The Return to Hogwarts

2024-04-10

As he listened to all this, Malfoy's fear deepened.

The Dark Lord's path to reclaim his throne is fraught with difficulties, yet he seems to be truly favored by fate. Vitia Creona, a powerful dark witch who can rival Blaine, arrives at Voldemort's side through a mysterious ancestral instruction, pulling him out of the abyss of despair.

It's not surprising that Bertha Jorkins knew the inside story of the Triwizard Tournament, but what was truly shocking was that she knew the shocking fact that Barty Crouch Jr. was still alive, and, as if by some strange twist of fate, she appeared before Voldemort.

In the Quidditch World Cup final, Creona's reckless actions could have ruined everything, but in the end they managed to escape from Blaine's clutches.

What troubled Malfoy the most was that Cleopatra was lurking in Hogwarts, and neither Dumbledore nor Blaine, who had fought with this woman, had discovered that such a powerful witch had become Voldemort's accomplice. This almost negated the help Amostra Blaine had given to Dumbledore!

Voldemort finished speaking, and the Death Eaters surrounding him bowed even deeper. Voldemort was very satisfied, his red eyes filled with cruel triumph. He turned to look at Harry, who knew he was about to be tortured. However, Voldemort suddenly changed his mind; he wanted to leave Harry hanging for a while longer. This was torture for him in itself.

"Well, that's a tough choice indeed—"

Voldemort lowered his head, sizing up Barty Crouch, Gilgamesh, and Karkaroff, whose face was ashen.

"Ms. Creona must know that Voldemort wants his first family gathering since his return to be a lively affair. What a thoughtful woman, I shouldn't be so harsh on her, should I? I certainly don't appreciate her temper, but this presents me with a dilemma. I've already organized the event myself, but oh well, I shouldn't ignore her good intentions, so..."

Voldemort gracefully twirled his wand, and Karkaroff, who had been under Harry's petrification spell, found himself finally able to move.

The instant he realized this, Karkaroff sprang to his feet, lunging forward with exaggerated movements until he landed at Voldemort's feet, snot and tears streaming down his face.

"Master!" Karkaroff cried out, "My master!"

The Death Eaters stirred. They knew who this man was and what he had done. Some laughed gleefully at Karkaroff's impending doom, some muttered curses, and some sneered contemptuously. The most vehement, Barty the Younger, even wanted to rush forward and kill him, but Voldemort stopped him with a raised hand.

The commotion subsided, leaving only Karkarov's sobs.

“Oh, Karkarov, my old friend.”

Voldemort bent down slightly, his nostrils flaring a few times, and asked in surprise,

"What's wrong with you? What happened?"

"Forgive my master!"

Karkarov sobbed, his breathing heavy and grating.

"Just for the sake of my contribution."

"Ah, your credit?" Voldemort's lipless mouth twisted into a smile. "What makes you say that?"

"I brought Harry Potter to you here, Master!" Karkaroff knew this was his only chance of survival, and he howled loudly.

"It was me! They were planning to put Ron Weasley in the competition, but it was me, it was me who suggested they get Harry Potter involved. Get them both involved, sob sob. For this reason, my master, let me serve you again, master, I'm willing to go through fire and water for you!"

"You mean-"

Voldemort's voice turned cold, his eyes empty and indifferent.

"Voldemort's plan went wrong, and you saved me from my mistake, huh? Karkaroff, is that so?"

Snickers erupted around him, and Karkarov's plea was abruptly cut off.

The hatred in his heart was like a raging sea, not directed at the Dark Lord, but at Amosta Blaine. He had been misled by Blaine's instigation and thus stumbled into the Dark Lord's plan. Even if the Death Eaters wouldn't let him go after the Dark Lord's resurrection, he could still buy himself some time to escape. He had been on guard against this, and he had even prepared a hiding place.

wrong!

Karkaroff suddenly awoke with a start. Was this really just a coincidence?

Entering the lake as Viktor's most important person was originally a risk-free endeavor, and Blaine couldn't use it to retaliate against him for making things more difficult for the Hogwarts champions, unless... unless he already knew Voldemort's plan!

But this still doesn't feel right!

If Blaine had known, how could he have agreed to send these little wizards to their deaths?!

Karkaroff vaguely sensed a deeper conspiracy, but he dared not speak. He had only mentioned that he had added something to the Dark Lord's plan, which had already provoked the Dark Lord's wrath. If he were to say that the Dark Lord's plan might be full of flaws and that his plan had always been under someone else's watchful eye, how would the enraged Dark Lord treat him?

"--I only played a tiny, insignificant role, Master, please forgive me," Karkaroff pleaded desperately.

Voldemort's red eyes flashed coldly. As he casually raised his wand, he caught sight of Barty Jr. glaring at Karkaroff with eyes full of hatred. He understood: Karkaroff's betrayal had led to Barty Jr.'s imprisonment and his confinement in his father's home for over a decade.

"The Dark Lord is magnanimous, Karkaroff; he can forgive your cowardice—"

Voldemort smiled coldly, and his words not only brought Karkaroff to a look of ecstatic joy but also greatly surprised the Death Eaters around him.

"But you've betrayed more than just me; you also need to give the Death Eaters an explanation."

Karkarov was stunned for a moment, then looked as if he had lost his parents.

"Then come on, my Death Eaters!"

Voldemort's voice suddenly rose in pitch, and he opened his arms to face his Death Eaters.

"You will decide his fate!"

No one would think that Voldemort intended to forgive Igor Karkaroff, not even the slow-witted Crabbe and Goyle.

"Let me do it, Master!" Little Barty cried excitedly. "Let me go first!"

Voldemort gracefully stepped aside, while Nagini, who had been lurking on the periphery, immediately moved closer, hissing.

Harry could understand the voice too; Voldemort was gently stroking it.

"No problem, dear Nagini, you can eat him, oh... just that he might be a little hard to swallow later."

"Despicable, vile traitor!"

Little Barty roared ferociously.

"Betrayed your master, look, your retribution has come!"

Karkaroff collapsed to the ground, his legs trembling with terror, muttering words of pleading. But where could he run to? How could he possibly be forgiven? Boundless fear clouded Karkaroff's judgment, even making him forget his plan to take a gamble and voice his suspicions about the Dark Lord's plan.

"Just you wait!" Little Barty howled pitifully, as if in a frenzy, "Heart-crushing, bone-splitting!"

The cemetery, shrouded in darkness, echoed with the agonizing howls of ghosts. Harry stared at Karkaroff, whose face had become as terrifying as a ghost, and for a moment, he remembered the spider struggling under the Cruciatus Curse in class!

Harry couldn't bear to watch any longer, even though he agreed with Barty Crouch Jr.'s assessment of Karkaroff.

Karkaroff's throat felt like it was blocked by something, and he could no longer make a sound. His dark yellow pupils were visibly constricted with blood vessels, and his pale face was flushed as if dripping blood. His body was initially in a state of intense spasm, but under Barty Crouch Jr.'s Cruciatus Curse, driven by unparalleled killing intent and malice, his body tensed to the extreme, and he was petrified and unable to move!

As if witnessing an amusing scene, Voldemort laughed cruelly. He looked at his Death Eaters, first at the astute Lucius Malfoy.

Lucius immediately understood the Dark Lord's meaning; his face beneath the hood was equally pale, but—

"Forgive me, you traitor! Cruciatus!" Lucius roared!

One Death Eater after another rose up, and the sounds of judgment echoed across the land!

"Heart-breaking and bone-cutting!"

As Nott joined the inquisition, his wand was just pointing at Karkaroff.

boom!

A sudden, deafening explosion echoed through the cemetery, followed by gasps from the Death Eaters. Harry suddenly felt something hit his cheek—wet, sticky, and reeking of a nauseatingly strong stench of blood.

He turned his face toward the spot where the Death Eaters had just tortured Karkaroff, but Karkaroff was no longer there.

Shattered to pieces...

Chapter 855 Destroy Your Heart

2024-04-11

hiss--

The overwhelming stench of blood was too much for Nagini to bear. Without Voldemort's command, it darted out like lightning, climbed a spruce tree thirty feet away, found Karkaroff's lower half hanging from the treetop, opened its pungent mouth, filled with sharp fangs, and swallowed the half of the corpse whole.

Such a cruel scene was almost unbearable even for the ruthless Death Eaters. They retreated and curled up uneasily, fearing that they too would become food for this beast.

Voldemort, however, found the scene quite amusing. He chuckled softly, his narrow nostrils flaring slightly.

"Oh, my dear Nagini, are you starving? Wait, there's something even more delicious coming."

Voldemort's voice turned sinister, and his terrifying red eyes finally fell on the gleaming, pale, and dead-looking old Barty Crouch.

"Let me do it, Master, I can do it all by myself!"

Barty immediately understood Voldemort's meaning. He looked threateningly at the Death Eaters who had just attacked Karkaroff and let out a low, menacing whimper.

A madman, an absolute madman!

Cold sweat beaded on Lucius's face beneath his hood, yet a sense of shared sorrow arose within him.

The Crouch family, like the Malfoy family, is of holy pureblood. Unlike the Malfoy family, the Crouch family has been deeply rooted in the Ministry of Magic for centuries, and even among all families with ancient bloodlines, the Crouch family's illustrious power is second to none. But today, the Crouch family is about to come to an end, through fratricide.

But they initially followed the Dark Lord because he promised to lead them to restore the glory of their pure-blood wizarding family.

"Oh, of course, Batty, this is your moment of glory, and no one will take it away from you, but I think..."

Voldemort smiled cruelly.

"High-ranking officials in the Ministry of Magic should have certain privileges, such as dying in a duel. Well then, let's do it!"

Voldemort suddenly raised his voice. He quickly approached Barty the Elder, gently moved his wand, and Flashy, who was clinging to Barty the Elder and trying to protect his old master, was thrown aside and slammed to the ground.

Old Barty was pulled up from the ground and floated in mid-air, while Voldemort's wand emitted a ghostly light. It wasn't meant to kill him.

A wisp of light quickly traveled across Old Barty's entire body, rapidly repairing his collapsed sternum, bent arm, and shattered leg bones. Even the crisscrossing bloodstains on his body were healed under the caress of the light. In no time, Old Barty looked completely unharmed.

He took a deep breath and opened his tightly closed eyes. He knew everything that had happened. Although he was unconscious and unable to control his body, his consciousness had not been extinguished, and he had heard what had happened here.

"The bastard child I gave birth to!"