Nagini Awakens
Seeing Nagini return to human form, Xiwen finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Then, he clasped his hands together, dispelling the green light and simultaneously closing the Eye of Agamotto.
Only then did Aurelius, who had been extremely nervous and longing for Nagini, rush over and squat down next to her.
"Nagini, are you alright?" he asked in a trembling voice.
Seemingly having heard Aurelius's question, Nagini opened her eyes, then noticed the ropes binding her, and looked extremely confused.
Dumbledore casually waved his hand, dispersing the ropes that had bound the serpent's body and remained even after he returned to human form.
Looking at the rope that remained unchanged despite the influence of time energy, Xiwen's eye twitched, and he asked Dumbledore, "How can this rope you conjure be unaffected by time?"
"It's a little trick," Dumbledore smiled and said to Xiwen. "By covering the surface of this rope with an anti-spell that blocks spells, it will be immune to any magical influence."
"But this is the power of time..." Xiwen said, somewhat bewildered. He had always thought that the power of time could supersede magic, but according to Dumbledore, anti-magic spells could actually block out the effects of time.
"But you can't deny that the power of time that we can utilize must also fall under the category of magic, Xiwen," Dumbledore said enigmatically.
While Xiwen and Dumbledore talking, Nagini gradually regained his senses and sat up somewhat dazedly.
"Credence, where am I?" she asked, looking at Aurelius blankly.
In Nagini's heart, Aurelius was still Credence, the man who kept her company in the circus.
"We're at home." Aurelius glanced instinctively at Aberforth beside him, a gentle smile on his face, and said to Nagini, "My name is now Aurelius Dumbledore."
"Hello, Nagini," Aberforth said, trying to soften his smile. "I am Aberforth Dumbledore, father of Aurelius."
Nagini's eyes widened, and she asked incredulously, "Credence, oh no, Aurelius, have you really found your family?"
"If you're not used to it, just call me Credence." Aurelius nodded heavily, a smile appearing on his face, but the smile quickly turned somber. "It's all my fault. I was too fixated on finding my family, and I left you all alone."
"If I hadn't been so willful, maybe you wouldn't have had to go through such great danger..."
Upon hearing his words, Nagini once again looked bewildered.
"Did I experience any danger...?" she asked, somewhat puzzled.
"What was your last memory before you woke up?" Dumbledore asked, stepping forward after seeing Nagini's reaction.
Nagini seemed somewhat disoriented; the search for her memories was giving her a severe headache, and she couldn't help but furrow her brow.
"If you can't remember, don't force yourself," Dumbledore said.
Nagini shook his head, frowning, and said, "I remember, I wanted to go to Indonesia alone to find out my origins, but I had no money and no magic like Apparition, so I could only walk there slowly."
"While passing through a forest, I happened to witness someone performing an evil magic ritual. At that moment, all the trees in the forest turned black and withered, and the surrounding animals were sucked dry, turning into mummies—it was incredibly eerie."
Upon hearing this, Xiwen's expression suddenly hardened, and he exchanged a glance with Dumbledore.
This happened in Albania forest, and it seems that Nagini was indeed in Albania before losing consciousness.
"Later, in a panic, my whereabouts were discovered by the person performing the magical ritual," Nagini said, clutching her forehead in pain. "Then he struck me with a powerful spell, and after that, I seemed to have forgotten a long period of my memory until I woke up here."
Then, as if suddenly realizing something, she grabbed Aurelius's hand and asked urgently, "Credence, what year is it?!"
Aurelius glanced at Aberforth with a somewhat stiff expression.
After Aberforth nodded slowly, he said to Nagini in a somber tone, "It is now the beginning of 1939..."
"So I've been trapped inside a snake's body for all these years...?" Upon learning the current timeline, Nagini collapsed to the ground, saying weakly.
Seeing this, Dumbledore sighed deeply.
He then gave Xiwen a look and walked out of the area that had been expanded by the Undetectable Extension Charm.
Xiwen followed Dumbledore out of the Hog's Head's basement, leaving the space to Aurelius two companions.
Dumbledore stepped out of the wooden door to the basement and went straight to the counter outside, where he poured himself a glass of Butterbeer.
"Would you like a drink?" he asked Xiwen.
Xiwen looked at the stained glasses and the rag used to clean them that hadn't been washed in who knows how many years, and shook his head with a twitching smile.
"Thank you, but I'm still a minor, so I won't drink alcoholic beverages," Xiwen said stiffly.
Dumbledore didn't seem to care, casually took a sip, and said, "Xiwen, explain to me again in detail how you used Animagus Transformation to break the Maledictus Blood Curse."
"You want Nagini to solve the Blood Curse problem using my method?" Xiwen asked, frowning. "But as far as I know, Nagini has never had any systematic training in magic. With her Transformation skills, can she really complete the Animagus Transformation?"
"Nagini certainly didn't receive systematic training in magic," Dumbledore said with a slight nod. "But she became a Maledictus from a very young age, and her experience with Human Transformation and her ability to resist animalistic instincts are probably greater than anyone else's."
"Therefore, with just a little learning and guidance, I have no doubt that Nagini can successfully undergo the Animagus Transformation!"
Xiwen nodded knowingly.
He then thought for a moment, took out a small box from his Pocket Watch Space, and handed it to Dumbledore.
"These are the materials prepared for the Animagus Transformation. I prepared a bit too much and didn't use it all," Xiwen said with a smile.
"Now we don't have to waste them; Nagini can use them during the Animagus Transformation!"