Green vines crawled around every corner, the stone pillar seemed to be part of the gate, and the hole was the position of the gate. It's hard to imagine what happened here for hundreds of years, making the entrance and exit look like this.
Sean cast a spell that removes the moss and dirt from a boulder. Only then did he realize that this was not a rock rolled from somewhere but a huge stone that was neatly cut.
This hole was blocked by a boulder that was originally used as a wall, and this is obviously not something that time can do. Sean immediately thought of the wife in that book.
The Baron's wife killed Baron Skinner and absorbed the blood from his body, but she didn't have enough ability to sustain the force. She turned into a blood cell, exploded, and died on the spot. The explosion destroyed the mansion and killed most of the life in the area.
This abandoned building occupies a rather large area. After all, Baron Skinner and his wife were wizards at the time, and it was not too difficult for them to build huge buildings. Moreover, he can also see the remains of some previous civilian buildings.
The death of the Baron's wife directly destroyed such a large place, which is not something that an ordinary wizard in the thirteenth century could do. Sean's mood became a little heavy. He knew that this was the power of the Blood Pact.
"Protego Maxima." Putting a defensive spell on himself, Sean raised his wand and walked into the hole.
More than half of the building had collapsed, and it was a little difficult for Sean to walk over it. But there were indeed people here; many buried places had been cleaned up, and the traces were all new. This is probably the road Dumbledore once walked.
Sean walked in a direction he could barely discern. The depths of this building that has been abandoned for several centuries are even more gloomy, with collapsed stone walls, rusted and deformed lamp stands, vines, and a quiet, creepy atmosphere.
There was a crisp sound from the soles of Sean's feet. He looked down and saw half a bone that was weathered.
"Reparo, sorry."
He moved the repaired leg bone of whoever was unlucky to the side, and after two more steps, Sean finally found the place he was looking for. It was the entrance to a basement, and apparently, Dumbledore had already entered it too.
Entering the basement, the smell of damp mold immediately hits his nose. Sean squeezes his nose and opens the ring, and a shiny head pokes out. The growth rate of magical animals is unexpectedly fast. When the airwing bird was born, it was only the size of Sean's fist, and now it has grown several times.
"Is it lunchtime?" The bird called happily to Sean.
It has only been a few months, and Sean has been able to communicate with the airwing bird. However, the bird's goal in life is just to eat.
"You will be notified when it's the time. Come, help me breathe here."
The airwing bird can inhale the nearby air when they change how they breathe, which means they have other uses. They can filter out almost all harmful substances in the air by using their filtering organs. Although the bird is a bit sad, he still listens to Sean's words.
The bird opened its mouth wide like a pelican, and the skin on its chin and neck swelled rapidly. Like an exhaust fan, it sucked a mouthful of air from the basement to the outside. It didn't take long for the air in the basement to become much fresher.
"Nice job." Sean praised, "Lumos Maxima."
Dazzling light shone out from the tip of his wand. Sean swung it vigorously, and the light floated around. The whole scene of the dark basement was displayed in front of him.
When the old building was turned into ruins, it didn't seem to affect this place too much. Except for some gravel beside the wall and bookshelves that had aged and collapsed long ago, the place still roughly preserved its original appearance.
There are dusty bottles, cauldrons, weathered books, and even a few broomsticks with only their handle left. It's like a witch's workshop in a medieval novel.
In the center, there is a secret door that has been opened. From the secret door to the entrance to the basement, there is a slightly darker trace.
Perhaps it was through that secret door that Baron Skinner was discovered by his wife about the betrayal contained in the Blood Pact, and he was dragged outside.
Sean slowly approached the door, trying to find some useful information here. It's a pity that in the small room entered, except for a stone platform in the center, nothing else was found.
Maybe it was taken by someone, or maybe Dumbledore took it. Sean was not too disappointed. This was something he had thought of before coming.
But what did Dumbledore see here?
Sean finally found something on the stone platform engraved with strange marks.
"This is..." Sean picked up a fine metal particle with his fingertips.
He continued to search and found many grains in various hard-to-find corners. These grains range from light silver to dull blood red, and it seems that the color has not faded over the years.
An idea popped up in Sean's mind. He pointed his wand at the particles, "Reparo."
The particles shook for a bit. For items that are too old to be broken, the effect of the Mending Charm will be greatly reduced.
"Reparo."
"Reparo."
"Reparo."
The particles finally reacted after throwing more than 30 Mending Charms in succession. They slowly floated up and converged toward the center and even some particles that Sean didn't find jumped out from other places. The particles were combined slowly, and finally, an incomplete pendant appeared in front of Sean's eyes.
The pendant looked broken, and it seemed that it was only roughly put together. Not only that, there were some gaps everywhere in the pendant, which were fragments that could no longer be found.
Sean's attention has been completely focused on the shape of the pendant. The entangled chains, the silver shell with complicated patterns, and the blood-red particles that Sean found before are not gem fragments but blood.
This pendant is similar to the Blood Pact, which Dumbledore and Grindelwald used.
Sean's breathing became heavy. But a gloomy voice suddenly sounded before he could think anymore.
"I miss the appearance of this thing..."
Sean turned his head abruptly. A pearly white ghost was floating in mid-air, looking at the pendant with his melancholic eyes.
A flat cap, a half-round cloak, a robe resembling ancient Roman clothing, and calfskin boots. This middle-aged man with curly hair and a beard identity. This typical 13th-century aristocratic attire made Sean recognize the person.
It was Baron Skinner.
Baron Skinner was haggard, with shriveled skin and a gaping, shrinking hole in his chest, but he felt no pain anymore, only sadness. He is not one of the Returners but a normal ghost.
"Skinner?" He asked.
Baron Skinner was still staring blankly at the pendant restored by Sean. After a while, he looked at him and said in a sad voice, "Yes... that was me…"
"You've been wandering here in a ghost state?" Sean looked at him.
Baron Skinner was still immersed in grief, and he nodded, "Yes... I didn't want to talk with anyone, but you restored this pendant. It's mine and Corina's."
Mentioning Corina's name, Skinner immediately covered his head in pain. Sean immediately realized that Corina should be his wife. He was puzzled. It was mentioned in the information that although Corina killed Baron Skinner, the betrayer in the relationship between the two was himself.
But why did he act like that? Is it because of guilt?
Sean got closer to him, "Baron Skinner, what happened?"
Clearly, in great pain, Skinner almost cried, "I betrayed my love and Corina. I am a coward! A coward!"
He doesn't know if it's because he hasn't communicated with anyone for so many years, but he is extremely emotional right now.
"Why am I so deluded? I'm a beast... a beast..."
Sean silently looked at Baron Skinner, who had suddenly collapsed, and finally said, "Corina is dead, and so are you."
Skinner murmured, "I deserve it... but she didn't deserve it…"
Sean grabbed the pendant in his hand, and the unrestored pendant shook off. Baron Skinner rushed over with wide-eyed eyes, but the debris passed through his palm and fell to the ground.
Sean glanced at him, "It can't be repaired."
He opened his mouth wide and finally sat down dejectedly, "It can't be repaired..."
Sean sat down, "Aren't you going to tell me?"
Without waiting for him to answer, he shook the pendant in his hand, "I can fix this pendant for you and put it back here."
Baron Skinner stared blankly at Sean and finally lowered his head.
"There is nothing to know of other than a story of a shameful betrayer..."
Sean frowned.
Skinner and Corina were originally a couple who loved each other very much. To prove their love, they formed a Blood Pact. It binds the two together, and they cannot hurt each other. This is not a problem for two people who love each other.
The problem came from an ancient tome that Baron Skinner had found.
Skinner is keen on the study of spells, spent a lot of effort researching the book, and learned from it the real name of the magic he and his wife made. The Blood Pact.
"And Skinner and his wife made a Blood Pact." Sean's heart became heavy.
From ancient times to the present, magic contains the power of emotions, including anger, hatred, happiness, and, of course, love. According to records available, love magic seems to have one thing in common, which is using blood as a catalyst of power.
The Blood Pact is like this. With blood as the catalyst, the two people who made the pact cannot hurt each other. As long as there is a little bit of betrayal, the Blood Pact will kill the betrayer.
"I found another function of the Blood Alliance, or rather, is the real function of the magic," Skinner pulled his hair, "The power blinded me…"
In the Ministry of Magic's evaluation of the Blood Pact, there is a that says, "Under unimaginable risks, a huge price will be exchanged for a high return. This is the essence of the Blood Pact'"
Sean's breathing became heavy, and he stared at him, "What is the real function of that magic?"
Skinner whimpered a few times, whether cowardice or guilt and murmured, "There is another contract hidden behind the Blood Pact..."
"Another contract?"
"Yes..." Skinner lowered his head.
"Love is the most powerful force in this world. This is the consensus of many ancient magics. Other emotions are slightly weaker. However, there is a power that is stronger and more terrifying than love. Which is…"
"Hate born from the deepest feeling of love."
Sean's pupils shrank.
Skinner murmured, "When the Blood Pact formed, as long as one person voluntarily gives up this love, deceives oneself with the most powerful memory magic, and leaves the deepest impression on the former lover. That feeling will emerge... and I chose to do that..."
"When the Blood Pact is shattered, the fragments are covered with the blood of hatred, and a new contract begins to take effect. At this time, call back your own love and drink the blood of your lover..."
Skinner looked up at Sean, his eyes were lost in the pendant, and there was endless regret in it.
"Kill your lover with your own hands, let the hatred flow over you as you did to your lover, and you will gain...endless power..."
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