Anton was in a terrible mood and remained gloomy throughout the day.
He realized that he had been influenced by Fiennes.
Feeling agitated, he unconsciously unleashed the Cruciatus Curse in an instant.
He felt Azkaban calling out to him.
"If this continues, I might end up living in Azkaban for real." Anton sighed, contemplating whether he should find a way to acquire a gun so that his subconscious reaction would result in an Unforgivable Curse.
The magical world is truly fascinating, and sometimes one shouldn't take it for granted. He believed that he had to maintain the heightened emotions required for dark magic in order to cast spells smoothly and effortlessly.
But this was wrong. He had been in a good mood initially, but when he got agitated, his emotions surged instantly, and he released them naturally.
The old man hadn't lied.
Perhaps this guy had truly changed.
He had become someone who appreciates life.
Hovering near the entrance of Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour in Diagon Alley, he smiled as he watched the young wizards enjoying their ice cream, his eyes filled with the kindness that only comes with old age. Sometimes the young wizards dared to approach him and touch him, and he didn't get angry.
So, the once evil Fiennes had become a good man.
And as for himself, had he become an evil dark wizard?
"It's quite amusing, wanting to live even after death." Anton's mockery failed to faze Fiennes, who proceeded to play the game of tossing his head again, causing the children on the street to scream.
With a displeased expression, Anton arrived at Gringotts, where the fairy Griphook warmly welcomed him once more.
Returning the old wizard's diary and three textbooks, he took out a book list from his pocket and quickly searched the bookshelves for books and a small amount of potion ingredients.
Yes, he had agreed to a deal with the old man.
He would officially become the apprentice of this dark wizard and learn his potions.
The ghost was unable to form an 'unbreakable oath' with him. Fiennes calmly stated that he couldn't control Anton's actions and could only rely on 'teacher's love and dedication' to influence his decisions.
He truly witnessed a ghost.
Extraordinary!
There were numerous materials needed for the initial entry of teaching, and his school bag was filled to the brim.
Anton walked through Diagon Alley, hesitated for a moment, and returned to Flourish and Blotts.
He finally purchased the first-year textbooks on Herbology and Potions, "One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi" and "Magical Drafts and Potions." He also picked up Newt's "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them."
He also made a special trip to the Wiseacre's Wizarding Equipment and purchased a pair of magic dentures as a gift for Old Tom, thanking him for his care during this time. The dentures cost him a hefty price of 26 galleons.
Under Anton's influence, Old Tom's enthusiasm for International cuisine was unleashed. Anton believed that with the dentures, Old Tom would be able to taste the delicious food he prepared.
Old Tom was overjoyed.
Anton then put on his backpack and picked up his broom, ready to set off.
"It's a big loss to exchange galleons for Muggle currency at Gringotts," Fiennes pointed to a location nearby. "You can go to the wandering wizard camp."
"At Gringotts, you can only exchange five pounds per Galleon, but at the campsite, you can exchange it for ten pounds, and sometimes even fifteen to twenty pounds if you find a good deal."
Anton was surprised, "Why don't they go to Gringotts to exchange it?"
Fiennes shrugged his headless shoulders, "Fugitives, registered dark wizards, non-human beings, sources of money they don't want others to know about, there are many reasons."
"Compared to galleons, it's easier for dark wizards to obtain Muggle currency. You know, it only takes a little bit of crossing the border. There's always a way to avoid being detected by the Aurors."
"The closest place is Carmela's Cafe, located in a crypt on a desolate mountain. Carmela the Witch always has a means to obtain a certain amount of sickles. Over time, everyone has come to prefer exchanging currency there."
Crypts, cafes, witches...
Anton had a strange expression on his face. He couldn't help but think of Mrs. Lovett's meat pie shop in the dark streets of London.
No need to think about it, he knew that this place must be filled with danger.
"Wear a mask, put on a hood, get some ink to black out your hands, and put a pillow on your back, so you're not considered a child, but a wacky little old dwarf," the very experienced Fiennes made another point.
"Three drops of toad venom, crushed with horner leaves and put in your mouth, your voice will become hoarse and rough. Just gargle with overnight egg whites and horner leaf juice to recover."
Anton looked at Fiennes in amazement. "There's nothing in your diary."
The head in Fiennes's hand smiled. "I stopped writing a diary when I was 20 years old. During the next fifty years, I accumulated these insights bit by bit."
"Trust me, it is very difficult for a young wizard to survive alone. You will find that you can't live without me."
Anton's mood is complicated.
There is no way for him to forget the time when he was tortured by Fiennes, and there is no way for him to forget the fear and collapse of facing death at any time.
But he also had no way of rejecting Fiennes's kindness.
The reason is the same, he just wants to live a good life, that's all.
Suddenly, Anton's heart moved. "How did I become your apprentice?"
Seeing Fiennes's strange expression, Anton added, "Your Cruciatus still has side effects for me. I don't remember my previous memories."
Fiennes's expression was obviously very strange, looking at Anton with a half-smile. "A single father brought his young son to the chaotic campsite. This father may have been single for a long time, and when he saw a wonderful girl, he couldn't hold back the commotion in his heart. So he died in bed, very happy."
"He may not understand the rules of wandering wizards, and beautiful women are absolutely not allowed to touch. He encountered a centaur who could make compound decoction. He died, and his son was sold for the price of 10 sickles."
Anton raised his eyebrows. "This is really a sad story."
"No, no, no." Fiennes's left hand raised his fingers and shook them. "That child died two months ago."
"???!!!" Anton was horrified for a while, staring blankly at Fiennes.
"Dead... dead?"
Fiennes held his head in his right hand and gently caressed his hair with his left hand, speaking in a faint tone. "I was studying the spell to summon demons. Although even the stupidest dark wizard wouldn't believe in such a spell, I happened to have a child's corpse on hand as a sacrifice."
"Later, the child came back to life and was very healthy." Fiennes chuckled. "There was an explosion at that time. The entire laboratory was blown up, and all the potion materials flew around. I thought I had made a mistake, that the child was just in suspended animation before."
"But then, this kid who couldn't be killed by a lot of Cruciatus really made me doubt whether the experiment was actually a success."
Fiennes raised his gaze and stared at Anton.
"What do you think?"
'I think your relative!' Anton's heart was in a mess, realizing the true nature of the dark wizard. In the end, he just lowered his broom in silence and gazed at the desolate mountain below.
"We have arrived."
Fiennes chuckled strangely, the sound of his laughter particularly harsh.