Chapter 138: As Your Test Subject!
Lockhart reluctantly left the Department of Mysteries, taking Crabbe to the Ministry of Magic's main hall for interviews with reporters.
However, unexpectedly, Minister for Magic Fudge once again took him alone to the Department of Mysteries, leaving the reporters and other groups for Umbridge to handle.
They once again passed through the circular room filled with doors, arriving at another place filled with various coffins.
It was quiet here, yet also noisy, as if an unending cold wind howled constantly in their ears.
Fudge carried an old-fashioned kerosene lamp, its warm yellow light warding off the cold winds from approaching them.
Lockhart followed behind him, feeling that the ground beneath his feet was no longer the unique stone flooring of the Department of Mysteries, but rather something akin to the humus-rich soil of a forest.
He wasn't sure why Fudge had brought him here, but he curiously surveyed his surroundings.
There was even a very large golden coffin here, big enough to hold an entire fire-breathing dragon.
"Inside is a giant, Juliana Evans by name," Fudge explained, seeing Lockhart's curiosity, and pointing to a nearby plaque. "The unique magic here is enough to preserve these bodies, keeping them as fresh as the moment before death, even if this giant lived three hundred years ago."
Lockhart exclaimed in awe, looking around, feeling as if he had entered a massive morgue.
Fudge continued to lead him deeper with the lamp. At this point, the cold winds in the shadows ceased, replaced by a dense mist. Even a slight whiff of it caused a sensation of suffocation, dizziness, or even mental disorientation.
"Damn it!" Fudge quickly adjusted the lamp, making it brighter, finally protecting them from the mist's harm.
"The Bloodline Hall hasn't been managed by an Unspeakable for over eighty years. Even such an important lamp has started having minor issues," he said, seeing Lockhart had quietly gripped his wand. He quickly warned, "Absolutely do not cast a Bubble-Head Charm or anything similar; these winds and mist will attack anyone who casts a spell!"
Lockhart nodded, gesturing to the black soil beneath their feet. "Actually, the ground will too."
Fudge paused, looked down blankly, and swallowed. It seemed he wasn't as familiar with this place as he let on.
The two continued onward. In the mist, many huge figures faintly moved, yet without a sound, the surrounding silence chilling to the bone.
The deeper they went, not to mention the person beside him, even the ground became obscured. Lockhart could only follow the orange-red lamp light through the mist.
Finally.
A structure resembling a magnified cabin in the woods appeared before them, three stories high, covering about a hundred square meters.
There were few windows on the wooden house, but each one emitted a similar orange-red glow.
"Here we are," Fudge's voice sounded as if from a great distance, and Lockhart could tell he too was relieved.
Fudge, holding the lamp, opened the wooden house door, revealing a cozy room inside. The warm glow of the fireplace dispelled the chill that had unknowingly settled on them.
Stepping inside and closing the door, Fudge led him up the wooden stairs of what looked like a cozy home.
Pushing open a trapdoor and climbing up, the second floor resembled a hospital ward, filled with various iron beds, on which were restrained werewolves, bound with dragon hide straps.
This scene was quite unnerving. They continued upward, finally reaching the third floor.
The third floor was completely empty. The only unique feature was the four windows. Looking out from these windows, all the mist had vanished, and one could clearly see countless coffins arranged below.
"What do you think of this place?" Fudge suddenly asked.
Lockhart seemed a bit lost, unsure why he was asking this, but merely curiously surveyed the surroundings. "Bloodline Hall? Right, that's what you just called it. Is this a place for studying bloodlines?"
Fudge nodded. "This little house we're in was actually a Dark Wizard laboratory for studying werewolf bloodlines, which Ministry of Magic personnel moved here completely intact from deep within the Alps."
"There's no evidence that werewolves originated in this house, but this is the earliest evidence of werewolf research that any Ministry of Magic in the world could find."
He gestured for Lockhart to look at the coffins outside the window. "What's the difference between wizard bloodlines and Muggle bloodlines? What's the difference between the descendants of wizards and magical creatures, and magical beings—giants, Veela, goblins, even house-elves, and so on—and the bloodlines of these people?"
"This has always been something many wizards longed to know."
"But unfortunately, talent in this area has always been scarce in the Ministry of Magic. Those willing to conduct such experiments are actually some evil Dark Wizards. They desire to use these experiments to achieve some unspeakable gains, rather than truly exploring the depth and breadth of life."
"The Bloodline Hall of the Department of Mysteries was originally established through collective donations from the Sacred Twenty-Eight pure-blood families. They longed to decipher the secret of why geniuses often appeared in their families, and also hoped to avoid the current situation of more and more descendants with some intellectual deficiencies in their families."
"The Weasley family, you know them, right? Everyone envies their family now; almost all their descendants are geniuses." Fudge mentioned this without envy. "There's an ancient Eastern saying that when things reach an extreme, they move towards another extreme. Many people and I don't actually see a good future for the Weasley family."
"Inbreeding among pure-bloods," Lockhart shrugged. "That's something even Muggles would realize is problematic."
Fudge nodded, a mocking smile on his face, and gestured for Lockhart to look at the coffins below. "Do you know? These Sacred Twenty-Eight pure-blood families absolutely do not wish to taint themselves with the non-magical bloodlines of Muggles. When it comes to solving the problem of inbreeding, they prefer to combine with beasts."
"It's said that the Malfoy family once had plans regarding fire dragons."
Lockhart's expression stiffened a bit. This topic wasn't very suitable for casual conversation, especially since he himself was still pondering the cultivation of Dark magical creatures by referencing experiences in cultivating magical animals.
"I plan to hand this place over to you," Fudge turned to Lockhart. "Many people make the Department of Mysteries seem very mysterious, saying there's an alliance between the various Ministries of Magic's Departments of Mysteries that transcends the Ministry itself, a distributed international organization, and so on."
He waved his hand. "But actually, if you just look at the funding sources, right, look at the accounts, it's such a simple thing. People would easily know that the Department of Mysteries is actually supported by the Sacred Twenty-Eight pure-blood families and various other pure-blood families who retain wealth and influence."
"It's just that they don't trust each other, leading to the Department of Mysteries often being in a state where they cannot fundamentally influence it."
"Such a disconnect between funding and control is actually very common. Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a good example."
"Once you understand this, it's easy to figure out whether the Minister for Magic has any way to influence the Department of Mysteries," Fudge smiled slightly, gesturing to everything before them. "I can gain most of the support to arrange for you to serve as the Head of the Bloodline Hall in the Department of Mysteries here."
"Serving here, the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and its subordinate institutions, the Wizengamot Court and the Auror Office, will no longer be able to restrict you, because you are on the same level as them. Unspeakables have such privileges."
"Of course, if the Minister's Office initiates a 'review of Unspeakables' secrecy' to the Wizengamot Court, it's still possible; it's not entirely unrestricted, but you can also treat it as if there are no restrictions."
"At the same time, you also don't need to obey anyone's orders. I won't assign you anything to do, and no one in the Ministry of Magic has the right to assign an Unspeakable to do anything. Of course, you will find that people from some major families will come to talk to you."
"If you talk well, and you're willing to research in a certain direction under their influence, your research will receive immense resources," he chuckled. "If you don't talk well, don't worry, they can't harm you in the slightest."
"Such an arrangement—"
Fudge's gaze burned into Lockhart. "Would you like it?"
Lockhart actually did like it.
He didn't actually have a complete plan for the future. After his term as Defence Against the Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts expired, he hadn't given much thought to where he would go next.
Now, seeing all this, to be honest, he was somewhat tempted.
Especially when he looked at the open trapdoor next to him and could see the werewolves downstairs, this fit his upcoming research perfectly.
"The Ministry of Magic will issue a warrant for Corban Yaxley!" Fudge added. "The game of power is like this: you win some, you lose some. No family will speak for him at this time. Back then, there was a whole group of Sacred Twenty-Eight family members who, like Barty Crouch Jr., are still obediently locked up in Azkaban."
"But Corban Yaxley won't be sent to Azkaban."
He tapped the wooden house wall with his fleshy finger. "He will be sent here as a werewolf—"
With that, Fudge looked up at the tall Lockhart. "As your test subject!"
"No one can control what you do to him. Whatever you do, everything will be within the Ministry of Magic's protective framework. You can try all your ideas freely."
Hiss~~~
Lockhart gasped.
....
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