Chapter 26 Finding The Culprit

"We should have gone to Knockturn Alley to buy a Draught of Living Death! Instead of stealing it from Slughorn!"

About ten kilometers away from the Badminton Estate, inside an abandoned ranger's hut, a short, plump, bespectacled wizard named Eldred Worple was struggling to handle a seven-meter-long hemp rope.

He coiled one end of the rope into three loops, pressing them together, then painstakingly began wrapping the remaining length around them.

Meanwhile, the ever-pale, handsome young vampire named Sanguini still wore his usual timid expression.

"You were the one who said we were out of money... that we had to save where we could. What's one less Draught of Living Death? Slughorn wouldn't even notice..."

"We? You've never had any money! It's always been me footing the bill!" Worple glared at him. "I was trying to save us some Galleons, but now we'll have to spend even more! Damn it, why did Slughorn have to keep a special Draught of Living Death in there?!!"

Sanguini didn't argue back. Instead, he suddenly began panting heavily, his face growing even paler, his eyes flickering with a faint red glow!

"Wait! Wait!" Worple yelped, tossing aside the half-braided rope and leaping up from his chair in a panic.

Just as Sanguini's features grew more pronounced, with his fangs elongating and his expression twisting, Worple had already rummaged through a nearby crate and pulled out a potion vial, shoving it straight into Sanguini's mouth!

After gulping down the Blood-Replenishing Potion they'd bought from Diagon Alley the day before, Sanguini's vampiric traits gradually faded.

He licked the last drops from the bottle with reluctance, then looked hopefully into Worple's crate.

"Are there any blood-flavored lollipops left? I've been holding back for so long... Let me savor that taste a little longer."

"Now you see why I wanted to save on that damn Draught of Living Death, don't you?! All my money goes to this!" Although Worple looked completely fed up, he still took out a lollipop from the crate and tossed it to Sanguini.

Sanguini caught it, but instead of looking pleased or excited, his shoulders slumped in defeat.

"...I'm sorry. I dragged you into this."

Worple, who was originally chattering and wanting to complain more, stopped talking at this moment. He walked over to his friend and sighed, "Don't apologize. I came along willingly. I'm still counting on that vampire book to make us rich! Once it's published, you'll pay me back twice what I spent on you!"

"Stop lying to me." Sanguini muttered, covering his face, "You took me to suck up to Horace Slughorn because you wanted him to promote your new book. But because of me, now you've angered him!"

Worple angrily punched him on the shoulder.

"If I write well enough, I won't need his promotion! But since you know how much I've given up for this, then you'd better not give up either! Pull yourself together, Sanguini! Remember… you promised her! You swore it!"

Sanguini lowered his hands that were covering his face. He stared blankly at the lollipop in his hand and muttered, "...Right. I promised her... I'm a thief, a liar, someone with zero credit at Gringotts..."

He clutched at his hair.

"But I promised her!!"

"Then do it!" Worple encouraged. "Things can't get any worse than this! Even if the Aurors catch us, even if the Wizengamot sentences us, what's the difference now?!"

Sanguini didn't reply. Instead, with trembling fingers, he slowly unwrapped the lollipop.

"...You're right. It can't get worse than this. It can't..."

Worple didn't go back to braiding that damned rope. Instead, he pulled out a quill and parchment, and said with great determination, "I'll keep writing. I'll finish this story… even if it's from Azkaban!"

...

"Vampire!"

Harry stared at the garlic and blurted out the answer.

"Only vampires are afraid of garlic! And those marks on Miss Patty's neck… those were vampire bites! She was drugged and attacked by a vampire!"

"It was that new best-selling author and his vampire friend who did it! They stole Professor Slughorn's Draught of Living Death at the party that day and used it to do this!"

If even Harry could piece it together just from the garlic, there was no way Severus hadn't already figured it out.

'The Aurors had been too dismissive of the Muggles… If they'd just cooperated more with the Muggle authorities, if they'd bothered to communicate with the police, they might have made real progress… even without Slughorn's missing information.'

But now, it was Severus who had uncovered the crucial clue.

"The perpetrators are practically confirmed. The only thing left unclear is why they targeted Patty." Severus put down the garlic in his hand and said, "However, that's a question we'll answer once we've caught them."

"Come on, Harry. We've done enough for today. Time to rest. Tomorrow, we'll visit Slughorn and find out where that bestselling author and his vampire companion are hiding."

Gordon eagerly held the door open for Severus, even offering to drive them back himself.

Severus declined politely, thanking Gordon for his help and promising to solve the case swiftly. He will live up to the name 'Sherlock Holmes'.

Gordon's heart was filled with emotion after hearing these words. He stood excitedly at the door of the police station, saluted, and watched the 'Great Detective' and his assistant walked away.

Harry is still too young now, and Severus doesn't dare to use Apparition with him. If something went wrong and Harry ended up splinched, the consequences would be disastrous.

So, after leaving Gordon's sight, Severus hailed a taxi instead, and the two returned to Badminton Estate.

As soon as they came back, they found that the Ministry's employee, who stayed in the estate, was very anxious because they left without saying anything. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw them come back.

"Professor Snape." He looked at Severus sincerely and said in an almost pleading tone, "Since you've chosen to stay, you're technically part of the investigation team now. If you plan to leave again, please let me know first. Otherwise, I'll have no way to explain it to the Ministry."

Severus certainly knew what he was afraid of.

The Aurors had already listed him as a suspect in brewing the potion, so they definitely didn't want to see him disappear at will.

"We just went for a walk. But fine, if you insist, I'll inform you in advance." Severus said, not wanting to make the man's job harder, "Tomorrow morning, I'll be visiting Professor Slughorn. If all goes well, I should be back by noon."

Seeing the employee's embarrassment, Severus added, "But my student, Dudley, will remain here."

Since tomorrow's mission involved potentially confronting the suspects, and possibly even a fight, Severus and Harry had agreed it was safer for Harry to stay behind.

Besides, it would give him more time to play with his new friends at the manor.

Hearing that at least one of them would stay, the employee finally relaxed.

He looked at Severus with genuine gratitude.

"Thank you, Professor Snape. You're nothing like the rumors say! You are a true gentleman and a great professor!"