Slytherin Castle

Life aboard the Isabella was pleasant for Lockhart. He could always find someone in the noisy crowds willing to listen to his stories.

Not long after boarding, everyone on the ship had been drawn in by Lockhart, while Moriarty asked the crew for a pen and a large stack of old newspapers before burying himself in an inner cabin.

Other than having Lockhart bring him meals three times a day, he saw no one and never stepped outside.

Five days later, Moriarty called Lockhart over. "This is for you!"

He tossed a thick stack of old newspapers to Lockhart.

Lockhart opened them and saw that the pages were covered in elegant black decorative lettering. He carefully read the title: "With Slytherin in Eastern Tibet!"

"Young Master!" Lockhart's neck flushed red with excitement. "I thought you were just saying it. I never expected you to actually publish a book for me!"

"From now on, you need to improve your composure, Lockhart," Moriarty said. "No matter where you are or what happens, you must remain calm. Like with this book..."

Moriarty looked at Lockhart solemnly. "You know what kind of sensation this book will cause once it is published, don't you?

"From Britain to France, Germany... you will become a household name throughout the entire European magical world, and then the Americas, Africa!

"And I, Salazar's last direct descendant, will also enter the public eye."

Lockhart immersed himself in the future Moriarty described and grinned foolishly.

"Oh, Young Master, that sounds wonderful. I can already see us waving to wizards beneath the flashing cameras. We'll definitely make the front page of The Daily Prophet!"

"Wrong. You'll be the only one waving to the wizards! You'll be the only one on the front page! People will see you transform from an author into an explorer!"

Moriarty fixed Lockhart with an eagle-sharp gaze. "This is important, Lockhart.

"Look into my eyes. You must make people believe that you have a keen eye, that you discovered me! That you brought Slytherin's last descendant back to Britain!"

Lockhart swallowed. He understood the meaning behind those words and frowned. "Young Master, I understand. But there's something I must tell you. I'm not sure whether it will affect your plans."

He explained, "The Fli Family, one of the Twenty-Eight Pure-blood families, is my partner. Or rather, the Fli Family handles the operation, promotion, and sales of my works."

Lockhart spread his hands and shook his head helplessly. "We split the profits forty-sixty. I get four, and the Fli Family gets six. There's no helping it. Any business related to books cannot do without the Fli Family, and I only got my four after arguing my case..."

Moriarty pondered for a moment, then patted Lockhart on the shoulder.

"We'll deal with the Fli Family after we return home. What you need to do is refine your persona and improve your image! Think about how to shape yourself into the kind of man wizards love most."

Moriarty first needed to return to the Castle and see what good things Salazar had left behind before he could devise a plan for dealing with the Pure-blood families.

Another five days passed before the ship crossed the English Channel and arrived in Britain.

Without stopping for even a moment, Moriarty took Lockhart to Bristol.

"Merlin's beard, Salazar Slytherin came to Bristol after leaving Hogwarts! He stayed right here in Britain! Everyone thought he had left Europe!"

Lockhart was like a victorious general all the way there, and he remained that way until they reached their destination.

"Young Master?" Lockhart looked out over the endless plains. There was not even a shadow of a Castle in sight, and he could not understand why Moriarty had stopped.

"There must be an extremely powerful Concealment Charm here, in addition to the Muggle-Repelling Charm. But it can't stump me. Step back, Lockhart."

Moriarty searched through the relevant memories in his mind, raised his wand toward the space ahead, and spoke in Serpent Tongue. "Speak to me—Slytherin!"

Although it was not the first time he had heard it, Lockhart was still terrified.

Moriarty seemed as though he were truly speaking to Salazar's ghost. "Open your eyes and see death; close them and see the future! Every angel has a past, and every devil has a future!"

A dazzling silver beam shot from the tip of the wand into the distance. Moriarty and Lockhart were instantly swept away by a tremendous force, while hissing filled their ears, as though ten thousand snakes were shrieking beside them.

"Oh, this is terrible," Lockhart said as he clutched his backside and climbed to his feet. He felt as though he had taken a nasty fall. "Are you all right, Young Master?"

Lockhart wanted to help Moriarty up, but heard him say, "We've arrived. Without a doubt, this is Slytherin Castle."

Lockhart detected a hint of excitement in Moriarty's voice. That was rare for Moriarty, so he hurriedly raised his head to look at the Castle.

"Oh! Oh—" Lockhart covered his mouth, desperate to say something, yet unable to speak.

The main body of the Castle was made of granite, with purple agates embedded along its exterior like magical eyes gazing into the distance.

Magic had been cast upon the Castle's exterior, weaving silver and green together. In daylight, beneath the sun, it looked like a magical palace rising toward the heavens; at night, it resembled a giant coiling serpent.

Though Gothic in style, it lacked nothing—towers, fortresses, stone bridges, ramparts, and outer walls.

Compared to a noble estate, it was more like a battle fortress.

Of course, the Castle bore Salazar Slytherin's style everywhere. Its walls, built from gold ore, had been polished until they shone with the pure brilliance of glass.

A silver stone road wide enough for four carriages to travel side by side ran from beneath Moriarty's feet straight to the gates.

On both sides of the road lay wide lawns, beyond which lush oak forests encircled the grasslands and walls like an order of knights.

Behind the Castle was a great lake, where the faint sound of rippling water could be heard.

Slytherin's emblem was stamped upon the gates, walls, rooftops... making the Castle seem solemn and imposing.

"All right, Lockhart, look at yourself. We're going in." Moriarty smiled. He was very satisfied with the Castle.

A sharp pop suddenly rang out in the air, and a Goblin appeared out of nowhere outside the gates.

He wore a black robe and had long, pointed ears, a remarkably prominent hooked nose, grayish-yellow wrinkled skin, and hair so long it dragged along the ground.

What particularly caught Moriarty's attention was the pair of Golden Shackles around the Goblin's ankles.

"Respected Heir of Slytherin—cough, cough." The Goblin began coughing violently the moment he spoke. When he mentioned "Slytherin," Moriarty caught a trace of malice in his black eyes.

"I have not spoken to anyone for at least nine hundred years!" the Goblin rasped, constantly looking Moriarty over. "So, you are Salazar Slytherin's descendant... Other than the Spell Salazar left for his descendants, no one could find this place."

The Goblin reluctantly knelt. "By Salazar's command, the Goblin Ingo shall serve you faithfully, from beginning to end!"

"Take me inside." Moriarty knew that another bizarre story was hidden behind Ingo, but his first priority was to claim Salazar's legacy of knowledge.

"Please give me the key." Ingo held out both hands.

Moriarty placed the Golden Key in Ingo's hands. Ingo rose and used the key to unlock the gates.

The moment the gates opened, Moriarty received a system notification. "Detected that the host has acquired ownership of Slytherin Castle. Reward: ten Exploration Draws."

A large group of House-elves ran out from the Castle. They eagerly came before Moriarty and clapped vigorously. "The day has finally come. Welcome, Heir of Slytherin!"

Ingo explained at the right moment, "They are responsible for the maintenance, cleaning, and meals of the entire Castle. Salazar placed a permanent Spell on them, preventing them from leaving the Castle grounds."

"Do not call the master by his name!" A leading House-elf pointed at Ingo, his long nose trembling with anger. He said to Moriarty, "Ingo is a bad fellow. Ever since the master left, he has spent every day speaking ill of him."

Ingo was clearly accustomed to the House-elves' complaints. At least, they had always been like this for more than nine hundred years. But he could not ignore Moriarty's opinion.

"I do not wish to hide it from you, but Salazar captured me and brought me here." Ingo shook his shackles. "I witnessed Salazar build this Castle, so I too cannot leave it."

"My name is Moriarty Slytherin. From now on, you will call me Young Master. I have no interest whatsoever in your past," Moriarty said in an unquestionable tone. "What interests me is the legacy left behind by my ancestor Salazar."

"I'll take you there, Young Master! My name is Luke. Let's go to the master's bedroom first."

The House-elf Luke led the way ahead as though claiming credit, while Moriarty entered the Castle surrounded by Lockhart and Ingo.

The Castle's exterior was not overly extravagant, but its great hall was magnificent. Twelve enormous silver-white pillars supported the first floor, while milky-white walls and white carpets covering the floor made the hall bright and spacious.

Portraits, banners, sculptures, and rune diagrams hung one after another upon the walls, simple and ancient.

A gemstone or piece of jade was embedded beside every antique decoration.

Strangely, the positions where they had been set into the walls differed according to the colors of the gems.

On the wall directly opposite the main gate hung a large golden clock. Moriarty checked the time. It was a quarter to twelve.

Slytherin's emblem was embroidered on the carpet, and Lockhart immediately dropped to his knees on it. "Oh, Merlin, this must be elf craftsmanship! Only they would make something entirely by hand."

"Compared to the exquisite carpet, ancient carvings, and valuable furniture..." Moriarty swept his gaze across the hall before finally fixing it on two rows of candles.

"These candles are as thick as an ordinary person's arm, and there is Magic Power between them and the gemstones placed in various positions. I think our ancestor arranged them this way deliberately. This should be a Magic Circle."

Ingo watched Moriarty, wary of his talent and sharp perception. He muttered, "Another Slytherin monster!"

He sighed. "All right, Young Master, you are completely correct. But I must add that this is a Space Magic Array. Its existence provides light for the entire Castle."

As if inspiration had struck him, Lockhart hurriedly wrote all of it down.

Ingo became somewhat showy and lifted his chin. "In fact, the Castle makes extensive use of Space Magic Arrays. Young Master's Spell activated the Magic Circle granting entry to the Castle grounds, and spatial teleportation was what brought you here.

"Do not worry about the Serpent Tongue produced by the teleportation array. It was a sign of its first unsealing. No one had come here for nearly a thousand years."

Lockhart clapped happily. "Aha! The foundation of a thousand-year Pure-blood family! Richer and more luxurious than any Pure-blood family in Britain. I think even all the families in Europe combined could not compare to Young Master's Castle!"

Ingo's expression immediately fell. "All of this is Goblin wealth!"

Moriarty looked at Ingo with amusement. "It seems your status among the Goblins is not low."

Ingo turned his head away, unwilling to respond.

As if to spite Ingo, Luke said loudly, "My respected Young Master, let us go. Everything in the master's bedroom has remained exactly as it was!"

Moriarty nodded and followed Luke. After walking for a long time, they finally found Salazar's bedroom. It was still refined and luxurious, but Moriarty did not spare it another glance. Instead, he immediately took an interest in a notebook on the desk.