Free Web NovelChapter 653: Tom’s Frightening Idea
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There was no such thing as a secret that stayed buried forever. In fact, the bigger the incident, the harder people tried to suppress it, the faster the news spread.
And now, with the Codex and Lume-Lenses everywhere, hundreds of Durmstrang students had witnessed the battle between Grindelwald and Andros firsthand. There was no way to keep something like that contained.
In just a single night, the newspapers were already publishing vivid accounts of the duel, complete with dramatic details and eyewitness reports.
They still lacked the finer specifics, but aside from Germany and a few nations occupied by the Acolytes, the rest of the world had settled on the same narrative: Grindelwald had been suppressed by a mysterious "Sun Chaser."
Which, to be fair, was technically true.
Still, at the very end, Andros had at least spared Grindelwald a little dignity. To outside observers, the fight had looked more or less evenly matched.
Unfortunately for old Grindy, his reputation was terrible.
The media had been dying for a chance to drag him through the mud, and now that opportunity had practically fallen into their laps.
As the papers were passed around, the heavy silence hanging over the Great Hall gradually broke into uneasy murmurs.
The Durmstrang students reacted the strongest.
Over the past months, Grindelwald had firmly established his authority within the school. Their first instinct upon reading the papers was disbelief.
But the reports sounded utterly certain, and with multiple "witnesses" offering testimony, doubt slowly turned into panic.
In their minds, Grindelwald was one of the greatest wizards alive. His power stood shoulder to shoulder with Dumbledore’s. So how could some random powerhouse wizard suddenly appear out of nowhere and rival him?
"What are you panicking for?"
As the oppressive atmosphere spread across the long tables, Ariana calmly set down her glass of milk. The crisp sound instantly drew every Durmstrang student’s attention toward her.
The girl curled her lips and proudly lifted her chin, "If the Sun Chasers were truly powerful enough to defeat Grindelwald, would they still be hiding like rats in the gutter?"
"Since they’ve been skulking in the shadows this whole time, that only proves they know they’re no match for Grindelwald. And definitely no match for my brother."
"Honestly, trembling in fear over a bunch of rats hiding in the dark... you’re embarrassing the school."
She was insulting the Sun Chasers, not Andros, so naturally she sounded completely justified.
Quite a few students lowered their heads in shame after hearing her words, and the panic that had filled the hall eased noticeably.
At the staff table, Dumbledore smiled in quiet satisfaction.
Ariana really had changed... and changed enormously.
The noble confidence and natural leadership she carried now were worlds apart from the timid, withdrawn girl she used to be.
People often said privilege could reshape a person, and Ariana was the perfect example. And behind her stood Tom, the Magic Lord himself. Andros, who adored children. Grindelwald, burdened by guilt toward her, indulged almost everything she wanted—he had even considered leaving the Acolytes to her someday. And then there were her three powerful older sisters.
With that level of love and support, if she still failed to grow into herself, then she truly would have been hopeless.
But Ariana clearly wasn’t. After all, she was still a Dumbledore. And among this generation of Dumbledores, not a single one was ordinary.
Albus Dumbledore withdrew his gaze from Ariana and looked back down at the paper in his hands.
He had been deeply shocked when he first heard the news.
Even if he didn’t know about classifications like "Century King," Dumbledore understood one thing clearly: reaching the level he and Grindelwald stood at was never something that could be achieved through isolated study or training alone.
A wizard had to travel the world, learn from countless schools of magic, absorb the strengths of others, and eventually carve out a path uniquely their own.
But this suddenly appearing Sun Chaser... where exactly had he come from?
And Grindelwald still hadn’t sent him a letter after an entire night. Was he injured?
The thought made Dumbledore even more uneasy. He folded up the newspaper and hurried out of the Great Hall.
...
And Dumbledore’s guess was correct.
Grindelwald really was hurt.
The punches Andros landed at the end weren’t the biggest problem. The real issue was that afterward, Grindelwald had forcibly suppressed the pain with Dark Magic and pretended nothing had happened while handling various matters with the Acolytes.
By midnight, the backlash had erupted completely. He barely had the energy to respond to Dumbledore’s messages.
...
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Meanwhile — Riddle Manor
While the rest of the world was still reeling from the shocking events of the previous night, Tom was happily opening gift boxes with the young ladies beside him.
"Oh, this one’s gorgeous! This necklace is so pretty!"
Inside the manor’s storage room, Daphne excitedly held up a pearl necklace against her neck, her eyes sparkling.
"Tom, does it look good on me?"
The boy set down the box in his hands and nodded, "Yeah. It looks nice."
Though he left one thing unsaid.
The necklace was beautiful, but it really only worked with formal attire. Chances were, she wouldn’t get many opportunities to wear it.
"Gabrielle, Quick, check who sent it! We have to invite them next time we host a banquet."
Gabrielle pattered over to the doorway, grabbed the gift registry, and hurried back. The two girls pressed their heads together and quickly found the sender’s name.
"Huh? It was from Zabini’s mother?"
Tom paused, setting down the pigeon-egg-sized sapphire in his hand as he recalled the woman from last night’s banquet.
The infamous Black Widow, Madam Zabini, had been one of the evening’s highlights.
Despite having already buried seven husbands, she was still surrounded by eager wizards competing for the prestigious position of "Mr. Zabini Number Eight."
Tom had chatted with her briefly last night.
The woman had absurdly high emotional intelligence. A few casual words from her could instantly put people in a good mood. Every gesture carried irresistible charm, and the slightest glance from her eyes practically dripped seduction.
Not to mention her perfect MILF figure... A woman like that was basically a full-scale dimensional reduction attack on the magical world.
No wonder men still threw themselves at her like moths to a flame even after seven dead husbands.
If the wizarding world had some kind of spell that let you absorb your partner’s magical power, this woman would probably become the Century King sooner or later.
Or maybe... Should he invent one?
A bold idea suddenly popped into Tom’s head.
With how mysterious magic was, combined with his understanding of contract magic, creating something like that might genuinely be possible. freewёbnoνel.com
But the thought only lasted two seconds before he forcefully strangled it himself, shaking his head hard.
Better not.
If magical feminism really became a thing, the wizarding world would probably become even more chaotic than it was during Voldemort’s reign.
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