Hogwarts Wasteland: The Witch from the Borderlands

Beneath Malfoy Castle lies a somber, dark water dungeon where nobles imprisoned their prisoners.

Barty Crouch Jr. walked with a look of utter disgust along the stone path in the middle of the water dungeon, followed by a timid house-elf dressed in rags.

The water on both sides was dark and gloomy, with iron chains hanging down in the water, while deep, dark shadows moved about underwater.

Those are Dementors, but they are different from the Dementors of the past. These monsters that roamed the world after the war seem to have mutated. They would drain the victim's sanity during the day, making them manic, and drain the victim's happiness at night, making them sad. Therefore, they now have a new name - Biphasic monsters.

Malfoy Castle captured some biphasic monsters and put them back to their old jobs, continuing to serve as jailers and guards of prisoners.

Lucius and those prisoners whose crimes did not warrant death were imprisoned here.

Soon, Barty stopped in front of a chain. He waved his bone wand, and the chain rapidly rose. In no time, a spherical iron cage was lifted out of the water. The cage was enchanted so that the water outside would not rush in. Lucius was sitting in the cage, looking at the newcomer listlessly.

His hair had become dry and white, losing its former luster, and his body was damp and sticky, emitting an unpleasant smell.

In fact, he only had brief moments of rationality at dusk and dawn. The rest of the time, he was either screaming maniacally or drowning in endless sorrow and tears. Being locked up here was not much better than being sentenced to death.

"You've come to see me again, which means you've agreed to my conditions," Lucius said weakly. His voice was hoarse, and the roar he had uttered during the day made every word sound like a razor blade.

"Dobby," Little Barty called to the little elf behind him, covering his mouth and nose with a scarf.

Dobby then timidly stepped forward, staring wide-eyed at Lucius: "Oh, my former master, you've become like this, oh, it's so cruel."

"I don't understand." Little Barty frowned. "You should know that the list is your last bargaining chip. If you're willing to trade it for your freedom, I might agree."

"But you used it to exchange for ownership of a Pokémon? Have you really not had your brain ruined by Biphasic?"

Lucius looked at the impeccably dressed wizard before him and sneered, "Yes, look at you, the only son of the Crouch family, the pride of the current Speaker of Malfoy Castle, the promising Director of the Department of Law Enforcement—who would have thought that you're actually Voldemort's loyal follower?"

Barty Jr.'s face turned cold: "You don't have much time to waste. Father sent all his elite troops to attack Hogwarts to coordinate with your actions, and you, with such a huge advantage, lost to a first-year Mudblood. You've let Father down, and you've let yourself down. Otherwise, it wouldn't be that old man sitting in the Speaker's seat at Malfoy Castle now, it would be you!"

"Ha, how ironic, calling his own father an old man, yet calling a stranger 'father'," Lucius mocked.

"It seems you're not in a hurry to make a deal, so stay in the water for a few more days." Barty Crouch Jr. waved his hand expressionlessly, preparing to sink the iron cage back underwater.

"The magic of the Pen of Acceptance is fading, isn't it?" Lucius's sudden remark interrupted Barty's actions.

"Does Voldemort think I don't know?" he sneered. "Teaching at Hogwarts isn't entirely fruitless. At least I've learned that the Book of Admission and the Pen of Acceptance are not magical creations that can be kept away from the castle for long."

"Voldemort needs children who have just awakened their magical talents, but the Pen of Acceptance is becoming less and less effective each year, and may even become completely useless."

He looked at Little Barty: "If he doesn't want to become a headless fly, wandering aimlessly in the wasteland all day just to find a gifted child, he has to cooperate with me, and I'll provide him with a list of newly awakened children!"

"It's a pity that you Green Flame Party members are also a bunch of useless trash. Last year, according to my list, you arrested so many children, but they were still rescued by a group of teachers."

Dobby stood to the side, listening in horror to these terrible secrets. Although he knew his former master had done many bad things, he never imagined that Lucius would use the lives of the children of Malfoyburg as a bargaining chip.

Old Malfoy chuckled smugly: "Indeed, the Malfoy family is gone, even the elves were confiscated, but even you, or Barty Crouch, couldn't possibly keep track of all the new students this year, could you?"

Barty Jr.'s face was grim. As Lucius had said, the Crouch family's power in Malfoy Castle was not that deeply entrenched. His election as Speaker was merely a product of compromise under the balance of power. Neither he nor his biological father could control the enrollment status of every family in the city like the Malfoy family had in the past.

"Voldemort was indeed very impatient. He urged me to collect and compile the list of new students for the following year six months ago, but fortunately I didn't rush to hand it over to him, leaving myself some room for maneuver."

"With the loss of Malfoy this year, Voldemort has lost a year of rebirth. Even if you speed up your infiltration, I'm afraid you won't be able to do what I did next year," Lucius said calmly.

"If Voldemort can't get a new awakened child, then lackeys like you will lose favor. Even worse, why does Voldemort need children so much? Some say he's using children to prolong his life?" He stared intently at Barty, hoping to see something in the other's eyes, but Barty's eyes were like a still pond, without the slightest ripple.

"You have too many questions, Lucius. As agreed, I brought you Dobby, and as agreed, you must hand over the list of newborns for this year that you collected earlier. That's all."

Lucius shifted his position in the cage: "You were the one who was curious first, why shouldn't I trade my freedom for it?"

His voice was hoarse, his eyes red and swollen, and he shook his head in despair and resentment: "I lost, I lost completely. The Malfoy family is finished. Without Galleons, without wands, I'm just a useless wizard who knows a little sign magic. What good will it do if I get out? Go hiding with Narcissa and Draco?"

"Instead of doing that, let's leave something more for them."

He turned to Barty Jr.: "Come on, hand over Dobby's contract back to me, and I'll give you the list."

Barty the Younger had no doubt that Lucius would dare to lie to him under such circumstances. He raised his wand: "In the name of the Chief of the Law Enforcement Division of Malfoyburg, Dobby, the house elf belonging to the Public Service Division of Malfoyburg, is hereby transferred to Lucius Malfoy, effective hereafter."

"Master." Dobby stepped forward. He sensed the change in the contract; his former master had become his master again.

Lucius laboriously used his finger to pluck a silvery thread from his temple, which floated toward Barty, then turned to Dobby and said, "Dobby, I'm giving you two tasks. You must complete them at all costs."

Dobby, still looking fearful, immediately bowed and said, "Yes, Master, please give your orders."

"First, protect Narcissa and Draco. If I die, they will be your only two masters."

"Second, kill Hermione Granger!"