Chapter 1229: Seeking Luck
Chapter 1229: Seeking Luck
The task of assassinating Dumbledore was no longer solely Draco Malfoy's concern; it seemed like everyone, especially after Snape had involved himself in the matter, was now vested in the outcome.
Voldemort, tacitly acknowledging their actions, allowed Draco to enlist the help of other Death Eaters to eliminate his lifelong nemesis, Albus Dumbledore. The punishment of the Malfoy family was insignificant compared to the prospect of finally being rid of Dumbledore.
Should even Snape fail, Voldemort knew it would be a long time before he could attempt to eliminate Dumbledore and turn the tide against the Ministry of Magic. His situation, and that of the Death Eaters, would only worsen.
There was no guarantee that the Death Eaters, under intense scrutiny and persecution, would remain loyal and not crumble. Since Scrimgeour took over as Minister of Magic, it had been barely half a year, and the Death Eaters had already suffered heavy losses due to the Ministry's crackdown.
Even though they had gone underground, the situation was still dire. Their enemies were not just the Ministry and the Order of the Phoenix, but also a more insidious and venomous Prophet Master, who worked in the shadows against them. Some of the dark wizards who had initially aligned themselves with the Death Eaters had already fled, sensing the tide turning against them.
While Voldemort didn't care about the deserters or the casualties among the Death Eaters, he had to maintain the strength of the force he had built. Losing the support of the Death Eaters would leave him isolated and alone, forcing him to scurry into hiding like a sewer rat, fearful of the entire British wizarding world.
This was the primary reason Voldemort allowed other Death Eaters to aid the Malfoy family and why he tolerated Snape's unsolicited involvement in the assassination plot.
However, unlike Snape's confident composure, others were not optimistic about the assassination attempt. After all, their target was the renowned Dumbledore, a name that struck fear into the hearts of countless Death Eaters. No one was foolish enough to believe that Dumbledore's advancing age had diminished his magical prowess.
While the absence of others from the plan wouldn't significantly impact its outcome, Narcissa Malfoy was an exception. Though she wasn't directly involved in the assassination plot, she fretted incessantly about it. The survival of the Malfoy family hinged on the success of this endeavor.
Should Draco fail, even if he managed to escape Dumbledore alive, the wrath of the Dark Lord would consume them all, including Lucius, currently imprisoned in Azkaban.
Narcissa, ever mindful of this, spent a lot of time brainstorming with Draco, trying to increase the chances of success. She even went as far as to offer large sums of Galleons to Bella, urging her to invite reliable companions to join the assassination plot.
After concluding her communication with Draco, Narcissa carefully put away the two-way mirror and stood up from her chair. She left her room and made her way to the main hall in search of her sister, Bella.
With her husband, Lucius, incarcerated in Azkaban, Bella had become Narcissa's confidant and advisor.
"Bella, I need your help!" Narcissa called out as she entered the empty hall, her voice gradually softening. She searched the various rooms in the hideout but couldn't find Bella anywhere.
Had she gone out?
Narcissa's anxiety grew as she realized she was alone in the hideout. Her gaze kept drifting to the wall clock, her thoughts consumed by what Draco had just told her.
Draco needed Felix Felicis, the Liquid Luck. But where could she possibly get her hands on such a rare potion? Snape, perhaps? No, Draco had already mentioned that he had sought Snape's help, but the Potions Master didn't have any Felix Felicis, and even if he started brewing it now, it would take at least six months. They didn't have that kind of time.
There were only a few months left before the end of the school year—Draco's opportunity to act. Narcissa had tried to acquire Felix Felicis on the black market, offering exorbitant amounts of Galleons, but to no avail. No one was selling it, and her attempts only attracted fraudsters looking to take advantage of her desperation.
Narcissa had encountered these scammers more than once, and she had made sure they faced severe consequences for their deceit. It was understandable, though, as Felix Felicis was not a potion that any ordinary wizard could brew. Only highly skilled Master Potioneers would even attempt it, and they were few and far between. The economic loss from a failed brew was substantial, making this magical potion extremely rare and virtually unavailable for purchase.
As Narcissa paced restlessly in the hall, the sound of the hideout's entrance startled her from her thoughts. She drew her wand and made her way to the door, where Bella stood, dragging a young witch by her hair.
"What's this about?" Narcissa asked, confused as she looked at her sister.
"This Mudblood-loving witch is a classmate of the Mudblood," Bella spat, throwing the girl onto the carpeted floor of the hall. With her wand pointed at the girl, she continued, "I'm sure she knows something about the Mudblood's whereabouts and the headquarters of the Defense Association."
"I... Ah!" The young witch tried to speak, but her words were drowned out by the excruciating pain of the Cruciatus Curse.
Bella watched with glee as the girl writhed and screamed in agony, the horrible sound like sweet music to her ears. Ever since her husband died in the previous failed assassination attempt, and she herself was disfigured, Bella had become even more unhinged. She took sadistic pleasure in using the Cruciatus Curse to torture others.
"Talk!" Bella demanded, moving her wand away and grabbing a handful of the young witch's hair, yanking her to her feet. "Where is the Mudblood hiding? Where is the headquarters of the Defense Association?"
“No, I really don’t know!” The young woman sobbed.
“Liar!” Bella roared sharply, “You can’t deceive me.” “Let her finish, Bella. If you turn her into a lunatic, you’ll get nothing out of her!” Narcissa hastily stopped Bella’s crazed actions, preventing her from directly using the Cruciatus Curse to torture the woman before her into insanity.
“Weasley did invite me, but… I refused!” The young witch sobbed painfully, “I really don’t know anything, I swear!” If Angelina had been there, she would have instantly recognized the woman as her former roommate, Claire.
A pure-blood witch.
However, this poor pure-blood girl had not escaped her fate due to her lineage.
“Continue.” Narcissa realized that Bella had probably caught the wrong person.
“I have no connection with Anderson, we’re not even acquainted. You should go find Shanna, Shanna Wilson. She’s Anderson’s good friend; you should look for her; she must know Anderson’s whereabouts.” Claire couldn’t understand why she had to endure such misfortune, nor could she fathom why this crazy woman had grabbed her. Was it just because they were in the same year as Albert Anderson?
But there were plenty of students in the same year as Albert Anderson. Why did she have to pick on her?
In fact, Bella had grabbed her because she was in the same year as Albert Anderson.
Another reason was that Bella didn’t know much about Albert and couldn’t find any other friends besides Fred and George.
So, Bella had grabbed a student from the same year to take a chance. Even if she had caught the wrong person, she could still dig out more of the information she needed from the girl’s mouth, and Claire was that unlucky person.
A streak of red light suddenly hit the young witch, causing her to pass out instantly.
“Narcissa, what are you doing!” Bella abruptly turned to face her sister, displeased with her actions.
“She wasn’t lying. Killing her is pointless!” Narcissa said in a lowered voice, “I have something important to discuss with you.” “What is it?”
Bella glanced at the surrounding Death Eaters and gestured for them to take the captive to the dungeon.
“Draco wants some Felix Felicis. He’s not making much progress with repairing the Vanishing Cabinet, and he hopes to use the Liquid Luck to fix it.” Narcissa waited until the Death Eaters had left before revealing the reason for seeking out Bella.
“That sounds utterly absurd, Narcissa. Where do you expect me to get Felix Felicis?” Bella scoffed sharply, feeling that her sister was overly indulgent of Draco and was being unrealistic.
Ever since Draco had mentioned this matter, they had attempted to disguise themselves as others using Polyjuice Potion to infiltrate the black market, but to no avail.
“No, Bella, we need Felix Felicis.” Narcissa looked into Bella’s eyes and said seriously, “If we can get some Felix Felicis, the plan to assassinate Dumbledore will undoubtedly go much smoother.” “Do you really think that stuff will bring us good luck?” Bella thought her sister had gone mad.
“Yes, I heard it from Snape. Dumbledore gives out Felix Felicis to members of the Order of the Phoenix, allowing them to use this potion when they’re in danger.” Narcissa asserted, “I’m sure Felix Felicis will increase our chances of success.” “Well, maybe you’re right, but no one on the black market sells Felix Felicis. You should know how rare it is. It takes half a year to brew this potion, so no one would sell it.” Bella was very unhappy with Narcissa for trusting Snape so much; that guy was just using them and didn’t deserve their trust.
“Others might not have it, but Slughorn definitely has some left. Draco once said he saw Slughorn give a small bottle of Felix Felicis as a reward to Harry Potter.” Narcissa whispered.
“But that old man has been staying at Hogwarts. How are we supposed to get Felix Felicis from him?” Bella looked at Narcissa, a cold smile on her lips, “Do you think we should break into Hogwarts and rob that old man of his potion? Maybe you should let Draco try it himself; that would be more reliable.” “No, I want to visit other Potion Masters first and see if they have any Felix Felicis.” Narcissa shook her head and shared her plan, “Damocles, Eldritch, or Horton Dagwine.”
“What if they don’t have it either?” Bella didn’t think those people would stockpile Felix Felicis.
“Then we’ll go to France or other European countries. I’m sure we can buy some Felix Felicis if we offer enough Galleons.” Narcissa was determined to get her hands on the Liquid Luck, and compared to her family’s well-being, those Galleons were insignificant.
“We don’t have that much time, as you know.” Bella said impatiently, “And we may not be able to…” “Yes, we do have time.” Narcissa looked at her sister, pleading, “Killing Dumbledore is more important than anything else. You know the Dark Lord wants Dumbledore dead.”
“Even if we get Felix Felicis, we may not be able to kill Dumbledore, right?” Bella, of course, understood Narcissa’s intentions.
“Snape is confident, and I believe he will succeed, but we want to use Felix Felicis to increase the chances of success.” Narcissa knew how to persuade Bella, “Don’t you want the plan to go smoothly? Don’t you want to gain the Dark Lord’s forgiveness?” “As long as Dumbledore is killed, the Dark Lord will forgive me.” Narcissa continued to persuade her, “And once Dumbledore is gone, the Dark Lord will surely gain control of the Ministry of Magic. By then, we will definitely have other ways to deal with that Mudblood without her helper.”
“You’re right. As long as Dumbledore is killed, the Dark Lord will forgive me.” Bella murmured.
(End of Chapter)
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