Chapter 65: Tom: I Really Don't Know Them Well! Honestly! You Gotta Believe Me!

"The Li family? Laozi?"

As the current head of the House of Black, Pollux Black possessed a fair bit of worldly knowledge.

Although he had never heard of anyone named Laozi, he vaguely remembered that in that ancient Eastern country, there were indeed quite a few pure-blood families bearing the surname Li, and their lineages were terrifyingly ancient.

Moreover, he knew Aberforth. Although Pollux had some grievances with him, he knew he was Dumbledore's younger brother.

Aberforth usually only left his run-down pub when carrying out commissions for Dumbledore.

That meant the two children personally escorted and dropped off by Aberforth were undoubtedly acting on Dumbledore's behalf...

Nowadays, with Dumbledore's reputation growing ever larger, even these haughty pure-blood families grew increasingly hesitant to look down on him.

Therefore, when Pollux considered that these two children were actually capable of making Dumbledore dispatch his own brother to escort them, he already believed nine parts out of ten of what Leverde had said.

However, even though he knew he was in the wrong, his pride as a pure-blood family member meant that no matter how wary he was of the family behind Leverde, he could not simply and casually admit fault!

His wife and children were watching right beside him!

"Hmph... Since that's the case, I look forward to meeting the elders of your household," Pollux said in an arrogant tone.

Yet, by saying this, it meant he had already believed Leverde's words.

After he finished speaking, logically speaking, all he had to do was leave with a flourish of elegance.

Unexpectedly, however...

Leverde said with a hint of excitement, "Really? Then let's set a date. I happen to have an uncle visiting me recently, and I heard he hasn't been in a very good mood... Perhaps exchanging pointers with pure-blood wizards of native Britain will put him in a better mood."

Pollux's complexion instantly turned a shade of sickly green and white.

Although his dueling skills were passable, when he thought of the other party's lineage spanning several millennia, coupled with a fellow who found joy in brawling and was presumably adept at dueling...

Pollux involuntarily felt a trace of cowardice creeping into his heart.

My child is still young, and my wife is still youthful...

Besides, how could elegant and noble pure-blood wizards engage in brawling and killing like common brutes?!

"Hmph, what a pity, I have no free time lately, as I have a mountain of matters awaiting my attention. Consider your uncle lucky; otherwise... hmph, hmph..."

Having uttered this face-saving remark, Pollux was terrified that Leverde might say anything further, and hurriedly pulled his daughter toward the barrier.

As she was being dragged away, the girl still glared fiercely at Leverde, her eyes filled with unconcealed defiance.

Leverde remained completely indifferent to this, even returning her glare with a trace of lofty, condescending pity.

As if pitying her for being born into such a "humble" family...

Just as Leverde anticipated, his look of pity nearly caused the girl to burst with rage.

Yet, before she could utter a sound, she was dragged right through Platform Nine and Three-Quarters by her father.

"Father! You surely don't actually believe that fellow's nonsense, do you?" the girl demanded angrily the moment they stepped onto the platform.

"Walburga, do you think a Mudblood would possess that kind of confidence?" Pollux retorted irritably.

That brat looked even more like a pure-blood than he did!

Walburga recalled Leverde's demeanor earlier and inwardly felt that her father was probably right.

However... she simply could not reconcile herself to it! When had she ever been looked down upon by anyone like that?

Thinking of this, a resentful Walburga delivered a vicious pinch to her younger brother. "Why didn't you speak up for me just now?"

"Why are you pinching me? Th-this... I had nothing to do with provoking you..."

Alphard felt immensely aggrieved. He had kept his mouth shut the entire time, yet he still failed to escape his sister's clutches.

Irma looked at her husband and could not help chiming in, "You clearly had nothing to do lately... Could it be that you were actually afraid..."

"Afraid? How could I possibly be afraid? I was merely... I was simply... Surely you don't wish to see me brawl and slaughter like some barbarian brute, do you, Irma?" Pollux demanded in exasperation.

"Very well, it was merely a misunderstanding, there was truly no need..." Seeing that her husband's face had flushed red with anger, Irma said no more.

Outside Platform Nine and Three-Quarters.

After the Black family departed, Leverde finally put away the expression that was purer than any pure-blood wizard's.

Turning his head, he caught Aberforth and Tom staring at him with strange expressions.

Tom swallowed hard before asking, "Are you truly from that... whatever-it-is Li family?"

Leverde shrugged. "I made it up. Tom, you surely didn't believe it, did you?"

Tom was dumbfounded. "F-fake?"

A moment ago, Leverde had spoken with absolute conviction—his tone, his expression, as though he were recounting a truth beyond all doubt.

And now he was telling him it was all fabricated?

Leverde patted Tom's shoulder. "I've told you before, when you're out and about, your identity is whatever you claim it to be. Since our records at the orphanage have been destroyed anyway, if I say I'm a pure-blood, who can prove I'm not? When dealing with arrogant fellows like that, you simply have to act even more arrogant than they are. Naturally, your strength must back it up, otherwise you're liable to get a beating..."

Tom frowned and said, "Aren't you afraid of being exposed? What if there genuinely is a pure-blood family surnamed Li..."

"Li is a common surname. In China, at least several million people bear the surname Li. There are undoubtedly plenty of pure-blood families surnamed Li, and I never specified which Li family it was. Let him investigate to his heart's content," Leverde said nonchalantly.

"Very well, as expected of you, Leverde—utterly shameless," Tom remarked with emotion.

Leverde stroked the cool serpentine body of Nagini resting on his arm and said leisurely, "I am pleased that you praise me, Tom, but I dislike your choice of words."

Hearing this, Tom felt a sudden jolt of alarm and hastily corrected himself.

"Ahem, I meant to say you are truly wise..."

While the two of them were talking, neither noticed Aberforth's pensive expression.

In his view, what Leverde had said might not be entirely a lie...

He decided to write a letter to his brother the moment he returned.

Aberforth knew very well that his brother had always been extremely curious about Leverde's origins.

And now, based on the information Leverde had shared today, perhaps some clues regarding his background could be deduced.

Platform Nine and Three-Quarters could only be described as bustling with activity.

It was packed to the brim with Hogwarts students and parents who had come to see them off.

By the time Leverde and the others arrived, the members of the Black family were no longer in sight.

Aberforth departed in a hurry after seeing them aboard the train.

The Hogwarts Express was similarly crowded.

Fortunately, they had not arrived too late; Leverde and Tom managed to find an empty compartment.

After stowing their trunks, Leverde took a seat by the window.

Unlike his usual behavior, Tom did not sit down to read; after uttering a brief word to Leverde, he slipped out of the compartment.

Naturally aware of what Tom was up to, Leverde did not stop him, instead conversing in halting Parseltongue with Nagini.

As Tom stepped out into the corridor, his eyes shone brightly.

The words Leverde had spoken earlier had genuinely stirred his ambition.

He intended to make a few "friends" and discuss their families' "heritage" and so forth...

Having had that encounter with the Black family earlier, Tom understood the demeanor of these pure-blood families, allowing him to easily identify them without much difficulty...

Tom walked casually down the center of the train, peering into compartment after compartment as he searched for a target.

Suddenly, he halted outside a compartment door, noticing that the two siblings from the Black family he had seen earlier were seated inside.

Hiding beside the doorframe, Tom peered cautiously inside.

At that moment, several other individuals occupied the compartment alongside the siblings.

The golden-haired boy who appeared to be their leader was speaking to the girl.

However, the girl's mood remained thoroughly foul, evidently still harboring a grudge against Leverde.

Tom curled his lip in silent disdain—couldn't handle a few words?

Back in the day, I...

Recalling the days of living under Leverde's oppressive thumb, Tom felt a familiar ache in his heart.

At that moment, the girl raised her voice. "Leave me alone, Malfoy! I am in a foul enough mood as it is; can you stop hovering around me?"

Tom quickly stepped away from the doorway and watched from a distance as the golden-haired boy, flanked by an entourage, emerged from the compartment looking rather disgraced.

He raised a hand to gently rub his chin, deep in thought...

Leverde and Nagini were passing the time listlessly by reading in their compartment.

He had spread a book across the small table and coiled Nagini right in front of the pages so that human and snake could read together.

Nagini tapped a page with the tip of her tail, signaling Leverde to turn over.

Just as Leverde flipped the page, the compartment door was violently flung open!

A golden-haired boy burst in, closely followed by four or five other boys.

Leverde glanced up at them and caught a glimpse of a familiar figure hiding just outside the door.

Comprehension dawned instantly in Leverde's mind.

"My apologies, this compartment can seat at most two more people. With so many of you, there simply isn't room."

The golden-haired boy glared furiously at Leverde. "So you're the one who upset Walburga?"

Leverde frowned and looked up. "Who?"

"Don't tell me you intend to play the fool."

Leverde shrugged. "Play the fool? I haven't the slightest idea who Walburga is."

"It seems you need to be taught a lesson! Get him!"

At a wave of the golden-haired boy's hand, the four or five boys behind him surged forward in a swarm!

*Thud! Thud! Thud!*

The dull thuds of fists landing on flesh echoed within the compartment, continuing for quite some time before finally subsiding.

The golden-haired boy sporting a bruised eye smiled triumphantly. "Heh, you'll behave yourself now..."

Yet, before his words fully faded, his vision blurred, and his surroundings shifted abruptly.

Leverde, whom he had just been pinning to the floor and pounding, had morphed into his friend Flint!

Meanwhile, Selwyn, Travers, and the others who had charged in alongside him were currently grabbing each other by the lapels, staring at one another with bewildered expressions.

Turning his head, the golden-haired boy saw Leverde—the very person he was supposed to have beaten senseless—standing with his arms crossed beside a pale-faced Tom, watching them as though they were utter fools.

"Th-what is the meaning of this? Abraxas, why are you hitting me?"

Flint, sporting a face swollen to the likeness of a pig's head, looked aggrievedly at Abraxas Malfoy, who was currently clutching his collar.

"I... I was clearly hitting him, how could..." Abraxas looked thoroughly dazed.

Meanwhile, Tom, who had watched the entire spectacle unfold from the sidelines, felt a surge of fear and unease.

After all, Abraxas Malfoy and his cohorts had been instigated by none other than him.

Through his observations, he had deduced that this boy named Malfoy harbored romantic inclinations toward Miss Black.

Combined with Tom's innate talent for winning people's trust, it had been remarkably easy to goad Malfoy into coming here to teach Leverde a lesson.

Tom had plotted it all out.

If these people could defeat Leverde, it would serve as sweet revenge.

If they failed, he could use the opportunity to gauge the combat capabilities of these pure-blood peers and evaluate his own strength.

After all, ever since discovering he was a wizard, he had only ever dueled one person of his own age—Leverde...

Yet he had never expected... that the moment these fellows burst aggressively into the compartment, even before drawing their wands, they would inexplicably begin brawling amongst themselves!

And the intended target, Leverde, had simply scooped up Nagini and strolled leisurely past the brawl to come stand beside him and watch the entertainment...

"What... what exactly did you do to us?"

The situation was painfully obvious; even if Abraxas were a fool, he would have realized their mutual beat-down was connected to Leverde.

"Strange, you lot decided to fight each other, what does that have to do with me?" Leverde replied with an expression of pure innocence. "I should be asking why you decided to break into my compartment to brawl."

Leverde's retort left Abraxas utterly speechless.

Other students on the train had long since been drawn by the commotion and were now gathered around, pointing and whispering among themselves.

Humiliated by an audience of onlookers, Abraxas felt a flush of crimson heat rise to his face.

"Bastard! You must have done something to us!"

Consumed by rage, Abraxas lunged forward, intent on resuming his attack on Leverde.

Suddenly, his movements froze. Alongside his friends, he stared at Leverde in absolute terror, as though gazing upon something unimaginably horrifying.

"Ah..."

The next second, the boys scattered in a panic, shoving their way through the crowd like madmen.

Tom stared in stunned disbelief, a deep sense of bewilderment gripping his heart.

He knew Leverde must have manipulated events somehow, but what on earth had he done... when he hadn't even drawn his wand!

Just as Tom wrestled with his confusion, a hand gently clapped down upon his shoulder.

Then, Leverde's casual voice drifted into his ear.

"Well, Tom, your friends are certainly an interesting bunch. Fearing we might grow bored on the train, they actually ran over here to put on such an entertaining side show for us..."

Hearing the word "friends," Tom experienced a sharp jolt of panic.

"No, you've misunderstood... I'm truly not close to them... Really! You have to believe me!"