Sufficient Firepower

Place Grimmauld, number 12.

In Regulus's room.

The house-elf huddled in the corner, sometimes sobbing, sometimes hiccuping, and sometimes rubbing its eyes with its fists like a child.

Belvina sat on the edge of the bed, the chain of the locket hanging on her slender fingers, the egg-sized locket swinging in front of her like a pendulum.

She could clearly sense the dangerous aura emanating from the locket, an aura that was familiar, almost identical to the one she had felt when facing Voldemort; she could also hear the hissing whispers that kept echoing in her ears, a sound so alluring that it was impossible not to be captivated by it.

"Have you tried everything, Kreacher?"

"Yes, but none of them worked. The box is covered in powerful magic," Kreacher said. "Kreacher believed that it could only be destroyed from the inside, but it couldn't be opened... Kreacher punished himself, trying again, and then punished himself again, trying again."

The house-elf wept bitterly. Master Regulus was dead, and his mistress was driven nearly mad by the loss of her young son. All of this was because of the Dark Lord's locket.

Open the locket box and destroy it from the inside, but how do you open it?

Belvina held the locket tightly in her hand, feeling the stinging and burning sensation in her palm, and the negative emotions that kept troubling her.

Upon reflection, she should really thank the locket; if the locket hadn't caused all that trouble, there probably wouldn't be the Belvina Black we know today.

But gratitude aside, the evil locket still needs to be destroyed. Belvina can't keep this time bomb by her side. Voldemort's actions that night were merely a deterrent; what if he decides to kill her next time?

Even if Voldemort kills her, she'll at least take a piece of his flesh; Belvina doesn't want to experience that humiliation again.

Having made up her mind, Belvina stood up.

"Kreacher, take me to a secluded place where there are few people."

Regardless, she had to try a few times first, finding a quiet place to test her skills with the locket. As for why she didn't stay in Grimmauld Place, it was because Belvina didn't have a habit of destroying things and didn't want the Ministry of Magic to come knocking on her door.

"Okay—okay, Miss Belvina." Kreacher walked over with a loud burp.

The house-elf reached out and grasped Belvina's fingers, then said, "Please forgive my presumption, Miss Belvina."

As soon as she finished speaking, Belvina and Kreacher vanished instantly. The feeling of being followed by phantoms was unpleasant, like being forced through a narrow rubber tube, with your internal organs feeling crushed.

When I opened my eyes again, the old and gloomy houses of Grimmauld Place were gone, replaced by a desolate, unattended forest. It was pitch black all around, and there wasn't a single person or even a lamp in sight.

The house-elf Kreacher released his grip and stood respectfully to the side.

Belvina raised her wand, and a glimmer of light appeared at the tip. The withered trees in front of her seemed like grotesque monsters, baring their fangs and claws to welcome her arrival.

"Wait here for me, Kreacher," Belvina commanded. "You are not to enter the woods unless I call you. If I do not come out in an hour, go to Hogwarts and find Dumbledore, and tell him everything about Regulus."

"Miss Belvina!" Kreacher's voice suddenly turned sharp. "No, this can't be!" The house-elf thought of what happened in the cave again; Master Regulus had said something similar to him.

"I am Belvina, not Regulus. If things are impossible, I will choose to give up and then look for other solutions," Belvina said with a smile, looking very relaxed.

Unlike Regulus, who went into the cave with a death wish, Belvina didn't share that resolve; she didn't want to die. Even if one day Belvina's worldview shattered, she would pick up the pieces and piece them back together, rather than choose to end it all.

From the perspective of fighting Voldemort, Regulus is a hero, a brave warrior.

But from Belvina's perspective, Regulus is a brave coward. He's willing to die, so why isn't he willing to live?

"Alright, Kreacher, wait for me here," Belvina continued. "Maybe it'll be over soon, maybe we can even make it back for a midnight snack."

As she spoke, Belvina walked toward the eerie, withered forest. The house-elf Kreacher stood there, bowing deeply, his chubby nose almost touching the dirty ground, his tennis ball-sized eyes brimming with tears.

After walking about a dozen steps through the grove of dead trees, Belvina found a small clearing. She put down the locket and sat down on the ground.

The question is, how is she going to open the locket tonight?

Another question arises: how did she open the locket box in 1979?

The teenage Belvina didn't possess any advanced magic, yet she opened a locket that even house-elves couldn't open, and even communicated with the mysterious and ominous creature hidden inside. How did she do that?

The moon was hazy tonight, and a gentle breeze rustled through Belvina's hair, blowing away her worries.

Belvina smiled. From the moment she entered Grimmauld Place, she had been led by the nose by Kreacher. Why should she be so determined to open the locket and confront the danger hidden within it?

Since we can't think of a solution, let's destroy the locket too!

Belvina is a woman of action; once she decides to do something, no one can stop her.

Just then, a faint "click" sound suddenly rang out, and the ornate locket seemed to sense the danger and opened on its own.

Behind the two small glass windows of the locket, there was a living eye blinking in each one, dark and bright, somewhat different from the scarlet eyes with slit pupils that I remembered.

Immediately afterwards, those two bright, black eyes began to spin wildly, and an ominous and dangerous aura instantly filled the small open space. The wildly spinning eyes then spewed out a viscous substance that looked like blood or oil.

The dark, viscous substance kept changing its appearance, and all of them were people that Belvina knew.

One moment it's Orion, softly calling his little daughter's name; the next it's Sirius, who always has a grumpy face but still gives his little sister a big bag of candy at Christmas; and then it's Regulus, who always smiles gently and ruffles his little sister's soft, long hair.

And then there's Walbuga, who doesn't seem to care about the little tail trailing behind her, but always slows down to wait for the little guy to catch up.

These familiar yet unfamiliar scenes constantly assaulted Belvina, each transition a form of interrogation, as if questioning her: Do you really want to do this? Do you really want to kill them?

In addition, an unbearable headache also appeared, with needle pricks, burning, and hammering... that panic swept over Belvina again, as if to destroy her from the root.

But tonight, Belvina showed no weakness. She ignored the unbearable headache and the recurring panic. She held her wand firmly, aiming it at the locket that opened by itself.

"Is this all you've got? How disappointing!" Belvina said softly, her voice trembling slightly but incredibly resolute.

Belvina gripped her weapon tightly, a long, thin wooden stick—acacia wood, ten and three-quarters inches long, the heart nerve of a dragon. This was Belvina Black's second wand, purchased from Garrick Ollivander in 1979.

The acacia wood wand spat out a ball of demonic fire, a devilish fire from hell. The black flames rolled and surged, instantly engulfing everything around them, and the eerie, withered forest was burned to ashes.

The locket, Voldemort's locket, was hurled into the air by black flames. The raging flames transformed into a gigantic beast, its gaping maw revealing long, sharp fangs like blades.

The fiery flames engulfed the locket, and a blood-like, black, viscous substance kept gushing out of it. A faint, distant scream of agony could be heard from within the raging flames; the sound was coming from the locket itself!

Belvina smiled as she faced the raging flames; her thinking was correct.

Kreacher was unable to destroy the locket because he lacked firepower.