At Hogwarts, in the enclosed Headmaster's Office, Dumbledore was sitting in his chair, reading letters from his parents with great interest.
From time to time, owls would fly in through the open window with red Howler letters, and then a piercing roar would fill the Headmaster's office.
Suddenly, as if he had sensed something, Dumbledore waved his wand to close the open window, blocking out more owls.
The roaring in the Headmaster's office stopped, and the Howler was instantly reduced to ashes.
A moment later, the door to the Headmaster's office opened and Snape entered, wearing a black robe. He placed a bottle of golden potion on the table and pushed it towards Dumbledore.
"Your medicine!" Snape said coldly.
"Thank you, Severus, thanks to you!" Dumbledore nodded, took the potion, gestured to Snape, and drained it.
"This is the last dose of the potion, and the next time the wound acts up, there's nothing I can do to suppress it!" Snape's words were sharp.
Dumbledore's face remained calm as he put down the empty bottle and asked Snape, "Severus, I believe you told me that even a relapse of this injury would not immediately kill me. Is that correct?"
"Indeed… it will not kill you immediately, but it will spread throughout your body in a matter of months, and believe me, it will be no easier than death!" Snape said sarcastically.
"Months? How long would that be?" Dumbledore asked softly, looking at the blackened hand. "I mean, it would not be enough to make me lose even the most basic ability to move or cast spells…"
"About two months? Three?" Snape said uncertainly.
"It's too short!" Dumbledore shook his head, and after a moment's thought, he spoke with a grim expression. "Perhaps I have a way to delay the inevitable…"
"A few more days won't matter at all… if you had a way to ease it, it wouldn't have dragged on until now, would it?" Snape said impatiently, thinking that the Hogwarts Welcoming Feast next term might lead to Dumbledore's funeral.
"We shouldn't think so, Severus. If arranged properly, even with only a few months remaining, it would be enough for us to do something!" Dumbledore said, his voice light.
"Like ending the Dark Lord's life?" Snape looked at Dumbledore mockingly, unable to understand where Dumbledore's optimism was coming from. He did not think it would make any difference if Dumbledore lived a little longer.
Dumbledore made no attempt to reply, instead continuing with his questioning. "Any news from Voldemort?"
"Thanks to us, he's alive and kicking!" Snape said, looking uncomfortable.
Lord Voldemort's injuries should have taken at least a month to heal, but Dumbledore came to him two days ago, gave him a few drops of Phoenix Tears, and asked him to brew a special potion for Lord Voldemort's injuries…
"What do you think you're doing? Voldemort was badly hurt, and we could have stopped for a while." Snape's tone was curt.
He could not understand why Dumbledore wanted him to save Lord Voldemort. When he confirmed Voldemort's injuries, he thought it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to kill him with a surprise attack!
"If it were so easy to kill him, Voldemort would not be alive today…" Dumbledore explained, understanding Snape's doubts.
It would be easy for wizards like them to escape with their lives in a fight, and even if they were surrounded by dozens of trained Aurors, Lord Voldemort would easily be able to fight back and win…
The reason why he was injured this time was entirely because Voldemort had just revived and was too arrogant. With this lesson, the other party would only be more careful.
"Even so, we shouldn't have cured Potter for his own safety!" Snape paced restlessly around the Headmaster's office.
After recovering from his injuries, Voldemort flew into a rage and immediately summoned the Death Eaters to plot his revenge, much to Snape's regret.
"He can't possibly find Harry!" Dumbledore exclaimed, thinking that Voldemort would not want to see Harry again until he knew the connection between the two Phoenix wands.
"What about the others?" Snape asked.
"I'm glad you're thinking about other people's well-being, Severus!" Dumbledore looked at him in surprise, his voice filled with unexpected joy. "But I have reorganised the Order of the Phoenix, and those who need protection are mostly in safe hands…"
"Most? So there are exceptions?" It was Snape's turn to be surprised.
Dumbledore rose to his feet, frowning, and raised his voice slightly. "Althea! The mother of Harth, whom I persuaded to join the Order of the Phoenix the other day, refused my offer without hesitation, more readily than I had intended!"
"Perhaps she thought her son was strong enough to take on the Dark Lord…" Snape sneered.
He had already met with the Death Eaters yesterday, so it was clear that some of them were hiding in Knockturn Alley.
Not only that, but Lord Voldemort had been planning to expand his influence in secret, and in addition to roping in the Dementors to free the imprisoned Believers, the Dark Wizards of Knockturn Alley were an excellent choice.
If Isiah and Ivan stayed in Knockturn Alley, they would soon run into Lord Voldemort.
Dumbledore shook his head. He did not think Isiah would be so careless, and Ivan had been personally involved in the battle, so he had a good idea of Voldemort's abilities.
Therefore, he thought that after leaving school, the child would come to him for help, or that Alicia would change her mind at the last minute. However, she did not. Ivan left without hesitation, which made him very curious.
"As far as I know, there is only one spell that can keep you safe from Lord Voldemort…" Dumbledore muttered to himself.
"You mean the Fidelius Charm?" Snape paused as he quickly figured out what Dumbledore was referring to.
Dumbledore said nothing; he had guessed as much, but was unsure.
After all, the Fidelius Charm was an extremely advanced spell that was not even recorded in the Restricted Section at Hogwarts. They had no means of learning it…