69novels Chapter 99 It's your turn to offer to bribe me, Professor.
Chapter 99 It's your turn to offer to bribe me, Professor.
Chapter 99 It's your turn to offer to bribe me, Professor.
Orochimaru fell into a coma the last time he left the Forbidden Forest.
This time is different.
He was very clear-headed this time, his mind filled with countless secrets.
All of this was because of the first direct confrontation with Voldemort, a formal battle against the most powerful wizard in the world besides Dumbledore.
It was irrelevant to winning or losing; it was merely a glimpse into the pinnacle of wizardry.
Orochimaru walked leisurely, but the people he met when he first joined the Akatsuki organization involuntarily came to mind.
Kakuzu, who claims to have fought the First Hokage to a draw.
Will his fight with the original be the same as his fight with Voldemort this time? Is the claim of a draw just empty boasting?
Orochimaru was confused. He turned his head and saw Harry Potter walking beside him.
Jiraiya was in a very good mood. He crumpled the Invisibility Cloak into a ball and stuffed it into his arms, then smiled like a child returning from a picnic.
"Orochimaru, how are we going to explain this to the professors when we get back?" Harry asked, raising an eyebrow. "Are we going to tell them that Voldemort is back?"
"I'm afraid you don't need to tell them." Orochimaru was quite familiar with this situation. "They will make their own judgment."
Make your own judgment?
Harry was taken aback, and a hint of suspicion crept in.
"Did they all foresee all of this? I mean, did Dumbledore even think of these things?"
Who knows?
Orochimaru didn't directly answer his partner's question; instead, he lazily waved to Harry.
"what?"
"I can't walk anymore, give me a ride."
The side effects of the Eight Gates technique are starting to appear; my hands and feet are feeling sore and weak, and even my muscles are starting to twitch.
Orochimaru didn't want to collapse and fall in the Forbidden Forest while he was walking perfectly fine, so he needed a cane.
Harry nodded, tucked his wand behind his head, and put Orochimaru's hand on his shoulder, half-supporting and half-carrying his partner as they walked toward the castle.
Although he was sore all over and his scrapes from crawling and rolling on the ground were still bleeding, Harry felt much better.
Because commitment is always important.
Even if it might not be possible.
But ultimately, they have somewhere they can strive for success.
No?
Harry carried Orochimaru, but his mind was filled with thoughts of what he would have to do when he returned to school.
"Orochimaru, I plan to participate in the Gryffindor Quidditch team selection and want to be the Seeker."
"Oh? Not afraid of hurting Ron anymore?" Orochimaru clearly saw through Harry's feelings from a while ago.
This partner, who lacks friends, values every act of kindness highly.
"Good friendships shouldn't be this fragile, should they?" Harry replied with a smile, his brows showing an indescribable ease. "Besides, he's been a Seeker before, it's my turn to be one."
"Do you need my help?" Orochimaru asked with a smile.
"How can I help?" Harry turned his head and saw a sinister smile on Orochimaru's lips.
"Perhaps—we'll need a little bit of gossip." Orochimaru squinted and whispered his plan in Harry's ear. "If you don't mind, I think they'll be begging you to be the Seeker later."
Can you do this?
Harry's eyes lit up at the words. He didn't want to appear aggressive or deliberately trying to make things difficult for Ron.
"Then you'd better hurry, Orochimaru."
"No problem, Jiraiya."
Orochimaru said calmly, and when he looked up, he saw the outline of the person who had come to the Forbidden Forest already appearing at the edge of the forest.
It is tall and large, but not tall enough.
It felt oppressive, yet like a dark cloud, not solid enough.
He clearly carried a hint of killing intent, but it was so subtle, like a teacher in a ninja academy.
"Professor, it's a pleasure to meet you." Orochimaru peeked out from beside Harry and greeted Snape, who was looking at them.
Harry instinctively felt annoyed.
He couldn't even tell whether he wanted to face Voldemort or Professor Snape more.
He doesn't like either of them.
So Harry turned his head to the side, deliberately avoiding looking at Professor Snape.
Snape's gaze did not waver; it immediately fell on Harry. Only after confirming that Harry was unharmed did he revert to his expression of disgust.
Before he could even speak, footsteps began to sound behind him.
Hagrid, holding Baa, strode towards them. Before Harry could even speak, he pulled the little wizard into his arms.
Harry almost suffocated from Hagrid's presence.
By the time he finally managed to peek out from the half-giant's embrace, Professor McGonagall had already come into view.
The usually strict professor now looked displeased and glared at Dumbledore, who was standing to the side.
"Dumbledore, you've gone too far!"
Professor McGonagall didn't give Dumbledore a chance to refute her. She grabbed Harry from Hagrid's arms and began to examine him.
There were no external injuries, and he didn't seem too frightened.
Thank goodness, the child is still alive and well.
Professor McGonagall gently patted Harry on the shoulder and led him past Dumbledore without saying a word.
The old headmaster dared not look Professor McGonagall in the eye; he understood Professor McGonagall's anger.
This was exactly what he had expected.
In order for the plan to be implemented smoothly, there will always be some blame and complaints, and he has long been used to such looks.
"Dumbledore, Harry's alright." Hagrid belatedly led Babbage to Dumbledore's side. "I... I want to go back inside and rest."
Hagrid respected Dumbledore more than anyone else, and since it was Dumbledore's decision, he was willing to carry it out.
But he still couldn't bear it.
Harry is far too young; it would be a terrible waste to leave him alone in the Forbidden Forest facing danger.
"Okay, Hagrid, thank you for your hard work tonight."
Dumbledore nodded slightly to Hagrid, but his expression was unusually solemn.
The two Slytherins, however, seemed to be deliberately ignored, standing together in the moonlight, coldly observing Harry Potter's return.
Orochimaru looked at Snape with some curiosity, trying to guess what the professor was thinking.
He was probably more worried about Harry's situation than anyone else, but at this moment he had to restrain himself more than anyone else.
Who told them they were Slytherins?
Orochimaru chuckled and shook his head, then noticed that Snape had stepped forward and was reporting the whole story of the night to Dumbledore once again.
It's all the same old story: Snape encountered Voldemort and wanted Harry to leave, but Harry, wearing an invisibility cloak, disappeared from sight in an instant.
He kept talking incessantly, completely ignoring Orochimaru standing to the side.
Dumbledore also looked serious, as if he were discussing the next steps with Professor Snape.
"Professor, Principal."
Seeing that the two were ignoring him, Orochimaru smirked and said casually, "I want to talk to you."
As soon as he finished speaking, Dumbledore's expression remained unchanged, but Snape showed a relieved look on his face.
Orochimaru saw all of this.
Although he didn't know how Dumbledore had done it, he was now absolutely certain that everything that had happened tonight had been under the watchful eye of the greatest white wizard of the world.
Whether Snape takes Harry to the Forbidden Forest for confinement, or Harry dons the Invisibility Cloak to evade Voldemort's capture.
Even the fact that Harry's kick to Voldemort burned the dark wizard's soul was witnessed by Dumbledore.
This was Dumbledore's plan all along.
Except for one person.
Yourself.
Dumbledore and Snape both turned around and looked at Orochimaru with curiosity and calmness, like two judges waiting for the prisoner to confess.
What is your crime tonight, and how will you defend yourself?
Snape wanted to give Orochimaru a signal, but he couldn't do anything in front of Dumbledore.
As for Dumbledore, he was simply waiting for Orochimaru to speak.
"We can go back to the castle and rest and talk there," Dumbledore kindly suggested.
"But Professor," Orochimaru looked up and said seemingly casually, "Voldemort invited me to stand on his side and become a Death Eater."
"So—what are your thoughts?"
Dumbledore's tone instantly turned serious, and even Snape couldn't help but turn to the side, silently sizing up Orochimaru.
He also wanted to know the decision of this young wizard who was hiding many secrets.
No one can hide anything from Dumbledore, the master of Legilimency. Even Snape's Occlumency has to be questioned in front of Dumbledore.
Orochimaru, however, remained calm. He pondered for a moment, then looked up at the moon in the sky.
His expression was so serene, as if he were comparing the moonlight tonight with that of the past to see which was brighter.
Orochimaru's words finally arrived late, drifting to Dumbledore and Snape's side, just as Snape could no longer bear it and was about to urge them on.
"He offered a very high price."
Orochimaru met Dumbledore's serious gaze and said calmly and casually, "So—"
"It's your turn to make a bid, Professor."
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