The Secret Conversation Between Two Notts

Picking up the completely unconscious British Long-Eared Owl from the ground, Sean rinsed it with Aguamenti; the Aero-Wing Bird's saliva really did smell quite strong...

Sean untied the letter from the bird's leg and began to read it.

There was nothing noteworthy about Theodore Nott's conversation with his father; the only thing that caught Sean's attention was the question the father raised.

"I have seen the genealogy about our family history, and all the information shows that the Nott family's bloodline comes from an even more ancient place. I have asked you about it many times, but you have only given me a vague answer."

"I have been searching for the true origins of the Nott family, and recently I seem to have gotten some clues—I would like to ask you, is our family the only Nott family in the world, and do we have any family members who have been lost elsewhere?"

It is clear from the other party's words that the Nott family is indeed not Pure-blood families originating from England, which matches the scattered information Sean found earlier.

The book "The Poet and the Greedy Wisdom Snake," which records a horrifying truth, mentions eight kinds of birds and three kinds of animals. After careful study and analysis, Sean, Stephanie, and others concluded that Death God and Love God might have fallen, and the culprit was the unknown Bard.

The Bard's actions not only led to the fall of Death God and Love God, but also directly caused the collapse of the Realm of Illusion. The Returners most likely appeared around that time and have been active in the mortal world in recent years.

Based on the information Stephanie found and the analysis of the fable by several people, the author of "The Poet and the Greedy Wisdom Snake," which conveys a terrible truth, is likely the Fly and the innocent Dove among the eight birds, with the Fly possibly transforming into "Mr. Unfooled Spectator" in the present world.

The first group the other party contacted was the Nott family, who were still in Ancient Greek at the time. The Nott family in England today is a branch of the Nott family from Ancient Greek that has been separated from the country.

After the Nott family of Ancient Greek was wiped out by an attack, the Nott family of England became the sole remaining bloodline.

In order to uncover the hidden truth behind that story and the true identity of the Returners, Sean decides to start with Theodore Nott. However, before Malfoy can get enough information, news spreads that Theodore is secretly contacting another Durmstrang Champion Reinhardt Nott.

Originally, Sean thought the two were just people with the same surname and not related by blood, but Theodore Nott raised this question in a letter to Old Man Nott...

Sean frowned. What had Reinhardt Nott said to Theodore Nott? Was he really a descendant of the Nott family who had been separated from his family?

If this news is true, many of Sean's original guesses will need to be overturned.

In his original reasoning, Reinhardt Nott had little to do with the Returners; the other party was most likely just an rude jerk from Durmstrang, while the silent Leon Schneider was the real big fish.

Whether it's the power of the Obscurus or a vessel for Sin, Leon Schneider is clearly a better fit.

But judging from the information expressed in Theodore Nott's letter, it seems that Reinhardt Nott came to him to... "return to his roots"?

Then Reinhardt Nott's identity suddenly becomes important. His connection to the Nott family, his schooling at Durmstrang, his high regard for Karkaroff, and his natural dislike for Sean —from these points of view, the other party seems to be the real Sin Vessel.

"Tsk, there's too much ambiguous information..." Sean muttered, frowning.

He also had to consider whether this might be a trap set by the Returners. If he went to Reinhardt Nott privately to "verify" the matter, he might fall into a huge trap aimed at him.

Another problem is that he intercepted the letter but only received a vague message. If Theodore Nott doesn't receive a reply from Old Man Nott in two days, he will definitely realize something is wrong, and Reinhardt Nott will also find out—if this isn't a trap, Sean's advantage of going first will be gone.

This put Sean in a dilemma: a hasty attack might lead him into an ambush, while hesitation might cause him to miss the first-mover advantage.

If only I had been a little more reckless, I probably wouldn't be so conflicted... Sean thought to himself, troubled.

Having experienced numerous accidents, both big and small, he simply couldn't shake his cautious nature.

After hesitating for a moment, Sean finally decided to take the initiative.

This is Hogwarts after all. The Returners can't possibly deploy too many people in secret to deal with him. Moreover, considering all the factors, he will have to face these guys sooner or later.

One point to note is that if you are about to face a vessel of Sin, and the other party is empowered by the Obscurus and the power of Sin, plus the possible presence of the Returners forces in the shadows, the other party may reveal strength beyond what Sean can handle.

If Sean wanted to, he could certainly borrow the power of Pride, but with the awakening of Sin imminent, he dared not be so bold.

However, with a host of system-generated rewards, Sean can minimize the risks—a trump card that no one knows about.

Whether it's the Fred Weasley card that allows escape, or the [Future's Gaze] which has a six-month cooldown, given the ability to escape and the full strength required, the risks Sean faces aren't too great.

However, as a scavenger-type player, he always habitually saved money. After all, most of the rewards from the system were one-time only, and powerful abilities like [Future's Gaze] had a six-month cooldown, which was almost the same as one-time only. At this important juncture, when facing the return of the Returners and Grindelwald's official return, Sean hoped that he could leave behind this decisive and powerful force.

Of course, he would never hesitate when necessary.

After tossing the unconscious British Long-Eared Owl into the ring, Sean disappeared and headed towards the castle.

Now that he had decided to take the initiative, there was no need for hesitation. On the way back, after some thought, Sean decided to make Reinhardt Nott his first target.

Logically, he should first find Theodore Nott and try to find out the contents of his secret conversation with Reinhardt Nott in order to make a plan for the next step—but Sean decided to do the opposite and go directly to the person in charge.

Since I've already kept you on the ship for a month, I don't mind letting you disappear for a while longer— Sean narrowed his eyes.

In this situation, he doesn't have much of a moral compass. Can't he use Imperius Curse or other curses on students? Please, Mr. Wallop never puts his own mercy before his own safety.

Back in the castle, Sean sought out several ghosts he knew, including Edmund and Helena, who were both reliable and trustworthy.

After enlisting the help of several familiar ghosts to monitor the Durmstrang ' movements, Sean disappeared into the stone wall, waiting for his prey to come to him.

Durmstrang students now rarely venture alone within Hogwarts Castle, especially Reinhardt Nott, who had just returned from the Hospital Wing —he never appeared anywhere outside of Durmstrang except during mealtimes. Even during meals, Karkaroff kept a close eye on Reinhardt Nott.

However, he will definitely appear alone in order to have private contact with Theodore Nott.

After spending some time in the stone wall, Sean pondered for a moment before approaching Hermione and the others, whispering a few words of advice to them. A short while later, Sean, Hermione, Daisy, and Stephanie headed towards the library.

However, Sean, who usually walks in front, was mixed in with several girls this time, and occasionally he would smile and whisper a few words to them.

Hermione, who was walking at the front, was responsible for preventing the younger students who were greeting Professor Wallop from running into Sean.

Hermione had always been very good at the Illusion Charm, and coupled with her intimate knowledge of Sean, the illusion she created while sandwiched between the others went unnoticed by anyone. After they arrived at the library, the group began their daily study session.

Meanwhile, Sean, hidden among the stone walls, kept an eye on the situation throughout the castle. Whenever Reinhardt Nott appeared, he would secretly follow him.

Sean's wait wasn't long; in the evening, close to dinner time, Helena approached him.

"A Durmstrang student came in through the side door. He was walking very fast and was deliberately avoiding other people," Helena said.

"Is this the person I showed you?" Sean asked.

Helena shook her head. "No, but that person's whereabouts are very suspicious, and I think I should report it to you."

"Okay, I understand."

Sean opened the Marauder's Map and looked toward the Slytherin Common Room.

A moment later, the footprints bearing Theodore Nott's name suddenly began to move.

Is it time to make contact?

After thinking for a moment, Sean moved toward the location of the Durmstrang student that Helena had mentioned.

Soon, he arrived at his destination, a corridor near the side gate of the castle tower. Because there were no classrooms or important facilities around, students rarely came here.

Through the stone wall, Sean could see the Durmstrang student's face. The student looked young and had some introverted freckles on his face.

Sean had no recollection of this person, but the man now looked gloomy and kept glancing toward another entrance.

On the Marauder's Map, Theodore Nott is walking into a secret door.

Sean licked his lips. The hidden door led directly to the tower's corridor.

Judging from appearances, this guy is probably the imposter Reinhardt Nott...

Sean did not act rashly, but waited silently in place.

Soon, Theodore Nott appeared in the storeroom of the corridor. He snapped his fingers, and the Durmstrang student who was waiting immediately went over.

The two met in the storage room.

Sean frowned. The walls near the storage room were too thin to allow Sean to disappear into them.

With a whispered instruction, Naja shrunk in size, her body bound with an ear, and stealthily slithered to the gap in the storage room.

Inside, the sound of conversation could be heard.

Theodore Nott's cold tone was very distinctive. "Is it necessary to pretend to be someone else?"

The Durmstrang student's voice rang out, its tone identical to Reinhardt Nott's; it was indeed the other person in disguise.

"Ha, please, Theodore, I'm under close surveillance—"

"Close monitoring?" Theodore frowned.

Reinhardt's voice was tinged with gloom and sarcasm. "Your outstanding student at Hogwarts, Sean Wallerup —ha, he's been keeping a close eye on me all along."

"Wallerup? I know you have a conflict with him, but why would he be spying on you?"

"Of course it's related to our bloodline..."

Theodore's voice sounded slightly displeased, "Reinhardt, I haven't even confirmed your bloodline yet, so watch your words."

"Ha, the Nott family is truly noble... but—" Reinhardt narrowed his eyes, "Is your nobility innate?"

What do you mean by that?

"It's nothing... Theodore, you know the Nott family has an ancient bloodline, but as a Pure-blood branch, it seems that's all you know... Didn't your father mention it to you at all? If so, I'm starting to regret coming to you." Reinhardt's voice was seductive, and his sarcasm annoyed Theodore.

The latter frowned. "Don't play games with me. If you really belong to the Nott family, then I will persuade my father to let you Nott family genealogy."

Reinhardt scoffed, "I have no interest in being included in the family tree..."

"Then what is your purpose in coming to me?"

"Theodore— " Reinhardt put his arm around the other's shoulder, but the latter frowned and shook his hand off.

Reinhardt didn't seem to care. He continued, "You know, the Nott family bloodline is not only ancient, but also has a special function—tsk, although your father didn't mention it to you, it's almost as if I'm telling you now."

"Listen, Theodore, what flows in your veins is not just the glory of a wizard, but also the special magic of the Eight Great Families ..."

The Eight Great Families ... Sean's pupils contracted slightly.

This number matches exactly the number of birds in "The Poet and the Greedy Wisdom Snake"...

Reinhardt continued, "Your blood and my blood both possess special powers. These powers are not bestowed by the God of Wizards, but originate from another great being."

The other person's words made Theodore Nott fall into deep thought. After a moment, he asked, "What do you mean by special power? I've never felt it before. And who is that great being?"

Reinhardt smiled and said in a leisurely tone, "Of course you can't feel this power, because it needs to be combined with something else to reveal its true form..."

"Ha, have you heard of Sin?"