Chapter 99. The Relic of Hogwarts
"What?"
Duncan's curious gaze shifted to the Giant Squid beneath him.
"I once heard a rumour," the Giant Squid recalled. "They say one of Hogwarts' founders hid a treasure in the Black Lake, set aside for a destined student. In earlier years, people often came down here to search for it— even the girl who brought me to the school tried."
"Sadly, no one ever found anything. As time went on, everyone gave up, thinking it might just have been someone's joke."
It was the first time Duncan had heard this tale, and he quickly asked, "Does the legend mention the treasure's approximate location?"
"I think it does." The Giant Squid looked ahead. "If I remember rightly, it's in the Merpeople's settlement. They seized that place and made it their private territory. Any other creature that goes near will be attacked by them."
"The Merpeople aren't the original inhabitants of the Black Lake?" Duncan asked.
He had always thought they'd lived there all along, but from what the Giant Squid said, that didn't seem to be the case.
"Mm. They arrived even later than I did, though I don't know from where," the Giant Squid finished, a hint of anger entering its tone. "They're overbearing. We're all outsiders here, yet no one else staked out a private domain the way they did."
Duncan thought for a moment, then said, "Do you think… they came for the rumoured treasure?"
The Giant Squid froze, then came to its senses. "Very likely. Why else would they carve out that particular spot?"
"Come on, I'll take you there," it said, "and we'll see whether what you want is over that way. If it is, I'll help you take it. We mustn't let those vile Merpeople have it!"
With that, the Giant Squid bore Duncan swiftly forward.
Who knew what the Merpeople had done to it to make it this angry— so eager to see them taken down a peg.
They went on, and before long the lakebed was dotted with rough stone hovels stained with patches of algae.
But peering through the dim windows, Duncan saw they were empty; the Merpeople didn't seem to be home.
"Be careful," the Giant Squid warned solemnly. "This whole area is their territory. They could come out from anywhere."
"All right." Duncan nodded, set Pro down somewhere safe, gripped his wand, and kept a wary eye on their surroundings.
They swam on a bit farther, then turned right— and Duncan found himself facing a very peculiar scene.
Not far off lay a clearing, with a giant merperson carved from a boulder standing in the centre, and a crowd of Merpeople around it singing at the tops of their voices.
They had iron-grey skin; their hair, like dark green kelp, streamed in the water; their eyes were yellow; their broken teeth were mottled with filth; and pebbles were strung on cords around their necks.
Their singing was utterly horrid— like a person with a severe cold forcing out a shrill shout: hoarse and grating.
As the Giant Squid drew near with Duncan, several spear-bearing Merpeople posted round the edges whipped their tails and swam over.
"Stop right there, Big Squid! We told you, this is our turf. You're not allowed here!"
One of them bulged his eyes and barked the order. Before the Giant Squid could react, he caught sight of Duncan.
"Oh? A little wizard sitting on your head? Big Squid, is he a slave you've brought us?"
"But we don't much like them," another Merperson said with a laugh. "Little wizards don't obey…"
"If you don't want him, give him to me," a burly Merperson swam up from below. Unlike the others, he wore a shark's tooth at his neck. "The Grindylow at my door died. He can stay and mind my gate."
"Don't worry about the little fellow drowning. I've plenty of Gillyweed— more than enough for him to live underwater."
"Selys, we found him," another Merperson said. "By our rules, we should be the ones to allocate him."
Selys bared his teeth in contempt. "Listen to yourself. He came to us of his own accord. 'Found him'? What's that supposed to mean?"
Duncan's brow twitched.
Well then. Had the Merpeople always been this bold? Always this confident?
They had only just encountered him; no one had fought anyone, no one had captured him— and they were already discussing how to divvy him up?
He didn't recall Merpeople having some power that sent terror into you at a glance and made you want to surrender.
Duncan decided to teach them a lesson and make these arrogant lot face reality. He levelled his wand.
A globe of light burst from the wand-tip, ramming through the water towards the distance and drawing out a long tail behind it.
Bang!
The Merperson called Selys took the hit, shot helplessly away, and ended up hanging upside down on a Merperson's tail, swinging left and right.
"Oi, can you lot hear me?" Duncan cast an Amplifying Charm; his ringing voice rolled across the Merpeople's village. "Before you decide whose property I am, shouldn't you ask my opinion? Or perhaps weigh up your own strength?"
The spear-bearing Merpeople glanced fearfully at the wand in Duncan's hand. They had no magical ability.
They'd taken him for a little wizard— weak, easy to bully.
They hadn't expected to run into a hard bone; not only had they failed to get any advantage, they'd cracked their teeth on it.
"Kid, what's your meaning? You want to fight us?" one Merperson said, then blew a few sharp whistles.
The sound drifted afar, and in an instant countless Grindylows came streaming from every corner round about, surging towards Duncan in a dark mass.
"Whistling? As if I couldn't do that…"
Duncan took out his druid whistle and gave a blast, then shouted, "All of you that just swam over— off to the side and line up. Neatly!"
The onrushing Grindylows paused, wheeled about, and swam to the spot Duncan indicated, forming up in orderly ranks.
Satisfied, Duncan looked back at the Merpeople ahead. "Any other tricks? Show me the lot."
The Merpeople glanced at one another. Faced with a wizard who could do magic, they were no better than fish laid out on a chopping board.
As the atmosphere grew awkwardly stiff, a wild-looking female Merperson swam up with others in tow.
"You needn't harbour such hostility towards us," the Merperson said. "We won't harm you. My name is Murcus. I'm the leader of this Merpeople tribe and a long-time friend of Dumbledore. I taught him Mermish."
"Is that so?" Duncan's tone held little belief. "That doesn't quite match what they were saying just now."
"They were joking with you…" Murcus said.
Duncan shrugged. "Not a good joke, then."
"Very well— I apologise on their behalf," Murcus said. "Did you come here for something? Surely you didn't come just to give that Big Squid a chance to discipline us?"
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