Hogwarts: Voldemort, don't stop me from studying

Chapter 961 The Contract That Cannot Be Broken

"Sir?" Assistant Paul paused, then asked in astonishment, "How could you... how could you think that? Is there something I haven't done well lately that has caused you to misunderstand?"

His reaction was so natural that Chris couldn't help but waver, feeling that even his most suspicious and ruthless grandfather was beginning to doubt him.

But William simply stared at Paul, his deep, gray-blue eyes, shrouded in shadow, icy cold.

"If this were in the past—"

William said expressionlessly, "Even if I didn't specifically tell you, you should know that Brolin must not be allowed to see Illari on such an important day."

Paul's eyelashes trembled almost imperceptibly, and his gaze unconsciously drifted to the side.

"Their rooms were located at the deepest part of the third floor of the east wing, and the other on the second basement floor of the west wing."

William said slowly, "Without someone to guide you, even if Brolin turned into a bat and stumbled around blindly, he still wouldn't find Illari's lab by tomorrow morning."

He gripped the armrest, leaning slightly forward, the flickering firelight illuminating every harsh wrinkle on his face:

"But he not only 'just happened' to find it, he also 'just happened' to witness the crucial moment when Illari extracted memories—does the alchemist we found not even understand such a simple principle as 'closing the door when doing bad things'?"

Chris was suddenly startled, realizing where the problem lay.

William continued, "That scene was enough to make Brolin realize what we were doing, and enough to enrage a madman who already felt betrayed."

Paul opened his mouth, as if to explain, but William did not give him the chance.

"And those alchemical bombs."

The old man's fingers tapped lightly on the armrests of his wheelchair, producing a dull "knock, knock" sound.

"Blorin has no weapons, and those kinds of dangerous materials are properly stored even in Iraq's labs. Would some fool who just barges in easily get his hands on them?"

Paul lowered his eyes, no longer defending himself, his lips pressed tightly into a line.

William's gaze was fixed on Paul's face like a nail:
"You gave Illari a hint, letting him use your usual innocent act to make Brolin realize that it was a dangerous thing—something that could be used to cause trouble."

"And during Brolin's final desperate attack..."

William laughed mockingly:

"The puppets' encirclement had just opened up at the perfect moment, exposing Chris and me—if I hadn't prepared a protective barrier beforehand, we would be sitting here as two charred corpses now."

"Next, you can replace me and Chris in the same way I replaced those guests. In the end... everything will be yours. Isn't that a perfect plan?"

The hall was deathly silent; Chris could hear his own frantic heartbeat.

Only then did he realize that his brush with death today was not an "accident".

After a long while, Paul slowly exhaled, no longer feigning loyalty and incomprehension.

He didn't respond to William immediately, but turned to the door and said:
"Please come in, Mr. Illari—I don't have any alchemical bombs, so don't worry about you getting hurt."

A few seconds after the words were spoken, a timid figure indeed emerged from the shadows by the door, its shoulders hunched, its hair disheveled, and its clothes stained.

Ilari looked at Paul and forced an awkward smile.

“I don’t understand,” Paul sighed, “I was the first person to contact you, and I was the one who made the initial agreement with you…”

After a pause, he looked into those eyes that dared not lift, and said, "I even promise that once it's done, I will share your wealth and enjoy a status and resources second only to mine."

"But it seems... you've revealed our entire plan to the Sir?"

"Why? Is betrayal your hobby?"

"Can the jazz club give you more in return than I have promised you?"

He then turned to William and asked, "Can you really trust such a person?"

Illari lowered his head even further, unable to utter a word, while Sir William let out a hoarse laugh.

"Why? Didn't you say it before? — You can't trust things that you can't fully control — and I feel the same way."

He glanced at the alchemist, who, despite his fine clothes, still looked quite shabby, and said:
"I know I can never completely control something like a puppet, so from beginning to end, what I choose to control is people!"

...On Illari's first night at Stonefield Manor, Sir William had a private meeting with him.

At that time, the alchemist had just gone through a fugitive with Brolin and arrived in an extremely comfortable environment, full of anxiety. Everything around him was so pleasing to the eye, and the people in the manor were so kind.

Brolin would naturally take care of the troublesome matters, and Illari lowered her guard, ate and drank her fill, and fell into a deep sleep.

He didn't know how much time had passed when he suddenly woke up, his eyes opening to find himself facing the dark muzzle of a gun.

The Purifiers operate in the shadows between the magical world and Muggle society, seemingly having connections on both sides, but in reality, they have enemies on both.

Therefore, Illari was well aware of the power of the Muggle weapon. He immediately trembled all over, his teeth chattered, and he couldn't utter a single word. He didn't even dare to reach for the wand placed next to his pillow.

He knew that he could never be faster than the other person could fire a gun.

And his level of the Silent Wand... does an alchemist even need a Silent Wand? Using a wand is essential to ensure the accuracy of magic!
Therefore, at this moment, Iraq is powerless to retaliate against the threat.

The only thing he dared to move was his eyes, and he saw that in the room, besides five or six bodyguards with guns, there was William Stonefield in a wheelchair, and a wizard shrouded in a black cloak.

Under the threat of death, Ilary had to shakily get out of bed and take Sir William's hand.

The hand was so cold that Ilari recalled the icy toad he had cut open the first time he brewed a potion.

The mysterious wizard spoke in an unusually strange tone, as if his voice had undergone some kind of alteration:

“Hunter Illari, repeat what I said—”

"First, you must not tell any intentional lies or conceal any material facts from the head of the Stonefield family—Sir William Stonefield and his rightful heirs."

"Second, you must not do anything, directly or indirectly, that harms the interests or safety of the Stonefield family."

"Third, you must obey Sir William Stonefield's orders."

Ilari's eyes widened, tears welled up uncontrollably, and her lips trembled uncontrollably. In the end, she repeated the other person's words in a trembling voice.

Brilliant flames erupted from the wands, coiling around their clasped hands.

He made an absolutely unequal and unbreakable vow.

……

"I see. Then there's nothing I can do." Paul smiled understandingly. "I heard that breaking this contract means death. No wonder you betrayed your agreement with me."

“I’m so sorry,” Ilari gasped. “They threatened me, I didn’t want this to happen…”

In his past life, he had only studied alchemy and never imagined that someone would put him in such a difficult position.

And to be honest, despite the short time they spent together, Illari had a very good impression of Paul and was very tempted by his promises.

If he had a choice, he really wanted to choose Paul.

Paul said kindly, "It's alright, I forgive you, because I also hid something very important from you..."

Before he could finish speaking, and as Ilary was listening intently, a loud "Pfft—!" suddenly echoed through the room.

It sounded like someone was forcefully pounding a thick book.

Ilari's body suddenly stiffened, and a dark, rapidly expanding dark red blood clot bloomed on his chest.

He could feel a strange chill seeping into his body through the small hole, as if his internal organs were being roughly stirred and torn apart by an invisible hand.

All power, air, and sound were suddenly sucked out of that hole.

Ilari opened his mouth, but no sound came out; only the blood foam in his lungs made a hissing sound deep in his throat.

He stared blankly at his chest, his ears ringing, yet he could still hear Paul's apologetic voice:
"I also cannot tolerate betrayal—even if it is forced."

"So if you betray your contract with me, you'll die anyway."

"But I felt it wasn't a good idea to tell you this, as it would damage our trust, so I didn't tell you—I'm sorry."

"But then we're even, right?"

(End of this chapter)