Draco snorted with laughter and deliberately stomped his feet, gloating as he called out,
"Crabbe, Goyle! Let's go to the Great Hall! We've got flying class later, so we'd better eat plenty!"
For the first time, Salazar wondered whether this young descendant of his was too kind.
Why was he foolish enough to let such an incompetent fraud waste his time?
That wasn't Slytherin at all!
Had the Sorting Hat gone mad? It should have put the boy in Hufflepuff!
Quirrell had no desire to get entangled with the Muggle Crown Prince Dumbledore was keeping an eye on and draw unnecessary attention to himself.
But just as he was about to refuse, the Dark Lord on the back of his head said shrilly, Agree! Take him to an empty classroom!
The Muggle Crown Prince Dumbledore is watching... heh, then let me lead him astray! Let's see how that old bumblebee dares preach virtue after that!
Allen felt helpless too. Who could have known that a polite remark would lead to this?
It was just a polite remark!
Professor Quirrell, do you know what a polite remark means?
With no other choice, Allen kept his air-freshening charm active and followed Quirrell toward the Hospital Wing.
Who would have thought Quirrell would instead take him to an empty classroom on the sixth floor?
The classroom occupied an awkward spot, accessible by only two staircases: one led to the library, while the other came from the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom.
If anything happened, it would take quite a while to get help.
Allen's gaze darkened, and he stopped. "Professor, this doesn't seem to be the way to the Hospital Wing."
Quirrell felt like crying too. He was, after all, causing trouble right under Dumbledore's nose.
As if that weren't enough, his master had raised the stakes by making him go after this entirely unnecessary target, the Muggle Crown Prince.
Fool! What do you know?
Allen watched in puzzlement as Quirrell hunched his shoulders inside the classroom. Warily, he took another step back, placing himself squarely in the doorway.
"Professor, is there something you wanted to discuss with me?"
Quirrell sniffled, his face contorted. "Y-yes..."
Allen had already discreetly gripped his wand. The moment Quirrell made any suspicious move,
he would hit him with Tarantallegra, follow it with Relashio, then retreat at once.
Suddenly, Quirrell grew calm. He looked up at Allen, his whole bearing becoming elegant and composed.
He straightened his robes, sat on a desk in the empty classroom, and beckoned to Allen. "Allen, come here!"
Allen grew even more wary. "Professor?"
...Was this a split personality?
He wondered to himself.
The man before him chuckled softly and lowered his arm.
"I know you're wary of me, but don't worry-what could I possibly do to you right under Dumbledore's nose?"
He toyed with his wand.
"The moment I attacked you, he'd probably throw me out of Hogwarts."
Allen's lips twitched, and he replied diplomatically, "...What reason would you have to attack me?"
"Quirrell" laughed loudly, but there was nothing hearty about it. Instead, it sounded sinister and chilling.
He said, "Allen, you're the most gifted person I've ever met...
"So clever, winning every professor's favour and getting along so well with your classmates-I was the same in my day, yet all I earned was endless suspicion and wariness.
"You've never truly opened your heart to them either, have you?
"Rather than being tolerant and gentle, you're simply skilled at using your status as Crown Prince to make others do your bidding..."
Allen raised his eyes slightly, his hand stiffening around his wand. "You've misunderstood..."
"Have I?"
"Quirrell" cut him off with a smile. "Look at those fools. They suspect you because you were sorted into Slytherin...
"Even though you're the Muggle Crown Prince, even though your allegiance was set in stone from the very beginning, they still suspect you!
"Don't tell me you haven't felt Dumbledore's gaze following you like a shadow..."
The blond Crown Prince's expression did not change. He remained utterly unshaken.
"How admirable."
The man sighed. "Allen, why don't you struggle? Are you content to drift in the whirlpool of your status, give everything for them, and have your loyalty questioned again and again?"
Allen said coldly, "You're not Quirrell! Who are you?"
The man laughed delightedly. "I once stood at the pinnacle of the world, commanding it at my whim!"
"You and I are alike, Allen! Don't squander the advantages you were born with! Use your power, use your status, and seize true authority!"
Allen said nothing.
The classroom wall blocked the light, leaving half his body in darkness and his expression obscured.
The man's expression grew increasingly assured, his smile full of confidence that victory was his.
"You're wrong! I'm nothing like you."
Allen took another step back, retreating fully into the doorway.
With the wall no longer shielding him, light poured down over him, making him shiver slightly.
"Your Highness the Dark Lord, I will always uphold my position as Crown Prince, abide by the law and moral principles, and remember my duty to protect."
Allen said, "After all, I will always have somewhere to return to, while you no longer have anyone who will accept you."
Voldemort snorted. "What genius needs the acceptance of mediocrities?"
Under the fiend's control, Quirrell's voice was smooth and elegant. "Your Highness the Crown Prince! Sooner or later, you'll learn that power is everything!
"And those feelings are nothing but false illusions."
Allen said coldly, "Think whatever you like. If there's nothing else, I'll take my leave!"
He stepped completely out through the doorway, turned, and left.
Inside the classroom, Voldemort watched Allen walk away with steady composure, then withdrew into Quirrell's body.
Quirrell no longer stammered either. He asked fluently, "Master, why did you let him leave? Won't he reveal your identity?"
Voldemort's hoarse voice sounded in his mind. It was so delighted that it had even lost its shrill edge.
The voice said,
"He was already like this. He doesn't even need my guidance."
Quirrell's eyes widened in shock. "You mean?"
Voldemort said softly,
"Let us wait quietly and see what surprises this Muggle Crown Prince brings us..."
Before you continue