bioinnovel Chapter 394 Gaunt's Old House
Chapter 394 Gaunt's Old House
Chapter 394 Gaunt's Old House
Magic always leaves a trace.
Belvina closed her eyes and felt with her heart.
She reached out and touched the dense hedgerows, where she could feel the flow of magic.
This surging, unstoppable magic comes from behind this hedge—ominous, filthy, yet tinged with a touch of melancholy and indifference.
Belvina drew her wand and pointed it at the tall, dense hedge in front of her.
Separate left and right!
In an instant, the bushes and hedges parted to the sides with a rustling sound, revealing a winding, bumpy path strewn with pebbles.
"A Muggle Expulsion Charm," Dumbledore said. "Muggles have forgotten this place, and it has remained unchanged for decades."
Belvina nodded, and before Dumbledore could speak, she took the lead on the winding path.
In an instant, the once clear and cloudless sky suddenly darkened, and the shadows cast by the ancient trees that had grown wildly over the decades became dark and dense.
Belvina looked back, but Dumbledore was nowhere to be seen, and even the hedges that had split apart had closed up again.
Is only one person allowed to pass at a time?
No, the accurate statement should be that only one wizard is allowed to pass at a time.
Voldemort wouldn't even consider Muggles a threat; Muggles were nothing but weak ants and lowly reptiles.
"Arrogance is the first of the seven deadly sins, and it is absolutely unacceptable," Belvina sighed softly, and continued walking forward.
The winding path soon came to an end, replaced by a steep, narrow dirt road leading down into a dark forest.
As they ventured deeper into the steep path, the surrounding light grew increasingly dim, as if a large dark cloud had obscured the sky.
While controlling her pace to avoid running due to the slope, Belvina carefully observed her surroundings to prevent any danger.
The place where the Horcrux is placed must be heavily guarded; it's better to be careful than to make a big mistake.
However, nothing strange happened until Belvina cautiously stepped into the woods at the end of the dirt road.
Belvina continued forward, surrounded by dense woods and dim light, as if she were in the Forbidden Forest of Hogwarts.
Suddenly, a rustling sound came from the doorway, and Belvina stopped in her tracks.
Immediately afterwards, a thick fog appeared out of nowhere, without warning, and instantly swallowed everything in the forest.
Realizing the situation was dire, Belvina became even more cautious. With her vision obstructed, her hearing became even more acute as she carefully discerned all the sounds.
hum!
Like the sound of a whip being lashed through the air, it arrived suddenly.
Belvina dodged to the side, simultaneously raising her wand and making a slashing motion from above.
A branch as thick as an arm was instantly severed and fell to the ground. Although the severed branch had lost its vitality, it still crawled toward Belvina.
Suddenly, a piercing pain shot through Belvina's ankle.
Two branches, each as thick as a child's arm, broke through the soil and instantly climbed up to Belvina's ankles.
Moreover, the branches seemed to have a life of their own, winding upwards around Belvina's legs as if they were about to be crushed.
Despite being about to be strangled, Belvina remained calm. She pointed her fingers like knives, and wherever her fingers and palms touched, rings of branches shattered and peeled off her body.
But the next second, two more branches appeared in the thick fog, wrapping around Belvina's wrists on the left and right, and continuing upwards along her arms.
At the same time, the broken branches miraculously recovered and climbed up Belvina's calves again, binding her to the spot.
Immediately afterwards, the branches binding her hands and feet began to contract and tighten, attempting to strangle her while also tearing Belvina apart.
Although she could be torn apart or strangled by branches at any moment, Belvina remained calm and composed.
She endured the excruciating pain, biting her tongue and spitting a mouthful of blood onto the entwined branches, instantly spraying the arm-thick branches with bright red droplets of blood.
A few seconds later, the branches wrapped around Belvina stopped tightening and pulling, and stopped binding her.
The branches twisted and twitched, automatically loosening their grip on Belvina, and the thick fog that had obscured the view disappeared as well.
Sure enough, Dumbledore's method worked, though it was a bit painful and drained some blood.
Belvina stretched her arms and legs, preparing to continue forward, but her eyes caught sight of a house hidden among the trees.
Let's just call it a house. The walls were covered with thick grime, the roof tiles were scarce, and the whole house looked dilapidated, as if it could collapse at any moment.
Belvina cautiously stepped forward, carefully observing the dilapidated house—the Gaunt Old House.
House Gaunt is an ancient, pure-blood wizarding family, direct descendants of Salazar Slytherin, and Parseltongue is a talent they are proud of.
Despite their pure bloodline and mountain of wealth, the Gaunt family couldn't withstand generations of idleness and squandering of their fortunes. Living a life of extravagance and debauchery, they were already living beyond their means and had to rely on pawning their possessions to survive.
Ultimately, the Gaunt family had no more to offer, and the last remaining members could only live in this dilapidated little house.
In the eyes of the Muggle villagers of Little Hangleton, the last Gaunt was a restless and mentally unstable vagrant who had disgraced wizards.
Compared to the Gaunt men who squandered their fortunes, Lucius Malfoy was hardly a spendthrift; in fact, he was made to look quite remarkable by the Gaunt men.
Belvina continued forward, getting closer and closer to the dilapidated Gaunt mansion.
Suddenly, with a click, a window opened, and a very young man poked his head out of the house.
Belvina's eyes were fixed on the young man, who had jet-black hair and a fair, handsome face with a hint of arrogance.
"Regulus," Belvina muttered, "Regulus Black."
"Belvina!" Regulus called out happily from the old Gaunt house, his face disappearing from the window.
Soon, Regulus pushed open the dilapidated door and ran towards Belvina, his young and handsome face filled with longing for his sister.
Regulus jogged up to her, took Belvina's arm, and examined her closely from head to toe.
"She's grown taller and thinner, and she's prettier than before," Regulus said. "Our ugly duckling has finally turned into a swan."
With that, Regulus pulled Belvina into his arms.
He continued, "I miss you so much, Belvina. You must have suffered a lot these past years—"
Belvina did not resist, letting Regulus hold her tightly and whisper in her ear.
"Remember when we were little? I used to take you running around the house all the time, and you'd always tug at my sleeve for candy," Regulus continued. "And when I went to school, you cried for a long time!"
Belvina neither spoke nor moved, remaining held in Regulus's arms.
"You must miss me a lot, and you must miss your childhood," Regulus's voice was still tender. "Then stay with me. We'll always be together, forever."
"I do miss you, Regulus," Belvina said, "but now that you're dead, don't get in my way."
With that, Belvina broke free from Regulus's embrace, raised her wand, and slashed it across Regulus's neck.
There was no scene of blood splattering, but Regulus was clutching his neck in pain, making gurgling sounds in his throat.
"The Ugly Duckling Turns into a Swan, that's a Muggle fairy tale. How could Regulus possibly know that?" Belvina said. "If you keep acting like this, I don't know how I can continue playing along with you."
thump!
Regulus, clutching his neck, collapsed to the ground, writhing and convulsing in agony.
boom!
The door to the old Gaunt house was pushed open forcefully, and a man and a woman ran out of the dilapidated hut in a panic.
"Regulus!" Volbuga Black cried out in panic, "Regulus, my child, what's wrong with you!"
"Belvina! What have you done to your brother!" Orion Black roared as he ran over, glaring angrily at Belvina.
Faced with her imposter father, Belvina raised her wand without hesitation.
Instantly, Orion Black, like Regulus, clutched his neck in pain and fell to the ground, his body contorting and convulsing.
"You beast! You wicked son!" Walbuga shouted angrily, "You actually killed your father and brother, you..."
Walbuga Black's tirade came to an abrupt halt, and her fate was exactly the same as her husband's and son's.
"Regulus, Volbuga and Orion, why didn't you bring Phineas out too!" Belvina gathered her long hair and shouted at the dilapidated Gaunt mansion.
Although Belvina still doesn't know the details of the Horcruxes, the magic protecting them clearly overestimated her relationship with her family.
Just as Belvina was waiting for the old mansion to cause more trouble, everything suddenly changed.
The bodies of the Blake family were gone, and the already dilapidated old house became even more dilapidated. An elderly man with a full head of white hair stood in front of the crumbling little house.
That was Albus Dumbledore. He pushed open the door and entered the small hut that seemed ready to collapse at any moment.
>