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Chapter 664: Discussion on Parchment
【Antoine: Hahaha, so it's just an investigation. I thought it was strange—there's still two weeks until the Tournament, and now they're already preparing at the venue.】
On the Parchment, Antoine’s handwriting radiated an unmistakably lively energy.
【Antoine: Any findings yet?】
Wade glanced out the window. Twilight shrouded the aircraft of Salem Academy, with only a few windows still glowing with light.
He lowered his eyes, and began writing on the Parchment:
【Wade: I don’t think so. Today’s school was as quiet and normal as ever.】
【Antoine: I can’t speak for the other schools, but at least I can guarantee—no student at Salem Academy has been replaced.】
【Wade: You’ve been watching them all the time?】
【Antoine: No. It’s the atmosphere of this house—it can’t be faked, even if someone’s transformed into an identical appearance.】
【Antoine: And the students here are tightly knit—there’s a family-like bond among them. You know, on the day the Champion was chosen, I didn’t see a single trace of envy or resentment on any child’s face.】
【Antoine: So if someone inside had been replaced, they would’ve noticed immediately—even if a Confusion Charm or Memory Modification Charm was used.】
Wade paused, then wrote again:
【Wade: Actually, I’ve been thinking… maybe the reason the victim was killed wasn’t because they were meant to be replaced, but because they discovered something about the killer’s secret.】
【Antoine: So the skeleton wasn’t deliberately buried—instead, the man was still alive when he walked into Hogwarts himself?】
【Antoine: Maybe the poor soul was planning to tell Dumbledore what he’d found. The outcome? He was intercepted mid-way… then erased, turned into a corpse with no identity.】
【Antoine: Your theory is fascinating. Now I think this might actually be the truth.】
Yes, this was exactly Wade’s thought.
He rose from his seat and paced the room twice, his heart suddenly pounding. A strange, electric sensation prickled at the back of his skull.
When he finally wrote again, he could feel his blood surging through his veins.
【Wade: But if that’s the case, it raises a new question…】
【Antoine: How did the killer gain the victim’s trust?】
【Wade: If he was going to reveal a major secret, he’d be extremely nervous—wouldn’t just casually confide in anyone.】
【Antoine: If a stranger—or someone with a questionable identity—had approached him, he’d have been on high alert. So how could he have been killed so quietly, right near the castle, with all the school heads gathered in Hogwarts?】
【Wade: The killer must have first gained his trust—got close to him personally.】
【Antoine: And the only people who could do that—under such circumstances—would be someone from Hogwarts… perhaps even one of Dumbledore’s most trusted allies.】
【Wade: But they haven’t been replaced.】
【Antoine: You’re sure?】
【Wade: Absolutely.】
After a long silence, new text finally appeared on the Parchment.
【Antoine: Then this incident just got even more interesting, don’t you think?】
Wade could almost picture the smirk on Antoine’s face—the playful, expectant grin of a child who delights in watching beauty collapse into chaos. Not malicious, but full of a quiet, innate hunger for destruction.
After a long pause, Wade wrote:
【Wade: This is just our speculation, nothing more.】
【Antoine: Indeed (laugh).】
【Wade: Rather than suspecting a professor has been controlled or bribed, I’m more inclined to believe the killer is hiding in another school—say, Durmstrang.】
【Antoine: Of course, that’s possible too. Dumbledore can’t search other schools, and the Aurors are bound by rules. All we can do is observe in secret.】
【Wade: So your thought is…】
【Antoine: I consider you someone who doesn’t lie to yourself (laugh).】
Wade’s nostrils flared sharply. He stared at the words on the parchment, silent for a long time.
No replacement… so the killer must be a professor from within the school?
Who could he doubt?
By convention, the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor would be the first suspect.
But he studied the name again and again—Moody remained Moody. No sign of a transformation into someone like Barty Crouch.
Alastor Moody was a warrior who’d rather die than bow to a Dark Wizard.
And Old Barty hadn’t returned to Hogwarts since his departure last time. Even for Tournament matters, it was Ludo Bagman who traveled between Hogwarts and the Ministry of Magic.
Could that skeleton be Old Barty?
But…
Despite the abundance of talent among Hogwarts’ professors, few could wield such dark magic—so silently, so efficiently, that someone could be killed without a sound.
To be precise, aside from Dumbledore, only four House Heads, Professor Mor, and Professor Moody had the level of skill to pull it off.
If this were Harry’s situation, he’d have immediately pointed the finger: “It’s Snape—he’s got to be the one! I knew he was up to something!”
Wade could almost see the expression on Harry’s face, the way he’d say it, and the reactions of the others around him.
But because he knew the plot, Wade knew Snape was one of the least likely traitors.
And because he knew the plot, he also knew Snape wasn’t just a Death Eater—he was trusted deeply by Voldemort himself, even receiving magical knowledge directly from the Dark Lord in the original story.
When it came to Dark Magic, Snape was undoubtedly among the most knowledgeable professors at Hogwarts.
Professor Mor…
Putting him on the list of suspects felt unfair.
Because Professor Mor had never shown any signs of powerful combat ability. Wade only knew he was a master of Alchemy, with deep expertise in ancient texts most people had never even heard of.
But then again—since Wade had never seen Professor Mor in battle, how could he be certain he wasn’t hiding a secret strength?
Given his age and intellect, Wade thought—if Professor Mor wanted to, he could certainly master Dark Magic too.
After a long moment of silence, Wade finally replied:
【Wade: Help me look into two people… see if there’s anything unusual about them lately.】
【Antoine: No problem.】 The reply came almost instantly. 【Within three days, I’ll send you the results.】
【Wade: Thank you… I’ll leave it in your hands.】
He closed the Book of Friends, and sat alone at his desk, extinguishing most of the magic candles. Only one flickering candle remained, casting a dancing, shifting shadow across the room.
Outside, the trees of the Forbidden Forest swayed in the wind, twisting into grotesque, unnatural shapes—reminding him of the moment the giant tree had suddenly come alive.
Durmstrang’s ship rocked gently on the water, the lake’s waves slapping against the shore with a steady, rhythmic splash.
Then—suddenly—his eyelid twitched.
He turned sharply, instinctively holding his breath.
On the far edge of the Black Lake, a figure had suddenly appeared in his line of sight.
Silent. Still.
Standing at the water’s edge, its silhouette blurred by the night mist, only its silver-white hair glowing faintly in the darkness.
(End of Chapter)
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