Chapter 775: Arianna, Where Are You?!!
After Voldemort's words, Dumbledore suddenly became agitated.
"Ariana… is it Ariana? Where are you?"
His voice echoed again and again through the vast, empty hall.
For a moment, there was only silence.
Then—
a faint voice answered, soft and confused, like someone just waking from sleep.
"Brother…? Brother, I'm here!"
The space seemed to shift.
The empty hall widened, and a small carriage appeared where there had been nothing before.
Ariana lay inside it. She stirred, then slowly sat up, rubbing her eyes.
"Brother…?"
She tilted her head, still dazed.
And then—
she saw him.
Dumbledore rushed forward at once, almost stumbling, and pulled her into his arms. Tears streamed down his face.
"Ariana… I'm sorry… I'm so sorry… this is all my fault…"
Ariana blinked, still half-asleep. At first she looked confused, as if she couldn't quite process what she was seeing.
From her perspective, she had only ever been able to see the world through Darren.
She had believed Dumbledore was long dead.
But now—
seeing him here—
her eyes filled with tears.
"Brother… you're alive…"
She clung to him, her voice trembling with relief.
"Brother… you don't even know what Darren and I have been through… he was going to die… I kept trying to pull him away, but he still walked toward Voldemort…"
"He didn't even fight back… he just wanted to die…"
"I was so scared… so worried… I thought he was really going to die…"
Her voice broke, but then she suddenly laughed through her tears.
"…I didn't expect we're not dead after all."
Dumbledore fell silent.
A quiet sigh escaped him.
If he hadn't prepared for this—
Darren truly would have died.
"Wait—Darren!" Ariana suddenly said, brightening. "Where is he? I've never seen things from this angle before!"
She grabbed Dumbledore's arm and tugged him along, almost bouncing with urgency.
Dumbledore hesitated for a moment. He wasn't sure she was ready to see Darren like this.
But Ariana had already spotted him.
She had spent too long by Darren's side to miss him now.
"Darren, I—"
She froze mid-step.
Darren stood there, silent, unmoving. His eyes were empty, his expression blank, as Snape held onto him.
There was no response at all.
Ariana reached out and grabbed his hand.
Nothing.
No reaction.
She stiffened.
Then slowly—
tears began to fall.
"Did… did Darren become a little fool…?"
Her voice trembled.
"What do I do… how am I supposed to take care of him like this…?"
She clutched his other hand, holding both of them tightly as if afraid he would disappear.
Darren gave the faintest reaction.
A small blink.
Then he looked at her blankly—
at this girl who looked barely older than a teenager.
"Ariana…"
Harry's voice was filled with relief. He stepped closer quickly.
But Darren didn't even glance at him.
Harry faltered.
"…Headmaster… does Darren… hate me that much?"
Dumbledore shook his head.
"No."
"He's simply too familiar with Ariana."
He looked at Harry calmly.
"They've shared a soul for years. Even in this state, instinct remains."
"Just like how you and Voldemort can recognize each other here… no matter what."
Voldemort rolled his eyes in irritation.
"I'm afraid I can't recognize Harry Potter at a glance every time."
Dumbledore glanced at him again.
"Tom… you really have learned to love."
"Enough, Dumbledore!" Voldemort snapped, clearly annoyed. "Stop preaching your so-called love to me. Even if I have it… I still die in the end."
"What's the point of such an emotion?"
Dumbledore only shook his head.
"At least now… your soul is complete."
"I don't know how you managed it, but without love… you wouldn't even have the chance to face judgment after death."
Darren, standing there, almost nodded instinctively.
It made sense.
If Voldemort hadn't shown him even a little kindness—
he wouldn't have been able to take that fragment of his soul.
Wouldn't have helped complete it.
But Voldemort clearly didn't see it that way.
"Enough," he said irritably. "I don't want to listen to any more of this. If you're leaving, then leave."
Dumbledore ignored him.
Instead, he sat down right there on the floor of the hall, as if he had all the time in the world.
He gestured to Harry.
"Sit."
Harry hesitated, then did.
Dumbledore looked at Ariana as well, intending to call her over, but she was already busy pulling Darren down to sit beside her.
Darren followed obediently, like a puppet.
Ariana sat next to him, smiling faintly, as if simply being beside him was enough.
Dumbledore sighed quietly. He chose not to comment on the strange scene and instead turned to Snape, giving him a small nod.
Then he spoke.
"Since we're all here… there are things that must be made clear."
"In the real world, I had no intention of saying all this."
"But here… I will explain everything."
Harry frowned.
"I thought you said you'd explain it outside?"
Snape let out a cold snort.
"Our Headmaster always likes to keep something in reserve."
Dumbledore pretended not to hear him.
His voice softened slightly.
"This… is the final matter."
"It concerns Darren."
"I did not explain his origins before, because the truth…"
"…would shake even the wizarding world."
Harry's confusion deepened.
Dumbledore took a breath, then continued.
"After we studied Darren's bloodline… Gellert and I sought out Salazar Slytherin."
Harry immediately interrupted.
"But he's dead!"
Dumbledore shook his head.
"No, Harry. For powerful wizards, living on is not difficult."
"They simply choose not to remain here. They seek other worlds instead."
He paused briefly.
"Now… listen."
"Salazar told me that Darren carries his bloodline as well."
"Not just his—"
"—but the blood of other founders, too."
Harry stared at him, stunned.
"At first, we thought this was due to what happened that night—that you absorbed magic, bloodlines, everything around you."
"But that explanation… was incomplete."
Dumbledore's gaze shifted slowly.
"Perhaps there is another reason."
"Tom… would you like to explain?"
Voldemort had been uninterested—
but at the mention of Darren—
his attention sharpened again.
He fell silent for a moment, then spoke.
"…It may have something to do with me."
"I was conducting experiments. I found the old Slytherin manor… and within it, a few drops of blood."
"They were… powerful."
"So I extracted them… and brought them back to Malfoy Manor."
He paused, recalling.
"That same day… there was a battle between the Death Eaters and the Order of the Phoenix."
"My followers brought Lily Potter back."
His voice turned colder.
"They were all contaminated with various bloodlines."
"And if your so-called Boy Who Lived truly has the ability to absorb bloodlines…"
"…then he had everything he needed."
He fell silent again.
The hall grew quiet.