Chapter 297: Diagon Alley's Terror - The beginning of a Myth
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Wednesday, 03 December 1986
02:00 am
The second day at the bookshop had passed while hampering the advances of many reporters.
None had any thought of keeping Darcie's new life hidden under an invisibility cloak. That's why they had allowed her to roam free in Diagon Alley, keeping the future in mind. By the time Darcie and her mentor arrived on the ground floor for dinner the first day, a large party of reporters had been waiting for them.
Yet, Madam Villanelle had let no one come near Darcie and had rather tackled questions by herself. The ministry had already decided on answers for these scenarios.
Nonetheless, another article detailing Darcie's Malfoy new circumstances and her mentor, Madam Villanelle, had brought no less than hundreds of customers to the bookshop on the second day's afternoon. It had almost felt like people had been coming to peek at a new, exotic creature who had just arrived at the zoo.
Once it had been made clear that no one would be allowed to converse with Darcie casually, the fake customers had lost interest by the evening. Despite the thinning of the crowd, Madam Villanelle had found it prudent for Darcie to stay in the bookshop or return to her room for a few days directly after her afternoon lessons.
On the top floor of Brews and Stews, in Darcie's room, there was a suitcase lying on the floor in the fading light of the low fire. Inside the suitcase, there was a long hall, which was divided into two halves. On one half, there were many bookshelves lined against three walls with a sitting area between them. In the second half, there were many sofas, a long table and chairs, and a fireplace.
Sitting on one chair by the fireplace with the journal on a small table in front of him, Kai wrote the last sentence of today's entry. After sending the writing material back to his MRB, Kai sat down on the floor, facing the roaring fire. The fire made the countless scars on his naked body seem like dancing wraiths.
Above the yellow sea of Mana in his mind, a room hovered in the great emptiness.
Inside the room, Kai's figure appeared, surrounded by only two runes. The rune to his left represented the end product of a month's analysis, endless restructuring, and mind-bending calculations. The rune to his right represented one tiny part of a tale from the Book.
The two runes closed, like boats sailing towards each other. There was no repulsion, but no attraction between them, either.
The runes kissed. The left rune entered within the right, and the right entered within the left. When they had overlapped by around 90%, the fusion stopped.
And the resistance exploded out of nowhere like a volcano.
Yet Kai had no mind to force this fusion. He sighed and opened his eyes, coming out of his meditative state.
'I need more data,' Kai reflected, helping himself back to the chair. 'I saw many books on runes in the bookshop, but I didn't get a chance to let Mr. Hillam know to send them to me.'
Kai took out the Book and called out Petyr and Okabe.
The characters appeared one after another and sat down near the fireplace, bringing two more chairs.
"How does it feel, my lord?" Petyr asked, a sly smile playing on his lips. "The feeling of the entire world dancing on your fingers must be great, right? No, let me correct. An entire magical world, I should've said."
"Mr. Storm, I am hungry," Okabe said, picking up a book from the long table behind him. "And something to drink. Dr. Pepper, perhaps. Do they sell it in London? Let's check out. Hahaha!"
Kai ignored the insane scientist's existence. "I must say," he told Petyr, smiling, "this feeling does have an odd addiction to it. But we are not there yet. For now, it's just setting the pace. The dance will come at the end, one last brilliant performance. By the time all would get to know that they were part of a play, the audience would have already left after giving a standing ovation."
"Aren't you worried about this new mentor, my lord?" Petyr asked, leaning back in the chair's comfort. "The Daily Prophet yesterday had mentioned nothing related to Madam Villanelle. You know what that means, right? The ministry buried the news on her."
Kai smirked. "The minister, you mean," he corrected. "Darcie's dearest friend is being naughty, yes. But this had always been within my calculations. If I were Millicent Bagnold, a great witch who had failed to do anything during the war against Voldemort, other than giving out a wonderful statement at the end, then I would be wary of the minute things related to the Dark Lord, too. Oh, she is enthralled by Darcie and her prospects. There are no doubts about that. It must be the rumors of Darcie being Voldemort's bastard that are itching the old woman.
"If I were in Bagnold's shoes, then I would first separate Darcie from her dark background, her family. We took care of that for her. Then, I would send someone to monitor this little girl for discrepancies in her behavior, trying to make sure that she had no relation with the vanished Dark Lord. But the ministry is corrupt, and the name, Malfoy, brings fear with it to the hearts and ears alike. In that case, given I could not do these things myself, I would rather send a most trustworthy candidate to do the job. A candidate who would answer to no one other than me personally."
"DONE!" Rintaro Okabe snapped the book shut and shouted. "I am going to the Potions room." The scientist threw himself off the chair and walked off. When he stepped out of the Book's boundary, he vanished.
Kai closed his eyes and ran his hands through his hair. He again called Okabe back and gave him a look that he hadn't given in a long time. Rintaro Okabe's lips twitched, and he sat down back in the chair, whistling a tune.
"So," Petyr continued, "Madam Villanelle is this candidate. I agree, my lord. The question is, for how long will this observation last?"
Kai massaged his head. "We would know soon enough," he said, frowning. "Remember, I did plant the idea of the world needing a symbol of Power within her. Once Madam Villanelle finishes stuffing Darcie with children's tales and gets down to real magical studies, then it would mean she had given a positive nod to the minister. I can already see the hundreds of rules Ms. Bagnold will break to rear Darcie as a weapon. The bitch would sure call it something else, fucking hypocrite! Heh!"
The scoff at the end made Kai wince again.
"Your headache has returned, Mr. Storm," Okabe observed. "Golduck's mind jewel, perhaps?"
Kai nodded.
"Not to mention," Petyr added, "your mental state is getting more unstable despite the use of the journal, my lord."
Okabe rubbed his chin. "This was bound to happen, Lab Member 003, Mr. Finger," he told Petyr in quite an animatic way, stretching out the last words. "The more Darcie interacts with others, the more Mr. Storm will have trouble suppressing his thoughts behind her true nature. Add the return of headaches, and now he will have to suppress the pain these bouts of migraine will bring to Darcie as well. Pain will not differentiate between the two Actors. For it, both Darcie and Kai are the same. If I were to make a guess, then Mr. Storm's condition would worsen before stabilizing for good later. An equilibrium will come, but it will take time."
Only for these statements did Kai tolerate the annoying presence of the scientist. One would never know when he would say truly meaningful and crucial sentences. Not to mention, Rintaro Okabe had been developing a new field of Magical Engineering independent of Kai's orders. After hearing a few of his raw ideas, Kai had decided to let the character read as many books as possible whenever he took him out.
'If only he would stop spouting nonsense,' Kai thought, taking a deep breath. 'Tch!'
"The wandmaker gave Darcie a blunt rejection, Mr. Storm," Okabe said, chuckling. "I think it would have been wise to reincarnate into an old woman and give the old man a few children. Then…"
Okabe's words were cut short as Kai looked at him. "One day," Kai whispered, his voice creaking, "I will give you a body, Okabe. Then I will hack you into pieces and feast on you. Isn't that something to think about? Huh?"
"You wouldn't like my taste, Mr. Storm," Okabe suggested, sweating. "Also, who is this Okabe? I am Hououin Kyouma, the…"
"Anyway," Petyr said, his voice trailing like the tongues of fire, "when are we starting the prime business for which you have come to Diagon Alley, my lord?"
Kai's eyes narrowed. "Today," he told them, noticing that there were still two hours to his Identity Period. "The sooner the better."
"Today?!"
"Today?!"
Both characters showed their confusion together.
It was Petyr who gave substance to their thoughts. "Are you sure?" he asked, looking thoughtful. "I thought you would first regain your ability to use Blood Prophecy before commencing the Hunt. And didn't you just say that Madam Villanelle would monitor Darcie's behavior for some time? Hmm, now that I look at it, it does seem like the right time…"
"Why?" Okabe asked. The deeper meanings of such reasons had always puzzled him.
Kai explained it to him, standing up. "I had a mind to wait for the Blood Prophecy," he told them. "But with the stretching of Harry Potter's world timeline and me not seeing any other way to know if the Blood Prophecy would attract Hastur's attention again, I must proceed. All I can do is be extra careful, keeping myself on my toes.
"And imagine the scenario where Madam Villanelle was to tell the minister that there is nothing with Darcie, and in the very next month, someone vanished from the Diagon Alley. No. Tonight is as good as any other day."
"As you say, my lord," Petyr said slyly, standing up as well.
Kai looked at his right hand, where the imprints of ten long fingers were visible like mysterious marks. He remembered what the user of Rinnegan had told him about it.
'I can't worry about these right now,' he reasoned, steeling himself. 'When the time comes, even Death will have to bow to me. I will get all the answers, then.'
"Come, Petyr," he commanded. "Let the hunt begin!"
Okabe disappeared first. Then, with a bow, Petyr's figure blurred and entered Kai.
Outside the suitcase, embers were glowing like tiny, red stars in the hearth. The suitcase was lying on the floor, lifeless and motionless.
Suddenly, its top half blew open, and a dense, foul coldness seeped out.
A shriveled, skeletal hand, like that of a corpse, rose out of it and grabbed the edge of the suitcase.
The foulest creature known to the wizardkind across the Multiverse was making its debut in this world.
It was the return of Dementor-Kai, and it was hungry.
Hungry for the souls of wizards!
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