Magical Studies at Hogwarts...

Chapter 200 Kreacher

It must be said that Comrade Voldemort's promise was incredibly appealing, exactly what Ike had always wanted. Although conquering Azkaban was extremely difficult, it wasn't something he had to do alone.

Even if it's just one person, it's not that difficult...

The exile spell he displayed wasn't Ike's only achievement during this period; he had concealed many more complex spells. For example, he had simplified the spell that combined magic circles and runes considerably.

But he didn't reveal this...

As Christmas approached, Malfoy Manor became increasingly crowded, with more and more dark wizards being recruited to come and pay their respects to Voldemort. Add to that the Death Eaters like McNeil and Norton, and the castle's basement was always packed with people.

Of course, their secrecy measures were very good; publicly, only Malfoy Jr. returned to the manor during the Christmas holidays.

Unlike his time at Hogwarts, Malfoy was very low-key back at the manor, spending his days either by Narcissa's or Ike's side, showing none of the arrogance he displayed at school.

Ike knew perfectly well what he had been doing at school; Hermione had told him everything. He had no intention of disciplining him; he was just a spoiled child of Narcissa, not a bad person at heart.

So what's there to learn from this? What reason is there?

Inside the castle, young Malfoy had never done anything wrong. Ike didn't want to reveal his secret yet, at least not now.

"Ike, there's something I need to ask your opinion on..." Little Malfoy, who had been quietly watching Ike brew potions, suddenly spoke up.

"What is it?" Ike asked calmly.

"Well... it's just that Christmas is coming up in a few days, and Mother has to prepare dinner. She can't manage it all by herself..." Little Malfoy scratched his head. "Originally, these things should have been Dobby's responsibility, but as you know, because of that wretched Potter, Dobby is free."

"It's not easy to find house-elves, so my mother has been taking care of them all by herself for the past few years..."

"I could have managed, but now..." Malfoy looked troubled and somewhat helpless. "So, I want to help out and make things easier for Mother."

"Okay." Ike nodded in agreement, then asked, "Why do you think I need you to come and be my assistant on Christmas Day?"

Do I look like such an unreasonable person?

Malfoy was momentarily speechless. He wanted to say "You are," but ultimately didn't. Seeing Malfoy's predicament, Ike guessed what he was thinking.

He smiled, shook his head, waved his hand, and said, "Come on, you're on holiday starting today. Actually, you didn't need to come today. I didn't intend to drag you here during this short Christmas holiday."

"Thank you, Ike." Upon hearing this, Malfoy bowed deeply and then left the laboratory located in the north of the manor.

Ike didn't turn around, his eyes still fixed on the potion in the cauldron. This was a crucial moment; there was no time to let his guard down.

That evening, Ike turned down the fire under the crucible and set up several warning and monitoring spells before leaving the laboratory and returning to the castle.

He went up the stairs and straight to the basement, where Ike naturally sat down in the seat to Old Fu's left. Ever since Old Fu made that promise to him, he had been coming over every night, which was at Old Fu's request.

There were many people in the basement, but apart from Voldemort, Ike only recognized Wormtail, who was standing bowing behind Voldemort. He didn't recognize any of the guys kneeling at Voldemort's feet.

There was no need for Ike to know him; these dark wizards who had come to join him were beneath even the Wormtail, as he was the lowest-ranking member of the Death Eaters.

He's just a tool, cannon fodder that nobody else wants, but that's what Ekko needs.

Christmas Eve arrived in the blink of an eye, and Malfoy Manor was unusually quiet. All in all, only six people remained in the castle: Old Voldemort, Ike, Wormtail, and the Malfoy family of three. No one would be so foolish as to visit Old Voldemort today, and Old Voldemort generously let McNeil and the others go home.

From this perspective, Lao Fu still had humanity.

The dinner was lavish, and all the dishes were served in two portions. One portion was placed in the large dining room on the first floor, while the other was placed in Old Fu's room in the basement.

Old Voldemort sat in the main seat, with Lucius to his right, and Narcissa and Malfoy in order. To his left was Ike, and below him was Wormtail.

"Thank you, Narcissa, this meal was delicious."

After finishing his meal, Comrade Lao Fu elegantly wiped his mouth while speaking to Narcissa, who was still somewhat apprehensive.

"Praise be to you, great Dark Lord! Your satisfaction is exactly what I desire," Narcissa replied, her voice trembling slightly.

"Don't be nervous, it's Christmas today, everyone should be happy." With that, Old Fu looked at Ike and asked, "How's it going, little Ike? Did you eat well?"

"It's delicious, teacher," Ike replied, then thanked Narcissa, "Thank you, Mrs. Malfoy."

"Heh, heh heh..." Old Fu laughed happily, but suddenly stopped, his expression turning indifferent. "Alright, Lucius, don't stay here with me. Wormtail is enough. You guys should go upstairs."

Lucius, Narcissa, and Malfoy stood up, bowed to Old Voldemort, and said, "Thank you, Master. We'll be going now..."

"Go on, go on..." Comrade Old Fu waved his hand, and Lucius, seeing this, left the long table with his wife and son and turned to walk upstairs.

But before they could even leave, they heard Lao Fu's voice behind them again, and the three of them stopped in their tracks.

"Oh, by the way, keep an eye on the entrance after you go upstairs; it looks like someone's showing up uninvited..."

Lucius turned back and bowed slightly, saying, "I will, Master."

"Alright, let's go..."

After going up the stairs, Lucius immediately went to the castle gate. As soon as he opened the door, he saw a house-elf standing there. It was wearing a dirty rag, its skin was drooping, its head was bald, and behind its large, bat-like ears was a tuft of white fur, making it look extremely ugly.

Lucius frowned and his tone turned harsh.

"Whose are you? What are you doing in my house!"

"That wretched spendthrift has made a mess of the mistress's house. Kreacher tries his best to do what the mistress asks, but he can't disobey the spendthrift's orders..." Kreacher hung his head, rubbing his hands, his eyes constantly looking into the house, as if searching for something.

"The spendthrift son told Kreacher to get out, so Kreacher had no choice but to leave the mistress's house..."

"Kreacher had nowhere else to go, and no master to serve him, so he turned to the young lady, for only a kind young lady would pity the old Kreacher..."

"What are you talking about? What, Miss?" Lucius frowned, about to ask, when he saw the house-elf named Kreacher bow even lower and speak respectfully.

"Kind lady, old Kreacher has been driven from the mistress's beloved house. I hope that kind lady will have pity on this useless house-elf Kreacher and let him serve you."

"Oh my God! Kreacher! What are you doing here?" Narcissa exclaimed, she never expected to see Kreacher again.

"You know it, Narcissa?"

"Yes, I know it." Narcissa's expression was somewhat complicated as she looked at Lucius beside her, her tone equally complicated.

"Kreacher is a house-elf of the Black family."

(End of this chapter)