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Chapter 446: Regulus (Thanks to the book friend who likes the prankster's wheel of fate, there will
Chapter 446: Regulus (Thanks to the book friend who likes the prankster's wheel of fate, there will be an additional 15 chapters)
Subconsciously, Kyle reached out, about to take out the pendant box.
"Be careful," Sirius warned, "This thing might be some sort of weird Dark artifact."
"You're right about that," Kyle acknowledged, but he still took out the pendant box and gently wiped the dust off it.
The pendant box was about the size of an egg, heavy, and on the front was an elaborate 'S' formed from several small emeralds, emitting a dull glow in the dim light.
"This isn't a Black family heirloom; I've never seen it before," Sirius frowned, leaning in thoughtfully. "I reckon they bought it from somewhere and then tossed it aside. Best to get rid of it, just in case it's cursed or imbued with Dark magic."
"This isn't trash!" A sharp voice came from behind them.
It was Kreacher, panting heavily, looking furious. He glared at Sirius and let out a blood-curdling scream.
"...This is Young Master Regulus' pendant box. He asked Kreacher to bring it back!"
"Regulus?" Lupin asked, "I recall he was your younger brother, right? The two of you didn't get along at school and often argued."
"Yes," Sirius lowered his head and murmured, "My foolish younger brother... too soft-hearted. He easily believed our parents' pure-blood ideology, thinking that the Black family was inherently noble. We would always quarrel over this, and eventually part ways."
"Young Master Regulus wasn't a fool!" Kreacher screeched, "He was the young mistress' favorite son, far better than Young Master Sirius!"
"I don't need you to remind me of that!" Sirius barked irritably, "Everyone says the same, but what happened in the end? He died, that stupid idiot... He joined the Death Eaters!"
He panted heavily, his eyes red as he continued, "Throw this thing away, it's likely another Dark artifact used by the Death Eaters to harm people."
"No!" Kreacher screamed, leaping forward to snatch the pendant box from Kyle's hand.
This was the first time he had tried to take something in front of Sirius.
However, Kyle easily avoided him by lifting the pendant box slightly.
"I can't let you have this," Kyle said.
Kreacher tried to grab it again, but was stopped by a stern command.
"Stay there, don't move!" Sirius ordered.
Kreacher dared not disobey the direct order, but when he raised his head, the look he gave Sirius was filled with bone-deep hatred.
At this moment, Lupin, who had been silent until now, suddenly asked, "Do you know what this is?"
"I do," Kyle didn't hide it this time, "You should have heard of this too... Slytherin's pendant box."
"What?"
The room fell silent for a moment.
Lupin, realizing what this meant, gasped, his face filled with disbelief.
"Wait, are you talking about the Slytherin from school...?"
"Yes, Salazar Slytherin," Kyle stroked the emeralds on the pendant box, "Just like Godric Gryffindor's sword in the legends."
"Wait..." Sirius was still a little dazed, "Let me think... Slytherin's pendant box... in Regulus' possession... and eventually brought into the Black family home.
"Kyle, you must be joking, right? Or this must be a fake... Although I left this house when I was sixteen, I'm certain that there's no connection between the Blacks and Slytherin."
Lupin felt the same way; he thought that Regulus must have admired Slytherin so much that he created a replica.
"Whether the pendant box is real or not, I'm not sure, but I do know its other name."
"Another name? What do you mean?"
"Professor Lupin..." Kyle asked, "You must have heard of it too, right? The Chamber of Secrets within Hogwarts."
"Of course, I've heard of it, but not in great detail. The professors don't like to talk about it."
Lupin said, "It's said to be connected to the Dark Lord."
"That's right," Kyle agreed, "Because of a diary he left behind during his time at school, he caused quite a stir within the castle and nearly got Hogwarts shut down.
The room fell into silence once more, this time for an even longer duration.
Lupin and Sirius were both processing this revelation, and their initial reactions were surprisingly aligned as they thought Kyle must be mistaken.
However, through their interactions over this period, they knew that Kyle wasn't one to make baseless statements.
"But why?" Sirius asked in a raspy voice, "How did something belonging to the mysterious man end up with Regulus? As far as I know, he wasn't as trusted as Malfoy and Lestrange."
"That's a question for him," Kyle said without explaining further, instead turning to the trembling Kreacher.
"Tell me, why is this thing here?" Sirius demanded, his voice low and dangerous: "What does Regulus have to do with it?"
The elf seemed to recall something terrifying, his body shaking again as he curled into a ball. When he spoke, his voice was dull and muffled.
"Young Master Sirius ran away, and it was good that he did because he was a bad boy. But Young Master Regulus had pride; he knew what the Black name and his pure blood meant... To end the wizards' hiding, he joined the Dark Lord's organization when he turned sixteen. He was so proud then..."
"One day, Young Master Regulus came to visit Kreacher in the kitchen. He said the Dark Lord needed a house-elf... He offered Kreacher, and it was an honor, an honor for him and Kreacher..."
Kreacher's voice grew thick with emotion as he recounted how he had been led into a cave by Voldemort and forced to drink the potion in the stone basin...
"He threw a pendant box into the empty basin and then filled it with the potion... After that, the Dark Lord left on his boat, leaving Kreacher alone on the island..."
"Kreacher felt ill, and wanted to drink from the lake... Many hands reached out from the water, trying to pull Kreacher in..."
"So how did you escape?" Sirius asked.
The elf lifted his ugly head, "Young Master Regulus told Kreacher to go home."
"And then what happened?" Sirius' voice was much softer now, "Why is this thing here?"
"Kreacher told Young Master Regulus about it... hoping for praise... But there was none.
"Young Master Regulus was worried, and he told Kreacher to hide... After some time, Young Master Regulus instructed Kreacher to take him to the cave, the same one Kreacher had visited with the Dark Lord."
"Did he make you drink the potion as well?" Sirius asked, his voice filled with disgust.
Kreacher shook his head, and at some point, he had started sobbing uncontrollably, his tears streaming down his long nose.
Sirius' heart clenched as he seemed to guess what had transpired.
"Young Master Regulus took a pendant box from his pocket, just like the one belonging to the Dark Lord... He told Kreacher to hold it... and wait for the basin to dry... and then swap the pendant boxes..."
Kreacher's sobs grew louder and more anguished.
"He ordered Kreacher to go home... not to tell anyone about it... but to find a way to destroy the first pendant box... and then he drank... he drank all the potion... Kreacher watched as Young Master Regulus... was pulled underwater... and then..."
"Bang!"
Sirius punched the glass cabinet next to him, shattering it, and then grabbed Kreacher by the throat. Like a wild beast, he snarled, "And you just watched? Why didn't you save him when you could have brought him back?"
Lupin quickly stepped forward to pull him away, "Calm down, Padfoot, let him finish."
But Sirius' grip was like a branding iron, impossible to pry open.
"Kreacher couldn't... Young Master Regulus ordered Kreacher not to move... He ordered Kreacher not to move..."
The elf was sobbing uncontrollably, pounding his head with his fists even as Sirius held him by the throat.
"Kreacher is useless, Kreacher couldn't destroy the box, couldn't carry out Young Master's order!"
...
(End of Chapter)
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