novelhk Chapter 156 Identifying the Real Killer: Harry Recognizes His Godfather
Chapter 156 Identifying the Real Killer: Harry Recognizes His Godfather
Chapter 157 Identifying the Real Killer: Harry Recognizes His Godfather
Picking up where we left off, Lu Ping held his staff in his hand, muttering incantations. Suddenly, a glint of light appeared at the tip of the staff, shining directly on the spotted rat.
No sooner said than done. The spotted creature squeaked and crackled, its joints popping, and it swelled up as if inflated. In an instant, its body bulged, and a person was bound inside the vines.
Upon closer inspection, one could see that this fellow was less than five feet tall, with a face as wrinkled as a melon. His two front teeth were white and gleaming like half-exposed guillotines, and his pair of beady eyes were like will-o'-the-wisps hanging from a box.
With its neck hunched and back stooped, it resembled a weasel stealing grain in the snow; wringing its hands and shaking its legs, it was like a shrimp fleeing from a frying pan. Truly, its deer-like head and rat-like eyes could not conceal its wickedness, and its rabbit-like ears and fox-like cheeks revealed its evil nature.
Seeing this, Ron's face turned as red as an eggplant, and Lockhart's body went limp in shock, and he cried out:
"Skyrocket is actually a wizard?"
"Those rumors were indeed true!"
Lupin put away his wand, bowed his head in silence for a moment, then raised his head and smiled brightly:
"Long time no see, old friend."
Peter Pettigrew taught the vines to be tied into a bundle, just like a rice dumpling for the Dragon Boat Festival. When Lupin came to greet him, he trembled, and only then did he manage a shaky smile.
"Oh! Lupin! Old friend, it's been so many years since we last met..."
"I think it's been about thirteen years."
Lupin spoke lightly, but his breathing became increasingly rapid. "James, Lily, Sirius were all there back then."
"No! Don't mention that villain's name!" Peter Pettigrew howled. "He's the one who killed our friends!"
After saying that, she turned to look at Harry, her eyes brimming with tears, and said, "Harry! Harry, you know, you know who killed your parents, right?"
"Look at you, my God... you're a spitting image of James... I'm your Uncle Peter!"
"Just like Lupin, you should call me Fourth Uncle!"
Peter was howling pitifully when Ron, unable to contain his anger any longer, drew his wand and shouted, "Silence!"
But then a white light shot out, like an iron lock sealing his throat. Peter's lips and tongue immediately went numb, his mouth opening and closing in vain, unable to utter a single word.
Ron turned to Harry, his expression worried. "Harry, you don't really believe what he said, do you?"
Harry stared straight ahead at the entrance of the Screaming Shack and said in a deep voice, "Even the court requires three officials to confront each other when judging a case. How could I listen to the words of just one person?"
"Once the eldest sister and Crookshan bring Black here, the outcome will be clear."
Before the words were even finished, the fellow on the beam, upon hearing the name "Blake," thrashed about like a rat doused in boiling oil. The rattan creaked and rattled, sending dust and dirt swirling down from the beam like smoke.
Lupin watched coldly, tapped his wand lightly, and cast another stun spell, which entered Peter's crown. The man, who had just been a broken puppet, slumped down like a broken puppet.
He paused for a moment, then turned to look at Lockhart beside him, whose expression was a mixture of joy and fear. He asked suspiciously, "Speaking of which, Gilderoy, why are you here?"
Lockhart swallowed hard, chuckled dryly, and said, "Ah, I came to help Harry, and was just about to leave when I saw you guys coming."
"Harry actually needs your help?"
Lupin's eyes widened in surprise, then he patted Lupin's shoulder again. "Now that you've done your job, you should leave quickly. There might be some danger ahead."
The more he said this, the more it itched Lockhart's heart became, and he was determined to find out the truth behind this secret.
He straightened his back, put on a stern face, and said seriously, "That won't do, Remus. Helping students solve their problems is my duty as a professor."
"Please, Gilderoy, you're just a teaching assistant."
Lockhart's face stiffened, turning slightly red and then pale. "Then I absolutely cannot leave; this is crucial for my permanent position!"
As the saying goes, "It's hard to persuade a damned ghost with kind words." Seeing that he was stubborn and unrepentant, Lu Ping could only shake his head, grab his shoulder, and pat him on the shoulder.
"Never let the wand leave your hand."
After speaking, he went to the window to keep watch.
After waiting for about half an hour, a lithe figure appeared from the hazy clouds and the approaching dust. It was Hermione, but who else could it be?
Hermione rushed in, and before she could catch her breath, she exclaimed, "Crookedhill has brought Black with him; they're on their way."
After a moment, she looked up and saw Peter Pettigrew hanging in mid-air. She shuddered and said with lingering fear:
"Thankfully, Crookshank is really just a kitten."
Without another word, the heroes concealed themselves, laying a trap to lure Blake into their trap.
Meanwhile, outside the shed, a large ginger cat led a black dog as big as a calf as they strolled along the road.
The black dog looked at the dilapidated house, seemed hesitant and fearful, and kept whimpering.
Seeing this, Crookshan raised its head, nuzzled its chin, and meowed a few times. Then, it leaped up and silently disappeared into the dark portal.
After a slight hesitation, the black dog finally pushed off the ground with all four paws and rushed inside.
But just as its front paws touched the ground, a loud "bang" was heard behind it, and the two doors suddenly slammed shut.
In an instant, the room was brightly lit, as if it were daytime. The black dog realized it had been tricked and looked around. It saw Harry sitting in the center chair, exuding an imposing aura; Ron and Hermione standing with their hands clasped to the left; and Lupin and Lockhart standing to the right, each holding a wand, as if facing a formidable enemy.
Seeing this scene, how could the black dog not realize that it had been ambushed by the cat?
He knew something was wrong and was about to flee when Lupin raised his wand and chanted a revealing spell at him.
In an instant, the dog rolled on the ground and transformed into a disheveled, wiry man with a bushy beard—Sirius Black.
"Good morning, Blake." Lupin took a breath. "It's been so many years since we last met."
Black seemed not to hear, his eyes fixed intently on Harry's face, as if he were mesmerized.
Suddenly, he shouted and tried to flee.
Hermione, who was already on guard, tapped her wand lightly, and the wooden planks on the ground suddenly changed with a "crackle," with several sharp wooden stakes shooting out and passing through his armpits and the back of his knees like a cage, instantly pinning him to the spot, unable to move.
"No! Let me go! Let me go!"
"Harry! I didn't leak anything! It was Peter Pettigrew who did it!"
"I'd rather die than betray your parents to that bastard Voldemort!"
As soon as Voldemort's name was mentioned, Ron immediately looked at Harry and said, "Don't even think about it, Harry. I dare say he's innocent."
Harry didn't answer, but simply pointed his wand at the roof beam. With a "snap," the vine suspending Peter broke.
The dwarf fell like a torn sack, waking up screaming in pain.
"Oh! My back—Boo! Black!"
"Harry! Kill him! He's the one who revealed the secret!"
When Blake saw Peter and heard these words, an inexplicable rage surged up to the top of his head.
His beard bristled, his eyes bulged, his face was purplish-red like a raw liver, the veins on his forehead bulged like earthworms writhing, and the blood vessels in his neck sprang like gnarled old tree roots. His teeth clenched so tightly that they cracked, and a thunderous roar burst forth from the depths of his throat.
"Bullshit! You damned bastard! Traitor! Scum!"
"You betrayed James and Lily!"
Peter Pettigrew trembled like a leaf, yet he refused to admit his guilt, and retorted in a shrill voice, "It was you! It was clearly you!"
"You're the one who keeps James and Lily's secret!"
Harry was furious. He drew his ring knife from his waist and slammed it into the floor with a clang.
Both the dog and the rat were startled and fell silent, turning to look at each other. They saw Harry with his hands clasped and coldly say:
"Today, I, your nephew, have devised this scheme, which has offended my godfather and fourth uncle. I hope you will forgive me."
"However, the blood feud of thirteen years is like a thorn in my throat, leaving me no choice but to resort to this desperate measure! Once I have ascertained the true culprit and identified who deserves to be torn to pieces, I will gladly offer my apologies!"
"What a wonderful title, Godfather!" Blake's eyes welled up with tears, and his gaze shone brightly.
The scruffy-looking man sniffed and said urgently, "Harry, I can tell you the whole story right now. I'm not your parents' confidant; Peter Pettigrew is!"
Having said this, Peter wailed as if he had lost his parents, and cried out again:
"Lies! That's a blatant lie! We all know you're the one keeping secrets from James and Lily!"
After saying this, a shrewd glint flashed in Peter's eyes, and he turned to look at Harry, saying:
"My dear nephew, if you do not believe me, you can use Legilimency to examine my memories."
"I love you so much... I won't hide anything from you..."
Despite Peter's sweet words, Harry remained unmoved, shaking his head and saying, "Thirteen years is enough time for the two of you to tamper with memories a thousand times over, but I don't trust you."
"Let me ask you one question: if you are truly innocent, why did you disguise yourself as a rat and hide for thirteen years?"
Peter knelt down and crawled toward Harry, raising his two paws toward Harry as if begging.
"Oh, Harry, I was doing this to protect you. The Death Eaters haven't all been captured yet, I—"
"Bullshit! You're just afraid of retaliation from the Death Eaters!" Black roared, his eyes blazing with fury. "Those Death Eaters know that their master died in Godric's Hollow because of the secrets you leaked!"
"That's why you know I stayed at Hogwarts even after my escape!"
"You're afraid I'll seek revenge, but you're even more afraid of being torn to shreds by those Death Eaters without Professor Dumbledore's protection!"
Peter opened his mouth and clicked his tongue, but it was as if a nut was stuck in his throat, and he couldn't utter a single word.
Hermione frowned and pondered for a moment, then hesitated before saying, "Hmm... Mr. Black?"
Upon hearing such a respectful address, Blake felt as if he had been transported to another world. He remained stunned for a long while before managing to force what he considered a proper smile.
"Please speak, miss."
"If you are telling the truth, why didn't you appeal to the Ministry of Magic? You are clearly innocent."
"Ah! That's right, that's exactly what I wanted to say!" Peter Pettigrew shrieked in agreement. "Thank you, good girl..."
"Shut your mouth, you dead rat!"
Blake cursed viciously for a while, and only after Peter curled up in a ball did he struggle to speak.
"Because...because I am guilty."
"At the last moment before I swore the oath of loyalty, I persuaded James and Lily to replace the Secretkeeper with Peter Pettigrew."
"I was too clever for my own good, thinking that Voldemort would never have imagined that the Secret-Keeper was such a cautious coward, and that I could draw most of the Death Eaters' firepower myself—but I never expected that Peter would voluntarily leak the secret to Voldemort."
"After James and the others were killed, I went after him, thinking he had died in the explosion."
"All those who deserved to die are dead, but those who didn't deserve to die also paid the price with their lives. I can't continue living with a clear conscience..."
Blake spoke with a heavy tone, and Peter, seeing that he had revealed the truth, was so frightened that his face turned ashen and he screamed at the top of his lungs.
"Don't believe his nonsense! My dear nephew!"
"If he wanted to atone for his sins, why did he try to escape from prison?"
"It must have been the Dark Lord who sent him the message, ordering him to come to Hogwarts to assassinate you!"
"Assassinate Harry?!" Black's face contorted with rage, his hair standing on end. "You despicable, vile bastard! How dare you utter such nonsense?!"
Before the cursing had even subsided, Harry suddenly slammed his ring knife on the ground again. "I only want to know the reason for the escape!"
Blake defiantly raised his head, "Inside my clothes, inside are the evidence!"
Just as Lupin was about to step forward, Lockhart suddenly jumped up beside him, his face full of excitement.
"let me!"
This is firsthand information; I have to handle it personally and observe it carefully before I can write an article with credibility!
This teaching assistant position wasn't for nothing; as long as he was by Harry's side, big news was bound to happen!
Lohatt paused, stepped forward, and reached into Blake's clothes. He heard a rustling sound and, sure enough, pulled out a crumpled old newspaper clipping.
When everyone looked closely, it was the photograph that had won the Daily Prophet's prize in the Weasleys' house. The mouse perched on Ron's shoulder was none other than Spotted, missing a toe.
Blake was panting heavily, his eyes gleaming with venom, fixed intently on Peter.
"I have to thank Fudge for giving the prisoners newspapers last year. I recognized this rat the moment I saw it."
"As it turns out, I was right. The mouse in the newspaper made eye contact with me and immediately ran away..."
"If I don't kill this damned traitor, I'll haunt him for the rest of my life, even as a ghost!"
These words were like the sun breaking through the clouds, and the room fell silent. Peter, limp as a board, struggled for a long time before finally managing to let out a mournful cry.
"These are all lies by Blake!"
"He fabricated this story for a full thirteen years, which is why there's not a single flaw!"
It should be known that Peter had been with Ron for two years and had come to realize that Harry was a ruthless and capable man. If Harry were to be convicted, it would be better to end his life with a single blow.
He racked his brains, ready to offer a clever rebuttal, when he saw Harry suddenly stand up, pull out the Shadowknife, and stride towards Black.
Peter Pettigrew breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Harry. You are truly wise, just like your mother—"
Before he could finish speaking, a "crack" was heard, and the hardwood spikes binding Blake snapped off.
Harry threw his knife to the ground, fell to his knees, and choked back a sob, as if he could hear a lone ape weeping in the night.
"Godfather, please accept my bow!"
P.S.: I'm going to write something really exciting tomorrow, so please don't let the book sit idle! I'll be updating like crazy!
(End of this chapter)