The mastermind behind Hogwarts

Chapter 271 Simon and the Treasure

It is a giant squid.

It lay beneath the cruise ship, its four tentacles gripping the starboard side, attempting to drag the ship into the sea.

The inside of the tentacles was covered with dense suction cups, and the huge suction caused the ship to shake a second time.

A group of people were thrown off the deck and fell into the sea with a splash. The giant squid extended its remaining six tentacles, grabbed people, and stuffed them into its mouth.

From the moment he made his move to the moment he ate, the entire process took no more than two seconds. Moriarty, who witnessed everything through the window, was secretly astonished.

A giant squid, partially domesticated, lives in the Black Lake near Hogwarts Castle and is very docile towards the students at the school.

On sunny days, the giant squid swims to the shallows and lets the young wizards of Hogwarts tickle its tentacles.

Moriarty recalled that during a casual conversation, Leon mentioned that he had plucked a tendril.

It was later proven to be a joke, but it also illustrates how docile giant squid are.

But the giant squid beneath the cruise ship is incredibly fast, ferocious, and devours humans; calling it a sea monster wouldn't be an exaggeration.

How could a luxury cruise ship attract both a giant squid and a Tokyo ghoul at the same time?

Without needing to speculate, Moriarty was almost certain that there was something strange about the ship.

Or perhaps there's some kind of entity on the ship that attracts ghouls and giant squid.

It's difficult to determine the exact nature of the cruise ship itself, but Moriarty can confirm if there's anything unusual on board.

He stepped out of the cabin, dispelled the illusion spell, and strode toward the captain's cabin.

A panicked crowd surged past him toward the deck, as if getting onto the deck would save them.

The crew tried their best to maintain order, but it was no use.

More people began jumping off the cruise ship in an attempt to escape by diving, and without exception, they became food for the giant squid.

Moriarty passed by a crew member, his gaze sweeping intently over the crew member's eyes. He activated Legilimency and located the captain's cabin.

Generally speaking, the captain is the highest-ranking officer on board. Although luxury cruise ships are the private property of the ship owners, the first mate will give the captain a list when various goods and items are loaded onto the cruise ship.

Moriarty found that list.

However, Moriarty went into the captain's cabin and found the captain's body.

The captain was a Japanese man in his fifties. He had a bloody hole pierced in his heart, which Moriarty guessed was caused by the sharp claws of a ghoul.

Moriarty, unconcerned with the captain's fate, shouted, "Fly the cargo manifest!"

A stack of papers flew from the desk into Moriarty's hands. He activated the Alchemy Matrix, quickly browsing the list and eliminating targets one by one.

Thousands of items were eliminated by Moriarty in five seconds, and he shouted, "The inventory list, fly over!"

Two sheets of white paper flew over, and Moriarty caught them, glanced at them, and his eyes lit up.

The above text states that the luxury cruise ship belongs to the head of the Tokugawa family, and today is the day the head of the Tokugawa family is displaying the family collection.

At 7 p.m. sharp, the head of the Tokugawa family would display five family treasures on the cruise ship: a painted scroll, a Yata mirror, a Tenmoku tea bowl, a Muramasa demon sword, and a Ōgaku shikigami dō.

The five treasures were taken to the top deck of the cruise ship by the Tokugawa patriarch, and their exact location is unknown.

The ghouls and giant squid are most likely after these five treasures, or perhaps they are being manipulated...

If that's the case, Moriarty wanted to find the five treasures first, but before leaving, he took a guest list with him.

What if the ghouls and giant squid aren't after the treasure, but someone on the ship?

A glint of light flashed in Moriarty's eyes; things were getting more and more interesting.

A ball of fire appeared in his hand, which burned the inventory list before he turned and left.

There is no elevator between the eighth and ninth floors of the cruise ship, which suggests that the head of the Tokugawa family was quite afraid of death.

Moriarty snorted and flew directly into a window on the ninth floor, arriving at a corridor that led to a vermilion door.

"Who? Who are you?"

One of the bodyguards spotted Moriarty and asked him in Osaka dialect.

Moriarty glanced at him, and the bodyguard fell to the ground.

"Splash—"

Dozens of guns were thrust in front of Moriarty!

It turns out that each window in the corridor was guarded by two bodyguards.

Moriarty, with a gun pointed at him, showed no sign of panic; his face remained calm and composed.

He sneered, "Your patriarch must be terrified of death."

The sentence was spoken in Japanese, and the bodyguards understood it. One of the short men, who seemed to be the leader, cursed angrily, "Baka!"

Moriarty was too lazy to get angry with them, so he just snorted coldly, and the temperature plummeted, freezing dozens of bodyguards into ice sculptures.

"Let me see what the cowardly Tokugawa lord is up to by locking himself in there."

Moriarty gave a mysterious smile, walked towards the door, and used a little magic to open it.

The moment the door opened, Moriarty transformed into the head of the bodyguards and walked inside.

What came into view was a luxurious hall with about a hundred people inside, all of whom were well-known figures from various fields invited by the head of the Tokugawa family.

The bodyguards guarding the hall did not stop him after they saw Moriarty's face clearly.

Moriarty was able to enter the hall without any trouble. He saw twelve magnificent round tables, with people sitting together, their faces showing undisguised worry.

Clearly, news of the chaos outside had reached the hall and the ears of these high-ranking officials, CEOs, celebrities, and others.

Moriarty noticed that people's gazes were subtly drawn to the center of the hall, and he looked in that direction.

Instead of a round table, there was a tatami mat in the center of the hall, where an elderly man with a white beard and hair sat.

The old man, dressed in a black kimono, had his eyes closed and exuded an imposing aura.

The old man had no guards, but no one dared to approach him.

Moriarty confirmed the old man's identity from the crew's memories: the head of the Tokugawa family.

A man in his thirties knelt in front of the old man, but he was about ten meters away from the old man.

The man pleaded with the old man to let him off the ship, saying that his wife and daughter were waiting for him at Tokyo Haneda International Airport.

The man spoke Japanese, which made Moriarty more curious about his identity, since the man was clearly white.

At the same time, Moriarty also noticed the guests' sympathetic expressions towards the men, and the resentment towards the head of the Tokugawa family hidden beneath their worried faces.

They dared not speak out because of the Tokugawa family and the nine layers of bodyguards.

"Mr. Simon Fareed..."

The old man suddenly spoke. His voice was deep yet penetrating. The man whose name was called looked up excitedly, waiting for what he would say next.

"You are the honored guest I invited to appraise the treasure. You cannot leave until the treasure is presented."

Simon shook his head in anguish. "But...but outside—you know, we've encountered a monster!"

Some guests murmured in agreement, and Simon seemed to gain confidence, his voice becoming firm: "Please let me leave."

I'll double what you paid. I just want to leave the cruise ship. I want to live. My wife and daughter can't live without me!

The guests' calls to disembark grew louder, and the head of the Tokugawa family suddenly opened his eyes, his sharp gaze sweeping over the crowd, and the guests immediately fell silent.

"Mr. Simon," the Tokugawa patriarch said in a deep voice, "Your knowledge is extensive, and you have a deep understanding of the culture of our great Japan. For that reason alone, I will not make things difficult for you."

You may leave now. Go back to your desk and wait quietly for seven o'clock!

As for your security concerns, I can guarantee with the reputation of the Tokugawa family that those monsters outside will not be able to get in.

The head of the Tokugawa family paused slightly, then addressed everyone, "I can assure everyone present of this!"

Most of the guests present were Japanese, and they clearly understood the significance of the Tokugawa family, so they gradually felt relieved.

Simon shook his head reluctantly. The head of the Tokugawa family beckoned, and two bodyguards came over, grabbed Simon's arms, and dragged him away.

Along the way, Simon struggled while muttering things that no one else could understand.

The guests laughed, but Moriarty gave Simon a deep look.

Simon's mutterings were in an ancient language that was gradually disappearing, a language that Moriarty had heard Nicolas Flamel speak in the same tone.

At the time, Nicolas Flamel also said that there were no more than ten people in the world who could speak this language!

This language is Hebrew!

(End of this chapter)