Non-Existence

What kind of wizard was Dumbledore in the wizarding world?

Before the Daily Prophet on Dudley's affairs, not many wizards knew about his unruly and scandalous youth.

As for Dumbledore not getting married, that's perfectly normal. Powerful wizards can imagine anything in their minds, making it both realistic and vivid.

But now, every wizard knows about Dumbledore and Grindelwald's affair. So, Harry and his friends don't have time to think about it too much.

It's worth noting that even Sirius, who was present and knew Dumbledore's true intentions, couldn't help but have doubts and even harbored murderous intent.

"I think I'll explain it to them," Sirius said, but for some reason, he had a gloating smile on his face.

"They all know I came to examine Regulus's body, don't they?" Dumbledore keenly noticed this from their expressions.

However, he wasn't in a hurry at all. To be honest, he had long been used to these things ever since Harry's childhood and Dudley's deeds were featured in the Daily Prophet.

It's worth noting that even Newt's wife, Tina, wrote a letter about this—she suspected her husband of having an inappropriate intimate relationship with Dumbledore.

The other professors at Hogwarts were the same; if you were to say who wasn't affected by these reports, Hagrid would probably be the only one.

Hagrid firmly believed that these were all lies fabricated by Rita Skeeter, Dumbledore even thought that if Rita Skeeter appeared before Hagrid would probably tear her apart.

"Then let's just go out—" As Sirius asked the question, Dumbledore pushed open the door and walked out naturally.

As for Regulus, he's definitely staying in the main room.

This is not Sirius thinks others dislike his brother and is preparing to isolate him from others.

Instead, he discovered that Regulus preferred dark environments, even more so than himself and Kreacher.

Regarding eating, Sirius also discovered that it was not necessary for Regulus. He ate only because of the residual memories in his body. According to Sirius's measurements, the energy Regulus gained from eating was not as much as he gained from staying in the dark room for an hour.

Now, even Kreacher stopped demanding that he cook for his favorite young master Regulus every day.

Conversely, as soon as Regulus steps out, Kreacher will suddenly appear and turn off all the lights in Regulus's path.

So Sirius mustered his courage and followed Dumbledore's tall, thin figure into the living room, which was decorated like a fairyland in the woods.

In the living room, the long square table was now laden with delicious food—a Phoenix cake that was now sizzling, Kreacher's signature French onion soup, boiled potatoes, a variety of tempting and abundant stews, Treacle Tart, and steak and kidney tarts.

Meanwhile, Ron, who should have been enjoying his meal, was idly playing with his fork.

It seems that even he understood that he couldn't eat before the others, namely Dumbledore and Sirius, arrived and the room was full.

No wonder Ron opened the door first—his stomach couldn't wait.

"Professor, Sirius, you've arrived!" Ron greeted them eagerly.

It was as if he had completely forgotten what had just happened.

"Is Regulus alright?" Harry displayed the high emotional intelligence he had learned over the years at the Dursley family, using Regulus as an excuse to gloss over the awkward moment that had just occurred.

This also brings up the main point—I know that Dumbledore examined Regulus's body when he came.

"He's alright!" Sirius couldn't help but say with a smile.

Although the scene was embarrassing, the news that Regulus was alright brought a smile to his face.

"Great! X3!"

"Now you won't have to get up so early every day!" Harry and the others said to Lupin.

"Thank goodness! My former master's only legitimate heir—Young Master Regulus— is unharmed!"

"Kreacher needs to speak with the mistress!" Kreacher vanished from the spot.

Sirius, who was expelled from the orthodoxy, didn't care at all; on the contrary, he even clapped his hands.

"Hmm, Sirius has been getting up early these past few days to prepare for my birthday, hasn't he?" Harry realized the blind spot.

"No, it's also because of Regulus. I couldn't sleep because of him!" Sirius said in a light tone.

Now that Regulus is well, everything feels like a gentle breeze to him.

"Why wasn't Regulus wearing clothes just now?" Sure enough, it was Ron.

Sirius's face darkened—no, except for what just happened!

Fortunately, even Draco, being Ron's friend, learned to cover for him and change the subject, "What's the situation with Regulus?"

"It seems he doesn't need to eat, and he can't be exposed to light."

Seeing this, Dumbledore, who was already seated at the table, readily agreed and said, "Regulus's condition is quite remarkable."

"The wizard's magic manifested in another form within him."

"It seems to be able to extract some substance from the dark environment to sustain its survival," Dumbledore said with a smile.

"Just like Boggart?"

"Boggart likes to live in dark, narrow spaces—in closets, under beds, in sinks, and in storage cabinets under desks. Oh, and in grandfather clocks too."

"My dad said they also like dark corners," Ron answered, raising his hand with a broad smile.

Since Dumbledore touched the fork, it meant he could eat as much as he wanted.

Even Dumbledore had lived for over a hundred years, was stunned for a moment. He couldn't believe that even when he touched his fork to remind Ron that it was time to eat, he couldn't shut him up.

To compare Boggart to Regulus is like pointing at a baby girl and saying she's female like a dog.

Harry and Draco glared at each other.

Sirius was both amused and exasperated.

Lupin began to doubt again whether Ron was Arthur's son.

"No, the Boggart has never truly lived either. It is a strange non-existence in the magical world—beyond life and death."

"Therefore, they are neither born nor die. They arise from human emotions and feed on those emotions. They are constantly appearing. In short, they grow like fungi in decaying places."

"Take Dementors, for example. All known non-beings can fly without physical assistance, something wizards can hardly do," Dumbledore emphasized.

Harry noticed that it was almost impossible, and he began to wonder—could Dumbledore fly like Ryan? "And Regulus is alive; he has his own life, unlike non-beings—that is, fungi in the Wizarding World," Dumbledore concluded.

"Oh, I see." Ron said, picking up a pie and eating it.

He seemed unaware that he had just said something quite inappropriate.

He should also be thankful that Kreacher wasn't there. Otherwise, he would have gone from being Harry's friend to the son of Pure-blood traitor.