Harry Potter: Shadow Eminence

Chapter 25.

Quirrell led Brian skillfully through the dense woods, where the terrain was complex and easy to get lost in.

Strange animals occasionally darted through the dark shadows of the trees, not clearly visible.

They ventured deeper into the Forbidden Forest, the shadows of the trees curling like demons stretching their limbs, and the forest was occasionally filled with long howls that sent chills down the spine.

They wandered in the woods for a long time, and by midnight, they still hadn't found any trace of the unicorn.

"What am I really expecting?" Brian mocked himself, "I'm not much different from Quirrell."

At that moment, Quirrell suddenly stopped. Following his gaze, Brian spotted a pure white creature.

It was so beautiful, entirely snow-white, faintly glowing like a pearl. It resembled a horse, with long limbs and a flowing white mane. On its forehead was a spiraled white horn, signifying its identity.

A unicorn.

Such a beautiful and pure creature, it was hard to bear to defile it.

It was leisurely bending down by the pool to drink water, swishing its pristine tail.

Quirrell let go of Brian, and he lunged forward, drawing his wand.

The unicorn sensed the impending danger, its long legs pushed off the ground, and it transformed into a white shadow, fleeing at great speed.

Quirrell floated up like a large bat, following closely behind the unicorn like a ghost, gradually moving away.

Brian silently watched this scene, taking out the invisibility cloak from his pocket and draping it over himself.

He chased in that direction.

By the time he arrived, everything had already settled. The unicorn lay quietly on the ground, its body shimmering, surrounded by patches of silvery-blue blood. It was dead.

Such a beautiful yet tragic scene.

Quirrell was panting heavily, leaning over the unicorn's corpse, bringing his lips close to its silvery-blue blood.

"From the moment its blood touches your lips, you will be cursed forever, becoming a half-dead thing," Brian said: his voice sounded somewhat eerie in the dark forest.

"Have you really thought this through, Professor Quirrell?"

"I have no choice anymore, Walker," Quirrell said in a slightly choked voice.

He pressed his lips against the unicorn's wound, gulping down its blood.

Brian stood quietly in the darkness, his gaze indifferent as he watched this scene.

Time seemed to pass for a long time, yet it also felt like just a moment.

After drinking the blood, Quirrell let out a low howl, sounding both ecstatic and pained. Then he stood up.

He wiped the remnants of the silvery-blue blood from the corner of his mouth and softly said, "I feel much better, Walker. It's like being reborn."

His face was as pale as a corpse in the night.

Brian nodded slightly, turning his head away and no longer looking at the pitiful unicorn.

The two walked in silence for a while outside the Forbidden Forest.

Ahead, the thick grass rustled, and a giant silver wolf jumped out, growling softly, its eyes glinting with a greenish glow.

It let out a low growl, turned halfway around, and transformed into a silver flash, lunging toward Brian.

It seemed to know who was easier to provoke.

"Avada Kedavra!"

Quirrell coldly shouted the spell.

The dazzling green light hit the wolf, which fell to the ground from mid-air, motionless, dead.

"Walker, do you know this spell?" Quirrell asked softly.

"Avada Kedavra, the curse that takes life," Brian said softly. "It's one of the three Unforgivable Curses, alongside the Imperio Curse and the Cruciatus Curse."

"That's right, your knowledge is solid," Quirrell replied. "Do you want to learn this spell? I can teach you."

"Ah, I am still your Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. As my prized student, Walker, I seem to have yet to teach you any spells," Quirrell said in a low voice.

"My magical power level probably isn't sufficient," Brian replied monotonously.

"No, these are special spell, Walker," Quirrell said softly. "For the most part, it does require strong magical power to be effective."

"But there is also a simpler way to use it, Walker."

"As long as your heart is filled with the intent to kill something, even a first-year wizard can use it to take life."

"Of course, this may be difficult; it requires the nourishment of hatred to bear the most beautiful fruit. It needs immense killing intent, Walker."

"When your mind is filled only with the intent to kill, you can easily take life."

"Of course, the premise is that you have the opportunity to utter this spell."

"I think we can give it a try," Quirrell said enticingly. "As my thanks to you, I will teach you how to use it."

He pointed his wand, and from the shadows of the trees, he caught a bat that was as large as a person, suspending it in mid-air with a rope conjured by magic. He said to Brian, "Come, take out your wand and cast the spell on it, Walker."

"Channel your killing intent; you can imagine it as your father's murderer or something," Quirrell said gently.

Brian drew his wand and aimed at the bat, chanting, "Avada Kedavra!"

A faint green spark erupted, landing on the bat, causing it to flail its wings wildly in mid-air.

"Your killing intent is insufficient, Walker!" Quirrell said. "Your incantation technique is also incorrect..."

As Quirrell explained, Brian repeatedly used the forbidden spell, and by the time they were about to exit the Forbidden Forest, he barely ended the bat's life.

One was patiently teaching, while the other was earnestly learning, truly a harmonious teacher-student relationship.

If one ignored the chilling content of the lesson.

As they exited the Forbidden Forest, Quirrell cast a Disillusionment Charm on them, leading them back to the castle through the grounds.

"I think next week, Walker, we need to continue searching for unicorns," Quirrell said deeply as they parted.

"Okay, Professor," Brian nodded slightly.

Descending the dark staircase step by step, Brian stopped by the damp stone wall: "Glory."

The stone wall rolled back to reveal a hidden stone door, allowing Brian to pass through.

He did not return to the dormitory but quietly sat in an armchair, lost in thought.

"Have I chosen a dark path yet still yearn for the light?" he asked himself.

This was not moving at all.

He would rather be utterly wicked.

Because in this world, he was ultimately just a person.

Brian sat quietly in the darkness, remaining still for a long time.

...

"Who are you?"

"Are you yourself?"

"Is the self you know truly yourself?"

"Are you him? Is he you? Where do you come from? Where has he gone?"

"Are you alive? Or dead?"

"Is the world real or false?"

"Are dreams real?"

"Is death a beginning or an end?"

"Can the future really not affect the past?"

"…"

Brian found himself in impenetrable darkness, with questions emerging from the void, asked in different voices of men, women, and children. They grew closer and louder.

He wandered aimlessly in the dark, without fear, unease, joy, sorrow, hope, or despair, as if he had always existed here, rushing toward an inevitable conclusion.

A figure faintly appeared ahead, a pitch-black silhouette merging with the darkness. Strangely, Brian spotted it instantly in the dark.

The figure was so small, like a grain of rice, and it kept moving forward, growing more distant.

Brian quickened his pace to chase after it, but he found that no matter how fast he went, that figure always remained so far away from him.

In the end, the figure entered an archway and disappeared without a trace.

Only the archway remained, faintly glowing, as if it had stood there since time immemorial, becoming the only source of light in the darkness.

Like a homecoming.

Brian opened his eyes from the bed, looking at the curtains of the four-poster bed. It was clearly not a nightmare, yet his forehead was covered in cold sweat.

"Was it a dream?" he said, his gaze heavy.

But that dream felt so real.

It truly revealed something he had always been unwilling to remember.

This world genuinely has souls.

But where did the original Brian go after he crossed over?

He understood deeply that everything he had now was usurped from others. His family was never truly his. Everything he possessed was not his own.

Their love and hatred were never given to him.

So how could he truly integrate into this world?

This body was just a thick mask, one he could never escape from or take off.

His true self would never open up to anyone in this world.

Brian looked at his hands and let out a sardonic laugh.

If there were really something that could reflect the soul, whose soul would his be now—his past self or his current self?

Brian clenched his fist, his gaze calming down.

No matter what, being able to live another life was already an immense blessing.

So, he would rather cut off his illusions and pursue something more practical, like knowledge and power.

Even if it meant walking down a dark path.

Brian closed his eyes for a moment and then got up from the bed.