"No, really, this actually is a good thing!"
The two of them shoved and pushed each other right out of the house.
And in the middle of the scuffle, the suitcase in Wade's hand was "accidentally" flung away.
Clatter!
The case hit the ground, and the lid popped open on its own.
Then Tom saw a withered, hideous hand stretch out from inside the case…
"Fuck! What the hell is that?" Tom shouted in shock.
"It's fine, Tom. Just a Dementor, that's all," Wade said, brushing off his clothes. He suspected that indescribable smell had rubbed off on him as well…
At that moment, the Dementor floated out of the suitcase, having caught the scent of "food."
Emotion other than Wade's. Someone else's happiness.
"Oh! Bloody hell! A Dementor? You mean the kind from Azkaban?" Tom looked up at the creature.
"Yeah… it really is just—"
"You actually brought a bloody Dementor into my house, and you're saying 'just a Dementor'? 'That's all'?" Tom felt his vision go dark.
He spun around and grabbed Wade by the shoulders, shaking him violently. "Are you trying to get my entire family killed?"
Wade's head rocked back and forth as he was shaken, his words coming out broken and jerky. "Nothing… will… happen… and I… this… is… for your own good… Tom!"
"I don't see how this is good for me at all—" Tom's words cut off abruptly as he felt an icy chill rush in from the side.
Then a thought struck him.
Neither he nor Wade knew the Patronus Charm.
And right now, a freshly freed Dementor was lurking right beside them.
The moment this sank in, Tom's vision went dark again.
"Motherfucking Dark Lord Wade! This time you're not just getting yourself killed, you're taking me with you!"
Whoosh!
Starving with hunger, the Dementor lunged straight toward Tom. This time, it intended to feast.
"Stop," Wade said.
The Dementor slammed to a halt, freezing directly in front of Wade and Tom, not daring to move a single step closer.
"Squat. Stand up. Left. Right. Raise your hand…"
Tom stared in shock at the Dementor being ordered around by Wade like a trained dog.
"You… you—you actually tamed a Dementor!" Tom was so stunned he could barely get the words out.
"Yeah. It's really nothing to be surprised about," Wade said smugly.
Tom was completely speechless.
"You want to try? This is way more fun than a dog," Wade said.
"Huh? Me? Try what?" Tom still hadn't fully processed what he was seeing.
He looked at the Dementor. Even though it no longer dared to attack him after being stopped, just standing there was still enough to drain Tom's positive emotions.
That alone showed just how terrifying this Dark creature was.
And if that was the case, just how evil was Wade, who could tame such a thing?
"Try controlling the Dementor," Wade said.
"I can too?" Tom asked, enduring the discomfort as he looked at the Dementor again.
"See the collar around its neck? That's the key to controlling it. I just need to teach you the spell, and you can do it too. If it doesn't behave, just use that incantation."
A few minutes later, Tom had completely mastered the method of controlling a Dementor.
But he didn't experiment much further and instead ordered the Dementor back into the suitcase.
After the Dementor closed the lid on its own, Tom collapsed directly onto the ground.
It wasn't that he didn't want to try more. Just standing near that thing was already draining his positive emotions nonstop.
Tom was still young and couldn't handle it for long. "So… this so-called good thing of yours was just to show off that you've figured out how to tame a Dementor?" he asked, panting.
"No," Wade shook his head. "Didn't you say before that in the entire Advanced Spellbook, the only spell you couldn't master was the Patronus Charm? Actually, as long as you have a Dementor present, practicing the Patronus Charm becomes twice as effective with half the effort."
Tom suddenly sat up. "But you know… I seem unable—"
"You couldn't before, that's true. But now?" Wade waved his hand with a grin. "Someone who can comprehend Professor Dumbledore's magic of love—how could he fail to cast a Patronus?"
"That's true… and I really do feel my Dark Magic growing weaker lately," Tom murmured.
His dislike of using Dark Magic now had another important reason: recently, its power had been steadily declining, whether in raw strength or casting speed. In an actual fight, even defensive spells were more reliable.
Because of that, Tom's interest in Dark Magic was fading more and more.
"So there's really no need to worry about backlash at all. As long as you work with the Dementor, you'll definitely be able to master the Patronus Charm," Wade kept coaxing.
Tom frowned and thought for a long while before giving Wade a suspicious look. "So you really didn't come here today to screw me over?"
"How could I screw you over, Tom? How could you even think that?" Wade looked deeply wounded.
Tom narrowed his eyes. "No. There's no way. You're definitely trying to screw me over. I just don't know how yet… but every time you say things like this, I always end up losing out!"
"Tch. Good deeds go unrewarded. Forget it, practice it or don't. I can't even use the Patronus myself, so it's fine if you can't either…" Wade muttered as he stood up.
Tom was getting way too sharp now. It was getting harder to fool him, so Wade figured he'd have to make other plans…
However, the moment Tom heard Wade's muttering, he immediately stood up. "You just said you still can't use the Patronus Charm, right?"
"Yeah. So what? You already know the reason," Wade replied irritably.
"Good. Then I'll learn it!" Tom said cheerfully. "If I can master something that you, Wade, can't, then even if I get screwed over again, I'm willing!"
"Sss… Tom! How can you think like that?" Wade looked utterly devastated. "I'm not letting you learn it anymore! I'm not letting you learn it!"
As he spoke, Wade grabbed the suitcase and turned to leave, but Tom reached out and snatched it away. "Hand it over."
"Fine…" Wade could only turn around with a look of resigned acceptance, completely deflated.
"Hm? Where are you going?" Tom asked as he checked the suitcase in his hands.
"I can't cast the Patronus Charm anyway. Staying here won't help you. I'll go have a chat with your father," Wade said, then walked off into the woods and vanished from Tom's sight.
Tom didn't pay Wade any further attention and turned back to the suitcase in his hands.
"To hell with it!"
Tom took out all the chocolate in the cabin and set it aside, preparing for recovery after heavy consumption.
Then he opened the suitcase again.
…
Outside the woods, there was no trace of the dispirited look Wade had shown earlier.
Tom was getting sharp now. Trying to fool him wasn't nearly as easy as before…
Still, this time could be considered a success in the end.
Even if a Dementor didn't actively drain someone's positive emotions, its mere presence was enough to passively siphon them from nearby humans.
So as long as Tom failed to master the Patronus Charm, that Dementor could continue to passively feed on Tom's positive emotions indefinitely.
Especially when Tom had to gather joyful emotions and build up for the Patronus Charm.
At that rate, in just a few days, Wade would have another Dementor restored to full condition.
When that time came, Wade would let Tom rest for a day, then take the Dementor away to harvest its negative emotions.
Once the Dementor had been drained dry again, he would simply toss it back to Tom.
In other words, Tom's positive emotions were this Dementor's food.
And the negative emotions were the Dementor's blood.
Muhahahahahaha!
Wade, in all of this, was merely the one drinking it.
As for whether Tom would actually manage to learn the Patronus Charm within a few short days?
That was practically impossible.
The purer a wizard's heart and the fewer dark thoughts they had, the faster they could master the Patronus Charm.
Take the future brute Harry Potter, for example.
As for Tom… someone like him, who had only just switched careers away from Dark wizardry, did technically qualify to learn the Patronus Charm now.
However, if he wanted to learn the Patronus Charm, he was still destined to get twice the effort for half the result.
…
Old Mr. Riddle was delighted by Wade's visit and sincerely invited him to spend Christmas at Riddle Manor.
After all, Wade was the savior of their entire family.
So Wade stayed at Riddle Manor for two or three days straight.
Naturally, he didn't spend those days idly.
In between going to Old Tom's study each day to read and chat, he also concluded several business deals with Mr. Riddle.
For example, luxury products such as skincare items and perfumes designed especially for high-society ladies.
Wade had long since refined formulas that Muggles could both produce and use.
After personally witnessing the effects of these products, Mr. Riddle immediately recognized their commercial value and quickly reached a cooperation agreement with Wade.
With that, Wade now had sources of income in both the wizarding world and the Muggle world.
That said, times were hard, and the Muggle world war was still ongoing, so there were far fewer wealthy ladies able to afford such luxury goods than before.
...
Once the three days had passed, Wade headed to Tom's cabin early in the morning.
When Wade saw Tom, he was sitting weakly on a chair outside the cabin, dark circles under his eyes.
Chocolate wrappers were scattered all over the ground around him.
And the suitcase containing the Dementor was placed nearby.
"Tom! How are you? You look absolutely awful!" Wade said, pulling out a piece of chocolate and handing it to him.
Tom struggled to tear open the wrapper and took a mechanical bite.
Wade glanced at the suitcase. He could feel it. That cold, chilling aura seemed to have returned to its original state.
The crop had finally grown back!
Muhahahaha!!
Feeling quite pleased, Wade comforted Tom. "Ehm.. Don't be discouraged, Tom. The Patronus Charm really is difficult. It's normal not to make progress when you're just starting…"
Before Wade could finish his half-hearted words of consolation, Tom raised his wand.
From the tip of Tom's wand, Wade saw strands of dense, dazzling white light.
"Wait… what the hell? No—wait—you actually learned it?!"
_________
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