Dumbledore's words made Harry feel as if he had been thrown into an ice cellar, and all his hopes for the summer holidays were dashed…
"But…I have a godfather now, and Sirius is family…" Harry stammered.
Harry considered Sirius to be his real family, compared to the Dursleys, who treated him badly.
Though they had only met less than a month ago, Harry could feel Sirius's concern for him, something he would never have felt at the Dursleys'.
There, it was more like a servant or slave, living in a storeroom and occasionally being scolded and told off by Daly and his cronies.
Dumbledore, however, shook his head, shattering the illusion. "That will not do, Harry! It will take a blood relative to sustain such magic."
"Then let it go! I'm capable of protecting myself!" Harry exclaimed angrily.
Harry could not bear to live with the Dursleys any longer, since they hated him and, as it happened, he hated them.
"And Sirius will protect me, won't he!" Harry looked at Sirius like a desperate beast seeking refuge.
Sirius nodded solemnly, not wanting to disappoint Harry.
Harry, as if emboldened, turned to Dumbledore.
"Ah… yes, I believe that, but wouldn't it be better to add a layer of insurance?" Dumbledore insisted, unwilling to change his mind.
Harry was eager to argue further, but was silenced by Dumbledore's next words.
"The protective magic you have is a result of Lily's love for you, and I'm sure she wanted it to accompany you and protect you while she was gone. Harry… you don't want to disappoint her, do you?"
Harry fell silent, unable to retort. He felt as if a huge rock were pressing down on his heart, and his mind was filled with memories.
Alerted by the change in Harry's mood, Dumbledore realised that his words were having an effect and continued.
"I know exactly how you feel, Harry! But before you graduate…"
"Enough! Stop it!" Harry shouted, interrupting Dumbledore.
His shout attracted the attention of the other patrons of the pub, and many of them turned to look at him.
Harry was momentarily overwhelmed by this outburst, his mind in chaos, and he simply ran out of the pub…
Dumbledore instinctively reached out with his right hand to stop Harry, but he was too slow, and Harry dodged.
Ivan, who had been keeping an eye on Dumbledore the entire time, saw that the old professor's right hand was charred black, and there was a golden ring with a black gem on his thumb…
With the exception of Ivan, everyone else was too distracted by Harry to notice, and Sirius was the first to rush out, followed by Ron and Hermione.
"Your right hand is injured, Professor?" Ivan asked hesitantly after the others had left their seats.
Even as she asked the question, Ivan understood everything the moment he saw the ring and the scorch marks.
Dumbledore, having been tricked by Lord Voldemort's Horcruxes, is likely to die soon…
But how had it happened so fast?
Ivan was immediately stunned, and was able to confirm this because the same thing had happened in the original timeline, but it was supposed to have happened during the summer after Harry's fifth year.
He had been debating whether or not to give Dumbledore a heads-up about the Horcrux hidden in Gaunt's house next year.
He did not expect that Dumbledore would fall for his excuse before he could even think of one!
Ivan was baffled by Dumbledore's ability to locate the Horcrux in advance.
Was it because he had destroyed two Horcruxes in a row?
Yvonne frowned, her laid-back attitude turning to one of heaviness.
Unlike Ivan, who was secretly worried, Dumbledore did not seem to care much about his injuries, casually claiming that he had only suffered a minor injury, as if he had fallen on his way.
"But it may take some getting used to…to make my left hand more flexible…"
Dumbledore's expression became troubled, as it was difficult for someone accustomed to using their right hand to suddenly switch hands.
"I see… I'm glad you're fine!" Ivan replied perfunctorily. He looked at the white-haired professor in front of him with mixed feelings.
Ever since his misunderstanding of Alicia was cleared up during the summer holidays of his first year, he has been on guard against Dumbledore!
After all, with his strength, he was confident that he could take on anyone, even powerful professors like Snape and McGonagall!
If worse comes to worst, it will escape…
This was not the case with Dumbledore; Ivan only felt deeply powerless.
Every time they met, even if the other party did not have any intention of targeting him, he could feel a faint pressure from her.
Ivan knew very well that if he fought Dumbledore, he would have no chance of winning!
Crucially, Dumbledore's Dementor was like a jinx to a man with so many secrets like him.
However, Ivan's first reaction was not relief, but panic, when he learned that his greatest white wizard was dying!
If Dumbledore dies, who will hold back the Ministry? Who will fight against Lord Voldemort?
It's chaos … it's all chaos …
Ivan, becoming ill-at-ease, excused himself from the Three Broomsticks on the pretext of checking on Harry.
After leaving the room, Ivan watched as the setting sun slowly sank into the horizon, as if it had exhausted its last rays. He sighed deeply and took out a shiny golden badge from the pocket of his wizard robes.
Even though Ivan did not know exactly what was going on between Dumbledore and his mother, the old professor seemed to have treated Ivan quite well over the past few years.
Ivan couldn't help but feel sorry for her. If he could, he would have offered her some help.
However, if even Dumbledore, the most powerful wizard in the wizarding world, and Snape, the Master of Magic, could not do anything about such an injury, what could he, a mere wizard, do?
(PS: The number of new additions has dropped quite a bit recently. Please subscribe more often. Please, Angels should try to add more updates these days.)