"Together?" Grindelwald continued, like a thirsty hyena, refusing to yield until the food was in its mouth.
'You have to give me something too,' he thought.
"Alright," Howl had no choice but to stand up.
For the soul to leave the body, at least for Howl, it wasn't a very complicated operation.
And projection was even simpler.
When he used to modify his own body, he often projected and self-examined his soul, striving for the unity of spirit and flesh.
"Can it really be done?"
"Is this not a joke?!"
"Will Professor Jones's soul also be..."
Thinking this, the fear and unease that had arisen from the "murder" the Little Wizards had just witnessed quickly subsided.
Yes, the Professor was still here.
And, there was entertainment to be had.
But similarly, Howl did not forget the question they had initially discussed, and he signaled Grindelwald to project his soul first, continuing the previous discussion and thought process.
Grindelwald nodded, and gray mist bloomed from his eyes.
A decaying, putrid, and mad aura suddenly appeared in the narrow classroom.
It was like the eerie chill of a ghost passing through one's body, yet, at this moment, that feeling was not confined to "within."
Instead, it permeated the entire space.
Just as seeing a dark corridor would involuntarily recall scenes from horror movies, now, in this originally noisy and vibrant classroom, terrifying images were inexplicably conjured in the minds of the Little Wizards.
Blazing flames, or a banshee in the wall, a corpse buried in the basement, or a horrifying monster under the bed.
It was like a nightmare invasion.
Then, a translucent, hunched old man with a decayed, deranged expression, but with missing limbs, like a desiccated corpse, appeared behind Grindelwald.
He was awe-inspiring, yet also pitiful.
"This...is the price..."
Grindelwald murmured.
"Every person you kill, after their death, they will carry their unwillingness and tear away your soul, or like maggots on a bone, constantly devour you," Grindelwald continued, slowly stabilizing his own state.
Then, he pulled his projection closer.
"Is it miserable?" he chuckled.
"This..."
No one spoke, only continuous gasps.
The trembling pupils of the Little Wizards, and their averted gazes, had already told Grindelwald the answer.
"Like a clear river, with a little sewage discharged into it every day, over the years, it becomes a dirty, unbearable sewage river," Grindelwald's voice was low.
"Normally, I am not a person who regrets. The original meaning of regret is to blame one's past self, and in my opinion, that is an extremely foolish act.
But occasionally, late at night, I can't help but think, how wonderful it would have been if I hadn't chosen this path, heh heh...
"This is the price," Grindelwald said with a hint of sorrow, "It is hidden.
And what I am doing now is merely striving to reveal it.
After all, whether it's something from a book or advice from others, it's never as real as witnessing it with your own eyes.
During these years in Nurmengard, I occasionally read some Muggles' books.
I really like the words of a Muggle writer named Zweig. There's a sentence in his book 'Marie Antoinette: The Portrait of an Average Woman' that often makes me lose myself.
'She was still too young then to know that all gifts of destiny are already marked with a price.'
Yes, magic is powerful and can achieve goals very conveniently, violently, and decisively.
But—there are no shortcuts in this world.
When I was young, I thought magic was something that could transcend the rules of the world.
But in reality, magic also has its hidden logic.
The world is like a precise machine; everything follows logic. Anything that seems like a shortcut comes with a corresponding price."
After rambling on like this, Grindelwald suddenly realized he was in a classroom.
Then he looked at Howl in surprise.
"Aren't you going to interrupt me?"
"No need," Howl smiled.
"Heh heh," Grindelwald also gave a dry chuckle, then shifted his gaze downwards.
"Girl, don't avert your gaze. Look, engrave this pathetic sight into your mind," he noticed Hermione next to Harry, who dared not look directly at the soul projection, and said softly.
Just like in his youth, he showed these children his gentleness and grace as a leader, an elder.
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