Charlie reluctantly withdrew his dragon claws.
He hadn't intended to fight; according to his guess, Black was very likely innocent.
He had originally wanted to ask amicably what had happened back then, but this guy insisted on running into his fist.
Charlie waved his wand, and the vines on the cave wall immediately came alive, tightly binding the unconscious big black dog.
Thick vines wrapped around its limbs and torso, leaving only its head exposed.
"Aguamenti."
A stream of water shot from the tip of his wand, splashing directly onto the big black dog's face.
The icy water jolted Black awake, and he let out a whimper from his throat.
He violently shook his head, trying to shake off the water on his face, but the vines tightened further, making it difficult for him to even struggle.
The sharp pain in his head made Black's vision go dark.
What just happened? Was I hit by a truck?
Charlie looked down at the trapped big black dog, his wand pointed at its head.
"I'm giving you a chance to turn back into a human," Charlie said calmly.
"Otherwise, you'll never be able to change back."
The big black dog's eyes were wide, and a low growl rumbled in its throat. It tried to struggle, but the vines didn't budge.
Charlie waited a few seconds. Seeing that he was still feigning ignorance, he nudged his wand forward.
"I'll count to three."
"One."
The big black dog's struggles became more violent.
"Two."
The vines suddenly tightened, making the big black dog let out a painful whimper, and his body began to twist and deform. The Black fur disappeared, his limbs elongated, and his bones made cracking sounds.
A few seconds later, no longer a dog was trapped in the vines, but a man.
He looked exactly like the photo on the wanted poster.
Gaunt, haggard, and filthy all over.
Black's hair hung messily over his face, his beard was scraggly, and his eyes were deeply sunken.
His prison uniform was tattered, emitting an unpleasant odor. His skin was frighteningly pale, clinging to his bones, with hardly any muscle visible.
The only thing that looked alive were his eyes.
His gray eyes flickered with wariness and madness, fixed on Charlie.
"Who are you?" Black's voice was hoarse, as if he hadn't spoken in a long time.
"How did you know I was here?"
"You're not in a position to ask me questions." Charlie withdrew his wand and leaned against the cave wall. "Now it's my turn to ask."
Black gritted his teeth, remaining silent.
"Thirteen years ago, the night the Potters were murdered." Charlie's tone was casual.
"What exactly happened?"
Black trembled slightly, saying nothing.
"Answer my question."
"Did you betray the Potters?"
"No!" Black almost roared.
"I didn't! I would never betray James!"
He struggled violently, the vines digging into his flesh, but he didn't care.
"It was Peter!" Black's eyes were bloodshot.
"It was Peter Pettigrew who betrayed them! He was the Secret-Keeper!"
Charlie raised an eyebrow.
As expected.
"Then why were you sent to Azkaban?"
"Because…" Black's voice choked. "Because I was too foolish."
He lowered his head, his shoulders beginning to tremble.
"James originally planned to choose me as the Secret-Keeper, but I thought it was too obvious, everyone knew I was James's best friend. So I suggested Peter, that cowardly little man, no one would suspect him."
Black looked up, his eyes red-rimmed.
"And the result was him… it was he who told the Dark Lord the location of James and Lily."
The cave was silent for a few seconds.
"Then what?" Charlie asked.
"Did you go looking for him?"
"I tracked him down." Black's voice turned cold.
"On a Muggle street. But that bastard, to resist me, he blew up the entire street, killing twelve Muggles."
He gave a bitter laugh.
"Everyone thought I did it. When the Ministry of Magic arrived, only I was still standing in the center of the ruins. They thought Peter was killed by me, and I thought so too."
"Then why didn't you explain?"
"Because everything was over." Black's eyes were hollow.
"James was dead, Lily was dead, Peter had escaped, and I… I became their murderer."
Charlie was quite perplexed. To take such a huge blame without explaining, are you Hogwarts's Scapegoat King?
"So you broke out of prison to find Peter?"
"Yes." Black suddenly looked up.
"I saw a newspaper in Azkaban, I saw a photo of the Weasley family. That damned rat was in the photo, perched on that red-haired boy's shoulder!"
His voice became frantic.
"Twelve years! He hid from me for twelve years, even openly coming to Hogwarts."
"I must kill him, kill him!"
Black spoke to himself as if in a trance, muttering like a madman. His life on the run had tormented him terribly.
Charlie listened quietly, already having a good idea of the situation.
Everything Black said matched his suspicions. The true betrayer was Peter Pettigrew; this much was almost certain.
After clarifying the truth, Charlie suddenly felt apathetic.
He had wanted to catch Black before, partly for the Orphanage's safety, and partly out of curiosity about what had happened back then.
Now that the truth was out and the Orphanage was no longer threatened, he only felt like he had entered a state of enlightenment.
As for their grievances and animosities, Charlie honestly didn't care much.
Black recovered for a while, his cracked lips moving: "What do you plan to do with me?"
There was a hint of pleading in his voice:
"I beg you, don't hand me over to the Ministry of Magic. Even if you must, please wait until I have my revenge first."
"Those idiots at the Ministry of Magic are out of the question." Charlie shook his head.
"I'll just hand you over to Dumbledore; it won't be my concern after that."
Black's face instantly turned pale, and he shook his head violently:
"No, no! Please, don't hand me over to Dumbledore!"
Charlie raised an eyebrow.
"I don't have the face to see him." Black's voice trembled.
"I caused James and Lily's deaths, I suggested changing the Secret-Keeper. How can I possibly face Dumbledore?"
"That has nothing to do with me." Charlie shrugged.
"No matter how much you beg, it's useless."
Black gritted his teeth, a hint of madness flashing in his eyes:
"I have money! The House of Black's fortune!"
He spoke urgently:
"As long as you help me catch Peter, I'll give you all the property of the House of Black, one of the Sacred Twenty-Eight families!"
"And I will be eternally loyal to you, doing anything for you! As long as you help me catch that traitor!"
The cave was silent for a few seconds.
Charlie slowly raised his wand, and the vines instantly loosened, causing Black to fall directly to the ground.
"What are you saying, my dear subject?" Charlie walked forward and gently helped him up.
"Your affairs are my affairs; how could I abandon you?"
[Your Majesty has violated his principles for money, tyrant points +10]
Black was stunned.
This person is even more schizophrenic than I am.
-------------------------
If you enjoy this story, you can read 70+ advanced chapters on Patreon!
Webnovel will keep getting 1 new chapter every day but Patreon readers can stay far ahead.
Maybe it's not a big deal now… maybe it will be later.
[email protected]/Greyhounds
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"