Regulus of Hogwarts: Lord of the Stars

Each item is labeled with its name, origin, hazard level, and handling recommendations.

Regulus glanced at the nearest shelf.

Tag: Weeping Virgin Mary.

Source: An abandoned church in Paris, France, suspected to be an experiment conducted by a dark wizard on Muggles.

Danger level: Three stars. Those who come into contact with the virus will be plunged into uncontrollable grief, eventually leading to a mental breakdown.

Recommended treatment: Seal the container with a lead-lined texture and avoid direct viewing.

Tag: Revenge Dagger.

Source: Scottish Highlands, a family heirloom.

Danger level: Two stars. The stabber will suffer all the pain the victim has ever endured.

Recommended treatment: Seal the ivory sheath with long horns; it must not be removed.

Tag: Memory Weaver.

Origin: Unknown, suspected to be an ancient alchemical artifact.

Danger level: Four stars, capable of fabricating false memories and implanting them into the brains of living people.

Recommendation: This is for theoretical research only; practical application is prohibited.

Old Bock walked to the display stand in the center of the warehouse, which was covered with a black velvet cloth.

"I'll show you three things today," he grinned, revealing yellow teeth. "They're all recent acquisitions, and they're things the Ministry of Magic is looking for."

He lifted the velvet cloth, revealing three items on the display stand.

The first item was a palm-sized bronze box, its surface covered with twisted runes, from which a dark red luster seeped.

The box had no keyhole and no seams, but Regulus could feel something moving inside, very slightly, yet undeniably real.

"The Cursed Box." Old Burke's finger hovered above the box, but he didn't touch it.

"It contains a family blood curse. In the 14th century, two pure-blood families were sworn enemies. One side made this item to curse the other side to have their bloodline cut off."

Later, both families perished together, and the box was lost to the world. The method to open it was lost, but the curse remained in effect: anyone who attempted to open it would have their immediate family members die a violent death within three generations.

He looked at Regulus: "One of the standards the Ministry of Magic uses to define a mass cursed item is that it affects more than ten people or lasts for more than a hundred years. This box meets both criteria."

Regulus didn't look at him, but stared at the box. The runes were ancient runic variants, and he could recognize a few words: bloodline, bondage, transmission.

The principle behind curses may be that the life and soul of the caster are used as fuel to bind the bloodline of the target family. As long as the bloodline continues, the curse will not be extinguished.

The solutions are either to find and destroy the remains of the original curse caster, to cover the original curse with a more powerful curse, or to completely sever the cursed bloodline.

"Will anyone buy it?" he asked calmly, as if discussing a regular product.

"Three buyers are interested," old Burke said, looking at Regulus.

"One wants to use it against an opponent, one wants to study ancient curse magic, and one is just a collector, but all are watching and waiting for the Ministry of Magic to review the situation."

He covered one corner of the velvet cloth, revealing the second garment.

It was a crystal skull, about the size of a real human skull, with two rubies embedded in its eye sockets, and light and shadow flowing inside the gems.

The skull's surface was covered with fine cracks, from which a ghostly blue light emanated.

"A vessel for the soul," Old Bock explained, his smile carrying a knowing meaning.

"It's not the high-end version, it's a simplified version that can seal a part of a dying person's soul inside, keeping them conscious and able to communicate with the living."

It has many drawbacks; it will dissipate over time; the container itself is fragile; and the soul inside suffers greatly, constantly aware of its slow death.

He closed his eyes, took a deep breath as if trying to sniff out something in the air, and his face showed a look of enjoyment and nostalgia.

Regulus's senses spread, and the skull emitted a faint soul fluctuation, chaotic, broken, and accompanied by a desperate shriek.

There is indeed consciousness within it, but it is fragmented and barely pieced together, and could collapse again at any moment.

"Source?" Regulus asked.

"The Egyptian tomb, to be precise, is a pyramid, and it is over a thousand years old."

Old Bock opened his eyes: "The tomb raiders dug it up, and it changed hands three times before it came to me. I don't know who's inside. It could be a pharaoh, a priest, or just an unfortunate burial slave."

He continued looking at Regulus, lowering his voice: "The Ministry of Magic is currently investigating all items involving soul sealing."

After the Azkaban prison break last year, they suspected that Death Eaters were using similar methods to save their lives. If this skull is found, it's enough to land me in the dock at Wizengamot.

Regulus nodded. Such things do indeed need to be prohibited. Souls and time are the exclusive property of the Ministry of Magic's Silent Men and are not usually allowed to circulate.

Old Bock lifted the last piece of velvet cloth.

The third item was a walking stick, made of ebony, nearly one and a half meters long, with a fist-sized black pearl inlaid at the top. The pearl had silver patterns on its surface and was shimmering.

The cane lay quietly on the velvet, without any magical fluctuations, like an ordinary work of art.

"This one doesn't have a name," Old Bock continued.

"The person who brought it here only said that it was found deep in some ruins in Northern Europe. I have tested it, and the staff is made of dragon heartwood, which is at least three thousand years old."

The black pearl comes from a giant octopus in the deep sea, a magical creature with a lifespan of over five hundred years. The silver patterns are from a metal refined from meteorites; the method of refining it has now been lost.

He picked up his cane very gently.

"Its function is unknown. It does not react to magic. Detection spells yield no results, and even black magic detection spells show it to be harmless. However, every wizard who touches it will have the same dream within three days."

Old Bock placed the ebony cane back on the velvet cloth, his movements still steady.

"Nobody knows what it is." He lowered his voice, but Regulus felt he was deliberately creating an atmosphere.

Then old Burke continued, "But the seven wizards who touched it all went mad in the end."

Regulus stared at the cane, his tone unchanged: "Specific symptoms?"

"He started talking nonsense after waking up," old Burke replied.

"They shouted 'collapse, destruction, everyone will die,' as if they were being forcibly instilled with a kind of despairing belief. The people around them thought they were crazy, and they probably really were."

He suddenly turned to look at Regulus, his eyes wide, his tone like he was scaring a child.

"They're all dead. When they died, they each used their own wands to cast a killing curse on themselves, every single one of them."

There was a few seconds of silence in the room, then Regulus said, "The Killing Curse requires a strong will to kill. Casting it on oneself means that they genuinely believe they must die."

Seeing that Regulus didn't react, old Burke grew bored and his tone returned to normal: "Or rather, there's something that makes them believe that death is the only way out."

He added, "Other curses might be able to save you, but the Killing Curse means certain death. From that perspective, it's actually the most dignified way to die, at least there's no pain."

Regulus's gaze fell on the black pearl at the top of the cane, its silver patterns gleaming coldly in the dim light.

Distortion of cognition? Cognitive pollution? Or consciousness indoctrination?

These concepts reminded him of something that shouldn't exist in the magical world.

But that's impossible; they're not part of the same system. So how exactly does it work?

If you can't figure it out, don't think about it for now; you don't have enough knowledge.

However, he also had something from outer space. He raised his right hand and gently touched his chest, feeling a slight warmth.

Then he wondered, why does old Burke seem completely unaffected?

“You touched it,” Regulus stared at him, “but you don’t seem to care.”

"I've been there," old Burke nodded in admission. "I've also had two dreams about it, but I'm not crazy."

Why?

"Maybe I'm just getting old, my mind is too stubborn, and I can't accept new things," old Bock said with a smirk.

"Maybe I've seen too much madness and this level isn't enough to compare, but more likely it's because I haven't tried to understand it."

Those who went mad were all desperately trying to figure out what this was, attempting to analyze the principles, find the patterns, and escape their predicament.

No, I just noted the phenomenon and then decided to sell it.

He spread his hands, his smile revealing a lot: "Some things are safer not to understand than to comprehend."

He covered the items with the velvet cloth again, and the three items were hidden once more.

"These three are all too hot to handle." Old Burke turned to face Regulus.

"The cursed box involves blood curses, the skull involves soul magic, and the staff involves the unknown but is dangerous. If the Ministry of Magic finds out about any one of them, it will be enough to cause trouble for the Burke family."

"So you want to get rid of it," Regulus said in a declarative tone.

"Looking for a safe place to store things, or a suitable buyer," Old Burke said, his eyes fixed on Regulus.

"The Black family has history, heritage, and deep enough roots to digest these things. More importantly, Orion's presence in Wissengamo can provide a political buffer."

Regulus paused for a few seconds: "I just came to take a look."

"Of course." Old Burke nodded. "The decision is your father's, but you've seen it and know the value and risks of these things."

Go back and tell Orion that the Burke family is willing to use these three items in exchange for the Black family's crucial support in Wizengamor over the next three years.

"What specific support is being provided?" Regulus continued to ask.