Harry's heart was set on killing.
Yet, what piqued his curiosity was why Dumbledore showed no reaction. The old wizard had kept this secret all along—what could it mean?
"Professor Dumbledore, aren't you going to stop me?"
Even if Dumbledore tried, it would be futile. Voldemort was as good as dead—not even Jesus could save him now.
Gods or Buddhas standing in his way? He'd cut them down.
Dumbledore's eyes gleamed with a profound depth. "Why would I stop you?"
"Didn't you hide the truth because you wanted to deal with him yourself?" Harry asked casually.
Truth be told, he couldn't fathom what Dumbledore was thinking. If he were to assume the best, perhaps the old man, ever the do-gooder, didn't want to leave Voldemort's defeat to a child. Maybe he intended to handle it himself.
Dumbledore shook his head. "Not at all. As I've said before, I've always hoped you'd discover Voldemort's weaknesses on your own, without relying on me, and defeat him yourself… I'm old, Harry. I don't have the energy to keep battling Voldemort. Fifty years ago, I completed my task. The future belongs to you."
Harry shook his head, unimpressed. Spare me the nonsense about being old. Dumbledore was barely over a hundred. How could he sleep at night, talking like that?
Wizards were known for their longevity, and a legendary wizard like Dumbledore could easily extend his life by another thirty or fifty years without side effects… Perhaps he truly didn't want to live anymore, hoping to die naturally after grooming a young wizard to stand against the Dark Lord?
Harry pressed further. "I'm confident in myself, but I still don't understand. No matter how I look at it, you're a decent man. I'm only eleven, Professor. Aren't you worried I'll end up dead?"
Dumbledore smiled. "I'm not worried. When you were one, Tom—that's Voldemort—was at the height of his power, and he couldn't touch you. How could he now, when you're eleven?"
Harry nodded, thinking to himself, Fair point. I'm stronger now.
Wait—Voldemort's real name was Tom? Harry knew a Tom in his circle. What a common name. No wonder he chose such a flamboyant alias.
Dumbledore continued, "Truth be told, your growth has exceeded my expectations. You truly are the Child of Prophecy. And Tom's current weakness is beyond what I anticipated. After observing him this past year, I'm certain of it…"
"Love is the greatest magic of all. It wounded him for a decade, and he's still only recovered to this extent…"
"I originally wanted to test that power's strength. Now, I'm more concerned that Voldemort won't be able to draw it out. He might not even pose a threat to your life."
Harry caught a flood of new information. "Hold on, Professor Dumbledore. What's this about a prophecy and the power of love appearing when my life is threatened by Voldemort? What does it mean?"
Dumbledore's tone softened. "You'll understand in time, my boy."
This cryptic old man—Harry briefly entertained the thought of challenging Dumbledore, seizing his position as headmaster. He could still finish his studies at Hogwarts just fine!
"Haha, just kidding. Want some candy?" Dumbledore chuckled, offering Harry a "cockroach."
Harry declined with a blank expression. He was a champion of strength and had a hearty appetite, but he wasn't some weirdo who ate cockroaches.
"Alright, alright. It's time I told you."
And so, Dumbledore explained the prophecy foretelling Voldemort's defeat by the Child of Prophecy. It wasn't widely known among the public, but after Voldemort's disappearance, the secret had gradually spread. How could the Ministry of Magic truly keep such a thing under wraps?
Dumbledore felt that even if he didn't tell Harry, the boy—whose intelligence far surpassed his expectations—would soon figure it out himself.
The prophecy could have applied to more than one person, but when Voldemort chose to believe it and targeted Harry, the prophecy closed its loop.
"As for the magic of love… it's an ancient spell, completed by your mother at the cost of her life…
"I sensed that power still lingers. I saw it when you were one…
"You've always wondered why I insist you spend a month at the Dursleys' each summer…
"They're your closest blood relatives. They keep that magic alive until you turn seventeen."
"My mother…"
Harry had never imagined…
In his mind, his mother was just an ordinary witch—perhaps talented, but not exceptional, maybe on par with Snape.
He never thought it was she who protected him at one year old.
Even now, that power had shielded him for over a decade.
Because of his mother's love, his bloodlust subsided for a moment.
Then it flared even fiercer.
My love is gone.
"Thank you for telling me, Professor Dumbledore… I'm off to kill."
"Erm…"
Dumbledore hesitated for a moment. This boy—his love and hate so stark, his desires laid bare, unlike Tom, who always concealed his darkness. But… wasn't his bloodlust a bit too intense?
"What? Isn't this what you wanted me to do?"
"Well, yes…" Dumbledore admitted. "But your resolve is… striking."
"No need for sentimentality. If I'm going to do it, I'll do it thoroughly. Should I show mercy to Voldemort? Talk about sending him to prison? He killed my mother. We can't both live."
Dumbledore was at a loss for words. A child shouting about killing was odd, but Harry wasn't wrong.
Besides, Dumbledore had wanted Harry to kill, to taste blood. Quirrell was meant to be the sacrifice.
Even if Harry lacked this resolve and was just an ordinary boy burdened with a fated power, Dumbledore would have pushed him to kill a professor to build his courage.
But now, Dumbledore wondered if Harry was a tad too extreme.
Why did he treat killing so lightly? One might think he'd outdone Voldemort's body count.
Perhaps, as Harry said, Dumbledore was the strange one.
Dumbledore no longer doubted Harry's ability to face Voldemort. Now, he worried about what Harry might do in the future, unchecked, after Voldemort was gone… In the coming years, he'd need to test the boy's character, not his power.
Dumbledore only questioned whether Harry might go astray. He'd long stopped doubting his strength.
Tom should survive this, shouldn't he? Part of why Dumbledore let Harry act was because, after observation, he realized he might not be able to kill Voldemort in his current state.
Voldemort was no longer a living man. Only the living could be killed.
As a master of dark magic, hiding for a decade, Voldemort had come to Hogwarts with the confidence of immortality.
Dumbledore pinned his hopes on the spell of love truly killing Voldemort, but even that was a slim chance…