Kabunara still couldn't understand Nicolas's praise.
Wizard magic doesn't advance through archaeology.
With the continuous evolution of wizarding society, and the ongoing development of magic, spells, alchemy, and potions by individuals or organizations, the magical means mastered by modern wizards are certainly more advanced, refined, and suitable than those of ancient wizards.
A classic spell example is the Unlocking Charm.
The Unlocking Charm used by ancient wizards was more brutal. The incantation was, [Open Sesame], this magic almost directly destroyed the door, lacking any function for stealthy infiltration.
Later, a more refined Unlocking Charm, [Portaberto], was created.
But compared to [Open Sesame] which directly destroyed the door, [Portaberto] also caused damage to the lock.
In most cases, it would leave a smoking hole at the keyhole.
Finally, the spell invented in Africa and spread worldwide, the Unlocking Charm commonly used by modern wizards, [Alohomora], is much more convenient and subtle. It meets the requirement of unlocking while causing no damage to the lock at all.
Because of this, Kabunara completely failed to understand why Nicolas was so excited.
Among ancient wizard relics, apart from some antiques that might be sold to some pure-blood families for a few coins, most other things were basically worthless.
Nicolas wasn't surprised by Kabunara's lack of understanding. Ordinary people truly couldn't comprehend what the ancient alchemical symbols hidden on this mural meant to an alchemist.
Although alchemy has also been progressing, this technique of using magic to drive material exchange was completely different in the hands of wizards before the Common Era compared to those after.
These discoveries might not bring innovation to modern alchemy, but they could help most alchemists broaden their horizons, drawing inferences about other cases from these ancient symbols. Moreover, these alchemical symbols very likely held the secret to deciphering the silver whistle Severus had obtained deeper inside.
Therefore, Nicolas didn't care whether Kabunara understood or not. He had already begun preparing to record and decipher here.
Seeing him like this, Kabunara urged,
"Mr. Williams, should we go to the innermost part first? The other gentleman who helped and I made many discoveries there. He took an item from it but hasn't left the forest and promised to share any findings about that item with us."
"Although he is temporarly unwilling to reveal his identity, he is such an easy-going person. If I tell him the reason, he will definitely be willing to bring that silver whistle for..."
Before Kabunara could finish, Nicolas waved his hand.
"The person you're talking about is Severus Snape, right?"
The moment he heard this name, Sirius, who had been lying bored on the ground nearby, widened his eyes like copper bells.
Kabunara was first surprised that Nicolas had spoken the name, then startled by Sirius's reaction.
Nicolas turned and lightly patted Sirius's head, signaling him to lie down again, while continuing to speak to Kabunara.
"Good, you can help me by going to find Severus and telling him that the matter he asked for my help with, I already have some leads. I will go find him in at most two days."
Kabunara was somewhat confused, but he could see that Nicolas was already getting into his work.
After hesitating for a moment, out of politeness, he didn't disturb him further, only asking quietly,
"Your research here... can it help us figure out who created this underground relic?"
Hearing this question, Nicolas, who had already taken out a series of small tools ready to tackle the mural, looked up again.
He met Kabunara's eyes, a faint, inexplicable smile appearing on his face.
"In a place like Albania, a relic built before the Common Era, nurturing a Basilisk of unknown age... with all these clues combined, I thought you should have had a conclusion long ago."
Kabunara's breath gradually froze. His eyes widened as he stared at Nicolas in shock. The pupils that had seemed somewhat confused at first were now completely constricted.
"You... you mean..."
"Ah, it's nothing major. Although many legends say he might still be alive, living until now, what I know is that he died long ago, just that he died in the 10th century. So, no need to be so fearful. The various incidents happening here definitely have nothing to do with him personally. Rather, there is someone else, using things he left behind, trying to carry out some unfavorable plan."
After saying this, Nicolas paid no more attention to Kabunara, focusing on researching the alchemical symbols on the mural.
Kabunara stood stunned for a moment, then hurriedly left the underground.
Clearly, he needed to report Nicolas's words upwards.
If the master of this relic was truly that famous Dark Wizard from before the Common Era in magical history, then the Fountain of Fair Fortune currently hidden in the Llogara Forest must also have major problems.
Sirius, who had been pressed down to lie on the ground, finally couldn't help but stand up.
"You're going to stay here for two days! Severus and Harry are right nearby! And you want me to wait here with you for a full two days!!"
He didn't care at all about which Dark Wizard Nicolas and Kabunara were talking about. He only cared about when he could find the people he wanted to find.
"You have conflicts with Severus, don't you?" Nicolas said softly.
"So what!" the radio on Sirius's collar blared.
"If you want to have a calm conversation with him, and for him to change his impression of you, it's not about who was right or wrong in your past conflicts. You and I work together here to decipher these ancient alchemical runes. Then we go find him and offer help. There will be credit due to you as well. He will thank you."
Nicolas had clearly thought everything through quite thoroughly in advance. However, Sirius didn't see it that way.
"Someone like him, how could he possibly thank me for something like this! That's the biggest joke I've ever heard in my life!"
In response to Sirius's laughter and mockery, Nicolas just shook his head. He took off his robe, waved his wand, and a long, seemingly endless scroll of parchment flew out of his suitcase.
He intended to first make a rubbing of the alchemical symbols on the stone wall.
At that moment, Sirius's peripheral vision inadvertently caught sight of the pocket of the robe Nicolas had taken off.