Volume 5: The Burning Golden Flame Chapter 321 This is also what the master meant
The atmosphere in the Malfoy household had been bad since the day Draco was chosen as the champion for the Triwizard Tournament.
Except for the half month after the selection dinner, many colleagues from the Ministry of Magic came to congratulate their family. Lucius forced a smile to receive them, but most of the time he had a frown on his face and a sad look.
Today is no exception.
Not only Lucius, but also Draco, a contestant, and his mother Narcissa, have looked unhappy during this period.
Lucius knew from the beginning how dangerous the Triwizard Tournament was. The reason why this tournament had been suspended for hundreds of years was because it was too dangerous. Almost every time a warrior participated in the tournament, he would die.
Not to mention that this three-way competition directly involves the outcome of a war, and the risks are increased exponentially.
It was precisely because of this that, when he saw Draco being chosen by the Goblet of Fire that night, he took the risk to ask Voldemort for help, trying to pull Draco out of this dangerous vortex, but obviously he failed.
What Voldemort said that night was not a lie to him. Once chosen by the Goblet of Fire, it was equivalent to signing a mandatory contract. The chosen person must participate in the Triwizard Tournament until the end of the game. There was no second possibility.
If being selected as a warrior to participate in the Triwizard Tournament only made Lucius worried and Draco excited, then John's performance of killing Bella in public made Lucius fall into despair and Draco worried all day long.
That night, Draco, who had already drunk a lot of butterbeer at the dinner, was so scared that he peed his pants.
It was the first time he saw a dead body, and it was so tragic, one dead body was stabbed in the chest, and the other dead body was stabbed in the throat.
Especially these two dead people were once shadows in his heart, his aunt Bellatrix Lestrange.
Draco, who was originally chosen, was filled with joy. He thought that as the chosen one, he would surely be in the limelight after becoming a warrior of Hogwarts Castle, and might even help his father to improve his status in that gentleman's heart.
But within a few minutes he discovered that if the Triwizard Tournament was a battlefield with real swords and guns, then when he faced the boy of the same age as him named Jon Green, he was basically like a dish of food, with no room for resistance.
Not only Draco could see this clearly, but Lucius and Narcissa could see it more clearly than anyone else.
Especially after Lucius had thoroughly inquired about all of John's deeds, he learned that he not only killed the Lestranges, but also killed Rodolphus's brother Rabastan under the pursuit of a group of Death Eaters earlier this year.
Going back further, even the incident that happened in Hogwarts Castle last year, where he sneaked into the school undercover to rescue the Mudblood students, could basically be concluded that it was John who did it, and Lucius became even more uneasy.
He knew very well what kind of person his son was. He was definitely not bad, but he was not very good either. His performance in Hogwarts Castle could only be described as average. He did not have any top talent, let alone compared with Jon Green, who could be defined as a freak just by looking at his resume.
Narcissa also knew her son inside and out. These days, she looked visibly more haggard.
"Haven't you found out the specific events of the competition yet?" she asked worriedly.
Lucius walked back and forth in the living room with his hands behind his back and a frown on his face, as if he was anxiously waiting for some news.
"No! I ca n't find any clues! Those guys are unwilling to reveal any relevant information, saying that they have signed a confidentiality agreement and there will be very serious consequences if they violate it!"
Draco sat on the sofa. His face no longer had the arrogance and complacency he had when he was just selected as a warrior. He looked at his father tremblingly.
"Will they let me fight that monster?"
Lucius looked at him, and there was at least some comfort in his voice.
"You can rest assured about this. I have checked all the events that have been held in the Triwizard Tournament. There has never been a precedent of warriors directly dueling."
"But as long as it's a competition, there will inevitably be fighting, right?" Draco looked at him eagerly, "Dad, that monster will kill me! Just like he killed Aunt Bella!"
What he feared was also what everyone in the Malfoy family feared.
Narcissa hugged Draco, her eyes visibly reddened, and she looked at her husband.
"Master...don't you have any explanation?"
"The master disappeared after that night. All the preparations were left to Severus and Crouch. I couldn't see him at all!"
Lucius' voice was obviously impatient, and he kept looking up at the wall clock, waiting for a certain time.
"Draco is participating in the competition for the master's career." Narcissa's voice trembled slightly. "The master certainly doesn't want to see him lose the competition, but if he is allowed to participate in the competition without any protection like this, the possibility of his survival will be very small..."
"I don't know what arrangements the master has made, and I don't even know the significance of his proposal to hold the Triwizard Tournament." Lucius finally stopped his restless steps. "But the master certainly doesn't want to lose this game, but our son is not the only one he can pin his hopes on."
Narcissa opened her mouth.
"You mean the student who represented Beauxbatons in the competition? But Beauxbatons has only been under the control of the master for a year. How can the students there be loyal?"
"Don't forget that the chosen student of Beauxbatons is named Lestrange!" Lucius said gloomily, "This is the surname that the master trusts the most, no doubt about it. Even though Bella's family is extinct, there are still people in the Lestrange family!"
Lucius' words stirred up Narcissa's memories. After all, Bella was her sister, and she naturally knew something about the pure-blood family her sister married into.
"The student who participated in the competition is called Emil? I remember him. He is the son of Rodolphus's cousin."
"Rodolphus' cousin has replaced him as the head of the Lestrange family, and his son is older and better than Draco. I can't be sure whether the master has placed his hopes on this boy!"
Lucius had a very ugly expression. He had investigated not only the hostile warrior like John, but also the warriors in his own camp clearly.
"Rodolphus' cousin made an appointment with me today. He said he would bring his son to visit me in the afternoon."
Narcissa looked surprised.
"Why did they come to us?"
"It can't be a visit to relatives or friends. After Bella died, our family no longer has a half-Nutter relationship with them. I think it's most likely to talk about something about the Triwizard Tournament in a month."
At this moment, a house-elf covered with a piece of rag suddenly appeared in front of the Malfoy family.
"Master, Master, there are two guests outside who claim to be Mr. Lestrange."
Lucius' originally gloomy expression became uncertain. Narcissa and Draco looked at him. At this time, Lucius had absolute decision-making power in the family.
"Prepare to receive the guests, Narcissa. No matter what their purpose is, we will talk about it after we meet them."
As he spoke, he walked towards the door. The house-elf automatically opened the door to the living room for him, and the iron gate at the fence of the manor also opened automatically, leaving an entrance for the visiting guests.
At this time, Lucius also saw the two Mr. Lestranges.
There were two of them, one big and one small. He had seen the smaller one on the night of the warrior selection. His name was Emil Lestrange, and the middle-aged wizard of the same age was Brandon Lestrange, who inherited the Lestrange family fortune after the death of all the Rodolphus family members.
After investigating the information about him, Lucius always felt that he was just a lucky guy. Compared with his extinct cousin's family, this man named Brandon didn't have any strengths. Even though he joined the Death Eaters early on, he was still one of those people with no highlights.
As a result, he is now lucky enough to inherit all the Lestrange family property and become the head patriarch. Apart from being lucky, Lucius doesn't know how to describe him.
Of course, even though he had already made up his mind about this man, on the surface Lucius still had to maintain the most basic manners among purebloods. His originally gloomy expression had long since disappeared without a trace, replaced by a warm smile.
"Ah ha, Brandon, what a surprise. I've been looking forward to it since I received your visiting card. Our whole family is waiting for your arrival."
In fact, this was not the first time Lucius had met Brandon. They had met once two months ago at the funeral of the Lestranges. That funeral was presided over by Brandon, who had taken over the position of head of the Lestrange family.
Narcissa was also a professional pure-blood noblewoman, an expert at managing her facial expressions. She accompanied Lucius to greet guests at the door, and there was no sign of the ugly look on her face just now.
"Why isn't Mrs. Lestrange here?" she asked, smiling.
Brandon first shook hands with Lucius, then exchanged pleasantries while answering Narcissa's questions.
"She has been feeling unwell lately and originally planned to come with me, but the doctor suggested that she should stay at home to recuperate."
"Oh, that's a pity, I'll write and ask after her."
Compared to the smooth communication between adults, Draco obviously couldn't control his facial expressions freely. His face was obviously pale. He stood beside Narcissa and looked at the Beauxbatons warrior who was half a head taller than him.
Emil was three years older than Draco. He was already a seventh-year student when school started, and he was only a little less than a year away from adulthood.
His face was grim and he looked like a serious person. He noticed Draco's gaze, but just met his gaze before turning away and looking at Lucius.
Draco's breathing hitched slightly as he felt the scorn.
Although the other party's expression was not obvious, Draco could tell from the attitude that he did not take him seriously, because he usually had the same attitude towards the half-bloods in school.
This made Draco feel angry and humiliated, but he didn't say anything. He still knew the basic rules of observing the occasion.
After welcoming the Lestrange father and son into the living room, the experienced Lucius could immediately see the discord between his son and Emile. He turned his gaze to the tall and thin boy with a cold expression.
"Emile, can I call you that? The Lestrange family is really full of talented people. I heard that you got O grades in 11 subjects in the wizard level exam."
Emil nodded and said in a calm voice.
“I don’t think it’s an honor worth mentioning.”
The anger in Draco's eyes grew even stronger. He realized that this man not only looked down on him, but also looked down on his father!
Lucius's face darkened slightly, but then he smiled and said.
"Of course, with your great talent, there will be more honors worth mentioning in the future."
In an unnoticeable place, Brandon gently touched his son's arm. Emil's expression softened somewhat reluctantly, and he spoke in a slightly softened tone.
"We still need more guidance from elders like Mr. Malfoy."
"Haha, considering the relationship between our two families, such a title is really too formal. Just call me uncle."
Lucius patted him on the shoulder, as if he didn't care at all about his disrespect just now. The living room was full of a happy scene with both the host and the guests.
As soon as they sat down, the house-elf Dobby served them tea and desserts. After a long chat and greetings, Brandon finally got to the point of today's visit.
"Regarding the Triwizard Tournament, Emil and Draco are both contestants fighting for their master. No matter who wins, it will represent our victory. So I came to visit you this time to discuss some matters about the subsequent competitions with you."
He looked at Lucius with a smile.
"After all, no matter what, two people working together and coordinating is definitely much better than fighting alone."
Lucius didn't show much surprise on his face. He had guessed Brandon's intention from the beginning.
"Um... so what do you think?"
Brandon glanced at his son and continued calmly.
"I think... let Emil take the lead, and Draco take the auxiliary, to help him win the championship of this competition."
The atmosphere in the living room suddenly became quiet, but the silence only lasted for a few seconds before he spoke again.
"Of course, this is what the master meant."
