บท 891: Gellert Grindelwald
บรรณาธิการ: Atlas Studios
Around noon, after learning the location of Newmungard from several house-elves, Ivan took his meal and disappeared into Hogwarts.
When he returned to his senses, he was in a deserted area.
The almost-crossing of half of Europe was a bit hard for Ivan to adjust to, but he soon adjusted and looked straight ahead — a dark, fortress-like edifice stood halfway up the hill, the most prominent of which was the tall tower in the centre…
Ivan looked around and quickly confirmed that this was the prison!
It was as famous as Azkaban, and was a testament to Grindelwald's brutality that hundreds of wizards were imprisoned within the walls of Nurmengard at its height.
However, the place had been abandoned for many years, and its solid walls were partially collapsed. The sentry post at the entrance was empty.
After the fall of Grindelwald, it was sacked by a large number of righteous wizards, and traces of the battle can still be seen.
Ivan strode inside, looking around like a tourist. He was slightly surprised to see that after more than fifty years, some of the prison's protective enchantments were still functioning.
When Ivan entered the tower, he felt as if the space around him had been locked in place. It didn't take a genius to know that this was an Anti-Phantom Displacement Array.
However, he had recently fused with the phoenix bloodline and mastered another method of teleportation.
Similar protective enchantments were useless against him, so after a few moments of perception, Ivan climbed the stairs and reached the top of the tower in ten minutes.
The top floor of the tower looked more alive than the ruins below. It had been almost transformed into a small room with all the essentials, but it seemed to lack care.
There is a thick layer of dust on the fireplace and on the few chairs that are not used, and the only windows that look through the tower are grey, making the top floor of the tower seem oppressive in the midday sun…
The owner of this tower, Grindelwald, the only prisoner of Newmengardry, was reclining on the only hard bed in the room.
Grindelwald appeared to be in a terrible state, perhaps due to his advanced age and prolonged incarceration. His white hair was tied back in a knot, his eyes were sunken, and his face was so pale that Ivan suspected he would die in this room in the next moment.
The sound of footsteps at the door naturally attracted the attention of Gellert Grindelwald, who swept his hawk-like gaze over Ivan, causing Ivan to feel a pressure he had not felt in a long time.
Ivan, now on guard, discreetly placed his hand on his wand, having a vague feeling that this illustrious Dark Wizard was in a similar state to Dumbledore—a powerful dying man.
Therefore, even though the other party did not have a wand, Ivan did not dare to let his guard down…
Gellert Grindelwald, however, had no intention of attacking Ivan. As Ivan approached, he suddenly spoke in a low, hoarse voice.
"Ivan Hals… you're here much later than I expected…"
"You knew about me? And you knew I would come to you?" Yvonne stopped a meter from the bed, unable to hide her surprise.
"He thought you would find your way here, sooner or later…" Grindelwald explained slowly.
"It seems Headmaster Dumbledore has a lot of faith in me…" Ivan said teasingly, raising his eyebrows. Dumbledore had not left him any clues or hints before he died, and Ivan would not have remembered this ruined prison if he had not heard from Winky.
"Albus told me quite a bit about you…" Grindelwald began, then coughed heavily and covered his mouth with his hand for a few moments before recovering enough to continue. "He thought you were the most likely person to change the wizarding world in centuries."
Ivan rubbed his nose. Dumbledore had mentioned this to him before, and he was curious as to how Grindelwald would take this.
"So what do you think?" Ivan asked.
"I didn't believe it at first, but it seems there is some basis for it…" Grindelwald stared at Ivan appraisingly. "No wizard has ever reached such heights at your age…"
Undeterred by Grindelwald's praise, Yvonne replied casually, "Really? I've heard about you from Professor Dumbledore…"
As he spoke, Ivan placed the meal in his left hand in front of Grindelwald — he had not forgotten that he was here to deliver food.
Grindelwald did not hold back. He picked up his knife and fork and slowly cut a piece of steak, putting it into his mouth with the grace of a nobleman.
Ivan, however, noticed that the man's left hand, which was hidden in the shadows and holding a knife, was acting out of its own accord, and that the steak he had cut from it looked crooked rather than neat.
Before he could take a closer look, Grindelwald said, "If you have any doubts, you can speak now…"
Ivan waved his wand to get a stool from a distance and sat down on the edge of the bed. He did not wait for Grindelwald to finish eating, but instead asked, "What did Headmaster Dumbledore say to you?"
Grindelwald did not stop slicing his steak. "Part of it is about you, the rest you do not have to know."
Yvonne's eyes narrowed, but she didn't seem to care that he was hiding something from her, as she knew Grindelwald and Dumbledore were very close, and there were things she didn't want to hear.
Grindelwald openly stated that he was prepared to hide something, which was better than keeping it to himself.
With this in mind, Ivan left out the inconvenient parts and patiently tried to find out from Grindelwald why Dumbledore was there.
To Ivan's disappointment, Grindelwald revealed little useful information during the course of the meal, most of which was about Dumbledore's opinion of him and the things he had done.
Ivan couldn't understand why the Headmaster would mention him in such detail to Grindelwald, and was in no mood to continue listening, so he interrupted, "When Dumbledore's Headmaster came to see you, did you know he was under the influence of the Dark Arts and was dying?"
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