A man suddenly appeared from the void, appearing in a narrow alley. After landing, he immediately vigilantly looked around to confirm that no one was watching, and the pointed magic wand under his black cloak retreated again. He let out a sigh of relief.
To the left of the narrow alley were randomly growing low thorny bushes, while to the right stood neatly trimmed tall hedges. The man stepped forward, his long cloak swishing against his ankle.
The low-hanging branches overhead did not block the moonlight, revealing a man with a anxious face that was alternately illuminated and dim.
He quickly left the alley and turned right into a wide car lane, where the high hedges also turned a corner and extended into the distance. Two magnificent wrought-iron gates stood in his way. Without stopping, the man extended his right hand from under his cloak and then directly pierced through the misty wrought-iron gates.
At the end of the straight lane, a very grand mansion stood prominently in the darkness.
Malfoy Manor.
This was not the first time Notte visited the home of his old friend Lucius. He had always admired the grand and luxurious estate, whose elegant decorations were a fitting testament to the ancient glory of the Malfoy family's pure-blood status and their wealth.
However, the stately mansion standing in the darkness now emitted a heavy sense of foreboding. Even the moonlight could not penetrate the malevolent aura surrounding the estate.
"Phew——"
Stepping into the foyer, under the watchful eyes of the pale portraits on the walls, Old Nocte took a deep breath, muttering something to himself as if to boost his own spirits. Then, he stepped onto the luxurious carpet that was almost at ground level and approached a heavy wooden door.
"I will. Phew, get praised."
After a moment of hesitation, Old Nocte turned the bronze handle and pushed the door open.
In the living room, there was an elaborately decorated long table, and the usual furniture had been carelessly pushed against the walls. A small cluster of flames burned in the grand marble fireplace, just enough to provide the barest level of illumination for the spacious room, as if the people inside did not need light.
"You're here, Nocte——"
There were only two people in the room—the original owner of the house and the new owner of the house.
Sitting in the central position at the end of the long table, Voldemort said in a loud voice, his left hand resting on the armrest, elegantly holding his wand.
Lucius Malfoy was kneeling on the floor, his light blonde hair disheveled in front of him, his gray eyes filled with indescribable terror and shock. His pale face, devoid of any color, continued to twitch uncontrollably as if he had just endured something unimaginable.
Lucius's condition sent a shiver through Old Nocte. Staring at him blankly, he forgot all about the report he was supposed to deliver and, his legs weakening, he dropped to his knees.
"Oh, don't worry, Nocte——"
Voldemort seemed to find the scene amusing, and he let out a languid smile as he turned his head to look at Lucius, who was gasping for breath on the ground, his red snake-like eyes colder than ice.
"Lucius has betrayed my trust. He lost the precious artifact entrusted to him by the great Dark Lord in a most foolish manner, delivering it to Dumbledore and Bane in a very silly way, and he has been punished for it——"
Voldemort's face was filled with coldness, and his wand moved rhythmically in his hand.
"But the Dark Lord is generous, Lucius, I can forgive you once. Of course, this is also because of your contribution to our great cause by securing support from the giants for us, Lucius. I hope such foolish mistakes won't happen again. You won't disappoint me again, will you? "
"Thank you for your generosity, my master!"
Lucius dragged his disheveled body to Voldemort's feet and sniffed, kissing the hem of Voldemort's robe with his nostrils.
"Get up, Lucius, let's hear what good news Nocte has brought us."
Voldemort stood up and walked slowly to Nocte's side, but instead of allowing Nocte to stand, he slightly bent over and looked at him. The large shadow cast on the wall seemed to engulf the old man's figure like a demon.
"Is what you bring indeed good news, Nocte?"
Voldemort asked.
"I, um, I'm not sure, my lord. I'm not sure if it's good news, but I believe it's necessary to report to you."
Old Nocte had his forehead pressed against the plush carpet, and every word he uttered was shaking with tremors.
"But I saw Armostat Bane. I saw him return."
"Armostat Bane has returned."
The flicker of disgust on Voldemort's pale face was followed by a moment of indifference.
"Did you send a letter to see me just to tell me this? Wasting the precious time of the Dark Lord with a piece of information that I could find out with a simple subscription to the Daily Prophet?"
Old Nocte's heart clenched all at once, and he felt a wave of overwhelming coldness pressing down upon him.
"I met Bane at Gringotts, my lord. He was with a woman opening a vault. The woman was the one he brought back from New York. Bane said she has great talent in alchemical apparatus, so he plans to have her placed in the workshop that earns him and Remus money."
Voldemort's descending gaze grew increasingly cold and impatient.
"--Of course, the key isn't here. They later went to the vault under the guidance of a goblin. Out of curiosity, I waited outside for a while. Oh, actually, I waited for several hours. It made me feel strange. You know, usually going to the vault to get gold doesn't take this long. "
"Later, they emerged from the underground vault, but something was off. The goblin who took them down seemed to have fought a dragon. His clothes were burned and his face was blackened."
It seemed like he had a guess, and a flicker of excitement passed through Voldemort's eyes. His voice was both cold and heavy.
"I think you questioned the goblin, Nocte?"
"Yes, my lord!"
Realizing that what he had said was not of no value to the Dark Lord, Old Nocte's dormant heart regained some vitality. His voice trembled less violently.
"At first, it didn't want to say anything. But I threatened it. If it didn't tell me what they were doing, I would interrupt all of Nocte Family and Gringotts business, take away Nocte Family's gold and make it suffer. Then, it told me that Bane had opened an extremely old family vault."
"A very old family vault?!"
In an instant, a tremendous fear gripped Voldemort's heart. He abruptly looked at Lucius Malfoy, his fierce gaze containing anger.
Just then, Lucius Malfoy had told him the situation of the notebook he was asking about, revealing the precious soul object. This caused him to get angry.
But as he calmed down, he realized that there was no need for him to be so anxious.
It was just an accident. It was Lucius's foolish act of jumping the gun that had exposed his precious soul object to Dumbledore and Bane, while Dumbledore was old and blind, he couldn't possibly recognize the great magic that could stop death. However, Bane did cause him some concern.
Just by Bane's ability to use the Flame-Worshiper to an exceptional level, it can be seen that he is not like Dumbledore, a 'holy man'. He has a deep understanding of the black arts.
He had just been pondering if Bane could possibly know about the soul objects, and then Nocte brought him this news.
"An ancient family's vault——"
Voldemort's red snake-like eyes were filled with an intense red light, but his voice was light and airy.
"Whose is it?"
"The goblin wouldn't say anything at all, my lord——"
Old Nocte is panting heavily.
"It said that telling me this already involved a lot of risk, and revealing any more would be too dangerous for the goblin."
"Not willing to say?!"
Voldemort's voice suddenly became shrill, and his red eyes were filled with an intense light. He sternly looked at Old Nocte.
"When did you become so courteous, Nocte? Or have you forgotten how to serve the Dark Lord, whose service is of no value?"
(Chapter ends)
