Chapter 78: A String of Six

Walking on the cold, damp ground of Knockturn Alley, Silven sighed helplessly.

To be honest, the method they used wasn’t particularly clever—especially the timing.

No one but Dark Wizards enters Knockturn Alley at night.

Unfortunately, Silven had still fallen for it, stepping right into this clumsy trap… or perhaps, for some reason, he had unconsciously ignored the danger of walking into Knockturn Alley after dark.

“With just these, you guessed our target was a wand shop?” came a cold, hoarse voice from behind.

“You went to so much trouble—you couldn’t possibly have wanted to grab some ordinary Hogwarts student. It must be because of me.”

Silven took a deep breath and smiled. “If I have any special quality, it’s probably just my last name—Ollivander.”

“Perhaps add your clever mind to that,” the man said slowly, sounding almost complimentary, yet his tone dripped with mockery… like a predator praising its prey for being lively.

“Can you tell me your purpose?” Silven asked, instinctively clenching his fists, bracing as if ready to fight to the death.

“Of course it’s the wand!” A tall figure on the right suddenly grew agitated. “Last time, because those wolf pups lacked wands, we couldn’t kill that damned Potter! My Lord…”

“Shut up, fool!” A sharp command cut him off, and the voice returned to its earlier emotionless tone.

“You’re clever—but I can make your brain as empty as a hollow shell. Want to try?”

Silven knew clearly that this was meant for him.

“Don’t do this. I’m trying to help you,” he hurriedly explained. “Wands choose wizards—you can’t just take one and use it. You know that.”

The others said nothing, clearly resolved not to answer any of Silven’s questions.

But they did quicken their pace.

This seemed to be a signal—the others nearby began closing in on Silven, their wands tightening in their grips.

Noticing this, Silven immediately stopped walking.

“Finally decided to resist?” A wand pressed against his head.

“Right ahead is Borgin and Burkes,” Silven said. “I can’t cross past that shop.”

“That’s not your choice.”

“That’s unfair,” Silven turned to face him. “You’re six adults, all wizards—and you still lied, ambushed a first-year student. Is this what Death Eaters are?”

“Yes. This is what Death Eaters are,” the man replied without hesitation.

Silven fell silent, stunned that the man would so shamelessly admit it.

Wait—why isn’t this guy following the script? Shouldn’t he have given me a one-on-one chance?

“Since you won’t walk, we’ll carry you…” “Is the Polyjuice Potion ready?”

“Long prepared,” the old witch Silven had first seen squealed, her eyes greedily fixed on Silven’s head and fingers.

“Start quickly,” she grinned, revealing crooked teeth, her laughter growing more brazen. “The taste of fear… so sweet…”

“Soul…”

“Avada Kedavra!”

A shrill, piercing scream echoed faintly through the air—as if rising from within their very minds, vague yet drowning out every other sound in the alley.

Then, a strange green light suddenly materialized in Silven’s hand.

No one understood better than Death Eaters what this was—the Killing Curse—but it was different from their memories, as if woven from countless chains, like a ravenous venomous serpent, violently splitting and coiling through the air.

The first struck was the Dark Wizard who had been casting the Imperius Curse on Silven—he never finished his incantation before the Killing Curse pierced his chest.

His pupils dilated instantly; life was ripped away in an instant. Before his body even fell, the green lightning twisted toward its second target.

The old witch, still staring at Silven’s head, had no time to react—her throat was struck, and her body collapsed like a puppet with cut strings.

The remaining wizards saw this and tried to retaliate—but they had underestimated the curse’s speed and overestimated their own abilities.

Their eyes still froze in terror, but their wands, clutched so tightly moments before, now slipped from their fingers, clattering onto the wet cobblestones with hollow thuds.

“Thud… thud… crash!”

Six bodies hit the ground nearly at once. Knockturn Alley plunged into absolute silence.

Silven’s face turned deathly pale in an instant. He stood there, fingers numb, ears ringing, vision stretched into endless distance.

This was the Killing Curse? Simpler than crushing a bug underfoot.

But before Silven could recover, something new happened.

The green light of the Killing Curse, after piercing the sixth Death Eater’s chest, did not fade—it seemed to sense something, shifted direction again, carving a strange arc through the air.

The light dimmed slightly but retained its lethal chill, gliding past the damp alley wall and piercing through a rotting wooden door beside it with a soft *puff*.

A muffled thump followed, then the sound of a heavy body falling.

Silven turned toward the sound and faintly saw the faded sign above the door: Borgin and Burkes.

His legs felt stiff, as if nailed to the ground—he strained, but couldn’t take a single step forward.

Until he reached into his pocket and touched his wand, Silvermane.

A warm current surged from his fingertips through his entire body; Silven finally felt his limbs again, trembling, and took one shaky step forward.

He hadn’t expected the aftermath of casting the Killing Curse to be this horrifying—in that instant, every hatred, rage, and murderous intent in the world had surged at him like a tidal wave, drowning him, then solidifying into pale hands dragging him deeper.

Silven gripped Silvermane tightly.

“Lumos.”

A silver-white glow bloomed, completely dispelling the cold within him.

Of course, it wasn’t the lighting spell that worked—it was the wand itself.

【Purification】: When used against curses or dark creatures, suppression effect increases by 100%.

That feeling just now… must have been a kind of curse…

Probably.

Regardless, after using Silvermane to cast a Lumos spell, Silven’s body fully recovered.

But every time he looked at the six Death Eaters on the ground, his stomach churned—this sensation couldn’t be chased away by unicorn tail hair.

So as soon as he could move again, Silven immediately changed his position. He didn’t rush to leave Knockturn Alley; instead, following the glow of the Lumos spell, he pushed open the door of Borgin and Burkes.

The very place where the Killing Curse had finally vanished.

…

(End of Chapter)