Hula —
Just a moment ago, the breeze, warm and gentle, suddenly became fierce. The moster faced the storm, squinted his eyes at the place where the gale was coming from. At the horizon of the sky he could see that a darkness had already invaded the dim sky and was spreading rapidly in all directions.
The veins on Lucius' forehead jumped fiercely, and he managed to force out a feeble smile.
"It's a joke, isn't it, Professor Brian?" He resisted the urge to cough and swallowed a mouthful of wind. "It's well known that the Dark Lord has been defeated by Harry Potter. He'll never be back among us again, and the Malfoy family -"
Lucius took a deep breath, his face turning pale.
"We have been confirmed, we have nothing to do with the Dark Lord. The Ministry has proven that all those unfounded rumors about him are false. Even if he does return one day, the Malfoy family will have nothing to do with him. He will never use Malfoy Manor as his base!"
The moster drew his gaze from the horizon, raised an eyebrow and looked at Lucius Malfoy, then shook his head and laughed slightly, continuing to take a step forward.
What does Ammosta Bren really know!?
Does he realize that the formless shadow he defeated in the stadium during the Quidditch World Cup that night could very well be the Dark Lord?
By common sense, Amostar Bren would not have known this. He has no Dark Mark, and there is no secret connection between him and the Dark Lord that cannot be severed. But since he can figure out that he sent someone to attack the stadium -
The first person Lucius thought of was Severus Snape.
From Draco's mouth, Lucius knew that Severus Snape had a very close relationship with Amostar Bren. Happily, Severus and he are the same this assumption seemed very possible, the only problem is that Severus did not appear at the Quidditch match that night, even if he felt that kind of change, he may not have realized that the Dark Mark changed because of what.
Suddenly, there was a series of loud squawks of alarm near the largest fountain in the estate. Amostar stopped in his tracks, turned his head to look, and found it was Fox's doing. It had thought that the scattered peafowls were playing with it, and so it spat out a tiny jet of fire that singed off several of the peafowls' vibrant tail feathers.
With the help of the strong wind, the fire spread quickly over the unlucky peafowls' bodies. For a moment, there were 'chickens' running everywhere on the lawn.
Lucius' face was black enough, and even Amostar's lips twitched involuntarily. He quickly withdrew his wand from his sleeve and, at a distance of half a mile, suddenly slashed down, causing the pool in the fountain to suddenly boil up. Many water columns shot up from the ground and precisely hit those 'chickens'.
"Don't be naughty—"
Amostar's piercing voice broke through the wind's barrier and was caught by the resentful Fox.
After the little fiasco, Amostar also had no mood to walk forward. He looked up at the sky which had already become dark, stopped and stood still.
"Have you heard about recent incidents where some pureblood family estates have been invaded by unknown individuals?"
Amostar asked indifferently.
Malfoy's mind was still filled with potential disasters that could devastate the family and put Narcissa and Draco at risk, possibly tomorrow. When Amostar suddenly brought it up, Malfoy took a few seconds to snap back to reality.
For a businessman like Lucius Malfoy, he is overwhelmed with information every day. The incident mentioned by Amostar Bren was surprising, but it wasn't anything particularly urgent.
"I've heard some rumors -"
For a few seconds in his daze, Lucius seemed to have seen through something. He stared at Amostar's eyes, which were full of surprise, but he spoke in an unaffected manner.
"But the Malfoy family's properties in Britain haven't encountered such a thing, so I haven't paid much attention -"
It's not that they haven't encountered it, but just that they haven't discovered it yet.
Lupin's ability is not that bad. He just happened to fall flat on his face due to bad luck. These days, Lupin has roughly grasped the unknown industries of the pure-blood wizarding families in Britain through various channels. Some are particularly cautious and even hide their secrets in the Gringotts' bank vaults, and Lupin hasn't found a way to deal with them.
Before the sky lost all its light, an owl soared towards Malfoy Manor on the crest of a rolling wave of darkness. It circled high above a few times, then dived sharply towards Amostar in the garden below.
Lucius retreated a few steps, he didn't want Amostar Bren to think that he was spying on his secrets. But when he saw Amostar open the letter which was clearly much longer than a normal piece of paper, the joyful smile that appeared on his lips betrayed his curiosity.
"Tonight, you yourself find someone to cause chaos in the Malfoy family's workshop. Tomorrow, you will escort this troublemaker to the Ministry of Magic—"
Amostar asked indifferently.
"Is there a problem?"
Lucius's fist clenched tightly in his sleeve. He realized that Amostar Bren was there this time to save the guy who was secretly causing trouble. The guy was following Amostar Bren's orders.
Since Bren came to ask the Malfoy family to cover for him, that means the person's identity has been exposed, and even, he is likely already under control by the Ministry of Magic. Who could it be?
Lucius pursed his lips and guessed in his mind, but then he realized that he didn't need to guess. It would be very easy to find out if the person had already been caught by the Ministry of Magic.
Moreover, it's more intriguing why Bren wants to do this.
Is he investigating something, or is he looking for something?
Lucius's forehead suddenly trembled and he felt a chill run down his spine as he unintentionally caught sight of Amostar Bren's deep purple eyes.
Refusal or agreement, this is a fundamental problem that does not need to be thought about.
Lucius Malfoy had no right to refuse. Not only does Amostar Bren know some of the deadly flaws about him, but if Bren decides to take his life, Lucius has no room for resistance. And Lucius is well aware that if Bren sets his mind on doing something, he will do it silently and leave no trace.
"Then--"
With the expected reply, Amostar nodded satisfactorily. He whispered to Fox far away, and when Fox suddenly appeared on his shoulder, Amostar turned to Lucius, smiling and nodding.
"Thank you for your support, Mr. Malfoy. I'm leaving now--"
"Leave?" Lucius's expression stiffened, "But. the banquet--"
"I'm well aware that I'm not a popular guest, Mr. Malfoy," Amostar said with a light laugh. "I'll leave now, and you don't need to risk breaking the law by letting your wife use an unregistered key to open the door."
"Wait!"
Lucius had heard about Dumbledore's abilities as the Phoenix. He subconsciously called out to Amostar Bren, and when that heavy, terrifying gaze pressed onto him again, Lucius realized that he had called out to Bren out of pure instinct rather than having a clear purpose.
Observing the unease in Lucius Malfoy's demeanor, Amostar showed great patience, quietly waiting for Lucius Malfoy to gather his words.
"If--"
Lucius Malfoy, the patriarch of the Malfoy family and a famous figure in the European magical world, looked pale with his swaying eyes, reminiscent of a nervous young witch just about to graduate and worrying about her future.
"If. If that person does really return one day, Mr. Bren, would you be willing to protect the Malfoy family?"
As night falls, the wind howls loudly in the suburbs.
"I will only shelter those who deserve to be sheltered, Malfoy—"
With a soft laugh, the figure and voice of Amostar Bren faded away in the wind.
(This chapter is complete.)
