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Chapter 244 – Venda Rozier!!
"Do me a favor."
"Lezi" suddenly opened its mouth and spoke.
Darren froze.
His simulated cats definitely did not have the ability to talk.
So this thing could speak?
But he reacted almost instantly—
this wasn't a cat at all.
This was an Animagus.
Seriously, how incompetent was the Ministry of Magic?
Animagi everywhere, and maybe two of them were actually registered.
But what did this person want from him?
Darren showed a puzzled expression, and just as he was about to speak, the system rang in his mind.
---
[Ding! Detected the presence of a potent draught of Life and Death.
Consume 200 Father Points to neutralize its effects?]
[Neutralize.]
---
Even though the potion's effect was cancelled, Darren still let his eyes roll back and collapsed gently to the ground.
"Help!"
A woman's voice called out softly.
Then Darren felt himself being lifted up and rapidly carried away.
—
At this moment, Harry and Ron had just come out of Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, whispering while staring at the diary.
"Tom Riddle?"
"A diary bought in the Muggle world…"
They stepped out and were about to call Darren—
only to find the corridor empty.
—
Meanwhile, Darren had been carried by the woman into a hidden passage.
It was pitch-black, yet unnaturally clean.
When the woman lit a small fireplace, warm light filled the space.
"Why aren't you awake yet?"
She poked Darren's cheek, genuinely puzzled.
Her potion shouldn't last this long.
"Cough— cough…"
Darren finally stirred, coughing as he sat up.
His first instinct was to reach for his wand.
"Here, your wand."
The woman pulled his wand from her pocket and pressed it into his palm.
Darren blinked, confused.
Was he being… kidnapped and then treated kindly?
"I bear no ill will," she said. "I just couldn't speak to you properly in Hogwarts, so I brought you here instead.
You won't be angry, will you?"
She flashed a deliberately mischievous smile.
But Darren only tilted his head and said seriously:
"I won't be angry, but you must send me back.
Otherwise my brother will panic.
If you don't take me back, I'll have to use magic to make you."
"Hah… so you're not entirely stupid. That scared me. I thought my future king would turn out to be an idiot.
But— what's with that expression? Aren't you the heir to our lord?"
She stared at Darren's blank, innocent face, becoming even more confused than he was.
Why did he look like someone who had no idea he was supposed to inherit anything?
"I… I'm not anyone's heir. Did you get the wrong person?"
Darren appeared truly worried—
not for himself, but for her, as though afraid she'd be scolded for making a mistake.
"No. Listen carefully. My name is Venda Rozier. You just spoke with him, didn't you?"
Venda Rozier.
A French pure-blood witch of the prestigious Rozier family.
"I've heard your name," Darren said, bewildered. "You were one of Grindelwald's followers… but what does that have to do with me?"
His expression was that of pure confusion.
He acted as if he remembered nothing from the psychic world.
Inside Grindelwald's mindscape, Darren had refused all offers.
Yet Grindelwald still forced the loyalty of the Saints onto him—and even promised "another surprise."
Darren refused then and there.
But apparently Grindelwald considered refusal optional.
Still, Darren had his trump card:
as long as he didn't acknowledge anything, nothing counted.
He could always claim:
> "I don't remember."
How could a fragile little Holy Father like him possibly lead the Saints?
So no matter what Venda Rozier said, Darren simply acted like he knew nothing.
It stunned her.
"How— how is that possible? It happened, I saw it!
How can you not remember!?"
Her panic tipped into madness.
She whipped out her wand and began harming herself—
Decades of being hunted and living like vermin had clearly worn her sanity thin.
Darren's eyes widened in fear, but he gently grabbed her hand.
"M-Madam… if you're angry about something, you can tell me.
You don't have to hurt yourself.
If hurting someone calms you… then hurt me.
I don't mind pain."
---
[Ding! Father +100]
[Ding! Father +100]
[Ding! Father +100]
Three pops.
Darren was stunned for a moment, but he kept acting.
He raised his arm slightly, trembling, but offered her a warm, gentle smile.
"You…"
Rozier shut her eyes and let out a bitter laugh.
"I'm sorry. These years have changed me…
I'm just too desperate. We're running out of time.
They're suffering too much.
We were once aristocrats—
now we're street rats.
We thought we'd finally found the next king…
a chance to rise again.
But you—
you don't remember anything.
Your personality isn't like the king's.
You and he are completely different.
You have no ambition to lead.
Maybe I could endure going back to that life…
but they…"
She bit her lip.
The king had shown them the memory of his meeting with Darren.
So when she saw Darren's blank face today, everything collapsed.
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[Ding! Detected a Holy-Father-system manipulation scene.
Temporary Mission Released:]
▶ Tell Rozier she is wrong—
that all people are equal,
wizards and Muggles alike.
Even now, despite being a witch, she lives worse than a Muggle.
[Reward upon completion: Modified Polyjuice Potion.
Accept?]
Modified Polyjuice?
Darren was curious, but he accepted without hesitation.
First things first—
complete the mission.
He lifted his eyes, clear and steady, and looked directly at Rozier.
The sincerity in his gaze instantly caught her attention.
---