"Come find me! Come build a new world with me! I'm at Durmstrang..."
A flicker of surprise crossed Voldemort's eyes, his gloomy face as hard as ice on a snowy mountain.
Abnormal magical fluctuations arose around him, preventing him from finishing his sentence. The latter half of his message failed to carry through.
The first possibility that came to mind was—Dumbledore had already found him!
That truly caught him off guard. Dumbledore had found this place so quickly, and had even cast a spell on the Dark Mark, preventing him from sending messages through sound.
He could clearly tell that the spellcasting technique Dumbledore was using was one he himself had invented.
When a curse was cast through this technique, its effects would persist as long as the caster remained alive.
There was only one way to break it: end the caster's life.
"Dumbledore!" Voldemort's brows knotted together, a blade-like chill flashing in his eyes as he forced the words through clenched teeth. "You dare use my magic against me!"
Fawkes, blazing like fire, soared into the sky. A joyful cry rang out around them, its long tail shimmering with golden light as though it had illuminated the night itself.
Fawkes circled high above, while Dumbledore stood lightly in midair as though he were standing on solid ground, his robes snapping in the wind.
With a smile on his face, Dumbledore said unhurriedly, "Tom, people must keep learning. This is the result of learning. Isn't that what you did as well?"
"If not through learning, how could you have reached the state you speak of? Just as you said yourself... from soul to body, you have walked at the very forefront of the fiel—"
"Don't give me that high-minded drivel!" Voldemort snapped, cutting off Dumbledore's next words. "You know perfectly