!
"Are you sure there's really some powerful magic in this?"
Tom stared at the Gaunt family heirloom ring on his hand, unable to see anything special about it.
"Of course, you can't tell just by looking... Who does research just by staring at something?" Robert snatched the ring from Tom's hand in annoyance.
"Even if it's a relic left by Slytherin, that doesn't necessarily mean it's a magical item," Tom said, unconvinced.
"You're a descendant of Slytherin—you should be more familiar with his character. Do you think he would keep a non-magical object as a family heirloom?" Robert asked.
"No..." Tom admitted.
Logically, if something was meant to be an heirloom, it wouldn't be ordinary. If it were up to him, at the very least, the material should be something far beyond regular gemstones!
"Even a proud Slytherin like you wouldn't just pick up a random gem for an heirloom, right?"
"Actually, this ring was made by the Gaunt family, not Slytherin himself. He likely never even saw it," Tom corrected.
"Then that makes it even less likely to be ordinary!" Robert grew more excited. "You know what kind of family the Gaunts were. Would they allow a mere Muggle trinket into their home? Something they deemed worthy of being an heirloom can't possibly be simple."
"This... this is difficult to argue against," Tom admitted, feeling momentarily thrown off balance.
"The Gaunt family is in decline now, but they were once wealthy," Robert continued as he observed the ring, then pulled out a glass bottle. He opened the lid and poured a colorless liquid into a glass. "Watch closely, my friend."
Tom had never seen Robert conduct an experiment before, and his curiosity was piqued.
"What is this?" Tom asked, pointing at the liquid.
"This is a potion that detects magical energy. Soak an item in it, and you'll see how strong its magic is. You can even make a rough guess at what kind of magic is on it."
As Robert spoke, he dropped the ring into the glass.
"And then? How do you analyze it?" Tom asked.
"Look! The colorless potion is changing. If the item has no magic, the potion turns blue. If it does, it turns red. The stronger the magic, the darker the shade!"
As soon as Robert finished speaking, the potion darkened to a deep red—almost black.
Tom inhaled sharply. "Doesn't that mean there's extremely powerful black magic on it?"
He had been wearing the ring just moments ago. If the black magic was that strong, had he unknowingly put himself in danger?
"Strong magic doesn't always mean black magic," Robert corrected. "Remember that, Tom."
"But how can something be this powerful if it's not dark magic?" Tom asked, shocked.
He had spent time in the Restricted Section of the library, secretly reading forbidden books. Everything he learned there reinforced the belief that true power came from black magic. After all, dark spells were far stronger than ordinary magic.
But now Robert was telling him otherwise?
"Of course! You don't believe me? Tell me this—do you think Professor Dumbledore is strong?"
"Yes," Tom admitted.
"And yet he doesn't use dark magic."
"How do you know?" Tom countered.
"When he teaches Defense Against the Dark Arts, he always talks about love being powerful. Have you ever met a dark wizard who talks about 'love'?"
Tom scoffed. "He does say that, but I don't believe it. How can someone with emotions like 'love' wield strong magic? He must be lying."
"Strong emotions enhance spells. Why do you assume only negative emotions can do that? Any intense emotion—positive or negative—can make magic stronger. Of course, some spells require specific emotions, but that's another discussion. If you don't believe me, try casting spells while channeling different emotions. Try it with a Disarming Charm, for example."
Tom fell into deep thought.
Could it be that Dumbledore was truly powerful without relying on dark magic?
"What about you? Do you agree with Dumbledore?" Tom asked after a moment.
"He just doesn't want us to use black magic," Robert replied. "But both paths lead to power. Only children make choices. If black magic is powerful, why ignore it? I choose both. Besides, if you don't understand dark magic, how can you defend against it properly?"
"You always have a way of making things sound reasonable..." Tom muttered. "Wait! What are you doing?!"
He watched in shock as Robert pried the black gemstone off the ring.
The tests had only been for show—Robert already knew exactly what the gem was.
How could he not recognize the Resurrection Stone, one of the three Deathly Hallows? Now that he had done the preliminary steps, it was time to test it. He was curious to see if the Resurrection Stone truly worked.
But in Tom's eyes, Robert had just dismantled a sacred Gaunt family heirloom.
"You said we wouldn't damage it!" Tom snapped.
"Tom, the magic is in the gemstone. The rest of the ring is just plain gold and silver," Robert replied.
"Even if that's true, it's still one piece!"
"Tom, this is a Gaunt family heirloom. Didn't you say you were leaving the Gaunt name behind? Why carry something with the Gaunt family crest? You should craft a new ring, inscribe 'Riddle' or 'Voldemort' on it, and set the gemstone in that."
"What does 'Voldemort' mean?" Tom asked suspiciously.
"Don't worry about the details," Robert said, spinning the gemstone between his fingers. "If you don't want a new ring, I'll put it back after the experiment. It's not destroyed—just disassembled. Why are you so upset?"
Tom fumed but hesitated.
Robert had a point.
Why couldn't he establish his own family line?
If he could achieve what Slytherin had, then future generations wouldn't call themselves descendants of Slytherin; they would be descendants of Riddle!
Or perhaps... he could even create a better name.
While Tom imagined his future legacy, Robert carefully wiped the Resurrection Stone clean and examined it.
The black gemstone was dull, lacking any luster. Upon close inspection, a faint inscription could be seen on it: "Peverell."
The Peverell brothers were the legendary wizards who received the Deathly Hallows from Death himself.
The second brother, the ancestor of the Gaunt family, possessed the Resurrection Stone. Meanwhile, the ancestor of the Potter family had inherited the Invisibility Cloak.
As for the eldest brother, who wielded the Elder Wand… he had been assassinated, and no known descendants remained. The Elder Wand was now in Grindelwald's possession.
"Hmm... maybe we should trick the Potters out of their Invisibility Cloak," Robert mused.
As he thought about it, he idly spun the Resurrection Stone between his fingers like a fidget spinner. On the third rotation, something changed.
A faint mist began to rise around him, and the surrounding air dimmed.
Startled, Robert turned to Tom. "Do you notice anything strange?"
"No…" Tom looked around, puzzled. "What are you talking about?"
Robert frowned.
He could see the mist, but Tom couldn't?
So, the Resurrection Stone really worked... but only for the person holding it?
As the mist thickened, blurry human shapes began to form—then, suddenly, they vanished.
Robert was stunned.
The Resurrection Stone was supposed to simulate the image of deceased loved ones, but for some reason, it failed.
Was it possible that the stone didn't merely create illusions, but actually connected to the world of the dead?
"Well? What kind of magic is on that gem?" Tom demanded.
Robert smirked and handed him the stone. "Try it yourself. Spin it three times—you'll see."
As he watched Tom take the Resurrection Stone, Robert couldn't help but think...
Perhaps Dumbledore would be interested in borrowing this artifact.
And perhaps, that would earn Robert even more rewards.
(End of Chapter)
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