Quirrell rose from the ground. Under Voldemort's control, he carefully removed the wizard's hat from his head, revealing the terrifying face hidden beneath it—Voldemort's face. Quirrell's face and Voldemort's face alternated back and forth, seemingly without the slightest difference between them.
"Since you brought us here, you must have had a reason. So, what is it?" Quirrell asked in a low voice.
"Tom, I came to make a deal with you." Ian spoke calmly, without the slightest hint of panic in his eyes.
"Don't call me by that damn name again," Voldemort snarled coldly.
"Oh, Tom, do you think I'm unworthy of calling you by that name?" Ian replied carelessly. "Don't forget, even if you returned to your peak, I could still stand against you."
Voldemort was silent for several seconds before finally speaking coldly. "State your purpose."
"I came to make a deal with you," Ian replied indifferently. After saying that, he did not wait for Voldemort's reaction. Instead, he took a piece of parchment from his clothes and tossed it toward Voldemort.
Voldemort did not catch the parchment with his hand. Instead, he waved his hand, summoned Quirrell's wand from where it had fallen on the ground, and used it to catch the parchment. After confirming that no curse had been placed on it, Voldemort began examining its contents.
The four corners of the parchment were decorated with exquisite designs, and several lines of writing covered its surface. More precisely, it was a magical contract.
The contract stated that Ian would reveal to Voldemort the details of the Philosopher's Stone's protective mechanisms that Dumbledore had set up at Hogwarts. In exchange, Voldemort would pass on all his magical knowledge to Ian, including his magical research, understanding, experiments, and every skill and piece of experience he possessed in the use of magic—whether in practical applications or combat.
Voldemort looked at the contract and said furiously, "Why should I sign such a thing?"
"Do you think you have a choice?" Ian said lightly. "If you refuse, I'll simply destroy you here. You may have escaped death, but in your current state, you're still no threat."
Voldemort fell silent for a while, then suddenly revealed a strange smile.
"Ian Bones, you and I are alike in many ways. We both possess an insatiable desire for power. Why don't we join forces and rule the Wizarding World together? I can teach you my method of immortality. With our strength, we could rule the entire world forever."
Ian listened to Voldemort's words with an expressionless face. He had expected Voldemort to try recruiting him. After all, Ian was exceptionally talented and came from a pure-blood family—the exact kind of person Voldemort most wanted to recruit.
"Tom, you're right. We are indeed similar in many ways," Ian replied calmly. "However, there's one way in which I'm different from you—that is, I'm more arrogant than you."
Voldemort fell silent at those words. His expression instantly darkened. Ian's words had struck the deepest pain in his heart. To Voldemort, his past "resurrection from death" had left him unable to tolerate anyone surpassing him. Yet the wizard standing before him was clearly even more arrogant, daring to challenge his authority.
"If you can find a way to escape death, do you think I can't do the same? What's more, I can achieve it through my own power." Ian spoke indifferently, his tone filled with undisguised confidence.
Voldemort froze. A trace of unease flashed through his heart. Ian's words were not baseless. As a genius of the Wizarding World, if Ian devoted himself to researching death, his intelligence would surely allow him to find his own method of immortality.
Voldemort lowered his head and looked at the contract. If the choice were his alone, he naturally would not want to sign such a contract. It meant that he would lose all his magical knowledge and achievements, including the Horcrux Creation Method, which he regarded as vitally important. It was a secret he had never told anyone—not even his most loyal follower, Bellatrix Lestrange, knew of it.
However, Voldemort knew very well that if he refused to sign the contract, his situation would become even more dangerous. He would be unable to escape this place, and his chance at the Philosopher's Stone would be lost forever.
More importantly, if wizards across the world learned that he was alive but in such a miserable state, he would face endless pursuit. The wizards who had once opposed him would certainly hunt him down with all their might.
As for his followers, Voldemort no longer trusted them. Without his overwhelming power to suppress them, they were destined not to remain loyal to him.
Although Voldemort was not afraid of death, he did not want to continue living in such an ugly form.
After deep contemplation, an idea suddenly flashed through Voldemort's mind. If he could successfully carry out this plan, he could obtain everything without paying too great a price.
Before you continue