I don't know how much time had passed.
Another awakening that was worse than death.
Dewey opened his eyes and wriggled like a maggot, struggling a little.
"How can I get out of Azkaban?"
Dewey didn't know.
He didn't even know how many days he had spent in the old castle, or how many times the Dementors had sucked away his happiness.
There were no locks or cells in Azkaban's old castle. Anyone could move around freely.
As long as you weren't afraid of running into a hungry Dementor while roaming freely, you could go anywhere and try your luck.
Inside the castle, everyone curled up in corners like babies, trying to make themselves look inconspicuous and praying the Dementors wouldn't find them.
Unfortunately, Dementors didn't observe living creatures with their eyes. They were blind; all they could see was happiness.
The Dementors didn't keep a regular schedule for devouring happiness inside the castle.
To them, these serious criminals were an all-you-can-eat buffet.
This ruined castle exuded despair from every stone.
The deeper you went, the more Dementors there were.
And the more prisoners there were, too.
Even the corpses were more numerous.
A few of the dead were carried out by the Dementors and buried in the cemetery.
Most were left alone until their bones stank.
Many people chose to starve themselves to death here.
Endless suffering was more terrifying than death.
But Dewey didn't.
Being innocent and finding a way out of Azkaban weren't exactly pleasant thoughts.
So Dewey held fast to both of them. The Dementors hadn't devoured those thoughts; instead, because they were good memories, the creatures had sucked them out of his mind and stolen them, making them even clearer.
Malicious hatred and warm affection alike grew more intense as time went by.
The longer he stayed in Azkaban, the more his hatred of the Dementors, the Death Eaters, the Ministry of Magic, and Dark Magic grew!
He ate mechanically, driven only by a vague feeling.
"I can get out of Azkaban!"
He had even forgotten he was a transmigrator.
In his daze, he lost track of how many years passed.
Then, on an otherwise ordinary day, Dewey heard a sound beside his ear.
"Ding."
He didn't move, curled up on the ground amid the ruins of the castle. Sunlight spilled over him, bringing him a little happiness.
It must have been noon.
Soon, the Dementors would smell his happiness and come to suck away what little remained.
They had already absorbed nearly all the happiness in his memories.
Lying on the ground, Dewey summoned all his strength and finally saw the panel appear before him. He tried to understand it.
He felt a sliver of happiness and hope again!
"This is my cheat, and my chance to get out of here."
He couldn't even bring himself to wonder how it had appeared.
He only wanted it to exist!
All he wanted was to escape.
[User: Dewey Jones (pseudonym)
Cards Learned: None
Title: None
Magic: 10
Magic Essence: 0
Dueling Points: 0]
Dewey stared at those simple lines for a long while. It took him several minutes to understand that it was a Card System.
He'd almost forgotten what a cheat was, or how to spell the word.
"Cards? What are cards? What am I supposed to do?"
He found the question mark on the panel and clicked it. Then he suddenly brightened.
He understood how to use the cheat!
The Card System was similar to Magic Awakened, but here he had to "fight" to obtain cards.
When he injured an enemy in battle, that enemy would randomly drop a card.
The cards enemies dropped were related to how often he used them in everyday life.
He could learn the cards and cast Wandless Magic without a wand. Of course, using a wand would cost him less magic.
As for Magic Essence and Dueling Points, he didn't care how to obtain them.
After looking at them twice, he knew they were useless for improving his current situation.
He needed cards—cards that could get him out of here!
"Fortune favors me."
In that instant, Dewey thought of a way to escape!
Curling up tight, he used a sharp stone beside him to scratch words into the ground.
As he carved a name, a Dementor not far away drifted over.
It had smelled happiness.
Time for a meal.
Looking down at Dewey lying on the ground, it bent its indistinct face toward him and sucked deeply.
In that instant, Dewey felt his memories and happiness slip away from him.
He clutched himself tightly and passed out.
Once the Dementor was full, it floated away.
When he woke again, it was already evening.
A Hit Wizard's Patronus came in from outside, carrying food.
Dewey mechanically reached out, ate the food, drank the water, and then saw the name on the ground.
A hastily scrawled name.
"Black."
Sirius Black.
Looking at the name, Dewey's thoughts came rushing back like a tide.
He knew that his hope of escaping Azkaban lay with the person who bore this name.
It was his only chance.
In the past three centuries, two people had escaped Azkaban.
One was Barty Jr., who had been smuggled out by his mother.
Taking advantage of his position, Barty Crouch Sr. had brought his gravely ill wife in and used Polyjuice Potion to take his son out.
The Dementors couldn't recognize faces.
They could only tell that a healthy person (Barty Crouch Sr.) had brought in a dying person (Barty Jr.'s mother), then that the healthy person had left with another dying person (Barty Jr.).
His gravely ill mother had traded places with a deranged Death Eater.
The other was Sirius Black.
He had escaped through magic.
He was an Animagus who had never registered with the Ministry of Magic.
Animagus was the term for a wizard who could transform into an animal. After turning into an animal, the Dementors saw nothing but an animal.
Dementors weren't hostile toward animals.
Barty Jr.'s escape route was no use to him.
Dewey knew he didn't have a father who was a Ministry official, or a mother willing to die for him.
He could only rely on himself.
He had to duel Sirius, beat him up, and make him drop the Animagus card.
Once he got the card, he could turn into an animal, sneak out of the castle, and leave by ship.
Ships bound for Britain came here, bringing supplies and the Hit Wizards who took over the shifts.
It was his only chance.
"Hope."
What a wonderful word.
Dewey felt alive again.
He staggered to his feet, a sharp stone in his hand, and looked toward the depths of the castle.
The deeper you went into this magical ruin, the more Dementors gathered.
Even though he knew Sirius Black was locked away deeper inside, and that Sirius had the means to get him out, the sight of the swirling Dementors made his body and mind resist the thought of entering the castle's depths.
"Ah!"
He drove the stone deep into his thigh. The pain cleared his head a little. Gritting his teeth, he headed deeper into the castle.
Blood dripped as Dewey kept trying to encourage himself.
"I'm innocent."
"Ministry of Magic."
"Death Eaters."
"Voldemort!"
"Revenge."
"Freedom."
"Happiness."
"Chocolate."
"Hot cocoa."
"Sunshine."
With each word, he took another step deeper into the castle. Hope and pain spurred him on as the Dementors circled around him.
The monsters couldn't taste even the slightest hint of happiness.
The Dementors all knew they were only allowed to use the "Dementor's Kiss" on prisoners who escaped into the sea.
Other than that, they weren't permitted to kill anyone outright.
That was their agreement with the wizards.
As for this prisoner walking in of his own accord, they couldn't have been happier.
He smelled like food.
Dewey felt as if he were submerged in rotting seawater, the Dementors around him making it hard to breathe.
But it didn't matter anymore. He searched one cell after another for Sirius.
None of these cells had doors.
The prisoners inside sat motionless, as if they were dead.
There, he saw many high-ranking Death Eaters, staring at Dewey blankly.
But none of that mattered. He also saw Bellatrix, Sirius's cousin. Among all the serious criminals, only Bellatrix and a handful of Death Eaters still had any spark of life.
Finally, after opening one of the cells, he saw a bearded man he'd never seen before.
Leaning against the wall, Dewey continued his search, weak and breathless.
He didn't expect to find anything.
"Peter Pettigrew is still alive."
He said it tentatively. If this man really was Sirius, he would leap to his feet.
At those words, the man sitting there suddenly raised his head.
He stared at Dewey, numb and uncomprehending.
Seeing no reaction, Dewey turned to try again elsewhere.
But then, to his surprise, the man seemed to mull it over and suddenly stood up.
It was as though he had come back to life. He grabbed Dewey by the collar.
"What did you say? That's impossible. How do you know about Peter Pettigrew? I killed him with my own hands!"
He growled under his breath, staring at Dewey in disbelief.
Dewey stared back.
He felt a surge of joy, even though he knew it would attract the Dementors.
But he didn't care anymore.
"You're Sirius Black."
Dewey said it again, confirming it to himself.
"I found Sirius Black!"
Sirius Black didn't answer. Gripping Dewey, he said, "What did you say? Peter Pettigrew..."
Having confirmed that the man before him was Sirius Black, Dewey didn't wait for him to speak again. He gathered all his strength and punched him hard in the jaw!
"Give it to me!"
He knocked the burly man down, then threw himself onto Sirius, punching and kicking him. He couldn't even feel the pain in his leg.
"Give it to me, give it to me, give it to me!"
The hysterical roar startled even the Death Eaters nearby.
He fought as if he didn't care whether he lived or died. For a moment, even the towering Sirius was caught off guard.
Sirius was beaten until he was reeling. Blood ran from his nose, his lip was split, and blood stained his teeth, making him look especially terrifying!
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