Vanity? No, Seeking Advantage and Avoiding Harm

In the world of wizards, some ancient families will give rise to branches.

They developed independently and grew stronger together.

Lestrange is like that, and so is Rosier.

In southwestern France, there is a large grape-growing region. Going upstream along the Dordogne River, there is a vineyard that Muggle cannot see.

It lacks the extravagance of the Malfoy Manor, but it is full of historical weight.

The surveillance magic here can prevent the mistress of the house from going out, but it cannot effectively intercept the parchment sent by Viktor.

Vida, dressed in a silk black nightgown, lay languidly on a velvet sofa.

On the table directly in front of her was a freshly opened bottle of red wine, next to which was a crystal goblet.

A little further ahead, the symbol of the Deathly Hallows is slowly outlined in blood.

The smell of blood made her frown in displeasure.

Coming over in person isn't difficult, so in this situation, it's highly likely they'll ask for help.

"Surprising." Vida put down the parchment, picked up the crystal goblet, and took a small sip.

Grindelwald's only apprentice has actually set his sights on the Sacred Twenty-Eight.

Although it's not an old or prestigious family, it's a good start.

Beneath the slightly boastful tone lay, as expected, a plea for help.

As the sole heir of the France Rosier Family, she didn't really think much of her Britain cousin who had died as Death Eaters.

There's no future in following Voldemort.

They are ruthless to their enemies, but even more ruthless to their own people.

The Wizards' Purity Party simply carry the symbol of the Deathly Hallows on their bodies, unlike the Death Eaters who need to be branded with a Dark Mark that can never be erased.

The moment Voldemort fell, they were either killed on the spot or imprisoned for life in Azkaban.

Although many escaped death, they either had to pay a huge amount of Gold Galleons to "atone" or confess to other hidden Death Eaters.

Members of extremist groups are all extremists.

What wizards should truly fear is not a loose organization bound together by terror, but a group of people willing to sacrifice themselves for the same dream.

Vida quickly wrote a letter, but it wasn't for Viktor.

Her cousin Evan Rosier died a year before Voldemort's downfall, so the Rosier Family in Britain did not suffer a severe purge.

They would be happy to help, given that we share the same surname.

After two "boring" Potions Class, Vincent returned to the Club Room and started counting on his fingers.

If the Rosier Family is willing to help, it will be much easier to keep the Greengrass Family in check.

If that's not possible, then we'll have to do something traditional with Viktor.

He glanced, intentionally or unintentionally, at Daphne, who was sitting opposite Hermione.

Should we gather some intelligence beforehand?

What about personality and hobbies?

When Daphne first saw Vincent sit down, she thought he was looking for Hermione.

"Greengrass, what are your family members like?"

Are they easy to get along with? What do they like?

She was stumped by the three questions.

"Hey!" Hermione took her little hand, her eyes full of wariness. "Please state your reason first."

Vincent's lips twitched.

There's only a little over a day left, so we need to make all the preparations in advance.

"I plan to visit Greengrass Family after the hearing on Saturday."

Daphne's heart stopped pounding.

Both she and Hermione were trying to smooth over the slight embarrassment that suddenly appeared on their faces after the misunderstanding was cleared up.

"My father is very rational in his actions and likes to collect antiques."

My mother always speaks very gently, but she can be terrifying when she gets angry.

"Where's your sister?" Vincent picked up Hermione's notebook from the table.

"She has never left her home. I think she must really want to see the outside world."

What do you hate?

Daphne looked at him, hesitating to speak several times.

"I see."

"My parents aren't at that level yet," she explained hastily.

"Astoria is very innocent, she would never dislike you."

Vincent nodded in understanding. "Is there anything else I should be aware of?"

"Actually, both my parents are somewhat—" Daphne paused, carefully choosing her words.

"They prefer to associate with powerful and influential people. If it were you, I don't think they would make things too difficult for you."

It's just vanity, a common problem among Pure-blood men, not something too bad.

Now that we have the intelligence, we can start to address the problem.

Watching him leave, rubbing his hands together in anticipation, they both secretly prayed that things would go smoothly.

The following afternoon,

Confident Vincent walked into the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor's office on the third floor.

"Knock knock—"

"Come in."

Lockhart's ostentatious celebrity photos are gone, replaced by landscape paintings and potted plants.

Elphias Doge was pruning one of the plants that had produced light purple fruit. "Mr. Wayne, I thought you would be late."

He put down the small silver scissors in his hand, walked to the neatly arranged desk, and gestured for Vincent to sit down first.

"Thank you, Professor."

After tidying up his clothes in the room, Elphias Doge found that he was examining the plant he had just seen with great interest.

"This is belladonna, an important ingredient in many Potions."

After being given permission Vincent moved closer to take a look.

Belladonna, also known as wild eggplant or beauty grass, is one of the most poisonous plants in the Western Hemisphere.

In ancient times, Muggle would crush it and apply the juice to their arrowheads.

Wizards used its hallucinogenic effects to create therapeutic potions with anesthetic and sedative properties.

Simply put, you wake up to find all your wounds healed.

However, this one is quite different from the common ones.

"Professor, I remember that the color and toxins in belladonna become lighter each time it bears fruit."

"Yes." Elphias Doge was slightly surprised. "It seems you've studied quite a bit beforehand."

Vincent looked away. "Professor, the sixth-year textbook 'Advanced Potion-Making' mentions a Potions that only exists in legends. Its main ingredient seems to be light purple belladonna."

"That's Flying Potion." Elphias Doge smiled and shook his head. "An old friend of mine has always dreamed of regaining his ability, and he gave it to me many years ago."

"Is it Mr. Horace Slughorn Slughorn, the owner of Tom's memories?"

"Hmm..." His eyes became somewhat melancholy. "My old friend isn't actually a bad person. He just thinks Tom will achieve extraordinary things in the future."

It's that same vain personality trait again.

Vincent had a fairly good impression of Slughorn.

Those who come from Slytherin all have this kind of personality to some extent.

The instinct to seek advantage and avoid harm is human nature; it's just that it's more pronounced in humans.

Slughorn's surrender of his memories is enough to prove that he is not with Voldemort, and he will most likely be recruited by Dumbledore to join his side.