Link was undeniably excited.
This excitement came from his greed for the Beckman family's wealth.
Swallowing up the Beckman family would be of enormous benefit to him.
Even setting aside the astronomical amount of Galleons and the vast stores of herbs and magical materials they possessed, just from the team of old wizards the Beckmans had sent earlier to help him fight Voldemort, one could tell that the Beckman family's military strength might even surpass that of the Flamel family.
That was truly remarkable.
You had to understand, the Flamel family specialized in the business of magical creature hunting, and because of that, they had raised a great number of hunters. In terms of raw combat strength, they far exceeded most pure-blood families in Britain.
Link suspected that the Beckman family's military power might have come from inheriting some of Grindelwald's surviving old soldiers.
If that were the case… then could there be other "legacies" of Grindelwald hidden within the Beckman family as well?
Link couldn't help but look forward to that possibility.
More importantly, as long as he could take over the Beckman family, even if he could only seize a small amount of power for now, it would greatly strengthen his position in the coming war against Voldemort.
As for the suppression from the International Confederation of Wizards and the German Ministry of Magic, Link wasn't afraid of that at all.
Voldemort, after all, wasn't just causing chaos in Britain's wizarding world.
He actually had influence all across Europe, it was only that the external magical powers were comparatively weak, and Voldemort's focus had been on Britain, making it seem in the original story as though he only targeted that country.
But now that Voldemort had been resurrected, it wouldn't be long before he revealed his fangs to the world again.
When that time came, Link guessed that even the International Confederation of Wizards and the German Ministry of Magic would struggle to protect themselves, let alone have time to bother him.
Besides, he and Dumbledore were currently in their honeymoon phase of cooperation. Even if the Confederation really decided to make trouble, Link was confident he could persuade Dumbledore to let him take advantage of the situation and help him withstand their pressure.
———
"Link, your grandfather has already returned to Germany."
Just as Link sat in his study deep in thought, Mrs. Flamel, who had just finished seeing off the guests and sending Emily to rest, walked in and said this.
Link frowned.
"Hm? Didn't I tell him to stay here for the night and discuss things tomorrow?"
His tone was not pleasant. He felt that Beckman was deliberately trying to assert dominance, forcing him to come and beg instead.
That was not part of Link's plan, nor did it suit his personality.
Granted, the Beckman family was important, but not so important that they were indispensable.
If this was the Beckman family's attitude, then there was no point continuing negotiations.
Mrs. Flamel could easily tell what her son was thinking. With a sigh, she said, "Your grandfather had to leave because he's being strictly monitored by the International Confederation of Wizards and the German Ministry of Magic. He had to get back before midnight, otherwise Aurors would come for him."
"Before he left, he asked me to tell you this, The Beckman family's doors are always open to you. Whenever you decide to inherit the Beckman family, just come to him."
With that, Mrs. Flamel placed a sapphire inlaid with silver-white runes in front of Link.
"This contains the exact location and coordinates of the Beckman family's castle, as well as a special spell. You can use it to Apparate there and at the same time lift the castle's Fidelius Charm and other protective enchantments."
Out of caution, Link didn't touch it directly. Instead, he conjured a stream of water to hold the sapphire aloft and examined it carefully with a sensory spell for quite a while before nodding in satisfaction and pocketing it.
With this, he could be sure they wouldn't walk into an ambush.
Seeing that, Mrs. Flamel looked slightly relieved. After a moment of hesitation, she finally said, "Link, I've talked this over with your grandfather. From what I can tell, there shouldn't be any problems. Maybe you should..."
Her voice suddenly cut off.
Because at some point, Krell had already appeared in the study, staring at her blank-faced.
Mrs. Flamel knew that look far too well.
Back when her husband had just passed away, Krell had spent nearly every waking moment beside little Link with that same expression.
That was how Krell looked when he was half-mad, or in a state of extreme vigilance.
Many saw Krell as a "free" house-elf, a living symbol of rebellion against servitude.
But the truth?
The only real difference between Krell and a normal house-elf was that he was smarter. He no longer punished himself for trivial mistakes, nor acted overly meek and obedient.
But aside from those small details, he was still, a mad, utterly loyal slave who would give his life for the Flamel family and destroy anyone he deemed their enemy.
And now, it was obvious that she herself had been classified as an enemy.
With a sigh, Mrs. Flamel kissed Link's forehead and quietly left the study.
She could already imagine the scene that would follow, Krell ranting madly to Link, slandering her as much as he could.
But unfortunately for him, Link wasn't as cold-hearted as his useless father. Krell's efforts would ultimately be in vain.
"Oh, poor Krell," Mrs. Flamel whispered softly as she disappeared into the darkness.
———
Yet after she left, the study remained silent. None of what she had imagined happened.
Krell didn't react aggressively at all, in fact, a faintly excited smile appeared on his face.
That smile was almost identical to the one Link had shown earlier when he first learned that Beckman was one of Grindelwald's followers, filled with greed.
"Young master, I think we really should get involved in the Beckman affair," Krell said, eyes gleaming.
"Best of all would be if we could take over the entire Beckman family! That way, the Flamel family would truly prosper!"
"Oh? Aren't you afraid that if that happens, I'll just change my name to von Beckman?" Link asked, tilting his head, teasingly.
"You would never do that," Krell said firmly. "We both know that for certain."
The two looked at each other and laughed.
Just as Mrs. Flamel had thought, Krell was extremely intelligent, so intelligent that he knew how to use his identity as a house-elf as a perfect disguise.
Such a being truly embodied the saying, Great wisdom appears foolish.
"Still, we should be careful," Link said.
"You know how accurate my premonitions have been lately. I have a feeling my grandfather's motives this time aren't so simple. He must have another agenda behind all this."
"That's only natural," Krell said, stroking his chin.
"Otherwise, there'd be no reason for him to suddenly reach out after all these years of silence, claiming he wants you to inherit the family estate."
"But that's fine. The bait he's thrown out is too tempting. Even if there's a hidden catch, I still think it's worth taking a bite, to eat the sugar coating and spit out the shell."
"Then it's settled. Tomorrow we start gathering people. Let's see what tricks he's planning to pull."
As Link spoke, he rolled his wand between his fingers.
After the training and consolidation of the past few months, his strength had reached the level of seasoned combat professors like Professor McGonagall and Professor Snape, perhaps even slightly above them in adaptability and finesse.
On top of that, he had a magic scroll containing a single spell imbued with Dumbledore's full power, a trump card that gave him absolute confidence.
"Of course. And there's no need to wait until tomorrow," Krell said, rubbing his hands together with a sly grin.
"I'll go round up some reliable hunters right away.
But, my dear young master, it's getting quite late. Shouldn't you be heading off to rest with young Miss Emily? After all… our family could use more members, eh? Hehehe!"
Amid Krell's lewd laughter, Link suddenly remembered the matter he'd set aside earlier. A warmth stirred in his chest, and a smile spread across his face.
"You're impossible, you know that?" Link said, pointing at Krell with a laugh.
But his body was already moving, he straightened his robe and quickly left the study.
Krell watched him go, calling out words of encouragement as if cheering him on. In his mind, getting Link and Emily to have children was far more important than seizing the Beckman fortune.
After all, for a family, the continuation of the bloodline was what truly mattered.
———
At dawn, Link slowly woke on his soft four-poster bed, stretching lazily.
He liked waking up early, not because he was particularly diligent, but because he simply loved that faint gray light of early morning when everything was quiet and hazy.
In such a moment, his mood always felt peaceful.
Of course, if Emily had been lying beside him, sleeping soundly with that spring-like glow on her face, he'd have been even happier.
Yes, Krell had been disappointed.
But it wasn't Link's fault, nor Emily's. It was because of Mr. Victoria.
That overly protective father knew all too well how dangerous young passion could be. To prevent any "incidents," he had whisked Emily back to Victoria Manor under the excuse of, "You're both still too young, you mustn't make a mistake!"
It was a flimsy excuse. Even though wizards were more conservative than Muggles, they weren't that conservative, certainly not to the point of forbidding premarital… relations.
But unlike Emily, who was furious, Link actually understood Mr. Victoria's feelings perfectly.
If their roles were reversed, he'd probably have torn apart any brat who dared touch his daughter.
He suspected that was exactly what Mr. Victoria wanted to do, but the only reason he didn't was that he knew he couldn't beat Link.
So Link bore him no grudge, even acting rather magnanimous about it.
After all, there would be plenty more opportunities in the future.
Plenty of Hogwarts students had taken "temporary leaves" before graduation to go home and have children.
The Ministry of Magic didn't oppose it either, given how serious the wizarding world's declining birthrate had become.
———
When Link yawned his way into the dining hall, Mrs. Flamel and Krell were already eating breakfast.
Neither looked particularly pleased, especially Krell, who was muttering curses under his breath about Mr. Victoria, vowing that next time he saw him, he'd turn him into a pig and lock him in a Muggle pig farm.
To Link's surprise, Mrs. Flamel actually nodded approvingly and added with a smile, "That's not a bad idea. But make sure it's a little countryside farm, not one of those big corporate ones!"
"You know, Muggle farming technology has gotten quite advanced. I hear those big farms are comfortable, clean pens, good feed, even air-conditioning."
"If you send Mr. Victoria there, he'll just be enjoying himself."
"You're right!" Krell blinked, then his eyes lit up. He pulled out a notebook and started scribbling furiously.
"Anything else I should keep in mind? I'll write it all down."
Clearly, the two of them were united in their determination about one thing, Link and Emily having children.
Their insane conversation made Link's skin crawl. He didn't dare say a word, only silently mourned for poor Mr. Victoria's future.
Thankfully, that afternoon Emily came rushing back.
Wearing a light blue dress, she ran into the castle's main hall, calling out brightly. The moment Mrs. Flamel and Krell saw her, their resentment melted away like snow in summer, replaced by pure joy.
Ignoring their reactions, Emily went straight to Link and said seriously, "I'm going with you to Germany."
The lively hall instantly fell silent.
Mrs. Flamel and Krell both turned to look at Link, waiting for his reply.
They knew this was his decision to make.
"Why?" Link asked, rubbing his temples.
"Because I'm worried about you," Emily said.
"And you're stubborn, so stubborn that no matter what I say, I can't stop you. So if I can't stop you, then I'll just have to go with you."
Then she smiled, a radiant, sun-lit smile that made Link momentarily dazed.
After a pause, he sighed deeply.
Come to think of it, while the trip to Germany might be dangerous, they were well prepared, and Emily's timing couldn't have been better.
He had already gathered the people he needed. They were about to set off.
"All right then," Link said with a wry smile. "Let's go together."
As soon as he finished, Emily threw her arms around him tightly.
Mrs. Flamel and Krell looked on, both wearing matching aunt-like smiles.
They felt that perhaps there was still hope for a little baby Link in the near future.
After all, that damned old Mr. Victoria surely wouldn't chase them all the way to Germany… right?
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