Chapter 320: Acquaintance
Chapter 320: Acquaintance (Please subscribe, favorite, and vote)
In the grand drama of Voldemort's resurrection, the students entangled were not just Harry, but also Liam and Hermione. The moment the box was handed over, Liam knew something was about to go wrong. After all, a normal person wouldn't be so hasty in passing something over after such a shout. He assumed the box might be cursed, so as he reached out to Hermione, he cast a Magic Barrier over both of their hands.
Unfortunately, he was wrong. The Magic Barrier had barely formed when the iron box touched their hands. Liam felt a hook behind his navel pull him forward with irresistible force, and he was lifted off his feet, flying through the air.
"How is this a Portkey?" Liam was momentarily stunned. He wasn't Harry Potter; why would anyone use such a method to kidnap him?
"Is it because I'm handsome?" Liam tried to lighten the mood with a cold joke as he held Hermione's hand and the box tightly. He could feel Hermione's shoulder bumping into his, and the wind whistled in his ears, as if they were flying at high speed.
Finally, his feet landed heavily on the ground, and he steadied Hermione.
"Where are we?" Hermione looked around and saw that the place was very dim. They seemed to be trapped in a very small dimension, with five sides made of solid stone walls. The only opening was blocked by several thick wooden bars. Through the gaps, they could faintly see a stone corridor outside.
Seeing this, Hermione leaned closer to Liam, feeling uneasy. "It feels so eerie here. Are we in some Chamber of Secrets or a cave?"
Liam nodded in agreement, as he could smell the extremely cold, damp, and earthy air. Clearly, they were in a place with poor ventilation, and an underground structure was the most likely possibility.
"From now on, no English." Liam said in High Valyrian. "I don't know if there are enemies around, so we should assume there are. By the way, once you spot an enemy, use the Power of Blood and Shadows first."
"Alright." Hermione replied in the same language. "But, do we really need to use such dangerous magic? Didn't you say it's only for real wars?"
"Yes", Liam said with a heavy tone. "I think this is a real war now. Weren't these dangerous spells prepared for real wars? Now that the war has come, it's time to use them."
After saying this, Liam seemed to remember something. "Right, speaking of battle, we have an ally now." He bent down and placed the purple wooden chest on the ground, then tapped the lid. "Alright, my dear sister, it's time for you to come out. I need your help now."
Hermione was puzzled by Liam's sudden action of tapping the box and addressing it as his sister. To her knowledge, Liam was an only child with no siblings.
"Has he been affected by some mind-altering magic?" Just as she was worrying, the box lid slid open quietly and quickly, and a girl's voice came out.
"Stupid Big Brother, you manage to get dragged into someone's plot even on a date. I really admire your luck. But I'm honored to fight alongside Big Brother again", Hermione watched in shock as a girl about 90 cm tall sat up from the box and responded to Liam in a clear, crisp voice. Her tone was somewhat sharp, but the affection in their conversation was evident, showing that the sharpness was just a way of expressing concern.
After teasing Liam, the small figure turned and gave Hermione a curtsy. "Pleased to meet you, Miss Granger. Today, I intended to see what Big Brother's girlfriend looks like, but instead, I see him bringing you to a dangerous place again. So, I must apologize on behalf of my stupid Big Brother."
"You are—"
"Oh, right. I forgot to introduce myself." The little girl looked up at Hermione. "My name is Rose Crystal, and I’m Big Brother’s sister."
"Rose Crystal?" Hermione found this name a bit unusual. As an Alchemic Puppet, Rose Crystal naturally noticed Hermione’s confusion and explained further. "I’m not human; I’m just an Alchemic Puppet that Big Brother brought to life—"
"Alright." Liam interrupted them. "Let’s get out of here first. Hermione, if you want to chat, you can take Rose Crystal back to your dorm later." With that, Liam drew a Valyrian Steel Dagger enchanted with Sharpness and cut through the wooden bars, then walked out.
They had just reached the corridor when they heard footsteps approaching. Soon, a figure appeared around the corner. Liam immediately used Shadow Magic to bind the person like a mummy.
"Vampire?" The two fangs visible at the corner of the person's mouth clearly revealed his identity. Liam quickly used the dagger to cut open another cell door and led the captive inside.
This cell was not empty. A middle-aged man in a climbing suit lay pale and lifeless in the corner. Liam used Magic to easily detect that he had lost his life, and the two puncture marks on his neck clearly indicated what had killed him.
"Why did the Vampires kidnap me here?" Liam was puzzled as he thought about this while setting up defensive Magic around them. Once the defenses were in place, he began to interrogate the captive.
Unfortunately, the Vampire was uncooperative. Upon realizing that his voice couldn’t escape the Magic barrier, he stubbornly kept his mouth shut, no matter what Liam said. It was understandable; since Vampires viewed humans as food, why would they seriously answer questions from what they considered their prey?
This was the biggest flaw in those romance novels that depicted humans and Vampires falling in love. Just like humans wouldn’t fall in love with chickens, ducks, or geese, how could Vampires possibly have the heart to fall in love with their food?
However, Liam had a few tricks up his sleeve for such stubborn types. He pulled a bottle of Sunlight Crystals from his waist pouch and had Rose Crystal help pry open the Vampire’s mouth.
Once his mouth was open, Liam began to feed him the Sunlight Crystals one by one. Vampires don’t die instantly upon seeing the sun, but the Sunlight’s power does indeed weaken their innate Dark Force.
It turned out that this Vampire wasn’t as stubborn as he initially appeared. After swallowing only a dozen or so Sunlight Crystals, he started crying and begging to cooperate, pleading for Liam to give him a quick death after the questioning.
Through the interrogation, Liam learned that this group of Vampires had recently sold a large batch of rare herbs to a Dark Wizard. When they realized how urgently the Dark Wizard needed the herbs, they not only demanded a high price but also insisted on a Magical Contract requiring the Dark Wizard to provide several young and tasty Wizards for the Vampire Elder.
This Vampire had been sent to collect the goods. Their Secret Lair, like many others scattered across Europe, was set up to secretly supply Vampires with human prey.
For example, the Muggle corpse in the corner of the cell had been caught by this Vampire during a hunt in the nearby area. Since the blood of any being with magical power was reserved for the higher-ranking Vampires, they, the Low-ranking Vampires, had to hunt Muggles on their own.
"Looks like we’re in deep trouble", Liam concluded after the interrogation. He had uncovered a significant secret, one that could get them killed.
(End of Chapter)
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