A single glance

The platform was quiet, the hissing of the steam from the locomotive amplified several times in the silence, and white steam drifted along the ground, creeping over people's shoes and skirts.

Regulus walked toward the carriage, and the people around him watched him. Their bodies didn't move, but their heads did. With each step he took forward, a bunch of heads would turn around beside him.

Even the owl in the cage quietly turned its big head, its round eyes bright and alert, following his movements.

The toad seemed to be the only one unaffected on the entire platform, continuing to jump around as usual.

Then a shout came from the diagonal rear, "Regulus--!"

Avery Cuthbert's voice was booming and he was so excited he was practically doing the splits; the entire platform could hear it.

The silence shattered, and sound returned; half a minute of silence, and that was the end of it.

The platform came alive again, and people began preparing for action.

Several adult Pureblood Wizards, feeling they were qualified, took a step toward Regulus.

A middle-aged man in a black robe had a warm smile on his face, his mouth half-open, probably ready to exchange pleasantries.

Several older Slytherin also took a couple of steps in this direction, and one of the seventh-year boys even reached out his hand.

Regulus turned his head slightly, expressionless and emotionless, his gray eyes sweeping over him for just a glance.

Everyone who was walking stopped, their minds going completely blank.

Everyone's feet were rooted to the ground, their outstretched hands froze in mid-air, the words they were about to say stuck in their throats, and their smiles froze.

Regulus's gaze passed over the people who had stopped and landed on the other side of the platform in the distance.

Eleanor Bones stood in the crowd of Hufflepuff, her light brown hair loosely tied in a bun. When she saw Regulus looking in her direction, she smiled, revealing her canine tooth, and waved generously.

Susan Payne, standing nearby, shrank back, took two steps to the side, and hid behind Eleanor.

Regulus smiled and nodded in that direction.

That smile dispelled the momentary stagnation, and those who had been frozen in place snapped back to reality, their gazes clearing as they retracted their feet.

The seventh-grade boy withdrew his hand, coughed, and pretended nothing had happened. The middle-aged man in the black robe twitched his lips, his expression complicated, and turned to talk to the person next to him.

Some people wore expressions of lingering fear, while others seemed more thoughtful.

Of course, some people were unaffected; there was no shortage of skilled wizards on the platform.

Several older Pureblood Wizards merely narrowed their eyes slightly, their gazes lingering on Regulus's retreating figure for a moment, their lips curving downwards.

An old witch in a dark green robe stood by a pillar, a long pipe dangling from her mouth. Her gaze slid from Regulus's face to the people who had stopped around him. She took the pipe out of her mouth and exhaled a puff of smoke.

Regulus's gaze continued to the side, and a few carriages away, he saw the Potter family.

Charlus and Euphemia stood together, Euphemia's hand on Sirius's shoulder.

Sirius was looking at him, with James Potter next to him, and Remus Lupin Peter Pettigrew next to him.

Sirius's face was hard to decipher.

He must have sensed the removal from the list; the moment his name on the Tapestry was burned, the connection in his blood that had lasted for hundreds of years was severed.

It wasn't exactly painful, nor was it exactly relaxing; it just felt like a piece of me was missing.

You'll get used to it. From now on, you can eat, play, and fly as you please. Euphemia's chicken leg is delicious enough, Charlus won't stop him from wearing Muggle clothes.

The burden was lifted; the Potter family provided meals, lodging, and even walks—this was exactly what he wanted.

There was no storming out, no oaths, no angry confrontations; it was simply a name disappearing from the Tapestry, a surname being erased from the family tree, and Black leaving the Black family world—a peaceful evolution, one might say.

He and Sirius looked at each other for a moment, then looked away.

James Potter's expression was grim; his mouth was tightly shut, his brows furrowed, and he stared at Regulus.

In the past, he would probably make sarcastic remarks, curse, and loudly express his disdain. After he finished speaking, he would look around to see if anyone nodded in agreement.

But he was also inside the platform for those half a minute just now, and the feeling of that silence that filled the entire place truly hit him.

Regulus glanced at it, then immediately looked away, his gaze landing on the platform slabs, on the wheels of the suitcases, and on the toes of a person's shoes next to him.

Charlus and Euphemia nodded gently to Regulus, and Regulus nodded back.

Then his gaze shifted back and landed on Lupin.

I didn't look at him intentionally; it was just a fleeting glance, a glimpse of his tail, lasting less than half a second.

But Regulus Taiyi he was two months ago.

After Saiph lit up the sky over the Wasteland, his spirit and Magic Power continued to rise rapidly.

Each time a new star is lit up during Star Orbit Meditation, an adaptation period begins. During this period, mental strength and total Magic Power power continuously increase, as do physical strength and the Soul Avatar.

Growth brings spillover effects, not huge, but a little Magic Power, a little spirit, woven into every daily action, every glance.

He could suppress it if he wanted to; he could use the computing power in his mind to suppress, shrink, and push back those things that were spreading outwards. But he's too lazy to do it now.

That requires effort, constant maintenance, and Flower Sprite on something that isn't really worth the Flower Sprite.

In daily life, the spilled food doesn't affect his walking, eating, or speaking; it only affects others.

Those standing next to him feel that his presence is stronger than that of ordinary people, his gaze is more intense than that of ordinary people, and his silence is more oppressive than that of ordinary people.

He was aware of these changes, but didn't pay much attention to them; being far away or not consciously aware of them meant they had little impact.

However, he does have an opinion about Lupin.

Lupin swayed slightly, his left foot shifted half a step to the side, and his head tilted as if he had been bumped by something.

After regaining his footing, he was completely bewildered. For a moment, his mind went blank, and his feet felt unsteady.

Charlus put his hand on Lupin's shoulder.

"Are you alright?" Euphemia leaned over to take a look.

"It's nothing," Lupin rubbed his forehead. "I probably just didn't sleep well and was a little dazed."

Charlus looked at Regulus's back, who had already turned his head away.

He had run into Regulus many times on the platform; the boy was always polite to him and Euphemia and had never been rude.

There's a separate way of expressing feelings for Sirius, he might not be too fond of James, and there's never any mention of Remus and Peter.

Remus is Werewolf; Regulus, with his level of skill, would have known this long ago, and there was no way he could hide it from him.

But Regulus's attitude toward Remus had never changed because of this. He had always ignored Remus's Werewolf identity, Remus himself, and Remus's Regulus with Sirius, just as he had with Peter.

That one glance was different; Charlus could tell what it was.

A skilled wizard, once his will and spirit are strong enough, can exert pressure on those around him.

That has nothing to do with Magic Power; it's purely a matter of the Mental Layer. If one's will is strong enough and one's spirit is deep enough, one's very existence will Radiation pressure outwards, which can be contained or not.

It's not surprising that Regulus did this; what's surprising is the direction of this oppression.

Charlus was certain that the look in his eyes was accurate; Peter was standing right next to Remus, and nothing happened to him, only Remus was dazed.

Regulus was a good boy, and his kindness to Sirius surprised even Sirius. He was always very polite to the Potter family.

Previously, there was no information about Remus, but this time there was pressure, clearly accompanied by emotion. Why?

He glanced at Remus, Remus was still rubbing his forehead, probably genuinely believing he hadn't slept well.

He glanced again at Sirius was baring his teeth and making faces at Regulus's back, and finally at his eldest son beside him, who was twisting his head and stubbornly refusing to look at Regulus.

I can't figure it out.

Sirius finished making a face, then grabbed James's shoulder and jokingly pushed him toward the carriage. His complicated emotions passed in two seconds, and he was back to his usual suave and irresistible manner.

Charlus shook his head, patted Lupin on the shoulder, and nudged Peter.

"Let's go, get in the car."

Regulus walked to the vicinity of a carriage.

Avery stood at the carriage door, so excited he was about to take off, his eyes shining, as if he wanted to rush over, pick him up, and shake him.

Hermes leaned against the carriage, his hands in his robe pockets, his face expressionless, looking completely indifferent.

Alex stood next to Hermes and smiled gently as Regulus approached, carrying his own suitcase.

Lina, on the other side, rolled her eyes around in a way that strangely mirrored Baruk's.

Samuel, standing next to Lina, with a more composed expression, was also looking at Regulus and nodded slightly.

I haven't seen these guys for a whole holiday, and I still don't miss them at all.

Sebastian Cuthbert stood next to Avery, leaning on a walking stick in his right hand.

His smile was warm. He stepped forward, raised his right hand, and patted Regulus on the shoulder. "Regulus."

"Mr. Cuthbert." Regulus nodded.

Avery grinned, glancing at his father and then at Regulus, rubbing his hands together in front of his chest.

Abros Mulciber stood a little further away, dressed in all black with a gloomy face, and nodded to Regulus.

"Black."

"Mr. Mulciber."

Abros leaned forward slightly. "Please convey my thanks to Mr. Black."

With the disappearance of the Rowle family, Orion is steadily shifting the vacant positions and resources towards the Mulciber family, as previously planned.

"I will, Mr. Mulciber."

Abros nodded and stepped back.

Hermes ' eyelids lifted slightly, then drooped again, his expression blank; after a holiday apart, the gloom on his face had deepened.

Regulus glanced at him.

I'll beat him up again when school starts.

Alex's parents stood a distance away, not with Cuthbert and Mulciber, about a dozen steps apart.

Regulus walked over. "Mr. Roxier, Mrs. Roxier."

Mr. Roxier extended his hand and shook it earnestly, "Regulus, thank you for taking care of Alex all this time."

Alex came up from behind and stood next to his parents, smiling shyly.

Regulus glanced back at him. "Of course."

Lina's mother and Samuel's father were further away, on the other side of the platform, against the wall.

Both families are of Half-bloods; they didn't try to be Pure-bloods.

Regulus nodded in that direction.

Lina's mother paused for a moment, then gave a slight bow. Samuel's father was clearly flattered and quickly nodded.

Regulus turned back. "Lina, Samuel."

Lina's smile was radiant, her eyes curving into crescents, and her voice was clear and melodious. "Regulus."

Samuel also called out, "Regulus."

Old Cuthbert glanced at his watch, waved to the group of young people, and said, "Alright, alright, get in the car. We can talk about it up there."

Avery grabbed Regulus's sleeve and darted toward the carriage door, pulling Regulus up with him.

His father was watching from the side, and he couldn't very well beat him in front of everyone; it wouldn't look right if they were pulling and tugging at each other like that.

Some young wizards in the carriage Corridor saw Regulus get on, but no one went forward.

They had seen what happened on the platform, including the scene where someone tried to approach but was frozen in place by a single glance. They watched from afar as he walked inside.

Reaching the door of the private room where they always sat, Lina rolled her eyes, glancing at Alex, then at Regulus, and finally meeting Samuel's gaze.

"Samuel and I saw it; we were right below Regulus when he made his announcement in Diagon Alley."

Avery turned his head sharply, his eyes instantly lighting up.

He released Regulus's sleeve, grabbed Lina and Samuel by the arms with both hands, and dragged them into the private room. "Come in, come in, come in! Explain yourself clearly and thoroughly—"

Six people rushed into the private room, and the door closed.

Regulus sat in his usual spot by the window, Hermes and Alex were ushered over by Avery to sit next to him. Across from them, Avery was pulling Lina and Samuel, one on each side, making it a bit cramped.

The train whistle sounded, the train slowly moved forward, and the platform began to recede.

Baruk climbed out of the inner bag, and with a kick of his eight short legs, jumped onto the small table between the two rows of seats.

Its front legs gripped the window frame, its hind legs braced against the table, and its eight amber eyes stared at the scenery rushing past outside the window.

Fields and hills swept past the window, green turning brown and then green again, with a river shimmering in the sunlight in the distance.

It occasionally turned its body to look at the three little spiders opposite it that were making noise, clicked twice, but no one paid any attention to it.

It ignored everyone else and turned its head back to continue looking at the scenery.

Regulus looked out the window.

The skies over Scotland are getting darker.