Struggling to survive at Hogwarts

Chapter 257 Unexpected Guest

“…You must understand this,” Dumbledore stood up, pacing excitedly around the room, “because Voldemort himself chose this exceptional man sitting before me to kill you, and provided him with the tools. You can see Voldemort’s thoughts and ambitions, and even understand the snake-like language he uses to give orders…”

“But Harry, despite your insight into Voldemort’s world, you have never succumbed to the temptations of dark magic, never shown the slightest desire to follow Voldemort, not even for a second!”

Dumbledore's tone was impassioned, like a warrior's hymn, and this hymn clearly succeeded in rousing Harry's courage.

“Of course not!” Harry’s anger erupted like a volcano. “He killed my parents!”

On the second floor, a figure paused slightly at those words, and the corners of his mouth, which had been turned up, slowly straightened out.

"In short, it was your love that protected you!"

After glancing almost imperceptibly at the second floor, Dumbledore resumed his speech.

As the speech reached its climax, Harry thought of many things. He thought of his parents, Sirius Black, that chubby face with tears streaming down his face, and the words, "You have eyes like hers... After seeing them, don't think so badly of me..."

“Professor,” Harry looked up, his eyes filled with a determination that made even Dumbledore, a veteran of countless battles, tremble slightly, “one of us will kill the other, won’t we?”

Dumbledore nodded silently, his previous impassioned tone gone.

------

"So this is how professors fool their students!"

The quiet in the headmaster's office was broken by Thea after Harry left.

Thea descended the stairs slowly and cautiously, her gaze gradually shifting from the stairs beneath her feet to the old man casually sitting on the floor.

"You just fell asleep?"

Dumbledore didn't care that Thea had seen his disheveled state. He pushed himself up from the ground, casually dusted off his robes, and spoke in a relaxed and familiar tone.

“Yes,” Thea said frankly, “thankfully I didn’t miss the whole professor’s lecture.”

“That wasn’t a speech,” Dumbledore retorted. “That was just a lecture.”

"Okay, it's a lecture."

Thea readily agreed with Dumbledore's statement, and this shameless gesture subtly eased the heaviness in Dumbledore's heart.

"Your information is accurate."

After exchanging jokes, the two got into work mode.

Hearing Dumbledore's approval, Thea remained noncommittal.

"Now that the professor has verified this fact, can I go back now?"

"Don't be in such a hurry," Dumbledore said with a smile, waving his hand, but his next words made Thea's eyes narrow slightly.

"Thea, Voldemort killed Harry's parents, that's a fact."

You are Voldemort's daughter, that's a fact.

Thea lowered her eyes, and after a long while, she looked up and stared directly at the despicable warrior in front of her. "Professor, are you trying to use these words to evoke my guilt and make me willingly risk my life for you?"

Dumbledore's hand trembled slightly under the table. Looking at Thea, who seemed poised to unleash a storm, he felt he should say something.

But Thea was faster than him; in an instant, a fierce storm lashed out at Dumbledore.

"Do you know how much I hate this kind of thing!"

Thea's loud voice startled the portrait on the wall, but she remained unmoved, her eyes filled with almost tangible anger and disgust.

"In business, there's a trade-off; you have to give and you have to receive. That's the kind of cooperation I believe in!"

"You've mastered the art of getting something for nothing!"

"Do you even understand what cooperation means?!"

"You want me to feel guilty?"

"dream!"

“I’m not like Professor Snape, who can be tricked into working for me for nothing just by looking at similar eyes and spouting a few scathing remarks!”

Thea addressed her as "Professor" and "you" repeatedly, but the sarcasm in her tone was undisguised.

The headmasters in the portrait initially wanted to speak up for Dumbledore, but upon hearing Thea's accusations, they were ultimately unable to utter a single word.

Thea naturally thought of the group of principals as well, and added sarcastically, "Look, even you seniors don't say a word. Why? Because they know that cooperation is based on equal exchange, not moral blackmail!"

Dumbledore: "…………"

Dumbledore remained silent, then with a wave of his hand, he used a curtain to completely cover the portraits.

Here, Thea, unusually standing on the moral high ground to criticize Dumbledore's selfishness, made Thea, who was born a villain, very happy, feeling even more refreshed than eating an ice-cold watermelon on a sweltering summer day.

Dumbledore, rarely in a bad situation, savored the feeling of being insulted and then happily decided to preserve this memory in the Pensieve!

After making the decision, Dumbledore became serious, his previous cheerful demeanor vanishing.

“Thea, I think we need to redefine the cooperation terms.”

Hearing this, Thea's lips curled up slightly, revealing her first genuine smile of the night. "I've been looking forward to this for a long time."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

After reneging on the cooperation terms and securing a safeguard for herself, Thea was in a good mood, having gained a lot.

But she did not let her guard down.

The re-establishment of the cooperation agreement signifies that the cooperation is about to officially begin; the appetizer has been served, and the main course is yet to come.

She must use this time to complete that crucial procedure and lay the groundwork for a backup plan.

For several days in a row, Thea became the subject of other people's gossip again. Ironically, apart from Slytherin students, very few freshmen from other houses had ever seen Thea.

"—Bushia!"

Thea's thoughts were interrupted. She frowned, but when she saw the anxious face of the person who came, unease enveloped her like a fishing net in that instant.

"Who... is in trouble?"

Thea seemed to be split into two: one calmly asking the visitor what had happened, while the other frantically tried to figure out who the person in trouble was.

Daphne should be practicing Apparition. At Hogwarts, with Zabini around, even if she splits into two, it shouldn't cause such panic among the visitors.

Theodore couldn't possibly do that either; he was completely absorbed in those potions, practically sleeping in the potion room.

Gellar was even less likely to be one; she always knew how to hide her talents, otherwise she wouldn't have been so inconspicuous in Slytherin...

None of these are it... so there must be only one—

"Draco?"

"What happened to him?"