Chapter 23
The two sisters looked exactly alike, with the only difference being the color of their eyes.
Observing their varied reactions, Regulus found it amusing; there's always one twin who is more mature.
"I am Duke Black, newly arrived here. The entire Headless Valley is now under my control. Which of you Miss Cooks is Kerenna? And who is Katalin?"
While Regulus' overall demeanor might appear cold, in this Headless Valley, everyone is rather indifferent, so attitude matters, and Duke Black's manner is sufficiently friendly.
"I am Katalin, and this is my sister Kerenna."
The cute and innocent little girl pointed to the side, and her sister with silver-gray eyes introduced herself eagerly, while her sister nervously clutched the machete.
"Actually, I have another identity; I'm a powerful wizard!"
Regulus Black intentionally disclosed his identity, and the two little girls first expressed surprise, followed by unmistakable delight, clearly indicating that this was the right move.
To further earn the trust of the two girls, Regulus drew his wand and lightly tapped it on their clothes.
"Clean and fresh! Restore to the original!"
In an instant, their dirty and damaged dresses were transformed into clean and neat new outfits.
"So there really is magic!"
The Cook sisters had never truly experienced magic before, and today they were enchanted by it.
"Actually, we can do magic too."
Waving the machete, Kerenna revealed her biggest secret. Realizing this was impolite, she shyly discarded the machete and proudly asserted that she was telling the truth.
"After I came here, I only heard that your eye color was very special. I didn't expect you to be genuinely unique and exceptional wizards."
Regulus did not directly inquire about the magic they could perform but instead praised them again.
"Actually, we can summon the Headless Horseman."
The innocent little Katalin added shyly, then fell silent, feeling embarrassed.
Noticing her uncertain demeanor, Regulus looked back and forth at the differing attitudes of the two sisters.
"Actually, it's like this: we need a recently deceased body, so we haven't made one yet."
"And we don't know if we can do it."
Katalin shyly supplemented her assertive sister Kerenna's statement.
"Aren't you afraid of the Headless Horseman?"
It truly piques curiosity! How did this pair of little girls inherit magic? From Regulus Black's observation, although their physical condition was quite good, it was still slightly inferior to being a dud.
This indicated they had no magical power of their own, and the magic within their bodies came from this Headless Valley, making them wild path wizards who could not leave this area. It was unclear who had left the legacy of the Headless Horseman here, allowing children born in this place to receive the magical rituals related to the creation of the Headless Horseman under the premise of accepting magical power.
"We're not afraid. Since we can remember, we've known we were different from other children. Naturally, everything about the Headless Horseman appeared in our memories, and we can't forget it even if we wanted to."
"Then would you dare to kill?"
Regulus Black probed again; he wanted to see if this legacy would influence their character.
"Never tried, don't know."
"Never thought about it, don't know."
Alright! It's not that they are afraid, but rather they have never tried or thought about it. If they wanted to try, then the legend of the Headless Valley would be reignited.
"Come with me! I need to talk to your mother."
Regulus had not yet figured out how to handle this issue. Although he was eager to find wizards outside the wizarding world, he was somewhat disappointed by what he discovered.
It wasn't that they lacked talent, but such talent had significant limitations and was not very beneficial to him.
Unless... he could significantly transform this talent.
In a western fantasy setting, how could a wizard take away a pair of little girls without coercion?
Would he have to say, "Come, uncle will show you a treasure!"
Of course, that was impossible; he had to eliminate any disharmonious elements.
When the feudal system had not yet collapsed, a large portion of the land worked by serfs belonged to the lord. Although they were not slaves, most people's personal rights were dependent on the lord, and they could be freely bought and sold by the lord.
An inappropriate analogy would be similar to the concept of "legitimate children" often seen in family drama stories: I can make you marry whoever I want, you must die if I say so, and I can give you away if I choose.
The daughters of serfs and tenants can basically be directly sent to the wizard by the lord, and neither of them would likely have the concept of opposition. The free farmers probably wouldn't dare to resist the lord, or rather, they would be even less inclined to offend a wizard.
Moreover, the idea of a poor girl using her beauty to rise to prominence is something that many poor families, both ancient and modern, around the world would entertain; it certainly doesn't exist solely in female-centric literature.
With a wave of his wand, he neatly bundled the firewood cut by the two girls and had it floating behind him.
During this process, the few simple spells used by Regulus had already caused the girls' eyes to sparkle with desire.
Arriving at a house not far from the cemetery, the girls set the floating firewood aside and happily opened the door for their guest.
"Katalin! Kerenna! Is it you who have returned?"
The woman busy in the kitchen was preparing semi-processed ingredients, having heard that important guests were visiting the mayor's house, so the dishes over the next few days would be richer and more upscale.
"Mom! Mom!"
Katalin and Kerenna rushed into their mother's arms, looking very happy.
"Good morning! Mrs. Cook, allow me to introduce myself, I am Duke Black, and I happened to see your daughters upon my arrival here."
Regulus Black displayed absolute noble demeanor and bearing, but instead garnered more hostility from the other party.
"We live at the very back of the town; how did you happen to see my daughters?"
The little girls' mother pulled them behind her, adopting a protective stance like a hen shielding her chicks.
"I still need to go to the mayor's house; the sheriff and the priest are waiting for me there, so I won't disturb you any longer. Farewell!"
Regarding the young lady's hostile attitude, Regulus Black decided to leave without further explanation.
Seeing their mother chase the guest away, the two little girls were somewhat at a loss; that was a wizard! A real wizard!
"Mom, that Duke Black is a wizard, just like us!"
Kerenna tugged at Mrs. Cook's apron, speaking somewhat anxiously.
"That must be a fraud; there are no wizards in this world. You must not have any contact with him in the future, understand!"
Mrs. Cook spoke to her daughters in a fierce tone, frightening them.
"Good morning, Mr. Mayor, Mr. Sheriff, and Father!"
Back at the mayor's house, the three were having morning tea; playing bridge all night had indeed drained their energy, and they all looked somewhat lethargic.
"Good morning! Duke Black, please forgive our rudeness; staying up all night playing bridge is truly exhausting."
Regulus Black was well aware of their condition; those who had been subjected to his soul-stealing and mind-reading spells all night could not possibly be in good spirits. They were not like his own undead body, with stamina, strength, energy, and magical power all at MAX.
"No need to be polite; I am the youngest among us, and it was my oversight not to consider your well-being. I won't stay up all night again."
"Actually, I am quite willing to play bridge with Your Grace."
After downing a large cup of coffee, the mayor quickly expressed that for the pleasure of the Duke, this bit of fatigue was nothing.
"Yes! Yes!"
The sheriff and the priest nodded in agreement from the side. In Regulus Black's view, the effects of the memory adjustment were excellent.
"We mentioned the pair of girls earlier, Katalin Cook and Kerenna Cook; I just went to see them, and I quite like them."
Upon hearing this, the three leaders of the small town all revealed ambiguous smiles.