Quirrell's expression stiffened.
"Of c-course I'm f-familiar! A-ask away if you h-have a q-question..."
Cro's lips curled slightly into a smirk, though he kept a look of pure curiosity on his face.
"I read in a book that the Dark Lord has spanned two generations, with the most recent one emerging about ten years ago."
"They say that Dark Lord led the Death Eaters in a brutal massacre, rallying them under the banner of... pure-blood supremacy, gathering quite a number of followers."
Cro's words made everyone tense up. The excitement from seeing Harry Potter vanished completely. Quirrell's smile also disappeared, his hand instinctively reaching for the wand hidden in his sleeve.
He was ready. If Cro really knew his secret, he'd strike at Harry Potter immediately—kill him without hesitation.
Harry Potter: ...
"But I read in another book that the Dark Lord was born to a Muggle," Cro said, his eyes wide with feigned confusion. "If that's true, then he must be a half-blood, right? So why did he preach about pure-blood supremacy?"
"So, is the Dark Lord pure-blood or half-blood?"
Cro graciously waved his hand, but his words only deepened the discomfort on everyone's faces. Among that discomfort, there was a trace of fear.
{That damned brat! Kill him! Rip him to pieces, Quirrell! Kill him now!!}
Voldemort's furious voice echoed in Quirrell's mind. Quirrell's hand trembled slightly as he gripped his wand, his face pale. But he didn't dare to attack Cro.
[Detected intense anger!]
[Reward obtained: King's Chest!]
[Detected intense resentment!]
[Reward obtained: Diamond Chest!]
[Detected...]
...
A string of system notifications echoed in Cro's mind. He was already standing next to Hagrid with Hermione, stunned by the flood of rewards.
A King's Chest!!
This was the highest-level chest! It was definitely worthy of someone like "No-Nose" Voldemort. Even Quirrell had earned Cro a Diamond Chest. The rest of the crowd had contributed a few scattered bronze and silver chests. Occasionally, there was even a golden chest from someone like Hagrid.
At this point, Cro had 34 bronze chests, 8 silver chests, 6 golden chests, 1 diamond chest, and... 1 King's Chest!
Coming to meet Harry Potter today was definitely the right choice. The Leaky Cauldron was packed with wizards, and Quirrell didn't dare make a move. Cro could almost imagine Voldemort yelling furiously at Quirrell in his mind.
While Cro could barely contain his laughter, Quirrell's expression darkened even further. With one last furious glare at Cro and Harry Potter, he turned and left without saying a word. The crowd, still in shock, didn't notice Quirrell's departure. Only Harry, who was rubbing his forehead, seemed to be paying attention. His scar throbbed painfully as he watched Quirrell's retreating back, feeling that something was off about him, though he couldn't put his finger on it.
...
"Oh, what a pity. It seems I'll have to look up the answer in a book since Professor Quirrell didn't want to answer my question," Cro said with a smile, shaking his head. "Perhaps he had something urgent to attend to. Hermione, let's go buy some books. I'm really curious about what I asked earlier."
With that, Cro led a confused Hermione down a narrow corridor. Quirrell was gone—no, No-Nose was gone, so why stick around collecting bronze and silver chests? It would be much better to stroll around Diagon Alley. Maybe he'd run into other notable figures, like Luna, Cassandra, or Fleur—members of the "treasure chest grinding team" he was bound to encounter!
As for Harry Potter...
Cro glanced back at Harry, who was following behind with Hagrid. What would Harry look like in women's clothing? Would Snape lose his mind laughing?
Hmm... That might be worth trying!
...
"P-please wait!" Harry called out timidly, catching up to Cro and Hermione. "My name is Harry Potter, and this is Hagrid. He's also a professor at Hogwarts."
Hearing this, Cro and Hermione stopped, and Harry quickly ran up to introduce them. Hagrid watched the scene with a broad smile. Little Harry needed friends, after all. And though Cro's curiosity about such dark matters might seem odd, maybe that made him the perfect friend for Harry—a saviour who had defeated Voldemort, paired with a boy unafraid to ask questions about him. Perhaps they'd become the best of friends.
Of course, if Hagrid knew about Cro's real intentions, he would never have thought that.
Cro gently held Hermione's hand, smiling at the nervous Harry Potter.
"Cro Wills, and this is Hermione Granger. Did you want something from us, Mr. Potter?"
"Why were all those people so excited to see you earlier? Do you have some special identity?" Hermione blinked her big, curious eyes. She wasn't as interested in the question Cro had asked earlier; instead, she was more curious about Harry's identity.
It wasn't exactly a secret—books had written about it—but she hadn't had the chance to read them yet since Cro had dragged her straight to Diagon Alley.
---------------------
T/N:
For advanced 30 chapters and exclusive content, visit my Patreon: p@treon.com/WizFic.