I, Hogwarts Week Two

Chapter 533 Negotiation

"We are the same, but - I have the ability to protect myself, and you - will only lose your life if you are discovered." Bella said even more impolitely.

"Then I would too!"

"I don't want to!" Bella panted. She looked around to see if there was anyone, her eyes flickering under her hood. "There are few people in the British Ministry of Magic who can be trusted. All the wizards who betrayed him have evacuated here. We have built a fortress somewhere else. There may be his spies here. You know the relationship between that guy and him! Dumbledore will never let him get rid of that relationship."

"Didn't you say he was a double agent?"

"So, that monster might have sent people to monitor him secretly. Once we show up, we will immediately fall into the trap."

"No - I don't care." Narcissa lowered her voice, with a hint of hysteria in her tone, "I must see Draco. Even if I die."

"If you don't come, Draco is more likely to be alive. The Saints may have other plans."

"They?" Narcissa's face was pale. "How much fighting power can they still have against the current You-Know-Who? He made an agreement with me, an unbreakable curse. Bella, you know, he can't resist and must protect Draco."

"That's a joke!" Bella's eyes were filled with anger. Ever since she was deceived by Owen, she no longer believed in any contract-based spells.

"Maybe." Narcissa was unmoved. She didn't know what had happened to Bella. At least for now, she still firmly believed in the Unbreakable Curse.

"I'm your sister, Cissy. When have I ever hurt you?"

"If you try to stop me again, that's it." After saying that, Narcissa turned around and rushed in.

Bella rubbed her hands and followed again.

She knew there was no way she could convince her anymore.

Finally, Narcissa hurried up a street called Spinner's End, where the tall mill chimney rose into the sky like a giant finger raised in warning, her steps echoing on the cobblestones as she passed by dilapidated, boarded-up windows.

She came to the last house and saw a dim light coming through the curtains in a room downstairs.

She had already knocked on the door when Bella came up, cursing, and they stood outside together, waiting, breathing slightly harder and smelling the smell of the sewage river carried in by the evening breeze.

After a few seconds, they heard some movement behind the door, and then the door opened a crack, and a man looked at them, with long black hair draped on both sides like curtains, in the middle was a grayish-yellow face and a pair of black eyes.

Narcissa pulled her hood back. Her face was so pale that it seemed to glow in the night, and her long golden hair fell down her back, making her look like someone who had drowned.

"Narcissa!" the man said, opening the door a little wider so that the light shone not only on her but also on her sister. "What a surprise and delight!"

"Severus," Narcissa whispered nervously, "I'm here to pick up my son."

"I know." He stepped back and let her in. Her sister, still wearing her hood, followed, though uninvited.

"It's been a long time, Snape." She greeted him simply as she passed by him.

"Bellatrix," Snape replied, his thin lips twisted into a slightly sarcastic smile, and he clicked the door shut behind them.

They walked straight into a small living room that had the feel of a dim, padded cell. Books lined the walls, most of them in old black or brown leather covers, and a scuffed sofa, an old armchair, and a rickety table were crowded together in a dim circle of light cast by a candlelight hanging from the ceiling.

This place has a desolate and deserted atmosphere. It seems that no one lives there usually.

Snape motioned for Narcissa to sit on the sofa. Narcissa took off her cloak and threw it aside, then sat down, staring at her pale, trembling hands folded in her knees. Bellatrix slowly lowered her hood. Her sister was strikingly pale, but her skin was darker, with thick eyelids and a broad chin.

She walked over and stood behind Narcissa, her eyes never leaving Snape.

"It seems that my appearance here surprises you?" Bella looked at Snape coldly. From the beginning, she felt that this guy was a spy, but the Dark Lord did not listen to her and insisted on staying.

"No," said Snape, "I had a feeling you would come, so I came here to wait for you in person."

"You sound so smart." Bella sneered, "You might lose your life in the next second."

"You can try."

"Okay!" Narcissa frowned and interrupted the two of them, "Where's Draco? I don't see him."

"Here." He pointed his wand at the wall of books behind him, and with a bang, a secret door opened, revealing a narrow staircase leading to an underground space.

A strange smell of potions came from inside.

Then a girl came stooping down the last few steps and into the room.

She was a very pretty little girl, with striking grey eyes, a high nose, and delicate features.

"Mom——" the girl said in a light voice, "Aunt?"

"This..." Narcissa was stunned and looked at Snape.

"Polyjuice Potion," Snape said lazily. "There are plenty of spies watching Hogwarts. If you want to see a dead body, you can go to King's Cross Station."

Narcissa waved her hand, took the transformed Draco into her arms, then held her forehead and kissed her deeply.

Such a heartwarming scene was soon rudely interrupted by another person.

"Oh! By the way." Snape said in a slick tone, "When you get back, I suggest you take him to a therapist for a checkup."

"What?" Narcissa's face darkened. "He was poisoned?"

"No - the test I'm talking about is psychological," Snape sneered. "After all, being obsessed with a boy is a bit sick."

"I didn't!" Draco's face changed and he immediately jumped out to refute.

"Shut up." Snape said coldly. "You've been paying too much attention to him since the third year - no - the second year. Don't use Potter as an excuse. Do you want me to tell you exactly what you did after taking the Polyjuice Potion this year?"

"You--" Draco's expression suddenly became abnormal. He glared at Snape fiercely, and was eager to give him an Obliviate spell. Ever since Snape found out that he had been secretly making magic, all his secrets could no longer be hidden.

His mother seemed to have made some agreement with him at the beginning of the semester, but Draco didn't care. He didn't want to accept Snape's help.

He found a book called "Advanced Potion Making" at home, and Polyjuice Potion was listed on it. He already had a plan at that time.

"Boy?" Narcissa's eyes flashed with suspicion, and her eyes fell on Draco who was pretending to be a girl. Suddenly, she seemed to realize something, and her heart sank to her stomach. However, she did not continue to delve into this topic. If there was anything, she would go home and talk about it, so as not to embarrass herself in front of outsiders.

"Alright Draco - your potions need someone to look after them," Bella said grimly, her meaning clear.

Narcissa nodded towards Draco as well.

The boy looked unhappy, but did not resist. He just left here angrily and returned to the hidden room.

Then Snape waved his wand and the bookshelf closed again.

"Alright." Bella's eyes fell on Snape again. "It's time to talk business - if you are still loyal to the Dark Lord."

"You said--" Snape neither confirmed nor denied it, he ignored Bellatrix's question.

"We need to know about Canada. Don't tell me you don't know." She sneered, "How could you, Dumbledore's most trusted and loyal dog, not know?"

"What do you want?" Snape asked.

"That's not what you should ask."

"Of course -" Snape's expression became unpredictable, "If you know about the Outer Gods and the Tower of Grant, you should know what is there."

"You don't need to explain. Of course I know." Bellatrix said, "When I was still the monster's hand, I came into contact with many hidden things. What I want to ask is the thing that Dumbledore brought out of the tower."

"Things?" said Snape. "Ancient magic?"

"Not just any old magic."

Bellatrix showed a superior expression and said proudly, "It should be solid enough, perhaps solid, or liquid. Don't try to fool me. I know all about the technology of the [Scourers] and the technology of the goblins. They have excavated similar ones in the Tower of Bestowal."

Hearing this, Snape's expression suddenly changed, and he looked away. He waved his wand, and a tray slowly floated out from the hidden room where Draco had walked out. Inside it was a dirty wine bottle and three glasses.

He placed the tray against the rickety table, poured out three glasses of blood-red wine, and handed two to the sisters.

Narcissa muttered a "thank you" and Bellatrix said nothing, she put the glass aside and continued to glare at Snape.

"Would you like to try it?" Snape smiled playfully. "Although it has a high alcohol content, it is not spicy."

As he spoke, he raised his glass and drank it all.

Narcissa did the same and Snape filled her glass again.

"I don't want to drink," Bellatrix said, and put the glass in her hand on the table beside her.

"Don't want to or can't?" Snape looked at her meaningfully and said, "Perhaps I should remind you. I have some talent in potions. Similarly, I also know many of the methods of the healer."

Narcissa keenly heard the hidden meaning of Snape's words. She also looked at Bella and asked, "What? Are you sick?"

"No - she's not ill," said Snape. "She's just pregnant."

"Pregnant!" Narcissa stood up immediately in shock, with an expression of disbelief, and in panic, she seemed at a loss.

It took me a few seconds to react.

Then she reached out and pressed her hand on her sister's belly.

"You," she said tremblingly, "whose child are you pregnant with?"

"Hmph..." Bellatrix raised her head, stroked her belly with her right hand, and said proudly, "This is my greatest treasure."

"Oh my God..." Narcissa took a breath. She knew about what happened to Senior Tom. But after going through so many things, especially after Bella chose to betray that monster, she naively thought that her sister finally saw through that man. Unexpectedly, she saw even deeper.

"This..." Narcissa was speechless. Her mind told her that Bella should not have this child. Merlin, that was the Dark Lord's child. God knew what kind of trouble it would cause in the future. But as a mother, especially a mother who had just experienced meeting her 'son', she simply could not say those cruel words.

However, her uneasiness did not last long, as Snape soon rescued her.

"You want the crystallization of ancient magic. You want to repeat the technology of the Purifier. You want to train your child to be the next wizard like Koyatel Stewart?"

Snape naturally knew the secrets about human alchemy.

He even knew more about this than Owen.

Due to some cruel experiences that Wenda Rozier had experienced, there were some things that could not be told to Owen.

But he knew it.

He knew that after Grindelwald's defeat, Wenda Rosier fled to the United States after hiding in Europe for several years. With the help of the Purgers, she settled in Port Isabela and helped them decipher the stone tablet engraved with ancient runes excavated from the Tower of Divine Providence in Brazil.

Prior to this, the Purgers had already mastered a human alchemy technique that could infuse ancient magic into ordinary wizards, but that technique had a major flaw, and the transformed wizards would almost always die within a few hours.

The death is extremely horrific because the entire body collapses from the inside out.

It was the arrival of Wenda Rosier that changed their technology. No one knew where she learned human alchemy, it might be Grindelwald's legacy. In any case, the technology she initially mastered was not inferior to that of the "Purifiers". After the two parties reached a cooperation, their technological strength has achieved unprecedented development.

After more than ten years of research, we have finally found a feasible path.

This technology, among other things, states that the target that is "eroded" by ancient magic is best chosen to be a fetus still in the mother's womb, because in this way the mother can help the fetus resist some of the mutations caused by the ancient magic.

This is a very cruel and inhuman technology. Port Isabela, the bottomless sea, and the piled-up deformed monsters are getting smaller and smaller. This is a sin that Wenda Rosier can never erase.