Chapter 152: Attempt
The process of returning to the castle was surprisingly smooth.
With the Bloody Baron keeping attentive watch, that old Squib Filch was destined to spend the night counting mops in the broom cupboard on the third floor.
Tamara stopped before the portrait hole leading to the Gryffindor Common Room.
"I think even your Troll brains should know how to keep your mouths shut."
She swept a cold gaze over Harry and Ron, the warning in her eyes unmistakable.
"If I hear even the slightest gossip about tonight anywhere tomorrow..."
"We swear! We absolutely won't say anything!"
Ron shook his head like a rattle. The way he looked at Tamara now was as if she were Merlin reincarnated. Even if Tamara told him to eat slugs right now, he might hesitate for only a moment before obeying.
"See that you don't."
Tamara snorted lightly. She did not spare another glance for the saviour, who looked grateful and seemed as if he wanted to say something painfully sentimental.
Then she turned and melted into the dark corridor.
Eighth floor, Room of Requirement.
Tamara skilfully walked three times in front of the tapestry, silently repeating in her mind.
I need an absolutely hidden, fully equipped Potions laboratory.
A smooth door appeared on the wall.
Pushing it open, she was met with the familiar scent of herbs and the warm breath of the fire beneath a cauldron.
"This is enough."
Tamara quickly got to work.
Slicing.
Grinding.
Extracting.
Fresh Acromantula venom dripped into the boiling cauldron, emitting a grating hiss. Immediately after came Mandrake roots.
Then, Tamara took out a small vial from her waist. Inside was her own golden blood, still uncongealed.
She drew her wand and tapped the mouth of the vial, drawing out a single drop of blood like molten gold.
With a flick of her wrist, that drop of blood melted into the cauldron.
The potion, which had been violently churning, instantly calmed.
It displayed a strange, deep inky green, with a faint layer of golden light floating across the surface.
Soul Separation Potion, improved version.
Complete.
Tamara scooped up a little with a long handled ladle. Looking at the viscous liquid, a maniacal glint flickered in her eyes.
This thing could forcibly strip the remnant soul from Ginny's body.
Then...
Could it also drag out that damned system inside her brain?
In Tamara's view, the so called system was merely another form of high level evil spirit.
Since it was a spirit entity, it would certainly be affected by this batch of potion.
"Come on. Let me see what exactly you are."
Tamara did not hesitate at all. There was even a hint of vengeful pleasure in her expression as she brought the ladle to her lips.
Of course, she knew this was dangerous.
This was highly toxic.
But she was Lord Voldemort.
Her soul strength was enough to withstand this level of impact. At most, she would be weak for a few days.
If she could get rid of the system's control through this, even losing half her life would be worth it.
Gulp.
Icy.
Bitter.
With a burning sensation like a red hot iron, the potion slid down her throat and into her stomach.
One second.
Two seconds.
The expected scene did not occur.
On the contrary, that damned electronic voice let out an unprecedented, piercing alarm, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.
[Warning! Warning! High risk soul toxin detected after host ingestion!]
[External energy attempting to attack system core logic detected!]
[Defence mechanism forcibly activated. Neutralising toxicity...]
Tamara only felt as if someone had stuffed an exploding firework into her brain. The pain made her vision go black, and the ladle clattered to the floor.
"Get... out..."
She gritted her teeth, trying to use her willpower to cooperate with the potion's effects and squeeze that voice out.
But she had underestimated how shameless this thing was.
[Insufficient energy! Insufficient energy! Cannot completely neutralise!]
[To protect the host's soul from being counterattacked by the toxin, the system forcibly activates Biological Hibernation Mode!]
[Draining all host physical strength for defence... three... two... one...]
"You despicable..."
Tamara was only halfway through her curse when she suddenly felt all the strength in her body drain away in an instant.
The bones that had been enough to support her standing seemed to melt, and suffocating heat swept over her entire body.
Thud.
Her legs went weak, and she collapsed miserably onto the cold floor.
It was not just powerlessness.
What was even more terrifying was the scorching heat that felt as if it would evaporate her entire being, along with the dizziness caused by her soul being forcibly suppressed.
"Damn it..."
Tamara gasped for breath, her vision beginning to blur.
Her current state was terrible, like a Flobberworm boiled in hot water.
She tried to reach for the wand that had fallen onto the floor, but her fingers were so weak that she could not even pick up a feather.
And that cauldron of potion was still boiling over the fire.
With the popping of bubbles, thick steam carrying a fishy scent and extreme toxicity filled the small room.
For Tamara, who was currently in an extremely sensitive state, it was torture.
Every breath brought the corrosive potion steam into her body. It was like countless red hot needles stabbing through her nasal cavity and directly into the depths of her defenceless soul.
"Ugh..."
Intense dizziness and nausea, like her soul was being torn apart, surged up instantly, forcing her to crawl miserably toward the door.
She had to leave this place.
If she stayed any longer, without the damned system even needing to act, the potion she brewed herself would melt her first.
"Must... get... out..."
Tamara bit her lip, using the pain to seize a sliver of clarity.
She reached out with a trembling hand, gripped the cracks in the floor, and crawled toward the doorway inch by inch.
Meanwhile, Gryffindor Tower, boys' dormitory.
Harry lay in bed, tossing and turning, unable to sleep.
Whenever he closed his eyes, his mind filled with images from the Forbidden Forest that night.
The sky full of fire.
Flying spider limbs.
And the figure standing amid the flames, who, despite speaking with such viciousness, had firmly stood in front of him.
Suddenly, a strange sensation violently struck him.
It was not the usual excruciating pain of his scar splitting open.
It was a... heartbeat?
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
Harry shot up in bed, clutching the lightning scar on his forehead.
It was heating up there.
But this heat did not make him uncomfortable. Instead, it transformed into a scalp tingling feeling, something like extreme excitement or... being moved?
It was just like the feeling he had that day when he and Tamara hid in that narrow compartment to evade Filch's pursuit.
[System backend running: Detecting intense pain signal generated by Horcrux resonance...]
[To maintain host image, signal transcoding is in progress...]
[Pain masking enabled...]
[Replacing with High Frequency Dopamine Simulation Signal...]
.....
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