Snape, the Sunshine of Hogwarts.

Chapter 228 The Blood of the Unicorn
Hearing their questions, Severus simply walked to one end of the long table, pulled out a chair, and sat down.

"Don't get so agitated, everyone. You should all know that I have no reason to lie about this. Since I said I have found the master, you don't need to be in such a hurry."

"So where is the master now!" Rozier stared intently at him. "You're not going to say something like, 'The master doesn't want to see us yet, so you're temporarily acting as his proxy,' are you?"

Severus chuckled and pointed at Rozier, mocking him.

"Look at him, look at how anxious and uneasy he is. If you rely on yourselves, what can you accomplish?"

Rozier's face flushed red, but he dared not retaliate.

He dared not gamble on whether Severus was bluffing or had actually brought Voldemort back.

But such mob ridicule still managed to get some people to speak up.

"We've gathered here to welcome our master, not to listen to your sarcastic remarks. If you truly have brought our master back, then we'll listen attentively to whatever you have to say. But where is our master now?"

Lucius also looked at Severus, his expression slightly displeased.

"Don't keep us in suspense. Whether the master has any instructions for you or any arrangements for us, you can tell us directly in this setting."

Severus simply leaned back in his chair, arms crossed, and glanced around at the dozen or so Death Eaters sitting there. He gave a cold laugh.

“You opportunistic, cowardly, and utterly disloyal scoundrels, if you only want to regain wealth and glory by relying on your master’s power, then don’t spout such high-sounding words.”

Such a statement immediately caused all the Death Eaters sitting there to look at each other in bewilderment.

The next second, someone's expression changed drastically, and they jumped up from their chair.

"what do you mean!"

"Are you trying to turn your back on me?"

"We've done everything we promised you, what do you want now?"

Lucius was also annoyed by Severus's words, and he simply did not understand why Severus was doing this.

Just as he said at the beginning, he had no need to lie about the fact that his master had been found, nor did he need to mock everyone in this situation.

This is neither consistent with Professor Snape's initial characterization, nor with Severus's actions of returning to them after his prodigal son's return.

Lucius looked into Severus's eyes, and from beginning to end he saw not a trace of mockery or ridicule in them, only indifference.

At that moment, a thought suddenly flashed through Lucius's mind!

Now that it's certain Severus wouldn't lie about finding the Dark Lord, and his current actions are illogical, and recalling what he just said...
"Do you really have any loyalty? Do you really think we'd believe your so-called temporary hibernation and compromises are just for..."

As the accusations against Severus grew louder and more numerous, and increasingly focused on more sensitive issues, Lucius suddenly raised his voice so loudly that it drowned out everyone else's voices.

"Severus Snape! You may mock us, insult us anywhere, but you shall never slander our loyalty to our master!!"

His words were so powerful that they silenced all the noise and made the Death Eaters, who had been ganging up to fire at Severus, turn around and look at Lucius with strange expressions.

Lucius ignored the stares of the others and looked at Severus seriously, reiterating his point.

“I don’t care about the accusations you’ve made. We agreed that as long as you could find the owner, we would provide you with all sorts of assistance. But now that you’ve written to us saying you’ve found the owner, we need to get to the bottom of this.”

"Where is our master? When will he return to lead us again?"

The drawing room was silent. The Death Eaters who had been firing at Severus had different expressions. Some looked at Lucius strangely, as if he were a completely different person. Some looked thoughtful, as if they had realized something. Others kept scanning back and forth between Lucius and Severus, their expressions growing increasingly angry.

Severus simply watched with a smile as Lucius finished his heartfelt speech, then suddenly spoke in a respectful voice.

"Master, do you think this is acceptable?"

He clearly didn't speak to anyone present, and upon seeing Severus's sudden outburst, most of the Death Eaters lined up on both sides of the long table felt a chill run down their spines and stared at Severus in shock.

Behind Severus, a faint, ghost-like figure appeared out of nowhere.

The moment that figure appeared, every Death Eater could feel the Dark Mark that had been dormant for eight years suddenly generate a burning heat, like flames scorching the skin!

Only one person can awaken this mark, and no one can impersonate or replace it!
The next second, almost everyone present stood up from their chairs in a panic. They were no longer arrogant and coercive as before; their faces were filled with fear and shock.

The Death Eaters prostrated themselves on the ground, greeting their master with the highest honor.

Severus simply rose respectfully from his chair and then bent down to stand behind the figure.

"Owner!"

"The Dark Lord!"

Excited voices began to rise. These people reacted quickly. No matter how much they had condemned Severus just now, they had now become Voldemort's most loyal followers, the most eager for his return, and the people with the fewest disloyal intentions!

However, after a burst of greetings, the scene fell completely silent.

The figure who had been sitting in Severus's previous seat simply watched the people kneeling on the ground without saying a word. His hand, even more ethereal and transparent than it had been in Albania, tapped the table lightly.

Even though there was no response for a long time, the Death Eaters were already sweating profusely from the invisible pressure, but they still didn't dare to raise their heads, just waiting for the man in the chair to speak.

“Severus said to me, ‘I can trust you as much as I trust him.’”

Finally, the figure spoke, but the first words he uttered made everyone present lower their heads even further!
Everyone can understand that what follows this sentence is definitely not praise.

"Of course, I also believe that my friends who once shared my ideals will ultimately remain loyal to me, no matter how great the setbacks they face. But loyalty based on belief is never as convincing as loyalty that can be seen directly, is it?"

"So I had him show himself first. I want to see if any of you have changed from before. If you have changed, is it for the better, or is it going in the direction that no one wants to see?"

At this moment, those who had previously berated Severus the most began to tremble uncontrollably. Even though this man had disappeared from the magical world for eight years, the fear and awe he left in their hearts had not diminished in the slightest.

The air remained silent for a long time, and no one dared to interrupt, until Voldemort spoke again.

"I heard that when you were being pursued by the Aurors, you chose to say that you were under a Soul-Stealing Curse, which is why you became my people?"

Once such a question was posed, Lucius and his ilk could no longer remain silent.

"Master! Master! We are only doing this to preserve our strength so that we can bring you back!"

Old Nott's eyes were red, and tears streamed down his face as he spoke loudly.

"After you disappeared, no one could deal with Dumbledore anymore. Under those circumstances, if we continued to resist to the death, all the success and power we had built up over the years would be wiped out!"

“Our own life and death are trivial matters, but if you return without helpers or servants, and are unable to fight against those who oppose you and wipe them out, that is the real sin!”

His words were deeply moving, as if every single word, every letter, and every punctuation mark was a genuine expression of his feelings.

It's the same if you ignore what he said to Severus earlier.

The others present all seemed to agree, echoing old Nott's words and recounting how much humiliation they had endured to avoid being sent to Azkaban, and how they had worked so hard all these years to find their master again.

Only Lucius remained silent.

He knew perfectly well that once he understood Severus's true purpose, what he said and did was enough, and there was no need for him to make amends like others.

At times like these, saying more will only lead to more mistakes.

After those kneeling on the ground finished their sobbing and pleading, Voldemort slowly spoke again.

“Severus has already explained all of this to me, and he has also told me about the help and efforts you provided to him in order to find me.”

"In addition to your performance at the beginning, although some people seemed to only think about their own interests and forgot to consider more, most of you performed adequately, especially Lucius."

Upon hearing his name called out individually, Lucius immediately raised his head, his face flushed red with excitement and pride.

“You have done a good job, and Severus has also taught your son very well.”

Lucius simply said loudly.

"These are all things I should do!"

The Death Eaters around him all cast envious glances at him at that moment.

Everyone understood that Lucius had seized the opportunity!

Only Severus, standing behind Voldemort, kept his eyes narrowed as he looked at his "master" in front of him.

After leaving the Weasleys, Severus opened the teacup lid and dutifully told Voldemort that he had returned to Hogwarts. He had met with Dumbledore in the morning and finally found a suitable opportunity in the evening to let the Death Eaters scattered throughout England know that their master had finally returned.

But Voldemort obviously couldn't completely trust Lucius and his group. Otherwise, in the original timeline, when Quirrell brought him back to England, he would have already had Quirrell take him to those pure-blood families who were willing to protect themselves.

This time, with Severus's guarantee and Severus's confirmation that his search for Voldemort was made possible by the financial support of Lucius and his associates, he was finally willing to make contact with his former servants.

However, before making contact, he chose not to show himself immediately and instead conducted some probing.

From this process, Severus could tell that Voldemort was now significantly weaker than he had been in Albania the day before.

This teacup can help him maintain his current state for a short time, but it cannot stop his power from fading away.

He still needs someone to help him!
Either revive him as soon as possible, or immediately obtain the unicorn's blood to help him temporarily regain his strength.

This is why Voldemort, after some hesitation, chose to meet Lucius and the others tonight.

Even if he had gained some initial trust in Severus, he couldn't place all his hopes on him alone; he needed to find more helpers!

"I need something."

Sure enough, Voldemort spoke.

Now is the time when everyone wants to show their loyalty, so how could the Death Eaters hesitate in such a situation?

"Whatever you need, Master, we will find it for you!"

Lucius's mind started working again at this moment. He wondered if the Dark Lord wanted the golden cup that Severus had arranged for them to find.

Just as he was about to say that he would deliver what his master wanted in less than a week at the latest, Voldemort spoke again.

"Unicorn blood!"

"Within a week, I need you to kill a unicorn and offer its blood as tribute to me!"

Those Death Eaters who were about to readily agree were taken aback upon hearing the request, and then looked at each other in bewilderment.

The only place in the UK where unicorns roam freely in the wild is the Forbidden Forest at Hogwarts!
In other words, if they wanted to kill a unicorn and get its blood, they would have to sneak into Hogwarts to do it.

Who is at Hogwarts now?

Albus Dumbledore!
"I will personally present you with a live unicorn, my master!"

Everyone turned to look at the person who had accepted the task without hesitation.

Severus Snape!
(End of this chapter)