A certain broken Hogwarts

Chapter 99 The Snake in the Cage

The morning air was dry and cold. The sun slowly rose from the horizon, casting a somber bluish-gray hue over the mountains and the land. The rolling black forest stretched to the horizon on the other side, seemingly without end.

Owen glanced back at the endless forest, a sudden urge to start a fire welling up inside him; he imagined a magnificent bonfire engulfing the entire forest would be quite a sight. He suddenly chuckled and shook his head, simultaneously using psychological methods to assess his own mental state and employing a cleansing spell to keep his appearance neat and tidy.

Natasha, oblivious to her surroundings, looked around. Her already messy red hair was curled up by the fire, sticking haphazardly out of her head, and her cloak was tattered and covered in dust.

Seeing that Natasha didn't care about her appearance at all, Owen couldn't resist casting a cleansing spell on her and then using a repairing spell to mend her cloak. Looking at the refreshed woman before him, he finally found her much more pleasing to the eye and continued walking towards the gathering place ahead.

Natasha stared at him blankly for a moment, then said casually, "I'm so hungry, I hope there's something to eat up ahead." She rummaged in her pockets and finally found only two Galleons and five Sickles.

"Damn information broker, I'll wipe out his lair when I get back!" she said through gritted teeth, mourning the bag of Galleons she had been swindled out of... Although it was something she had grabbed on the run while on the run, it was the largest sum of money she had ever seen in her life.

Listening to Natasha's sexy, husky voice complaining like a little girl, Owen smiled, finding this woman sometimes endearingly naive, even though she was skilled in arson, murder, and robbery... But he quickly lost interest in anything else; his stomach began to rumble, making him think of steaming meat pies, juicy steaks, and preferably a cup of fragrant black tea...

The two finally entered the wizarding enclave, which seemed to be similar to Diagon Alley, but significantly more desolate. The streets were sparsely populated, many shops were closed, and the few pedestrians mostly concealed their faces furtively. There were also wizards dressed normally, some hurrying past, others standing on the street whispering amongst themselves.

Owen felt several blatant stares directed at him from the street. These people were openly observing them, seemingly judging two complete strangers. The voices they faintly heard sounded complicated and strained, clearly not in English.

"Where is this? It seems we really have come to another country..." Natasha looked at the signs with words written on them on the street, but she couldn't tell which language they were in.

"Albanian," Owen said thoughtfully, pulling his hood up to cover his face. Although he didn't understand the language, it wasn't difficult to recognize it by some of its distinctive pronunciations.

He hadn't expected to end up in Voldemort's lair. Although he really wanted to raid Voldemort's lair, he figured there wasn't much there, and the Black Forest was so vast—it would take forever to find anything. With that thought, his eagerness faded.

"Albania? This is a haven for criminals." Natasha pulled down her hood, her voice becoming somber. "This country has been in chaos for years, harboring many wanted criminals, dark wizards, and werewolves from neighboring countries. I even considered escaping here with my brother, but alas..."

Irving nodded noncommittally, sincerely hoping there was a breakfast shop open here.

Finally, the two found food at a dilapidated and abandoned inn. Although it didn't taste very good, it was enough to fill their stomachs.

Natasha was ripped off by the hotel owner. Angrily, she threw down a Galleon, stuffed the last bite of dry bread into her mouth, and mumbled, "People in places like this have complicated relationships. It's best not to cause trouble if you can avoid it. He might just shout and summon a bunch of people who will turn into robbers."

As the sun rose higher, the number of pedestrians on the deserted streets gradually increased. Many people were still standing warily at the spot where the incident had occurred the night before, scrutinizing everyone who passed by with suspicious eyes.

Here, relationships between people are distant and guarded. Malicious eyes occasionally gleam from street corners and even inside closed shops. Once a potential victim is spotted, several people will quietly follow and look for an opportunity to strike.

A woman and a child should have been the easiest targets, but when Owen and Natasha fully unleashed their aura, their cold and murderous presence kept many at bay, saving them a lot of trouble.

"It will take a long time to get back home. FiloNet can't connect to overseas networks, and Apparition can't cover very long distances," Natasha said in a hoarse voice. "As for illegal remote key portals, those things are too dangerous, and we can't find a trustworthy seller."

"We can use Muggle transportation. We need to think outside the box," Owen said casually.

As they talked, they walked toward the fireplace they had learned about from the previous innkeeper. It was a dilapidated house, the floor and walls filthy, and a strange smell permeated the air. The fireplace wasn't lit, but from the inner room came a series of "bang bang" sounds, along with indistinct grumbling and laughter.

"Someone come out here, we need to use the fireplace!" Natasha strode over and pounded on the door as she shouted. In a place like this, there's no need for politeness; the more arrogant you are, the less likely anyone will dare mess with you.

Someone opened the door, grumbling, and said in broken English, "Two Galleons, no bargaining."

"Why don't you just rob it?" Natasha shouted without backing down.

"Get out if you don't have money!" The man inside the house made a move to close the door.

While Natasha was arguing with the man, Owen peeked into the room through the open door and could vaguely see a large cage in the corner, with an animal inside repeatedly ramming against the iron bars. The people inside watched from a distance, whispering amongst themselves.

Irving adjusted the angle and finally saw that the animal was a giant python with black net-like patterns on its brown scales. Its cold, serpentine eyes stared at the people in the room, occasionally baring its sharp fangs.

Sensing a strange magical fluctuation emanating from the snake, Owen asked thoughtfully, "Where did your snake come from?"

"Hmm? You're interested, kid?" The man flashed Owen a set of yellowed teeth. "Of course, we caught it in the Black Forest. Tsk tsk, this snake has been roaming the forest quite a bit these past six months, I wonder if it's become obsessed with eating children. We went through a lot of trouble to catch it with a trap."

"Why are you catching it?" Could it really be Nagini?

"Selling it for money. This is a magical snake, definitely a mutant species, and incredibly powerful. One of our men was bitten by it and almost lost half his life," the man chuckled. "It's a rare find; many people collect these, using them as experimental subjects or as collectibles. Want to buy it? Only five hundred Galleons."

"Can I take a look?" Irving asked with interest.

The man's expression turned serious as he sized them up, seemingly assessing their purchasing power and whether they were potential targets for robbery. After a long pause, he raised an eyebrow and said, "Come in."

He stepped aside from the doorway and led Owen and the other man into the house. There were two other people in the small room. The air was stuffy and carried a strong fermented smell, which made Owen frown.

The large snake in the cage looked over with its cold, serpentine eyes. It coiled itself up tightly, raised its head high, and assumed a posture ready to attack. Then, it slammed its thick body heavily against the iron bars. It was twelve feet long and looked like it could swallow a person whole.

The snake seemed to carry a cursed power, giving off a dark and ominous feeling. Owen glanced at the corner that the giant snake was covering with its coiled body. Even as it frantically rammed against the cage, it stubbornly used its body to block that spot. Only in the brief moments when it swayed its body could one vaguely see that a small gap had been made, which was then naturally and completely covered up in the blink of an eye, unnoticed by the surrounding wizards.

"Unexpectedly clever." Owen smirked, looking at the snake's seemingly mindless eyes. If he hadn't intervened, the snake would probably have escaped much sooner.

"It broke the cage," Owen said, pointing directly to the spot where the snake was blocking the view, his tone completely innocent.

The giant snake's cold eyes glanced over in an instant, and as if it understood, it bared its venomous fangs at Owen, a chilling killing intent and a hint of exasperation flashing in its vertical pupils.

Three wizards surrounded the serpent, shouting and casting spells at it. Although the serpent had good spell resistance, it still hissed in pain as it was struck, and large and small bloodstains appeared on its shiny scales.

Soon, the giant snake was huddled up in the cage, watching the wizards repair the damage to the cage with a cold gaze, its eyes filled with hatred as it glared at Owen, as if plotting how to bite him.

"Bah, this beast thinks it can escape?" the man cursed, brandishing his wand. He then looked at Owen, his expression softening slightly, but only making him more frightening. "So, what do you think? Want to buy it?"

"Fifty Galleons? I bet it escaped from some dark wizard's lab. That's a pretty good price," Owen casually bargained.

The large snake in the cage stared intently at him, a hint of human-like hatred flashing in its vertical pupils.

"Impossible! There are no signs of experimentation on it!" the man shouted.

"Tsk, don't tell me you didn't notice, it's clearly under some kind of curse." Owen said arrogantly, "If I weren't always interested in curses, I wouldn't bother with a beast that's obviously man-made."

"It'll cost at least four hundred Galleons. One of us almost died trying to catch it," the man muttered hesitantly, clearly having already noticed something fishy about the snake.

After some back-and-forth negotiation, Owen stuck to his price of 150 Galleons, refusing to budge, which infuriated the man to the point of almost drawing his wand to curse him. If it weren't for their intimidating auras, they probably would have actually come to blows.

The large snake coiled inside the cage, licking its wounds, listening to the two people outside the cage haggling over the price; it even looked somewhat pitiful.

"If we can't reach an agreement, I'll leave. I'm in a hurry." Owen made a move to turn and leave. "If this snake were sold outside, I'd bet I'd lose. If I weren't a little interested in the curse on it, I wouldn't want to be a sucker."

The man, panting heavily, exchanged glances with the two people beside him, and finally nodded, saying, "Okay, cash on delivery." He angrily kicked the cage, almost getting bitten on the ankle by the large snake that suddenly darted out. He cursed and cast a spell on it.

"Be careful, this is mine now. Although I wouldn't mind if you killed it and bought its corpse for a fraction of the price," Owen said coldly, summoning a bag of Galleons from his briefcase. He had taken several hundred Galleons from the leader of the Dark Spirit organization last night; that's the thrill of making money without any initial investment.

The transaction was complete. Owen looked at the large snake in the cage with a half-smile. He was ninety percent certain that this snake was Nagini. Oh dear, he hadn't intentionally taken away the Dark Lord's favorite pet; it was just a fair trade, and he'd paid for it!

"This counts as indirectly raiding Voldemort's lair, doesn't it?" Owen chuckled as he lightly lifted the cage into the air and then placed it into his briefcase.

The feeling of raiding someone's base is just so wonderful. I wonder what Voldemort's reaction will be when he returns and finds his beloved snake gone. As for what Horcrux Voldemort will use in the future? Who cares? Owen doesn't care anyway.

Under the increasingly greedy gazes of the three men, Owen and Natasha, wands in hand, remained vigilant. They eventually made their way through the fireplace to a wizarding market in Durrës, and then hurried to the port to catch a ship.

"Was there anything special about that snake?" Natasha asked curiously on the way.

"Hmm, it might be a Blood Curse Orc," Owen said softly. "It's a terrible curse that can be passed down through blood. Those cursed can transform into animal forms, but as time goes by, they will eventually be unable to transform back into human form, forever trapped in the shell of a beast, losing all humanity and becoming utterly beasts."

"You mean, this snake used to be a person?" Natasha looked incredulous.

"Maybe she's a beautiful young lady," Owen said with a smile, winking his left eye at Natasha.

"Oh? Am I prettier than you?" Natasha smoothed her long, deep red hair. Her beautiful face possessed both elegance and a touch of heroism, giving her a captivating charm.

"Tsk, who knows?" Owen gazed quietly at the boundless sea ahead, listening to the sound of waves crashing against the shore.

The two then used a Disillusionment Charm to board a ferry bound for Italy, arriving in the port city of Bari after more than half a day. They borrowed a fireplace from a local wizard and made their way to the capital, Rome.

After a long and winding journey, they finally boarded a flight to London and returned home before the start of the Hogwarts term.

After settling things with Natasha, Owen returned to Shafiq Estate, where his parents had already returned from their trip.

"Owen, you've been out alone for so long, really just to visit a girl? Or did you go off to do something naughty?" Mr. Albert looked at Owen with a smile and reached out to pinch his shoulder. Ms. Adeline was elegantly trimming the flowers in the vase, glancing over with a smile.

"Well, bad things, like murder and arson." Owen smiled broadly, recalling the experience with a hint of pleasure and excitement.

"Then you'd better remember to burn it clean." Adeline turned her cheek to look at him and said in a slightly hoarse, soft voice.

"Don't worry, I burned it all up," Owen said with a bright smile.

"Wow, murder and arson, how cool!" Albert exclaimed. "I haven't done that in years."

Adeline gave the father and son a meaningful look, and continued to slowly trim the flowers and plants.

Owen lowered his eyes, stroking the little tabby cat that had snuggled up to him as soon as they got back, a faint smile always on his face. Whether the couple believed him or not was unclear, but he hadn't lied; he was an honest child.

"Oh, by the way, I brought back a dangerous magical creature that needs to be kept in the dungeon at home for the time being," he said. Meeting the curious gazes of the couple, he explained, "It's probably a blood-cursed beastman that can't revert to human form. You can study it, but don't kill it." Although killing it didn't seem like a big deal.

"You've really got your hands on something good, Owen." A hint of surprise and excitement flashed in Ms. Adeline's deep green eyes.

Seeing his mother's expression, Irving couldn't help but silently mourn for the giant snake for half a second.

Irving spent the last part of his Christmas break in the peaceful manor. On the morning of the first day of school, he packed his bags, said goodbye to his parents, and boarded the train back to school.

(End of this chapter)