Chapter 88
Early the next morning, in the side hall of Green Meadow Manor.
After a night of rest, Soren stood straight and full of energy, beside him were Gareth, Daphne, Meredith, and Astoria. Morgadon and the house elf Tiva were stationed outside the hall door to prevent any interference.
Soren had Astoria lie comfortably on the sofa and, following his instructions, she actively summoned the curse markings. Astoria closed her eyes, while Soren took a sharp breath.
Circles of black markings appeared on her arms, neck, and even her face, the color so dark it faintly shimmered with blood red, making Soren feel as if he were gazing into an abyss.
Daphne closed her eyes, seemingly unable to bear the sight of her sister's plight. Meredith's eyes turned red, and she suddenly covered her mouth.
"Brother Soren, I hope I didn't scare you," Astoria's face turned pale in an instant, but she still forced a smile and teased.
Although Soren had known Astoria for a year, he had never seen her like this before. At that moment, she resembled a porcelain doll covered in cracks, so fragile and so pitiful.
All along, Astoria had been like a naive and lively little sister in front of Soren, occasionally acting cute and spoiled. He had never imagined that she bore such a terrifying burden. Just looking at these markings hinted at the pain she was enduring, as if they were devouring her blood, celebrating silently.
"Tori... I never knew..." Soren realized that he had never truly tried to understand this girl deeply. He felt a mix of admiration for Astoria's strength and pity for her weakness. "Don't worry! Trust your brother Soren, your suffering will surely end today!"
Suddenly, a massive wave of magical energy surged from Astoria, filling the entire hall with a violent aura.
Astoria could no longer endure the pain, biting her lip and letting out a soft cry.
A glint flashed in Soren's eyes as his wand slid into his hand, and he whispered, "Signa malum!"
The wand trembled slightly as most of his magical power poured out with the incantation. A pure white beam erupted from the wand's tip, like a flexible rope, transforming into circles that surrounded Astoria sitting on the sofa as Soren waved his wand.
Taking a deep breath, Soren pointed the wand, and the beam surged toward Astoria. Gareth Greengrass, watching from the side, clenched his fists nervously, while Daphne and Meredith held their breaths.
The black markings on Astoria seemed to come alive, erupting with a surge of dark energy. The dark energy formed into the shape of a snake's head, resembling Nagini, opening its bloody maw and lunging toward Soren, the curse seemingly possessing its own consciousness, understanding how to retaliate against him!
While maintaining the magical output from his wand, Soren quickly drew an ancient rune symbol in the air with his index finger, the symbol representing "protection" (Eihwaz)!
The ancient rune appeared in mid-air, glowing with a deep blue aura. Even though Gareth's heart was hanging in worry for his daughter's safety, he couldn't help but be shocked by Soren's displayed power, exclaiming, "Ancient Rune Casting?"
What kind of person is this! Multi-tasking, dual-hand casting, wandless magic, and even the long-lost ancient rune casting!
Has the Malfoy family become this powerful?
At that moment, the deep blue rune collided violently with the snake-shaped dark energy! An invisible shockwave radiated outward from the point of impact, knocking down the decorations in the hall, creating a clattering sound.
Seizing the opportunity, Soren increased the magical output from his wand, as if he heard a faint, inaudible whinnying of a night steed—he had a sudden intuitive feeling that his magical power and some unknown energy from the wand were merging, the wand's tip bursting forth with a dazzling light strong enough to instantly dazzle, forcibly pushing the beam into the curse markings.
The curse markings emitted a hissing sound like boiling liquid, releasing wisps of white smoke. Everyone present could see the curse markings retracting from various parts of Astoria's body, finally concentrating at the back of her neck, transforming into the shape of a two-headed, tailless snake.
"Tori! Hold on!" Soren's eyes burst with a crimson light, suddenly shifting to deep blue pupils, with the Eihwaz symbol flickering in and out of sight within his gaze. This was the final step, and he could not afford to make a mistake here!
Soren's magical power erupted in an instant. Although his magic was only at the level of a senior student, under his powerful mental control, every bit of magic was exerted to two hundred percent of its potential!
The wand pointed at the image of the two-headed, tailless snake, and a burnt smell wafted over Astoria's skin. Astoria bit her lip tightly, determined not to make a sound. Finally, the curse mark disappeared, leaving only a hexagonal scar on her snow-white skin at the back of her neck.
"It worked!" Soren came to his senses and realized his face and palms were covered in sweat. Suddenly, a wave of dizziness hit him, and the magic within him became difficult to sustain. He swayed slightly, almost collapsing onto the ground.
Daphne and Meredith rushed forward, supporting Soren on either side and helping him sit on the sofa. Daphne carefully wiped the sweat from Soren's forehead with a handkerchief. Gareth hurriedly handed over a bottle of magic recovery potion, letting Daphne feed it to Soren. He then felt much better and revealed a confident smile, saying, "It was a success."
At night, the stars were immersed in the sea, and gentle waves surged up to the Milky Way.
Soren woke up languidly on a luxurious and comfortable bed.
Looking at the time, he realized that it had been ten hours since he had exhausted himself casting the spell and fallen asleep. It seemed he was indeed quite tired.
Soren examined himself and found his magic was abundant, not only restored to peak condition but even slightly improved, with a nearly imperceptible increase in power. He recalled the entire spell-casting process from that morning, wondering if it was because he had absorbed some unknown energy from the wand.
On the small table beside the bed, there was a plate of steaming food and a glass of juice. It seemed the servants changed it periodically, as they didn't know when Soren would wake up. Now that he was awake, Soren felt a bit hungry and quickly finished the food on the small table.
Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. When Soren opened it, he found Astoria standing there, looking just as innocent and adorable as before.
"Soren, how do you feel?" The girl's tone was filled with deep concern.
"What could happen to me? I just exhausted my magic," Soren replied with a smile. "But you, you must be in quite a bit of pain today, right? Why don't you rest more? If Uncle Gareth or Daphne found out, they would be furious…"
Astoria didn't answer; her eyes shone brightly, as if trying to find something in Soren's gaze.
"Soren, I like you."
"What? Is this a confession?" Soren thought to himself, originally expecting her to come to thank him. All the humble and polite words he had prepared in his mind were rendered unnecessary.
"Soren… do you like me?"
"Hmm," Soren gazed into her deep brown pupils and slowly nodded. "How could I not like my Tori, who is so adorable?"
Soren felt a warm, soft body press into his embrace without reservation. Astoria lifted her head, her eyes filled with joyful mist. "Soren.." Her gaze was fixed on Soren's eyes.
Ten minutes later, the two ended their chattering moment with a kiss on cheek.
The manor was very quiet at night.
Astoria held Soren's hand, intimately leaning against him as they strolled around the manor.
The girl's hand felt delicate and smooth. Their rapid heartbeats were particularly pronounced in the stillness of the night. They wandered aimlessly, and at this moment, time seemed to belong only to the two of them. Astoria wished this moment would never end.
They reached a classic oak door, and Astoria said, "Dad said you can go anywhere in the manor except for the secret room."
Astoria led him into the family library. Soren's need for books was no longer indiscriminate; he had already gathered the complete knowledge bases of the Malfoy, Black, and Ravenclaw families, along with books obtained from his grandmother, making his collection vast and impressive.
However, since Astoria was so sincere, Soren didn't want to disappoint her. He walked around the library, hoping to find the next volume of the Abattoir fragment, but this time he was destined to be disappointed; he didn't find much in the library.
The next morning, at the family breakfast.
Gareth formally expressed his deepest gratitude to Soren. He clapped his hands, and Morgadon came over, holding a long gift box.
"This is a small gift from me, please be sure to accept it," Gareth said sincerely.
Soren knew this was the other party's intention, and he indeed deserved this gratitude, so he did not decline and accepted it.
"You can open it and take a look," Gareth said with a smile, "see if you can recognize what it is?"
Upon opening the gift box, there were three exquisite bottles inside, emanating an astonishing magical aura from their mouths. Gareth explained, "The first bottle contains the tears of a phoenix; its effect can heal any serious injury, as long as there is still a breath left, it can bring one back to life—this was obtained from Dumbledore, as part of the price for agreeing to hire old Moody. Speaking of which, I have to thank you for being able to acquire something like this..."
Soren's gaze turned to the second bottle, which seemed to be covered with a layer of fine frost on the cap. "This is..." Even with Soren's knowledge, he could not determine what it was.
"This is the blood of the Yeti from Tibet, which can heal mental or spiritual injuries, and it is extremely precious... Back then, the British Ministry of Magic tried several times to negotiate its introduction to treat two Aurors with damaged spirits, but they were unsuccessful. I was able to obtain it because during my travels around the world, I established a friendship with the pure-blood family there..."
Soren was filled with curiosity about the foreign world, "Do those countries also have pure-blood families?"
"Of course. The wizarding heritage in the East is older than ours in Europe. My knowledge of their pure-blood families is also limited; what I have glimpsed is probably just the tip of the iceberg."
"Alright, you should take a look at the third bottle!"
Soren gently touched the bottle, feeling a tingling sensation in his fingertips. This time, he recognized the item, "This is the tears of the Thunderbird, right?"
"That's right. The Thunderbird is extremely sensitive to supernatural dangers, and wands made from its tail feathers are said to be able to cast spells faster. Its tears are filled with violent lightning power and can enhance the user's perception, allowing for a sharper awareness of hidden powers or dangers."
[Phoenix Tears Acquired! Yeti Blood Acquired! Thunderbird Tears Acquired!]
After receiving the gifts, Soren and Gareth's conversation shifted to the main topic.
Gareth was extremely satisfied with the young man before him, much like a father-in-law looking at his son-in-law—whether in appearance, family background, strength, character, or intelligence, there was nothing to criticize. Moreover, the favor he received this time (in his view, nothing was more important than his daughter's safety and health) made their alliance seem natural.
This was completely different from the family's previous overtures to Soren two years ago; this time, the Greengrass family would become a true ally that he could rely on, firmly standing in his camp and fully supporting him in every aspect.
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