Sean was momentarily stunned by Merlin's question.
After hesitating for a moment, he said uncertainly,
"So… you really used it? But isn't this something created by a dark wizard?"
"I only drew one-tenth of the Wizard's Heart's power," Merlin replied calmly.
Just one-tenth, and Merlin had become a legendary wizard remembered for centuries.
But after thinking about it, Sean felt Merlin was being modest.
Baron had once said that Merlin's talent surpassed even the four founders of Hogwarts.
Even without absorbing the Wizard's Heart's power, Merlin would still have become a great wizard.
The Wizard's Heart had merely been the icing on the cake.
"Then why didn't you absorb more?" Sean asked.
Merlin waved his hand, and the Wizard's Heart floated until it hovered before Sean's chest.
"Place your hand on it."
Sean hesitated.
Passing the trials didn't necessarily mean he was truly righteous or strong-willed.
He had simply found a clever way to pass them.
Even Voldemort's Horcrux had nearly influenced his mind.
This Wizard's Heart was far more powerful.
It was undoubtedly even more dangerous.
"Are you sure it's safe?" Sean asked cautiously.
Merlin nodded.
Encouraged by Merlin's confidence, Sean steeled himself.
A legendary wizard was standing right beside him—what was there to be afraid of?
Sean stretched out his right hand and grasped the Wizard's Heart.
At first, he felt nothing.
Then—
He heard piercing screams echoing faintly in his mind.
The sound was chilling.
At the same time, a sharp tingling sensation surged through his palm, like the shock of static electricity.
Sean instinctively pulled his hand back.
"Did you feel it?" Merlin asked.
"Feel what?" Sean replied.
"The violence within the Wizard's Heart," Merlin said.
"The Heart contains the magic of thirteen great wizards. But they were all murdered by Herpo. Their resentment and hatred were absorbed along with their magic when he forged the artifact."
"You must have heard their screams."
Sean nodded silently.
Merlin continued,
"After Salazar absorbed power from the Wizard's Heart, his magic indeed became stronger."
"But he was also influenced by its dark power."
"Little by little, he began to walk the path of darkness."
"Then why weren't you affected?" Sean asked.
"Because I absorbed only one-tenth of its power."
"It wasn't that I didn't want more," Merlin explained.
"It was simply the most I could control. If I had absorbed more, even I would have been corrupted by its influence."
"What about Salazar?" Sean asked curiously.
"How much did he absorb?"
Merlin thought for a moment.
"Probably less than I did."
"But even so, he was still affected."
"Later, I realized that the outcome depended on both talent and temperament."
"Though it may sound like I'm praising myself, my magical talent was greater than Salazar's."
"And my desire for power was far weaker than his."
"Therefore, he was more easily influenced by the Wizard's Heart."
Sean silently organized Merlin's explanation in his mind.
To absorb the violent power of the Wizard's Heart, a wizard first needed extraordinary talent.
That explained why, in a thousand years, Merlin had chosen only Tom Riddle and Sean.
The trials of character existed to eliminate people like Salazar and Tom Riddle—those who would pursue power at any cost.
The more someone craved power…
The more easily the Wizard's Heart would corrupt them.
Eventually, they would fall into darkness.
"So… what should I do?" Sean asked, staring at the Wizard's Heart.
The magic within it was far too violent.
Absorbing it recklessly might cause his magic to explode inside his body.
Merlin's phantom drifted closer.
He raised a finger and gently tapped Sean on the forehead.
In an instant, a flood of memories surged into Sean's mind.
They formed a complex magical structure.
"This is a purification spell," Merlin explained.
"It will remove the violent elements from the Wizard's Heart, allowing you to safely absorb its magic."
"But this purification works only on the magic itself."
"The resentment contained within the magic cannot be completely erased."
"So if you ever feel your emotions or thoughts begin to change…"
"You must stop absorbing the Wizard's Heart's power."
"Return it to this chamber and wait for the next chosen successor."
Sean thought to himself,
So this is truly a treasure meant to be passed down through generations.
Then Merlin suddenly said,
"There is one more thing I need you to do for me."
Sean sighed inwardly.
Of course… nothing in this world comes for free.
The mission was finally arriving.
"When Salazar and I returned from Greece," Merlin continued,
"We brought back more than just the Wizard's Heart."
"Among the relics were two scrolls containing extremely powerful dark magic."
"One of them recorded a method of achieving immortality through the soul."
"It described a spell known as a Horcrux."
"In theory, it allows the soul to be split and attached to objects, granting a form of immortality."
"But the spell requires murder to cast."
Hearing this, Sean's mouth twitched slightly.
The name Herpo had sounded familiar earlier, but he hadn't remembered why.
Now it all clicked into place.
The ancient Greek dark wizard Herpo the Foul was the inventor of the Horcrux.
Merlin and Salazar had retrieved Herpo's relics from Greece.
At some point over the centuries, someone must have copied the forbidden magic from the scroll onto a book and placed it in the Restricted Section.
Centuries later, Tom Riddle found that very book and learned how to create Horcruxes.
The thousand-year chain of cause and effect was astonishing.
"What about the other scroll?" Sean asked, curiosity piqued.
Merlin's expression darkened.
"The second scroll contained an even more sinister form of dark magic."
"It desecrates the souls of the dead."
"It summons those who have passed away back into the world…"
"And forces them to serve the caster."
Sean blinked in surprise.
The description sounded suspiciously like necromancy.
Or something straight out of summoning the dead.
Herpo truly deserved his reputation as the most powerful dark wizard of ancient Greece.
The magic he created was horrifyingly evil—
yet undeniably brilliant.
"What do you want me to do?" Sean asked.
Merlin answered,
"Salazar took those scrolls with him."
"If you ever discover their whereabouts…"
"I want you to destroy them."
Sean hesitated before asking,
"And if someone has already learned the magic written on them?"
He certainly didn't want to tell Merlin that one Dark Lord had already mastered the Horcrux spell.
If Merlin found out, the remaining fragment of his consciousness might disperse from sheer anger.
Merlin met Sean's eyes and replied calmly.
"Then defeat him."
Sean felt his confidence shrink instantly.
Seriously?
This was a life-or-death mission.
A single dark wizard with Horcruxes had already plunged the entire British wizarding world into terror.
If someone mastered the other scroll's magic, the consequences would be unimaginable.
"I'll… try my best," Sean said uncertainly.
Merlin shook his head gently.
"You passed my trials and obtained the Wizard's Heart."
"That proves your extraordinary talent."
"Do not fear the darkness."
"Believe in yourself."
"Believe in yourself."
As Merlin finished speaking, his phantom began to fade.
The fragment of consciousness that had remained within the Wizard's Heart slowly dissolved into the sky above the Forbidden Forest.
Sean caught the falling Wizard's Heart in his hand.
The familiar electric tingling surged through his palm again.
Sean looked at it and murmured quietly,
"With this…"
"My magical limit will finally increase."
"It won't be long before the phoenix I summon…"
"…is as powerful as Dumbledore's."
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