Regarding the events that had transpired in Britain, Nicolas, while not directly involved, had learned the general information through various channels.
Among these, much came from his friend across the ages, Albus Dumbledore.
As a direct participant in the intense conflict in Britain, Dumbledore certainly knew many details unknown to the public.
Sometimes, when troubled by certain matters, he would write to his close friend Nicolas, seeking his opinion.
Therefore, Nicolas was well aware of the existence of the prophecy, how the Potters went into hiding, how Voldemort found their home, and who the public believed was the informant.
But now, Sirius was clearly about to tell him a story of betrayal and loyalty completely different from the one circulated outside.
Sirius, who had thought he had personally ended his enemy, had intended to bury this secret deep in his heart, never to tell anyone else for the rest of his life.
However, the repeated near-misses in his pursuit of Severus and Harry these days, always falling just short, had plunged his heart into a huge gap and struggle.
Just as Nicolas had said, he was unwilling to leave without any clues. After wasting so much time and taking so many risks in France, he had to gain something.
And mixed within this was a hidden desire deep in Sirius's heart, the hope that someone would understand his innocence and comprehend what he had truly done, something even Sirius himself wasn't fully aware of.
In the quiet study, Sirius quickly began to tell Nicolas the truth about that past betrayal.
He explained that initially, he himself was the Potters' designated Secret-Keeper. But later, thinking himself clever, he believed that since everyone would guess he was the most likely candidate, he could transfer the role to Peter Pettigrew.
Pettigrew was the real traitor.
He had long ago, out of fear of Voldemort, submitted to him and become one of his loyal servants.
After obtaining the role of Secret-Keeper, Pettigrew did not hesitate to betray the Potters' location to Voldemort.
Then, the tragedy of that night occurred.
Sirius, upon learning of this, went nearly insane searching for Pettigrew, hunting him down!
During the chase, Pettigrew used an extremely powerful dark magic spell, blowing up an entire street and causing the deaths of those thirteen Muggles.
Immediately after, under the effect of a curse from Sirius, nothing was left of him except a severed finger.
After achieving this revenge, Sirius could not forgive his own mistake. He allowed the Aurors to arrest him and offered no defense when the then-head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Barty Crouch Sr., sent him to Azkaban without a trial and sentenced him to life imprisonment.
It wasn't until recently, on the day the half-crippled werewolf Fenrir Greyback was imprisoned in Azkaban, that Sirius learned about Severus's recent actions in the Wizarding World and discovered that he had taken Harry.
"He could never be genuinely remorseful!" Sirius said finally, becoming restless in his chair. He had told Nicolas everything he could, and of course hoped Nicolas would believe him.
"I saw through that Snivellus back in our school days! He's a bad seed by nature! He willingly associated with those evil-doers, just like my brother!"
"James's wife, Lily, was once his friend too! She pleaded with Snivellus countless times, begging him to break away from those people, to stop his dark magic research, only to be spat at and called a Mudblood by him!"
"How could someone like that suddenly repent! He was Voldemort's most loyal dog! And a master actor! He's fooled Dumbledore! Fooled the British Ministry! Fooled Harry! Fooled Remus! Fooled you! Fooled everyone!"
Sirius's face was flushed. He looked at Nicolas with utmost sincerity and did not continue.
Clearly, he had said all he could. Now, Sirius only hoped that this man who had lived over six hundred years would trust him.
Whether he could help clear his name and overturn the conviction, Sirius didn't care about at all. What he truly cared about was that he needed Nicolas to help him find Severus and Harry!
Under Sirius's gaze, Nicolas was thinking. He placed his hands calmly in front of him. After about ten seconds, he spoke.
"My view of Severus Snape is somewhat different from yours."
"I haven't seen the young Severus, but the Severus I met in Paris is not the hidden, disguised, utterly villainous person you describe."
Hearing Nicolas's stance, disappointment was evident on Sirius's face.
He didn't understand how much poison Severus had fed these people to make so many trust him, including figures like Dumbledore and Nicolas Flamel.
But just as his heart filled with dejection and he prepared to take his leave for good, Nicolas's next words made him look up again.
"But regarding the story you told earlier, I mean the part about Peter Pettigrew being the true betrayer, I am willing to believe you, Mr. Sirius."
Nicolas said seriously.
The air was quiet for a few seconds. Then, the previously silent Sirius spoke again. He took a deep breath, suppressing the emotion of being trusted, and said with great agitation,
"But what use is you believing that! You don't believe me when I say that bastard Snape is a fraud!"
"You said the boy he has with him, named Harry Potter, is actually using the alias Dudley Dursley, correct?"
Nicolas asked calmly.
As if infected by his demeanor, Sirius restrained his inner turmoil, trying to calm down.
"Yes, Snape disguised him! Hid the scar on his forehead, and changed the color of his eyes! He should have had bright green eyes, just like his mother!"
"Among your accusations against Severus just now, one was that Severus keeps Harry Potter by his side and is persecuting him as revenge against his father and mother?"
"I saw the letter that Malfoy's little brat wrote to his parents!" At this, Sirius could no longer suppress himself… his voice began to rise, "In the letter, he described in detail how he abuses Harry and makes him submit! It must be true!"
Regarding this, Nicolas still shook his head.
"Severus and Remus brought the two children to visit my home. They were both very good to the children. Harry Potter didn't show any signs of being mistreated. So, I still can't reconcile the people I know with the ones you describe."
"But I have always believed that the most effective way to resolve misunderstandings is communication."
Sirius, who had been feeling frustrated and helpless due to Nicolas's disbelief, stared intently at Nicolas upon hearing this.
"How do we communicate? I don't know where they are now!"
Nicolas saw the expectation in his eyes. Regarding this, he just smiled and didn't speak immediately.
Sirius seemed to discern something from his smile. His previously rapid breathing stopped completely until Nicolas spoke again.
"Actually, I don't know where they went either."
Bang!
The sound of a chair falling over echoed in the study. Sirius stood up abruptly, glaring angrily at Nicolas.
"You're toying with me!"
Nicolas laughed heartily like an old child. He waved his hand.
"Don't be agitated, I haven't finished. I truly don't know where they are, but I can help you find them, provided you agree to one thing."
Sirius felt that these famous, ancient wizards were all the same, whether Dumbledore or Nicolas… they liked to do this.
But hearing Nicolas's subsequent words, he still controlled his emotions.
"What thing?"
"You must give me the wand you took from that Auror lady. I will take you to find Severus and the others. But no matter what, you must first sit down and communicate. If the outcome of the communication proves you right, I will help you. But if it proves you wrong, you must listen to me."
Nicolas's condition made Sirius silent for a long time. Finally, as if he had no better option, he looked up and agreed.
"As long as you can guarantee your promise holds, I agree."
A smile reappeared on Nicolas's face. He gestured towards the bookshelf behind Sirius. The next moment, an old piece of parchment flew from the shelf into his hand.
"Actually, finding Severus is quite easy. Haven't you noticed that wherever he is recently, major events seem to happen?"
Sirius's face darkened. Just hearing the name made his expression turn sour.
"He's preparing for his master's return, of course he's involved in big things!"
"Perhaps it is as you say. Or perhaps, he is actually engaged in another significant matter."
By now, Nicolas had unrolled the parchment in his hand. It was an old, hand-drawn map of Europe.
On the map, a silvery, mercury-like droplet flowed in the center.
As Nicolas opened the parchment, the mercury droplet began to disperse, splitting into countless droplets of varying sizes.
The mercury particles flowed across the parchment. Finally, the largest one settled on a region within Albania's location.
And at that moment, that mercury droplet suddenly burst. Above the parchment, under the shimmering silver light, an image appeared!
It was a mural of a knight and three witches cheering and celebrating around a spring.
…
After turning away and closing his eyes, Severus did not look at the mural again.
The three Albanian Aurors beside him, who had also reacted according to his warning, turned and ran back with him.
But just as they approached the narrow passage they had come through, Severus suddenly stopped.
"We can't go back the same way! The space is too narrow! If whatever is behind us is faster, we won't even be able to cast spells properly. It will trap us inside and kill us all!"
As his words fell, Kabunara also reacted. He tried to Apparate but found that Anti-Apparition Jinxes existed in this underground chamber… they couldn't escape!
"We can't retreat! Apparition is useless! Our only way to escape it is to kill it!"
Severus was already moving. He tore a strip of cloth from the corner of his robe and quickly blindfolded himself.
"Blindfold yourselves! It's a Basilisk! Under no circumstances should you look at its-"
Before he could finish, a pungent, foul odor made all the hairs on Severus's body stand on end.
The next second, he acted decisively, aiming in the direction of the stench and incanting a spell.
"Bombarda Maxima!"
Boom!
Blazing fire erupted in front of Severus. Directly ahead, in the direction his blinded vision couldn't see, the Basilisk, which had already opened its gaping maw and was charging at Severus to swallow him whole, suddenly suffered a massive explosion inside its mouth!
The powerful blast forced its massive body back. The inside of its mouth, lacking the highly magic-resistant protection of its outer skin, was clearly injured by the explosion. Foul, fishy smell of blood continuously flowed from its mouth.
But this didn't make the giant, pure-white Basilisk feel fear… instead, it became even more enraged!
It thrashed its limbs wildly. Its body, far larger than even the biggest dragon, the Ukrainian Ironbelly, writhed in the confined space, causing the ground to tremble violently as if an magnitude 8 earthquake had struck.
Amidst this turmoil, one of the blindfolded Albanian Aurors, shouting, cast a spell towards the source of the sound.
However, the spell hitting the Basilisk's scales produced no effect whatsoever.
This action instead drew the Basilisk's attention to him!
The massive creature displayed astonishing agility.
The Auror who had cast the spell only felt a wave of foul-smelling wind hit his face.
The next moment, his entire body felt as if it had been thrown into a grinder. Sharp fangs pierced through him like a ragdoll, shredding his body!
Though he couldn't hear screams, the sound of flesh and bone being chewed was unbearably loud and smelling the thick blood now diffusing in the air, Severus understood…
The Basilisk hiding in this chamber had lived far too long. It was no longer an ordinary Basilisk.
Normal spells simply couldn't harm it.
Unless-
-they were special spells, ones not tolerated by the general public.