Dumbledore glanced at the elf in front of him, frowned and asked softly.
He never expected that just before Nico Flamel and Nearly Headless Nick left, an unexpected incident involving outsiders infiltrating Hogwarts Castle occurred, and it happened directly in the student dormitory.
Dumbledore's first reaction was - I'm afraid this is not a conspiracy written and directed by some white-haired dumpling.
However, Dumbledore gave up this idea immediately.
Maybe Elena is a little naughty in many places, but she takes commitment very seriously.
Moreover, the timing was too coincidental, it was only less than a few hours, and the child was probably still playing with his friends, so it was impossible for him to have the energy to do such boring things... Even if there was a real situation, it would not happen so quickly.
"No, I'm very sorry, Mr. Dumbledore!"
Looking at the solemn-looking Headmaster of Hogwarts not far away, the house elf answered tremblingly.
"But before we could get closer, he apparated away alertly. But judging from the scene, he was probably looking for something... We found that a lot of clothes, boxes, and bedside tables had been turned over.
Mark of."
"It's useless even if you can see his face clearly, right? Professor Dumbledore."
Sir Nicholas, who was floating aside, touched his chin and whispered thoughtfully.
"Strange house elves, the boys' dormitory of Slytherin College - this is a bit interesting. As far as I know, there should be few magical families that meet the requirements. Assuming there are still students in Hogwarts, the range is
Even smaller.”
House elves are a species enslaved by wizards.
Under the influence of magic and countless generations of enslavement education, they are extremely loyal to their masters and usually only serve one mansion or one family throughout their lives. Generally, house elves only appear in very ancient wizarding families.
They are responsible for taking care of the old and luxurious houses and completing the housework conscientiously.
Even if they hate their master very much, they cannot disobey their master's orders. Unless they are given clothes by their master, they cannot be free. In fact, it is a shame for most house elves to be free.
However, Hogwarts is a little different.
As one of the four founders, Lady Helga Hufflepuff generously accepted thousands of house elves, allowing them to live in the castle, thrive and serve the school rather than a particular family.
——No one except the Headmaster has the right to expel a Hogwarts house elf, nor can he forcefully order them.
Of course, there is an extra chef in Hogwarts today.
In the Hogwarts kitchen, the chef has a greater say than the principal...fortunately, it is limited to the kitchen for the time being.
"Okay, I understand. Anyway, please stay alert."
Dumbledore said to the house elf in front of him.
After the elves left, he sighed softly and pinched the bridge of his nose in annoyance.
"Do you think we should invite Miss Kaslana over now?"
"No need to," Nick said without hesitation, "There are still a lot of doubts about the specific circumstances of this matter. I think the first step is to investigate the truth and motives. Professor Dumbledore, I think you have some guesses.
?”
The almost headless Nick glanced at the old man and said slowly.
"Once something like rights is released, it is like a wild beast that has been released from the cage and is difficult to recapture."
Dumbledore heard something in Nick's voice and asked.
"You are also a little worried about Elena, aren't you?"
"No one is afraid of tomorrow's stars who are better than you," Nick said quickly, "but - you have to admit that maybe the future is destined to belong to them, but they have to pass it on bit by bit carefully instead of throwing it away all at once.
go out……"
"Well, I know this."
Dumbledore nodded slowly and whispered thoughtfully.
"Slytherin boys' dormitory, looking for things, house elves, shady things..."
Maybe he'll have to write a letter to some young school board member.
…
"Trash! You useless thing!"
Malfoy Manor, Lucius Malfoy angrily scolded the house elf who returned to the front.
If it weren't for the fact that this was the last house elf in the Malfoy family, he would even have planned to strangle it directly, but then the management of Malfoy Manor would have to fall on him and his wife - the ancient, glorious Malfoy
, just like those down-and-out wizard families, cleaning, building branches, and cooking food...
That scene was really terrible.
"But, but, master, Dobby has searched through the little master's boxes and clothes, but he really didn't see anything."
Dobby the house elf replied tremblingly, his big ugly head shaking in fear.
"The elves from Hogwarts just happened to show up. If he doesn't leave, Dobby will be caught. However, if the little master doesn't have them there, might he just throw them away on the way..."
"Throw it away? Oh, do you think Draco is that kind of imbecile fool who throws away everything!?"
Lucius Malfoy said irritably, his face turning even paler.
When the Dark Lord gave him the book for safekeeping, he did not tell him in detail what it was.
Over the years, he occasionally turned over it once or twice, but it was all blank and without any writing, but he did not try any further.
However, Lucius did not completely understand the function of that thing.
"It can open the Hogwarts Chamber of Secrets and cleanse the school's bloodline. When it returns to the school, it will naturally play a role."
This was the only information revealed by the Dark Lord, but this alone was enough to make Lucius extremely afraid.
Unlike most wizards, and even most Death Eaters, his relationship with Voldemort is much closer.
Lucius's father, Abraxas Malfoy, was once a close friend of the Dark Lord when he was a student. He was once one of the few wizards in the world who knew the Dark Lord's true name - and the Dark Lord's true origin.
Under this level of relationship, Lucius Malfoy had already been branded with the Dark Mark on his arm before he graduated.
Because of this, Lucius knew very well that the Chamber of Secrets at Hogwarts was really opened fifty years ago - the Dark Lord as a student controlled the monsters in the Chamber of Secrets and eliminated a Mudblood, almost forcing the school to close.
.
With the reports of the public trial of Peter Pettigrew, everyone knew that Tom Riddle was the Dark Lord's real name.
With the tacit approval of the Ministry of Magic, Arthur Weasley, who was originally in a marginal position, has become a lot more active recently. He has confiscated prohibited dark magic items from various wizarding families and issued fines in turn - this is the first time that the Ministry of Magic has ever
Since last year, the most important source of financial welfare - with such a stake, the older the pure-blood wizard family, the more delicious it is.
All kinds of factors were added together, and this enchanted book suddenly became hot to touch.
Lucius Malfoy does not want to become the second "Lestrange" family. Once there is a first time, there will be a second time. Compared with other wizarding families, the Malfoy family
It is easier to become a blood-sucking target.
"Dobby, let me tell you again...everything happened before, starting from when Draco found you."
Mr. Malfoy took a deep breath and tried to calm down.
"Don't leave out a single detail. What did Draco say, what expression he looked on...and what exactly he did after entering my collection room. Where did he go after leaving Malfoy Manor? Did he show any abnormal behavior?
…”
Compared with losing the Dark Lord's "Chamber Key", he is now more worried about the whereabouts of that thing.
I have to say, everything is really weird.
The day after he took the troublesome things to the [Bojin and Burke Store] in Knockturn Alley to "sell the stolen goods", the notebook that was put back into the collection room for future disposal was stolen by Draco——
Lucius didn't think this could be a simple coincidence.
Sure enough, after calming down and listening to Dobby's retelling again, he quickly discovered the problem.
"Wait, how long has Draco been in my collection room?"
"Uh, but, maybe, less than half a minute, maybe even shorter... Young Master, he..."
"Okay, shut up, don't make any noise!"
After hearing Dobby's answer, Lucius Malfoy frowned heavily.
In less than half a minute, this meant that Draco knew exactly what he was looking for.
In other words, before entering the collection room, someone told Draco what the target was... This is really incredible. In theory, apart from him, even Narcissa doesn't know much about that book.
Information.
If you count carefully, except for him, the Dark Lord, and your dead father, there is no third person who can leak the secret.
Wait, there is another "person"——
Lucius Malfoy's eyes suddenly fell on the trembling Dobby, and he narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Dobby!" Mr. Malfoy asked sharply, "Did you tell anyone else what you heard?!"
"No, no...Master, I didn't reveal a word..."
Dobby stiffened suddenly, and then began to tremble more violently, his bat-like ears swaying from side to side.
"As expected, you are the one who eats everything!"
The next moment, Lucius Malfoy's face was instantly covered with frost, and he kicked the elf hard in the stomach.
Dobby's painful screams echoed in the living room, but Lucius's voice drowned out his voice.
"Tell me, who did you tell?! What did you say!"
"Master, master, Dobby really, really, didn't reveal a word..."
The elf groaned in pain, panted, filled with fear, and screamed intermittently.
"you--"
Lucius Malfoy raised his feet with a ferocious expression, preparing to continue the execution.
At this moment, he suddenly heard familiar footsteps and a familiar woman's voice coming from outside the living room.
"Lucius, what happened?"
"Whether there is or not, I will find out later. It's best not -"
Looking at the house elf struggling painfully on the stall, Lucius said bitterly.
With the arrival of his wife, he gradually broke away from his previous intuition and restored his rational logical model.
House elves cannot betray their masters. This is a magical bond that is imprinted deep in their souls.
Thousands of years later, Lucius Malfoy had never heard of a house elf who would betray his master.
At least before the clothes were given and the magical restraints were released, nothing like this had ever happened - the few times the masters were bitten, all happened to house elves who were unable to accept the fact of freedom and went crazy after accidentally giving clothes.
But in this case, Draco's behavior cannot be explained...
Lucius Malfoy dealt with his wife casually while thinking silently in his heart.
If someone really used Draco to steal the Dark Lord's things from him, then there are only two possibilities: destroying this dangerous dark magic item; or trying to pry into the Dark Lord's magical secrets...
But no matter what the reason is, the person behind the scenes will definitely find ways to take things away from Draco.
Compared to adults with complex interpersonal relationships, Draco, who has just turned twelve, is too simple and easy to deceive.
Apart from those "old friends" who visited Malfoy Manor before Draco entered school, if you think about it carefully, the only ones who are most likely to come into contact with and influence Draco are certain wizards in Hogwarts.
Already.
Judging from Draco's changes this summer, the latter is obviously much more likely than the former.
"Narcissa, do you remember who Draco's friends are at school?"
Lucius Malfoy was silent for a few seconds, then asked softly, somewhat abruptly.
"Except for Goyle and the two boys from Crabbe's family, they are relatively close friends. Do you have any impression?"
"Draco's friend? Why do you suddenly care about this?"
Narcissa Malfoy casually glanced at Dobby who stepped aside and frowned slightly.
"As a member of the school board, don't you know more about things in the school than me? Let me think about it, except for the two mudblood girls with slightly better grades, the daughter of the Parkinson family, the daughter of the Hannah family...
A slightly better friend... By the way, if I want to say that I have the best relationship, Harry Potter? It should be this kid."
"Well, I often hear Draco talking about other things - by the way, didn't they spend a month together during the summer vacation!"
Mrs. Malfoy hesitated for a moment and looked at her husband suspiciously.
"What, what happened? Didn't you agree to this later? Black is considered Draco's uncle. And Severus is helping to look after him. Judging from the results, Draco is better than you back then.
too much."
"Nothing, I just asked casually..."
Lucius Malfoy shook his head, thinking about the names in his mind for a while.
The two girls from the non-magical world were eliminated first. Even though Miss Kaslana was very dazzling, she came out of a Muggle orphanage and there was no way she had even the slightest connection with the dark history of decades ago.
As for the Parkinson and Hannah families, the former only joined the Death Eaters in the middle and late stages, while the latter has always been selling alcohol neutrally.
In this case, the answer will almost come to light.
"Harry Potter..."
Lucius Malfoy whispered thoughtfully.
Although the "Boy Who Lived" had been living in the non-magical world before, Lucius knew very well that there was always a pair of invisible hands hidden behind Harry, quietly manipulating everything behind the scenes.
"Dumbledore, what do you want to do...or what do you know..."