Hearing the name of Lord Voldemort, Slughorn shuddered.
"Why would the devil whose name cannot be mentioned do that?" he asked hesitantly.
"There's a magic in the vampire clan of Slytherin that will make Lord Voldemort more powerful," Elwyn said. "He's going to use this magic. If he succeeds, no one will be his match."
"How could there be such a magic?" Slughorn said in disbelief. "What is it?"
"It's similar to black magic that transforms the body and soul, but more evil..."
"Oh my god, an even more evil and powerful Dark Demon?"
"Yes, Professor. Are you going to hide like this for the rest of your life?"
Slughorn did not answer. He was lost in thought for a while, as if he was carefully examining what Elwyn had said.
"I don't think Lord Voldemort can defeat Dumbledore," Harry suddenly said. "No matter what he becomes in the end, as long as Dumbledore is the headmaster, Hogwarts will be safer than any other place."
"It's said that Lord Voldemort is only afraid of him. Even in the past, when he was at his strongest, he didn't dare to go near Hogwarts, right?" Hermione asked.
"Yes, Dumbledore is the only wizard that Lord Voldemort is afraid of," Elwyn said, nodding.
There was another silence, and then Slughorn sighed heavily.
"Alas, probably. The devil whose name cannot be mentioned has never dared to compete with Dumbledore," he muttered reluctantly. "But if he becomes more evil and powerful..."
"Lord Voldemort may surpass Dumbledore in terms of power, but he will never defeat him," Elwyn said. "Besides, we will stop Lord Voldemort, stop him from successfully casting that magic, and find a way to defeat him."
"Don't keep calling him by his name. Don't you know that he cast a magic spell on it?" Slughorn said unhappily. "It will let him sense that we are here..."
"So what? He won't dare to come here. " Elwyn said disdainfully. "Calling Lord Voldemort by his name is the first step to mustering the courage to defeat him. Many people can do it. Be brave, Professor. "
"You are indeed brave, but very unwise." Slughorn thought for a while. "But you are right, Hogwarts is indeed the safest place at the moment. I think that since I didn't join the Death Eaters, that demon who can't even mention his name won't treat me as a friend … If that's the case, I'm afraid it'll be safer for me to stay by Albus' side, regardless of whether he becomes stronger or not. "
"If it is simply to protect yourself, there is no safer place than being by Dumbledore's side."
"Sigh, I saw the news of Amelia Bowens' murder. I can't pretend that her death doesn't affect me at all. Think about it, she had so many acquaintances in the department, so much protection, and her strength was no weaker than mine, but …"
Just then, Dumbledore re-entered the house.
Slughorn was startled. He seemed to have forgotten that Dumbledore had not left the house.
"Oh, you are back, Abyssal," he said. "You have been gone for a long time. Did you have a stomachache?"
"No, I just flipped through those Muggle magazines," Dumbledore said. Dumbledore said, "I like the knitting pattern, and they look very warm. Maybe I should knit myself a sweater like this. Well, Elwyn, Harry, Hermione, we have been bothering Hollars for a long time. I think we should go. "
"You are leaving?" Slughorn said in surprise.
"Yes, I think. I can see that defeat is inevitable. I did not persuade you to return to the Hogwarts."
"Well, defeat?" Slughorn looked very uneasy. He fiddled with his two chubby thumbs and watched anxiously as Dumbledore wrapped himself in his travel cloak, Elwyn and Hermione also put on their coats, and Harry zipped up his jacket.
"Sigh, I am sorry that you did not want to take the job, Hollars." Dumbledore said, making a gesture of farewell with his uncursed hand. "If you could come back, the Hogwarts would be very happy. You know, we have greatly strengthened our security measures since this year. You are welcome to come back anytime if you want. "
"Okay, no problem. I, sigh, you are too kind, I said..."
"Then goodbye," Dumbledore said.
"Goodbye, Professor!" said Harry.
"Goodbye, Professor!" Hermione waved.
"Goodbye." Elwyn looked at the anxious Slughorn, who was sweating profusely, and waved back.
They had just walked to the front door when they heard a shout behind them.
"Okay, okay, I'll do it!"
Dumbledore turned around and saw Slughorn standing at the door of the living room, panting.
"You want to come back to work?"
"Yes, yes," Slughorn said impatiently. "I must be crazy, but yes, I do."
"Great." Dumbledore suddenly beamed with joy. "Then, Hollars, I will see you on the first of September."
"Okay, no problem," Slughorn muttered.
As they walked down the garden path, Slughorn's voice came from behind them again.
"I will ask for a raise, Dumbledore!"
Dumbledore chuckled, and the garden door closed behind them.
They walked down the hill through the dark, curling fog.
"You did a good job," Dumbledore said. "You succeeded in convincing Hollars."
"But we didn't do anything?" Harry said in surprise.
"We just told him the current situation," said Hermione. "Well, he didn't look very determined, and he seemed to be afraid of the Lord Voldemort."
"And interested in the three of us," Elwyn added. "Especially Harry."
"That's it. You showed Hollars how much he could gain by returning to the Hogwarts," said Dumbledore. Dumbledore said softly. "As for his interest in the three of you, well, what do you think of him?"
"Afraid of death, greedy for material pleasures, and fond of showing off," Elwyn said bluntly.
"I think he's quite likeable, except for the pure-blooded part." Hermione said. "Although he later explained that he was not a supporter of the pure-blooded idea, he obviously discriminated against the Muggle wizards."
Harry nodded in agreement. Slughorn was indeed likeable in some ways.
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