Snape, the Sunshine of Hogwarts.

Chapter 193 Basilisk

Although Nico had not been directly involved in the events that had occurred in Britain, he had learned about them through various channels.

Many of these came from his close friend Albus Dumbledore, despite their age difference.

As a direct participant in that intense conflict in Britain, Dumbledore certainly knew many inside stories unknown to the outside world, and sometimes when he was troubled by something, he would write to his close friend Nicole to ask for his opinion.

Therefore, the existence of that prophecy, how the Potters hid, how Voldemort found their home, and who the public ultimately believed to have betrayed them are all perfectly clear.

But now, it's clear that Blake is going to tell him a story about betrayal and loyalty that is completely different from the ones circulating outside.

Blake, who believed he had personally killed his enemy, wanted to bury this secret deep in his heart and never tell anyone else in his life.

But these past few days, while chasing Severus and Harry, he had always been just a hair's breadth away from them, causing him to experience a huge sense of disappointment and inner turmoil.

As Nico said, he was unwilling to leave without a single clue. He had wasted so much time and taken so many risks in France; he had to get something out of it.

And mixed in with this was the deep longing hidden in Blake's heart for someone to understand his innocence and what he had done—a longing that even Blake himself didn't know.

In the quiet study, Blake quickly told Nico the truth about the betrayal.

He revealed that he was initially chosen by the Potter family as the Keeper of the Secret, but later, he cleverly shifted the identity to Peter Pettigrew, thinking that since everyone outside could guess that he was the most likely Keeper of the Secret.

Peter is the real traitor.

He had long ago submitted to Voldemort out of fear of him, becoming one of his loyal servants.

After obtaining the identity of the Secret Keeper, Peter did not hesitate to betray Potter's position to Voldemort.

Then, the tragedy occurred that night.

Upon learning of this, Blake went almost mad and went on a killing spree to find Peter!
During the chase, Peter used a powerful dark magic spell that blew up a street, killing the thirteen Muggles. Then, under Black's spell, he was left with nothing but a severed finger.

After completing his revenge, Black was unable to forgive himself for his mistakes. He allowed the Aurors to arrest him and made no attempt to appeal Barty Crouch the Elder, who imprisoned him in Azkaban and sentenced him to life imprisonment without trial.

Until recently, on the day the half-crippled werewolf Fenrir was imprisoned in Azkaban, Black learned about Severus's recent actions in the wizarding world and discovered that he had taken Harry Potter away.

"He could never truly repent!"

By the end, Blake was getting restless in his chair. He had told Nico everything he could, and of course, he hoped that Nico would believe what he said.

“I saw through that snotty-nosed brat back in my school days! He was born a bad guy! He willingly hung out with that group of wicked people, just like my brother!”

“James’ wife, Lily, was once his friend! She pleaded with that snotty-nosed man countless times, hoping he would separate from those people and stop his research into dark magic, but he only cursed her, calling his friends Mudbloods!”

"How could someone like that suddenly repent! He was Voldemort's most loyal lackey! And a master actor! He deceived Dumbledore! He deceived the British Ministry of Magic! He deceived Harry! He deceived Remus! He deceived you! He deceived everyone!"

Blake's face flushed red. He looked at Nicol with utmost sincerity and said nothing more.

He had clearly told everything he could, and now Blake only hoped that this man, who had lived for over six hundred years, would trust him.

Whether or not he could be exonerated was something Black didn't care about at all. What he really cared about was that he needed Nico to help him find Severus and Harry!

Under Blake's gaze, Nico was deep in thought, his hands resting steadily in front of him. After about ten seconds, he finally spoke.

"My opinion on Severus Snape is a little different from yours."

“I never met Severus when he was young, but the Severus I met in Paris was not the kind of person who was good at hiding and pretending, as he was described. In fact, he was a very wicked person.”

Upon hearing Nico's statement, Blake's face clearly showed disappointment.

He couldn't understand how much hype Severus had given to these people outside, making so many believe him, including figures like Dumbledore and Nicolas Flamel.

But just as he was feeling utterly dejected and preparing to leave, Nico's next words made him lift his head again.

"But regarding the stories you told earlier, I mean the part about Peter Pettigrew being the real traitor, I'm willing to believe you, Mr. Black."

Nicole said seriously.

The air was silent for a few seconds before Blake, who had been silent, spoke again. He took a deep breath, suppressing the gratitude he felt for being trusted, and said with great anxiety.

"What good is it even if you believe all this! You don't believe me at all; that Snape bastard is a liar!"

"You said the boy he kept by his side named Harry Potter was actually using the alias Dudley Dursley, right?"

Nicole simply asked calmly.

As if infected by his attitude, Blake also suppressed his inner turmoil and tried to calm himself down.

"Yes, Snape disguised him! He concealed the scar on his forehead and the color of his eyes! He should have had emerald green eyes like his mother!"

"One of the accusations you made against Severus just now was that Severus was taking Harry Potter under his wing and persecuting him in retaliation against his father and mother?"

"I saw with my own eyes the letter that Malfoy brat wrote to his parents!" Black could no longer contain himself, his voice rising. "In the letter, he recounted in detail how he used violence against Harry and forced him into submission! It's absolutely true!"

Nicole shook her head again at this.

“Severus and Remus brought those two kids to my house as guests. They were very kind to both of them, and Harry Potter didn’t seem to be mistreated at all. So, I still can’t match the people I know with the ones you’re describing.”

"But I've always felt that the most effective way to resolve misunderstandings is through communication."

Blake, who was still feeling annoyed and helpless because of Nico's distrust, stared intently at Nico upon hearing this.

“How can we communicate? I have no idea where they are!” Nicole saw the expectation in his eyes, but he just smiled and didn’t speak immediately.

Blake seemed to see something in his smile, and his previously rapid breathing completely stopped until Nico spoke again.

"Actually, I don't know where they went either."

"boom!"

A chair thudded as it overturned in the study. Blake jumped to his feet, glaring at Nico.

You're messing with me!

Nico laughed heartily like a child, and waved his hand.

"Don't get excited, I haven't finished speaking. I really don't know where they are, but I can help you find them, as long as you promise me one thing."

Black felt that these well-known, older wizards all had the same temperament, whether it was Dumbledore or Nico, they all liked it that way.

But after hearing what Nico said next, he managed to suppress his emotions.

"what's up?"

"You must give me the wand you stole from that Auror lady. I will take you to Severus and the others. But no matter what, you must sit down and talk first. If the final result of the conversation proves you are right, I will help you. If it proves you are wrong, you must listen to me."

Nico's conditions left Blake silent for a long time. Finally, as if he had no other better options, he looked up and agreed.

"I agree to your promise as long as you can guarantee it is valid."

Nico smiled again and beckoned to the bookshelf behind Blake. The next second, an old parchment flew off the shelf and landed in his hand.

"Actually, finding Severus is easy. Haven't you noticed that lately, wherever he is, something big always happens?"

Blake's face was somewhat gloomy; he never showed a good expression whenever he heard that name.

"He's preparing to welcome his master back; he's certainly doing something important!"

"Perhaps it's as you say, or perhaps he's actually doing something else big."

At this moment, Nico had already opened the roll of parchment in his hand. It was an old map of Europe drawn with handwritten lines, and on the map, there was a bright silver droplet, like mercury, flowing in the middle.

As Nico opened the parchment, the mercury in the center began to disperse, breaking into countless particles of varying sizes.

The mercury particles flowed across the parchment, and finally, the largest one landed in an area where Albania was located.

At that very moment, the mercury suddenly exploded, and a picture appeared on the top of the parchment in a shimmering silver light!

It was a mural depicting a knight and three witches cheering and jumping around a spring.

After closing his eyes and turning his head, Severus never looked at the mural again.

Following his warning, the three Albanian Aurors beside him, who had also realized what was happening, turned around and ran back.

But just as they approached the narrow path they had taken to get there, Severus abruptly stopped.

"We can't go back the way we came! This path is too narrow! If that thing behind us is faster than us, we won't even be able to cast our spells properly. It will trap us inside and kill us all!"

After he finished speaking, Cabunara realized what was happening. He tried to use Apparition, but found that there was anti-Apparition magic in this underground chamber, and they had no way to escape!

"We can't retreat! Apparition won't work either! Our only way to get rid of it is to kill it!"

Severus then took action, tearing a strip of cloth from the corner of his robe and quickly blindfolding himself.

"Blindfold yourself! It's a serpent monster! You absolutely cannot confront it."

Before he could finish speaking, a pungent stench made the hairs on Severus's body stand on end.

The next second, he made a decisive move, aimed at the direction from which the stench was coming, and chanted the incantation.

"Thunderbolt explosion!"

"boom!"

A burst of intense flames exploded in front of Severus. Directly in front of him, out of his clouded vision, the basilisk that had been charging at Severus with its gaping maw, intending to swallow him whole, suddenly exploded with a massive burst!

The massive creature was forced back by the explosive spell. Unlike its exterior, which was protected by a tough, highly magic-resistant snakeskin, its mouth was clearly injured by the explosion, with foul-smelling blood continuously flowing from its mouth.

But this did not frighten the huge, all-white serpent monster; instead, it made it even more enraged!
It writhed wildly, its body, far larger than the largest fire dragon or the Ukrainian Iron Belly, churning in the confined space, causing the ground to tremble as if an earthquake of magnitude eight had struck.

In this distorted state, an Albanian Auror, also blindfolded, shouted and cast a spell in the direction from which the sound came.

However, when the spell landed on the snake monster's skin, it produced no reaction whatsoever.

Auror's actions, in fact, drew the basilisk's attention to himself!
Its enormous body displayed exaggerated agility.

The Auror who made the move only felt a foul-smelling wind rushing towards his face. The next moment, he was crushed as if he had been thrown into a crusher. The sharp fangs pierced through his body like a rag doll, tearing his body apart!
The thick stench of blood filled the air. Although there were no screams, the sound of flesh and bones being chewed was incredibly grating.

Severus understood that the basilisk hidden in this secret room had lived for far too long; it was no longer comparable to an ordinary basilisk, and normal spells could not harm it at all.

unless
These are some special curses that are intolerable to the general public.

(End of this chapter)