Chapter 298: Herpo the Foul (I)

Words : 1434 Updated : Oct 13th, 2025

Chapter 298 - Herpo the Foul (I) Wednesday, 24 December 1986 01:30 am Almost two weeks had gone by since Kai's return to the Harry Potter World. On the third floor of the restaurant/hotel Brews and Stews, Darcie's room was enshrouded in a thick orange-red color of roaring fire. Outside, one could see a thin mist through the windows and the silence of the Diagon Alley that was too vast to take in at one glance. Inside, the room temperature was soothing, warm, and cozy. However, the little girl was nowhere to be seen. There was a suitcase placed neatly by the bed, and other than the fire in the hearth, it was the only thing that looked alive in this room. Inside the suitcase, another fire was blazing hot in an even vaster hearth on one side of the giant hall. Near the hearth, Cersei and Kai were seated on one side of a small table. Cersei was wearing a green gown, and a fur cloak, and her hair were falling over her shoulders with royal majesty. She was nearer to the fire, and at Kai's right. On the table, a chessboard was propped open, white and black pieces fuming hot breath out of their nostrils. Opposite Kai, wearing a red-green doublet and beige breeches, was Petyr. All had a glass of wine in their hands, savoring the taste of this odd silence. It didn't look any impressive. But the sight of the table at Kai's left was anything but ordinary. The long table was sodden with books and books from one corner to the other. At some places, the books were piled up so high that one couldn't even fathom how many books were there. Some books were singing songs. Some were chatting with each other. Some were skidding, trying to run off the table, pursuing solitude. Cersei took her eyes off the books and her gaze landed on Kai's face. When she sipped this time, it tasted sweeter than before. Kai drummed his fingers on the chair's arms, his mind thinking of the next move and processing the knowledge he had gained in the last two weeks simultaneously. Life in December was somber in the Diagon's Alley. Endless cold, gloomy travelers, and stale business. Not something a little girl could have coped with. But Darcie had grown wings in these last two weeks, her heartstrings nudged by Kai, gaining more and more power over her day after day. The resistance he felt while scribbling in the Journal was still as great as before. But Kai could feel he had gained a significant understanding of the Facelessness during the 2nd Stage. Nevertheless, there was no breather for someone like Kai. Nor did he need one. On the very night of his return, Darcie had had a dream. The hisses of the silvery-white snake had returned. By then, Darcie had already linked this serpent to a leftover projection of an ancient Malfoy ancestor's Patronus. So when she dreamed of it hissing out two topics, Darcie believed it was Patronus' way to guide her on the path of Greatness. Those two topics were - Herpo the Foul and Ancient Magical Script. No wonder, of all the books piled on the table, around a third were on ancient wizards, especially containing records of the era around Herpo the Foul. On Ancient Magical Script, Darcie had found nothing, however. Not even an off-handed remark in front of her Bookstore's manager had brought out any favorable response. Mr. Hillam had never even heard of these three words. So Darcie had done something which she had been stalling for a long time. A visit to Oxfordshire, where the Greengrass Manor was. Collecting books on magical runes, scripts, and old texts wasn't a problem. Not when Darcie was a Page at an Assistant Occupation in the bookshop, Flourish and Blotts. She had already learned the names of all the books in the bookshop, except the ones that were locked behind a black door on the first floor over the backside of the shop. But Darcie had learned a language, magical or not, contained many secrets within it. For that, she must have a collection of such books from the muggle world as well. So she and Daphne, using Greengrasses' contacts, had visited the Oxford library, and had gone through several books on ancient languages, symbols, hieroglyphs, bone texts and manuscripts, and whatnot. After returning to the Diagon Alley, Darcie had ordered all those books for her library in the suitcase. The next two weeks had passed by so fast that almost no one saw the little girl roaming outside in the Diagon Alley for more than an hour. On the chessboard, the black queen came alive, the lean, wooden column transfiguring into an enchanting, curvy waist. As she slid diagonally, a hand separated off the wood, wielding a sword. And when she roared, all the remaining black pawns kneeled. "Winterfell!!!" Then she chopped off the head of one of the white rooks, which had taken the shape of a white elephant. Hiss! Selene slithered up on Kai's chair and came to rest around his shoulders, her head leaning on his chest as though it was her throne. She bobbed her head towards Petyr and Cersei, then flicked out her forked tongue to kiss Kai's chin. -Go to sleep,- Kai hissed, fire crackling behind his voice in tandem. In the next moment, she diffused in her mist form and entered Kai's body, hissing back something in his ear that made him chuckle. Kai looked at Cersei and smiled. "She's saying you look beautiful today." Cersei frowned. They all knew that for Selene, beautiful almost meant delicious. She sipped the wine, and under her breath scoffed, "Animal!" "Sigh!" Petyr shook his head and leaned back in his chair. "All we know about Herpo the Foul after all this time is that he was an Ancient Greek Dark Wizard," he said, smiling. "Inventor of Horcruxes and the first to create a Basilisk. "He was a Parselmouth, too, my lord. A common subject between you and him. It isn't mentioned outrightly, but as you observed, there are significant chances of him being a pioneer and a brilliant scholar in the field related to Soul and its applications." Cersei chuckled, a sneer dancing across her lips. "Good, Petyr," she jested. "The next time we need someone to summarize something, we will call you. Heh!" Kai kept drumming his fingers on the wood, his hazel pupils calm and hard. Cersei observed Kai from the corner of her eyes and put down the wineglass. "What powers he had is of no concern to us," she added. "The question is, was Herpo the Foul the same ancient wizard mentioned in the books everywhere, who had assisted James in writing Daemonologie, In Forme of a Dialogue? "Because if he was, then his achievements and capabilities, mentioned in these books on the table, aren't even a tenth of what he was truly capable of. There is no doubt in the Harry Potter Random World, and based on the content of the the Daemonologie, this Dark Wizard surpasses all. "Even Voldemort seems nothing compared to this wizard. Add the fact that he knew how to call upon Death, and... Humph!" Kai looked down at his right forearm. He could feel the impression of ten long fingers there. The mark of Death! The drumming of fingers still hadn't stopped. Petyr gulped down the wine and smiled. "Everything you said is true, my lady," he said slyly, his eyes shining with mockery. "Sorry. Let me amend it. Almost everything, except one thing." "Let's hear it then," Cersei demanded. Petyr chuckled. "Why Was, and not Is?" The drumming stopped. Kai looked up and regarded Petyr with an odd gaze. He couldn't help but remind himself of the sheer, cunning, and brilliant mind of this Character. "What do you mean?" Cersei asked, confused. Kai took a deep breath and looked at her. "Petyr is suggesting," he mumbled, his eyes narrowing, "that Herpo the Foul, the legendary dark wizard and an overlord in magical attainment of his times... ... is still alive." "What?!" *************** AN: Now you can access OVER 15 Chapters of Chaos and Order ahead of Webnovel on Patre0n (+60 montly Chapters). If you would like to access the exclusive content, while simultaneously supporting the fanfic, then do consider becoming a Patron Bonus Chapter Deal: +2 Chapters per 50 Power Stones

Chapter 298: Herpo the Foul (I)

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