SWDnovel Chapter 118 Revealing My Identity
Chapter 118 Revealing My Identity
Chapter 118 Revealing My Identity
The cold metal tip of the cane struck the rough rocky ground, producing a crisp, lonely "tap, tap" sound that echoed exceptionally clearly in the impenetrable space, drowning out the faint sound of distant waves, as if striking directly at everyone's heart.
Under the watchful eyes of everyone present, the hangman walked steadily and unhurriedly across the hall, finally stopping beside the high-backed chair at the head of the table.
He did not sit down immediately, but instead extended his hand, which was gloved with black, and gently stroked the intricate and exquisite carvings on the back of the chair with his fingertips.
Suddenly, he spoke, his calm voice breaking the silence and clearly reaching everyone's ears:
What is the First Order?
The moment the question was posed, it was as if a pre-set mechanism had been triggered.
Everyone in the hall, whether seated at the stone table or on the stone benches, immediately began to roar in unison, as if they had rehearsed countless times. The sounds converged into a single wave of noise throughout the hall.
"A wizard is a wizard!"
Beneath the mask, after the unanimous reply, Lin Qi suddenly let out a short, soft laugh.
"Heh." There was little warmth in his laughter; instead, it carried a chilling sense of relief and a deeper scrutiny. "It's alright, you still remember our initial aspirations. It seems your problems are more serious than I imagined..." He paused, his gaze sweeping across the room with an almost tangible intensity, "...but at least, there's still hope."
The moment he finished speaking, his attire vanished like black smoke—the metal bird-beak mask, the top hat,
The black trench coats all disappeared without a trace, revealing a man underneath wearing an exquisite suit, with black hair and black eyes, a young face but with a composure and sharpness that did not match his age.
This sudden change caused the air in the hall to freeze for a moment.
Almost everyone held their breath for a moment.
A faint yet clearly audible gasp filled the air, mixed with the rustling of clothes—the sound of many people instinctively shifting their posture or leaning forward in shock.
The gazes that had been fixed on the terrifying mask of the "hanger" were now all focused on that overly young face.
Doubt, shock, and disbelief flowed wildly in the silent exchange of glances.
The wizards and witches gathered here all suffered deeply during the war when Voldemort attempted to seize power.
It could be that one is on the verge of despair, or that the lives of loved ones have been cruelly taken away.
It was these shared pains and disillusionment with the old order that drew them together from all corners of the world, uniting them in the "First Order."
Under the banner.
Most importantly, it is the recently vanished terrifying title of "The Mist Hangman" and the revenge and promise of order it represented.
For many of them, the figure before them, stripped of its disguise, was a far cry from the memory of that person who existed between the killing curse and dark magic.
The image of a redeemer, appearing like a ghost and taking the lives of the dark wizards who had harmed them, created a violent clash.
Many of them, even most of them, never imagined that the "Mist Hangman," who struck fear into the hearts of countless people, would be such a young man who looked to be only in his twenties.
How old was he more than ten years ago?
Was he really the hangman?
The silence in the hall became more complex, no longer just awe, but mixed with intense surprise and curiosity.
However, Lin Qi seemed oblivious to the unseen commotion. He didn't give everyone time to process the shock, and plopped down in the exquisite chair, leaning forward slightly and resting his elbows on the cold stone table.
"First, let me introduce myself," he began, his voice no longer filtered by the mask, returning to its original tone. "My name is Jim Lynch, and I am currently a professor of magical studies at Hogwarts."
"But you are certainly more familiar with my other name—'The Mist Hangman'."
He was relaxed, as if he were chatting casually, but his eyes were sharp as knives.
"But no matter how names and identities may change, the reason you are here with me has never changed."
"We established the 'First Order' and the Stone Tower Merchant Guild to shatter that outdated bloodline order! To build a fairer, more efficient new world that can truly protect every wizard!"
He abruptly changed the subject, his tone turning cold and his gaze becoming more targeted: "And that's precisely why some things that happen right under our noses seem all the more unforgivable."
"Last school year, I discovered something very interesting at Hogwarts... Someone tampered with the potion ingredients supplied to the school, using inferior materials and lowering the quality."
His gaze slowly swept over the faces around the stone table.
"At first, I hoped it was a private matter involving some merchants, but when I followed the trail, what I found was even more disappointing."
"It ultimately points to our own inner circle, to one or more of us here."
"Clearly... some have been blinded by the luxuries of life and the flowing Galleons, corrupting their initial aspirations upon joining, forgetting that 'a wizard is a wizard' is not just a slogan, but a goal we were determined to achieve from the very beginning! You've started to emulate those pure-blood families, playing the game of internal strife and lining your own pockets!"
His voice wasn't loud, but every word struck like a hammer, hitting some people's nerves.
"Mr. Hound," Lynch called out, "please read what you've found out to everyone."
Mr. Hound, Anthony Walker whom Lynch had met in the factory district a year earlier, stood up from the stone bench, holding a roll of parchment in his hand.
His voice was steady and clear as he began to read out the investigation results one by one in the eerily silent hall: time, place, goods handled, differences in quality that were replaced, hidden flow of funds, and the private treasury account to which the funds were ultimately deposited. With each piece of evidence he read out, a sorcerer sitting in an ornate chair next to the stone table, his fingers began to tremble slightly uncontrollably.
When Anthony finally uttered the name without any emotion, he jumped up as if electrocuted, his face turning deathly pale.
"Your Excellency! I...I can explain! It's not...—"
However, he was interrupted before he could finish speaking.
Lin Qi didn't speak, but simply extended a finger and gently placed it in front of his lips.
"Shh!"
An extremely simple movement, a breath so light it's almost inaudible.
The sorcerer felt as if an invisible hand had gripped his throat; all his words of explanation were instantly stuck in his throat, leaving only his lips moving in vain, and his forehead was instantly covered in cold sweat.
He stood frozen in place, not daring to make another sound.
Lynch withdrew his finger and gave Anthony a subtle nod.