I Saw Hope for the Future

"Dumbledore, have you finally gone mad?"

Ignoring the cutting remarks of the portrait he had awakened, Dumbledore gently stroked his well-groomed beard.

Everyone said Dumbledore was the greatest wizard and would defeat Voldemort just as he had defeated Grindelwald. Voldemort did indeed fear Dumbledore's power.

But Dumbledore knew very well that Voldemort would not be so easy to deal with.

Voldemort was different from Grindelwald. Voldemort had no bottom line, and judging by the unrecognizable state he had transformed himself into, his mastery of Dark Magic was already extraordinarily profound.

Dumbledore believed that, in the realm of Dark Magic, Voldemort was even more skilled than Grindelwald.

The methods available to a wizard with no bottom line and mastery of Dark Magic were impossible to predict. Dumbledore had to find an opportunity to kill Voldemort in one stroke, or he would likely be the one to die.

He was only a wizard. Of course he could die.

But he did not dare die, because he could not see anyone in the Wizarding World who would be capable of defeating Voldemort after his death.

If it had been some other powerful dark wizard, Dumbledore might not have felt such immense pressure. He would not have needed to worry about what came after his death. To be honest, he was not truly afraid of death.

Or rather, living no longer held quite so much appeal for him.

But Voldemort was different, because Voldemort was something he had created with his own hands. It was he who had given Voldemort that misguided instruction, and he had also failed to correct him in time or capture him during his school years.

Therefore, to ensure that he could kill Voldemort, he had never engaged Voldemort in a life-or-death confrontation. Before he saw hope in a successor, he had not even dared take that risk.

But fortunately, he had finally seen it... hope for the future.

Dumbledore looked out the window. At the end of the horizon, the setting sun was clearly sinking slowly, yet Dumbledore seemed to see a rising sun ascending on the other side of the world.

"Manus, how did you do it?"

At King Family Manor, the guests had already departed. The family could finally have a proper dinner and fill their stomachs, which had long since begun protesting—what respectable person actually ate at a dinner party?

Even Manus, who had the advantage of being young enough to eat freely during the banquet, had missed his meal because he had enjoyed his conversation with Dumbledore so much.

And that was what puzzled the family. Why had Dumbledore spoken with Manus alone for so long?

"What do you mean, how did I do it?"

After taking a bite of his birthday cake, Manus tilted his head, looking as though he had no idea what they were talking about.

"I was reading when Professor Dumbledore came over to talk to me. We discussed books, and Professor Dumbledore also introduced Hogwarts to me."

"..."

Manus's answer left the family exchanging looks. It did not seem as though there was anything noteworthy about it.

Could Dumbledore really have simply been in the mood to chat with a future Hogwarts student?

Or had Dumbledore wanted to stay throughout the event but had no desire to discuss matters such as business and interests with them, so he had simply chatted with Manus to pass the time?

Having each arrived at what they believed was the correct answer, the family finally turned their attention back to the important matter before them—their dinner.

Though birthday cake and grilled meat patties were a somewhat strange combination, the experience was surprisingly good. As long as the two completely different flavors were not stuffed into the mouth at the same time, each instead highlighted the distinct presence of the other.

As the central feature of the birthday banquet, Manus's birthday cake had been made exceptionally large. The three-tier frosted cake held far greater significance as a display and symbol than as food itself.

No one had eaten cake at the banquet, but as they left, every guest had taken a piece as a symbol of sharing in the joy—including Dumbledore, who had taken a large slice. From how delighted he looked, Manus felt that he genuinely wanted to eat the cake.

However, not everyone liked cake, and the cake truly was too large. Even though all the guests had taken at least a small piece out of courtesy, and the family had then eaten dinner, the entire top tier still remained.

Well, an intact cake that, in Manus's opinion, was enough for a family of three for at least two meals.

"Take it home and eat it slowly. You'll finish it in a day or two."

Grandfather and Grandmother had no intention of keeping any of the cake for themselves. Instead, they urged Griffin to take the whole thing away.

"Uh..."

Griffin hesitated.

"Let me take it back. I can share it with Severus."

Manus took the initiative and packed up the cake.

As each other's only friend of the same age and neighbors besides, Manus and Severus naturally never missed one another's birthdays.

In previous years, Manus's family would celebrate his birthday outside at noon, then invite Severus over in the evening for a birthday dinner and cake. Looking back, it had been quite heartwarming.

As for this year's birthday...

Manus could only say that while he had gained a great deal from it, it had not really felt like a birthday.

He had originally planned to use this birthday banquet to meet other young wizards his age and broaden his understanding of children in this age group. Using Severus as his only reference might lead to some bias.

But he did not know whether the news that Dumbledore, the headmaster, would attend had frightened them away, or whether the situation outside had truly become so severe that wizards no longer dared bring their children to such prearranged gatherings.

In any case, Manus had not met any peers at the birthday banquet. Severus remained his only friend of the same age.

Manus had no trouble accepting that. More friends certainly meant more samples for comparison, but maintaining friendships was often tiring, especially friendships with children.

Given Manus's life experience, children as mild-mannered and polite as Severus were rare.

On the carriage ride home, Manus closed his eyes and leaned against Aivina's shoulder. He appeared to have been too active all day to resist his drowsiness, but in truth, he was organizing the gains he had made today.

First, he had gained his parents' approval, obtained his own wand, and could now cast spells openly.

Regarding that, he needed to keep an eye on his learning progress. Even if he could cast spells, he could not perform too outrageously.

Second, he had acquired the vast store of knowledge in the King Family's library. In Charms alone, he would not need to actively seek out relevant materials again until he enrolled at Hogwarts.

There was one small matter regarding that which needed attention. When acquiring knowledge related to Dark Magic, Manus had discovered that his magic seemed inexhaustible. That would require further verification.

Finally... there had been the little unexpected incident that occurred during his conversation with Dumbledore.