In the very next instant, he saw that one of the two Knights had appeared before him, slamming him down into the ground with such force it seemed intent on crushing him into the soil itself.
Only then, did Riddle realize what kind of magical item the armor on these Knights truly was. When it came to the ancient era's magical texts, his knowledge was still far from sufficient.
"Let me go!" He howled again.
But his head only sank deeper into the earth.
Both Knights had already raised their longswords, the blades poised at his throat. Ian watched with keen interest, analyzing the enchantments woven into their armor.
'What?'
'Save Tom?'
'Do I look like someone who's on good terms with Tom?'
"Are you wizards?" The little girl lifted her hand, signaling the Knights to stop. She walked up to Riddle, picked up his wand, and turned it over curiously in her small hands while addressing Ian.
"Yes." Ian chuckled, studying the girl with amusement. The two Knights were no threat to him, but the girl clearly didn't know that. She thought everything was under her control.
"As you can see, I'm from a noble family. My house worships powerful wizards, though I myself haven't been granted permission to study." The girl seemed fascinated by the wand.
"And so?" Ian raised an eyebrow, still smiling.
He could see straight through the little girl's heart.
That much, she probably had no idea about.
"You broke into my pigpen and killed my pigs. That's no small matter, you know." The girl continued her pretense of speaking like an adult.
"However." She lifted her head, her eyes glimmering faintly.
"If you're willing to become my teacher and instruct me in that magic you just used, I think not only can I forgive your actions, but I'd also be willing to give you a most generous reward."
The young girl's cheerful voice carried a trace of almost imperceptible tension. Her expectant gaze was as deep and dazzling as black gemstones, stirring an unexpected fondness in Ian.
"The one who cast the spell was him. You should be asking him." Ian pointed at Riddle, whose face was twisted in a grimace on the ground, pinned down by the two Knights with a weight heavier than a wild boar.
"Let me go!"
"You're dead!"
"Your whole family is dead!"
That was his true nature, after all. He roared at the top of his lungs.
Even as the Knights kept striking his head, they couldn't silence his endless curses. Yet the girl paid little heed to his verbal abuse.
She kept her gaze fixed on Ian.
"I can always pick out the most powerful one in a crowd. And you… you're not afraid of my guards. I don't sense any fear from you." Her eyes locked onto Ian's.
The two of them were so close.
Ian could even see the blush spreading across her cheeks.
Indeed, from this pretty young girl, Ian had sensed fluctuations of magical power, an excellent talent, though still untapped.
"Since you noticed all that and still dared to stand in front of me… that can't really be called clever." Ian didn't draw his wand; instead, he simply raised a finger and pressed it against the girl's brow.
A green light flared.
The threat of death instantly enveloped her entire body. The smile that had lingered on her face froze at once, her eyes trembling with visible panic.
It wasn't only Ian's finger, her two Knights, without her even noticing, had already gone rigid, frozen in their stance of suppressing Riddle, turned into statues.
She hadn't even seen the slightly older wizard before her cast a spell.
"You… how did you do that? Aren't wizards supposed to chant incantations?" The girl tried to maintain composure, but her curiosity was genuine, for she had never seen or heard of a wizard casting without words.
"He's a Legendary wizard! And you dare compare him to those worthless wizards in your family? Idiot!" Riddle still couldn't rise from the ground, spitting mud-streaked saliva as he snarled.
"Let me kill her!" Riddle tilted his head.
Only one eye could see the girl beside him, but even so, it was full of venomous malice.
The girl swallowed nervously.
Luckily, Ian's reply rekindled a glimmer of hope in her eyes.
"You're the idiot! Didn't you hear she wants to hire me to teach her magic? And you dare speak that way to my dear Apprentice? My time-turner depends entirely on my Apprentice!"
Ian's sharp rebuke was clearly not what Riddle had been expecting.
But then again, considering that this was a noble family devoted to honoring wizards, Riddle quickly caught on to Ian's scheme. Even so, he could only glare at the girl with bitter hatred.
"You'll really teach me magic?" The girl's eyes widened with both surprise and joy, shining with light.
"Of course. I've always believed that fate favors those with coin. With enough gold, I could even teach you how to put Merlin in the dirt." Ian bragged without the slightest hesitation.
He was twelve.
With a Legendary status.
If he wasn't allowed to feel proud, then who could?
"This magic! I want to learn this magic first!" The little girl pulled out her own coin purse and stuffed it directly into Ian's hand. Its heavy weight gave off the sense of undeniable fate.
However, Ian's passion for gold coins was nothing compared to his passion for the ancient Time Tunners.
"That's called the The Avada Kedavra Curse. You've got good taste. My teacher once told me, when traveling abroad, the very first spell you should learn is this Curse." Of course, Ian still pocketed the girl's coin purse.
Who would turn down free money?
Naturally, He still remembered his true objective.
"Of course, before that, I'll need a place to settle down and some information about the wizards here. My servant and I have just gone through a failed journey."
Ian believed that, as a noble's daughter, this little girl could provide him with no small amount of help. He also thought that guiding a gifted young witch was merely a convenient thing to do along the way.
"Alright, no problem, Teacher." The girl changed her address quickly. That, too, was a form of cleverness.
"How should I address you?"
Her arrogance was gone. She now displayed an attitude of respect. Ian's single display of chantless spellcasting had already revealed his strength. She might not understand the meaning of Legendary, but she trusted her own judgment.
"Call me Mentor Medivh."
Ian donned a mask.
And began to muse, Perhaps this was where that mask's story truly began. If so, then his first Apprentice ought to have a story of her own, shouldn't she?
With that thought, "Your name?"
He looked at the delicate young girl before him.
"I am the daughter of the Duke of Tintagel, Princess of Cornwall. Since you are my teacher, you may be granted a special privilege." The girl bowed respectfully to Ian.
"You may call me… Miss Morgan."
She spoke with delight.
But because she kept her head lowered in a bow, She did not see the young wizard's terrified eyes, nor the way his expression gradually slipped out of control.
The atmosphere grew uncomfortably quiet.
Little Morgan raised her head in confusion and looked at the stiffened young wizard.
"No! This is Impossible!"
At that moment, Riddle's horrified cry suddenly rang out.
"I don't want to stay here! I want to go back to Hogwarts!!! I want to go back to Hogwarts!!!" His shrill screaming was as piercing as ever, carrying with it an aching longing for home.
(End of Chapter)
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