The scene shifted elsewhere. Lucius returned to Malfoy Manor in a bedraggled state with Malfoy and Narcissa.
Malfoy asked in confusion, "Father, why did you sell me to Horatio as a house-elf? He's just a Muggle. Even if he really is powerful, there's no need for us to suck up to him like this, right?"
Lucius asked earnestly, "Draco, do you know why the Malfoy Family has endured for so long?"
Malfoy answered, "Because we are pure-bloods and enjoy privileges in the Wizarding World."
Lucius shook his head. "Pure-blood is nothing more than a facade. So many pure-blood families ultimately declined. The true foundation of our family is knowing how to read the situation."
Malfoy asked doubtfully, "Why do you say that?"
Lucius began telling Malfoy about the family's rise. "At the very beginning, our family prospered through Muggles. Back then, our ancestors helped the king conquer the realm, and thus we gained vast lands and wealth.
After the Wizarding Secrecy Law was signed, we were the first family to decisively cut ties with Muggles and support the law. That was why we gained a greater voice in the Wizarding World.
When The Dark Lord swept through the Wizarding World, we also stood on his side. But no amount of planning could have predicted that he would fall at the hands of a child. Our family then faced postwar reckoning. Fortunately, I pretended to have been controlled by the Imperius Curse, and that was how I escaped disaster.
This time, when I met Horatio, he felt even more terrifying than The Dark Lord."
Lucius looked at Malfoy meaningfully. "I hope you will do everything in your power to build a good relationship with Horatio. Even if you have to be his dog, you must wag your tail and crawl up