bioinnovel Chapter 85 Four Years of Purgatory
Chapter 85 Four Years of Purgatory
Chapter 85 Four Hundred Years of Purgatory
The lone boat adrift in the North Sea has reached the shore.
Belvina took the lead and was the first to set foot on the island inhabited by Dementors, with her silver-white guardian spirit perched on her shoulder.
Behind him was Felix, who looked around warily to prevent the Dementors from attacking again.
Felix had no idea why the Dementors had left the island so abruptly, nor why they had attacked the Ministry of Magic's ships; everything that had happened today was beyond the comprehension of ordinary reason.
The two male wizards escorting the prisoners did not disembark; instead, they threw the prisoners ashore like dead dogs. The hundreds of Dementors on the island filled them with immense fear.
The criminal who sold black magic items and violently resisted arrest lay motionless on the shore, letting the seawater wash over his body, pale as a dead man.
At that moment, three Dementors slowly glided over.
The cat on Belvina's shoulder hissed silently, warning the approaching Dementors.
That's so ugly!
Belvina sighed, no matter how many times she saw it, she still thought the Dementors were really ugly.
The Dementor was tall and large, its face completely hidden under its hood. Its grayish-white, eerie body, covered in slime and spots, was hidden beneath its tattered cloak, resembling something that had rotted in water after death.
Felix glared at the Dementor that was slowly approaching. A silver-white osprey landed on his head. Its novel appearance was not dangerous at all; in fact, it was rather amusing.
The Dementors didn't laugh; they completely ignored the furious Felix and went straight to the small boat moored at the makeshift dock.
Two of the Dementors hoisted the prisoner, who looked like a dead man, and dragged him toward the even more terrifying and sinister castle, while the remaining Dementor inspected the supplies being transported to the island.
Dementors don't need to eat; the prisoners they're holding are their food. But the prisoners still need to eat.
"Miss Black, let me go in with you," Felix suggested. "The Dementors aren't behaving normally today."
I'm a little worried.
Rather than saying the Ministry of Magic controls Dementors, it's more accurate to say that the Ministry of Magic and Dementors have a cooperative relationship.
The Ministry of Magic provides food (prisoners) to the Dementors, who guard these prisoners and forbid them from leaving the island without orders.
Since the island was discovered, Dementors have been a major headache for the Ministry of Magic. They have the ability to drive away Dementors, but they are worried about retaliation from them.
Until 1718, the anti-Muggle movement in wizarding society reached its peak, and Damocles Roll became Minister for Magic.
At the insistence of then-Minister Raoul, Azkaban became a wizarding prison, with the island's Dementors serving as its guards.
This was the first time the problem of placing the Dementors had been solved.
Azkaban was in utter chaos at that time. Dementors devoured the prisoners in the jails, and many prisoners died tragically on this small island in the middle of the North Sea before they could even last a week.
In 1733, the then Minister Edridge Digory visited Azkaban and, after witnessing firsthand the horrific conditions in the prisons, resolved to reform the system.
While reorganizing Azkaban prison to give those convicted of minor offenses a chance to reform, Minister Digori is also actively seeking alternatives to Azkaban.
However, Minister Edridge Digory died of dragonpox in 1747, and the plan to replace Azkaban was abandoned, with no subsequent minister ever considering the suggestion to shut down Azkaban.
On the chilling, despair-shrouded island, Felix Ferguson was worried about Belvina's situation.
Felix is a highly capable wizard, having joined the Ministry of Magic, become a member of the Law Enforcement Team, and maintained his Patronus Charm even under the pressure of Dementors. He is very intelligent.
Felix believed that the Dementors' unusual behavior was either due to something going wrong in the prison or because they were after Belvina. Mr. Ferguson had a very clear understanding of himself, and even if someone wanted to deal with him, they wouldn't make such a big fuss.
Clearly, Felix Ferguson, who was sent to deliver supplies, was just an extra; the Dementors' target was most likely Belvina, who had come to the island to visit.
"I'm worried," Felix whispered, "I'm worried that someone is trying to harm you, or that something's wrong in the prison and the Dementors are trying to cover it up."
Belvina waved her hand and said, "Since we're already here, even if there's an iron belly incubating eggs inside, we should still go in and take a look. There's nothing to be afraid of."
"Then I'll come in with you," Felix suggested. "Having more people around means we can help each other out."
Belvina waved her hand again, refusing Felix's offer. She said, "You should stay here and watch the ship. I don't know if Azkaban is in danger, but I do know that those two good-for-nothings are preparing to sail away."
Upon hearing this, Felix quickly turned his head, and the silvery-white osprey above his head followed suit.
The two male wizards escorting the prisoners were huddled on the boat, their four eyes occasionally glancing at Belvina and Felix on the shore, seemingly trying to escape by boat when the two were not paying attention.
They really didn't want to stay here any longer; the Dementors floating in the sky were driving them both crazy.
"Alright then, I'll take them both away from the shore first," Felix said. "I'll come ashore to meet you after I receive your signal."
"Okay, but please keep an eye on this ship," Belvina said. "I don't want to Apparate back."
"Don't worry, I'm here."
Without further hesitation, Felix returned to the boat and steered it away from the shore.
The silvery-white cormorant did not fly away with the small boat, but stayed behind, circling above Belvina's head, prompting the cat on her shoulder to wave its paws as if to pounce.
Belvina chuckled softly. Was she being shown concern? Perhaps she should offer some assistance to young Mr. Ferguson; after all, the members of the law enforcement team could earn a few Galleons.
Led by the Dementors, Belvina headed toward Azkaban Castle.
Along the way, we passed a large cemetery, where prisoners who died in Azkaban were buried. After nearly three hundred years, this cemetery had become quite a sight to behold.
Azkaban Wizarding Prison never relied on high walls or the sea to prevent prisoners from escaping; Dementors were the only barrier there.
Under the prolonged torment of the Dementors, most people will go insane within weeks, begin to starve themselves, lose hope of living, and eventually die of despair.
Escape? Impossible. The prisoners are so consumed by despair that they have no desire to escape.
Only a small percentage of people survived the despair of Azkaban, successfully escaping this hell on earth and being reborn.
As for the laws of the Ministry of Magic and the human rights of prisoners...
I'm sorry, but the Ministry of Magic is a huge makeshift operation. Its laws are just ideas conceived by a bunch of legally illiterate wizards, and are better than nothing.
It's comparable to a piece of paper that has been stored for over a thousand years; a gust of wind and it crumbles into dust.
Led by the Dementors, Belvina entered Azkaban Castle, where even more Dementors roamed, densely packed and countless.
Belvina looked around. The sunlight, devoid of warmth, shone through the ventilation holes in the rough stone walls. Burning braziers were visible everywhere in the dark corridors, and the sounds of madness and painful screams filled the air.
This wasn't her first time visiting Azkaban, but every time she came here, she felt a pang of reluctance. It wasn't due to a saintly heart or a sudden outburst of sympathy, but rather a feeling of compassion born from the subtle influence of the Dementors.
Not all the prisoners held in Azkaban were heinous criminals who deserved their fate; some of them were not guilty of such crimes, and some were even wrongfully imprisoned.
The silver-white guardian leaped off the shoulder and walked ahead with elegant cat-like steps. Wherever it went, the Dementors all retreated and disappeared into the darkness.
However, most of the prisoners in the cell remained unresponsive, their pale skin resembling that of the dead. Only a small number of them looked over in disbelief and heard the crisp sound of shoes stepping on the stone slabs.
In Azkaban, the inhumanity of wizards treating wizards reached its extreme.
I don't know how long I walked, it felt like a hundred years. The dimly lit corridor and the pitiful screams gradually made me lose my sense of time.
Finally, the footsteps stopped, and Belvina stood outside a cramped and small cell.
Sirius Black, inside the cell, looked over with a knowing look.