Carlyle watched the woman he'd once considered his mother. He knew her overly enthusiastic greeting was meant to prevent him from being the first to call her "Mom."
That was because Wade knew his real mother, and his memories hadn't been tampered with.
Even though they were at the door now, with no one else around, and enough Vampires in the room to fill a classroom, their fear of Dumbledore still made them want to lure Wade inside before making their move.
Carlyle had no intention of deliberately going against her. He simply turned and looked at Wade, his gaze utterly cold.
Even now, if Wade regretted it and wanted to leave, it was impossible.
Carlyle's eyes swept over Wade's neck, his fingers twitching a few more times. His pupils constricted slightly, and his breathing became subtly rapid.
Wade, seemingly oblivious, curved his eyes into a smile, like a normal student visiting a classmate's home. He said, "Good afternoon, Madam."
He walked past the slightly plump woman without a hint of caution and entered the room.
The woman exchanged a look with Carlyle, a satisfied and secretive smile on her face. Once he was inside, she looked around, then closed the door behind her.
*BANG!*
The sound of the wooden door slamming shut, and something heavy hitting the floor, occurred simultaneously, making the floor seem to jump twice.
Carlyle paused in the Entrance Hall for a moment before entering. Once inside, he saw Wade sprawled awkwardly on the floor, already tied up. Byrd was searching him and had just pulled out his Wand, examining it in his hand.
"That's it?" The scar-faced Vampire smacked his lips in displeasure. "A bit too easy, isn't it, mate?"
"Did you want to fight a Hogwarts Wizard?" Roberts said cheerfully. "It's best to avoid casualties... I didn't expect it to go so smoothly."
"Who's this kid?" a Vampire asked, looking at Carlyle. "Are you a Vampire too? Why are you wearing a Hogwarts uniform?"
"He's my son, and he has some Magic talent," Byrd said. "Thanks to Dumbledore's 'tolerance,' he's even willing to admit Vampires to the school, which gave us this opportunity."
He emphasized "tolerance," the mockery in his voice evident, and the other Vampires all chuckled.
"Well done, kid!"
Someone even opened a bottle of wine and raised a toast, shouting.
"Though we didn't get a chance to act, Byrd, everyone here came ready to die for this job."
The burned Vampire suddenly spoke up. "The agreed-upon reward... you're not going back on your word, are you?" he said coldly.
The laughter abruptly stopped.
"Of course not. The wealth in this boy's vault still belongs to you all."
Byrd had actually regretted it, but under the gaze of a room full of Vampires, he still managed a confident smile and said.
"That's excellent!" the burned Vampire laughed. "From what I understand, for a Wizard with many business dealings like him, even without appearing in person, a single letter can get a Goblin to retrieve money from their vault—Byrd, all I need now is a letter."
"Me too," the scar-faced Vampire quickly added, seemingly embarrassed that he hadn't contributed anything. He then added, "I'm not expecting more wealth, but the agreed-upon thirty thousand Galleons can't be less."
"Yeah, Byrd," other Vampires chimed in. "With him in your hands, you'll have an endless supply of wealth. Now you want to fob us off with just one letter? You're not going back on your word, are you?"
"Letters to Gringotts seem to have to be handwritten. How many can he write in a short time? Who gets one first? To avoid disputes, let's wait until we're in a safe place to write them."
Roberts urged, "In this dreadful place, I'm always worried. I feel like Dumbledore could appear at any moment."
Garr quickly said, "You're right, we'd better leave now."
No sooner had he spoken than he saw Wade Gray on the ground suddenly turn his head and glance at him. For some reason, Garr suddenly regretted interjecting.
Perhaps it was the eerie calmness in the other person's eyes that made the alarm bells in his mind start blaring like a piercing shriek.
Garr looked at the room where Lockhart was being held, wondering if he should abandon his cellmate and run.
Byrd looked down at Wade Gray, who had been silent since his capture. He wondered if his quietness was due to despair, fear, or if he was using his strangely constructed mind to devise an escape plan.
But he never underestimated this young Wizard who had brought such significant changes to the Wizarding World in just a few years. Therefore, Byrd decisively snapped the Wand he had confiscated from Wade.
"A Wizard without a Wand is worse than a Muggle," Byrd said, lifting Wade from the ground and then glancing at his nominal son. "Carlyle, put your Wand away too, don't let him snatch it by accident."
"I understand," Carlyle said obediently, looking down.
A Vampire reeking of alcohol sneered, "You're too cautious, Byrd."
Carlyle saw Byrd grabbing Wade and heading towards the fireplace. The slightly plump woman had already prepared a large bowl of Floo Powder. He quickly took two steps after them and said, "Um... Dad..."
"You're not going soft, kid? Talking about classmate affection now?" the scar-faced Vampire sneered.
"No, not that," Carlyle said, lowering his voice and looking at Byrd imploringly. "Wade Gray has a Magic item on him that I really like... Dad, can I keep it?"
"Of course... What is it?"
His long-sought goal was finally achieved, and Byrd was in a good mood, agreeing readily.
"It's... a necklace."
Carlyle walked over, met Wade's indifferent gaze, instinctively lowered his eyes, and then reached out to take a slender gold necklace from his neck. A glowing golden hourglass-shaped timer hung from it.
As he held the Time-Turner, Carlyle's hands trembled uncontrollably, and his previously extremely slow heartbeat became more violent than ever before.
"What's that thing, kid?" a skinny Vampire suddenly asked, staring at the gold chain with an inquisitive and greedy look.
He didn't know what it did, but he could tell from Carlyle's expression that it was unusual.
Carlyle's fingers twitched, and before he could speak, Roberts interjected:
"Alright, Tucker. This kid did a great job today, he deserves a reward. Besides, with thirty thousand Galleons, what magical item can't you buy?"
Tucker looked around, seeing that the other Vampires seemed to think it was uncouth of him to covet what the child held. And since he really hadn't done anything today, he reluctantly shut his mouth.
Carlyle clutched the timer tightly, feeling as though his palm was being chafed raw.
Just then, Wade suddenly chuckled.
"I always found it strange before, why you were so compliant with them... So this was your goal all along, Carlyle."
He looked up at Carlyle, his eyes seeming to hold a hint of pity, and said, "But that's impossible... It won't change anything."
Carlyle sneered at his words, "Do you think you're the only one who reads? I've read A History of Magic too, I know what happened!"
He had only been worried that Wade would blurt out the name of the Time-Turner, but for some reason, facing that gaze as cold and indifferent as if he were looking at a stone, an uncontrollable surge of anger welled up within him.
He would rather Wade curse him out, excoriate his betrayal and baseness, than be looked at with that kind of gaze.
"Alright, you'll have plenty of time to chat later."
Byrd grew impatient. He pushed Wade towards the fireplace, grabbed some Floo Powder, and sprinkled it into the flames. The fire immediately turned green. He led Wade in, shouting, "Mill Town, Number 25!"
Carlyle had quietly retreated to the doorway, intending to slip away unnoticed, when he suddenly realized someone else seemed to have the same idea.
The two exchanged glances. Garr gave an awkward smile: "Uh... I need to use the restroom..."
Suddenly, a surprised voice rang out in the living room: "What's going on?"
Carlyle turned to look, only to see Wade and Byrd still standing in the fireplace flames, not having been sent away by the Floo Powder.
Everyone in the room instantly panicked. The Scarred Vampire pulled the two out and said, "Let me try!"
He sprinkled the Floo Powder, clearly stating, "Mill Town, Number 25!"
After a few seconds, the flames showed no reaction.
"Try somewhere else..." Roberts hastily suggested, "Try The Leaky Cauldron!"
But the Scarred Vampire still wasn't sent away.
"This fireplace has been disconnected from the Floo Network!" Byrd, more knowledgeable than most Vampires, gritted his teeth, his face grim at the sight.
"What do we do now?" Artemis said, at a loss. "Are we supposed to take this kid and find a working fireplace in the village?"
"Idiot! The Floo Network being disconnected means this place has been under surveillance for a while!" The Burned Vampire strode forward, pressing a knife to Wade's neck. "If you don't want to die, contact the people behind you and tell them to reconnect the Floo Network!"
Wade smiled, his tone still eerily calm, and asked, "Or what? You'll just decapitate me? Then everything you want – wealth, safety, and the Alchemy knowledge in my head – will all be gone."
His gaze swept over the frightened faces of everyone present, as if his life wasn't in their hands.
The Burned Vampire narrowed his eyes and sneered, "Arrogant brat, we can't kill you, but that doesn't mean we can't make you suffer!"
He turned the blade and stabbed it forcefully into Wade's shoulder without hesitation.
Garr's body trembled, and he instinctively pressed his own shoulder.
But then, he noticed that the young Wizard hadn't screamed. Instead, the seemingly ferocious Burned Vampire had an incredulous expression.
"Damn it! What is this?"
He pulled out the dagger, only to see no blood flowing from Wade's shoulder. There wasn't even muscle or bone; the opening revealed only pale, mud-like substance.
"What a shame. I quite liked this robe."
"Wade" said, twisting his arm somehow, and the ropes binding him fell away.
"What kind of monster are you?" a Vampire, lacking understanding of the Wizarding World, asked in horror.
"A Magic Golem!" Carlyle said in astonishment. "How can it be a Magic Golem?"
"Impossible!" Byrd said, his expression twisted and frantic. "I clearly heard your heartbeat! And the sound of blood flowing!"
"Oh, you mean that!" The Magic Golem Wade took a badge from his chest and calmly said, "Even Muggles can record sounds and play them back. But you're very lucky – because what you heard was indeed my master's heartbeat, just from yesterday."
As soon as the badge left his chest, the many Vampires despairingly realized that the sound truly wasn't coming from him.
Byrd's gaze instantly turned fierce as he looked at Carlyle, who also said in shock, "It was clearly Wade talking to me before... Was that you disguised too?"
"Your feeling isn't wrong." The Magic Golem Wade gave a faint smile and asked, "Guess when we switched places, Carlyle?"
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