At the dining table, Nicolas pushed a plate of meat with bones in front of Kael and said with a smile, "I almost forgot to ask, what brings you to me this time... It can't just be to keep me company for Christmas."
"That's the main reason," Kael replied.
"Nothing else?"
"No," Kael shook his head.
"If that's the case..." Nicolas glanced at him, half-jokingly said, "Then I'm not going to bother with you.
"You know, finding the right talisman takes a long time, after which I might not leave that room for several weeks."
"Uh..." Kael patted his head, "Oh, when you put it that way, I do remember a little something."
"Go ahead and say it," Nicolas chuckled, "just as long as you're not like Albus, pulling out a Time Turner from a thousand years ago."
"No, no, it's just a small matter..."
Kael placed a box on the table, put on Anti-Curse Gloves, and took out a tarnished diadem from inside.
"I found this in Hogwarts Castle, and wanted to see if there's any way to restore it."
...
The first time Nicolas saw the diadem, he didn't pay much attention, just assuming Kael had dug up a broken alchemy item from Hogwarts.
After all, in that thousand-year-old school, it's not surprising to find anything.
From a Master Alchemist's intuition, Nicolas quickly discovered something unusual about the diadem.
His expression became serious, as if he thought of some possibility.
"Could it be..."
Nicolas suddenly became nervous, instinctively asking, "What is this..."
"Oh, it's nothing, just Ravenclaw's Diadem," Kael said nonchalantly.
"The one that's been lost for a thousand years?" Nicolas couldn't help but stand up.
For almost all alchemists, Ravenclaw's Diadem, which can increase wisdom, is as legendary as the Philosopher's Stone.
Nicolas already had the Philosopher's Stone, but he had never seen the diadem in person, which was one of the few regrets in his six hundred years of long life.
Unexpectedly, it had always been at Hogwarts.
Albus had even told him he'd never seen it, yet he's the Headmaster, less capable than a teenager.
Nicolas complained inwardly.
But now there's another problem.
Ravenclaw's Diadem was too old and looked like garbage picked from a junk shop.
Logically, such a level of magic items shouldn't be subject to corrosion, right...?
Nicolas couldn't help but lean closer, carefully examining the diadem.
His expression grew increasingly stern.
"Is this... a Soul Artifact?"
"Yes," Kael nodded, "When I found it, it had already been made into a Soul Artifact."
Even Nicolas, with his cultivation, felt like cursing.
To make Ravenclaw's Diadem into a Soul Artifact, even the despicable Herpo probably couldn't do such a thing.
Nicolas tried touching the diadem, and unknowingly, a black mist suddenly emerged, swirling around the diadem.
Whispers could be faintly heard all around.
"Snap!"
The House-elf Tata instantly apparated in front of Nicolas, nervously pointing at the black mist.
"No need to worry, Tata," Nicolas said, pressing his finger downward, causing the black mist to return to the diadem.
Kael put it back in the box before continuing:
"I came here this time to ask if there's a way to remove the soul fragments attached inside."
Nicolas responded softly.
He didn't ask Kael where he found the diadem, whether Dumbledore knew... just said with interest, "What are your thoughts?"
"If it's merely about destroying the Soul Artifact, there are many methods..."
Kael said, "The Basilisk's venom, Fiendfyre Curse, the Dementor's kiss, or simply using the Killing Curse can all disperse the soul fragments inside.
"But these methods would cause some damage to the diadem itself."
"I'm glad you thought of that."
Nicolas smiled, "When an item is made into a Soul Artifact, it and the soul fragment inside become one... or you could say the whole diadem is his soul.
I can understand why the person chose the diadem as the vessel. Even if one knows it's a Soul Artifact, they'd probably be reluctant to destroy it.
In that regard, this person is indeed cleverer than the despicable Herpo."
"Are you confident you can fix it?" Kael asked, "If possible, I happen to have Basilisk venom, or we could use a Dementor.
They're in Hogsmeade, and with only one Ministry of Magic person guarding, it shouldn't be a big problem to quickly catch a couple."
Nicolas had a slightly peculiar expression.
He could understand the Basilisk's venom; Dumbledore had mentioned earlier that the Basilisk in the Chamber of Secret now belonged to Kael, so extracting some venom was naturally fine.
But catching Dementors... that approach seemed a bit too wild, could you just catch those things like that?
"Ahem, no need, I have a better way," Nicolas waved his hand, "Though it might take a bit longer, it guarantees not causing any damage to the diadem."
"What way?" Kael asked curiously.
"An ancient magic potion targeting the soul," Nicolas said calmly, "I once read about it on a stone tablet book to prove Soul Artifacts don't belong to alchemy, intriguingly, this magic potion was also invented by the despicable Herpo."
"Despicable Herpo... a magic potion from a thousand years ago?"
Kael furrowed his brow, "With so much time passed, can those potion materials still be found?"
"No problem," Nicolas laughed, "I've stored many ancient potion materials using special methods, even if missing one or two kinds, a suitable substitute can always be found."
"But child..." he shifted his gaze from the box, looking at Kael calmly, "You seem to have a deep understanding of Soul Artifacts."
"Yes, because of an idea, I researched it for a while."
Kael did not hide, "I'm planning..."
"Oh, you don't need to tell me."
Nicolas interrupted Kael again, "I trust you to make the right judgment, and must have your reason for doing so.
I'm not blaming you, but reminding... remember what I told you back in Paris?
If you need, you can always visit my private library again, there are many books, and the topics are varied..."
Nicolas blinked, and while Kael was distracted, quietly took the box.
By the time Kael noticed, the item had already been put into a bag by him, doing it swiftly.
Of course, Kael originally planned to give him the diadem, he definitely wouldn't take it back, Nicolas's sneaky move was indeed unnecessary.
Moreover, besides the diadem, he also planned to start searching for other Soul Artifacts.
Kael wasn't sure if he could prevent Voldemort's resurrection, but at least he could set a small goal... like getting all of Voldemort's Soul Artifacts before his resurrection.