"I am a genius!!"
William boasted without any humility. At the same time, he didn't forget to wield his charm, channeling energy imbued with ancient magic. Around him, the prepared golden rune matrix shone brightly, starting to forcefully penetrate, analyze, and suppress that blood-red curse.
The process was evidently excruciating, as could be seen from Nagini's increasingly weakened struggles. The murderous glint in her snake eyes was replaced by a deep bafflement and an indescribable pain, even faintly revealing a hint of humanized terror?
"Hang in there, miss, or ma'am."
William whispered forcefully, "Think of your former self, then strive toward that image." His voice seemed to carry a peculiar penetrating power, and the reinforced will and ancient magic guidance clearly took effect. Energy surged within the barrier made of rune stones, the light flickering unpredictably, and Dobby kept his distance, nervously clutching his ears, watching everything before him.
Finally, after an unknown amount of time, the massive snake in the cage trembled violently, then collapsed entirely limp, as if all her bones had been removed.
Then, her form began to undergo an astonishing transformation—
The vast serpent body rapidly shrunk and twisted in the light... The dark green scales gradually faded, revealing the fair skin hidden beneath, and the grotesquely formed snake head reshaped into gentle and beautiful features, while the long snake tail split into two slender, fair legs...
Thus, within the rune force field prison, a naked, pale, and emaciated woman curled up her body, her long black hair "conveniently" covering the parts unfit for scrutiny. Her face was haggard, yet the beauty of its past contours could still be faintly seen. Her eyes were tightly shut, and long eyelashes quivered slightly, as if struggling to emerge from a long and arduous nightmare.
Her body rose and fell slightly, breathing evenly—clearly, this was a living person.
"I am a genius!!!"
William repeated once more, then sat shakily in a chair, downing the strong tea in his cup intended to keep him alert—in response to his signal, Dobby had already fetched a robe and gently draped it over the woman's body, then stepped into the force field, pouring a bottle of pale green soothing potion into her mouth.
Consequently, the woman's eyelashes trembled violently a few times and finally, she slowly opened her eyes.
They were eyes full of confusion, pain, fear... and a wisp of long-lost clarity. She looked somewhat dazedly at the strange little elf before her, unsure of what expression to make for the moment.
"Mr. Richard, she's awake—"
Dobby put down the glass bottle in his hand, turned, and looked at William, while Nagini also followed Dobby's gaze.
"..."
Her lips trembled as if she were trying to speak, yet only fragmented syllables emerged. "Uh... here... is it? I..." Her voice was hoarse and parched, clearly, she hadn't spoken for a long time. Propping herself up with her arms, she rose into a sitting position within the cage.
"Don't be afraid, it's safe here. You know Hogwarts?"
William yawned, pulling a reassuring smile across his face, "I am a professor at Hogwarts. Can you remember anything? Like what your name is? Things from before? How many... alright, don't cry, it was just a joke—"
Evidently, William's reassuring was of no use; the woman's eyes were already brimming with tears, the delayed fear engulfing her like a tide. She reflexively curled up again, as if doing so could refuse the painful memories, making her still a cold-blooded little snake... Basilisk?
After a while, possibly finally adapting to this long-lost everything, the woman finally regained some composure. She took a deep breath, "The curse... is lifted?"
"Yes, cured just by the medicine. Now you should think about how to pay for medical expenses. I don't charge cheaply."
William, expressionless, took the honey water handed by Dobby and drank a large mouthful of the steaming liquid.
"The curse... is... lifted?"
The woman repeated incredulously, silent tears slipping down and falling on the robe, "I became a monster... for so long, so long..." Her memory, like shattered glass, began to collide and flashback with each other. Fear surged again, and she reflexively tightened her grip on the water cup in her hand—naturally, Dobby didn't forget to bring her a glass of water too.
"Yes, lifted, you've returned."
William nodded patiently, without pressuring her to recall anything, "It's quite obvious, you're human now, so tell me your name? Also... do you remember Voldemort? The nose-less weirdo who probably kept you by his side recently?"
"Voldemort..."
The name, like a cold switch, instantly triggered the deepest fears and pains in the woman's memories.
She began to shiver violently again, her gaze turning terrified.
Therefore, communicating with such people, who have PTSD about certain things, requires patience and is very time-consuming.
Finally, after another while, the woman regained some composure again, breathing heavily. She downed the honey water in the cup in one gulp, lifted her head, and glared at William, "Did you just say this is Hogwarts?"
"Yes."
"Then, is Professor Dumbledore still... uh, alive?"
...
"...In short, that's how it happened."
Having narrated the specifics, William stretched lazily, curling himself into the back of the chair, beginning to observe with interest the other two people in the office.
And after listening to William's account, Dumbledore also remained silent. He looked towards the woman, already dressed, similarly curled up in a chair, her gaze somewhat vacant. "Nagini... ma'am, long time no see indeed."
"Dumbledore, Headmaster."
Nagini snapped back, her gaze on Dumbledore somewhat complex—after all, during their last meeting, the other was merely a middle-aged man under half a century, now showing signs of age and wear.
"I'm sorry, I didn't achieve what I promised—"
Dumbledore shook his head, William could discern from his expression that Old Dumbledore clearly felt indebted to the Maledictus before him—what exactly was owed was easy to guess; most likely it revolved around lifting the Blood Demon Curse or something similar, and from the conclusion, it was evident Old Dumbledore didn't fulfill his promise.
Thus, how Nagini left, how she encountered Voldemort, and became a Soul Artifact—
These required the participant's explanation.