Will did not rush to leave the underground Palace.
He sat beside the stone platform, his brow deeply furrowed, turning the book's pages one by one. The book itself was encrypted.
What it contained did not look like a direct record. It was more like a coded index pointing somewhere else.
Most importantly, pages were missing. When Will reached the middle, he found that the last few pages had been torn out. He turned the book over and over, looking for clues. Just as he was about to give up, he heard something.
Footsteps. They were faint, but clear in the quiet underground Palace. Will immediately cast the Disillusionment Charm and retreated into the shadows in a corner of the hall.
The footsteps drew closer.
The door opened a crack, and a beam of light shone in from the stairwell. Will narrowed his eyes at the entrance and saw a figure descend the stairs.
DePty Winston.
Professor Fig must have given him a lead.
DePty looked around, walked over to the Pensieve, and peered down at the silvery liquid inside. The memory had not yet faded. He scratched his head, then plunged it into the basin.
Will watched DePty's back as a thought crossed his mind.
DePty had found this place, which meant he was also searching for Ancient Magic.
And he had another source of information: Ranrok.
That afternoon.
Will stood outside the entrance to Ranrok's hideout, concealed by the Disillusionment Charm.
This was Rookwood Castle, controlled jointly by Goblins and the Ashwinders.
The manor's stone walls bore several cracks, and many tiles were missing from its roof, but the structure was largely intact. Ranrok had probably chosen it as a hideout because it was inconspicuous. The Aurors would never think to look for the leader of a