Allen glanced around the library and, unfortunately, realized he already owned all the books there.
"I promise, you'll find something valuable from now on." Seeing this , Sirius led Allen back to the first floor via the dark stairs. He looked at Allen and warned, "It might get a little noisy from now on."
Allen stared at Sirius in surprise when he suddenly pushed the umbrella stand aside and pulled the curtains shut.
"Wasteful son, dimwitted fool, you defile my house!" shrieked the portrait of Lady Black .
When the curtains were fully drawn, she saw Allen standing right in front of her: " Purebred ? Hmm, looks familiar."
Allen was surprised; could he really see her soul ?
"Who is it? Oh, a brat from the Harris family !" He suddenly burst into laughter. " The Harrises , cowards who fled Germany ! Unfaithful descendants who couldn't even protect their ancestors' home! Only equally stupid Rosiers would accept you! Don't expect me to acknowledge that there's any distant kinship between the Blacks and the Harrises !"
Allen, being a pureblood wizard , understood why. The Harris family's power was far less than that of other families .
That was the root of the problem. Although she knew her ancestors had ties to Germany , she hadn't expected them to be refugees. While her mother's family still had branches elsewhere in Europe , they had no relatives left in England .
The Harris family would not stoop to sacrificing their honor and begging for help from these local families, who had their own problems, for the sake of such distant marital ties.
"Only our oldest Dark Dynasty is a true Pureblood. " " We have family in England ! We were born noble!" Hearing this , an impatient Sirius began hastily fiddling with the patterns under the frame; Allen couldn't see his movements.
Suddenly, the man recoiled as Lady Black crawled halfway out of the portrait, clawing at the air with her claws .
Caught off guard, Allen was almost captured by him.
"Oh, I'm sorry!" Black said apologetically.
"No problem." Allen took two steps back, his heart still pounding.
A hysterical middle-aged or elderly woman is truly terrifying!
Lady Black's portrait, along with the wall behind it, suddenly receded slightly and then slid into a gap in the side wall, like a Muggle elevator door.
His silhouette vanished completely, leaving only the echoes of "Wasteful son, traitor..." in the room.
Only then did Allen realize that the Chamber of Secrets in the Black House was actually on the first floor, in the most prominent location .
"Only the most cantankerous and sharp-tongued people can endure this portrait. Few people can put up with it as long as my mother, or even enjoy it," Sirius said despairingly.
"Wonderful, that's a really great idea," Allen sincerely praised.
No one could stand Lady Black's cursing and screaming .
Most people will probably find the quick close too slow and will go straight to using the Stun feature , never bothering to take a closer look at what's hidden behind the portrait.
The entrance behind the portrait was only wide enough for one person to pass through.
Black intervened first, followed immediately by Allen.
Although the entrance was narrow, the passage widened after a few steps.
The ground here sloped downwards and became a wider area as you progressed.
However, at this point, Black and Allen still had to bend down to move forward, and even walking side-by-side was difficult.
After taking another 150 steps, they were suddenly stopped by a shout: "Password?"
At the same moment , they saw a wand glowing in the darkness ; it was the reflection of Allen's wand .
A mirror appeared before them, but it only showed Black's reflection; Allen's was not.
"The oldest and noblest Black House , always pure," Sirius said coldly.
The mirror suddenly rippled like water, transforming into a curtain of light.
"Let's go inside," Sirius said to Allen.
Seeing Allen's curious look , Sirius explained , "Only a real, pureblood... Black can open this Mirror Gate . The password isn't that important; they just like to hear it."
The torches on the walls lit up automatically the moment they stepped inside.
Everything has become crystal clear.
Three arched passageways stretched before his eyes; the central one was the main entrance.
One side of these arched passageways led to the corridor where Sirius and Allen stood , while the other side overlooked a square hall.
Channels were placed around the perimeter of the hall, leading towards three enormous stones in the center.
Black pulled a dagger from somewhere and suddenly cut his arm. Blood gushed out and dripped into the grooves on his arm.
As if summoned by Black's blood, a sea of blood suddenly surged in the channels and flowed toward the three giant stones.
Allen realized that without Black , an outsider, even if they could bypass the portrait and pass through the Mirror Gate , would never have been able to reach the Black Dynasty's Treasure Chest .
Because they couldn't summon that much blood.
Otherwise, even draining all the blood from a person might not satisfy the requirements of those three giant stones.
The three giant stones emitted a terrifying, dark red glow, as if they had rapidly absorbed the blood.
A loud noise echoed, and three arched doorways embraced Allen as he entered.
" Of the three rooms in this Chamber of Secrets , one is the Library , one is the Golden Vault , and the other is the room where valuable antiques are kept. Now they are all yours."
Black looked at Allen with a serious expression. The Unbreakable Vow wasn't a joke; he'd made a promise, and he had to keep it.
Allen nodded his head seriously to show his thanks.
First, they went to the library . The book collection inside was quite impressive; there were bookshelves overflowing with books, covering all four walls from floor to ceiling.
Allen was very pleased with this discovery and wanted to get one to read, but was prevented from doing so by Black .
"Be careful, son. Most of the books here are the kind a Young Wizard your age shouldn't touch. You should know that most of their covers are enchanted with Dark Magic ."
Allen nodded. He knew it naturally; that book, " The Secrets of the Soul ," had almost caused him a major problem back then.
Allen took out the protective gloves he had prepared long ago, made of dragon skin , and put them on under Black's astonished gaze. He was just about to move when Black spoke again: "Allen, I have one more request."
Allen involuntarily stopped again and looked at Black .
"Please use the information in these books wisely; don't become a wizard like the One You Know . Also—" Black looked deeply into Allen's eyes, as if trying to see into the child's soul , "don't teach this information to Harry , and hopefully you won't become obsessed with it yourself."
Allen experienced a sense of déjà vu at that moment; it was as if he were a "bad boy" being warned by another parent not to lead their "good boy" astray.
This situation gave Allen, who had always been the 'model child' in the eyes of others, a new feeling.
Allen nodded. In response to Black's genuine concern, he agreed with great seriousness. He and Harry had already grown distant, so he naturally wouldn't attempt to lecture Harry . Not to mention magic , especially not Dark Magic .
But he no longer wanted to leaf through those books.
"Can I take the bookshelves with me too?" Allen asked.
"Of course." Sirius looked at Allen, who was empty-handed, in surprise; how was he going to carry them?