Come on, Tom, let's hurt each other

After encountering Lucius in the courtyard, the group's mood was somewhat affected. They returned to the castle in silence and then went to their respective common rooms.

Ron was still not discharged from the hospital the next day.

However, according to the Slytherin people, Malfoy seems to have been taken away by his father, apparently to St Mungo's's.

Kyle didn't seem to care.

He has more important things to do today.

After breakfast, Fred and George were taken by Oliver Wood to Quidditch training.

Kyle then went to the Room of Requirement on the Seventh Floor and spent the whole morning transferring all the Mooncalf and some of the plants there into his own box.

Plants with slow growth cycles, such as those with Venomous Tentacula, remained untouched.

These plant seeds were compensation from the Ministry of Magic last year, and only a year has passed, so they are still in the germination stage. The special properties of the Room of Requirement allow them to grow better.

There's plenty of time later, no need to rush...

After transferring the last Mooncalf, Kyle returned to the small house at the entrance of the box.

But instead of leaving, he took a box from under the bed.

After seeing Lucius Malfoy yesterday, Kyle remembered that he hadn't looked at that diary since Fawkes's last visit.

I wonder how Riddle is doing...

Kyle took out the dragon blood he had bought from Diagon Alley, poured it into an empty ink bottle, and then added some water.

Dragon blood is so expensive, let's save some money if we can.

Only after he had done all this did he open the diary.

Soon, a line of faint writing appeared.

[Sorry, I haven't recovered yet.]

For some reason, my mana regeneration speed is extremely slow.

"It's alright, I've found dragon blood."

Kyle wrote a line of red text on it with a quill pen.

This line of text was quickly absorbed.

About a few seconds later...

[Strange, it is indeed dragon blood, but why is there so little magic power in it?]

"I don't know..." Kyle wrote. "I bought it in Diagon Alley."

[Then you chose the wrong shop; this isn't genuine dragon blood.]

"Is it useless to you?"

[Although the effect was much worse, it was still useful.]

These characters are much clearer than before.

Kyle nodded to himself. As long as it's useful, why ask for so much more?

After the Riddle brand reading machine was relaunched, Kyle continued to ask about the arrangement of Ancient Runes...

But Riddle's mind wasn't on that; he was preoccupied with what Kyle had said earlier.

Who exactly is this person... who could so easily kill an enemy that even Dumbledore found troublesome?

And that strangely named dark wizard that Kyle mentioned is very likely him in the future.

The Dumbledore could find troublesome is... and can only be him; no one else is qualified.

He was eager to know more, and the reasons for his failure.

After patiently answering Kyle's questions, Riddle couldn't hold back any longer.

[I remember you said before that someone was stronger than Dumbledore, is that true?]

[Also... what's his name? Is he from my generation?]

Kyle looked up from the pile of symbols and Ancient Runes, glanced at the diary, and casually wrote on it:

"Are you very concerned about this?"

[I was just too curious.]

Riddle replied.

[After all, in my memory, Professor Dumbledore has always been the strongest, and he is the goal I strive to catch up with.]

[Ever since you said someone had surpassed him, I've been thinking about this.]

"No wonder, I noticed your answers were much slower than usual just now."

[There's nothing I can do about it; I really have a hard time concentrating.]

"Yes, I understand..."

Kyle looked at the permutation formulas for several combinations that he had just written down on the parchment, and tapped his finger lightly on the table.

Although this arrangement looks normal and is no different from the previous ones, coincidentally, Kyle has seen two of the symbols before.

It is clearly stated in Nicolas Flamel's alchemical books that the symbols representing "light" and "touch" must never be directly linked; there must be a buffer between them.

Otherwise, there's a 90% chance that the alchemical items you create will explode.

Was this intentional?

It was still an accident...

Kyle hesitated for a moment and then didn't say anything.

It's no use saying anything; Riddle can easily make an excuse that he was thinking about something else and was momentarily distracted.

Moreover, if he knew that I had read books related to alchemy, he would definitely be more discreet when he tried to do something malicious.

That's troublesome...

Kyle sighed, lightly scratched the parchment, and casually used tongs to scoop some nutrients for the Venomous Tentacula from a nearby iron bucket, tossing them into the ink bottle and stirring.

Then he dipped his quill in some fresh "ink" and wrote:

"I'm sorry, Tom, I was just joking with you before. The person who killed that dark wizard wasn't as strong as Headmaster Dumbledore."

[It was just a joke... but I knew it all along.]

Riddle's handwriting was clearer.

[I knew it, no one could be better than Professor Dumbledore...]

"No, Tom, you're wrong."

Kyle wrote, "In fact, Headmaster Dumbledore doesn't even rank second."

[What?]

"I was afraid you wouldn't be able to accept it before, but now I've decided to tell you the truth..."

In fact, there are many reclusive families in the Wizarding World. They have been passed down for thousands of years and possess unparalleled power, capable of moving mountains and filling seas with ease.

However, members of these families almost never appear before ordinary wizards, but silently protect the safety of the Wizarding World from the shadows.

This is impossible!

[If that's really the case, then why did I only encounter mediocre people when I was in school?]

Riddle's handwriting was so messy that it was all connected together.

"They won't be attending Hogwarts; it's all family tradition... I know it's hard for you to believe, but it's true."

This time, Riddle did not reply.

Much later, writing reappeared in the diary.

[If that's the case, how did you know?]

"Many people already know..."

"It was more than ten years ago, that dark wizard named Ground Bat... His subordinates were too arrogant, once shouting in front of many people, 'My lord, the Dark Lord, has the appearance of a god of magic,' which angered those people."

Then an old man appeared, wielding a two-handed sword, and hacked the so-called Dark Lord half to death.

The diary fell silent for a long time once again.

[And then what happened to the Dark Lord?]

"It was probably only a few days later when he died at the hands of an infant; that's the only news about it that's been reported."

As he spoke, Kyle pasted the newspaper clippings he had prepared beforehand into his diary.

Ten more minutes passed...

"Tom, Tom, are you still there?"

This time, the diary seemed to be broken, completely unresponsive.