Compared to Pansy, who had practically grown up with him and firmly occupied the position of childhood friend, Hermione's understanding of matters related to pure-blood families was indeed far inferior.
That was exactly why, whenever Draco brought up this sort of topic, Hermione listened with such serious focus. Whether it was out of genuine curiosity or for some other reason, no one could really say.
She had not even noticed when Pansy walked up beside her...
"The wizard you're talking about is Regulus, right?"
"Huh? How do you walk around without making any sound?"
"You're just too slow, Granger."
Rolling her eyes, Pansy naturally slipped her arm through Draco's.
That utterly unembarrassed move made the envious, thin-skinned Hermione glare at her several times. What irritated her even more was the sight of Pansy pressing herself against him so deeply that it was practically a blatant provocation to her self-control...
"Ahem."
Sensing the tension beginning to spread through the air, Draco swept a glance over the followers gathered around him. Feeling it was necessary to maintain his authority, he quickly coughed lightly and pulled himself free from that soft, utterly unreasonable abyss.
"That's right. Regulus Black."
"Regulus... I know of him."
The one who spoke was Vincent Crabbe.
The Crabbe family's influence in the wizarding world was negligible, and their information network was nowhere near comparable to families like the Greengrasses or the Parkinsons.
But as one of the Malfoy family's most loyal followers for generations, they naturally had access to certain things others did not know.
For example, just like Crabbe's father, the noble-blooded Black they were discussing had once also been one of the Death Eaters...
...
Because they had not joined the conversation from the start, most people still did not understand why this obscure Black, or rather, this little-known Death Eater, had suddenly been brought up.
Though they had plenty of questions, no one interrupted Crabbe's recollection.
But...
"..."
"And then?"
"What do you mean, and then?"
"About Regulus Black. Didn't you say you knew who he was?"
"I only heard my father mention him once. It was just because his surname was Black that I remembered him."
"That's all?"
"That's all."
"....."
Everyone looked at Crabbe's dumbfounded expression, the corners of their eyes twitching as their blood pressure inexplicably began to rise.
Pansy and the others, who knew perfectly well how unreliable this glutton, as notorious as Goyle, really was, let out helpless sighs, though none of them were surprised in the slightest.
As expected, no one should ever have had any hopes for Crabbe...
Just as everyone was running out of things to say, a clear and pleasant voice rang out.
"Because he supported pure-blood ideology, he was once an admirer of the Dark Lord. Not only that, but Regulus Black, who was deeply loved by his parents, joined the Death Eaters at the age of sixteen."
"Huh?"
"As a defender of pure-blood ideals, Black was probably among the earliest group to join the Death Eaters."
Facing everyone's gaze, Astoria showed no sign of discomfort at all. She lightly pinched her fingertips together and calmly shared what she knew.
As she frowned in thought, there was something strangely compelling about her, as if she naturally made people want to quiet down and listen...
"But the strange thing is that three years later, this Black disappeared without a trace, and no one ever heard any news about him again. Even more curious is that during the three years he was a Death Eater, there was never any record of him committing any truly vile acts."
Hearing that, Pansy suddenly spoke up. "That's not surprising. You have to remember, the original Death Eaters weren't like the later ones, who treated torturing Muggles and Mudblo... Muggle-born wizards as entertainment. Most of the earlier ones followed the Dark Lord because they believed in his bloodline ideology and admired his power."
A noble birth, and power great enough to match one's ambition.
That was why the early Voldemort had been able to attract so many followers.
Back then, he had not yet become so insane or brutal...
With Pansy's addition, the surrounding Slytherins all nodded in agreement and turned their eyes toward Draco.
Draco possessed both of those qualities as well.
In terms of status, he was even superior to Voldemort, who had concealed the fact that he himself was of mixed blood.
Everyone present believed it.
If that era had once produced a figure called Voldemort, then everyone present believed that the future era would undoubtedly bear the name Draco Malfoy!
...
Completely unaware of the burning, expectant looks around him, Draco was instead curious about how much more Astoria knew.
Unfortunately, Astoria only waved her hand in the end. "I'm afraid that's all I know."
After all, those events had happened more than twenty years ago. On top of that, someone had clearly gone out of their way to keep them hidden. Trying to uncover the truth about a figure from so long ago was never going to be easy.
So the fact that Astoria could say even this much was already quite remarkable...
And the more that became clear, the more curious everyone present grew. Why had Draco suddenly brought up this Black? And why did he seem to care so much about him?
Unable to figure it out, Pansy simply grabbed Draco's arm and gave it a shake. "So why are you suddenly interested in someone from so long ago?"
In truth, this was not just everyone imagining things.
If Draco had not run into Dobby in the Hogwarts kitchen, and if he had not heard from Dobby that a new House-elf had arrived at Malfoy Manor, then perhaps Draco would never have paid attention to a wizard who had been dead for many years...
Noticing all the puzzled looks directed at him, Draco shrugged with a hint of mischief. "Perhaps this is fate."
"Huh?"
Amid the girls' exasperated protests, Draco could not help recalling what had happened before.
That new House-elf had actually come to seek refuge with his mother, because according to the elf, Draco's mother was the Black he currently respected most.
That House-elf's name was... Kreacher.
And Regulus Black had once been his master.