"Is that Quirrell?"
Adrian quickly cast a Disillusionment Charm on himself and hid behind a pillar at the entrance of a nearby shop.
Quirrell, or rather Voldemort, was slowly walking out of Knockturn Alley.
His entire body was covered in a black robe, his face hidden in shadow.
However, his signature purple turban had already revealed his identity.
That was why Adrian could recognize him at first glance.
Voldemort passed by Adrian without any hesitation, completely unaware that someone was lurking in the corner, secretly observing him.
Soon, Voldemort's figure disappeared from Adrian's sight.
'What was Voldemort doing in Diagon Alley? Shopping?'
Adrian couldn't help but be curious.
However, he chose not to follow Voldemort—the risk and uncertainty were too great.
Perhaps investigating Knockturn Alley would be a better option.
Adrian made a quick decision, canceling the Disillusionment Charm and taking out a prepared bottle of Polyjuice Potion from his inner pocket.
After drinking the potion, Adrian transformed into a middle-aged man with stubble—the kind who wouldn't stand out in a crowd.
To be safe, Adrian also transfigured his robe into a black cloak that covered his limbs and face.
After completing these preparations, Adrian emerged from behind the pillar and walked toward Knockturn Alley.
Strolling through Knockturn Alley was not a pleasant experience.
The dark, damp alley was filled with the stench of mold and decay, and the stone path beneath his feet was sticky and slippery.
Adrian had to carefully avoid suspicious dark stains on the ground, which might have been vomit or something worse.
He even spotted several pairs of reddish eyes in a shadowy side alley.
Fortunately, he wasn't accosted or attacked by any strange characters.
A moment later, Adrian arrived at the entrance of Borgin and Burkes.
This was an antique shop run by Mr. Borgin and Mr. Burke, the most famous one in Knockturn Alley.
However, the shop owners didn't make their money from antiques, but rather from shady transactions and selling items infused with dark magic.
Adrian could only describe the items inside with one phrase: they looked frightening, but most were useless junk.
At this moment, what caught Adrian's attention wasn't the jumble of dark magic items, but a figure he spotted through a gap in the window.
'Lucius Malfoy.'
Adrian recognized him as soon as he saw that pale blond hair.
To gather more information, Adrian boldly pushed open the door of Borgin and Burkes.
Polyjuice Potion truly was a wonderful thing.
The shop owner was engrossed in conversation with Lucius and didn't paid attention to Adrian's entrance.
So, Adrian pretended to browse the merchandise on the shelves.
The items in Borgin and Burkes were extremely disorganized, with almost every corner of each shelf crammed with goods.
When Adrian reached the shelf closest to Lucius, their conversation finally reached his ears.
"...have everything packed and delivered within a week, except for the unicorn blood," Lucius said impassively. "Don't try anything clever, or you know what will happen."
"Of course, Mr. Malfoy," the shop owner said fawningly, rubbing his hands together. "Don't worry, when have I ever tried to pull one over on you? But you know, those items require a large sum of money, so a deposit is needed first. As for the price..."
Hearing this, Lucius felt like cursing.
Based on past transactions, he knew the goods he received would definitely have some flaws—that was how Borgin and Burkes operated; the shopkeeper would find ways to fleece his customers.
Thinking about this, Lucius couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
Not long ago, the man who frequently appeared in his nightmares had come to find him.
When Lucius learned of Voldemort's return, his heart had almost stopped beating.
Although Voldemort was currently in a weakened state, Lucius didn't dare to be negligent.
Having been a Death Eater for so long, he was well aware of Voldemort's terror. He knew that as long as Voldemort was alive, there was a chance he could rise again.
It was worth noting that in Voldemort's eyes, he was not loyal. Those truly loyal Death Eaters were still in Azkaban, keeping company with the Dementors.
Fortunately, Voldemort didn't need his loyalty.
The reason Voldemort had sought him out was simple—Galleons.
Yes, Voldemort had ordered him to prepare many precious items to replenish energy, including unicorn blood.
That was why he was in this shop.
Although the shopkeeper was a greedy merchant, there was no denying that he could procure many rare items that were difficult to find elsewhere.
Of course, unicorn blood was still unavailable for purchase.
Adrian overheard the conversation between the two, and combining it with the recent strange activities in the Forbidden Forest, he easily guessed what had happened.
Voldemort needed valuable materials to prevent his body from deteriorating further, so he had approached Lucius.
Lucius had no particularly admirable qualities, except that he was wealthy.
The power of Galleons was truly formidable.
At this point, the conversation between Lucius and the shopkeeper ended, as Lucius dropped a rather large bag and left.
From the sound it made, it appeared to be a bag full of Galleons.
After receiving the deposit, the shopkeeper naturally turned his attention to Adrian, who was wandering between the shelves. He walked up to Adrian and said, "Hello, customer. I am one of the owners of this shop. You can call me Borgin."
Adrian nodded and casually replied, "Hello, Borgin."
Borgin had shiny, greasy hair that hung beside his face.
Adrian found this appearance somewhat comical, but to be polite, he didn't laugh out loud.
Borgin slowly approached Adrian until Adrian could clearly smell the greasy odor emanating from him.
"Actually," Borgin said with slight displeasure, "in this shop, you need to show your face."
Adrian hadn't heard of this rule, but he still removed the hood he was wearing.
After all, his current face was fake.
"That's better," Borgin smiled slightly and said to Adrian, "Customer, do you need to buy or sell something? Hmm... even those difficult-to-handle items are acceptable."
Perhaps because he had just completed a major transaction, Borgin was in high spirits and enthusiastically introduced Adrian to various odd items.
These included a withered human hand, a bald head mannequin, a strangely shaped bone...
Under Mr. Borgin's strong recommendation, Adrian actually bought the withered human hand.
Finally, Adrian left the shop carrying the hand.
"Finally got rid of that thing..."
Borgin's pleased muttering could be heard from inside the shop.
Adrian remained silent for a moment.
To be honest, this was one of the few useful items he could find at Borgin and Burkes.
The withered hand was called the Hand of Glory, a dark magic item that, when inserted with a candle, would only allow the person holding it to see the candlelight. This light could even penetrate magical invisibility smoke bombs.
Of course, Adrian didn't know in what scenario he would use this item.
Perhaps he could place it in his office to give Harry a scare when he visited.
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