novelhk Chapter 244 The Malfoys become enemies
Chapter 244 The Malfoys become enemies
Chapter 244 The Malfoys become enemies
Picking up where we left off, Narcissa had Harry and Black sandwiched between her from the front and back, their hearts pounding like drums, their legs as limp as noodles, and their intestines all tangled in knots.
Seeing this, Draco straightened up, shielding his mother, and glanced at Black and Harry, his face darkening with displeasure. "Where we're going is none of your business, is it?"
"As for why my father didn't come, can't he have his own things to do?"
Don't be too possessive of other people's lives!
Harry wasn't annoyed. He simply placed his hand on the hilt of his sword and stroked it, saying, "If it were anyone else, I wouldn't even blink an eye, even if they went to the ends of the earth. But your father was a Death Eater, and I won't let him get away with this."
After Harry finished speaking, he glanced sideways at Narcissa and said, "I only have one question. If you answer it clearly, I'll turn around."
"Why isn't Lucius here?"
The scarred man's gaze swept over her like a dagger, and Narcissa swayed again. Her lips trembled for a long time before she finally managed to squeeze out a few words like a mosquito.
"Lucius, Lucius... he's... on a business trip..."
She stammered and spoke unclearly, her words coming out in a vague and ambiguous way. Black crossed his arms and chuckled coldly, then leaned close to Harry's ear and whispered, "I bet that old bastard Lucius has definitely returned to the Death Eaters."
Just then, Draco suddenly clenched her hand and interrupted, "He must have become a Death Eater."
"If he weren't among the Death Eaters who died inside and outside the castle, I think he would have been in Poland with the Dark Lord by now."
Draco's words were neither too soft nor too hard, but Black immediately exploded in anger, like Mount Fuji erupting a hundred feet high.
He puffed out his beard, glared, rolled up his sleeves, lunged forward, grabbed Draco by the collar, and lifted him up, yelling, "What?!"
"Are you proud that your dad is a Death Eater?!"
In the past, Draco would have already used his noble title to intimidate people and make a big fuss.
Now he remained silent, his face paling slightly, his Adam's apple bobbing as he swallowed hard, managing to say, "I'm just stating a fact."
"The truth?" Blake spat on the ground again. "I think you want to go to Poland to find your Death Eater father!"
"Just because my father was a Death Eater doesn't mean I am!"
Draco's chest heaved like a frog's belly, his eyes fixed intently on Sirius. "The Black family has far more Death Eaters than the Malfoy family. So, are you a Death Eater?"
Upon hearing this, Sirius's face twitched violently, as if his beard was on fire, causing his noodles to twitch uncontrollably.
He opened his mouth to curse again, but Harry slammed his hand down on his shoulder.
"Father, do not be anxious. Knowing where Lucius is is enough."
After Harry finished speaking, he glanced at Draco and said with a half-smile, "As the ancients said, 'A scholar should be looked at with new eyes after three days of separation.' I only know today that this saying is true."
Having said that, without waiting for a reply, he flicked his sleeves and headed straight for Ron and Hermione.
Seeing this, Black swallowed all his words and simply raised two fingers at Draco, first pretending to tap his own eyes, then turning his wrist so that the fingers tapped Draco's eyes as well.
He quickly strode off and left.
"Harry!"
Black caught up with Harry in a few strides, grabbed his shoulder, and whispered in his ear, "What are you thinking? Letting them both go? That woman clearly wants to take Malfoy to Poland so he can join Voldemort!"
"And that young Malfoy dared to admit his father was a Death Eater, clearly putting on a show for you, hoping you'd spare his life out of 'honesty' and 'courage'—"
"Wait, don't tell me you actually believed his nonsense!"
Black's eyes widened like saucers, but Harry simply waved his hand and said calmly, "Father, don't be anxious. I don't believe Malfoy's words at all. I think it's making a mountain out of a molehill for him alone."
"Those parents were Death Eaters, and there are probably more than just one in the fortress. It would be better to deal with them all at once to avoid future troubles."
Blake was taken aback by what he heard. He glanced around again and then realized that among the faces of the parents were many relatives and old friends of the Death Eaters.
Just as he was about to ask Harry how to handle the situation, the scarred man strode to the side of the hall, called Ron and Hermione over, and said with his hands clasped in a fist and palm salute, "I have an important matter that requires the three of you to handle."
"I hope that Godfather, eldest sister and brothers will each select one hundred capable brothers from the regiment to set up spies at the key points of the left and right gates outside the school, as well as at the key points of the gates and the network of roads."
"Any family members or relatives of the Death Eaters must be accompanied by someone. If they are seen heading to a border town or returning home, they should be hurriedly prepared for their journey."
"Kill without mercy."
As soon as Harry uttered those last words, Ron and the other two felt the hairs on the back of their necks stand on end and a cold wind run down their spines.
Black pondered for a moment, then asked doubtfully, "What if the Ministry of Magic sends people to investigate?"
Harry laughed and said, "That's easy. We just need to wait until those birdmen cross the border before killing them."
"Furthermore, Fudge is already too busy dealing with his own troubles to handle anything else."
"Even if he were to be captured, all I need to do is let my brother Scrimgeour see the gold, silver, and valuables and their whereabouts. He would then know that these scoundrels are plotting treason."
Harry's words were thorough and flawless. Black listened and nodded, but then hesitated, saying, "I don't have any qualms about killing Death Eaters, nor about killing their partners, but—"
"Are they even killing students?"
Harry remained calm and didn't say much, only uttering a few words.
"This is treason."
Black's throat bobbed a few times, but he didn't say anything more. He just stared at Harry intently, his eyes searching.
This doesn't look like James, nor like Lily—it looks more like someone raised by Voldemort!
No, it should be said that Voldemort was raised by Harry!
Damn it! What on earth did the Dursleys do to Harry?
Black's mind raced, and suddenly a surge of fervor welled up within him, making him want to rush back to Godric's Hollow immediately so he could pay his respects at James and Lily's graves.
Harry finished giving his instructions, took off the arm guard, and handed it to Black, saying, "Most of the brothers in the group don't recognize our godfather. If we encounter any obstacles, just show them the arm guard, and they'll know it's my doing."
Blake took the arm guard, nodded heavily, and then asked another question.
"By the way, can I ask Remus to come along?"
Harry shook his head and sighed, "As the saying goes, a wise man keeps away from the kitchen. My second uncle is the kindest and softest-hearted man, so it's best not to let him get involved in this kind of thing, lest he suffer inwardly later."
Upon hearing this, Blake's eyelids twitched suddenly.
Does that mean my psychological burden is unimportant?
He mumbled those words to himself for a while, but eventually swallowed them down with his saliva.
He said nothing more, but tightened the arm guards, gave Ron and Hermione a wink, and the three of them disappeared like a gust of wind.
As soon as the three of them left, Narcissa grabbed Draco's sleeve and hurriedly left the castle as if her feet were barely touching the ground.
Only after walking to a secluded spot near the Quidditch pitch did the beautiful woman finally catch her breath. She turned around abruptly, staring at him with a look of utter shock, and exclaimed, "What were you thinking just now?!"
"How could you say something like that—Harry Potter really would kill you!"
Seeing her anxious appearance and panicked words, Draco immediately understood and said slowly, "It seems that my father is among those who helped the Dark Lord seize power in the Polish Ministry of Magic."
Narcissa's expression froze, her fear deepening. She twisted her two index fingers together and said timidly, "Your father has to go."
"The Dark Lord won't remember who is loyal enough, but he will definitely remember who is not."
"If Lucius doesn't go, he will definitely face the Dark Lord's revenge—even if the Dark Lord has already fled—moved abroad—"
She mumbled on and on for a while, then suddenly stretched out her hands, hurriedly cupped Draco's left hand, and said in a trembling voice, "Draco, come with me to find your father."
"Do you know what kind of madman Harry Potter is? If you stay here, you'll die at his hands sooner or later!"
After saying that, she shuddered again, "Even the Dark Lord wouldn't do something like cutting a person's corpse into small pieces and giving them to others."
Narcissa's words were heartfelt, truly showing her concern for her children and grandchildren.
Unexpectedly, Draco remained silent for a long time, then suddenly the muscles in his arm tensed, and he pulled his hand out of her grasp.
No, I want to stay.
Narcissa was taken aback by his words, her hands frozen in place over her lower abdomen, unsure of what to do. "What...what do you mean by this?" she asked.
In a flash, she suddenly remembered the gossip she had heard in the aristocratic salon.
It's said that Harry Potter built a violent organization at Hogwarts, and his actions were even more ruthless than those of the Death Eaters.
She trembled, and exclaimed in horror, "You've joined the group?"
Draco paused for a moment, then shook his head vigorously, "Of course not!"
Then he added, "But who knows, maybe in the future, if Potter doesn't mind that my dad is a Death Eater."
Narcissa was so terrified by his blasphemous words that she felt as if her very soul had left her body. She felt as if every bush and tree was a potential enemy, as if the Death Eaters were lurking in the shadows everywhere.
She grabbed Draco's arm and dragged him to a corner, shoving and pulling, and said through gritted teeth, "Why do you insist on staying at Hogwarts? Don't you always tell me you hate it here?"
Narcissa grew increasingly agitated and pulled a wax-sealed letter from her bosom, slapping it against Draco's chest with a "smack."
"Look closely! It was your father who ordered us to go to Poland!"
"He's already arranged everything. Tomorrow, fairies will come to assess the estate's value, and we'll take the money to Warsaw, the capital of Poland!"
"Weren't you always worried about who would serve you after Dobby ran away? The Dark Lord has countless Muggles at your beck and call!"
"They'll only do better than most!"
Narcissa really went to great lengths to persuade Draco to go with her to Poland to find Lucius.
Draco didn't even glance at the letter, instead pressing it back into Narcissa's palm and asking, "What if there were Death Eaters around when Dad wrote this letter?"
"Or perhaps the Dark Lord is beside him."
These words were like a cold nail, pinning Narcissa to the spot. She opened her mouth, but couldn't utter a word for a long time.
She racked her brains, finally squeezing out a sentence through gritted teeth, "But have you considered what would happen if Potter lost?"
"The Dark Lord will definitely not let us go!"
Draco raised his voice, "But if the Dark Lord loses, Potter won't let us off the hook either!"
"The students of Hogwarts have become fanatical in their devotion to Potter; their parents and families have been passively siding with him!"
"And those Aurors at the Ministry of Magic, I've seen firsthand how they treat Potter! If they had to choose between Fudge and Potter, they would definitely side with Potter in the end!"
Draco spoke louder and louder, his anger escalating. He roared, "For four years! The Dark Lord has come to bother Potter every year! Every time, Potter treats him like a slug on the street and beats him up!"
"I really don't understand what the Dark Lord is up to!"
"Back in his second year, he could cripple Potter's arm, and the entire Hogwarts almost fell! But look at him now?!"
"You need to understand that they are evenly matched! Dad said, never put all your eggs in one basket!"
As soon as he finished speaking, all that could be heard around the Quidditch pitch was the whistling wind, which made people's robes flutter.
As the two were locked in a stalemate, groups of students' parents emerged from the other side of the castle.
Some were hurrying along with their children, while others were walking alone with somber faces and heads down, all of them shrouded in a somber mood.
As the crowd thickened, Draco suddenly took a step back and inhaled a deep breath of cold air.
"Mom, I want to stay at Hogwarts."
"And I don't recommend that you leave the UK."
Narcissa looked bewildered. "Why?"
Draco tilted his head back slightly, squinted at the blue sky and white sun, and remained silent for a long while.
"Potter's indifference to life is no less than that of the Dark Lord—no, it should be far greater than that of the Dark Lord."
"I think he must have already decided how to deal with us, the descendants of Death Eaters."
After speaking, the two remained silent in tacit agreement.
After a long silence, Narcissa's eyes reddened, her voice trembled and choked with emotion as she softly said, "Draco, you're becoming more and more like your father."
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Immediately, the woman held Draco close to her chest, kissed him on both cheeks, then released him, turned and staggered into the crowd, never looking back.
Draco stood there, watching his mother walk further and further away, before turning around and walking towards the castle, muttering to himself, "My decision was right, my judgment was absolutely correct—Dad, I listened to you—"
"I was overthinking it."
It is said that Lucius followed his former master and fled to Poland; Draco followed the new king, but finding it difficult to join his ranks. Father and son went their separate ways, the family splitting into two winds. Truly, they were blown whichever way the wind blew, and the ship sailed whichever way it turned. Don't laugh at the rootless weeds on the wall; it is precisely such families that have remained virtuous to the end. To find out what happens next, please listen to the next chapter.