Suddenly, a teacup appeared in front of Lucius, filled with steaming Ceylon tea.
This cup of black tea was brewed just right; both the concentration and the temperature were to his liking.
Taking a sip of black tea, a warm current seemed to flow into his limbs, making him feel calmer.
Lucius slammed his cane down, and a house-elf appeared, bowing deeply and pressing his nose almost to the ground. "Master, what are your orders?"
"Have Draco come to the study."
...
After dismissing the house-elf, he took out a notebook from his pocket. It had a plain black cover and looked unremarkable.
The content inside was also unremarkable; the first page had a very ordinary name: TMRiddle.
A notebook he bought from a Muggle stationery store was handed to him by Voldemort himself, who told him to keep it safe.
Lucius kept the notebook at the manor for more than ten years.
He disdained using a Muggle notebook, especially one with a very ordinary Muggle name on it.
During the time Draco was at home for summer vacation, he gradually realized the unusual nature of the notebook.
This notebook, which he had carelessly tossed aside in a corner of the basement and told his house-elves not to bother with, remained completely untouched by dust, looking exactly as it had when he first acquired it.
Lucius's mindset changed; he went from disdaining the use of a notebook to being wary of it.
This notebook was definitely not simple!
As the patriarch of an ancient pure-blood family, he possessed considerable expertise, at least in his understanding of dark magic.
For this reason, he was even more afraid to use the notebook casually, lest he be harmed by the dark magic hidden within it.
Furthermore, he carried the notebook with him at all times to prevent Narcissa and Draco from coming into contact with it.
...
Just in the past month, Arthur Weasley suddenly went mad and launched a campaign to "confiscate contraband from wizards' homes," with a particular focus on confiscating dark magic items.
This time he was serious; he even raided nine wizarding families with prior convictions in just one night.
Arthur Weasley did this in preparation for a Muggle Protection Act that was still in the consultation phase.
How could Lucius tolerate such a thing happening?
So he planned to use the notebook to find a way to slip it to Arthur Weasley in order to frame him.
If it became clear that Arthur Weasley also possessed dark magic items, Lucius could use this evidence to work with the Ministry of Magic to repeal the so-called bullshit Muggle Protection Act.
...
Today was supposed to be a great opportunity; after making a deal with Borgin, he happened to see that annoying redhead on the street.
He could simply find some excuse to contact the Weasleys and hand the notebook to one of the redheads, and then he could officially begin his plan.
To his utter surprise, he sensed the Dark Mark on his arm reappear halfway through the journey.
The burning sensation that penetrated to his very bones made his mind go blank, and he forgot the plans he was supposed to be making.
...
"Dad, may I come in?"
The sudden sound interrupted Lucius's thoughts.
"Come in." Lucius coughed lightly, adjusting himself to be at his best.
"Dad, you wanted to see me?" Draco asked somewhat awkwardly as he sat down in the chair opposite Lucius.
Lucius asked softly, his tone even, "Do you know that person... a man named Vizette Lovegood?"
"Vizette Lovegood?" Draco frowned. "He's my classmate… that Obscurial. Dad, have you forgotten? You're the one who told me that."
Lucius continued, "Besides that, which house is he from?"
"Ravenclaw!" Draco frowned. "It's because of him that Slytherin failed to defend their House Cup title this year!"
"Go on."
"And then there's the final exam, and Professor Snape actually gave him an 'O'! And he's a Ravenclaw!"
"Severus gave a Ravenclaw 'O'?" Lucius tapped the desk lightly with his index finger.
A cup of black tea appeared in front of Draco.
Draco nodded. "Pansy and the other Slytherins wanted to go and ask Professor Snape for an explanation, but he had already left Hogwarts for a holiday."
"To get Severus to give an 'O'…" Lucius murmured, "and tell me everything about Vizette Lovegood, Draco."
"Uh…" Draco picked up his teacup, took a sip, and frowned in thought. "Vizette Lovegood sees Professor Snape every weekend."
"Besides that... according to those Hufflepuffs, he also seems to have received extra points from Professor Snape... actually, many professors have given him extra points..."
"Plus Quidditch, he's a Chaser, and his technique is truly... Anyway, he won this year's Quidditch Trophy, which is why Slytherin lost the House Cup..."
"And what I told you before... after the final exams, a dark wizard invaded Hogwarts, and it was he, Harry Potter, and Quirrell who dealt with him together."
Lucius interlaced his fingers, his two thumbs circling each other, "An excellent student, beloved by professors from all disciplines..."
"And he's accomplished something in Quidditch, helping Ravenclaw win a trophy as a Chaser... He just started school like you, right?"
"Yes… Dad!" Draco lowered his head, his tone somewhat dejected.
"A strange sense of familiarity…" Lucius rubbed his temples. "Draco, is there anything else you haven't said?"
He knew his child too well; he could tell from the hesitation in Draco's voice that he was definitely hiding something.
"Dad...it's gone...cough cough cough!" Draco took another sip of black tea, choked, and coughed repeatedly.
Lucius raised his head slightly, arched his eyebrows, and said in a drawn-out voice, "Draco... you should remember that your father is a Hogwarts school board member. There are some things that I can find out if I want to."
"It was me… last time I tried to find evidence that Harry Potter was carrying a dragon, but Professor McGonagall caught me…" Draco's voice trailed off.
"Then Professor McGonagall deducted twenty points from my score... and I was also punished by having to patrol the Forbidden Forest with Harry Potter and the others..."
"Then I encountered Vizette Lovegood... he was on the back of a centaur... seemingly there to hunt the Acromantula in the Forbidden Forest..."
"Oh?" Lucius narrowed his eyes, resting his chin on his interlaced fingers. "Hunting the Acromantula?"
Draco breathed a sigh of relief when he realized his father wasn't interested in the points he'd lost, and his voice rose a few decibels, "That's right! It was that centaur who said it."
"That centaur also had a huge spider leg, which must be the leg of the Acromantula. What Grandpa wrote in his diary is true; the Acromantula is in the Forbidden Forest!"
…
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