Chapter 28: I Don't Believe You!

Fox, who had been lazily preening its feathers, suddenly shivered for no apparent reason. With its crimson eyes, it scanned the area for any potential threats. Upon finding only a harmless little wizard with minimal magical power nearby, it relaxed and closed its eyes to rest again.

The harmless Ivan, however, had other plans. Under the guise of wanting to establish a friendly relationship for future conversations, he extended his mischievous right hand. His agile fingers paused briefly in the air. Seeing Fox still pretending to nap, Ivan cautiously brushed one finger over the bird's feathers.

In that instant, the Phoenix, who had been feigning sleep, opened its eyes sharply. After a tense moment of staring each other down, Fox finally realized that Ivan meant no harm. However, it still pridefully swatted away Ivan's offending hand with its wings, glaring at him with a look that warned, "I am not someone to be touched lightly."

As a Phoenix, Fox was not just any bird that could be touched by anyone.

However, no matter how proud Fox was, it couldn't compare to Ivan's shamelessness in seeking closeness. Being a pet of Dumbledore, and notably human-like in behavior, Fox couldn't bring itself to attack Ivan. The Phoenix eventually relented, playing a few minutes of hide and seek with Ivan before giving in.

It also helped that Ivan had not shown any malicious intent from the start; otherwise, his finger would have been gone by now.

"I never imagined I'd have a day where I'd pet a Phoenix!" Ivan said with joy, his hands making gentle strokes over Fox's feathers, applying the same technique he had used with parrots in his past life. His goal? To earn Fox's affection to the point where it would allow him to do anything without protest.

Fox, starting with annoyance, gradually shifted to indifference and even raised its proud head, allowing Ivan to gently stroke the feathers on its neck.

As Ivan continued stroking, he also took the time to examine this legendary immortal bird of the West.

Fox looked less like the mythical Phoenix Ivan had expected and more like a large turkey with beautiful golden-red feathers. Though it exuded an air of majesty, for some reason, Ivan couldn't help but wonder what it would taste like.

A sudden idea struck Ivan. Maybe he could fill his brain with thoughts of food. Without a second thought, he began mentally imagining all kinds of ways to cook it—fried, roasted, grilled... the possibilities were endless.

Just as Ivan was daydreaming about roasting Phoenix, a gentle voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Fire is a Phoenix's cradle, perhaps you should consider a different method of cooking."

Ivan turned to see Dumbledore walking through the door, his tall figure still spry despite his over-century-long age. He seemed as lively as ever and even appeared to be in the mood for a little joke with Ivan.

Fox, startled, immediately flew into the air and angrily pecked Ivan's head before flapping onto Dumbledore's hat, glaring down at Ivan in warning.

Fox could never have imagined that the seemingly harmless little wizard in front of him was contemplating cooking him.

"Professor, I'm curious, how did you know what I was thinking? Can you read my memories?" Ivan asked innocently, rubbing his slightly sore head.

"Sometimes, a person's actions and behavior can reveal their thoughts," Dumbledore said without confirming or denying, his tone carrying a hint of something unspoken.

Ivan wore a face of sudden realization, but internally, he was already sarcastically thinking: "I don't believe you! You sneaky old man!"

Perhaps because his "top student" experience card hadn't expired yet, Ivan felt a strange force enter his mind the moment Dumbledore spoke. It vanished as soon as Ivan asked his question. Ivan had no doubt that this was the Legilimency spell, though he had no idea why he could sense such a subtle, soul-related magic while in the state of the experience card.

For some reason, after Dumbledore retracted his Legilimency, he didn't use it again. Instead, he sat down in the headmaster's chair, trailing his long blue-violet robes behind him. As he gestured for Ivan to sit, he pulled out some snacks from his desk drawer and set them on the table.

"Would you like some cockroach clusters? Or how about the newest flavor of Zizi honey candy?" Dumbledore picked up a piece and offered it to Ivan.

Ivan avoided the infamous cockroach clusters, not even touching them, but he was intrigued by the Zizi honey candy. He unwrapped one and popped it in his mouth.

The candy was sweet with honey, and as his teeth gently bit down, the candy exploded into pieces that seemed to have a mind of their own. It hopped around inside his mouth, avoiding his teeth, and reminded him of the popping candy he had eaten in his past life, though this version was much sweeter.

Dumbledore didn't immediately ask questions. Instead, he made Ivan a glass of chilled lemonade and sat back, appearing ready to listen.

After munching on some candy and drinking most of the lemonade, Ivan's nerves about meeting Dumbledore began to settle. He started to tell the story.

Of course, Ivan didn't repeat the fabricated version Hermione had told, as it had been far too unbelievable. Not even Dumbledore would buy that. Besides, Ivan wasn't sure if Dumbledore would use Legilimency on him during the recounting or perhaps read something from his face.

So, Ivan stuck mostly to the truth, though he left out some crucial details. The final story went like this: Before the Halloween feast, he had learned from Harry that Hermione had been hiding in the bathroom, worried, so he went to find her. On the way, he encountered the troll and hid in a secret passage. Eventually, the noise attracted Hermione, and Ivan bravely stepped forward to defeat the troll.

To make it more believable, Ivan even described the battle in some detail.

The only remaining mysteries were the transfigured iron thorns used to limit the troll's movements and the possible traces of Sleeping Draught on the troll's body.

As for the first, Ivan couldn't explain it. If Dumbledore asked, he would just say it was part of his practice with Transfiguration and the Shrinking Charm. He had started making them days earlier, and many other little wizards could vouch for him, so Dumbledore would have no reason to suspect otherwise.

As for the second, Ivan didn't even mention it. Even if it were discovered, Dumbledore had many suspects, and the blame would likely fall on Quirrell, who was the most likely culprit.

Ivan quickly ran through the potential holes in his story, double-checking everything to see if there were any slip-ups.

However, Dumbledore's next reaction left Ivan feeling like he had just punched a cotton pillow.