The walls on both sides of the alley were not tall, but Harry felt as if he was walking in a canyon with steep cliffs on both sides, and a deep sense of oppression made his breathing faint. He could hear the faint echoes of his footsteps and the occasional creaking of wooden doors or windows. The dim light from the lanterns barely illuminated the narrow path, casting long shadows behind him and Professor Watson.
Greasy, fishy, turbid–the smell in the air was mixed, and Harry couldn't tell what it was, but smelling this smell always made him feel like vomiting. He tried to cover his nose with his cloak, but it was no use. The stench seemed to penetrate his skin and bones, making him nauseous. He wondered how anyone could live in such a place, let alone eat here.
As he passed a small restaurant- Harry had never thought that there would be people doing business in the depths of Knockturn Alley. The sign above the door was so faded that he couldn't read what it said, but he guessed it was something like "The Rotten Cauldron" or "The Maggoty Haggis".
The window frame had accumulated a thick layer of dust, the old window glass was greasy, and there were many claw-like fingerprints on it. He looked through the window into the dark room and found that there were actually customers dining in this small restaurant that looked like a medieval black workshop.
It was a guy wrapped in bandages like a mummy, who was eating a large piece of green blood-stained thing that looked like a pancreas or something on the plate in front of him. He held a fork in one hand and a knife in the other, cutting and chewing with relish. Harry felt his stomach churn as he watched the disgusting scene.
Perhaps sensing Harry's gaze, the customer slowly turned his head and looked outside the shop, showing his teeth dripping with green slime to Harry. His eyes were bloodshot and his face was covered with scars and boils. He grinned wickedly at Harry, as if inviting him to join his feast.
Harry shuddered suddenly, remembering what Professor Watson had told him before, he hurriedly withdrew his gaze and pretended that nothing had happened. He hoped that the customer didn't recognize him as Harry Potter, the famous boy who lived. He didn't want to cause any trouble here, especially not with Professor Watson.
"Well, it's not impossible to follow me, but the place we're going to is dangerous, and there are some rules you have to remember. First of all, no matter what, stay by my side and don't leave half a step. Second, don't scream or shout, even if you see something that puzzles you. And then, well, don't stare at anyone for more than five seconds, unless you want to pull out your wand and fight with them. Do you understand, Potter?" Professor Watson said in a low voice, looking around cautiously.
Harry nodded desperately, unable to contain his excitement. Just now, Professor Watson told him that he needed to go to the depths of Knockturn Alley to do something, and he just tried to ask Professor Watson if he could follow him with a try-it-out attitude, but he didn't expect that after a brief thought, Professor actually agreed.
"You have my word for every one of them, Professor!"
Harry said eagerly, as if afraid that Professor Watson would change his mind. Harry had seen the dangers of Knockturn Alley before, and for the 'deeper' place that Professor Watson said, Harry could imagine that it must be much more evil than Borgin and Burkes. If it were him alone, he would never venture into it rashly, but with Professor Watson, Harry thought it was a good opportunity to 'see the world'.
Think about it, even Aunt Petunia knew about the magical world's St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, and he knew almost nothing about the magical world except for Hogwarts and Diagon Alley. This was indeed something that made him feel very ashamed and depressed.
After getting Potter's categorical assurance, Bryan took out his wand and flicked it. Two new black cloaks and plain masks with no identifiable features floated out of the spinning air.
"Put them on. Potter. It's unwise to show your true face in the place we're going to."
Professor Watson said sternly. Although his expression was bewildered, his mood was very agitated. Harry fiddled with the collar of his black cloak for a while, then adjusted the fit of his mask and cheek again to make sure he didn't expose any skin to the air.
Now, more than ten minutes after passing that small restaurant just now. Bryan walked familiarly and unhurriedly forward. while Harry now had no idea where he was.
As they went on. they saw some other wizards in the narrow alley with many forks. Some were alone. some were in pairs or threes. Harry also saw at an inconspicuous fork corner. there were more than ten wizards standing under an arched doorway whispering. The atmosphere was very tense. They were all wearing dark cloaks and masks, but Harry could tell from their body language that they were nervous and alert. Some of them held their wands in their hands, ready to cast spells at any time. Harry wondered what they were waiting for, or what they were afraid of.
"What are they doing?" Harry lowered his voice and asked quietly.
"I cast a spell. Potter. no one can hear us talking. as long as you don't make too exaggerated gestures."
Bryan said in a normal tone, as if he was chatting with an old friend.
"Those people I think should be trading."
He added, pointing his chin at the group of wizards under the arched doorway. Harry glanced at Professor Watson's back with a hidden look and didn't ask any more questions. He had a feeling that after putting on his cloak, Professor Watson seemed to have changed his personality and became a bit cold and unwilling to talk to people. He wondered if it was because of the place they were going to, or if there was something else on his mind.
As Harry wondered why Professor Watson would have this change, a huge white head sticking out from behind the wall blocking the road attracted Harry's attention. He stared at the head for a few seconds and realized that it was a statue's head. It had long hair and beard, a pointed hat, and a solemn expression. It looked very familiar to Harry, but he couldn't place it right away.
'How strange. why would there be a statue in the depths of Knockturn Alley? Whose statue is this?!' Harry thought curiously, feeling a surge of curiosity.
And when he turned around the wall and saw the scene behind the wall, Harry's mouth that had never been closed all the way opened a little more. He gasped in awe and disbelief, as he took in the sight before him.
In front of him was a small circular square with an ancient style. The stone tiles on the square floor were soaked with traces of years, moss and cracks. In the center of the square, there stood a statue of an old man. The statue was probably as high as two floors, and was carved from snow-white stone. It was so lifelike that Harry almost thought it was a real person standing there. The statue wore a long robe and held a staff in his hand.
Harry stared at the statue's face for a few seconds and then asked in an uncertain tone. "Merlin?"
He guessed, remembering where he had seen that face before.
"Not Bad. Potter." Bryan nodded approvingly, sounding slightly impressed by Harry's recognition.
Harry pursed his lips and didn't say anything. In fact, the reason why he could recognize who this statue was entirely because of the commemorative coin that Professor Watson gave to Ron, which had almost the same Merlin engraving as the statue in front of him. Ron cherished this coin so much that he even asked Hermione to borrow some books from the library to learn about its value and history. Harry had skimmed through some of them, but he didn't know much about Merlin, except that he was the most famous wizard of all time and the founder of modern magic.
"But why?" Harry asked a vague question, wondering why there was a statue of Merlin here, in such a dark and dangerous place.
Bryan didn't answer immediately. He quietly stared at the eyes of this tall statue, his thoughts were complicated.
In the past three or four years, he had entered and exited the underground world many times, and he had long lost his curiosity about the Merlin statue at the entrance. But after returning from Avalon Island, he became more curious about Merlin, who only existed in legends.
'Hmph. Merlin's eternal resting place.'
Bryan snorted in his heart, his eyes looking at the statue's eyes showed some gloom.
In order to destroy the Twin-Serpent Staff, the four founders of Hogwarts set up a thousand-year puzzle. This matter, I'm afraid it also has some unclear relationship with this legendary wizard who was mythologized.
"There is a huge cave under the statue, just like the one in Slytherin's Chamber of Secrets, very old and ancient, that is the lair of the most secretive sect wizards and the most bottomless dark wizards in Britain and even Europe, that is also our destination for this trip," Bryan said slowly, breaking his silence. "There are rumors-"
Just as Harry couldn't help but ask again, Bryan said quickly, "The cave was built by Merlin himself, and it was because of that cave that we have Knockturn Alley and Diagon Alley outside, of course, these are all hearsay, not rigorous statements-"
Harry blinked his eyes non-stop, and didn't know what words to use to describe his tumbling emotions. He suddenly realized that he had been too superficial in his understanding of the magical world. He had always thought that Knockturn Alley and Diagon Alley were just two ordinary streets for wizards to shop and trade, but he never knew that they had such a deep and mysterious connection with Merlin and his cave.
Crack- With a hoarse sound that startled Harry, he hid his hand under his robe and gripped his wand tightly, looking in astonishment at the old-fashioned wizard robe under the statue, which lifted up diagonally, revealing a black hole with a gust of wind. It looked like a secret passage that led to the underground.
A wizard with an indistinguishable face jumped off a rusty trolley from the hole, then walked out of the hole quickly, glanced at the dozen or so alleys around the small square, found his direction and walked straight over, his figure soon disappeared in the alley, and he never looked at Bryan and Harry from beginning to end.
"Let's go, Potter-" Bryan resumed his steps and walked towards the hole, "It's not wise to linger here for too long."
He said, as he pulled Harry along with him. He knew that the Aurors would not dare to stop them without a warrant, but he also did not want to attract their attention.
After getting off the 'crazy' trolley as usual, Bryan stood at the exit and gasped for breath. Even though he had taken it many times, he still couldn't get used to this trolley that was much more exciting than a roller coaster. It was a rickety and rusty metal cart that ran on a winding and bumpy track, plunging and rising in the dark tunnel. It made Bryan feel dizzy and nauseous every time he rode it. Harry next to him stood steady, which made Bryan a little surprised, but when he thought about Harry being the youngest seeker in Hogwarts in a hundred years, he was relieved.
The air in the underground world that hadn't changed much for thousands of years was still bad. Bryan looked at the familiar environment in front of him, and suddenly, his eyebrows behind his mask tightened slightly. He sensed something was different today.
Compared with usual, it was much quieter here, not only 'the commission market', where wizards could hire or be hired for various tasks, but even 'the pet market' and 'the trade market' that were always noisy were much colder than usual. The number of wizards who came here to buy or sell exotic creatures or rare items was significantly reduced, and the atmosphere was tense and gloomy.
The reason for this phenomenon was a group of people wearing uniform black cloaks with an incompatible aura that spread throughout the underground world.
"The Ministry of Magic's Aurors-"
Bryan squinted his eyes and swept over the nearest one who was also looking at him and Potter. His lips moved a few times, as if he was muttering something under his breath.
"Are they here to try their luck and see if they can catch Sirius Black?"
He said softly, guessing their purpose. The Ministry of Magic had Aurors stationed in the underground world all year round, but in order to avoid provoking these seclusive wizards and dark wizards who sneered at the current rules of the magical world, they would not send too many people, just maintaining a minimum level of interference. But now, in order to catch Black, they had to break this tacit understanding.
Bryan was not surprised by the Ministry of Magic's blatant move. In today's magical world, there are two swords hanging over all wizard's heads, deterring those who secretly harbor evil thoughts.
One of them, undoubtedly, was Albus Dumbledore, who had been 'semi-retired' at Hogwarts for years. He was the only one who could stand against Voldemort and his followers, and he was respected and feared by both sides of the war.
And the other was the Dementors and Azkaban in the hands of the Ministry of Magic. They were the ultimate punishment for any wizard who committed crimes against magic or humanity. The Dementors were soul-sucking creatures that could drain anyone's happiness and life force, and Azkaban was a prison island surrounded by them. No one could escape from there alive or sane.Now, Sirius Black had escaped from Azkaban alive, which made the Ministry of Magic lose face and feel deeply frightened.
Not to mention, Black himself was the loyal henchman of the second Dark Lord Voldemort. He was responsible for betraying James and Lily Potter to Voldemort, killing Peter Pettigrew and twelve Muggles with a single curse, and being one of the most dangerous Death Eaters ever. The Ministry of Magic would want to capture him at all costs, and restore their authority.
"Pr, Professor Watson"
Harry stuttered, as he followed Bryan into the underground world. He felt overwhelmed by everything he saw here. It was nothing like what he had imagined before.
The spectacular huge fan-shaped cave, floating in the air with rows of green torches emitting a strange atmosphere, passing through all around, every one of them was surrounded by a disturbing aura of wizards. They wore different kinds of cloaks and masks, some plain and simple, some colorful and flashy. They walked or flew around the cave, exchanging goods or information.
Harry felt like he had entered another world that was hidden from his eyes before. He felt his teeth shivering. He wanted to express his shock, but he didn't know how to describe it. He felt like he was both fascinated and terrified by it.
In a trance, Harry remembered two years ago, when he and a large group of young wizards followed Hagrid along a steep and narrow path. After turning a corner, he saw for the first time the towering Hogwarts castle that was as high as the sky.
"Is this still the wizarding world?"
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