The Silent Witch of Hogwarts

Chapter 584 Regulus and Kreacher

A light silver mist enveloped the surroundings, then gently dissipated with a gust of wind.

As the fog dissipated, Loila was no longer standing in the Black family's old mansion, but on a beach. A few waves were lapping against the shore, causing Loila to blink unconsciously.

This is—the cave that I and Miss Shiloh discovered before! It's Voldemort's cave!

How did Kreacher know about this place—had he been here before?

Just as Loila was surprised, a wizard dressed in black robes appeared beside her at some point.

He had a handsome face, but his pale complexion made him appear incredibly cold. His slightly curly hair reflected a strange light in the sunlight. He looked a lot like Sirius Black, but he was far more aloof and had more arrogance in his eyes.

Clearly, this is Regulus, Sirius's younger brother, and the real young master Kreacher was referring to.

Beside him stood a house-elf who looked somewhat bewildered.

It's obvious that this is Kreacher.

"Is this the place?" Regulus spoke softly, his voice a stark contrast to his cold exterior. He spoke gently, then looked at Kreacher: "Is he—the one who sent you here?"

"Yes—yes, young master," Kreacher said timidly in a low voice, and then the two walked forward in Loila's sight.

Silver mist flowed from beneath Regulus's robes, swirling and surging like ocean waves across the surroundings. As the mist quietly receded, Loila's surroundings transformed into an isolated island shrouded in darkness.

"He made—he made Kreacher drink all that poison—" Standing by the crystal pool on the deserted island, Kreacher whispered, "and then he—and then something appeared in it—"

"I understand." Regulus nodded slightly. He walked around the magic trap that Loila had later broken, and then looked at Kreacher as if he had made up his mind.

"Kreacher—I'll drink everything in here." His words stunned Kreacher.

"Young master—this is absolutely not allowed, it's not allowed!" Kreacher screamed, trying to stop him, and he flailed his legs to grab Regulus's arm.

"Kreacher, I command you," Regulus's voice rose several octaves, "I command you to stand here—do not move."

"I command you to watch me and supervise me as I drink this stuff dry." He spoke each word with unwavering resolve, uttering words that would send him to hell: "Even if I don't want to drink it anymore, you must feed it to me."

"Do you understand?"

"Young Master—"

"Do you understand?!"

"Kreacher—Kreacher understands."

Loila watched all this silently, unsure of what to say—Regulus could clearly make Kreacher drink those poisons, just as Voldemort had done—

But in the end, he chose to drink the poison himself—simply because he didn't want Kreacher to suffer, or perhaps because he didn't want to lose Kreacher.

"Then—then switch this box with that box." Regulus said, taking out something exactly like the box in Loila's hand from his pocket. He handed it to Kreacher and said, "Leave here immediately after switching the boxes."

"Never come back—and don't tell anyone." He pursed his lips and said, "Don't tell anyone—just destroy this box."

"Do you understand?"

"Kreacher—Kreacher understands." Kreacher gripped the box tightly, as if he were holding onto some precious treasure.

Regulus, under the watchful eyes of Loila and Kreacher, walked to the edge of the pool and silently gazed at the poison in it for a few seconds.

Then he began to drink the poison from the pool, sip by sip. At first, his expression was resolute, but later he began to hesitate and feel pain.

He knelt on the ground, his hands trembling, mechanically drinking the poison inside.

Loila didn't know what the poison meant, but it was clear—Voldemort was no benevolent person.

Regulus struggled to look at Kreacher, wanting to say something, but Kreacher could only weep as he scooped up spoonful after spoonful of poison and poured it down his master's throat.

Finally, the liquid emptied, and with a soft plop, a box identical to the one in Loila's hand appeared in the middle of the pool.

Kreacher immediately took the item out and placed it next to Regulus, excitedly saying, "Young Master—Young Master doesn't need to drink anymore!"

"I—I know." Regulus looked quite pained as he struggled to crawl towards the lake at the edge of the island, but even so he kept saying, "Go quickly, Kreacher—get out of here—and take—take the box—"

Kreacher walked to the edge of the pool with tears in his eyes and placed the fake box inside, but when he turned around, he saw his beloved master being swallowed by the shadowy corpse in the lake.

Regulus's journey has ended, but for Kreacher, it seems to have just begun.

Loila watched as Kreacher clutched the box, tears streaming down his face. He snapped his fingers softly and disappeared into the cave.

How many years ago did this happen?

Kreacher has kept this secret to himself until now—he has listened to everyone's attacks on his beloved master until now—

Loila lowered her eyes, and her pointed ears drooped. She didn't really like this kind of sad story. Although life is always full of tragedy, it didn't mean that Loila liked this kind of story.

She gently wiped her eyes, trying not to let the tears fall, but the house-elf standing in front of her was already sobbing uncontrollably.

""

"What happened, Royla?" Mr. Lupin's voice rang out. He had somehow arrived at the Black mansion and stood quietly behind Royla, asking, "Are you alright?"

"I—I'm fine." Loila wiped her eyes, then removed her headband. She walked up to Kreacher and said, "So—Kreacher—"

"Did you destroy that Horcrux?"

"Kreacher—Kreacher can't do it," Kreacher whispered. "Kreacher has failed Master Regulus, Kreacher has failed him—"

As he roared, he was about to rush toward the fireplace, but Sirius reacted quickly and grabbed him.

"Are you insane, Kreacher!" he said, grabbing Kreacher. "I don't know what happened, but I order you—I order you to stop!"

His command mingled with Kreacher's roar, and eventually, following his command, Kreacher stopped what he was doing.

"Kreacher—since you didn't destroy it—could you—could you hand it over to me?" Loila said softly. "I will destroy it."

"I assure you—I assure Mr. Regulus."