"A thing that could threaten Dumbledore's life..."
Avada rapidly sifted through the intelligence in his mind, trying to figure out what exactly the pure-blood families were planning.
'The curse on the Resurrection Stone could kill Dumbledore, sure, but that curse was personally placed by Voldemort, and it only worked because the Resurrection Stone held a fatal attraction for Dumbledore himself. There's basically no way to replicate that... so what else could it be?'
'A sudden sneak attack with the Killing Curse? Leaving aside the fact that almost no one besides Voldemort can cast a silent Killing Curse, even if someone somehow pulled off the ambush, Fawkes would block it for him...'
'Or did they secretly cultivate another wizard whose strength is on par with Voldemort's? But even Voldemort himself couldn't defeat him in a one-on-one fight, right? Fawkes, the Elder Wand, the unique spells he developed over long years of research, the combat experience accumulated through two large-scale wars... all of that is what lets Dumbledore widen the gap between himself and wizards on the same level. If they wanted to be sure they could take his life, they'd need to deploy at least two or three Voldemorts at the same time... do the pure-blood families really have that kind of capability?'
'So what else could they do?'
"Um... Professor, do you think..."
After sitting in silence face-to-face with Dumbledore for a while, Avada finally hesitated and voiced his suspicion.
"Could this order also be like the previous one—'take one person away from Hogwarts'—and contain some element of concealment or misdirection?"
"Oh?"
Dumbledore's eyes flickered.
"And why do you think that?"
"Because I believe the pure-blood families currently do not possess enough power to pose a fatal threat to you while still keeping it hidden."
Avada said it bluntly.
"You've always been a thorn in their side, and your struggle against them has gone on for quite some time. I imagine that what you've done over the past few years isn't even the worst, from their point of view, right? In terms of sheer damage, didn't you strike them much harder during the Wizarding War than you are now?"
"And if they couldn't kill you even back then, then after Voldemort fell and the pure-blood families were weakened even further, it should be even less possible now..."
"A very good deduction."
Dumbledore nodded, but his expression did not relax in the slightest.
"Unfortunately, however, it seems I have failed to live up to your confidence in me... I am not quite so powerful, nor so invincible, Ken. Off the top of my head alone, I can think of several ways to quietly kill myself. We cannot indulge in wishful thinking when trying to infer our enemies' intentions."
"There are far too many unknowns in the magical world, and the foundations of the pure-blood families are not something to be underestimated either. It would be perfectly normal for them to produce something we know nothing about."
"And returning to the main point—"
He seemed unwilling to spend too much time speculating over the pure-blood families' methods.
"Since this Tournament is, from beginning to end, a vortex of conspiracy, and since hidden within it is even a danger capable of killing me... then you should understand better than anyone just how much danger the students participating in it may be facing."
"So I ask you—this is a request, and you have every right to refuse, Ken—I need your help."
Dumbledore's voice was very soft. His hands were braced on the desk, supporting a body that looked almost ready to rise, and he gazed steadily at Avada.
"If there is anyone truly capable of keeping every student safe in the midst of a crisis, then that person must be you, Ken. You have done it more than once already. That is the real reason why I so strongly hope that you will participate in the Triwizard Tournament."
"Perhaps I can make many arrangements behind the scenes, but on the surface, I alone can lead the students to Durmstrang. And at that time, I will inevitably be unable to divide my attention. I need to find someone I can trust, someone to whom I can entrust the students' safety, so that I can investigate the conspiracy—even the one that could kill me—without any worries holding me back..."
"I certainly don't mind protecting other people, Professor."
Avada frowned.
"But am I really that insignificant in the eyes of the pure-blood families? I've already interfered with Voldemort's affairs twice now. If they really can kill you, then I suspect they wouldn't mind taking my life along the way either. In that case, wouldn't my presence only make things worse?"
"And more than that... could it be that this year's Triwizard Tournament, by unusually removing the age restriction, was specifically designed to lure in people like me, Baron, and Harry?"
The more he thought about it, the more unsettling it felt.
"Haha... it's not quite that bad."
Dumbledore finally smiled a little.
"You may not know this, but the person who proposed removing the age restriction was not one of the pure-blood families. It was a rather influential Ministry official—his name is Ludo Bagman, and he was also the commentator for the Quidditch World Cup this past summer."
"I investigated him. He has no ties with either the Death Eaters or the pure-blood families, and the only time he was ever put on trial, he was ultimately found not guilty. Furthermore, at the discussion meeting at the time, no one present was under the Imperius Curse, nor was anyone disguised with Polyjuice Potion—important international-level events like that are protected by a Thief's Downfall. In fact, when the matter went to a vote, those connected to the pure-blood families—including the headmaster of Durmstrang—actually opposed it, but they were overruled by majority vote."
"And besides, you may not realize what sort of standing you hold in the eyes of the pure-blood families."
He blinked.
"I daresay that if they really do intend to kill me, then you are exactly the person they would least want to see at my side—you are a Seer, remember?"
"But I'm not anymore."
Avada felt slightly guilty as he said it—strictly speaking, as long as he kept a Trelawney or a Grindelwald at his side, he would be the strongest Seer alive.
"But they do not know that, and even if they did, they would not believe it."
Dumbledore said, sounding slightly amused.
"As far as I know, quite a few of them still think you are a descendant of Gellert... Grindelwald. They have even drawn up quite a few plans to win you over. Prophecy has always been the most mysterious and unreasonable of things."
"..."
Avada fell into thought for a moment.
"Then, Professor, should I try to become a champion?"
Only after a while did he ask the final question.
"If I actually become a champion, then I'll have to spend a great deal of energy dealing with the tournament tasks. If that happens, I probably won't be able to devote myself fully to protecting the other students..."
"It would be far more suspicious if you did not become a champion."
At last, Dumbledore showed a genuinely relaxed smile, and there was heartfelt gratitude in his voice as well.
"And you needn't worry that the tournament tasks will consume too much of your energy—over the course of the entire year, probably less than a week in total will actually be spent competing."
"Then I have no more questions, Professor."
Avada gave a firm nod and rose to his feet.
"Oh, and one more thing."
Before he left, Dumbledore added another line.
"This time, there won't be any convenient back door like last time where the exam paper was practically handed to you. You'll have to take the test properly yourself—though it shouldn't be difficult for you anyway."
"..."
(End of Chapter)