just to hear me say this myself!!"

"No... Gellert, I have never held a grudge against you for this. I only hate myself for not finding out about his background immediately, and even more so for not protecting him." Dumbledore's tone was full of regret. "Besides... Aurelius himself gave up the love beside him."

"Love? Albus, do you think that's what you call love? A pitiful Maledictus could turn into a beast at any moment, paired with an adult Obscurial hasn't appeared for hundreds of years?"

Grindelwald seemed quite dismissive of Dumbledore's words.

"True love must be built on a foundation of equal strength, like us... In short, both sides must be able to provide assistance to each other! As for that snake woman, she will only affect your cousin's speed in casting magic!"

"Um... wait a minute~" At this moment, Harry, who was listening from the side, couldn't help but feel that something was wrong. "What you were just talking about, Aurelius's lover... she's a Maledictus, and a... snake woman?"

"That's right, they met at a circus that smuggled Fantastic Beasts, I think," Grindelwald said casually.

"So, that Maledictus... could his name be Nagini?"

"How did you know?" Grindelwald raised an eyebrow. "Did Albus tell you?"

"I'd rather I hadn't known..."