Chapter 328 Resurrection Stone

"Ah, Henry." Dumbledore raised his eyes and looked at the door, "Come in, come in. Find a chair." He put the quill aside, rolled up the parchment, and tapped the table lightly. The silver kettle that Anthony was already familiar with flew to the table and began to boil water on its own.

"I hope I didn't disturb you too much, sir."

"How could it be?" Dumbledore said with a smile, "In fact, I have been looking forward to someone visiting me since this morning to bring some healthy fresh air to me and this pile of papers. Fresh air is very important. Important, especially when all I had was a cold omelette - but I guess you came to me for another reason?"

"Yes, sir." Anthony nodded and put the newspaper ball in his hand on the table.

Dumbledore looked at it and then at Anthony with polite curiosity. He scooped a few spoonfuls of tea from a small jar and put it into a ceramic teapot.

"Monsieur and Madame Flamel ended their adventure," Anthony explained. "Before returning to their leisurely daily life, they decided to put their troubles away, so I received this package."

He unfolded the newspaper to reveal the ring.

"This thing is a bit evil, sir." Anthony turned the ring over and showed Dumbledore the black stone on it. "It does not belong to any necromancy I know, but it seems to have something to do with necromancy. Other than that , there is another thing related to the soul, very weak - sir? "

Dumbledore stared at the ring intently, his whole body as still as a sculpture. The water boiled, and the kettle trembled slightly with the gurgling water, and streams of steam came out of the spout.

"Professor Dumbledore?"

Dumbledore blinked slowly a few times, closed the lid of the ceramic teapot, took off his glasses, lowered his head and wiped the lenses. The kettle shook relentlessly.

"So," Dumbledore said without looking at Anthony, the jug or the ring, "what do you think this is, Henry?"

"I don't know," said Anthony. "Maybe it's like Mr. Flamel said, not that good, but not that bad. I just think it's... weird."

"strangeness?"

"It's not the part related to necromancy, sir, but the thing related to the soul. It makes me feel..." Anthony hesitated, "Not good."

In fact, Anthony quite likes the gem itself. The familiar yet unfamiliar magical power vaguely surrounded the stone, seeping quietly from every crack in it, making him feel an inexplicable, warm, and light joy, almost akin to dizziness. But that weak soul power lingers near the stone, as if the rotting smell of the garbage pile comes with the evening wind, lingering and lingering, disturbing the pleasure of walking on the shore.

"And the part related to necromancy..." Dumbledore said softly.

"Oh, that part is pretty good to me. But that's one of the reasons why I came to you." Anthony said somewhat self-deprecatingly, "Considering that I am a dark wizard, I think this probably means that it is also What dark magic item."

Dumbledore smiled slightly, still staring down at his half-moon glasses.

"No, Henry, it's not. It's not a dark magic item... Ah, how interesting that treasures often favor those who ignore them and disdain those who desire them." He finally put his glasses back on On the bridge of his nose, he looked at the ring in Anthony's hand, "What's that about?"

Anthony knew he was referring to the cracks in the stone.

"Maybe it was broken." Anthony said, "You said it is not a black magic item? However, I remember someone told me that anything involving life, death and souls is black magic."

Dumbledore shook his head, still staring at the ring: "It should be difficult to break."

"what is it?"

The kettle finally gave up and stopped spitting out steam.

Dumbledore hesitated and stretched out his hand: "Can I take a closer look at it?"

"It's best not to. Undead magic and its relatives should not be a good thing for living people." Anthony said, "But if you insist..."

He handed the ring to Dumbledore, but before Dumbledore could touch the ring, he suddenly withdrew his finger. Anthony looked at the person sitting across from him and let out a long sigh, leaning back in his chair.

"No, forget it. It's better not to." Dumbledore murmured. Anthony was surprised to notice how conspicuous Dumbledore's silver beard and wrinkles were. For the first time in a long time, he looked almost as old as he was.

"What's the matter, sir?"

Dumbledore did not answer him immediately, but continued to stare at the ring, as if listening to the fierce quarrel in his heart.

Fawkes suddenly flew down from the top of the cabinet, landed on the arm of Dumbledore's chair, and rested his head gently on his arm. Dumbledore looked away, looked at Fawkes, raised his other hand, and slowly stroked its head.

"Would you call that wise, Fox?" he asked softly, "or cowardly, after all this time?"

Fox chirped softly and gracefully, like some kind of song. Anthony sat on a chair and listened quietly with Dumbledore.

No one moved as the last note shivered and faded into the air. The portraits on the walls were also quiet, and no sound of sleeping snores or long breathing could be heard. Fox lowered his head and straightened his feathers.

Dumbledore wiped his eyes quickly.

"Ah, music," he said, and then, without warning, "Have you ever heard of the Resurrection Stone, Henry?"

"What?" Anthony said, "Well, no, sir, but I guess that's what it's called." He turned the ring halfway, turned the black stone toward himself, and looked down, "But, that's not Maybe—did you mean—"

"I suspect it is exactly what we suspect it is," said Dumbledore softly. "Yes, I am almost certain."

Anthony subconsciously asked: "But isn't resurrection impossible?"

"Our resurrected necromancer asked." Dumbledore chuckled. "It seems that Hogwarts has provided you with some magic knowledge after all, Henry."

Anthony also laughed: "I mean, if there is a resurrection stone in the world, then why do everyone I meet tell me that resurrection is impossible? And... this is not a dark magic item? Really?"

"You have to know that this is a legendary item, Henry." Dumbledore said. "There are many people who don't believe in its existence. Of course, some people still believe in it... But even in the legend, it is No one has ever been successfully resurrected. I remember the story goes like this: The first owner of the Resurrection Stone got it from the God of Death and wanted to use it to bring his deceased lover back to the world. After turning it in his hand three times -" he looked at the ring again, but quickly looked away, "- the next moment, his lover appeared in front of him, but he soon discovered that she was not happy, even for the sake of it. This specious resurrection resented him. She was forcibly brought back to the world from death, but she no longer belonged here, so she felt very painful."

Dumbledore paused. Anthony waited for a while: "Is this the end?"

"No. Eventually, the man realized that the Resurrection Stone could not bring him what he wanted and that they could only be reunited in death, so he threw the Resurrection Stone aside and committed suicide."

"Ah," Anthony said, "that doesn't sound like an advertisement for the Resurrection Stone."

"It really doesn't look like it," Dumbledore admitted, "but people still find it very attractive. Especially considering that it is a legendary story, and after so many retellings and modifications, it is difficult for people to be sure what the Resurrection Stone can do. No matter what, even if it's just like in the story, I can see my departed relatives and friends again, see them standing in front of me, hear their voices, and say a few words to them - not even a few words. If you have time to say it - even live together for a while..." His voice gradually dropped.

"I understand," Anthony said.

Dumbledore nodded: "I understand too. I must be honest, if I faced it alone, if I didn't have so much time to think, I'm afraid it would be in my hands by now. This temptation is too great, I doubt it Can you resist it?"

"However, you said it is a legendary item? If so, how can you be sure about it..."

"I recognize it, Henry, I recognize it. I guess there are always some advantages to being older. At least, when I'm a fool, I'm a seasoned fool." Dumbledore leaned forward and looked at the ring closely. , "Gee, Nico, you know people won't be particularly happy."

"What?"

"These cracks," Dumbledore stretched out his long index finger and traced on the stone through the air, "should not have existed. I think it was originally a coat of arms... Ah, that's right... Nico took the stone It's broken, so it's hard for people to recognize it now."

"Maybe he didn't recognize what it was," Anthony said.

"Unlikely." Dumbledore smiled. "Nico is a legendary alchemist. I find it hard to believe that he can't see it. Speaking of this, I discussed this topic with him and Perenal once. Perenal. Renard believed that it was just a story to warn people not to pursue the magic of resurrecting people from the dead; Nico did not believe that the Resurrection Stone was a gift from the God of Death, insisting that it must be an alchemical product. If they were not making it, After finding the Philosopher's Stone, he announced that he would no longer participate in the alchemy experiment. He believed that they could definitely make one; I don't care where the Resurrection Stone comes from, I only care about its effect. "

"Maybe it cracked before they found it."

"Then only they know." Dumbledore didn't seem convinced. He leaned back in his chair and crossed his fingers. "Anyway, it seems to still work. So, be careful, Henry."

Anthony knew what he meant. Once people knew it really existed, they would chase the Resurrection Stone like the Philosopher's Stone.

He sighed: "Monsieur Flamel did send me a trouble. Can we simply destroy it, sir? It won't bring about a true resurrection anyway?"

"I suspect that's what Nicol and Perenal were going to do," said Dumbledore, "and they are already the best alchemists I know at working with stones. If that's all they decided to do , I don’t recommend that we try any more.”

"Okay," Anthony whispered, touching the stone again, feeling the intoxicating joy. Then he felt the weak, annoying soul power again.

Dumbledore watched his movements.

"But, sir," said Anthony, confused, "why is there anything to do with the soul?"

"If you want to bring the dead back to the living world, I guess you will inevitably have to deal with souls." Dumbledore said, "But I must admit that I am not an expert in this field. In the Department of Mysteries..."

Anthony shook his head: "No, sir, it doesn't feel right. It... doesn't go well with the stone itself."

"Oh, really?" Dumbledore looked a little surprised.

He pondered for a while, then suddenly stood up, walked to a cabinet, opened the drawer, and rummaged through it. Fox stood on the armrest, tilting his head to watch his actions.

Dumbledore said, "Tell me you didn't burn them, Fawkes." Fawkes turned his head and began to preen his feathers on his back.

"Ah, here!" Dumbledore pulled out a piece of paper from the cabinet, "Let me see... um..."

Anthony asked curiously: "What is that, sir?"

"Not long ago, Nico sent me a letter full of nonsense." Dumbledore said, handing the paper to Anthony, "However, he often does such things - just to let He had an interesting life, as he put it, and once he told me that he was sending the blood of a fire dragon that lived in a cave, but it turned out to be just ketchup, grape juice, ginger beer, and immortality. A mixture of elixirs.”

Anthony took the letter.

"Albus, did you know we can't see the Southern Cross? They're thought to float in the brightest part of the Milky Way, but only those guys who live in the Southern Hemisphere can see it. Like penguins.

"But it was still visible in places like Egypt many years ago. I mean, you could still see the Southern Cross, not the penguins. At that time, Muggle astronomers used a method that would have made centaurs laugh. method of observing stars, and they placed the Southern Cross in the constellation Centauri.

"I'm curious why Muggles use the word 'Centaur'. Personally I think 'Horsepeople' is a more understandable name, but it may be confused with those nomads, so it's better to call it 'Centaur' Homose' - you know, add a person, and then remove the horse's head. The horse's head may be used for other purposes, such as hanging on the Southern Cross as a decoration or something.

"It's so offensive. Forget what I just said. It's just some fragmented nonsense.

"You were just kicked by a horse and are lying on the ground, Nico."

Anthony put down the letter.

"I had no idea what I had just read," he said.

Dumbledore said, "Me neither. But it might be a hint."

"Why?" Anthony asked, then noticed Dumbledore's thoughtful expression, "Do you have an idea, sir?"

Dumbledore smiled and said: "Yes or no, I'm not sure now. It's more like a guess... a guess that I would rather it be wrong, otherwise it would mean arrogance and taint beyond my imagination, as well as something not quite right." Trouble to deal with. Oh, Henry, you are indeed in big trouble." His tone told Anthony that the discussion about Nico's letter was over for now.

"I think so," said Anthony. "If you would keep it for me——"

Dumbledore interrupted.

"There is a reason why Nico and Perenal did not give it to me," said Dumbledore, "and a very good reason. No, Henry, please forgive me for not being able to promise you."

Anthony hesitated for a moment: "Okay, then." He wrapped the ring back in the newspaper, balled it up, and stuffed it back into his pocket.

"Oh, my God," Dumbledore whispered suddenly.

"What's the matter, sir?"

"The water is already cold." Dumbledore clicked on the kettle again, and it had no choice but to start boiling water again. "I'm so rude. Before you leave, how about a cup of, um, noon tea?"

"sounds good."

"Of course, if there's anything else I can help with, please feel free to ask."

"Well...it's a question about the Resurrection Stone, sir."

"Say it, Henry."

Anthony hesitated for a moment, but couldn't help but said: "How could it not be a black magic item? It is much more evil than me!"