The Summoning of the Resurrection Stone

The Box World, the Magic Research Lab.

After separating the ring and the Resurrection Stone, Lucien placed the golden ring, which was the main body of the Horcrux, into a sealed gold box, added several sealing spells to the surface of the box, and then put it deep inside the storage cabinet.

He needs to study that Horcrux slowly, and peeling off or destroying the soul fragments without damaging the main body of the amulet is a delicate task.

After doing all this, his gaze fell on the pure black gem floating on the table.

Resurrection Stone.

One of the Deathly Hallows.

Lucien had always been curious about this legendary item, but he had never dared to try it before because of the curse on the ring.

However, now that the gem has been completely separated, the curse remains on the gold ring, and the Resurrection Stone itself is untouched—that worry is naturally gone.

Reaching out and picking up the Resurrection Stone, the black gemstone felt slightly cool to the touch and was lighter than it looked. Its surface was smooth, without any patterns or scratches, like a drop of solidified ink.

According to legend, turning a stone three times in your hand can summon the soul of the deceased.

Lucien held the gem between his fingers, about to turn it, but his finger stopped halfway.

A problem suddenly loomed before me.

Whom does he want to summon?

This Deathly Hallows typically summons deceased relatives, lovers, or close friends.

Legend has it that Peverell summoned his fiancée, while in the original story, Harry summoned his parents and godfather.

Lucien's finger remained suspended in mid-air, not moving for a long time.

In his previous life, he was born an orphan and grew up in an orphanage, and as an adult, he had very little connection with society.

Among the people who left a deep impression on me and whom I am certain have passed away, the only ones I can recall are the old director of the orphanage and my master's thesis advisor—one who sheltered him during his childhood, and the other who guided him throughout his life.

However, whether the Resurrection Stone can transcend the boundaries of different worlds to summon souls remains an unknown...

Lucien pursed his lips and tried to summon the figures of his two elders one by one, but nothing happened.

This made him sigh; after all, they were two different worlds...

As for the past ten years or so since I came to the magical world.

Two figures flashed through Lucien's mind, blurry outlines he had never truly seen before: his parents in this life, who had passed away when he was young, leaving behind only photographs, images, and descriptions from others.

I tried to visualize them in my mind, but that was all I could manage.

Lucien quickly dismissed the option; even if he were to summon them, he wouldn't know what to say.

After a moment's thought, the image of another person came to mind.

That person had no connection to family, nor could they be considered a friend.

But the person's image was vivid and concrete enough to be used to verify the mechanism of the Resurrection Stone.

Lucien clearly pictured that face in his mind—

At the same time, hold the Resurrection Stone between your fingertips and slowly rotate it.

One lap.

Two laps.

Three laps.

The moment the Resurrection Stone completed its third rotation, a semi-illusory figure appeared before him without warning, without a sound, as if the figure had been standing there from the very beginning, only now that his eyes could see it.

He was a handsome man with delicate features and a head of blond hair that still shone even in death. He wore the iconic forget-me-not blue robe, with two Winky badges pinned to his collar—one for the Witch Weekly's Most Charming Smile Award, and the other for the Order of Merlin, Third Class.

He stood there, his lips curving into a perfect arc, revealing a set of teeth that had been praised by countless witches.

"Ah, I knew someone would need me--"

Phantom opened his arms wide, his tone exaggerated yet fluent, as if he were standing on the stage of a book signing.

"--Even after his death, Gilderoy Lockhart's charm remains irreplaceable."

Lucien did not respond to the flamboyant opening remarks, but narrowed his eyes slightly, scrutinizing the illusion before him as an observer.

The summoned deceased exist in a semi-physical form.

He was more real than a ghost—a ghost is silvery-white and transparent, with a damp, chilling quality; but the "Lockhart" before him had colors closer to those of a living person, and his blond hair even retained a faint sheen.

Yet he was more ethereal than a real living person—light seemed to penetrate his outline slightly, and when he was still, very faint ripples would appear at his edges, like the last ripples spreading after a drop of ink falls into clear water.

Even without receiving any response, Lockhart remained unaffected, withdrawing his outstretched arms, elegantly slipping one hand into his robe pocket, and flicking his blond hair with the other, continuing to speak as if nothing had happened.

"You know," Lockhart's voice trembled slightly, a subtle, almost imperceptible fluctuation, "I've imagined many different endings for myself. Each one could appear in the final chapter of a bestseller—heroic, tragic, tear-jerking... but I never imagined it would be like this."

He paused, and a barely perceptible crack appeared in his perfect smile.

"Does this mean that writers aren't suited to be protagonists?"

It's still Lockhart's flamboyant tone; it's still Gilderoy Lockhart, who never forgets his self-performation.

But after those few simple words, Lucien sensed something else—a sense of alienation not belonging to the living, a faint self-examination that only appears after death has filtered it.

With the help of his Patronus's enhanced perception of souls, Lucien discovered that the phantom before him possessed a certain soul quality, but it was also strange, as if it were mixed with something else...

After some discussion and observation, Lucien was able to make a general confirmation.

The "Lockhart" before us may be based on a portion of the original owner's soul, combined with relevant impressions extracted from the holder's memories by the Resurrection Stone —for example, what Lockhart looked like in Lucien's memories, the "Lockhart" summoned by the Resurrection Stone will emphasize those characteristics.

His image, his tone of voice, and his personality are largely based on Lucien's perception of him.

As for those self-deprecating remarks that Lockhart probably wouldn't have uttered during his lifetime, perhaps they were simply the true nature of his soul, or perhaps some kind of post-mortem reflection...

However, it seems that the Resurrection Stone cannot pull back the true soul from the other side, or rather, the original complete soul.

The key point is that the Resurrection Stone cannot actually bring the dead back to life, as its name suggests.

The person who was summoned does not belong to this side.

Lockhart's smile carried a tranquility that seemed otherworldly, as if he were standing far, far away, peering down through an invisible veil.

That calm was closer to a kind of indifference—the indifference of the dead.

Lucien recalled the legend that after the second brother, Will, summoned his fiancée back, it was because her eyes always held that veil of detachment that he could never truly feel her warmth, which ultimately led him to choose suicide in despair, thus truly being with her.

Looking at Lockhart, who was still admiring himself, Lucien suddenly felt that this Deathly Hallows was somewhat ironic.

Of the three Deathly Hallows, the Elder Wand is powerful, and the Invisibility Cloak is good for survival—both are top-tier equipment that protagonists in any story would dream of.

And what about the Resurrection Stone?

It seems to bring only increased pain.

The dead return, yet are separated by a veil, untouchable, unretainable; their very existence serves as a reminder—you have lost them forever.

It seems rather pointless no matter how you look at it; in fact, you could say the negative effects outweigh the positive ones.

But Lucien had a gut feeling that the Resurrection Stone, bearing the name of the Deathly Hallows, shouldn't be so weighty, and compared to the other two equally renowned artifacts, it shouldn't be so insignificant.

Perhaps the Resurrection Stone has deeper applications? Perhaps it just needs to be explored or triggered by a chance encounter?