An ancient manor sits on the bank of the Ekes River, which is off the beaten path.
The manor is surrounded by mountains and rivers and is hidden in dense forests. Neither Muggles nor wizards can enter it without permission.
In the center of the manor, stands a pyramid about thirty meters high, made entirely of pure gold, shining brightly in the moonlight.
The four sides of the pyramid are carved with magic written in ancient magic script, Phoenician script, Egyptian hieroglyphics and Sumerian cuneiform script. The tower body is not soft, but is extremely strong.
From a distance, the pyramid does not have a spire, but there is actually an invisible alchemy room on the top of the tower, which can only be reached through the hidden entrance of the pyramid.
In the alchemy room, there was a stooped old man with snow-like beard and hair, wearing an extremely loose white robe. His bare feet were floating half a meter above the ground.
In front of him was a workbench filled with various test tubes and metal conduits, like blood vessels, connected to a huge crystal ball.
The old man raised his wand and flicked it a few times. Ripples of magic rippled through the crystal clear crystal ball, and the magnificent vision inside could be clearly seen:
The stars are bright, and countless stars are clustered together to form a river, as if the entire galaxy has been imitated.
The old man was observing the M78 nebula in the distant constellation Orion. He looked delighted and said with a smile in ancient Greek: "Eureka (discovered)!"
At this moment, a thick book with a phoenix statue printed on it flew over. The lock on the book popped open with a bang, and the pages of yellowed paper were slowly turned over.
There was a photo with a name on each page, and finally it stopped at "Albus Dumbledore". The old man stopped what he was doing, turned his head and whispered:
"Good evening, Albus."
"Nico, I'm very sorry to interrupt your 'Eureka' moment, but I have something I want to talk to you about." The portrait of Dumbledore in the photo said: "Are you free tonight?"
"You're free, Albus. I was in the prophecy ball an hour ago and saw this happening." The old man smiled and said, "See you in five minutes."
The book flew back to the cabinet again, and Nico floated forward and came to a shelf, where there was an ancient stone basin.
The mouth of the basin is engraved with ancient magic inscriptions, and inside the basin there are swirling memories that look like mist but not mist, and if the water is not mercury white, it is swirling gently and causing ripples.
This is a pensieve, used to preserve thoughts and memories.
The old man took out his wand and put the tip of the wand close to his temple. A small wisp of memory was attached to the tip of the wand, which he threw into the pensieve.
On the base of the pensieve, there is also a striking time engraved: 1900~1992
On the huge shelf, there were six pensieves side by side. Starting from the fourteenth century, Nico would replace a new pensieve every hundred years.
Nico snapped his fingers, and the pointer on the bronze turntable on the door rotated from "Alchemy Room" to "Study".
The scene in the entire room also changed instantly:
The alchemy equipment disappeared, and the alchemy room turned into a study filled with the smell of tobacco, the smoke of firewood and the aroma of tea.
Nico sat on a chair and picked up a pipe made of oak. After being rubbed for a long time, the pipe exuded a round and vermilion luster.
The old man held the cut tobacco with his fingertips and rubbed it gently. After sparks appeared, he threw the cut tobacco into the pipe. He took a deep breath and blew out a series of gray smoke rings.
The smoke rings swayed into the air, turned into the shapes of magical creatures such as fire dragons, thunderbirds, and phoenixes, and flew toward the window.
A bag of tobacco was burned out, and there was a knock on the door. Not too early, not too late. Nico hooked his hand, and the door opened with a creak.
The old man waved his hand and dispersed the smoke in the study. He leaned back on the high-backed chair, raised his head, and stared at the dusty Dumbledore.
"Good evening, Albus." Nico motioned for Dumbledore to sit down and asked, "Long time no see. It's still some time before my funeral. Can't you wait today?"
The old man joked: "You won't cry this time, right?"
Dumbledore sat down on the dark hand-chiselled dragon leather chair made of black walnut wood. He smiled and said:
"Nico, this is not the first time I have attended your funeral. I won't be as rude as last time."
"It's not rude." The old man couldn't help laughing and said:
"But you were indeed the first wizard to attend my funeral, wearing black clothes and bringing a wreath. I almost thought I was really dead."
Nico tapped his pipe gently on the table and grinned:
"I still remember your expression at that time, you were still crying for me, and then you saw the Goblin Rock Band coming on stage..."
Recalling the past, Dumbledore smiled knowingly and said: "I didn't know at the time that a living person would hold a funeral for me, and even invite a band to sing... a love song at the funeral!"
"Haha... Albus, how old were you then?"
"About thirteen years old."
"You are now one hundred and ten years old." Nico looked at Dumbledore, who had gray beard and hair, and couldn't help sighing: "Looking at your changes, I can feel the passage of time and the passage of time."
"How are the preparations for your funeral going?" Dumbledore asked with a wink.
"It's good, but when I sent out the invitations, I found out that many of my old friends have passed away." Nico picked up the pipe and replaced it with shredded tobacco. His tone remained unchanged and he said:
"Some of these wizards are not much older than you. Albus, you have to take care of yourself. I don't want to attend your funeral someday."
Dumbledore didn't say anything, just smiled and said: "How many funerals is this for you?"
"The seventh time. Seven is a magical number. I have a hunch that if I can't find the Stone of Destiny again... this time will probably be my last funeral."
At this point, Nico's dry and wrinkled face looked a little dazed.
"I sometimes feel that my lifespan is too long and I should take a good sleep in the cemetery."
The old man raised his withered arm. The arm was too fragile and would break if not careful. He chuckled:
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! "Living like this for too long is not a comfortable thing."
The old man was hunched, looking at Dumbledore, and asked calmly: "By the way, how is Tom?"
"He didn't steal the Philosopher's Stone, so he returned to Albania and waited for the next person to be bewitched." Dumbledore thought for a moment and said:
"I observed his condition closely at Hogwarts, and I made a rough judgment on the reason why Tom didn't die."
Nico leaned back on the chair and said seriously: "Is it really a Horcrux?"
"High probability...but I haven't got any definite evidence that Tom split his soul."
"If Voldemort really made a Horcrux, of course he would hide it, so how could he let you find it so easily?" Nico shook his head.
"But I'm worried...Tom has created more than just one Horcrux." Dumbledore frowned:
"Over the years, he seems to have become less and less human, both in character and appearance. I can only explain this change to the fact that the damage to his soul is far beyond the scope of ordinary black magic..."
"That will be even more difficult." Nico sighed: "Albus, I feel tired for you.
When you are young, you have to worry about Grindelwald; when you are old, you have to deal with Tom Riddle."
Dumbledore didn't seem to care. He smiled and said, "Nico, I didn't bring your magic stone. It's in the hands of Newt's grandson."
His voice paused: "I hope you can invite that child to your funeral."
"Is he special?" Nico raised his head curiously and his eyes lit up.
"Rolf's magical talent is very unique, and you are an expert in this field... Most importantly, Helena Ravenclaw has been pestering him recently." Dumbledore looked extremely serious.
"Helena probably thinks that the child is the wizard who was prophesied to resurrect her."
"Helena also identified Tom Riddle, but she was deceived in the end." Nico was noncommittal.
"I believe Cassandra Trelawney's prophecy, but I don't believe Helena's judgment." The old man said without mercy:
"She did not inherit any wisdom from Ravenclaw, but was extremely stupid. Her mother was killed, which was inseparable from her."
"But Rolf found the basilisk left by Slytherin. Newt also told me that he caught a silverfish that was more than 900 years old in the library." Dumbledore narrowed his eyes:
"That silverfish might be left behind by Ravenclaw."
Nico raised his head in surprise: "If it's really Ravenclaw, then only Hufflepuff and Gryffindor are left..."
"Yes." Dumbledore's voice was very soft, with a firm look in his eyes. He nodded and said:
"Rolf has a high chance, but whether he is or not, I will do my best to train him.
I am already old and somewhat incompetent. If Tom makes many Horcruxes, it may be a protracted battle.
If I die, a powerful wizard will be needed to take my place."
Dumbledore raised his head, looked into the distance, and said seriously:
"Sybill Trelawney's prophecy to Harry and Tom said, 'Both cannot live, only one survives'... I must be prepared for Harry's failure."
"Of course, I also have selfish motives." Dumbledore stood up and looked out the window, his face full of bitterness and guilt.
"If Helena, who has been dead for a thousand years, can be resurrected by Rolf...Nico, you know my wish for so many years...Ariana."