Chapter 650
Surrender
Chapter 650 Surrender
"Dumbledore—do you know about Hufflepuff's Cup?"
Lucius Malfoy made this decision with immense resolve, revealing a secret known only to a select few to Dumbledore. As he spoke, he lowered his voice, his expression tense, every gesture hinting at something to Dumbledore—
[The following conversation is extremely important! It's a secret that only you and I can know!]
After saying this, he paused almost imperceptibly, slightly raising his eyes to subtly observe the principal's reaction.
Dumbledore was drinking tea. His eyebrows twitched almost imperceptibly, but after setting down his teacup, the ripples in his eyes had subsided.
"Of course I know," the principal said calmly.
Lucius unconsciously licked his lips, rubbing the stem of the cup with his fingertips, his confidence in the weight of this information beginning to waver.
To make his story more convincing, he began by recounting how he obtained the intelligence many years ago—
Before Voldemort was turned into a wandering ghost due to the backlash of the spell, his power was at its zenith. Apart from Dumbledore, whom he feared, the entire British wizarding world trembled under the Dark Lord's intimidation.
Even elite Aurors like Moody, and even the Longbottoms and Porters, who were regarded as "heroes," worried every day when they went out whether they would return safely at night.
In that situation, Lucius Malfoy naturally wouldn't show any signs of being a "traitor," and he acted extremely loyal—just like the other Death Eaters.
Of course, this performance is not particularly outstanding among Death Eaters.
Bellatrix's fanaticism was unmatched, Snape was silent yet reliable, Dolohov was so ruthless that no other force besides the Death Eaters would accept him, Karkaroff's sweet words made people believe that Voldemort was his sun, and Barty even said he was willing to kill his own father for the Dark Lord!
Everyone was loyal, and their conflicts stemmed only from their struggle for benefits and status, but their sincere loyalty was devoted to their master.
Among the many Death Eaters, Lucius expressed loyalty in the simplest and most straightforward way—he simply gave them money.
Money is the foundation of all activities. Even though Voldemort could use powerful magic and oppressive rule to make others tremble with fear, wizards abroad didn't all buy things from him.
Thus, with his elegant demeanor, noble birth, pure bloodline, and most importantly, a financial offensive, Lucius successfully became one of Voldemort's most trusted Death Eaters, his status comparable to Bellatrix's.
Thus, he received a special honor that set him apart from everyone else—to safeguard something extremely important for the Dark Lord.
Of course, Lucius didn't know what that seemingly ordinary Muggle notebook actually was. Based on the Dark Lord's suggestive explanation, he guessed that it was a very powerful weapon that the Dark Lord had personally crafted.
After Voldemort disappeared, Lucius secretly checked the notebook and found that the guy had tried to manipulate him into communicating, so he immediately sealed it away.
—In many ancient stories, ninety-nine percent of these magical items are not good things; they either seal a demon inside or hide a terrible evil spirit.
Even now, when he confesses to Dumbledore, Lucius still believes this.
The diary was sent to Hogwarts by Lucius, but it seemed to make no splash at all, which naturally seemed very strange to Lucius.
Under Dumbledore's gaze, Lucius mumbled, "I...I wanted to teach Arthur Weasley a lesson, so I gave it to the Weasley's youngest daughter. But the little girl might have thrown it away...or Arthur Weasley might have disposed of it; in any case, its whereabouts are now unknown..."
He leaned forward, his expression respectful yet tinged with regret, but his gaze remained secretly fixed on Dumbledore's face.
Dumbledore gave a soft "hmm," his tone neither surprised nor doubtful, so calm that it was impossible to guess what he meant.
His eyes didn't even flicker, neither avoiding nor probing, lacking any sharp edge, just like a lake shrouded in morning mist, calm and undisturbed.
Under that gaze, Lucius felt as if he had become a student reciting a text. He took a deep breath, eager to say something more.
"Later I remembered that, besides me, there was another person who was also granted the honor of guarding a certain item by the Dark Lord..."
Young Bellatrix had not yet evolved to the point of being single-minded and refined through trials; she cared deeply about Voldemort's favor and was eager to show off the attention she had received.
But after the Dark Lord ordered it to be kept secret, the only thing she could boast about was her sister Narcissa.
After Narcissa married Lucius, although her husband and maternal clan had close ties with Voldemort's camp, she did not formally join the Death Eaters, was not marked by Voldemort, and did not have to undertake the Death Eaters' obligations such as murder, torture, and infiltration.
She only needed to support Lucius's activities through family resources under the identity of "Madame Malfoy," thus indirectly supporting Voldemort as well.
In Bellatrix's eyes, Narcissa was a close and reliable sister who was not in competition with her and who did not have to worry about her leaking secrets or betraying her.
So she couldn't help but boast a few words to Narcissa, such as Lucius being just a foolish money bag, while she herself was the Dark Lord's right-hand woman, and her master had even handed over "that thing" to her.
Bella restrained herself from revealing too many secrets.
At the same time, she was unaware that after a soft little life was added to Malfoy Manor, her sister's stance had quietly changed.
Lucius soon learned of the sisters' conversation, and at the same time, he remembered something else—
Bellatrix's husband, Rodolphus Lestrange, once, after getting drunk, unusually removed his mask as a loyal Death Eater and complained with a gloomy expression.
“Lucius, you’re much luckier than me…at least Narcissa’s eyes have always been on you!”
Rodolphs took a large gulp of wine and said with a sneer, "And my wife? She calls his name in her dreams. What am I? A robe to adorn her pure-blood status?"
“Bella is just exceptionally loyal,” Lucius said hypocritically. “Because of her, your Lestrange family is also the Master’s most trusted family, an honor that no one else can match.”
"glory?"
Rodolphs, slurring his drink, said, "What kind of honor is this? Don't think I don't know how you've been laughing at me behind my back... It's just a golden cup, an old relic, it's long lost its magic! She even treasured it and hid it in my family's vault, and I, the owner, wasn't even allowed to touch it..."
Afterwards, Rodolphus grumbled and complained a lot, which Lucius dealt with flawlessly, making Rodolphus feel that he understood him, without showing any disloyalty to the Dark Lord.
After sobering up, Rodolphus seemed to have forgotten what he had said. He remained the same unassuming and mediocre man standing behind Bella, loyally serving the Dark Lord and never refusing to be a spear or sword in his wife's hands. Lucius, of course, also "forgot" his drunken ramblings that day, but the word "golden cup" lingered in his mind.
The most famous cup in the British wizarding world is undoubtedly Helga Hufflepuff's Cup, which is said to possess magical and unique powers and has been passed down from generation to generation among Hufflepuff's descendants.
Of course, no one believes the claim that the cup was powerful anymore—if it were truly a powerful magical artifact, how come the Hufflepuff family is still so mediocre?
Speaking of famous cups, there are also the Holy Grail from King Arthur's legend, the Cup of Youth which contains the Fountain of Youth, the Magic Cauldron of Dagdahl, the father of the gods, and the Golden Cup that King Solomon used to seal away the devil, and so on.
But considering the Fallen's obsession with Hogwarts and his fascination with the legend of the four great masters...
Lucius figured that what that person valued most must be Hufflepuff's golden cup.
Of course, this is also because only Hufflepuff's cup has a definite whereabouts, while the existence of the other legendary cups is uncertain.
He pondered these things not because he coveted the ancient cup, but because he felt a vague unease in his heart—
Why did Bella receive the legendary Hufflepuff Cup, while I only have a dirty, old Muggle notebook?
This unease was hard to express, but it would occasionally well up in his heart and tickle his chest.
However, when relaying this to Dumbledore, it became evidence that Lucius was observant, thoughtful, and had long harbored resentment towards Voldemort.
The unease of betraying the Dark Lord only surged in his heart for a moment before Lucius quickly suppressed it.
In his view, he did not consider himself a traitor.
Lucius believed that the two dramatic changes in the Dark Mark proved that the Dark Lord had once tried to resurrect but failed miserably, and might have even been destroyed, forcing him to hand over the power of the Death Eaters to Barty Crouch Jr.
Are you suggesting that he—the head of the Malfoy family, the heir to an ancient noble title, the representative of a pure-blood family, and a high-ranking official in the Ministry of Magic—should submit to a kid who has somehow managed to survive until now?
Who is that Barty Crouch Jr.? He actually dared to turn him into a toad and make him suffer so much, and his own son was humiliated to this extent!
Moreover, even if Malfoy were willing to bow down and pledge allegiance, would Batistuta accept him without any reservations?
That guy's malice towards me was practically overflowing!
If Lucius reappears after regaining his original form, that kid might come knocking on our door again at any time, bringing his Death Eaters who have already submitted to him.
At that time, the Malfoy family will truly be wiped out.
Therefore, Lucius was eager to jump onto a more solid ship and find a new backer for himself.
In his mind, siding with Dumbledore and betraying Voldemort's past secrets were both unavoidable and very rational choices, made in order to preserve the vitality of the pure-blood family.
Under the influence of some mysterious magical power, Lucius completely overlooked one possibility—
That is, the multiple dramatic changes in the Dark Mark do not mean that the Dark Lord is dead, nor that the Death Eaters have a new master.
Their only master is struggling tenaciously teetering on the brink of life and death, attempting to make a comeback, and indeed, he is gradually regaining his strength once again.
Dumbledore knew perfectly well what was going on, but he didn't bother to warn him. Instead, he took out all the honey he had treasured and offered it to Lucius with pity.
"Mr. Malfoy, how much do you know about the Lestrange family's treasury?"
Dumbledore asked slowly, "Is there any way to find out about the Hufflepuff Cup that might be placed inside?"
“I’m sorry,” Lucius sighed, speaking sincerely, “I’d be happy to help—if I could. But neither I nor Narcissa can access the Lestrange family’s vault. Unless…”
His voice paused slightly, and his Adam's apple bobbed.
Dumbledore voiced his thoughts for him: "Unless there's another breakout from Azkaban, and the Lestrange family goes to Gringotts to retrieve it themselves?"
"Of course... of course there is another way."
Lucius lowered his voice and said slowly, "The remaining three members of the Lestrange family are in prison... If they all die, I mean... according to inheritance law, Narcissa will inherit all their property, including that cup..."
Although Sirius Black is also in the Black family, he and Bellatrix are only cousins. Narcissa, as his younger sister, is in the line of succession ahead of Sirius.
Even without Narcissa, his son Draco Malfoy would have been the first to inherit.
Lucius fantasized about the Lestrange family's vast wealth, and even though he was already one of the richest people in the wizarding world, he couldn't help but feel envious and subconsciously swallowed.
Dumbledore glanced at him, as if he could see a shower of gold jingling in the wizard's mind.
He picked up his teacup and took a sip of hot tea, but the temperature in the office seemed to have quietly dropped a few degrees.
“Mr. Malfoy—”
Dumbledore said calmly, "Murder is not a shortcut to solving problems, but rather the beginning of more problems."
"Even those few who have committed the most heinous crimes?" Malfoy disagreed. "You know they should have died long ago."
As soon as he finished speaking, he saw Dumbledore give him a deep look, and Lucius suddenly felt a chill.
Although it wasn't explicitly stated, he immediately understood Dumbledore's meaning—
If the headmaster were truly so ruthless, Lucius Malfoy would have died long ago, wouldn't have been able to evade justice for over a decade, and certainly wouldn't be sitting in Dumbledore's office having tea with him.
Dumbledore tapped his fingertips lightly on the table, and after a moment said, "Even prisoners in Azkaban are protected by the law. If we also begin to trample on the law at will, we will never find the line between civilization and barbarism again, Lucius."
(End of this chapter)