During this time, he kept flicking his wand, launching one spell after another, all aimed precisely at the book. He intentionally avoided curses like the Fiendfyre and the Killing Curse. When the regular offensive spells proved useless, his curiosity about the book only grew stronger. Now, all he wanted was to test the limits of its defenses. But he worried that if he used a truly powerful curse, the book would be destroyed before he could get a glimpse of its contents.
More time passed, and Sirius had already finished cleaning two rooms. He came to get Dylan, as Kreacher had finished making dinner and it was time to eat.
"Dylan? What are you doing?"
Sirius asked, his face full of confusion. He saw a pulsating ball of light in front of Dylan, swirling around something.
Dylan gently twisted his wand, and the light parted slightly, revealing the Book of Ultimate Dark Arts Unveiled. The human skin cover was clearly visible, with only the blood-red title left untouched by the light.
"Do you know anything about this book's history? It just called my name."
This was completely unexpected for Sirius. If Dylan was telling the truth, the book was far more unusual than he'd thought. He squinted, examining the visible part of the book, and fell deep into thought.
"Hmm..." he hummed, his brow furrowed.
"Do you remember anything?" Dylan pressed.
"I don't know." Sirius shook his head. "I never really had an interest in the Dark Arts, so I didn't pay much attention to them. But I might know where we can find the answer."
Before he even finished speaking, Sirius strode toward the tallest bookshelf on the left. He bent down and fumbled around on the bottom shelf for a moment before pulling out a heavy, old book. It was so thick it looked like it could knock someone out cold if you hit them with it. The edges of the pages were frayed and a deep yellow. If you leaned in, you could smell a faint scent, like sawdust mixed with a bit of oil.
"This is the Black Library Catalogue," Sirius explained to Dylan, looking up. "Every book in our family library is recorded in here."
"What kind of book it is, when we got it, and how we acquired it—it's all written down."
With that, he quickly flipped through the pages. The paper made a whooshing sound. The book looked so tattered it seemed ready to fall apart at any moment, and Sirius wasn't exactly gentle with it. Dylan stood by, feeling anxious, convinced the book would disintegrate into a pile of confetti.
He carefully looked over the contents of the catalogue. Most of it was dedicated to Dark Arts books, taking up about two-thirds of the book. Of the remaining third, half was about potions, and the other half was about the history and legends of the Black family. Only a few sections recorded books on Transfiguration, Ancient Runes, and Alchemy.
Sirius's finger quickly skimmed the section on Dark Arts books. After a while, he finally found the entry for the Book of Ultimate Dark Arts Unveiled within the thick pages. He stopped flipping, cleared his throat, and read aloud.
"This book was added to the Black family library in 1463. The family head at the time, Arcturus Black, bought it at a high price from a Greek smuggler. It's said that this book was written by the notorious Dark Wizard, Herpo the Foul, and was later sealed by Phineas Black..."
Sirius closed the book after reading the entry and turned to Dylan, his tone serious. "This isn't good, Dylan. It's very dangerous."
"And like you said before, it's never seen you, yet it called your name the first time it laid eyes on you. I think it might be able to read minds."
Dylan nodded. He wasn't afraid; he just found it incredibly intriguing. And besides, whenever the name "Herpo the Foul" was mentioned, it came with a whole host of legends. He was the first recorded Parselmouth, the first wizard to successfully breed a Basilisk, and one of the first known creators of a Horcrux.
The Book of Ultimate Dark Arts Unveiled had supposedly been sealed, but when Dylan examined it, he couldn't sense any lingering remnants of a magical seal. There were two possible explanations for this. The first was that the seal's magic had simply faded away over time. The second was that something inside the book had broken the seal from within. Dylan felt the second option was more likely.
His first thought was, could this book be a Horcrux of Herpo's? But he had personally destroyed one of Voldemort's Horcruxes and was very familiar with their unique magical signature. This book wasn't a Horcrux. It only had a faint, very blurry consciousness, nothing like the tell-tale Dark magic of a Horcrux.
"Alright, I get it. I'll be careful."
Dylan slowly withdrew the holy light surrounding the book. He could feel its magical aura weakening little by little. It now looked no different than a regular book, or even an old Muggle one. But everything that happened before was real. Dylan didn't relax his guard, and he wasn't letting his own power make him careless. He held his wand, drawing it back and forth over the book's cover. The magic from his wand connected ancient Runes, and the runes' surfaces crackled with dangerous energy.
"Seal."
"Chain."
"Bind."
Dylan followed the example of the old Black family head and temporarily sealed the book.
"Just be careful and don't take any risks," Sirius advised from the side, but he didn't intervene further. He saw Dylan as different from other young wizards. Not only was he decisive, but he was also wise and calm. He had none of the typical recklessness and impulsiveness of someone his age. Most importantly, this wizard was cunning and could lie without a single change in expression.
At the Wizengamot meeting, when Madam Bones had asked her tricky question, Sirius had been completely at a loss. If he had been alone, his secret as an Animagus would have been revealed. But he managed to get away with it by using the story Dylan had taught him. Dylan had come up with it that night at Hogwarts, after learning all the details of the situation. Sirius marvelled to himself, thinking that this was probably the difference between himself and wizards like Dumbledore and Dylan.
Dylan was completely unaware of Sirius's thoughts. If he had heard them, he would have just thought Sirius's impression was far too simplistic. After all, Dylan had more to him than what was on the surface, including his kind-hearted (exploitative) ways with his subordinates and his generous (stingy) nature. Sirius would soon find out all about these traits, but with his simple, straightforward mind, he probably wouldn't think too deeply about them.
After a decent meal at Sirius's, Dylan didn't linger. As for Slytherin's locket, he wasn't in a hurry to get it. The thing didn't have legs; it wasn't going to run away. After a quick goodbye to Sirius, Dylan left.
When he got home, his parents were, as expected, gone. Not dead, but simply out for fun again. At this point, they probably weren't coming back anytime soon. Dylan wasn't bothered. He'd known this would happen—his father, Mr. Hubert, had sent him a letter before the holiday, saying he and his lovely wife were vacationing on an island and might not make it back in time. But they would return as soon as they could.
Based on the current situation, Dylan just shrugged.
The next day, the sun was exceptionally bright, its golden rays filling the whole area. Dylan's mood brightened, too. He sat down at his desk and began to plot his business strategy. Improving his own magical skills wasn't a big challenge for him. What he needed to focus on was his capital growth.
Right now, his father's money was substantial, but it wasn't as fast as making Galleons directly. Delphi's method of plundering assets was also quite slow. He had already developed new potion recipes and given them to Delphi and the others. By now, they should have finished the initial setup phase. The wealth he already possessed served as a great foundation, allowing him to smoothly pass the initial stage of capital accumulation. Now, it was time to move on to a model of exploiting workers.
Of course, he would have to give his employees and subordinates a raise or some shares to get them more motivated, which would be very beneficial for the long-term development of his factory.
With a plan in mind, Dylan sprang into action. After getting ready, he went straight to Knockturn Alley. The potion factory wasn't there, but Borgin was, and Delphi might be there, too. Going there directly was the fastest way to find them.
He hid his form, and no one stopped him as he walked to Borgin and Burkes.
Borgin was talking with Delphi, and the shop was completely empty. Dylan walked straight in. The shop bell chimed at the right moment. Borgin immediately turned to the door but saw no one. He squinted and cautiously said, "Is that you, master?"
Dylan became visible. He was wearing a black robe and a mask, standing tall with a distinguished air. Seeing him, Borgin instantly became deferential. Delphi stood up at once.
"Master!" Her eyes were very bright and very white, and the two globes of white on her chest trembled slightly as she rushed over to stand in front of Dylan. "I haven't seen you in so long! I've missed you."
Dylan's voice was low, and he just glanced at Delphi. "I'm researching true immortality. It requires an infinite amount of time."
Delphi immediately nodded. "I know, I've been following your orders. Not only have I plundered a lot of Dark Wizards, but I've also built the potion factory you needed."
Dylan narrowed his eyes and nodded. "That's very good, Delphi. You've done well."
Delphi's face flushed slightly with pleasure at the praise. At that moment, Borgin walked over. "Master Calsas, why have you come today?"
"I came to check on your progress," Dylan said, looking directly at Borgin. "You and Delphi have worked hard."
"No, no, not at all, it's what we're supposed to do." Borgin waved his hands dismissively. Then, as if he'd just remembered something, he added, "Oh, master, a new person has come to the potion factory. I hear he came from Hogwarts, where he used to be a professor."
"Oh?" Dylan's eyebrow twitched. He had put Borgin in charge of the potion factory, only investing a lot of capital into it. He hadn't even been to the factory himself yet. But what Borgin said piqued his interest. "Who is it?"
"His name is Lupin. He's quite skilled, but he's too poor. I couldn't squeeze many Galleons out of him for you."
Under his mask, Dylan's mouth twitched.
Lupin? How did he end up looking for work at a potion factory? And on top of that, he was applying for a job that was, in a way, under his command.
Dylan nodded. "There's no need to exploit other Dark Wizards anymore. Those guys are just a bunch of paupers anyway."
Dylan looked at Borgin. "Now that the potion factory is up and running, you should manage it like a proper business. You don't want the Ministry to come knocking on your door, understand?"
Borgin immediately nodded. "I understand, master."
"I only want half of the potion factory's profits. You and Delphi can split the rest. From now on, stop robbing Dark Wizards and focus on making and selling potions." Dylan instructed. He had no use for the small amounts of money those Dark Wizards had.
"I spent a lot of time developing these potions, so don't disappoint me."
"As you wish. I swear I'll make your potions famous throughout the wizarding world." Borgin bowed.
At first, he had seen this "Calsas" as terrifying, bold, and reckless. But recently, he had begun to sense the man's true power, not just in magic, but in business as well. From the small-scale sales of Acromantula venom to this potion factory, he had already reaped a good profit from it all. And Calsas had never asked any questions, which meant he had a lot of room to manoeuvre.
Of course, he wouldn't go too far. He knew his life was in this person's hands. Calsas could even steal all his money if he felt like it.
Borgin even felt that Calsas could probably sneak into Gringotts without anyone knowing.