"Wherever Helbo is, he will go there, never to see the light of day again, and has no future. This is the price of the Soul Artifact," Rowena Ravenclaw seemed very knowledgeable about Soul Artifacts.
"Sounds quite tragic, but... I think it's not tragic enough?" Ian looked down at the head at his feet, Voldemort's eyes filled with resentment, as if he wished he could devour him whole.
If he still had hands.
He would surely want to cast Avada Kedavra on Ian ten times, no, twenty times right away. As to why he doesn't use other magic, naturally, it's because Voldemort is deeply attached to Avada Kedavra.
"Not enough?" Rowena Ravenclaw looked Ian up and down.
Ian nodded.
"I've played with him for so long, and he still glares at me..."
His voice carried a trace of indignation.
This left Rowena Ravenclaw stunned for a while.
"Are you sure you're not lying to me? Is he really the Black Demon King who brings harm to the human world?" Rowena Ravenclaw's voice had a peculiar tone.
"Your wisdom is unparalleled in the world, can't you see how evil he looks?" Ian lifted Voldemort's head, tugging at the dark mist beneath it.
A bit sticky.
Yet still tangible.
Rowena Ravenclaw silently watched his actions.
"By the way, there's something I almost forgot to report to you. He actually deceived your daughter's feelings and stole your crown to make a Soul Artifact."
"The crown is a small matter, I can endure it, but what I can't tolerate is his actions. It's because of his deceit, poor Lady Grey wept at Hogwarts for decades."
Ian indignantly laid out Voldemort's crimes.
Finally.
He added especially, "I think Lady Grey's reluctance to step into the Misty Illusion Realm might also be related to his deceit. Certainly, the remorseful Lady Grey would feel unworthy to face you."
What bad intentions could a little wizard have?
He just likes to tattle.
Rowena Ravenclaw's expression did not change.
She gently raised her hand.
Countless sand grains formed images in mid-air, like three-dimensional projections, as if some kind of truth was being unfolded repeatedly in Ian's eyes.
"If you flipped through your textbooks before school started, you should know the story of the Five-legged Monster. This means that in the realm of the soul, the Transformation Technique actually has a considerable space for exploration."
Rowena Ravenclaw took the crown and was about to enter the room.
"You still have some time, learn it, little Raven." The founder's voice held a profound meaning, yet it was elusive and puzzling.
"Are you planning to keep the crown?"
Ian, although a bit regretful, understood that it was a return to the owner.
"Yes, that's right. Without this special Door Key, the next time you wish to find me, you'll have to traverse your kingdom and fly over the Black Sea that isolates everything."
Rowena Ravenclaw's words were somewhat inexplicable.
My kingdom?
Ian frowned slightly.
"Fly?"
He was also puzzled by this.
"Transform into a Raven... you can certainly do it. If you can still fly to me, I will repair and modify this crown, endowing it with what a true crown should possess."
As the words fell.
The door of the cabin closed.
On the desolate island.
Only Ian stood in the wind, with Voldemort's head underfoot.
He was bewildered, while Voldemort's residual soul was full of filth and mud — in mid-air, the sand-formed images quietly continued to convey the knowledge of Rowena Ravenclaw.
[You have observed the evolution of the origin of Transformation, Transformation Technique Skill Level +16]
[You have observed the evolution of the origin of Transformation, Transformation Technique Skill Level +32]
[You have observed the evolution of the origin of Transformation, Transformation Technique Skill Level +11]
...
An unprecedented enlightenment!
When Ian's eyes reflected those sand grain images, he seemed to follow the ancestors at the birth of magic, from the initial "sparks" towards the grandeur of the "all-consuming fire."
Knowledge.
Was being understood and digested by Ian in ways he had never imagined.
"You're not allowed to look, this is for me." In the process of continuous enlightenment, Ian did not forget to stomp Voldemort's remaining soul's face-down head deeply into the mud.
Time was ticking away.
Little by little.
Sometimes fast, sometimes slow.
It had no specific measurable standards, it was just a feeling. Ian was immersed in the joy of constant harvest, and half a day swiftly passed over him.
[Transformation Technique (Level 5) 32/1600]
When extraordinary skills were enhanced through this millennium-transcending, life-death-surpassing legacy, the special gift Ian longed for was thus nurtured.
[Congratulations, skill breaks through to Level 5, Extraordinary Traits acquired.]
The panel information was updating.
The Extraordinary Traits named [Form of All Things] leaped onto it.
As the name suggests.
It could allow Ian to apply the transformation technique to anything, including souls, including life. Most importantly, it would grant Ian scorn for Gamp's Basic Transformation Law…
"Except for the rule of creating something from nothing remains unshakable, the other four rules are already null in my eyes." Ian could not bring his magic wand into this world.
He didn't know the reason.
But he didn't need a magic wand for the transformation of a soul either.
"My unique nature allows me to knead souls by hand…" Ian picked up Voldemort's remnant soul from the ground and began his experiment after making rapid progress.
"This is Lady Ravenclaw's order, blame yourself for being a scumbag." Ian, taking advantage of the fact that Voldemort's remnant soul couldn't speak, kept kneading Voldemort's remnant soul.
Conceptual power was at play.
Voldemort's remnant soul felt its essence being distorted.
However.
It was powerless against it.
Even the eyes that could express hatred had been swiftly plucked out by Ian. After a while, a slug with Riddle's noseless face was placed on the ground by Ian.
It squirmed, trying to move away from Ian.
"Ribbit, ribbit, ribbit~"
The chocolate frog, which was granted "life" by Lady Rowena Ravenclaw, was immediately attracted and started to persistently chase after Voldemort-slug.
It had no tongue.
Unable to swallow the slug.
But this did not stop the frog's instinct from constantly wanting to chase Voldemort. To avoid being trampled by a chocolate frog, Voldemort could only wriggle frantically in a mad escape.
"From now on, you shall be called Spike."
Ian gave the chocolate frog a name.
He turned to look at the small wooden hut.
The door was already shut.
The window position also concealed the view inside.
"Thank you for your teachings."
Ian bowed slightly.
His figure began to fade in the Misty Illusion Realm.
He didn't know.
On the other side of the cabin window, Rowena Ravenclaw had been standing there, quietly observing him until he disappeared on this long-unvisited isolated island.
"An unexpected surprise, the little raven from back then, who would have thought it would truly fly to such a miracle, now, fate actually lets him fly to me once again."
Rowena Ravenclaw murmured softly, her thoughts seemed to drift back to long ago.
The end of all life in the human world is death, only before death comes, the wizards can have more choices to prolong or escape death.
However.
Only the wise can see through.
All means are but futile procrastination.
Death might be postponed, but it will always reach you, and when the moment of death truly comes, that is the last choice the wizards in the human world need to face.
Rowena Ravenclaw chose to take a step forward, and thus, the raven that signed the contract with her family arrived as promised, carrying her across mountains and that land of the dead to fly to the Black Sea.
This was a reunion after many years.
Solved some doubts.
Also brought new questions.
"Is the contract that spans several centuries for now, or… the future?" Rowena Ravenclaw turned her head, looking at the worn-out crown placed beside her.
"I understand many things, yet I haven't fully comprehended fate…" She gently opened another package of chocolate frogs, taking out the card contained within, her expression complex.
The vivid figures on the card moved lively.
"A thousand years in the human world, where have you been taken by destiny?" Rowena Ravenclaw seemed unsurprised by the figure she found in the chocolate frog.
On the card.
A black-robed man folded his arms, his expression arrogant, smiling wantonly.
"I'd rather you didn't care about us, than hope you don't be foolish… my friend, Salazar."