Chapter 147: The True Traitor

Chapter 147: The True Traitor

Sherlock turned to look at Lupin, who was on high alert, but he didn't speak immediately.

Lupin had raised a furry finger, signaling him to stay quiet for the moment.

His two wolf ears on top of his head were trembling slightly, as if trying to detect some sound.

Then he cautiously gestured for Sherlock to follow him carefully.

Both of them began to move with extreme caution, tiptoeing to the left rear. After about ten steps, Sherlock also heard a faint snore.

Lupin stopped, and Sherlock remained still, both looking in the direction of the snore. There, a large black dog was lying asleep!

Both of them held their breath and exchanged a glance, each seeing the same certainty in the other's eyes.

This black dog was Sirius Black!

As soon as Sherlock saw Black, he quietly pulled a pouch from his pocket, grabbed a handful of wands, and tossed them into the air. The wands hovered there.

Lupin watched Sherlock's actions with wide eyes. If it weren't for the critical moment, he might have thought Sherlock was showing off.

Sherlock didn't care whether Lupin understood and continued to throw more wands.

The first wands he threw had already spread out, and the maximum range of Control Magic was about ten meters.

They were about ten meters from Black, and dozens of wands had silently flown above him, their tips pointing directly at him.

Suddenly, the sleeping Black twitched his ears and sniffed the air, then his eyes snapped open!

Sherlock and Lupin's gazes met his!

Black immediately sensed something was wrong, realizing this was no mere coincidence. The man and the wolf were after him!

His eyes showed panic as he quickly got up on all fours, ready to bolt into the depths of the Forbidden Forest!

Lupin roared and sprinted on all fours toward Black!

Sherlock didn't move, but the dozens of wands that had surrounded Black began to wave in unison.

From all directions, countless shrubs vanished, and hundreds of vines slithered like snakes across the ground, completely encircling Black before he could run a few meters!

In Black's desperate gaze, the vines entangled his body, wrapping him up entirely, leaving only his large dog head exposed!

Seeing Black captured, Lupin didn't stop his charge. He rammed into Black's dog face, causing blood to spurt!

The sun in the east was slowly rising, and the sky was filled with the glow of dawn, but the man, the wolf, and the dog had no time to appreciate the beauty.

As the moon set, Lupin's werewolf features gradually faded, and he returned to his human form. His disheveled face was pale, but the hatred in his eyes remained undiminished!

Lupin stared fiercely at Black's bloodied dog face.

"Transform back!"

Sherlock loosened the vines slightly, and the black dog transformed into a tall, extremely thin man with black hair and deep gray eyes.

Seeing Black's face, Lupin couldn't hold back and swung his fist, striking Black's face again!

"You killed James and Lily!"

Blood dripped from Black's mouth and nose, and he replied in a hoarse voice.

"I don't deny that."

"Peter was blown to pieces by your spell, leaving only a finger!"

Lupin didn't throw another punch. The first one had let him vent, and he regained his composure, but his questioning didn't stop.

"No! Peter isn't dead!"

At this, Black suddenly became agitated and struggled fiercely.

"I don't deny that I caused James and Lily's deaths! But the traitor wasn't me! Listen to me, Lupin—"

Before he could finish, Sherlock tightened the vines around him.

"You can save your explanations for the Dementors. They might not even listen, and just give you the kiss."

Sherlock knew that villains often died because they talked too much and didn't want to give him any chance to turn the tables.

Seeing that Sherlock was serious about handing him over to the Dementors, Black became frantic!

“I’m not lying! If I were really the traitor and wanted to kill Harry, I would have had two opportunities before, but I didn’t act! Ever since I escaped from Azkaban, I haven’t harmed anyone! James’s death is on me, I am guilty! But the one who betrayed him wasn’t me! When I was captured, I didn’t resist because I wanted to punish myself for my sins!”

He spilled out everything he wanted to say, and Sherlock halted his steps.

Lupin met his gaze, and Sherlock hesitated before saying, “Maybe we should hear him out?”

Lupin shared the same thought. From Black’s words, he could sense that there was more to the story than met the eye.

Sherlock didn’t loosen the binds on Black; instead, he tightened them.

They stood above, looking down at Black, who was tied up on the ground. Lupin said coldly, “We can give you a chance to explain.”

Black clearly cherished this opportunity. He knew that if he were handed over to the Dementors, there was a 99% chance he would be kissed, and his soul would be sucked out.

Death didn’t scare him; what terrified him was the thought that after he died, no one would know that Peter was the true traitor!

“After the prophecy about Voldemort’s downfall spread, James already had the idea to go into hiding,” Black tried to calm his rapid breathing as he told Lupin and Sherlock, “At first, he did consider me as the Secret-Keeper for the Fidelius Charm.”

“But I thought I was being clever. I suggested that he publicly claim I was the Secret-Keeper, while secretly making Peter—Peter, that scoundrel—the true Secret-Keeper. This way, Voldemort would focus his attention on me and never find out who the real Secret-Keeper was.”

“What I didn’t expect was that my supposedly brilliant plan led to James and Lily’s deaths! Peter was the traitor! As soon as he became the Secret-Keeper, he betrayed them to his master!”

“Voldemort later killed James and Lily! When I found out, I went mad with rage and hunted Peter down. I cornered him in a street where he couldn’t escape. He shouted to the crowd that I was the traitor to the Potters, then used a powerful Explosive Charm!”

“He blew up the entire street, killing all the Muggles, and left only a finger behind!”

“I thought he was dead, so I didn’t resist when the Ministry of Magic arrested me. I wanted to spend the rest of my life in Azkaban as punishment for my mistake. But last year, I discovered that Peter wasn’t dead! He’s alive and has been with Harry all along!”

“So I escaped from prison. I must kill Peter! I have to kill him with my own hands!”

Black’s hatred seemed to burst from his throat as he shouted.

Sherlock listened with a frown, then asked, “What is Peter’s Animagus form?”

“A rat!” Black gritted his teeth, “He probably used it to escape from under my nose, fooling me twice!”

Hearing this, Sherlock felt that Black was likely telling the truth. In his memory, the most vivid impression from this semester in the original story was the true villain escaping as a rat.

Lupin was also starting to believe Black. They were childhood friends, and he knew Black’s character. The idea of Black betraying James had always seemed inconceivable, and now, with this explanation, everything made more sense.

But Sherlock didn’t simply accept Black as a good guy and let him go. He stared into Black’s eyes and asked, “How did you know Peter was still alive while in prison?”

“Newspapers! Fudge brought a newspaper when he came to inspect Azkaban! I still have it on me; you can find it in my pocket!”

Upon hearing this, Lupin approached Black, reached into his robe pocket, and found a crumpled Daily Prophet.

It was from last summer, and the front page featured the news of Arthur Weasley winning the Daily Prophet’s annual grand prize, with the family on a trip to Egypt with their winnings.

The Weasley family's photo in Egypt took up half the newspaper, and the rat Scabbers perched on Ron's shoulder was particularly noticeable.

"Look at that rat's front paw! It's missing a middle finger, just like Peter! The Explosive Charm he used blew off his own finger!"

Following Black's cue, Lupin and Sherlock also noticed the rat Scabbers' front paw, which was missing a finger.

Lupin muttered to himself.

"Yes, that's right. This rat does look exactly like Peter's Animagus form!"

By now, they had already believed most of what Black had said, but Sherlock still felt it wasn't safe enough.

He fumbled in his pocket and pulled out a small bottle of potion.

"Would you dare to drink Veritaserum and then say that everything you've told us is the truth?"

Black responded without hesitation.

"No problem!"

Lupin looked at Sherlock in surprise. Veritaserum was a banned substance in the Wizarding World, and only the Ministry of Magic and a few qualified potion masters could obtain it. Most people couldn't get their hands on it.

Sherlock walked up to Black, raised the potion, and Sirius Black opened his mouth without any hesitation, drinking all the liquid in the bottle.

Lupin and Black waited for the Veritaserum to take effect, but instead of showing any signs of confusion, Black's facial wounds, which had been inflicted by Lupin's punches, began to heal rapidly.

They both looked at Sherlock in shock, and he shrugged.

"Sorry, I don't have the means to get Veritaserum, so what I gave you was just a Healing Potion. If you weren't willing to drink it, I would have taken you to a Dementor. Since you drank it, it means you're telling the truth, and this potion will help you."

As he spoke, he released the Transfiguration on Black, allowing him to move freely.

Lupin extended a hand to Sirius Black on the ground.

"So, at that time, you suspected that the traitor among us was actually me, which is why you didn't tell me about the change in plans?"

Sirius Black reached out and shook hands with Lupin, letting him pull him to his feet.

"Forgive me, Lupin. I never imagined that the cowardly Peter would betray us."

"It's fine, old friend. Over the years, I've also had my doubts about you. We're even now."

They embraced, like old friends reunited after a long time.

Sherlock, watching them, couldn't help but remind them.

"I think the emotional reunion can wait. We still haven't clarified the most important issue."

Sirius Black and Lupin separated, and he looked at Sherlock, extending his hand.

"We've met many times, but I never knew your name."

Sherlock shook his hand.

"Sherlock Forest, the current Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor at Hogwarts. I also want to thank you for helping me and Silke before."

They quickly got to know each other better and then got down to business.

"Since the real traitor is Peter, and he has been hiding in the Weasley family as their pet, he must know that you've escaped to seek revenge", Sherlock said calmly.

Just mentioning Peter's name made Sirius Black clench his teeth.

"Of course, he knows I'm after him. I infiltrated the Gryffindor common room twice. The first time, I didn't find him there, and the second time, he faked his death to escape from the boy's side!"

Sherlock was also aware of some details about Ron's rat, Scabbers.

"A few days ago, I met Harry and Ron's friend Hermione. She was crying alone in the classroom, saying her cat ate Ron's pet rat, which caused a rift between them."

"No, that's not true! That girl's cat is the smartest cat I've ever seen. I gained its trust and had it help me catch Peter, but Peter faked his death again to escape!"

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end