#548 - Chapter 548: First kiss lost?

As soon as the words fell, the form of the Work-Study Soul slowly floated out of the alchemy pouch.

It was taller than ordinary Dementors, its form almost reaching the ceiling. Its cloak was not the usual black of Dementors, but a refined gray, the fabric seeming to be woven from nothingness and mist, swaying slightly with its movements.

In an instant, the temperature in the room plummeted, and a bone-deep chill spread. The air seemed to become heavy and stagnant, and a thick layer of frost instantly formed on the windows, walls, and floor.

Harry was no stranger to the existence of the Work-Study Soul, or rather, neither were the teachers and students of Hogwarts.

This unique Dementor would appear punctually at the Duelling Club every Friday night, and diligently accompany the young wizards in practicing the Patronus Charm.

It could be said that the high proportion of Hogwarts students who now mastered the Patronus Charm was all thanks to its hard work.

Only... something made Harry feel vaguely uneasy.

In his memory, although the Work-Study Soul had a special appearance and a huge size, it had never displayed extremely strong power.

At the very least, whenever the young wizards used the Patronus Charm to drive it away, it would always cooperate and be repelled, never showing the slightest resistance.

This aura now... was a bit too strong.

Harry frowned and looked at the Work-Study Soul in front of him.

Could it be that the Work-Study Soul had been acting all along, just playing with the young wizards?

Speaking of which, are Dementors that smart?

However, intelligence wasn't that important. The Work-Study Soul was his attending physician, so what was the price he had to pay?

Just as Harry was trying to explore further, the chill in the room suddenly receded, and it returned to its familiar appearance, its ordinary appearance.

"Boss, is it time to eat yet?"

Sebastian smiled and scolded, "You glutton, all you think about is eating. Today, I'll let you have a feast."

"Professor," Harry couldn't help but ask, "You just said the Work-Study Soul is my attending physician, how exactly is it going to deal with the Horcrux fragment inside me? And... what price do I need to pay?"

Sebastian's lips curved slightly, a hint of playfulness in his eyes: "Have you heard of the Dementor's Kiss?"

The Dementor's Kiss?!

Harry's pupils shrank suddenly, and his heart skipped a beat.

Of course, he had heard of it. It was the most terrifying attack method of Dementors, capable of directly sucking the soul out of a person's body. Those subjected to this punishment would only be left with empty shells, completely turned into living corpses.

Generally speaking, only the most vicious criminals would receive this treatment.

But on second thought—

Isn't this a perfect way to deal with Voldemort's Horcrux fragment?!

Harry's eyes lit up instantly, as if he saw the dawn of hope.

Wait!

Harry's expression suddenly froze, instantly realizing the problem.

Although he had never seen a Dementor perform this magic, judging from the literal meaning, the Dementor's Kiss... is still a kiss!

That is to say, the Work-Study Soul has to suck the soul fragment out of my mouth?!

Motherf**ker, my first kiss is going to be taken by a Dementor!

This is too disgusting!!!

Harry's face instantly collapsed, and his stomach churned violently, as if he had swallowed a whole bucket of booger-flavored Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans.

He swallowed hard, his eyes scanning back and forth on the Work-Study Soul, trying to find any possibility of another solution.

Unfortunately... there wasn't one.

His only hope of survival was right in front of him.

Forget it, I'll risk it for my life. I still have a great life waiting for me.

Harry gritted his teeth, desperately suppressing the disgust and resistance in his heart, took a step forward, walked up to the Work-Study Soul, reluctantly raised his head, then closed his eyes and pursed his lips slightly.

Come on, I'm ready!

"Hahahahaha—"

Deafening laughter exploded in the air, completely shattering the courage that Harry had managed to muster.

He opened his eyes, and what came into view was Sebastian laughing so hard that he was bending over.

Harry was stunned, the expression on his face changing from tension and doubt, bit by bit, to embarrassment, and finally completely darkening.

"Professor..." he said through gritted teeth.

Sebastian barely managed to stop laughing, and said seriously: "Harry, don't worry, it's not time for you to offer a kiss yet."

What?!

Harry almost choked on his own saliva, looking at Sebastian with a dark face.

He had been nervous for so long, and it wasn't time yet?

This frivolous guy always likes to tease him and watch him make a fool of himself. This is the second time today.

"Harry," Sebastian explained, "Too much time has passed, and the Horcrux fragment has become extremely intertwined with your soul. The Work-Study Soul in its current state does not have enough power to directly strip it away."

Ah?

Just when hope was within reach, you say the Work-Study Soul doesn't have enough power.

Harry didn't bother to be angry and immediately asked nervously: "Then... what do we do?"

"It's very simple." Sebastian looked at the Work-Study Soul calmly, the corner of his mouth curving slightly, "We'll just help it level up first."

Since the Work-Study Soul evolved into a gray-robed Dementor, Sebastian had set up a new research project—studying the new evolutionary possibilities of the Work-Study Soul.

By consulting materials and constantly communicating with the Work-Study Soul, he boldly proposed a hypothesis: that the Work-Study Soul needed to devour high-quality souls in order to evolve again. Before that, however, it needed to improve its strength first.

Therefore, Sebastian would consciously collect the scattered happy emotions in Hogwarts and Hogsmeade New Town, and then feed them all to the Work-Study Soul.

After two years of continuous feeding, and the continuous sparring of many young wizards at Hogwarts, the strength of the Work-Study Soul became stronger and stronger, and finally reached its current bottleneck at the beginning of this year.

The only limitation to evolve again was a high-quality soul.

Sebastian didn't have high-quality souls, and he didn't allow the Work-Study Soul to hunt on its own. Fortunately, he had a few Horcrux fragments of Voldemort in his collection.

Voldemort was at least a legendary wizard. Theoretically, his Horcrux fragment should be able to satisfy the Work-Study Soul's evolution.

In order to verify his guess, Sebastian directly took the Work-Study Soul to the Horcrux collection room. Sure enough, Old Voldy's Horcrux fragment could meet its needs.

What surprised Sebastian even more was that the Work-Study Soul also brought him another good news—it could suck out the Horcrux fragment from the Horcrux without damaging the Horcrux carrier.

In other words, Ravenclaw's diadem, Slytherin's locket, and Hufflepuff's cup could all be preserved.

Of course, this good news did not overwhelm Sebastian. He thought of Harry's complicated situation, so he immediately took the Work-Study Soul to secretly observe Harry. If possible, it would be best to deal with the Horcrux fragment in Harry's body first.

Unfortunately, the situation in Harry's body was too complicated, and only after the Work-Study Soul evolved again could it be easily resolved.

For the sake of prudence, Sebastian temporarily put away all the Horcruxes, waiting until before the final battle to deal with all the problems. After all, a sense of ritual was still needed.

Thinking of this, Sebastian walked to an alchemy vault and took out one of the lockets, placing it in front of the Work-Study Soul.

"Come on, Work-Study Soul, it's time to eat..."