Chapter 331: A Different Dark Lord

After Snape left, Sirius didn't say much more to Harry about the Dark Lord. He didn't want Harry to be in danger, but he didn't want to force Harry to change his mind either. So, he decided to send Harry back to school to do his homework first.

After returning to school from Sirius's office, Harry didn't seem as firm. Especially when he faced a pile of homework and occasionally discovered content he wasn't familiar with, this young Savior couldn't help but doubt whether he could really play the role of the Dark Lord well in terms of magical level.

On Sunday night, Harry chatted happily about gossip in Torchwood all night, which made him feel very relaxed and at ease. After the gathering, he was walking toward the Gryffindor dormitory with Jin Ni and Ivy, full of smiles.

"Harry, I feel a bit worried." Jin Ni suddenly spoke up.

"What?" Harry was a bit surprised.

"I'm not sure, who is playing in our match against Hufflepuff?" She looked a bit uneasy.

"Who is playing? Oh, right." Harry was also a bit hesitant, "It's true you lack experience, but I'm afraid I've also been lax in training during this time."

"Yeah, that's why Jin Ni has been feeling anxious." Ivy said, "She hasn't been sleeping well after every training session."

"I don't have the confidence to beat him," Jin Ni drooped her eyebrows, "And I'm afraid you'll lose to him too. Ernie told me Shabi is training very hard."

"You have to think about it this way, Jin Ni." Harry took a breath, "The key is whether you want to play."

"Me? But—"

"There are no 'buts', just tell me, do you want to be the starting Seeker for the Gryffindor Quidditch team?" Harry looked into her eyes seriously.

"I..." Jin Ni took a deep breath, "I want to."

"Then that's it, you don't need to have so many concerns. Even if you lose to him, it won't be a big deal." Harry said, "Our total score has the advantage, and when we play Ravenclaw later, we can catch up."

"No, it's not just about that." Ivy suddenly said, "You have to consider your reputation. If Jin Ni loses, the whole house will ask: why didn't you let Harry play."

"Ah?" Harry frowned; he hadn't thought of that level.

"And, we're also worried that if you play and lose to Shabi because you're out of practice, it would be impossible to clean up the mess." Ivy continued, "Letting Jin Ni play is also to protect your reputation."

"Ivy, you're not a player, you can't understand." Harry explained, "There isn't a player who doesn't want to start; that's beyond doubt."

"Indeed, but that's just one of several factors that are less important." Jin Ni turned her head, looking at him cautiously.

"But this is decisive." Harry said seriously, "If you're afraid of failure, then I'll play. I'll use the remaining time to practice hard. I don't think Shabi can have 70% of Cedric's level—and even Cedric himself, I don't think he's hard to deal with."

"I'm not afraid of failure, I—" A different kind of light suddenly burst into Jin Ni's eyes, "I want to try."

"Good, I believe in you." Harry said with a smile.

"Just as you said, confidence is the first lesson for a Seeker." Jin Ni's spirit suddenly changed, "I can beat Shabi, let me do it, so you can go busy yourself with more important things."

"Mainly because there were some voices in the house before." Ivy reminded him in a low voice, "They don't quite believe in Jin Ni."

"That's not important, what's important is that Jin Ni believes in herself." Harry patted her on the shoulder, "Go for it."

After watching the two walk into the girls' dormitory, Harry also returned to his own dormitory.

Luo En greeted him to sit on his bed, then asked in a low voice about the meeting. Harry gave a brief summary, including the election of the Dark Lord.

"That's cool." Luo En's eyes suddenly lit up, "Do you want to try it?"

Suddenly, Harry remembered what he had just said to persuade Jin Ni.

"I want to." Harry said seriously, "This is not just about playing a big game, it's also a big step in my personal growth. Most importantly, anyone who aims to benefit the nation will not refuse the opportunity to hold power."

"You said that really well." Luo En praised, "But I'm a bit worried, will you have enough time?"

"In the Wizarding World, power doesn't mean sitting in a conference room having meetings, processing documents, and calling this or that subordinate over to point fingers." Harry already had a different understanding of this, "It's about the person who has mastered a high level of magic."

"If I become the Dark Lord, I will definitely require all the great families to copy their private collections and share them with each other." Harry had already begun to conceive of policy plans, "I can also provide Grindelwald's notes as a starting point."

"That will increase the strength of the Death Eaters, and most of what they hide is Dark Magic." Luo En said puzzledly, "I don't think there's any benefit."

"Researching and understanding Dark Magic is a necessary path to becoming a great wizard. And, we can also synchronize and copy the final summarized materials for the Order of the Phoenix to see." Harry pondered, "Tonks still has the results of the Department of Mysteries' space-time theory from many years. We can build a database to improve the strength of the Order of the Phoenix members."

"I don't think this is a very good idea." Luo En shook his head, "Even if you really collect and summarize the theories, in the end, I guess only Hermione will read them."

"Look, just here at Hogwarts, there's so much knowledge, professors teach strictly, and many people still don't want to learn, let alone you going to build some database—normal people don't flip through books for no reason." Luo En complained.

"Hmm, you have a point." Harry rubbed his chin, "But it doesn't matter, it's just data, copying it doesn't take much effort. Let's build the library first—besides, isn't there Hermione?"

After the two chatted until they were sleepy, Harry drifted into dreamland with a beautiful blueprint in his mind. The next morning, when he was sitting in History of Magic class, various ideas began to pop up in his mind one after another. Most were about how the Dark Lord should set rules for the Death Eaters so they would no longer harm the innocent and would gradually turn to the right path. After seeing Sirius's cannery, Harry felt his thinking was quite broad.

On Tuesday, Harry continued to learn Occlumency with Snape, and he was very diligent in his learning. It was just a pity that the memory weaving part of Occlumency didn't seem to be something that could be learned quickly just by studying hard. Although progress was slow, at least Harry showed Snape his determination, so at the end of the tutoring, the inarticulate professor also reluctantly said a word or two of comfort and encouragement.

"At least there's progress." Snape said coldly, "This shows you already have ideas... then, we won't have tutoring on Thursday."

"Uh?"

"Nagini has been sent to Black's place, you'd better use Thursday afternoon to have a chat with her." Snape's tone was more like notifying him, "I've already asked McGonagall for leave for you."

"Alright." Harry agreed subconsciously, "After all, she is the key to the whole plan."

After lunch on Thursday, Harry was led by Snape to Sirius's rural office in Northern Ireland, and under his guidance, came to a huge basement.

"I knew Lu Xiusi wouldn't be that easy to deal with." Sirius complained, "He insisted I put the locket there as collateral."

"Then did you give it to him?" Harry asked.

"Sure, it's not like it's anything important." Sirius's tone seemed somewhat helpless, but also carried a hint of relief. After all, he knew Voldemort couldn't come back no matter what.

"For us, each of us has a basic foundation outside of our Death Eater identity." Snape commented, "But for Lu Xiusi, without the uniqueness bestowed by the Dark Lord, he cannot convince the masses."

"That's why he values the Horcrux so much... we're here." Sirius said, opening a lightweight aluminum alloy door.

What came into view was a large expanse of artificial turf and several logs placed haphazardly around the field. A large white snake was lazily coiled in a puddle on the left. When it noticed Harry in the crowd, it suddenly raised its head.

"Harry Potter?" A cold female voice rang in Harry's ears, "Why are you here?"

"Uh, do you know me?" Harry wanted to answer her, so he naturally spoke in Parseltongue.

"Of course, the Master has said more than once that you are of great significance to him." Nagini said, "But you should be Deng Buliduo's subordinate, why are you appearing here?"

"You might not know yet, Deng Buliduo and the Dark Lord... perished together." Harry chose a simpler way to say it.

"Oh?" Nagini laid back down, "So, the relationships between humans have changed again, to the point where you can actually coexist peacefully with these two? How interesting."

"Do you have any feelings about the Dark Lord's... passing?" Harry asked curiously.

"I am somewhat sad, but there is nothing I can do." The snake expressed itself very clearly, "Let it be. After you leave, you can let me be sad alone for a while."

"Actually, I came to talk to you about some things. If you just found out the news, should I come back another day?" Harry felt a bit embarrassed.

"No, say it now." Nagini propped her neck up again.

"Do you think, right now," Harry tried to be tactful and proceed step by step, "should we elect a new Dark Lord?"

"Whatever, I have no opinion." Nagini said coldly, "But I will not serve him. I am only loyal to Lord Voldemort."

"I see, that's completely understandable." Harry organized his language, "Then if you were to make the decision, who would you choose to be the new Dark Lord?"

"Can I choose anyone?" Nagini asked.

"You choose first, maybe it's possible?" Harry probed.

"I want to choose Credence Barebone." A name that Harry felt both familiar and strange came out of its snake mouth. ===== CHAPTER 332 =====