"...You can start."
The long-awaited signal finally came from afar. The man who had been called "the Devil" decades ago, along with the core strength of the Alliance, would be tied up at that manor. There was no way they could suddenly Apparate back.
Oh, right… it should be called Apparition.
The man with high cheekbones corrected himself mentally, a hint of a triumphant smile playing on his lips.
He put down the phone and nodded to the person beside him. The young man slammed down a red button.
A mechanized female voice announced, "Launch sequence initiated: 3, 2, 1, 0!"
A black shell, trailing a blazing tail flame, pierced through the air and flew off, leaving a white smoke trail behind it.
As it rose into the sky, its previously unhindered speed abruptly slowed, as if encountering an invisible obstruction.
The next second, the ordnance exploded with a bang, and an invisible wave surged outwards!
The instrument in the young man's hand was the first to react—the glowing display screen suddenly went dark, and all the indicator lights beside it turned black. He tapped the keyboard twice, but nothing happened.
He clicked his tongue, tossed the useless instrument aside, and looked up at the distance.
A strong wind, carrying snowflakes, blew directly at them, making it almost impossible to open their eyes. The man with high cheekbones shielded his face with his hand, squinting, and through the gaps in his fingers, he saw a marvelous sight—
The invisible air seemed to shatter like glass, and web-like cracks spread downwards, refracting fragmented, radiating light, like trees growing upside down.
At one point, the spiderweb suddenly shattered and vanished, turning into specks of light, like ice crystals in the air on a snowy morning, refracting the rising sun.
Amidst the scattered lights, a massive castle seemed to appear out of thin air, like a giant beast growing from the rock.
The dark grey outer walls gleamed with a metallic coldness, and the main keep's spires looked at least a hundred feet tall. The surrounding moat was also thirty or forty feet wide, its surface already thickly frozen, and oak drawbridges were connected by iron chains as thick as arms.
Everyone held their breath.
Such a massive and majestic structure, even in modern society, still inspired awe, let alone in ancient times, where it would have seemed like an irresistible Giant.
And just ten seconds ago, the distance had been nothing but ruins, without even a single complete wall.
"Magic…"
The young man said, full of yearning and awe.
Then, the man with high cheekbones waved his hand and shouted, "Attack!"
The truck's tailgate instantly clattered down, and slender cannon barrels extended. Fully armed soldiers stood by, operating them manually. The next moment, a roar sounded, and countless shells flew menacingly towards the castle!
…
For Wawerlett, today was a day he couldn't focus on work.
The little one he favored had been taken away by Grindelwald, and he didn't know if they would return safely. His obedient apprentices had also been taken away; a group of Alchemists, who weren't even good at running, wouldn't be able to run as fast as others. He hoped they would all hide well on the battlefield.
Ever since everyone left, Wawerlett had paced his room dozens of times. Finally, he opened his treasure vault, took out his cherished Potions, and meticulously counted them bottle by bottle before placing them on the table.
Once they all returned, there would surely be injured youngsters who could use them…
Wawerlett tried to calm himself this way, while also worrying if there would be many casualties again, just like before.
Suddenly, his arm trembled, and his whole body felt an indescribable stinging sensation, like being stung by a scorpion, but it was so quick it felt like an illusion, vanishing in the blink of an eye.
*CRACK!*
A bottle of healing Potion floating in the air fell to the ground. Fortunately, the crystal bottle was of excellent quality and didn't shatter; it just rolled around twice.
Wawerlett lifted a finger, making the bottle float again. After placing it back on the table, he looked at his arm in confusion.
Why would my Magical Power suddenly go out of control? Am I suffering from some incurable disease?
Wawerlett snapped his fingers again, and the flames in the fireplace suddenly shot up a notch, as if everything had returned to normal.
No… it wasn't quite the same as usual…
For some reason, the flames in the fireplace were brighter than usual, and there was a strange whooshing sound.
Wawerlett saw his shadow on the ground shifting with the light, and belatedly realized the light was actually coming from behind him… from outside the window.
He turned his head and saw the sky glowing with an eerie green light, and countless shells, trailing fire, flying towards the castle!
"Enemy attack—!"
Someone screamed in a tearing voice!
The next moment, the shells hit the castle, glass shattered instantly, and the massive shockwave knocked Wawerlett to the ground, slamming him against a cabinet, blood streaming from his forehead.
Wawerlett's vision blurred, and his ears rang. He propped himself up slightly from the floor, seeing only rubble and dust swirling in the air. His Wand accidentally slipped from his grasp, flying and rolling under the workbench.
Fortunately, the castle's stone walls were thick enough, and had been reinforced by generations of Wizards. After a round of shelling, the castle still stood strong, with only a few areas blasted away.
For a moment, Wawerlett could barely hear anything. He crawled over, grabbed his Wand, and swept all the Potions into a box. Suddenly, the door burst open.
A Witch with a terrified expression rushed in. She pulled Wawerlett up from the ground, frantically and fearfully telling him something, but Wawerlett couldn't hear a word.
"I can't hear you!" the old man shouted. "What are you saying? I can't hear you! What's happening outside?"
The Witch with the bun said something else, then dragged Wawerlett and ran out quickly.
The main force of the Alliance had left with Grindelwald. At this moment, almost all that remained in the castle were the old, weak, and sick, as well as the wounded and dead who had recently been sent back from the battlefield.
The entire castle had descended into chaos. Wizards screamed and ran in all directions, some injured and covered in blood, being dragged away by their companions as they fled for their lives.
"Wait! Wait!"
Wawerlett forcefully pushed the Witch's hand away, trembling as he pulled Potions from his case. With a flick of his Wand, he distributed them all to the injured.
He downed a bottle himself, and the Potions worked instantly. Soon, Wawerlett heard countless chaotic voices.
"Muggles! It's the Muggle army!"
"How did they find us? The castle clearly has a concealment charm and a Muggle-Repelling Charm!"
"All the protective charms are failing! Where's Mr. Grindelwald? When will they be back?"
"He's dying! Someone help me!"
"Calm down! Calm down! Everyone go to the basement! Run to the basement!"
A strange whistling sound rang out again, like countless Hippogriffs howling in unison. Everyone's faces paled, knowing that another round of bombardment had arrived!
"*Protego Tota!*"
"*Iron Shield Charm!*"
"*Impedimenta!*"
The Wizards threw out a jumble of Spells, Magical Power flickering, but their eyes were filled with fear and despair.
Suddenly, the window flashed!
The next second, a thunderous explosion sounded, shattering all the castle's glass. A searing storm swept along the corridor, even letting out a howling whine.
The originally eerie corridor was lit up like day, casting long shadows behind the people. The stone walls rustled with the vibrations, and a piece of gravel rolled from a high window ledge.
But…
No one else was injured or killed, and the walls didn't collapse further.
Outside the window, it was still very bright and hot, but the shells seemed to explode before hitting the castle.
"Wh-What happened?"
Someone asked softly.
Wawerlett swallowed, pushed away the young man who was protecting him, and walked to the window, looking out through the narrow opening.
The suddenly bright light rapidly contracted. A golden-red bird spread its wings and flew, its fiery body two or three times larger than a Hippogriff.
"What is that?" A younger Witch cried out in surprise, "Is… is it a Phoenix?"
Speaking of Phoenixes, Dumbledore naturally came to mind. He was the only known Wizard in the Wizarding World to own a Phoenix as a pet, and the strongest Wizard trusted and admired even by his enemies.
Wawerlett paused, then shook his head. "No, Dumbledore's Phoenix is much… much smaller than that…"
Wawerlett froze before he could finish speaking.
In the distance, where the Muggle army was gathered, black mist surged, directly flipping several trucks and tossing screaming soldiers into the air.
It was a pure, destructive force… the power Grindelwald had sought for the first half of his life.
—An Obscurus.
Wawerlett silently repeated the name in his mind, too shocked to speak, completely unable to understand how this scene was unfolding.
Why was an Obscurus outside the castle? What was that strange Firebird? They seemed to be protecting the people in the castle… why?
If this was a pre-arranged protective force by Grindelwald… why hadn't he mentioned it to anyone?
Wawerlett's mind was a fog, and what happened next was stranger than anything he could dream of.
The Firebird that had detonated all the shells in the air was moving through the flames of the explosion, seemingly absorbing some kind of power. Its body grew larger and larger, almost like… like an ever-expanding Fiendfyre beast.
After half of their vehicles were overturned, the Muggles suddenly rolled out a chubby Gun barrel, aiming it at the black mist swirling in the air and firing. After a flash of blue light, the black mist suddenly shattered and disappeared, and a thin girl fell from the sky.
Black-clad soldiers fired their Guns at the girl. A cloak flew over to block the bullets, then suddenly a Flying Broomstick flew from somewhere, caught the girl, and whisked her away with a whoosh.
The Firebird, which had seemingly been enjoying the flames, let out an enraged shriek. Its body, now expanded to over ten meters tall, lunged fiercely at the Muggles!
Its long tail swept across, leaving a long trail of raging flames on the ground.
Its massive body was like a natural target; even flying in the air, it was easy to hit.
The Firebird was also hit by an invisible "bomb" from that Gun barrel, its flight path abruptly shifted, and it crashed into a distant hill with a bang, igniting a large area of flames.
While everyone's attention was drawn to the Firebird, the Broomstick stealthily flew back again, dropping a strangely colored cube from high in the sky.
"Bomb!"
Soldiers near the landing point screamed and dove behind cover, only to see the cube land above the Gun barrel. Metal claws suddenly extended from its sides, and with a few whooshes, it dismantled most of the Gun barrel at an incredibly fast speed, even pulling out an axe and hacking at it several times!
"Fire!"
The Muggle commander shouted loudly. Bullets rained down, but a shield suddenly unfolded on the cube, instantly covering itself completely and catching all the bullets.
But the shield wasn't invincible; dents and pockmarks quickly appeared on it. The strange cube moved while enduring the attack, then suddenly dropped its shield and rolled to the side. The shield hit the ground, and the high-speed bullets struck the truck's fuel tank!
"*Boom—*"
Another explosion sounded, turning the surroundings into a sea of fire!
In the firelight, the cube leaped up, and various strange tools extended from its sides—metal claws, pliers, wrenches, bottle openers, shovels, etc. Like a fierce general rampaging through the battlefield, it sent the surrounding Muggle soldiers scrambling in terror.
Suddenly, another masked figure appeared. He was terrifyingly strong, like a rampaging bull, slamming into the truck and flattening the fronts of several vehicles.
Both of these guys seemed to have skin and bones of copper and iron; they weren't afraid of Muggle bullets in the slightest, nor were they afraid of dying. They snatched Guns from Muggles and fired at the trucks' fuel tanks, and even at their weapon crates!
Several bursts of fire exploded one after another, the hot wind singeing people's hair.
The Wizards in the castle crowded by the windows, watching dumbfounded, feeling as if they were watching an absurd comedy.
Just when they thought the Muggle army was helpless against those guys, they saw some Muggles fire a grapple-hook Gun with a "bang"!
"Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle—"
A strong electric arc flashed, and both the previously invincible cube and the masked man simultaneously slumped, unable to move as if their joints had rusted.
High-cheekbones sneered, "I knew it. Anyone connected to Magical Power can't withstand this kind of attack. Let me see what you two really are!"
He walked towards the masked man, reaching out to pull off the cloth covering his face.
"*Confringo!*"
Someone roared, and high-cheekbones was instantly thrown back like a sandbag.
Twenty to thirty Wizards, who had been hidden nearby, revealed themselves and simultaneously raised their Wands—
"*Petrificus Totalus!*"
Spells flew across the battlefield, but Wawerlett heard the person beside him groan, "Merlin… is that… the Order of the Phoenix?"
Wawerlett glanced at him, recognizing him as a young Wizard from Britain, and asked curiously, "The Order of the Phoenix?"
The young Wizard stammered, explaining, "That was a secret society Dumbledore founded more than twenty years ago to resist He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named and the Death Eaters. I heard it suffered heavy losses in the First British Wizarding War and disbanded ten years ago… I know two of them."
As if he had discovered a great secret, he mumbled, "It looks like they've reformed… The Order of the Phoenix definitely isn't here to help us. Dumbledore might show up any minute… We… shouldn't we escape now?"
He glanced around nervously, terrified that the Headmaster would appear before him the next second, flustered and not knowing what to do.
Wawerlett didn't pay attention to his latter words, asking with a strange expression, "Dumbledore… also founded a secret society to resist Voldemort?"
He suddenly felt indignant, saying angrily, "Why didn't he create one when the Alliance ruled Europe?"
The young Wizard broke down, "…Is that the point?"
"Thump!"
A heavy thud suddenly echoed from the outer wall. Everyone turned their heads to see a familiar Flying Broomstick stopped outside the glassless window. The cube, the masked man, a little girl who could transform into an Obscurus, and a Firebird that looked remarkably similar to a Fiendfyre beast were all staring at them, exuding a dangerous aura.
"Excuse me, where is our master, Wade Gray?" the cube asked politely.
Beside it, the Firebird slightly spread its wings, and a golden-red light shimmered in its mouth. Black mist emanated from the little girl, her pupils faintly turning white.
"Good question, I'd like to know that too."
Sirius and Lupin, riding their Broomsticks, also appeared outside the window, Wands in hand, pointing at the many Alliance members.
"Let the child go!" Sirius said coldly. "Otherwise, you can keep those Muggles company!"
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