Little Hangleton Village, Riddle House.

"... Master, master, that's it."

"That is to say, McLean hasn't taken the Prophecy Ball? It remains in the Prophecy Hall?"

"Yes Master……"

"Huh, I see ... you did a good job this time ..."

Lucius stood anxiously at the long table, answering Voldemort's question with a trembling voice.

On the other side, Voldemort was still sitting at the end of the long table, and his somber expression showed that he was not in a good mood now.

Compared to the period in which Maca was still alive, the number of Death Eaters in Riddle House is now much lower, because many people were arrested at the last audio-visual conference.

Azkaban has also stepped up his vigilance. Except for the small part of Voldemort's income, other dementors have been restricted to the island where the Azkaban wizard prison is located.

After the escape from Maca, the Ministry of Magic also exerted a lot of effort, but now it seems that these efforts are worth the effort.

The forces that Voldemort gathered up did not develop much more easily than the Order of the Phoenix.

At this moment, there were still dozens of black wizards sitting sparsely on the long conference table. They bowed their heads and said nothing, apparently they are also under great pressure here.

Some of these pressures came from the angry Voldemort, while others came from the powerful resistance of the Order of the Phoenix.

"All in all, this operation is fruitful-starting now, that McLean's strength will inevitably decline significantly, and we are one step closer to that common ideal!"

"... It sounds nice, don't you get hurt yourself?"

In the past, whenever Voldemort spoke, no one would dare to bother to talk, let alone speak.

But now, one person always puts a pot of cold water at such a critical moment.

"..." Voldemort's eyes twitched, and the blue veins on his temples bounced slightly, apparently holding back the anger. "Mr. Blois, please don't interrupt yourself?

In front of the window next to the conference table, a middle-aged man in a luxurious suit was sitting there with his legs up, his eyes always on the scenery outside the window.

"Since I promised to help you once, I naturally need to consider gains and losses," he said coldly, "if possible, naturally the easier the better-the Blois family resources are not used to waste of."

"Hum!" Voldemort snorted coldly, dissatisfied with the words, "So what, the transaction is the transaction."

"If you're dead, wouldn't the trade be gone?" Said Mr. Blois, glanced back at him and said, "It's not easy for you to see me ..."

"... Compared with your 'borrowed' power, I am more interested in the other wizard."

"Then you'd better--"

Voldemort's angry words were mixed, and he halted himself.

This sudden emerged wizard has now become one of his important hole cards, and he doesn't want to push it to his opposite due to his impulse.

The situation is bad enough now. If we add such a powerful wizard with an ancient heritage as an opponent, he might as well just admit defeat.

"Okay, Mr. Blois." Voldemort took a deep breath. "I will try my best to get the advantage, which is exactly what I have been doing."

"That's good," Mr. Blois nodded slightly. "By the way, I remind you: your injury is most likely related to ancient magic."

Voldemort subconsciously touched his lower back, where there was a constant cold out there, and even the chair he was sitting on was frosting.

His current body is entirely condensed from the power of the Bewitching Stele. The beam of light emitted by Ke Ma Ka can even affect non-physical energy.

Now that he has kept the "cold air" from spreading, he has not thought of any way to get rid of it.

This sneak attack was actually the result of a loss of both.

"At least this time, his injury must have been more severe than mine." Voldemort's handsome face showed a sneer, but then became more gloomy.

At the last moment, he was almost thrown into that weird arch.

When he was only a few inches away from the black curtain, he even faintly heard some inexplicable whispers and penetrated the curtain to his ears.

That stuff is dangerous! Absolutely dangerous! If it wasn't necessary, he would never want to be near that place in his life.

"Lucius ..."

"the host?"

"I remember, did your son attend Hogwarts? Is it also at Slytherin College?"

"Uh ... yes, yes, master."

"He will bring him next, and I will have dinner with him."

"Master, this ... my son is too young, I'm afraid he won't be of any use--"

"Ok?"

"No ... ah, yes, yes, I see, master."

"Just understand, you go back first! How much more care do you have at the Ministry of Magic ..."

"This, this is my honor, master ..."

...

Old Black House, in the innermost bedroom on the left side of the second floor. Tia was crouching on the table by the window, staring blankly at the outside square against the window glass.

Probably because she used to take a shower when no one was there in the early morning, she looked much cleaner than before.

The smooth long black hair was loosely tied by her, then rested casually on her shoulder.

She wore a set of pajamas worn by Mrs. Weasley when she was young-it looked a little short, but she could still make up if she didn't see anyone.

Under this lazy dress, her face, which had no character at all, looked even more plain and unremarkable at this time. It was a look that was hardly noticeable on the street.

She has been in this bedroom ever since she was forcibly captured by the dark-skinned wizard.

At first she was actually imprisoned here, but she has stayed here for a long time, and she did not want to go out.

For Tia, it's better than any place she's ever stayed-no need to see people, no talking, no scolding, being bullied, and having food every day.

If there weren't something lingering in her mind, she really wanted to live here forever.

Thinking of this, Tia pulled a silver pendant from the collar, and gently sipped it on top of the pendant. With a click, the pendant automatically popped open the flip cover, revealing the small photo inside.

This is an ordinary Muggle photo. The man and the woman on top are smiling and cuddling together, looking very happy.

Behind the pair of men and women, there was an undisturbed river; in the distance, beside the man's head, a row of low buildings could be seen faintly.

It is worth mentioning that there is a strange black pillar that is thick and long, and seems to stand out in that row of buildings.

Tia glanced at the photo in the pendant, stretched out her finger to touch it gently, but finally retracted and closed her hand.

"Tuk Tuk."

Just as Tia was stunned, there were two reserved knocks on the door of the bedroom.

Tia's hand holding the pendant shook slightly, and then immediately tugged the pendant back into the collar, looking nervously at the door.

"Miss Tia, it's me, Lena."

It's actually very easy to get along with Lena, even Tia thinks the same-Lena doesn't like to talk much, but can quickly understand your intentions and make a short and appropriate response.

And most importantly, Lena is good at keeping distance from people.

For Tia, who would be upset when she saw anyone, her existence was simply a kind of redemption.

Tia crawled off the bed lightly, hurriedly came to the door in slippers, and pouted to open the bedroom door.

Lena walked into the room with the tray, silently placed it on the table next to it, then packed up the finished lunch tableware, and went quietly outside the door ~ lightnovelpub.net ~ Throughout, she didn't say a word, not even seeing Tia. But her behavior will not leave an impolite impression, because her every move seems so peaceful and natural.

"... thank you, thank you."

This is the first time Tia has been actively speaking to others since moving here.

Lena turned back slightly at the door. Instead of speaking, she gave Tia a little gift, and then brought the door silently.

Tia watched the door closed for a moment, then walked towards the dinner table.

"Yeah--"

The moment she just sat down and took the fork in her hand, a vicious scream came downstairs, scaring her, and the fork in her hand almost fell into the soup bowl.

However, it was surprising that she did not curl up and tremble with fear as usual.

In fact, it's all because she's lived here for a long time, and she's used to the screams of terror.

Needless to say, who must have been woken up by Sirius' mother!

This old house has always been very lively, and in this regard, Tia is very uncomfortable. But even so, compared to other places, life here is enough to satisfy her.

Holding the fork again, Tia carefully lifted a piece of baked potato and stuffed it into her mouth.

Only every time she eats, she will show a sweet smile. No matter if the food is delicious on earth or shabby brown bread, as long as she can fill her belly, she will be satisfied.

People who haven't experienced a long-suffering life can never truly appreciate this supreme sense of happiness.