Chapter 200. The Magical Market. Part 2. Arnold.
In a blank white space, an unconscious blond man was chained to a stone wall, a half-black star mark on his chest partly hidden by his shirt. This was Arnold, the leader of Black Star, recently taken by Severus. Five meters away, three large wolves with crimson fur lay watching him without blinking.
This unusual company was housed within the spatial artifact that had previously held the magical creatures Severus brought from the Magical Jungle. He'd decided to bring it along this time as well, for the Qilin and Phoenix living in the Tianzi mountains.
The wolves, the King of the Crimson Wolves and two of his kin, were there simply to keep an eye on things. After consuming certain special fruits, they had grown considerably more intelligent and could be trusted with tasks like this one. He'd also chosen them specifically with the Phoenix in mind, just in case, since no one was immune to accidents.
The atmosphere in the space was peaceful, almost tranquil, but the peace lasted only a few seconds before shattering. The wolves sprang to their feet and fixed their gazes on the figure that appeared. But almost immediately, they settled back down and watched with mild interest.
"Good to see you too." Severus glanced at them with a smirk, then shifted his attention to the chained man. "And you as well, Leader. Again."
"Tch." The apparently unconscious man let out an irritated sound before his eyes opened, fixing his eyes on his jailer with cold composure. "What are you going to do with me?"
"Nothing. It's already done." He shrugged indifferently, walked over casually, crouched down, and pressed his finger to the mark on Arnold's chest. Arnold's expression darkened immediately. Then the shackles dissolved. "The mask, by the way. Thank you." The next moment, a fist stopped a millimeter from Severus's nose. "I told you it's already done." He clapped the scowling man on the shoulder, stood up, stepped back a couple of meters, and produced a table and two chairs. "Sit down. I have a few things to discuss."
"If I could use my magic right now..."
"You still couldn't do anything." Severus sat down, and after a few seconds Arnold followed, dropping into the second chair.
"How did you find me?"
"Easily. But I think you... let's actually drop the formalities. It feels strange. You're my prisoner, and I'm speaking to you like a guest at dinner."
"You did something when we spoke through the mirror." Arnold narrowed his eyes, watching for a reaction. He got none.
"Who knows." The same smirk. Another shrug. "Let that remain a mystery."
"If you haven't killed me, it means you need something."
"You're thinking clearly. But I already have the most important thing."
"My mask." Arnold's voice was flat with suppressed anger. "Let me guess: now you want to take over my organization as well."
"Merlin forbid. Why would I want that headache? Run it yourself." He waved off the baffled man, leaving him speechless. Black Star was the largest organization in all of Eurasia, and any sane person would have given a great deal to lead it. "I meant what I said when I told you I had no interest in commanding the Copper Division. That didn't mean I was simply being modest and wanted your seat instead. I have plenty of my own problems, and managing something like this would pile more on top of them. I'd have no free time left at all." Arnold studied the young man sitting across from him with an increasingly strange expression.
"Then what do you want?"
"Information. And access to your storehouses, the ones holding artifacts and potion ingredients."
Arnold's eye twitched.
"If you had accepted the position of Copper Division commander, you would have gotten access to the storehouses and any information you wanted."
"Anything, truly?" Severus's voice took on a playful note, and the mask appeared in his hand. Arnold's expression soured. "I doubt you'd have shared something like that with me."
"So you want the information. And if I give it, you let me go?"
"I'm not holding you." He leaned back in his chair and took a sip from a goblet. "You can go wherever you like. I already know everything I came for. The ruins in Greece. The catacombs in Germany. The excavation you're currently running in Egypt." With each item, Arnold's face lost a little more color, but he quickly looked away. "A sharp mind isn't always an advantage. One mask was all it took. The moment you held it in your thoughts, everything I needed was right there, and each moment of clarity gave me more. I'd suggest you work on your Occlumency. I won't be returning the mask. And don't bother looking away. Reading someone's thoughts requires nothing more than a glance. I'm not a monster." At those last words, Arnold flinched visibly. "And yes, I understand it perfectly. I'd be frightened too if someone could read my mind that easily," he said, his tone perfectly amiable.
In the next moment, a fist covered in a red aura shot toward him. As before, it stopped a millimeter from Severus's face. He raised one eyebrow in a look that plainly asked: Are you serious? He received a contorted, furious grimace in return.
"A decent instinct. Don't think, just hit. But I'll disappoint you. It won't help. And it has nothing to do with this place." He glanced around the white space. "It has to do with you. More precisely, that thing inside you. The one built to monitor your organization's members and kill them if they betray you."
"I see." A long exhale. Arnold reclaimed his composure, sat back, and folded his hands in front of him.
Hm. Good. You've quickly accepted that you're now entirely under my control. And yes, that is accurate. I've made a small adjustment to your mark, added a couple of layers of protection so your busy hands don't go poking at it. I'll feel it the moment you do, from the other side of the world if necessary, and I'll simply detonate your heart." He spoke in a tone so calm, so utterly ordinary, that Arnold couldn't suppress the chill running down his spine. "So be a good fellow. I won't touch you, and I won't interfere in your organization's affairs. In return, you'll share information about your excavations and follow my instructions. Or you can appoint someone to handle the operational side, but I'll expect excavation reports directly from you. Is that clear?" Arnold grimaced and nodded, understanding perfectly that there was nothing left to do, no other option: only compliance, and in the future, some method, unknown as yet, of removing this mark.
"Glad to hear it, Leader. Don't worry. Your organization means nothing to me in and of itself. I'm in favor of a peaceful alliance. If you ever need help from my teacher or from me, just ask. We have the same goal, after all."
"Which is why you put a slave collar on me."
"I secured myself and the people I care about. In my position, you'd have done the same. Am I wrong?" The smirk was growing more irritating by the moment, but what made it worse was that Severus was right. When it came to security, Arnold would probably have gone further: not just a binding mark, but full control, suppressing the boy's will and any attempt at resistance from the very beginning. "Well. I won't keep you any longer. And not a word about our conversation." He clapped his hands, and the wizard sitting across from him disappeared. "One more problem resolved." He drained the goblet, rose from the table, returned the furniture to his coin purse, and vanished as well, under the silent gaze of the wolves, who simply went back to sleep to pass the time in this strange place that offered no entertainment whatsoever. The only thing that made the situation bearable for the King of the Crimson Wolves was that at least two females had come along.
Appearing in the small hotel room, Severus dropped onto the wide bed beside the curled-up Nagini.
"That was quick. I thought I wouldn't see you for at least another hour."
"There was no point in dragging it out. And he didn't really have a choice." He closed his eyes, letting Nagini move onto his chest. "By the way, tomorrow you'll need to stay home. I've found someone who can help me with two of the three magical creatures."
"Poachers?" A trace of distaste in her voice.
"You could call them that." He nodded silently, well aware of her feelings on the subject. More than once, people like that had tried to catch her, seeing her as a curious exotic animal worth good money.
"All right. You're right. I'll stay at the hotel tomorrow."
He smiled and stroked Nagini's head gently. Then he raised his palm toward the wardrobe. A moment later, a small television set materialized atop it, alongside a video cassette player. Both immediately caught Nagini's attention.
"What do you want to watch?"
"Something funny."
"All right." A cassette appeared in his hand, bearing the title Operation Y and Other Shurik's Adventures. "The vendor told me this is an excellent foreign comedy. Let's find out."
"Mm." She settled more comfortably against his chest and nodded. A few seconds later, the picture appeared on the screen: a man and a woman stood in front of a tower-like building crowned with a large red star, one holding a hammer and the other a sickle, standing side by side, with the inscription "Mosfilm" beneath them.
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