Chapter 14 - 14 Lest there be no chaos in the world

Chapter 14: Chapter 14 Lest there be no chaos in the world

"That's enough, Professor Dracula," Dumbledore declined Dracula's invitation for a mutual head-butting with a helpless smile, and changed the subject. "Aren't you supposed to be setting up the protective wards for the Philosopher's Stone?"

"You're right." Dracula nodded, seeming to find new amusement.

"And when you have time, please give Fluffy a bath. It's so dirty now, it affects the feel of the touch." Dumbledore patted the three-headed dog's large head and said, "Fluffy, move your fat belly aside; you're blocking the door."

When Dracula entered the room, he noticed Fluffy was standing on a trapdoor, clearly guarding something.

Fluffy obediently shifted to one corner of the room, clearing a path for Dracula and Dumbledore to reach the trapdoor.

Dumbledore waved his hand, and the ring on the trapdoor was lifted by an invisible force, opening it up.

The hole beneath was pitch black and deep. However, with a vampire's excellent night vision, Dracula could clearly see what was below.

"Tsk, a whole area covered with Devil's Snare. Professor Sprout must be worried that intruders might get hurt falling down," Dracula remarked with a glance at Dumbledore. "Moreover, there can't be many wizards who haven't learned the Slow-Down Charm. Perhaps this is a test specifically for younger students?"

Dumbledore smiled and said nothing, floating down lightly to the floor below the trapdoor.

Dracula, meanwhile, gracefully fell into the hole and landed softly on a bed of Devil's Snare.

"The precautions for intruders are quite thorough," he remarked while lying on the Devil's Snare, which quivered slightly in the presence of the dense darkness.

Dracula got up and walked with Dumbledore along the stone corridor in front of the Devil's Snare, reaching the end where a brightly lit room awaited.

The room had a high vaulted ceiling, with countless little birds sparkling like jewels, fluttering about. Opposite them was a heavy wooden door.

"Setting up a wooden door but leaving the key behind, and even thoughtfully providing a few broomsticks," Dracula observed, looking at the magical birds and the brooms. "Turning the protective measures into a game of sorts, you really outdid yourself."

Listening to Dracula's sarcastic remarks, Dumbledore could no longer maintain his calm demeanor and laughed helplessly.

"I knew I couldn't hide this from you, Professor Dracula," he said. "Actually, you might have guessed, I never intended these obstacles to keep genuine intruders out. They're merely tests and challenges for students."

"Setting Snape's potion challenge as a simple logic puzzle—didn't he make you work hard for it?" Dracula looked at the parchment next to the bottles with a smirk.

The parchment didn't contain questions about potions but rather a logic puzzle, which made the correct potion choice directly accessible to the intruder.

Neither Dracula nor Dumbledore was particularly afraid of such moderate flames, and they passed through the black flames to reach the final challenge.

The final challenge was simply a very grand mirror.

The Philosopher's Stone was hidden inside this mirror.

At the top of the mirror was an inscription: "Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi." It had to be read backwards to reveal its true meaning. Reversing the letters and breaking the words properly revealed the sentence: "It shows not your face but your deepest desire."

Dracula paused, his interest growing as he looked at the mirror.

"The Mirror of Erised shows the most intense desires—usually the fulfillment of a goal or ambition. But just as everyone is unique, what the mirror shows each person is different," Dumbledore explained with a smile.

"So, can you tell me what you saw, Professor Dracula?"

Dracula was silent for a moment, then he chuckled softly.

"I saw endless fun coming right towards me," Dracula said softly.

Dracula didn't tell the truth.

What he saw in the Mirror of Erised wasn't himself, nor was it any concrete object.

He saw a war sweeping through the magical world, a chaotic situation.

Was this what he truly desired? Finding amusement in chaos, stirring up trouble in conflicts...

Creating disorder in the world!