It's night, and the stars and moon have no light.

Little Hangelton slept in the darkness of the valley that could barely be dissolved. A heavy snowfall had just fallen, and a chill enveloped churches and cemeteries. There is no wind, and everything is as silent as death.

The village is now a well-known attraction, not because of the tranquility and beauty that often pretends in the English countryside, but because of rumours of horror and haunting.

Since the last time the three wizards--- Gatler Drinkwater, Albus Dumbledore, and Tom Riddle fought to the death here, the villagers here have all disappeared overnight.

In that terrible war, Albus and Gatler, two childhood friends, joined forces again after nearly a hundred years, and defeated Voldemort who had just been resurrected by relying on Getler's genius magic, so that the Dark Lord had to give up again to just get the body, and instead adopted a more dangerous and more evil dark magic--- he devoured Nagini's soul and completely turned into a monster.

In the wizarding world, this dark and terrible decisive battle is not known to many wizards, even Andrew Lee only vaguely knows that a terrible battle broke out here, the Death Eaters suffered heavy losses, and other forces, including the Don Order, jointly launched a sniper attack on the Death Eaters.

After that fierce fire, the Death Eaters were in crisis, and many senators, including Malfoy Lucius, secretly believed that Voldemort might never be able to make a comeback. A lot has happened during this short power vacuum.

But to everyone's surprise, not long after this fiasco, Voldemort returned to the wizarding world again, and he became more cautious, many times acting in secret. As the ambitions of the Wizard Army and the Tang Organization continued to expand, the local forces of Wizarding Britain had to shift their attention from the Death Eaters to fight against the erosion of these foreign forces.

This gave the Death Eaters and Voldemort precious breathing time so that the Death Eaters did not fall apart in this situation.

After this period of covert development, Voldemort's men finally recovered somewhat. Tonight Little Hangleston, the church cemetery, will be the starting point for the Death Eaters to rise again.

Suddenly, something crackled, and a yew branch was overwhelmed and crushed.

It's as if some kind of taboo has been broken. The air was suddenly filled with the sound of rustling, the creaking of shoes sinking into the snow, and the whispers that followed.

“…… The master hasn't come yet?"

"It should be soon. ”

Between the tombstone and the forest, there are faintly many figures wearing black robes. The snow was faint, inconspicuously reflected on their hooded, masked faces. Quietly and quickly, they formed a circle.

"It's been a long time since the master has summoned us together...... What is the reason this time?" someone asked, cautiously and curiously.

Before anyone could answer, several more figures descended. Unlike most apparitions, they fly with the wind and land exactly in the innermost position. The last time we had a meeting, there were seven people in that circle, and now it's eleven.

The early arrivals of the Death Eaters gasped in unison. They didn't know anything before they came, but now ......

"It seems that it is still the same reason as before. Lucius Malfoy's voice came from under the hood, "I can't believe it's the fourth time, and it's not even me!" he seemed to try to suppress the annoyance in his tone, but not very successfully.

"Then you should think carefully about what else you have to displease your master. In the inner circle not far from him, a slightly gloating female voice replied, "Or, according to the master, have you paid off your thirteen years of debt?"

Although everyone is masked, there is only one woman in the inner circle, Bellatrix Lestrange.

This wasn't the first time this had happened, and Malfoy grew more and more indignant. "Don't you still want to do your old ways?"

"What do you mean by 'moving my old ways'?" Bellatrix said in a steep voice, visibly irritated, "Do you, like Snape, want to call our noble act of being willing to go to jail for the Dark Lord stupid?" she grunted angrily, "I hope you remember why Snape isn't here!"

There are at least four people in the inner circle who turn their faces in unison. Under those scrutinizing gazes, Malfoy suddenly fell silent.

Not far from Malfoy, a short wizard with a long neck retracted. He shook slightly, his silver hand hanging quietly, and the fingers on the other side were nervously twisted together.

More Death Eaters were trying to figure out the empty seats among them, so they could guess who the new four lucky ones were. But perhaps the answer to this question is already clear - among the ten Death Eaters who had escaped from prison.

Malfoy apparently backed down halfway, but that didn't appease Bellatrix's anger. "Speaking of which, Lucius, I suspect you've made even more mistakes than Snape. "If that is the case," she said bitterly, "I advise you to dispel that unnecessary expectation as soon as possible—perhaps you will never be able to receive your master's forgiveness in your life." What's more, can you really give everything for your master, even if you abandon your family name?"

Receiving more suspicion from this, Malfoy couldn't hold back and tried to defend himself. "I ......"

But he had just said a word when he was interrupted. "Quiet. Another man spoke. He stood straight near Bellatrix, and his tone was cold: "You don't want the master to say this, do you?"

Adam Bedwell – essentially Barty Crouch Jr. – was the first Death Eater to be identified as pure loyalty, closest to the Dark Lord, and most highly regarded by the Dark Lord......

Malfoy was instantly silent. Bellatrix glanced at little Crouch and shut his mouth in a daze, jealousy far more than resentment.

However, it turns out that Crouch Jr. did get his estimate right. Before his words had completely dissipated, a new, flying figure appeared on the horizon.

Everyone instantly knelt down in unison. The figure quickly landed in the center of the circle, and the Death Eaters took turns kneeling forward, kissing the corners of the man's black robes and muttering words of allegiance.

"Get up. Voldemort said, his eyes wandering. "Everyone was timely, and Voldemort was relieved. ”

There was a low wave of voices, and many people answered "my pleasure" at the same time.

Voldemort looked satisfied. He was the only one in the room who did not cover his face with a hood or mask, and his voice was not as deep as the others pierced through the metal, and even clear, and yet no one dared to raise his head at him. "I didn't tell you before, but I think you should already know why when you get here?"

There was another round of sound, and the "yes" mixed with jealousy or nervousness was mixed with one after another. Their breath condensed into a mist under the influence of the cold, visibly heavier than before.

As expected, Voldemort silently hooked the corners of his mouth. "I'm happy to tell you that this time, four people passed the test. They were willing to give all their allegiance to Voldemort. Voldemort never treated those who helped him, and they deserved to be rewarded for their loyalty—" he said, his voice imperceptibly accentuated with his arms outstretched, "new life, power, and most importantly, power!"

Before the words fell, all eleven people in the inner circle knelt down. "We thank you for your generosity, host!" they replied in unison.

Voldemort waved his hand slightly. An invisible force swept through the air, and as if something was holding them under their knees, they rose to their feet again. "Come to me, August," he commanded softly, "and the other three, all come—"

Four Death Eaters responded. Voldemort waved his hand again, and some orbs that emitted green light, like water droplets, instantly appeared in the air, floating and spinning, faintly illuminating the four silver masks with similar patterns. "Let's all see—" His voice was still soft, but anyone could hear it, "Bowes, Geraint, Ranmarlock, and Mordred—do you remember?"

The last sentence was clearly addressed to most Death Eaters. They stared at the masks and nodded.

"As before, some of you will receive my orders from the four of them. Voldemort continued, "You know how to tell if it's true or not. ”

There was almost no sound at this moment, and the lowered head spread out like a wave.

"Since I chose them, it means that I absolutely trust them. Voldemort added, "But if you have any doubts about the command, you can still summon me alone—if and only if you deem it necessary." ”

The third silent nod, no one dared to object.

Voldemort was satisfied. "Any questions?" he waved again. The glowing green droplets vanished, and the new Four Horsemen retreated to their original positions.

There was a silence, and finally Malfoy, who was still unwilling, broke it: "Master, I want to ......" He seemed to be carefully considering his words, "are we honored to know that there will be new knights joining?"

Voldemort glanced at him, smiling rather than smiling. "If only they could prove themselves. ”

Not sure or negative, but Malfoy choked a little. Before he could come up with the next sentence, someone interjected in a hurry: "Is there any exact standard, master?"

Voldemort turned his head. "Oh, Wormtail. He muttered the word slowly, his tone playful, "You seem to care about this?"

"I'm sure everyone cares about this, master. Wormtail muttered in reply, indignant, "If there's a standard, then I'd ......."

Voldemort wasn't going to finish listening. "Are you trying to say you're up for it, Wormtail?" he interrupted coldly and began pacing in that direction.

As if he didn't expect Voldemort to be so straightforward, Wormtail paused. Every silver mask around him turned towards him, and the tension he hadn't hidden before was swelling and fermenting. "I want to ...... I should...... Yes. He held out his silver hand tremblingly, "I helped you...... I give my hand for your resurrected flesh. ”

As soon as these words came out, almost everyone held their breath.

Voldemort didn't answer until he stopped in front of the short man. "Oh?" he said softly, "do you think the silver hand is not good, or do you think Voldemort is too stingy to repay you with the silver hand?"

The field was audible with pins dropping, and the Death Eater's gaze in the inner circle made the worm's tail feel like it was stinging in the back. "No, no, master," he replied hurriedly, almost panicking, "I don't think so!" The little courage he had managed to build up seemed to be almost exhausted when Voldemort stood in front of him.

"I can understand your thoughts, Wormtail. Voldemort sneered, "You can't go back to your friends, because you're a shameful traitor." When your little transfiguration trick is revealed, you can only count on me to give you a new identity-" He dragged out the syllables, "The resurrection of Voldemort cannot be said to be a merit-"

The worm's tail sniffed a hint of possibility, and unconsciously raised its head, its watery little eyes full of hope.

But Voldemort wasn't looking at him. "But are you sure?" he asked, his tone cold and strangely demagoguery, "if you had everything I gave you, you would still stay with me and work for me?"

"Of course, master, of course!" Wormtail hurriedly knelt down, and his unexpected answer made him change his tune with joy, and kissed Voldemort's black robe desperately, "If I can get rid of the shackles of this body, of course I will serve you more faithfully, master!"

Voldemort snorted. "I'll think about it. He stepped away, not caring that the worm's tail slammed into the ground and nibbled on a mouthful of snow. "That's the end of today's meeting," he said, as his figure had turned into a thick fog, "and you may go." ”

Seeing the Dark Lord fly away from the hillside, some people couldn't wait to apparition, including Wormtail. But more people stayed, hoping to get a piece or two of information from the Dark Lord's henchmen in order to curry favor with the Dark Lord.

"Is it true, master?" asked Malfoy, incredulously, "how can Wormtail be a knight with one hand?"

Bellatrix immediately said, "From this alone, I agree with you. She stared eerily at where Wormtail's was already empty, "If he gets a chance to get rid of that body, he'll take the opportunity to escape." ”

This was echoed by several Death Eaters. As they spoke, they looked at the inner circle of Death Eaters, and then followed the gazes to the relatively quiet, but obviously significant, little Crouch.

Bellatrix also noticed. Although she was confident in her reasoning, even she had to admit that when it came to figuring out the Dark Lord's intentions, no matter how unwilling she was, Crouch Jr. was the best. "What do you think, Barty?" she asked.

Little Crouch also stared at the empty space at Wormtail. He seemed thoughtful - Andrew didn't have insight into Voldemort's new plans, and now that Voldemort had the upper hand again---- Barty Jr. replied after a while, his tone calm to almost cold: "For Wormtail, the silver hand is enough." ”

This clearly meant something, and the rest of the Death Eaters looked at each other. Is the Silver Hand enough?Is the Dark Lord just a casual shuffle? Or is the Silver Hand more than just the Silver Hand?