94 hp Diagon Alley

He ran over and threw himself on the edge of the rock, dipped the glass into the lake, scooped a full glass of cold lake water, and this time the water did not disappear.

"Sir—here!" Harry shouted, throwing himself forward and clumsily pouring water in Dumbledore's face.

That was all he could do, because there was a chill in his arm that was not holding the cup, but not from the icy lake water splashing on it.A sticky, white hand grabbed his wrist, and the guy was slowly dragging him behind the rocks.The surface of the lake was no longer as smooth as a mirror, but was churning violently.Harry looked, and there were white heads and hands emerging from the black water everywhere, men, women, and children, all with sunken, blind eyes, floating towards the rock: A large number of dead bodies emerged from the dark lake.

"Total petrification!" Harry yelled, pointing his wand at the Inferi that had grabbed his arm, clutching desperately at the smooth, damp rock face of the island.The Inferi let go of him and fell back into the water with a plop.Harry struggled to his feet.But more Inferi had already climbed onto the rock, clutching the slippery rock with their withered hands, staring at him with empty, foggy eyes, dragging behind them wet rags, one by one There was a look of contempt on the sunken face.

"Total petrification!" Harry yelled again, stepping back and flailing his wand in the air.Six or seven Yin corpses were knocked down, but more Yin corpses forced towards him. "There are many obstacles! Imprisonment quickly!"

A few of the Inferi staggered and fell, and one or two were tied up with ropes, but those who had crawled up the rock behind them just stepped over them, or stepped on their fallen bodies and came again.Harry kept waving his wand vigorously, and shouted, "Magic Edge! Magical Edge!"

Deep gashes appeared in the ragged wet clothes and cold skin of the Inferi, but not a drop of blood flowed out.Unconsciously, they continued to press forward step by step, stretching out a pair of dry hands towards Harry.Harry took another few steps back, feeling arms wrap around him from behind, arms as cold as death and fleshless, lifted him off the ground, and walked slowly, but without hesitation. black lake.Harry knew there was no way for him to get out, he would surely be drowned, another Inferi guarding a fragment of Voldemort's soul...

But at this moment, flames appeared in the darkness: a bright, golden-red ring of fire surrounded the rocks, and the ghosts holding Harry tightly staggered and swayed one by one.They dared not go through the flames into the lake, so they left Harry behind.Harry fell to the ground, his foot slipped on the rocks, and he scraped his arm, but he struggled to his feet, raising his wand and looking around warily.

Already Dumbledore was on his feet again, his face as pale as the Inferi around him, but taller than any of them, with fire dancing in his eyes.His wand was held aloft like a torch, and streams of flame shot out from the tip of the wand, like a huge and warm noose, surrounding the Inferi.

The Inferi bumped into each other, dazed to escape the flames that surrounded them...

Dumbledore fished the locket from under the stone basin and stuffed it inside his robes.Without saying a word, he motioned Harry to come to him.

Dazed by the flames, the Inferi didn't seem to realize that their pursuers were leaving the island.Overwhelmed, the Inferi came to the lake and couldn't wait to slide back into the dark water.

Dumbledore didn't answer, he led Harry towards the boat.Dumbledore barely had the strength to climb into the boat.He seemed to be putting all his energy into maintaining the protective aura around them.Harry supported him and made him sit in the boat.No sooner had the two squeezed in than the boat skimmed back across the dark water, away from the rocks still surrounded by a ring of fire.The Inferi that floated underwater seemed never to dare to show their faces again.

"Sir," gasped Harry, "sir, I forgot--forgot the fire--they jumped at me all of a sudden, and scared the hell out of me--"

"Understandable," murmured Dumbledore.Harry was horrified to hear the weakness of his voice.

With a soft bang, they reached the shore, and Harry jumped out of the boat first, and turned to help Dumbledore.As soon as Dumbledore landed, the hand that held the wand dropped.The ring of fire disappeared, but the Inferi did not emerge from the lake again.The boat sank again, and the chain jingled back into the water.Dumbledore sighed heavily and leaned against the rock wall of the cave.

"I'm weak..." he said.

"Don't worry, sir," said Harry hastily, feeling very disturbed at the sight of Dumbledore's extreme paleness and exhaustion, "don't worry, we'll both go back... lean on me, sir... "

Harry drew Dumbledore's good arm over his shoulder, which bore most of the Headmaster's weight.

"The protective mechanism...after all...was very ingeniously designed." Dumbledore said weakly, "It's impossible for one person to do it...you've done a good job, very beautiful, Harry..."

"Shut up now," said Harry, who was frightened by Dumbledore's voice becoming so muffled and his footsteps becoming so limp, "save your energy, sir...we'll be out of here soon... …We did it! We found the Horcruxes, didn't we, Professor?" Harry, trembling all over, steadied Dumbledore, who was stumbling slightly.

"About your question, Harry." Dumbledore took out the locket with his injured hand, and sighed weakly, "I admit, this is not the result I imagined."

Dumbledore was so weak that he couldn't hold the Horcrux at all.

The locket fell from Dumbledore's pocket.The lid was open, probably popped off when dropped on the floor.Harry picked up the locket. Although he was shocked, terrified, and sad, he knew that there must be something wrong...

He turned the locket over.Compared to the one he'd seen in the Pensieve, this one wasn't as big, and lacked the floral emblem, or the fancy Slytherin "S" mark.Also, there was nothing inside but a folded piece of parchment tucked tightly in place of the portrait.

Mechanically, without thinking, Harry took out the parchment, and by the light of the many wands behind him, opened it and read:

【To the Dark Lord

I'm dead long before you read this.

But I want you to know that I discovered your secret.

I stole the real Horcrux and intend to destroy it as soon as possible.

I am willing to die in the hope that you will be killed when you meet your opponent.

RAB】

Harry neither understood nor cared what it meant.There is only one important thing: this is not Voldemort's Horcrux.Dumbledore drank the terrible potion and crippled himself, all in vain.Harry crumpled the parchment in his palm, tears blurring his eyes.

Surprisingly, Dumbledore, who listened to this passage with his eyes closed, seemed to regain some strength, and he even looked happier than before.

"I see, I see." Dumbledore said weakly, "Then we have one more thing to do."

Dumbledore's body slid down again, and Harry had to support him with all his strength. "At least until we're out of here, Professor..."

"No...Harry...right now, we are going to bring home a silent hero." Dumbledore's hand holding the wand suddenly pointed towards the lake, and the pale corpses looked like fish with their bellies turned Emerged from the bottom of the lake.Dumbledore seemed to be looking for some old friends, and Harry didn't know what he could do to help, so he could only stare at them with wide eyes.

With one Inferi, Harry noticed something different.He didn't writhe in the lake like other corpses, but stood upright facing the small island in the middle of the lake.

"Are you looking for that?" Harry asked Dumbledore, pointing to the strange corpse.

The weak Headmaster responded with action, and with a wave of his wand, the Inferi flew towards them.Harry stood very cautiously in front of Dumbledore, ready to use the flames to resist the corpse's attack.But Dumbledore staggered forward and placed the palm of his blackened fingers directly on the corpse's forehead.

After a bright yellow halo shrouded, the pale Infernal Corpse suddenly stopped struggling. Harry even felt that this black-haired male corpse looked familiar.

There was hope in Dumbledore's eyes, and he said to Harry, "We need to take him back to Hogwarts..."

"I can carry him." Harry didn't know why, but he couldn't hand Dumbledore a heavy corpse. "But can you go by yourself?"

"The arch must be sealed again...my knife..." said Dumbledore softly.

"No need, I've been bruised by rocks," said Harry firmly, "just tell me where..."

"here……"

Harry wiped the stone off his injured arm, and the arch reopened immediately, receiving the gift of blood.The three of them walked through the cave outside, and Harry supported Dumbledore, carrying his new friend on his back with difficulty, back into the icy water in the crack in the cliff.

"It's going to be all right, sir," Harry said over and over again, worried by Dumbledore's feeble voice just now, and now even more by his silence,