The hag's wrinkled face instantly went blank, as if she were staring at a glowing giant cockroach waving its antennae right at her.
But inwardly, she let out a sigh of relief.
Seizing the moment, she released her grip on the strange boy and scurried away, gliding across the floor like a shadow.
As she passed the "glowing giant cockroach," she even stuck out her long tongue maliciously, chuckling as she watched Lockhart jump in fright.
"—That was truly thrilling!"
"If I hadn't acted in time, you would have been kidnapped!"
Gilderoy Lockhart bounded over in three quick steps, clutching Ethan's shoulder.
He looked like he wanted to hide behind Ethan, glancing back with lingering fear.
Seeing that no one was following, Lockhart finally exhaled in relief.
Damn it, what kind of hellhole is this—
From the start, Lockhart had no intention of actually helping the client.
His great Gilderoy Lockhart would never stoop to such a thankless job!
He had already hired a few shady wizards.
Later, he planned to have them pretend to kidnap Ethan, and then he would heroically swoop in and drive them off!
Then, a reporter from the Daily Prophet, "accidentally" passing by, would capture the heroic scene on camera.
Haha!
Lockhart could already picture how the newspaper would describe him!
"The New Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor Rescues a Wayward Student! Former Delinquent Turns Over a New Leaf, Vows Eternal Loyalty to the Great Gilderoy Lockhart!"
"—
What are you laughing at, Professor Lockhart? We should go and complete the commission."
"Thud!"
Ethan's voice instantly shattered Lockhart's beautiful daydream.
"—Oh, right! To resolve the commission, let me put an end to the dark evils of Knockturn Alley!"
With that, Lockhart grabbed Ethan, intending to drag him toward where his hired thugs were waiting.
However, just then...
"You're going the wrong way, Professor Lockhart. The client's meeting point is over there. Didn't you receive the reply?"
A gentle voice sounded.
A hand as cold and slick as a corpse suddenly gripped Lockhart's arm.
?!!
Lockhart shuddered violently.
He turned his head and met Ethan's curved cobalt-blue eyes.
They were smiling, yet there was no trace of warmth in them.
It felt like being watched by a deep-sea monster—cold and bone-chilling.
The client's reply?
He got hundreds of fan letters a day; who had time to bother with that!
Besides, he wasn't here to actually solve the commission anyway.
Lockhart looked up in the direction Ethan was pointing.
That led deep into Knockturn Alley.
In the filthy, dim, narrow lane, wizards in tattered robes cast greedy, sinister glances at them like hyenas.
Those withered, ugly faces looked extremely dangerous at first sight.
Lockhart: "—Cough, no, the commission location has changed, it's just a—"
Before he could finish...
Ethan suddenly turned his head, enthusiastically grabbing a passing wizard and smiling:
"Excuse me, do you know where the Toad Bar is?"
Lockhart: ?!!
Dark Wizard: ?
Were the fat lambs this cooperative these days?
The dark wizard was stunned for a moment, carefully eyeing Ethan's attire, then grinned:
"Oh~ I certainly know, kid. Come on, follow us."
Lockhart backed away in horror: "No! Th-thank you for your kindness, but we're not going—"
"Thud!"
Lockhart bumped into "a wall."
Looking back, he realized a dense crowd of wizards had surrounded them at some point.
"Come on, don't be shy."
The tall wizard with a scar across his face said gruffly, with a sinister, triumphant air.
"No, no—Ahhh!!!"
On the other side...
"Huh?"
The Daily Prophet reporter, assigned to wait there, looked at the scene in confusion.
"Has the plan changed? Why are they heading that way—Never mind, I'll follow and see. Maybe there's an even bigger scoop."
The reporter pulled his hat brim low, carefully protecting his bulky camera, and trailed them from a distance.
Toad Bar.
Ethan and Lockhart were shoved into a hidden room deep within the bar.
" Slam!"
The heavy door banged shut behind them.
Immediately, several gazes locked onto Ethan and Lockhart.
Ethan narrowed his eyes, adjusting to the dim light in the room.
In the cramped space, several mirrors reflected faint candlelight, barely outlining the shapes of objects.
On the round table, a pentagram had been drawn in red liquid.
At its center lay a worn black notebook, its pages faintly yellowed.
"There are actually fools who came looking for us; perfect, we need new sacrifices—"
A sharp voice emerged from beneath a hood.
Ethan felt Lockhart beside him tremble even more violently.
"I, I can give you money! I have so much money! As long as you let me go!"
Lockhart shrieked, his golden hair disheveled, his eyes filled with terror—not at all like his earlier peacock-like strut.
Ethan said seriously: "Professor Lockhart, what are you saying? We should uphold justice and fight evil criminals."
At those words...
The room fell silent.
Then, the dark wizards burst into laughter!
"Hahahaha! You're about to die, and you talk about fighting evil? Truly a newborn calf not afraid of the tiger! It's hilarious!"
Lockhart stared at Ethan in disbelief, shouting inwardly:
Is this kid out of his mind?!
What "devil"? He's just a naive, foolish little brat!
Dark Wizard: "Don't worry. We'll take both your money and your souls."
"No—Mmph!"
Just as Lockhart was about to say something, a spell sealed his mouth.
In the center of the pentagram, the black notebook opened on its own.
Flipping through the yellowed pages, a line of text appeared.
Hmm?
This vague sense of familiarity made Ethan frown.
He closed his left eye.
In its place, an eyeball opened on the low ceiling above everyone's heads.
It wriggled and turned, gazing at the diary, which read:
[Kill them I need more souls—When I grow stronger, I will reward you]
Could it be—Tom Riddle's diary?!
Ethan's eyes widened slightly, and he spoke:
"How did you get this book?"
"Shut up!"
A dark wizard shrieked, firing a vicious spell at Ethan.
A dark doorway flashed by, and Ethan pretended to grunt.
"Hmph, we stole this from a fool. He thought it was just a useless ordinary diary, but we saw at a glance that it was no ordinary thing!"
Stolen?
Hmm—it was probably intentionally "stolen."
Ethan thought.
He remembered that this diary originally belonged to Malfoy.
But they probably didn't know the importance of this diary; it was one of Lord Voldemort's Horcruxes—Lord Voldemort would never tell others about his life's essence.
In the original story, to frame the Weasley family during a surprise inspection for contraband, the diary was slipped into textbooks and given to Ginny.
—It almost let their house-elf take MVP for "saving" Harry Potter.
Unexpectedly, this time, with his involvement, Malfoy had actually discarded the diary on purpose.
Teachable indeed. Ethan nodded slightly in approval.
Immediately, he wanted to claim that diary for himself!
—Such an evil and dangerous thing couldn't possibly fall into the hands of bad people!
Let me bear this responsibility, bear this sin!
Paper that could hold souls and interact was excellent research material.
A small flame of justice ignited in Ethan's eyes.
In his mind, an excellent idea took shape.
"Wai Bibabu Jili Guala—."
The dark wizards chanted a strange spell in unison.
Lockhart's body trembled violently, and he clutched his head in pain, wailing:
"No, no—Please! I can give you money—Ahhh!"
Lockhart suddenly arched his back, his mouth gaping wide, his features frozen like a mask, his eyes bulging with fear and dullness, staring upward.
A wisp of ghostly blue mist floated from his mouth.
The chanting grew louder, buzzing with the excitement of something wondrous about to happen.
It's coming! The powerful and mysterious monarch is about to be born from the ancient diary—"Crash!"
With a loud shatter, the mirrors in the room suddenly broke all at once!
The flying shards, like sharp daggers, instantly pierced the dark wizards, turning them into porcupines!
"Ahhh!"
The chanting cut off abruptly, and the dark wizards screamed, writhing in agony!
"Whoosh!"
The candlelight went out, plunging the room into darkness.
"W-what's going on?!"
"My eyes! Ahhh, I can't see!"
"Lumos!"
Dots of white light flickered to life.
In the wand light, a pale face was illuminated.
"—?!"
Fear instantly gripped their hearts, making them hold their breath as they stared blankly at the figure.
The black-haired boy, who was supposed to be the sacrifice, had silently climbed onto the table at some point.
His back hunched, his head tilted, he smiled at them through the gaps in his disheveled black hair.
He spoke:
"Need sacrifices—more sacrifices—dark, delicious souls.—"
His voice was ethereal and chilling, like wind sweeping through a graveyard at night.
The power of the Erised spell flowed out with his words.
Weaving a vast net, it clouded the minds of the wizards present.
Their eyes grew dull and vacant, just like Lockhart's had moments before.
Yes, yes, the devil has descended, possessing this child...
Their mouths mumbled open and closed, repeating:
"Sacrifices, sacrifices—the master needs sacrifices—
"We—are the best sacrifices!!!"
The dark wizards slowly turned their heads, their gazes falling on their "companions."
With a squelch, they yanked out the glass shards embedded in their bodies, raising them high—Squelch, squelch, squelch, squelch!
Ethan watched the harmonious and loving scene unfold before him, a smile curling on his lips.
How nice, another day of promoting world peace.
I'm so kind~
The unidentified red liquid splattered onto the diary, leaving it silent.
Not to mention Lockhart, off to the side.
The spell's effect wore off, and he cowered in the corner, watching the scene with utter terror, his body twitching unnaturally.
Just watching was a torment to the spirit.
Mer-Merlin... had he come to hell?
What on earth was going on—was that Ethan, was Ethan really possessed by a devil?!!!
"No, no... Merlin, save me—"
At that moment, Lockhart deeply regretted taking this commission.
It far exceeded his expectations.
And his tolerance.
Lockhart trembled, raising his wand toward himself.
On the other side...
Outside the room.
The burly Jamie stood guard at the door, listening to the commotion inside, a triumphant smirk on his lips.
He had easily caught two fat lambs today—how lucky. He'd go in later and make sure they shared some of the spoils with him.
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