"Waaah… that's so moving! That ghost killed because he wanted to! I thought he was forced, like those other good-for-nothings!"
"Exactly! Killing on impulse isn't so bad, is it?"
Tom Riddle (Voldemort) and Lanlock had spent the entire night watching horror movies, indulging in a variety of genres from different countries.
Consequently, they didn't discover until the following morning that all their men in Paris had been eliminated the night before.
"…"
The human and the fairy slumped onto the sofa, dejected. Though other fairies resided in different parts of France, the ones in Paris were stronger and far more useful.
"Your little dwarf friends are useless; they're all dead," Tom Riddle (Voldemort) couldn't help but complain.
"I already told you, we're fairies…" Lanlock scoffed helplessly. "Why don't you send some of your capable henchmen over here? Let me see how much better they are than my fairies."
"…"
Damn it, I only have a handful of men. Can they be used like that?
However…
Lanlock pondered for a moment. "Okay, then let them come over."
Anyway, even if they die, I can't let myself die. I'm not going myself, not in this lifetime.
...
Two more days passed.
Tom Riddle sat on the sofa in Delacour's living room, listlessly reading a Muggle newspaper.
Click…tap tap…
The sound of the door opening rang out, followed by footsteps approaching.
"You are coming?"
Tom Riddle asked without looking up.
Snape and Nagini entered, with Leonie following behind them.
"I am sorry, My Lord, we have not found any trace of them," Snape said, bowing slightly.
Leonie asked Nagini wearily, "What have you been doing running around with me these past two days?"
"Is it because of those goblins? They want to capture me? But why?"
As a Veela who had lived for many years, Leonie was certainly not stupid. At the Paris Opera, and along the Seine, those dwarves always appeared menacingly, clearly after her.
As for the possibility that they were actually after Tom Riddle and the others... that was absurd.
But Leonie couldn't understand why these goblins were relentlessly pursuing her. If it was to dismantle her for those valuable magical materials... the goblins who died at the Paris Opera should have satisfied them, shouldn't they? Why come a second time?
Leonie was distressed but also somewhat relieved. Though she had always been terrified of Tom Riddle, she had to admit... when the Dark Lord was an ally, the sense of security was unparalleled.
If it were not for Tom Riddle and the others, Leonie was not confident she could have escaped the pursuit of those dwarves, let alone protect her granddaughters.
"Damn it! Those greedy, despicable, disgusting bastards!"
Lost in thought, Leonie couldn't help but curse those goblins. Though she had not let her granddaughters accompany her these past few days out of worry, keeping them with Harry and the others, the long separation still made her anxious and unhappy.
"…"
Nagini did not immediately respond to Leonie's words but instead looked at Tom Riddle with a questioning gaze.
Tom Riddle didn't say anything either.
Seeing this, Nagini quickly explained, "You are right, but not entirely. We did not intend to use you to lure out those goblins; they are not worth our trouble."
"Then who are they?"
Leonie's eyes widened. No way? It wasn't just goblins who wanted her?
Waaah… is this what they call being naturally beautiful?
"It is not my fault I am so attractive; I want to cry…"
Nagini was surprised that this elderly Veela could still be so narcissistic. "It is the Dark Lord."
"Oh, so the Dark Lord wants to capture me… Wait! What did you say?"
Leonie nodded in realization, then seemed startled.
Her smile was somewhat stiff, and the beads of sweat already on her forehead from exhaustion increased.
Her gaze unconsciously kept drifting towards Tom Riddle, who was slumped on the sofa, frowning as he read the newspaper… She was worried that she had actually been the mouse being played with these past few days, and now… the cat had finally tired of playing.
Snape immediately saw what Leonie was worried about. "Not the Lord, but another Dark Lord."
"What… another Dark Lord?"
Leonie froze but quickly recovered. "So, the rumors were true! He really did mess things up…"
Before she could finish, two disapproving gazes fell upon her—Snape and Nagini.
Tom Riddle did not bother with Leonie.
He was fed up; that bald man and the short man had wasted too much of his time (actually, he was tired of playing in France).
The cat-and-mouse game had to end.
"Let us go."
Tom Riddle casually tossed the Muggle newspaper he was holding onto the table and stood up.
"Where to?"
Seeing that Snape and Nagini did not ask and just followed, a bewildered Leonie had no choice but to follow. She could not feel safe leaving the Dark Lord at this time.
"To capture those fellows," Tom Riddle said without turning his head.
"…"
Leonie looked bewildered, then seemed to realize something and asked uncertainly, "You… you knew where they were all along?"
Tom Riddle did not answer, which was taken as an admission.
This made Leonie smile wryly and remain puzzled. "Then why…"
"It is like a cat catching a mouse. For a cat with strong hunting skills, catching a mouse is as easy as eating and drinking, but they always spend a lot of time on it, catching the mouse, letting it escape, and then catching it again."
Tom Riddle said casually, "A game that ends in the blink of an eye is no fun. Playing with them is quite interesting, is it not?"
Hearing this, Leonie seemed to understand something and nodded slightly. "Oh~ so you are a cat."
Tom Riddle paused, speechless.
Contemplating Tom Riddle's cat-like appearance, the mischievous, arrogant little kitten was actually kind of cute… Nagini smiled, pursing her lips, while Snape dared not laugh.
Leonie also realized that what she had subconsciously said might have been a bit dangerous.
Though Tom Riddle didn't react, her woman's intuition told her that he was not the type to suffer in silence.
Waaaaah… I am doomed!
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