As Asterion walked through the halls of the mansion, he set aside the existence of primordial personifications of abstract concepts. His eyes were on the girl in his arms. She might look human, but she was something entirely different.
She was a genuine cursed spirit, but this race changed the more energy Morgan accumulated in her body. When Negative Magical Energy reached a certain level, it would transform into a completely new energy, a power capable of changing, manipulating, and creating anything.
However, even without reaching that power currently, Morgan was not weak; on the contrary, she was extremely strong. As her creator, Asterion knew her powers well.
The Field of Omnipotence.
Within a specific area, Morgan could literally do anything she desired. This was Morgan's initial ability, and there were two more to come, but for now, Asterion was content with just this one.
But there was a flaw: the size of the Field of Omnipotence was tiny compared to the area of destruction of Special Grade Cursed Spirits.
The Field of Omnipotence was an ability that required vast amounts of Negative Magical Energy, and even though Morgan had the highest amount of negative magical energy among all his cursed spirits, she could only use her power within a radius of ten meters. It was minuscule, considering that Special Grade Cursed Spirits could destroy entire cities.
Morgan, looking silently at Asterion, glanced at his clothes, and her eyes sparkled for a moment. In the next second, a black suit identical to Asterion's appeared on her body, making them look even more alike.
This made Asterion's lips curve into an extremely satisfied smile. Morgan had just subverted any magical concept of the wizarding world, for not even magic could conjure something out of nothing!
"Morgan, from today onwards, you are my sister," Asterion said, stopping in front of the living room door. He looked at the girl in his arms and gently set her down on the floor.
Morgan nodded and clutched Asterion's clothes with an expressionless look, her red eyes fixed on his face.
Asterion knew Morgan could speak; she simply didn't want to at the moment, something he respected.
Smiling at her, Asterion opened the doors. A beautifully decorated room with sofas and a fireplace appeared before him.
Asterion saw Sirius drinking as if there was no tomorrow; his grandfather's death had shaken the man more than he would like to admit. Not that Asterion wasn't grieving, but his mourning was silent. He did not have the privilege Sirius had to appear weak in front of his enemies.
Besides Sirius, Bellatrix was lying in a most inelegant position for a woman on the sofa, staring distractedly at the ceiling. But Asterion knew Bella was suffering, in her own way — a strange way, but that was who Bellatrix Black was.
When Asterion entered, Sirius didn't even bother to look, but Bellatrix glanced over casually. However, seeing someone next to her master, her eyes widened in shock at the scene before her.
What did she see?
A female version of her master!!! Bellatrix straightened up on the sofa and stared at the girl with a confused look. Given the tremors and the terrifying aura that had enveloped the mansion just a few minutes earlier, she had assumed that her beloved master was creating an immensely powerful cursed spirit to honor Arcturus.
But, looking at the girl, Bellatrix began to doubt her thoughts. She couldn't feel a trace of negative magical energy from the girl beside Asterion.
This convinced her that the girl was not a cursed spirit — of that, she was certain as the bearer of the Black House's Simplified Technique.
"Bella, this is Morgan Black, my sister." Asterion pointed to Morgan beside him and spoke directly, causing Bella's eyes to widen in surprise.
Even Sirius, who was drunk, looked at Asterion with confusion. When had the Black House gained so many descendants suddenly appearing every year?
Could it be that he had some children he still didn't know about?
He shook his head; he was sterile due to the inbreeding in his family. He couldn't have children; even potions couldn't fix such a severe flaw in his DNA.
Another reason he had given himself to drink until he was unconscious. Sirius shook his head and drank the rest of the whiskey straight from the bottle in one gulp, finally collapsing unconscious on the sofa.
Just before losing consciousness, Sirius muttered to himself, "You old fool. At least my father and brother will have company in hell. You arrogant, racist, cold old man... And yet, I still love you, old grouch."
"Hello, little Morgan, I am Bellatrix Black, my master's exclusive servant and maid!" Bellatrix introduced herself with a wide smile on her lips. Although confused about Morgan's parentage, Bella didn't ask and didn't want to. As long as her master liked it, she could recognize a filthy beggar as a brother.
Morgan looked at the woman and noticed the strange look in her eyes as she gazed at her brother. She looked at Asterion in confusion and remained silent, despite Bellatrix's introduction.
"It seems that little Morgan is shy," Asterion commented, gently stroking her hair, a touch of tenderness in his eyes. "Don't worry, Bella, Morgan still has to learn proper etiquette."
For the third time, Bellatrix's eyes widened in complete disbelief at the scene before her. She swore she had never seen Asterion look at anyone with such a gentle and tender gaze before!
Even with Narcissa, Asterion had never shown such an expression.
For the first time, Bellatrix looked at Morgan with a hint of respect.
Morgan glanced at Bellatrix and then turned her attention back to Asterion. She could feel an overwhelming sadness in his heart, and despite feeling this way, his face was so composed that it made her momentarily doubt her own senses.
This pain…
Morgan narrowed her eyes, a cold expression crossing her face. She knew this pain, the pain of losing someone important to you. It was how she had felt when she was killed by a cursed spirit, before her brother turned her into the same monster that had killed her.
Floating in the air under Bella's surprised gaze, Morgan rose to Asterion's eye level and gently stroked his head.
She remained silent as she stroked his head, her eyes fixed on his face with a quiet expression.
Asterion blinked a few times, understanding the situation, and looked at Morgan with a calm gaze. Like all his enslaved cursed spirits, Morgan was feeling what he was feeling — a natural empathy with her master that all the other cursed spirits possessed.
Raising his arm to stroke her hair, Asterion smiled gratefully and said, "I don't need comfort, Morgan."
Morgan looked at Asterion in confusion; his words puzzled her, but she narrowed her eyes with pleasure at the feel of his hand on her head.
Nodding, she descended to the floor again and held onto Asterion's clothes once more. Her long hair, which was two meters in length, dragged along the floor, but upon closer inspection, one would see that the soft, silky strands never actually touched the ground, floating just above it to avoid any dirt.
"Master, the others are preparing the funeral and the invitations." Ignoring Morgan's peculiarities, Bellatrix spoke with a happy, excited tone.
Asterion looked calmly at Bellatrix, listening to the cheerful tone in her voice, but remained silent about it. He knew that, like him, this was her way of grieving.
"Sirius and I will prepare Arcturus's body to be in perfect condition for the funeral. When the invitations are ready, I'll use my cursed spirits to deliver them to the future guests," Asterion commented calmly. Now that he had settled Morgan's creation, he wouldn't let Narcissa and his other cousins handle everything alone.
"Hmm." Bella nodded but pointed at Sirius. "The little doggie drank five bottles of whiskey; I'll be surprised if he wakes up tomorrow."
Asterion looked at the unconscious Sirius on the sofa and the glass bottles scattered on the floor with a helpless expression.
"It's fine, I'll handle it myself," he sighed, leaving the living room and leaving Bella behind. Morgan followed behind him, unfazed by the occasional glances she received from Bellatrix.
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Next Chapter Second Volume: Chapter 165 - Vellory of Arcuturus Black (1), Chapter 166 - Vellory of Arcuturus Black (2), Chapter 167 - Vellory of Arcuturus Black (3), Chapter 168 - Vellory of Arcuturus Black (4), Chapter 169 - Torture and Secrets (1), Chapter 170 - Torture and Secrets (2), Chapter 171 - Conspiracies and Secrets (1), 172 - Conspiracies and Secrets (2), 173 - Conspiracies and Secrets (3), 174 - Conspiracies and Secrets (4), 175 - Conspiracies and Secrets (5), 176 - Conspiracies and Secrets (6), 177 - Conspiracies and Secrets (7), Chapter 178 - Decision and two wives (1), Chapter 179 - Decision and two wives (2), Chapter 180 - The Old King of Camelot (1).