197: Visiting The Malfoy Manor

After Kasenhis sent off the last gift via owl from the owlery, it was finally time for the scheduled home visit.

Since he had never been to Malfoy Manor before, he couldn't use Ender teleportation to get there. Fortunately, the envelope Draco had given him earlier was actually a Portkey—just tearing it would activate the transport.

With a ripping sound—

"Ugh, I'll never get used to... that Portkey feeling." Kasenhis rubbed his temples as he arrived at the front gates of Malfoy Manor, where the entire Malfoy family of three was already waiting.

Draco stood behind his parents and gave Kasenhis a small, silent wave.

"Long time no see, Mr. Malfoy. And a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Malfoy," Kasenhis said, shaking hands with both of them before heading toward the manor.

"Mr. Kasenhis, I heard from Draco that you're quite skilled in architecture?" Lucius asked as he walked alongside Kasenhis.

"I'm not particularly good with this style," Kasenhis replied honestly. "I'm more into modern design. That's also why I've been thinking about renovating Hogwarts but never actually started. I figured I'd go back to Manchester and do some advanced studies when I have time. Who knows, maybe I'll contribute something to humanity—get a PhD or something."

"Manchester… you mean a Muggle university?" Lucius asked, puzzled.

"Oh, let me start by saying that I'm a straightforward person, so if you've got something to say, now's the time. If not, then I'll go ahead and say—finally! You're bringing this up. I've been holding in a whole monologue. So if you'd like, we can just shake hands here and each go our separate ways," Kasenhis said frankly.

"..."

"I invited you because I wanted to hear the thoughts of one of the few insightful minds in the magical world. Please, speak freely," Lucius replied.

Kasenhis nodded. "Thank you. Last term—that is, 1992—Hogwarts had a Basilisk crisis. We know the notebook involved came from this manor… well, let's be honest, it came from Malfoy Manor. But we're not here to point fingers, and I ask that you don't take offense."

"At the time, I did a lot of research into the founding years of Hogwarts to understand how the Basilisk even got there. Alongside that, I looked into the history of the Malfoy family's early days in England."

Kasenhis took a small silver flask from his pocket and took a sip to moisten his throat. "I don't mean to dig into whether the Malfoy line is truly 'pure-blood' or not—after all, your ancestors were already wizards when they arrived in England."

"But this manor itself—your ancestor Armand Malfoy was granted this land by the king for services rendered. Forgive my phrasing, but we must respect history."

"The Malfoy Manor has stood on this land for over ten centuries, right?" Kasenhis looked toward Lucius.

Lucius nodded. "That's right."

"And then there was Lucius I, who supposedly courted Elizabeth the First?"

"Though that's true," Lucius said, unusually asking a question, "I still don't quite understand why you're bringing all this up?"

"Because I find it curious," Kasenhis replied. "Before the Statute of Secrecy, the Malfoy family could be considered one of the most pro-Muggle wizarding families. Why, after the statute was enforced, did you so swiftly sever ties and develop such an intense pure-blood ideology?"

"That's because we're wizards," Lucius said plainly. "Wizards are our kin. If we don't stand with our own kind, should we stand on the opposite side, with Muggles? The only people who stand with Muggles are Muggles—unless you've become a Squib."

"That's… reasonable," Kasenhis acknowledged.

"And in truth, we were never really 'pro-Muggle.' We were pro-benefit. Muggles brought the Malfoy family benefits. A family that commands such power and wealth—shouldn't we feel honored and proud of that?" Lucius added.

"Honor doesn't belong to you," Kasenhis couldn't help but retort. "It belongs to the masses from whom that wealth was taken."

They had by now reached the entrance to the manor.

The doors opened automatically, and the group entered the parlor. Once everyone was seated, Lucius finally sat down as well.

"Ehm.. To be honest," he said, "your words are far too ..sharp. Let's change the subject."

"This is the real reason you invited me, isn't it?" Kasenhis asked.

"It is. Take a look at this." Lucius Malfoy pulled a torn envelope from his breast pocket and laid it on the table.

Kasenhis picked it up, drew out the letter, and as he read, his brows furrowed—then gradually relaxed.

It was a letter from Karkaroff.

In it, Karkaroff inquired how Lucius had been lately, the state of things in England, and the situation at Hogwarts. Only near the end did he reveal the true purpose of writing.

Peter Pettigrew had reappeared—and was now trapped at Hogwarts. He needed to be rescued—and someone had come to recruit teammates.

"Mhm, I'm aware of this," Kasenhis nodded and said.

"I have a bad feeling," Lucius continued. "In the past decade or so, nothing has ever felt quite like this... The old Death Eaters are becoming active again. First it was Sirius, then Pettigrew and Karkaroff... and now more and more of them. They were like rats hiding in the gutters, but this year, it's as if they've all received some sort of signal—they're stirring again, contacting each other."

Lucius finished speaking and noticed Kasenhis looking at him with a strange expression.

He didn't try to dodge the topic. "Yes, I know I was a Death Eater too. But that doesn't stop me from thinking something is wrong lately. After all... compared to Him... I no longer have any grand ambitions. You never saw what he became near the end—he'd completely lost his mind."

"You're tired of being a Death Eater, then?" Kasenhis asked.

Lucius nodded. "Ever since the moment He lost his sanity."

"Thanks for your trust. So you came to me because... you don't know what Dumbledore is thinking right now? You're afraid Voldemort will return, especially since I've already encountered him twice in the past two years...?"

As Kasenhis said this, Lucius and Draco didn't have much of a reaction—but Narcissa's eyelids twitched, hard, twice.

"That's exactly what I meant," Lucius said with a nod.

"Dumbledore doesn't hate the Malfoy family. He doesn't even dislike you—so you can rest assured and go speak with him directly. If I recall correctly, Lucius, you're still on the school governing board, aren't you?"

As Kasenhis finished, Lucius finally let out a breath of relief. Turned out it wasn't that he'd been maintaining an unflinching composure—his face had just gone so stiff from stress he couldn't move a muscle.

Now, at last, he got a reassuring answer and let go of the tension all at once.

"Yeah... The old basta—ehm.. Dumbledore might have quite a few minor flaws, but he's definitely got a heart big enough for everyone," Kasenhis commented.

"Mhm…"

"Now then, let's deal with the matter of this letter," Kasenhis continued, unlike Lucius who had relaxed completely. He picked up what was turning out to be a pleasant surprise from this visit to Malfoy Manor—the letter from Karkaroff.

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