After Regulus Black tapped the two rings with his wand, silvery threads began to seep out. To the Malfoys, these threads were all too familiar—they were memories extracted by wizards. Usually, such memories were removed and stored in Pensieves for repeated viewing. This process didn't harm the caster, nor did it truly erase their memory in a literal sense.
The key, however, was that these memories could be falsified. Altering one's own memories wasn't a difficult task for many adult wizards.
Back when the Wizengamot was conducting trials, many influential Death Eaters had used this very method to escape punishment.
However, after Regulus Black cast the spell "Memory of a Fish", the Malfoys truly felt the sensation of memory loss. The memories they lost were flowing directly into the rings.
"Let me explain. In Muggle research, fish do have memory, but their tiny brains can only retain about seven seconds of it. The effect of this spell is similar—it allows you to retain a maximum of seven seconds of memory from the moment you put on the ring until you take it off. This is real memory loss. Once you remove the ring, all you'll remember is the last seven seconds."
Regulus Black gestured as he tried to reassure them. At this point, the Malfoy couple was clearly tense.
"Alright, I get it. That means you have something very important to tell us—and after learning about it, we'll need more than seven seconds before we take the rings off," Lucius Malfoy said, calming himself as he tried to analyze Regulus's words. Even so, he wasn't sure if he should trust him.
"In fact, you do have the freedom to choose when to take off the rings. During the time you wear them, the relevant memories will be stored in the ring and will still be accessible—you won't start forgetting things mid-conversation."
Regulus Black's meaning was clear. If they wanted to keep certain secrets buried forever, they could simply remove the rings immediately after hearing them. But the very fact that such an item was being used meant it was probably better to forget what was about to be revealed.
"I think some secrets are better left forgotten forever."
Narcissa Malfoy had been watching coldly from the sidelines. But as a cousin who had married out of the Black family, she still trusted that Regulus wouldn't lie to them.
Lucius agreed with that sentiment. The couple exchanged a look of mutual understanding. From here on, they would simply sit and listen.
"Well then. First, I must tell you—Lord Voldemort created several Horcruxes. Do you know what Horcruxes are?"
Regulus Black wasn't about to drop the bombshell all at once, but even the word Horcrux was explosive enough. Still, to Regulus, it didn't quite pack the full punch he had in store.
"Horcruxes!"
The Malfoys shot to their feet at once. So much for staying seated—they couldn't possibly sit through such a revelation. Better to stand and listen at this point!
"Go on. How many Horcruxes do you know of?"
Lucius Malfoy asked with visible dread. After all, creating Horcruxes involved extremely advanced magic. The methods were highly confidential—those who knew wouldn't speak of them, and those who didn't wouldn't even know where to start. It wasn't even clear who might know.
"As far as I can estimate, there are seven Horcruxes in total. And the Dark Lord, who is about to return, will become exponentially more powerful if he regains possession of them."
Regulus Black casually swirled the champagne in his hand, looking completely unbothered.
"The Dark Lord's diary—the one I discarded and you picked up—that was a Horcrux, wasn't it?"
Lucius finally recalled the diary. He had originally thought it was just an object related to the Dark Lord, not realizing it was a Horcrux—a far more dangerous item than ordinary dark artifacts.
"That diary was created by the Dark Lord before he graduated. After murdering his father and maternal relatives, he used their deaths to forge it. It chronicles the youth of a half-blood wizard."
Regulus Black produced the diary without hesitation. Since it was now bound to him as equipment, no one else could take it away.
But the Malfoy couple had no desire to even touch it.
Sure enough, when they saw the diary, it was as if they were staring at the Dark Lord himself—pure terror.
"There's more. After mastering the creation of his first Horcrux, the Dark Lord began seeking other relics to use. While a Horcrux can technically be made with ordinary materials, he preferred to use unique treasures—objects that were truly one of a kind."
Regulus Black wore an expression of wholehearted agreement. Wasn't that obvious? Anyone would use treasured objects to craft something as significant as a Horcrux—how else could its inherent value be justified?
"Regulus! You found a few of them and gave us this whole speech. Don't tell me you want us to help you look for the rest! Besides, once we take off this ring, we'll forget everything we talked about. Helping you would be impossible."
Lucius Malfoy had already caught up with Regulus Black's line of thinking. He began to analyze the implications behind his words, even though removing the ring would cause him to forget the entire conversation.
"I've collected a few already, but I was hoping you could offer some advice—just for reference."
At that moment, Regulus Black's thoughts were dark. The expressions on the Malfoy couple's faces were just too entertaining.
"Tom Riddle's diary, Hufflepuff's cup, Ravenclaw's diadem, Slytherin's locket, Marvolo Gaunt's ring."
With each name, Regulus took out the corresponding item. One by one, five Horcruxes were laid out before them. The dark magic they emitted saturated the enclosed space—it felt like the tent could barely contain it.
"Stop that! Put them away, quickly!"
Lucius Malfoy shouted, but his voice seemed to travel as though through a thick, black swamp. The oppressive darkness of the Horcruxes was so intense, it seemed to muffle sound without effort.
"Relax. I've already dealt with these Horcruxes. They belong to me now."
As Regulus finished speaking, the five Horcruxes, radiating devastating dark energy, vanished. They hadn't been destroyed entirely—rather, their magic had been suppressed and drawn back into the objects themselves.
The ability to control such terrifying dark power so effortlessly was proof that Regulus Black had indeed mastered the Horcruxes.
"To think the Dark Lord actually made so many Horcruxes. And besides these here, there are still a few left out there."
Lucius Malfoy held onto his wife, Narcissa. His legs were weak, and they leaned on each other to stay standing. Still, they refused to sit down.
Regulus Black didn't insist they do so either. Let them stand if they wanted.
"From what I've gathered, there should be two more Horcruxes. I already know the whereabouts of one—we're just waiting for the last to reveal itself."
Of course, Regulus was referring to Harry Potter, the living Horcrux. The final one was likely Voldemort's pet snake—a matter that would come to light soon.
"Can we now talk honestly about the Dark Lord's whereabouts?"
Regulus Black actually knew that the Dark Lord was at the Gaunt family's ancestral home. But this was a test—to see where Lucius Malfoy stood. It was a matter of allegiance, and choosing the wrong side could mean ruin for life.
"The Dark Lord is most likely at the Gaunt house, with Peter Pettigrew and an escaped Azkaban prisoner by his side."
Lucius Malfoy took a deep breath and shared what he had learned through other sources.
The so-called Azkaban escapee was not Sirius Black—the large black dog had already been exonerated.
The escapee was Barty Crouch Jr., a fanatical Death Eater and the son of Bartemius Crouch, Head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation. Because Barty's mother was dying and missed her son terribly, she used a Transfiguration spell to switch places with him and die in his stead in Azkaban. Barty Jr. was then brought home by his father and imprisoned in the family manor.
After rescuing his son, Crouch used the Imperius Curse to control his actions, kept him hidden under an invisibility cloak for years, and ordered the house-elf Winky to monitor him closely. They even used a powerful memory charm on Bertha Jorkins to keep the secret, enduring years in this way.
But the manor was not Azkaban. Naturally, Barty Crouch Jr. could move about more freely.
In fact, he had attended the Quidditch World Cup—not only did he participate in the chaos at the end, he also sat in the VIP box and watched the entire match.
"Barty Crouch Jr.? Of course I know him. A truly talented wizard."
Regulus Black offered genuine praise for his opponent.
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