"I didn't come here to hold you accountable. I was just curious about you."
Leonard put away the metal flask. "I just wanted to see what kind of personal charisma a man imprisoned in a cell could possibly have, that those people would spend their own money rebuilding a Saints organization for you."
"Rebuilding the Saints?" Grindelwald frowned.
"That's right." Leonard's tone carried a trace of mockery. "They were already starting to plan how to rescue you from Nurmengard. If they hadn't provoked me, it probably wouldn't have been long before they started discussing the details."
Grindelwald fell silent at that, likely speechless over the inexplicably fanatical devotion of that group.
"Then it seems I should thank you for solving that trouble for me," Grindelwald said with a sigh.
"No need to thank me. How about answering a few questions instead?" Leonard suggested, looking at the legendary wizard before him.
As a legendary wizard, Grindelwald almost certainly knew quite a few secrets. With such a rare opportunity in front of him, it would be a waste not to ask.
Grindelwald looked at Leonard in puzzlement. He clearly found it hard to believe that someone would go to such lengths to enter a prison and meet a dangerous inmate just to ask a few questions.
"If that really is your purpose, then go ahead. As long as it doesn't involve my privacy, I'll answer." Perhaps because he had gone so long without the chance to talk to anyone, Grindelwald agreed readily enough.
"Then my first question." Leonard stared at Grindelwald, trying to probe his thoughts with Legilimency. "What did you mean earlier by disharmony? You also said it wasn't time for me to come into contact with these things yet."
You detect someone using a powerful Disillusionment Charm, then try to brush it off with one word like disharmony?
What kind of joke was that?
"So that's what's bothering you." Grindelwald smiled. "Disharmony, naturally, means a disharmony between magic and the environment, just like how you're using Legilimency on me right now and seeing nothing."
Leonard frowned. Just as Grindelwald said, Legilimency showed him absolutely nothing.
It did not feel like the feedback he got from someone specifically defending with Occlumency. Instead, Leonard had the strange sense that he was peering at an iceberg. The crystals on the surface were already impossibly hard, and beneath the deep sea there was an even greater hidden mass.
"As for why I said you're not there yet... naturally, it's because I don't think you're ready." Grindelwald's gaze suddenly sharpened, and an overwhelming pressure of absolute authority bore down on Leonard.
At that moment, the Grindelwald who had once intimidated the entire wizarding world finally revealed his true presence. He was not some ordinary old man chatting and joking around, but the dangerous figure who had nearly overturned the wizarding world.
Leonard remained unmoved and looked at Grindelwald calmly. "What do you mean by that?"
"I'm seeing whether you're qualified to know certain things." Grindelwald grinned. "You're not bad, so I'll tell you. This concerns a secret related to the Eternal Wizards."
"The Eternal Wizards?" Leonard frowned.
He knew a little about the Eternal Wizards. Hogwarts Library contained only scattered mentions of them. They were a group of ancient wizards, though Leonard was not sure whether they were the same people who used ancient magic.
"That's right, the Eternal Wizards." Grindelwald said, "But I can't tell you anything more specific. That would be dangerous for you."
"Dangerous? Dangerous from what?" Leonard felt he was strong enough. As he was now, he could even stand against Dumbledore.
"From the greed in your own heart." Grindelwald shook his head after saying that, seeming unwilling to continue.
Leonard wanted to know more, but Grindelwald refused to answer any more questions about the Eternal Wizards.
"All right. If you won't talk about it, forget it. I'll ask something else." Faced with a Grindelwald who would not budge, Leonard had no choice but to change the subject.
Grindelwald nodded, signaling for him to continue.
"Do you know about the Ravens?" Leonard asked.
"The Ravens? A group of opportunists who drift along the edges of events. They always say they're just scavengers picking through history, but I've always felt their motives weren't so simple." Grindelwald shook his head.
"Why?"
"Because some of them once approached me and expressed agreement with my ideals," Grindelwald said.
"Isn't that a good thing?" Leonard asked.
"For me, yes. But for the Ravens' creed, it's a betrayal. Clearly, the Ravens are no longer as pure as they were when they first appeared." Grindelwald narrowed his eyes. "The moment they stopped standing apart and began interfering in the mundane world, that flock of crows lost its transcendent position."
"But right now, it doesn't look like anyone is actively provoking them," Leonard said.
"Oh?" Grindelwald sounded interested. "That makes it sound as though they've done something."
"They're capturing Blood-wizards, but I don't know what their goal is," Leonard said bluntly.
"Blood-wizards... that's just another path in the pursuit of the Eternal Wizards." As Grindelwald spoke, he glanced at Leonard and gave him a particularly nasty smile. "But I have no intention of telling you."
Leonard's mouth twitched, and he shot Grindelwald an unfriendly look.
Grindelwald, however, remained perfectly calm, utterly unaffected by Leonard's stare.
...
"Ask something else." Grindelwald said indifferently. "One last question."
"You never said there was a limit on the number of questions."
"I didn't expect you to have this many questions, and such secretive ones at that. Answering all of them would be too much of a loss." Grindelwald picked up the stone and chisel again. "Hurry up. Don't hold up my painting."
"All right then. One last question." Leonard asked seriously, "What matters or objects related to the Eternal Wizards have you encountered or heard of?"
Grindelwald raised the chisel in his hand and said helplessly, "Can I smack you on the forehead with this?"
"What do you think?" Leonard arched a brow.
"All right, so I can't." Grindelwald clicked his tongue in resignation. "Does that even count as one question? That's a bit excessive, isn't it?"
Leonard looked at Grindelwald, who clearly did not want to answer, and suddenly said, "In that case, I'll trade you a prophecy."
"A prophecy?" A subtle smile appeared on Grindelwald's face when he heard the word.
"Boy, prophecy is my specialty. Back then, Dumbledore practically wore himself bald trying to limit my prophecies."
Grindelwald looked distinctly dismissive, like a master watching a fraud show off in front of him. "Go on, then. What's your prophecy?"
"Dumbledore will die before you." Leonard watched Grindelwald's expression change, a playful smile appearing on his face.
...
...
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