As if expecting it, Xing Ze took out a small bottle of whiskey from the ring and threw it to John.
"Ah, I knew you brought it. My nose has always been very good, that's why they called me Big Dog." John unscrewed the bottle cap, first smelled it affectionately, and then took a sip, "Ah~ Bo
Ben, you really understand me."
He took a big gulp and continued: "You see, wine brings friends, boy. The guy told me that Isidore from Mitte's antique shop has always been unhappy with Eric."
"I don't see how this news can be of any use."
"I've always thought you were smart, kid." John mocked, "What would you do if you hated someone so much that you even wanted to kill them?"
Xing Ze rubbed his chin and thought for a while, "Collect information, wait patiently, look for opportunities, and kill with one blow."
In response to this answer, John felt a chill running down his back. He glanced at the young man secretly and said, "Look, you're not that stupid."
"Do you think Isidor has information about Eric that we don't know about?"
"It's not doubt, it's affirmation. That old guy is not as amiable as he seems on the surface."
"Then why don't you go find him?"
John took out a hip flask from his arms and said, "Damn it, boy, the Oil Gang are searching house to house on the street. Do you think now is a good time to cause trouble?"
"Time waits for no one, J. I don't think we have much time left."
"Where did you get this idea? Listen to me, go back and have a good sleep and wait for news from me." John poured the whiskey into the flat bottle.
Xing Ze opened his clothes, revealing the hideous scar on his right shoulder, which he deliberately asked Weber to leave.
"Wow, boy, what did you do?" John's hand shook and he almost spilled the wine.
"Nothing serious, just chatting with two bartenders from the Essex Hotel. I was expecting one of them to be in today's Daily Prophet, but unfortunately not, otherwise I wouldn't have to waste my time.
Already."
"The Essex Hotel? Bartender? You...what are you talking about?"
"Yesterday afternoon, I went to Eric's hiding place in London, a very nice country house. But unfortunately, someone had the same idea. Two were mourners, and I'm not sure about the other one."
"Were the wounds left by them? You killed three wizards by yourself, and two of them were mourners?"
"The wound is another story." Xing Ze took a breath. He didn't plan to tell John that he had encountered the monster in the dream. "I'm lucky. The two mourners are novices. As for the other wizard, ah,
It’s a bit troublesome.”
John poured some wine into his mouth and squinted his eyes without speaking. Xing Ze knew that he was pondering the credibility of what he just said.
About a minute later, he said: "You are much better than I thought, boy. Did you find any useful information on them?"
"There is nothing, nothing that can prove their true identity, and it is not clear why they went back." Xing Ze took out a red candy from the ring, "But I found this on them all."
He threw the candy to John: "I also found this thing in Eric's villa, and I asked someone to test it."
John picked up the candy with his index finger and thumb. "That doesn't mean anything, kid. Almost everyone in Knockturn Alley smokes this stuff, and many members of big families also smoke it."
"There's human tissue in that thing, don't look at me like that, J, that's what you understand."
"Is the source reliable?" John sat up and asked seriously.
"I can't think of any reason why he would lie to me."
John fell into silence again, "Do you remember? What the bar owner said." Xing Ze's voice came, like a cold dagger, "The disappearance of people in Knockturn Alley has been serious recently. It's hard for me not to connect these two things.
Together."
Something lit up in John's eyes, but quickly disappeared. "We have to report this," he said.
"Report to whom? The Ministry of Magic?" Xing Ze chuckled, "Don't you want to report it to the Key Hall?"
"There are children among the missing people!" John shouted excitedly, "Damn it, those bastards are using the missing people as hallucinogens!"
His screams attracted Corey, the chubby store manager, who walked into the warehouse and asked anxiously: "Is everything okay, big dog?"
"It's okay here, Corey." John, who had calmed down a little, waved to the store manager.
When Corey turned around and entered the store, Xing Ze continued: "We can only rely on ourselves, J, you know very well."
"Who sent you to investigate?" John asked with a frown.
"Mr. R."
"That arrogant bastard, I guess you know he doesn't want you to go back, right? For what reason? Just because you are a foreigner?"
"Perhaps Benson left his inheritance to me."
"The legacy of the old guy?" John stood up from the haystack, "Hell, I can't figure it out, but the situation is very unfavorable to us now, and we can't risk provoking the Oil Gang."
"Think about those missing children, think about those parents." Xing Ze said to the hesitant John. For a moment, he seemed to see his past self, "If a child from a big family is lost, the Ministry of Magic will send at least one
Two Aurors. But here, I guess who the hell cares about these people but us?"
John kicked away a broken bucket at his feet in annoyance, and the iron bucket clanged against a broken chair.
"Tell me more about the two bartenders." He said solemnly.
Xing Ze raised the corner of his mouth slightly and recounted last night's experience. When he mentioned the Underground King, he expected John to give some hints, but he didn't.
"Damn, why do I think things are getting more and more complicated?" John sighed, "I guess you went to the alley again before coming here?"
"Yes, the body was disposed of." Xing Ze said, "These people are very careful."
"Then why did they leave bloody words?"
"I guess they are sending a message, or a warning. They want me to stop here. It would be nice if I learned the tracking spell. There was still a lot of residual magic in that place when I arrived last night."
If you have learned it, I will be surprised again, John thought to himself. "Not everyone can come into contact with this kind of high-end magic. What I'm curious about is why they warned you, wouldn't it be better to kill you in an alley."
Xing Ze couldn't understand this, so he could only reply uncertainly: "Cecil - the madman who wanted to blow up the train - he mentioned that he thought I was the chosen one like them.
Maybe they want me to change my mind."
John whistled, shook his head and said, "You have so many secrets, boy."