Chapter 412: The Choice

Chapter 412: The Choice

"Aunt Bella!"

Draco looked at the woman with black hair in front of him. As he called her by the usual name, he couldn't help but shiver.

His eyes were filled with doubt and surprise, as if he never expected her to be here.

Bella, on the other hand, was not at all surprised by Draco's reaction. She stared at Draco's pale face and a mocking smile curved her lips.

"Didn't expect to see me here, did you, little Draco?"

Draco's face twitched, and he managed to force a smile. He instinctively pulled Cissy, who was still bewildered by the situation, behind him.

"Y-Yes, Aunt Bella, why are you here?"

Bella's smile faded, and her expression turned cold.

"I'm also curious, Draco, why didn't you report to the Master about that man called Forrest, who brings you to this place every weekend? Can you explain that to me?"

Draco's lips turned white, and his body began to tremble uncontrollably.

If you traced the bloodline, Bella and his mother were sisters from the Black family, which was why he called her Aunt. However, the woman in front of him, after pledging her loyalty to that man, no longer had any family ties. Not even her own husband, Rodolphus, would be spared if Voldemort ordered her to kill him.

Knowing the kind of person she was, Draco felt an overwhelming fear.

"Are you part of the boss's family? But that doesn't give you the right to damage the fence. Chris would be heartbroken."

Just as the tension was reaching a freezing point, Cissy, who Draco had pulled behind him, poked her head out and said seriously.

At that moment, the three Death Eaters, who had not noticed her at first, all turned their attention to her.

Draco was extremely anxious. He forcefully pushed Cissy's head back, and despite it being the end of winter, beads of sweat formed on his forehead.

"This is—" Bella's eyes shifted to Cissy, and she said with a half-smile, "Aren't you going to introduce us to your 'Muggle' friend, Draco?"

She emphasized the word "Muggle" heavily.

Draco clenched his teeth, his tension so palpable that he couldn't even speak.

Just then, a tall figure with long, light golden hair hurriedly arrived.

"Draco!"

Hearing the familiar voice, Draco couldn't help but respond with surprise and joy.

"Dad!"

Lucius, a mix of urgency and excitement, stepped out of the hole Bella had blasted through the wall. Seeing the scene in front of him, his face darkened.

"Bella, the Master said he would not harm my son and would protect him. You haven't forgotten that, have you?"

Bella, a high-ranking member of the Death Eaters and Voldemort's right-hand woman, did not intimidate Lucius.

The Death Eaters were now divided into two factions. One was led by Bella, consisting of the die-hard loyalists who had been imprisoned in Azkaban for over a decade. The other was led by Lucius, who still held significant wealth and social standing in the Wizarding World, and whose loyalty, while not as firm, was still valuable to Voldemort.

In most cases, Bella and Lucius were of equal status.

Lucius did not hide his displeasure, but Bella did not get angry. Instead, her expression turned playful.

"Of course, I haven't harmed your son, Lucius. But it seems your precious son is protecting a Muggle girl. Is this how you usually educate him?"

Upon hearing her words, Lucius suddenly noticed the figure hiding behind his son.

"What are you doing, Draco! Why are you protecting that Muggle!"

He shouted sternly.

Draco instinctively released Cissy's arm, which he had been holding.

He avoided Lucius's gaze, his eyes darting away.

"I, I'm not, Dad."

As he let go, the two Death Eaters standing behind Bella roughly grabbed Cissy.

The little girl immediately sensed something was wrong and began to cry and struggle.

"What are you doing! Chris and Haley are inside the house, and the boss too! Boss! Save me!"

Hearing Cissy's cries, Draco's body shook violently, his face as white as a sheet, but he remained silent.

Bella seemed to have noticed something interesting. She stared at Draco, her cold eyes narrowing.

"Boss? It looks like she and you have a good relationship, Draco. What’s this, your little sister is begging for your help, and you don’t plan to plead for her?"

Lucius also watched Bella with a cold gaze, shielding Draco behind him.

"My son doesn’t need your lessons. I know him better than anyone. He would never befriend a Muggle girl!"

Bella held her wand with three fingers, glancing at Draco, who was bowed his head behind Lucius, and then at Cissy, who was still struggling in the grip of the two Death Eaters. A malicious smile spread across her face.

"I remember you always telling the master how much you want your son to join the Death Eaters and bear the master’s mark, right?"

"Is now the time to talk about this?" Lucius frowned.

"Of course not, but I think you should let your son prove himself a bit", Bella said coldly. "For example, by killing this Muggle with his own hands, to show us that his heart still belongs to the pure-bloods, not that he’s been turned by his Forrest professor!"

Lucius looked as if he had been insulted, his voice rising in anger.

"If you have a problem with me, don’t bring my son into it!"

"I have no problem with anyone. Am I embarrassing you, Lucius? Didn’t you hear what that little girl called your son? If he doesn’t kill this Muggle to prove himself, what do you think the master will do when he finds out?"

Lucius’s face hardened, and he fell silent.

Draco also noticed the change in his father’s attitude, and the panic in his eyes became impossible to hide.

"Dad."

"Are you friends with this Muggle, Draco?" Lucius asked sternly.

"No, not at all." His answer sounded weak and powerless, for whether he admitted it or denied it, the outcome was already set.

"Good, then do as I taught you and kill her!"

Lucius’s expression grew calm.

"No, don’t, Dad."

Draco clutched his wand, looking at his father helplessly, while Lucius stared at him with determination.

"You’ll have to take your first life eventually. Once the master decides to use you, it’s inevitable. I’ll teach you the magic. The Killing Curse causes no pain, so don’t feel so much pressure and burden."

Draco’s hand trembled as he held the wand, and he glanced at Cissy, who had been thrown to the ground by the Death Eaters. The little girl looked at him with eyes full of disbelief.

In that brief moment of eye contact, Draco couldn’t help but lower his head, unable to meet Cissy’s gaze.

"Boss, are you going to kill me?"

The girl’s voice, tinged with tears, rang out in front of him. Draco gripped his wand tightly, saying nothing.

"Hurry up, boy, we have other things to do and can’t waste time here", the Death Eater beside Bella said impatiently.

Draco slowly raised his wand, his hand shaking violently as if it were not a small stick but a heavy iron bar.

He couldn’t even look at Cissy on the ground, his jaw clenching and unclenching as if he were struggling with something.

Even Lucius couldn’t resist urging his son.

"Hurry, Draco, hurry up and do it! We have more important things to do later."

Draco finally seemed to reach his limit. His hand stopped trembling, and he swung his wand forcefully, as if giving up all hope. The spell words came out of his mouth.

Everyone present relaxed when they saw Draco raise his wand, but the spell he cast was not the Killing Curse!

"Smokescreen Charm!"

With a loud "bang", a cloud of white smoke instantly enveloped everyone!

Draco, as soon as he cast the Smokescreen Charm, reached out in the direction he remembered and grabbed the girl’s hand, dragging her toward the hole Bella had blasted in the wall!

The events unfolded so quickly that even Bella, who had anticipated Draco might not use the Killing Curse, never expected him to try to save the girl.

In the thick white smoke that completely obscured their vision, she could only rely on sound. Bella heard the urgent footsteps and reacted immediately.

A surge of anger welled up from her heart. Without a moment's hesitation, she raised her wand and aimed it in the direction of the footsteps through the smoke.

"Avada Kedavra."

"No!"

Before Bella could finish casting the spell, Lucius shouted in terror and tackled her to the ground!

"Do you want to betray the master, Lucius? Cast the spell! Don't let him escape!"

Bella screamed, and upon hearing her command, the other four Death Eaters raised their wands. They rushed in the direction of Draco's fleeing footsteps, casting spells as they went.

However, none of them dared to use the Killing Curse like Bella. Instead, they cast petrification charms and stunning spells, which would immobilize their target without causing serious harm.

Draco held Cissy's hand and had already run out of the smoke he had created with his spell. He didn't dare look back, only ran as fast as he could.

He knew that if he were caught, he might still be safe under his father's protection, but Cissy would definitely be killed!

The Death Eaters' spells were aimed with deadly precision. Three out of the four spells shot straight toward Draco's back.

But just as these spells were about to hit him, a transparent light suddenly appeared behind him.

The impenetrable Shield Charm not only deflected all the spells but also sent them back to their casters.

All three Death Eaters who had missed their targets were struck, either by the petrification curse or the stunning spell, and fell to the ground.

Draco, still running forward, was completely unaware of this. His mind was in turmoil, and he hadn't even thought to cast a Shield Charm on himself, let alone a high-intensity one that could deflect spells from adult wizards.

All he could think about was running with Cissy, as far away as possible.

Before last Christmas, he would have never imagined himself doing something so shocking and rebellious.

To protect a Muggle, he had defied his father and Bella's orders and even used a spell to help the Muggle escape right in front of them.

Even now, Draco felt like he might have gone mad. How could he have done something so crazy?

But Cissy, being only about seven years old, couldn't keep up with Draco's pace. He soon realized this and quickly cast a levitation charm on her to lighten her weight, then picked her up and continued running as fast as he could.

"Big brother", Cissy's voice, tinged with sobs, echoed in his ear.

"What about Chris and Haley and everyone else? Will those bad wizards kill them?"

Draco panted heavily, not from exhaustion but from the intense tension and rapid heartbeat.

"Professor Forrest will protect them!"

"Are those people your family?" Cissy asked timidly. "Will they punish you for saving me?"

"I'm not doing this to save you!"

Draco shouted, trying to sound strong and justifying his actions to himself.

"I'm doing this for the glory of the Malfoy family!"

But if the ancestors of the Malfoy family knew he was running for a Muggle's life, they might rise from their graves in anger and disown him.

Draco kept running, out of the secluded road near the orphanage and into a small forest by the roadside.

Just as he felt his strength waning and was about to collapse with Cissy in his arms, the sky suddenly darkened!

Countless black-robed figures wearing iron masks flew overhead on broomsticks, creating a dense, foreboding cloud.

Above them, an even larger, dark mist loomed, exuding an overwhelming sense of fear and death.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end