"Kill me... Kill me!" Karkaroff lay on the ground, like a puddle of mud. He had no visible injuries on his body, but from his reaction, his will had been completely shattered.
Voldemort's Death Eaters remained silent, fearful. Each of them felt a sense of relief. The number of Death Eaters Voldemort had brought to Japan was not large, only five or six, among them Avery, who had been subjected to Voldemort's Cruciatus Curse.
Now they felt fortunate. Compared to Karkaroff, their treatment was more than good. Most of the others felt the same.
That was Voldemort's purpose in bringing a group of followers to hunt down the traitors: he needed to create a contrast in the minds of the Death Eaters, show them that someone else was suffering worse, thus alleviating their own resentment.
When it came to manipulating people's minds, Voldemort truly had a talent.
"My friend, has the comfortable life changed your impression of me?" Voldemort gently caressed his wand. "When did I become so merciful?"
He moved his wand slightly, and Karkaroff on the ground floated in the air, suspended like a breathing corpse.
"Master, I was wrong..." Tears welled up in Karkaroff's eyes.
"Silence!" Voldemort extended his thin index finger to his lips, making a shushing gesture. Immediately, Karkaroff could no longer speak. It was as if something was obstructing his throat, and he could only make strange hissing sounds.
Karkaroff's heart sank. He realized he wouldn't have a peaceful end! Voldemort didn't even bother to listen to his explanations! He could speak before because Voldemort wanted to hear his screams as he tortured him.
He was nothing but pure evil!
Then, he felt a sudden clarity in his throat, as if he could speak again. But before he could react, unbearable pain erupted from every pore of his body.
Karkaroff let out a horrific scream. The Death Eaters surrounding him, who usually considered themselves ruthless, couldn't bear to keep their eyes open after hearing his scream.
However, Voldemort quickly grew tired of the game. He stopped the Cruciatus Curse and observed Karkaroff, who was now like a dead dog, with great interest.
"Indeed, I am quite curious. How did someone like you become the Headmaster of Durmstrang? Has the magic school fallen to such a state?" Voldemort lightly touched his wand, mockingly.
Karkaroff, as if grasping at a lifeline, began to recount the story of how he rose to become the Headmaster. Voldemort listened in silence by his side.
Karkaroff becoming the Headmaster of Durmstrang was just a result of circumstances. After Voldemort's fall, he avoided Azkaban by providing the names of many Death Eaters to the Ministry of Magic. He then traveled north to the Nordic countries.
There, Karkaroff was alone and penniless, which left him desperate for a while. However, he was fortunate to encounter the former Headmaster of Durmstrang, who agreed to give him a meal. Thus, Karkaroff became an assistant at Durmstrang.
At that time, Durmstrang was in a pitiful state. Although it still held the title of one of the three major magical schools in Europe, in reality, it was far behind Hogwarts and Beauxbatons and even at risk of being overtaken by Koldovstoretz in Russia.
The decline of Durmstrang was largely due to one man: Gellert Grindelwald.
Grindelwald had also studied at Durmstrang, but his experiments with dark magic were too dangerous for the students, and even Durmstrang couldn't turn a blind eye to that. So he was expelled from the school. Although he was expelled, his influence at Durmstrang persisted, especially when he nearly conquered all of Europe. Almost everyone at Durmstrang saw Grindelwald as an idol.
This situation only calmed down after he was defeated by Dumbledore. But by then, Grindelwald's supporters and non-supporters had already divided into two factions, in constant conflict. Along with external sanctions against Durmstrang, this prestigious European school couldn't recover from its decline.
The saying goes, "When two quarrel, the third one wins." Karkaroff took advantage of the discord between the two factions and managed to rise as the new Headmaster after the old Headmaster's death. However, his behavior disappointed many people. Instead of uniting both factions as expected, his leadership only intensified the conflicts, leading many parents to withdraw their children from the school due to his cruelty and insensitivity.
Nevertheless, this also provided him an opportunity to consolidate his position.
"The next Triwizard Tournament is a good opportunity. If I can lead Durmstrang to victory, I'll surely be able to..."
"The Triwizard Tournament?" Voldemort interrupted Karkaroff's chatter. Of course, he knew what the Triwizard Tournament was, but its reinstatement surprised him. He thought those conservative and old-fashioned elders of the magical world wouldn't have the courage and determination to revive such a tournament.
After gaining information from Karkaroff, Voldemort devised a plan, a very enticing plan.
He smiled, his laughter echoing and shaking the ceiling. Yet, despite his laughter, the emotion Voldemort emitted was even colder.
"Karkaroff, I didn't expect that even in your final moments, you could offer me such a grand gift! Your gift may help me conquer Hogwarts and bury Dumbledore and his stubborn resistance once and for all."
Voldemort laughed for a while and then contained his smile, looking towards the door of the hideout.
"That person outside the door, you've been listening long enough. Why don't you come in, and we can talk face to face?" He said as he gestured with his wand, shattering the door into pieces. A beautiful woman with blonde hair and blue eyes stood expressionless outside.
The woman was surrounded by six or seven wizards dressed in white robes, while she herself wore European knight's armor and held a longsword in her hands.
Karkaroff was greatly relieved to see her and uttered the word "Shogun."
The person who appeared outside was the ruler of the magical world of Japan: the "Shogun."
Staring at Voldemort in front of her, the Shogun showed no expression, simply gripping the hilt of her sword calmly. The wizards behind her and the Death Eaters alongside Voldemort faced off against each other.
Just as the tension between the two parties reached its peak, the Shogun spoke: "I am interested in the part of your plan that involves conquering Hogwarts."