For some time, Aiden had been living at the Hog's Head Inn.
On one hand looking after Credence, on the other waiting for news from Dumbledore.
After the Qilin incident, Dumbledore's reputation soared, and many wizards joined his ranks to work for him.
At the same time, Grindelwald still hadn't given up on his ideals, rallying more and more wizards throughout Europe.
Through his relentless efforts, World War II broke out.
Dumbledore sat securely at Hogwarts, and with the help of a Discerner, he could thwart Grindelwald's plans every time.
Finally, Grindelwald believed such struggles would consume too much of the wizarding world's vital forces, so a duel invitation was sent to Hogwarts.
"He wants to duel you?" Aiden raised an eyebrow.
Dumbledore sat on the sofa holding the letter.
"A duel between us. If one person loses, they must permanently withdraw from this struggle to lead the wizarding world's fate."
"Grindelwald. If he were really a madman obsessed with watching the world burn, killing him would be one thing," Aiden said, his eyes lowering, his long lashes falling.
"Unfortunately he's not. Killing him would only spread his inflammatory ideas more widely. We can't kill everyone who spreads his ideas, so in the end we can only..." Dumbledore supported his forehead with his hand.
"Only make him personally admit defeat, right?" Aiden completed his thought.
"Aiden." Dumbledore walked over and placed his hands on his shoulders.
"I will accept this duel, but if I lose, please lead them forward."
Dumbledore looked into Aiden's eyes. From his gaze, Aiden saw a certain resolve.
"But how will you deal with Grindelwald who possesses part of the Deep Realm King?" Aiden frowned.
"That's where I need your help," Dumbledore said, using tweezers to pick up part of the Obscurus's body.
He handed Aiden a research record.
Aiden took the record and read it quickly. The boldness and madness within shocked him.
"You two really are a perfect match," Aiden said after reading, letting out a heavy breath.
"How is it? What's the feasibility?" Dumbledore asked.
"It depends on you. Containing a Deep Realm King's core in a wizard's body—the success rate might only be half. And that's built on the premise that this wizard is Dumbledore."
Aiden looked at him with burning intensity. Dumbledore smiled freely.
"What good news. It's already half. Then if we work a bit harder, maybe we'll succeed."
"You could die, you know. The kind where not even a body remains," Aiden reminded again.
"I believe in myself, and I believe in my love for everything in this world!"
Special magic began generating on Dumbledore's body.
As the heir and leader of the Dumbledore family, he naturally understood the Dumbledore family's secrets.
At the same time, he also possessed what was passed down through the rune Othala (ᛟ)—Love.
"Then fasten your seatbelt. We're departing!"
A dragon shadow pounced toward Dumbledore, taking him into the collective unconscious sea.
In the grey waters, a mythical dragon carried a human, descending into the depths.
"Can you retract that rune on your body? I don't know why, but looking at it makes me nauseous."
Dumbledore's condition seemed fine. He still had the mood to complain.
"You'd better get used to it. The real test will come when you contain the Deep Realm King."
The dragon's head lowered. Though it didn't open its mouth, Aiden's voice rang in Dumbledore's heart.
"Then I'll look forward to it."
At the very bottom of the sea of consciousness, at the boundary between reality and illusion, Aiden quietly bored a small hole.
He slipped in with Dumbledore.
"So this is the Mirror of Erised. Honestly, this is my first time entering here with my body. It's a bit cold."
Dumbledore curled his lip. The surrounding environment no longer provided him any warmth.
Aiden wrapped Dumbledore with mental power, letting him ease up a bit.
"Thanks."
"Hmph."
Continuously descending, Aiden and Dumbledore reached the boundary of the Mirror of Erised.
"Below this is the Deep Realm. Once the journey begins, there's no turning back."
Aiden confirmed with Dumbledore again. He didn't want to see his mentor suffer.
After all, as long as Aiden cooperated, constantly wearing down Grindelwald's vital forces, the wizarding world would naturally spawn prophecy to stop Grindelwald under war-weariness.
Unfortunately, Dumbledore clearly didn't care about his own life or death. What he wanted was the wizarding world's prosperity and stability.
"Stop dawdling. Gellert is still waiting for me," Dumbledore said, patting Aiden's scales.
A touch of helplessness flowed from the eyes of the Mental Dragon.
Passing through the Mirror of Erised was like plunging into a soap bubble. The Deep Realm's malice rushed toward them.
The surrounding black gelatinous substance began squirming toward Aiden and Dumbledore.
The Mental Dragon's breath covered them.
What should have been formless and colorless mental penetration displayed its color in the Deep Realm.
Silver dragon breath collided with the black gel, and flames burned across it.
Aiden flapped his wings. A violent storm rolled up, forcibly opening a passage between the gel.
He seized the opportunity and plunged into the crack burned by dragon breath, entering the second layer of the Deep Realm.
"It feels a bit like traveling with gods in mythology," Dumbledore joked.
"I don't deserve your excessive praise," the dragon said, being tsundere.
"But I never thought the enemies you face would be like this. These years must have been hard..."
As Dumbledore was speaking, a large mouthful of seawater surged into his mouth.
The seawater's coldness nearly froze his thinking, making him sluggish.
"What... is... this?" Dumbledore stammered.
Aiden wrapped him in the maze while using his ability to squeeze out the seawater from his body.
"The second layer's Sea of Embers. See that purple crystal in the center of the vortex?"
Dumbledore looked where Aiden indicated. A purple crystal floated at the center of the water vortex.
Black threads extended everywhere, and where they were about to contact the seawater, they disappeared into the void.
"This is—Folly?"
As soon as Dumbledore opened his mouth, the threads trembled. Aiden quickly covered himself and Dumbledore with mental illusions.
"Are you crazy? Calling Its name on Its territory? Want to get ganged up on?" Aiden complained.
"Sorry, sorry," Dumbledore said, waving his hand apologetically.
Afraid Dumbledore would cause more trouble, he quickly took him through the Sea of Embers.
At the ocean's deepest point, one could see the vast plains below. A crystal barrier divided the two into heaven and earth.
Aiden plunged down, entering the third layer of the Deep Realm.
Here, his power of entropy reversal seemed amplified. The clock behind him appeared, and Aiden's flight speed immediately increased a notch.
Finally, after experiencing various fantastical and magnificent scenes, they arrived at the destination of this deep dive—the Throne of Hatred.