Draco let out an obedient "oh," and sat back down.
The four of them continued drinking and chatting casually until lunchtime.
Karmit stayed at Malfoy Manor for the meal.
In the afternoon, Narcissa and Lucius left—they needed to prepare for the evening banquet. To put it simply, they went to get dressed up.
Karmit was naturally good-looking, but not everyone had the blessing of flawless features.
In Draco's room, Karmit sat reading a thick spell compendium.
On the other side of the room, Draco held a book as well— [Basic Spell Compendium].
Except Draco's expression was pure suffering.
"Cousin… can't I just study spells after we start school? I can't understand any of this!"
Karmit didn't even lift his head. "Do you know about the competition for Slytherin's Hidden Prefect? If you don't learn any spells beforehand, how do you expect to compete?"
Draco grumbled, "But with you there, who else could win Hidden Prefect?"
"I'm not interested in Hidden Prefect," Karmit replied. "My goal has always been the same—Slytherin Head."
Draco froze.
Then he threw the book down and jumped off the bed.
"Head? Cousin, you want to fight for the Head position? In first year!?"
Karmit nodded, flipping another page.
Draco's eyes went wide. "But Mother said the Slytherin Head has to challenge every Slytherin student!
You get one month, and during that month any Slytherin can challenge you at any time! Up to ten people can attack together, but the challenger has to fight alone!"
"I heard this rule was set by Salazar Slytherin himself. It's supposed to choose the strongest leader for the House.
But ever since it was created, Slytherin has never had a true Head.
Even the Dark Lord only got close—he couldn't defeat ten opponents from his own year. At least not legally."
Karmit replied, "It wasn't that he couldn't—it's because his legal options were too limited in school. He had too many restrictions."
Draco frowned. "Restrictions? He's the Dark Lord! What did he have to fear?"
Karmit finally put down his book.
"Draco, no one can be completely unrestrained. No matter how strong.
The Dark Lord was powerful, yes—but he still couldn't defeat Dumbledore. And besides Dumbledore, he still had to care about his reputation."
"Reputation? The Dark Lord?" Draco blinked, utterly confused. His almond-sized brain couldn't associate those two concepts.
Karmit sighed.
"Why do you think people joined the Death Eaters? Why did your father join? Why did my insane aunt join?
Some may have joined later for safety or for benefits. But the earliest followers—the ones from his school years—they didn't join just because he was strong."
Draco hesitated. "Then… why?"
Karmit asked, "Do you know he was Hogwarts' most outstanding student in a hundred years?"
Draco stared.
"Do you know he was the only student ever appointed Head Boy in his fifth year?"
Draco blinked harder.
"In school, he created the early version of the Death Eaters and attracted crowds to follow him. Do you think that was possible through power alone?"
Draco looked stunned.
"He was that amazing?"
"Of course," Karmit said. "If he hadn't later killed so many people and used such brutal methods, he would have been one of the most charismatic figures in the wizarding world."
"He couldn't take the Head position at school because he was already obsessed with studying dark magic, and he couldn't use those spells openly.
If he won by using dark magic, even Hogwarts wouldn't have allowed him to stay. That's the real reason—not a lack of ability.
And I am different. I can use dark magic—but I can also win with legitimate spells."
Draco nodded vaguely. He only understood two things:
First, the Dark Lord was terrifyingly powerful. Second, his cousin was even better.
That was enough for him.
Why bother with the details?
Just the thought that his cousin outshone the Dark Lord made Draco puff up with pride.
Even his expression turned arrogant.
Seeing this, Karmit covered his face. He was hopeless. Draco was truly hopeless.
Trying to teach this rich, spoiled young master anything was painfully exhausting. Karmit had originally thought Draco could be his future right-hand man.
But looking at him now… no. The best candidates were still intelligent girls like Hermione and Luna.
Girls were better. Soft. Sweet. Smart.
He was a fool for ever considering Draco as a vice-leader.
Foolish Karmit.
He returned to reading.
Malfoy Manor's library was indeed impressive—many books even the Black Family didn't possess.
The only flaw was Lucius's excessive caution.
He had hidden, or destroyed, much of the truly dangerous material.
Not a single dark magic manuscript remained.
In this regard, the Black Family excelled.
From the first generation onward, they had treasured all arcane records—useful or not—and preserved them meticulously.
Karmit owed the foundations of his current power to the accumulated efforts of his ancestors.
Time passed slowly.
Around four in the afternoon, Lucius and Narcissa returned, dressed in fresh formal attire.
Narcissa's newly styled two-tone hair would undoubtedly start another trend in the wizarding world.
Guests soon began arriving, and the manor grew lively.
In the garden's pavilion, Karmit sat reading quietly.
Draco, as the young master of Malfoy Manor, had the responsibility of greeting the children of other pure-blood families.
Meaning—he went off to play with them like the pampered young lord he was.