Regulus of Hogwarts: Lord of the Stars

Chapter 592 Blake's Warning

The atmosphere relaxed again, and Narcissa's expression returned to normal. She nestled on the sofa, her shoulder resting on Lucius's arm, her face showing a gentle expression after being comforted.

With half the wine gone, Lucius's topic gradually shifted.

He held the cup in his hand, leaned back a little on the sofa, looked at Regulus, and lowered his voice naturally: "That night, that sir went to the wasteland."

Regulus raised an eyebrow.

"That lord has been paying close attention to the Black family lately," Lucius continued, observing Regulus's reaction.

Regulus took a sip of his wine, his expression unchanged.

Lucius looked at it for a moment, then said, "I might want to see you."

The study was quiet for a while, then the firewood in the fireplace popped, sparks flew out, bounced twice on the iron bars, and went out.

Lucius, based on his own judgment, was giving Regulus a signal that Voldemort might want to contact him personally.

Voldemort never explicitly told him to deliver a message, never gave any orders, and never told Lucius to inform him in advance.

Lucius is a core Death Eater. Even though he is young and just a young master of the Malfoy family, he is still a member of the inner circle. There are some things he knows.

He may have already planned to say it, or perhaps because of the promise he made earlier, he chose to give Regulus this signal in advance.

Regulus twirled his glass in his hand, his tone relaxed: "Does he need me to ask for leave?"

Lucius paused for a moment.

He was on tenterhooks when he said those words; he knew all too well what it meant that the esteemed person wanted to see someone.

Just mentioning that person will cause any Death Eater, no matter how high their rank, to automatically tighten their vocal cords and lower their voice.

That was a name that couldn't be mentioned casually; even the nickname had to be uttered with extreme care.

The core Death Eaters do report to him regularly and are sometimes summoned, but those people see him on their knees, prostrate at his feet, as if subordinates are going to see their master.

The direction was reversed: that lord took the initiative to see Regulus Black.

He had thought that Regulus would at least be more serious or cautious upon hearing the news.

He was even prepared for Regulus to ask a few more questions about the man's emotions, attitude, and tone when he mentioned him, or even further, about the man's opinion of him.

Regulus's response was whether or not he should ask for leave.

Lucius was stunned for a long time, then couldn't help but laugh. With that laugh, he relieved most of the tension he had been feeling.

He leaned back on the sofa, relaxed his shoulders, smiled, shook his head, and then realized he might have gone a bit too far with his laughter, so he stopped.

"Of course not," he raised his glass in a gesture of respect. "Christmas?"

"Alright," Regulus nodded, "it won't interfere with class."

Regulus, noticing Lucius's half-finished laugh, casually remarked, "That sir seems quite concerned about the young wizard's development and understands the importance of education."

Narcissa laughed out loud, while Lucius shook his head.

You're the only one who thinks you're some kind of little wizard.

Regulus glanced at Narcissa; her smile was nothing like Druella's, but rather resembled the Black family's silhouette.

In the future, her and Lucius's children will also have the Black bloodline, half Black and half Malfoy.

He thought about these things while holding Nymphadora at Andromeda's house: the connection of blood, the continuation of the family, the passing down from one generation to the next.

Lucius was carefully maintaining this kinship, which contained both shrewd calculations and genuine affection. Regulus saw it clearly and appreciated it.

He held his cup, thought for a moment, and then said, "Cousin, do you remember asking you a question when I was in first grade?"

Narcissa looked over, her brows furrowing slightly, a hint of doubt flashing in her eyes.

First grade? It was almost two years ago. Regulus said quite a few things to her at school. Which specific sentence?

She looked at Regulus's face and couldn't remember.

Before she could remember, Regulus asked, "How is Mr. Malfoy?"

Narcissa's expression froze; she remembered.

Two years ago, Regulus asked her the same question in the Slytherin common room, with the same words and tone.

Given Regulus's composure and shrewdness far beyond his years, and his carefulness in speaking and acting, she immediately sensed that this question was not asked casually.

At the time, she was already engaged to Lucius, and even though she was close to Regulus and still had the surname Black, she answered in a very cautious manner.

He's in good health and has a good spirit.

Now he asked it again.

She opened her mouth, wanting to repeat a similar answer, but Regulus had already lowered his gaze and stopped looking at her.

Narcissa paused for a moment, then swallowed back the words she was about to say.

She looked at Regulus's profile, which was lowered, and instantly realized that he had asked the question but didn't want to know the answer.

She turned her head to look at Lucius, who was also looking at her. The couple exchanged a glance.

Narcissa nodded slightly, and Lucius's gaze moved from her face to Regulus's face, and then back again.

He was unaware of the conversation two years ago; he only heard Regulus specifically mention that he had asked the same question in his first year of high school.

If Regulus had simply asked how your father was, that would have been a polite question, and he would have moved on after answering.

But Regulus specifically mentioned that the prefix meant that he had been thinking about this issue for more than two years, and he was still thinking about it after more than two years.

Regulus had no reason to care.

His father is currently in good health, can eat and sleep well, and has plenty of energy. As he gets older, there are some natural signs of aging, but those are all normal.

His magic only deepened with age; he was free from illness and injury, and his skill and energy in family affairs were no different from ten years ago.

I beat him up a while ago, even more severely than I did ten years ago.

Since there are no problems now, then Regulus's question is not about now.

His first reaction was that it didn't make sense. His father was the most shrewd family leader in the entire British pure-blood circle, and the Malfoy family was thriving under his leadership.

Who would threaten the father?

But this is what Regulus said, that he would bring up a question from two years ago again, given his current status and position.

He continued thinking, "Who has the power to threaten my father?"

There's no one in the pureblood circle, and there's no reason from Dumbledore's side. The only one left is that person, Voldemort.

But that doesn't make sense.

The Malfoy family was that man's earliest benefactor, his biggest financial backer, the intended beneficiary of the new order, and a core family whose place in the future power structure had already been predetermined.

Everything that person presented to the outside world—trust, preferential treatment, power, charm, and the protection of pure-blood interests—was all wonderful.

He was the perfect leader the Malfoys needed, perfectly aligned with the fundamental interests of a pure-blood family. He was too perfect, too much of what they required.

But at the same time, an idea inevitably flashed through his mind.

My father was indeed too powerful and too shrewd. The Malfoy family he built was too vast, with money, connections, ties to the Ministry of Magic, and international channels.

If someone wants absolute control, this family itself is an obstacle, an ally that is too powerful and has its own ideas—

He didn't believe it.

But these were Regulus's words, a reminder from the Black family. Since the Black family had said so, the Malfoy family couldn't ignore it.

Narcissa took his hand beside her, and he squeezed it back gently.

He needs to go back and talk to his father.

Regulus's warning, even if it was just his overinterpretation, was almost a serious warning to the Malfoy family.

Regulus said this in a way that he didn't intend to explain himself.

Go back and tell your father; I believe he will take Regulus's words seriously.

If the father, after hearing the Blacks' reminder, felt it necessary to do something, then the Malfoys' arrangements would be different from before.

A backup plan, a way out, or at least a deeper level of vigilance.

If the father thinks it's unreasonable, then it's unreasonable; continue on the original path.

Lucius’s gaze returned to Regulus, who was still looking at his wine glass, his fingertips twirling on the rim, his expression unchanged.

......

Regulus knew what Lucius was thinking.

Information asymmetry.

He knew that Voldemort wanted domination, absolute domination, absolute control. Voldemort didn't need followers; he only needed tools.

He would not allow anyone to be his equal, nor would he allow any force to check or balance him.

He has magical power that allows him to look down on everything, and the remaining checks and balances come from other dimensions: the Malfoy family's money, political resources, and network of connections.

These things were needed during the war, but became superfluous after the war ended.

Voldemort needed a Malfoy family member who was obedient and capable, but whose limits he could set, to move from cooperation to control, and from appeasement to elimination.

But Voldemort is still in the war preparation stage, and what he presents to the outside world is only charm, trust, and the image of someone worth following.

No one knows what will happen in the future. Dumbledore might know, Regulus definitely knows, but none of the pure-blood families in Voldemort's camp know.

The value of the reminder lies in whether Abraxas chooses to trust Voldemort or to think one step further.

He said that in the name of the Black family; the Malfoy family should think twice about it.

If old Malfoy had believed it and made preparations, perhaps the course of events would have been different.

If old Malfoy doesn't believe him, or thinks he's talking nonsense, or decides to trust him after weighing the options, then nothing will change.

What's meant to happen will happen; we'll talk about it when that day actually comes.

He picked up his glass, finished the last sip of wine, stood up, straightened his collar, and said, "That's enough, time to go."

Lucius and Narcissa exchanged a glance, said nothing more, composed themselves, and stood up.

The three of them left the study, walked through the corridor, where candles lit up and went out one by one, went downstairs, and walked through the manor's passageway to the main gate.

Night had fallen, and only the lights on both sides of the manor walkway remained on the lawn, the scent of lavender carried far on the night breeze.

Narcissa walked up to Regulus, reached out and hugged him naturally, wrapped her arms around his shoulders, patted him, and then let go.

She looked at him and smiled: "Come anytime."

Regulus responded with a "Mm".

Lucius walked up, shook his hand, and put his other hand on his shoulder.

"Next time you come, don't come when it's this crowded."

Regulus shrugged. "It's good to have some excitement."

Lucius chuckled: "Write anytime if anything comes up after school starts."

"it is good."

Regulus released his grip, took two steps down the steps, glanced back at the two men, nodded slightly, and turned away.

I looked up at the sky. It was late August, and Orion hadn't risen yet; we'd have to wait another two months.

The sky was dark, and the stars were bright, one by one, densely covering the sky.

The air twisted, and the person was gone.

The night wind blew Narcissa's hair to one side, and she reached out to gather it.

Lucius put his hand on her shoulder: "Let's go back first, I'm going to find my father."

A hint of worry flashed in Narcissa's eyes: "Speak properly."

Lucius nodded, looking at her gently: "Don't worry."