Salzburg, Salk Magical Hospital.

Ward G-5, Corridor A-2, Quirinus Quirrell's Ward.

"Looks like you're recovering well......"

Grindelwald drew his wand and waved it slightly, summoning two chairs beside the bedside.

"All in all, welcome to wake up from the nightmare, kid. Take it easy, this isn't an interrogation, otherwise it would have been the Aurors from the Ministry of Magic who would have appeared here at this point, not my old bones that were about to be buried in the ground. ”

"Whether it's the Auror of the Ministry of Magic, or Mr. Apocaris, you......"

Quirinus Quirrell looked around and shook his head blankly.

"Lady Elizabeth has told me about my condition, in addition to the damage caused by the overdraft of my body, the curse of unicorn blood on my soul, and the after-effects of some dark magic have fundamentally destroyed my magic - it stands to reason that in my situation, anyone should have died a long time ago, and of course this may also be a punishment......"

"Alive, that's the best outcome. ”

Grindelwald grinned and took a thick parchment envelope from his bosom and placed it on Quirrell's knee.

"Before coming to Salk's Hospital for Witchcraft and Wizardry, Professor Dumbledore told me that if you woke up, I would like to ask you if you would like to return to Hogwarts to teach after your injuries have healed - except, of course, Defence Against the Dark Arts. ”

The parchment envelope did not contain the address or recipient, but was sealed with the wax seal of the Hogwarts school crest.

"Back to Hogwarts?" Professor Dumbledore......"

Quirinus Quirrell's grey eyes flickered for a moment, and then darkened even faster.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Apokalis, but you should know what happened. I helped the Dark Lord infiltrate Hogwarts Castle, poached unicorns in the Forbidden Forest, nearly wounded you and Miss Caslana, and even wanted to ......"

"Oh, I don't remember you hurting me or Elena. ”

Before Quirrell could finish his words, he was interrupted by Grindelwald waving his hand, only to see the old man say with a gentle smile.

"As for the guilt in your heart, I think you may have to talk to Professor Dumbledore later, or find a Muggle church to confess."

"By the way, the unicorn you hurt, you have to apologize when you get better. ”

Grindelwald looked at Quirrell, raised an eyebrow, and said meaningfully.

"Think about it for a while, losing your magic might not be a bad thing. Besides, I don't think all of Hogwarts classes require advanced magical abilities, do I, Professor Quirrell?"

Prior to last school year, Quirinus Quirrell was not a Defence Against the Dark Arts professor.

As one of the best Hogwarts graduates of all years, Quirinus Quirrell, who stayed on as a professor directly after graduation, was once regarded as the next Ravenclaw Dean - in terms of personality, knowledge, and concentration, this young wizard was much more reliable and solid than Gilderoy Lockhart's pompous guy.

"But, I was ...... before," Quirrell pursed his lips, his eyes struggling.

"Are you still struggling with being controlled by Voldemort? ”

Grindelwald grinned, looked at Quirinus Quirrell with a serious expression, and said.

"In the days when the Dark Devils were at their height and strength, many wizards who were better than you were controlled by Voldemort. It's just that you just happened to bump into the most difficult dark wizard in the world during the first practice in your life, and it's pretty good to survive. It seems to me that you are just a little unlucky, that's all. ”

"It's not bad luck, I chose to go to the Black Forest in Albania to find Lord Voldemort. I used to think I could be the one to track down Voldemort's whereabouts, and even go one step further and catch him, but alas......"

Quirinus Quirrell shook his head in frustration and smiled miserably.

During Quirrell's school career, although he was recognized by many of his peers and professors for his solid theory and intelligence, he was also ridiculed for his cowardice and neuroticism - like those who felt that he was insignificant or even ridiculous, Quirinus Quirrell had an underlying desire to impress the world.

Because of this, Quirrell wasn't content to just be a professor in a marginal subject.

He began to deliberately search for traces of the Dark Wizard, partly out of curiosity and partly out of his desire for the importance of his never-before-noticed importance - Hagrid was right about Quirrell's "clever head", and Quirinus Quirrell guessed Voldemort's possible hiding place, and he was even faster than Dumbledore in this regard.

The only pity is that the Hogwarts teacher thinks he can control the confrontation with the weakened Voldemort.

It turned out that even at the time of Voldemort's weakest state, this idea was naïve and arrogant.

When Voldemort realized that Quirrell was teaching at Hogwarts, he immediately took control of Quirrell, and the strong disparity in strength and the erosion of soul power made Quirinus Quirrell too late and unable to resist.

"The Dark Lord is terrifying, and in his presence, I feel like I'm back in time when I first entered Hogwarts. ”

Quirinus Quirrell whispered, his face looking a little paler with fear.

"Now that I think about it, trying to catch the most dangerous dark wizard of all time on my own, I'm too much to do......"

"The most dangerous ever?heh, a pathetic wandering soul who hides in Tibet, licks blood stains from the dirt, and survives! It's a bit humiliating, but that's all, and it's not a bad thing for young people to suffer a little. ”

Grindelwald waved his hand impatiently, a hint of undisguised disgust on his face.

"Pathetic ...... Remnant?"

Quirinus Quirrell was slightly stunned, his gaze lingered on the old man for a moment, and he sighed lightly.

"Of course, of course, you are naturally qualified and confident to say so. But not everyone is as lucky as you are to take that much time away from death, do you, Professor Apokalis...... Or rather, the greatest healer of the last ten centuries, one of the two known owners of the Philosopher's Stone, Mr. Paracelsus. ”

Otto Apokalis is the pseudonym of Paracelsus, which is not a secret among the Hogwarts professors.

Voldemort had already guessed the true identity of the old wizard long before he threatened the Dark Lord to hand over his share of the meal, and the encounter in the Forbidden Forest only ended with this speculation.

"Paracelsus? Oh, yes, that's one of my identities. ”

Grindelwald smiled, blinked, and pointed to the envelope on Quirrell's knee with a smile.

"Can you tell me your choice now - whether to accept Professor Dumbledore's advice and return to teaching at Hogwarts Castle......?

"No, Professor Apocaris......"

Quirinus Quirrell's eyes flushed with some emotion.

He knew very well how bad his previous things were in the wizarding world today, and even if he didn't do anything really bad, it was enough for him to be imprisoned in Azkaban for the rest of his life.

Perhaps, only a great wizard like Albus Dumbledore would tolerate him regardless of his previous suspicions.

However, for Quirrell, since he succumbed to his heart's desires and cowardly allowed Voldemort to control and command his body, he knew that he might never be able to stand on the Hogwarts podium calmly again—and now he could no longer talk confidently in the classroom as he had done two years before he had just left the school to teach.

In the long history of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, there has never been a precedent for a Squib to be taught.

Not to mention, at this time, he may not even be as good as a squib.

"I'm so sorry, Professor. If you can, please help me convey my apologies to Professor Dumbledore. ”

Quirinus Quirrell reluctantly stroked the parchment envelope that was on his lap, his eyes flashed with determination and pain, he exhaled lightly, solemnly pushed it aside, and said with a self-deprecating smile.

"I can't think of anything else to tell them other than the knowledge in books, how to quickly submit to a powerful, photographable Dark Wizard, or how to go out of your way to find and serve the Dark Lord? Hogwarts students deserve to be taught by better wizards than me...... Cowardly nerds. ”

"That's fine, actually, I think—though, Albus probably won't allow it. ”

The old wizard shrugged his shoulders and gave a strange look to the little girl beside him.

Then, to Quirinus Quirrell's surprise, the expression on the smile of the old wizard brightened, and he didn't seem to feel any loss or frustration at his answer.

"So...... May I understand that you rejected Professor Dumbledore's offer? ”

Seeing Quirrell nod again, the old wizard raised his eyebrows and cleared his throat.

"In that case, it's my turn to come up with a second option - dear Mr. Quirinus Quirrell, I think you should know that it's a miracle that you survived Voldemort's departure and under such severe magical trauma. It took a lot of effort to find a way to save your life. ”

"Yes, I'm very grateful......" Quirrell nodded, a little uneasy.

"But, as we all know, hope and miracle are not free. ”

"Huh?"

Before Quirinus Quirrell could realize what the old man meant, the old wizard drew his wand for the second time and waved it carelessly in the air.

Silently, a near-condensed magical barrier appeared in the ward, enveloping them.

Even Quirinus Quirrell, who was extremely weak, could vaguely feel the somewhat hair-making fluctuations of magic.

"As I said before, Paracelsus is just one of my many identities. And more than fifty years ago, the people of this world, millions of people, they were usually more used to calling me by another name......"

The old man said with a grin, the smile on his face getting brighter, and he said softly.

"Gellert Grindelwald. ”

"Well, a fair, idealistic person who hates to be denied requests. Now, let's talk about the life-saving grace and the price it takes to do something to me......

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Boom!