Donning Lilith as a yellow cloak, Kai stared at the mutilated corpse of Peter Pettigrew, uncaring of the magical battle going on around him.
None could see him or sense him.
Even as the Pokemon sliced the cauldron into several parts, foiling the mysterious Homunculus Ritual and practically putting an end to Voldemort's return, he kept standing in the same place, silently taking in everything.
Slowly, bringing his gaze back to the corpse, Kai crouched.
Peter Pettigrew was dead.
But… the man had been dead for over two years now.
Even Lord Voldemort knew this, as without his presence, Kai couldn't have used a storyline character like Wormtail as a womb, and later as nutrition, for the Xenomorph Queen.
So, of course, this corpse didn't belong to Wormtail.
Things hadn't proceeded exactly as he had planned, Kai noticed.
Still, all that he desired to happen, all the results that he desired to see, and all the benefits that he desired to gain from the first term of the third year at Hogwarts were already coming to an end… in his favor.
And, it wouldn't have happened without Wormtail.
One way was to use Reanimation Jutsu, but, because of Lord Black Phoenix's uncanny inclination toward anything related to resurrection, it would have been an immense risk. Another way was to use the Polyjuice Potion. Because of Barty Crouch Jr.'s role in the events, though, it would have been difficult to add another character using similar methods.
Then, at the end of the second year, even before he had gone to Fate Random World, Kai had a brilliant idea.
It was a combined use of the Polyjuice Potion and Transfiguration by a wizard whom no one cared about.
Or… a witch.
Dolores Umbridge.
"Forced to live as a filthy man and spending most of your time as a rat… the creature you used to hate so much…" Kai mumbled with the smallest touch of a smile on his lips. "You still got away easy…"
The moment he uttered those words, Wormtail's corpse wriggled and became Dolores Umbridge.
She was naked.
Her skin held boils, hundreds in number, all oozing pus.
Filthy worms were crawling in and out of her flesh, the sight enough to make anyone gag on the spot.
"Ah…" Kai's lips twitched. "I forgot I did that to you first…"
He rarely held a grudge against anyone anymore.
It was especially so after he had gained Calm as an Elite ability.
All grudges were a sign of weakness, declaring that the other person was stronger than he was. Otherwise, why hold a grudge against that person and not just kill him? The philosophy was simple, straightforward, and easy to implement, Kai believed.
Dolores Umbridge, though… had managed to do the unthinkable.
She had irritated Black and Darcie.
The plot Ad Infinitum had come up with was simple, Kai remembered, beginning with the placement of Characters into the story.
Somehow, he needed both Barty Crouch Jr and Wormtail to be a part of the story; otherwise, things might have diverged against his plans.
Moody was out of the question, as the Auror was busy with international matters.
Not to mention that there had been no pretext to bring him over to Hogwarts without giving him a position. At least, not when Madam Villanelle was at the School; a witch, strong enough to rival many Aurors together. Lord Black Phoenix's untimely and ridiculous growth with the use of Time-Turners had also made Moody's presence pointless.
Then, who to replace?
The choice was easier than it seemed.
Filch, the Caretaker — a Squib whom even Dumbledore wouldn't be wary of.
Taking advantage of Filch accompanying students to Hogsmeade, Barty Crouch Jr. had replaced the old man.
Even then, it had been becoming incredibly difficult to bring Wormtail into the picture, as the rat had remained lost for the entire term break.
It was then that Filch attacked the Fat Lady's portrait, creating a distraction. Taking advantage of Dumbledore's order to search the dungeons thoroughly, he found the exact excuse he had needed to find the rat there and return him to his owner.
Of course, here, too, things had almost gone wrong.
Barty Crouch Jr held no fear of Dementors, as the guy had spent the last decade hidden within Crouch Mansion and not imprisoned at Azkaban. So, he never attracted the Cabinet-Boggarts to himself. However, Wormtail, as a rat, kept making even the ordinary Boggarts assume the form of dead cats.
Umbridge's love of cats and her fear of seeing them dead had been seeping out, raising questions.
If it wasn't for Filch's known infatuation with cats, too, who kept coincidentally placing himself near such incidents, things would have gone out of hand, with even Dumbledore taking interest in it.
Then there was the matter of Marauder's Map.
The Map, to Black's annoyance, kept showing Dolores Umbridge wherever Scabbers was supposed to be. Tricking Sirius and Lupin had been easy using Ad Infinitum's Echoes, making them believe that they had read Peter Pettigrew, not Dolores Umbridge. Still, that had carried insane risks, because if they had encountered Dumbledore, Kai's plans would have shattered instantaneously.
The good thing was that between Lupin confiscating the Marauder's Map and today, only a few days had passed.
The only thing Kai needed to take care of was to make sure that Dumbledore wouldn't intervene in the final stages of this conspiracy.
And for that, under his Nyarlathotep's authority, he had taken Timeline's help… letting a group of Contestants teleport into this timeline.
They weren't here to help Voldemort kidnap Harry.
They were here to spook the Order of Immortal Lotus with their mere presence after years of Contestants' absence, forcing them to call upon Dumbledore and Madam Villanelle to Avalon… just when Kai wanted them to.
The Conspirator of Fate had spun the web, trapping all prey without even letting them know of it.
And now, it was time to finish the job.
It was time to turn the conspiracy into victory.
It was time to create a Voldemort… strong enough to rival Lord Black Phoenix!