Voldemort watched him absentmindedly, playing with his wand.

Snape answered honestly: "Dumbledore has been away from Hogwarts recently."

“Oh?” Voldemort’s eyes flickered, but when he thought of Potter, the bright light in his eyes disappeared. “Not in Hogwarts?”

Snape nodded: "Master, are you going to take action against Hogwarts?"

He saw it and pointed it out.

Voldemort did not reply, but just sat in silence.

After a long while, he tapped the table, and a piece of parchment flew out of the drawer and appeared in front of Snape: "Severus, do you remember this?"

"The Three Hallows." Snape read out the words.

Voldemort nodded: "Yes, the Three Hallows."

He stood up, walked gently to Snape, and said seriously and sincerely: "My dear Severus, my most powerful friend, I trust you very much."

"So there are some things I can't hide from you."

He paused for a moment, then continued, "I am reluctant to admit that the most serious problem facing us is Severus. I have not yet fully recovered to my peak, although I now feel how powerful the power in my body is and how terrifying the knowledge I once possessed is."

"But I have to admit that Potter and Dumbledore are both opponents of the same level as me."

"They are as strong as I am."

"But there are two of them, and I only have one."

"Do you understand me? Severus, I need help."

At this point, Voldemort turned around, his eyes bloodshot, staring at the parchment with a greedy and fiery look. "The Three Deathly Hallows, three treasures that according to legend, once mastered, one can gain the power of Death."

"The Gaunt family ring is the resurrection stone. Unfortunately, I found out too late and was unable to keep it."

He turned back again and looked at Snape: "Severus, the Resurrection Stone is in Dumbledore's hands."

"He and Grindelwald also pursued the three Hallows together, and as he was the final winner, the Hallows they found should also be in Dumbledore's hands."

"One or both."

"Help me find it. I can't show up right now."

Snape knelt down and agreed without hesitation: "Everything is subject to your great will."

Voldemort tilted his head and looked out the window. His scarlet eyes reflected the light, as transparent as rubies.

His gaze crossed the Dover Strait and reached the other end of the vast ocean.

A man in black robe walked hurriedly among the mountains. The path was rugged and he walked with difficulty.

He dispelled layer after layer of magic.

Finally, when the moon rose and hung in the center of the sky, the man in black robe finally saw a castle that was almost standing together with the mountain. It was as black as the surrounding mountains. The top of the tower was sharp like a knife, flashing with cold light, which was intimidating.

A horse will die if it runs too fast.

By the time we reached the foot of the castle, the sun was almost rising.

Nurmengard.

A prison that was once as famous as Azkaban - of course, Azkaban was because of the Dementors, and Nurmengard was because of Grindelwald. This was where the powerful dark wizard imprisoned all the rebels, and ironically, this prison has now become his own cage.

Prison entrance.

The wall, which has not been protected for a long time, still looks as bright as new, and the words engraved on it are as sharp as they were decades ago.

"For the greater good."

The man in black robe stared at it for a long time before he stepped forward and continued walking inside.

Nurmengard had been abandoned for a long time, with spiders weaving layer upon layer of webs inside. It was obvious from the cells that people had lived there a long time ago, and even the toothpaste tubes had rotted into the floor. The sound of footsteps was crisp, clear, and echoing, bouncing back and forth in the empty room.

This is a substandard prison.

There are no jailers.

There are no magic traps either.

There was only a spell permeating the castle - miniature, but this spell was useless. The prison door was wide open and the people in the prison could get out at any time.

More than half an hour later, he reached the top floor of the castle.

This place finally has something other than a deserted feel.

The corridor was clean, as if it had just been swept. The door of the small room at the end was half open, and a man in a black robe was standing at the door, peeking inside.

A hardwood bed, a desk, and a few scattered books, all of which were fairy tales like "The Tales of Peter the Bard".

"Guest from afar, won't you come in?" A heavily accented English voice came from the house.

The man in black robes walked in and greeted the man sitting on the table respectfully: "Praise you, the great dark wizard Grindelwald. Your servant brings you greetings on behalf of his great master, the Dark Lord."

He took off his hood, revealing a pale, childish face with short golden-brown hair and extraordinary handsomeness.

**The old man had smooth white hair and sapphire eyes, brighter and more dazzling than the rising sun in the sky.

"Voldemort?" Grindelwald whispered.

Barty Crouch Jr. nodded.

"He is in Great Britain, coming to Nurmengard to find me?" Grindelwald chuckled.

Crouch raised his head and looked at him: "The master hopes to help you escape from prison."

"You climbed up step by step." Grindelwald shook his head. "Do I need to escape from prison?"

Crouch said: "It was not Nurmengard who imprisoned you, but Dumbledore."

"The master hopes to join forces with you."

Grindelwald looked at him, saying nothing.

Crouch went on: "The master said that you and he are of the same kind, and both have the same lofty goals."

"I saw those words engraved on the wall at the prison gate."

"For the greater good."

"In this matter, Master is just as willing as you to fight for the greater good. Shouldn't the rights of wizards take precedence over those of Mudbloods?"

At this point, he paused for a moment, and his tone became passionate: "According to them, we are more advanced humans, more successfully evolved and more intelligent than them. It is only natural that we should rule over everything."

Grindelwald laughed.

Crouch was at a loss.

“Is this your master’s view?” Grindelwald stood up, his eyes twinkling. “Is this all he sees?”

Crouch took a deep breath and said, "This is just a glimpse of what I, as a servant, can see from the tip of the iceberg while admiring the glory of my master."

He avoided her gaze, not daring to meet those eyes as bright as torches.

“You were great, but you failed.”

He went on, but his voice was less confident and forceful than at the beginning.

"The master invites you to help fight Dumbledore."

Grindelwald reminded him: "And Potter."

Crouch nodded: "Of course, there is Potter, but he is just a little wizard who has not graduated yet. He is powerful, but not to be feared."

"And your master had his arm chopped off by him in Gringotts." Grindelwald's lips curled up slightly with a smile.

Crouch gritted his teeth and argued, "The master had just been resurrected at that time."

"Potter will never be a match for the master now."

Grindelwald said lightly, "Is it because your master has seen something in Avalon?"

Crouch looked confused.

Avalon?

That mythical place of miracles? He had heard of legends about it when he was a child, but did that place...really exist?

It sounds like it's related to Potter.

"You don't know this?" Grindelwald nodded. "It seems that Voldemort doesn't trust you that much."

The confusion in Crouch's eyes disappeared immediately, and he became firm again: "A servant is a servant, and a master is a master. If the master doesn't say anything, it means the servant doesn't need to know."

"You are loyal to him." Grindelwald looked at him with deep eyes and spoke meaningfully.

Crouch said nothing.

"Go back and tell your master." Grindelwald sat back down on the bed. "If you want to discuss this matter properly, ask him to come see me in person."

The oppressive feeling that had been hanging over my head dissipated.

Crouch breathed a sigh of relief and raised his head again: "If that doesn't work, the master hopes to make a deal with you."

"About the Three Hallows?" Grindelwald asked. There was doubt in his voice, but his tone was extremely firm.

Crouch nodded and twisted his body uncomfortably.

He somewhat hated standing in front of Grindelwald, as he was seen through from head to toe. Even... he felt that his master far away in Great Britain was also seen through when he was seen through.

"What does he have to trade?" Grindelwald demanded.

"Or in other words, what can he offer me now?"

"Dark magic?"

"Horcrux?"

"Avalon?"

Grindelwald said nothing, but he pressed down on Crouch like a huge rock.

"I am over a hundred years old." Grindelwald stretched out his hand and snapped his fingers lightly.

Without a wand or a spell, a small wisp of blue flame leaped at his fingertips and turned into a small blue phoenix in the blink of an eye.

“There is nothing in this world that I want to know but don’t know already.”

"Your master can't give me the leverage I want."

Crouch whispered: "What if it's to kill Dumbledore?"

Grindelwald narrowed his eyes slightly.

Crouch was suddenly startled and took a step back, with cold sweat pouring down his forehead and back. The old man sitting in the bed had obviously done nothing, and his body didn't even move, but suddenly, he felt as if he had been in a life worse than death several times.

"Kill Dumbledore?" Grindelwald opened his eyes again.

“It’s a really interesting topic.”

"Then let your master try. If he can do it, then we can talk about these things, okay?"

Crouch nodded: "Of course."

"My master promised you that he would give you this great gift in the near future."

Grindelwald chuckled twice, with an unclear meaning.

Crouch saluted respectfully and turned to leave.

After walking out of Nurmengard, he turned around and took a deep look at the words on the wall - "For the greater good", then waved his wand lightly, Apparated, and disappeared.

Grindelwald stood at the window, staring at the mountains in the distance, with a faint silver-white light flashing in his blue eyes.