You Didn't Expect This, Did You?

"I'm terrified of dying, Idol." Anton smiled calmly as he wiped the droplets from his wand. "I've always had a hard life. At any moment, I could be killed by a single curse."

"So I realized that if someone truly wants to live well, they have to forget about life and death."

Anton shrugged helplessly. "Contradictory, right?"

"So." Anton raised his wand. "I've become someone who only does what I want, unafraid of life or death!"

"Snape! Let's duel!"

"Today, either you die or I die!"

This was the second time Snape had heard those words from Anton. Different emotions, yet the same carefree wildness.

So he flicked his wand lightly and performed a wizard's dueling salute.

"I had admired your talent for Potions and looked forward to the day you entered Hogwarts and became my student. What a pity."

"Sectumsempra!"

"Protego!" Anton quickly erected a protective barrier around himself, then flicked his wrist at incredible speed. "Soul Displacement!"

Whoosh!

The flash of the spell tore through the sky, pierced through Snape's sleeve, and flew into the distance.

"Ah~~~~"

A shrill howl rang out.

Anton's wand fell from his hand. He clawed desperately at his head with both hands. Successfully casting the Displacement Soul Curse made it feel as if his entire skull were splitting apart.

Casting so many Shield Charms had already left him in unbearable pain. Now, forcing himself to cast the Displacement Soul Curse beyond his limits felt even worse than taking a Cruciatus Curse from the Old Wizard.

His entire body felt hollowed out.

Pain spread from the depths of his soul. He wanted to claw at himself, yet had no idea where to scratch.

"Such profound..." Snape raised his sleeve in disbelief. "Dark Magic!"

He stared in shock at the child who looked less than ten years old. It was the first time he had ever seen such astonishing talent.

Ten years old!

Even among children from Pureblood families, many had yet to undergo a magical awakening.

He could even say with certainty that the vast majority of young wizards who had graduated from Hogwarts could not cast spells of this caliber!

And it was...

Dark Magic!

The corner of Snape's mouth lifted slightly. "Then I'll give you another chance."

His figure flew forward again, instantly circling around Anton. He swung his wand and pointed it at the Werewolf. "Sectumsempra!"

"Protego!"

His spell was deflected once more.

An extremely weak voice came from beside him.

Snape turned his head in astonishment.

Anton was sprawled over a Flying Broomstick, a wand clutched in his hand. He panted weakly, smiling.

Blood ran from both his ears.

Blood ran from both his eyes.

Blood ran from his nostrils.

Blood ran from the corner of his mouth.

Yet he merely smiled, smiling especially brightly.

"Aha! Snape, Idol, you didn't expect this, did you? I've got another wand!" Anton's face was as pale as a corpse, but a smug smile hung on it as he mischievously raised an eyebrow.

Snape frowned. "Did you really have to go this far? Just to protect a Werewolf?"

Anton smiled weakly. "That's a person. One person, not an it. Idol, your grammar needs work."

Snape laughed. It was the first time Anton had seen the greasy-haired man smile. "You have earned my respect."

"Of course." Anton cackled. "Someone once said I was a charming person!"

"Is that so..."

"Stupefy!"

The very charming Young Wizard rolled his eyes back and fell from the Flying Broomstick without any dignity. However, a rope was tied around his waist, leaving him dangling in midair beneath the broomstick in an especially ridiculous sight.

"Accio." The wand falling halfway down and the wand floating on the sea flew into Snape's hands.

"Heh, you really did hide another one. How cunning."

Snape scoffed, casually tucked both wands into Anton's hair, then took out a bottle of potion from his Wizard Robe and poured it down Anton's throat.

He pursed his lips, glanced at Anton, then looked at the Werewolf howling on the Small Island...

He flicked the sleeve of his Wizard Robe.

With a bang, he vanished from where he stood.

The sun shone brightly, and the sea breeze was gentle.

Something cold touched his face while an anxious voice called by his ear, "You little bastard? You little bastard?"

"Stop making noise." Anton waved his arm as if swatting flies and scratched his stomach.

"You little bastard?" the voice continued.

"You're so annoying," Anton muttered irritably.

Then the voice suddenly grew loud, roaring right beside his ear, "Why are you sleeping? You'll have plenty of time to sleep after you die!"

Anton jolted awake and opened his eyes. "Teacher, I was wrong. I'll never..."

"Cackle, cackle, cackle." The Old Wizard pointed at Anton with his left hand while the head resting in his right hand let out a strange cackling laugh. "That habit of yours is quite interesting."

"Damn it!" Anton looked around unhappily. The sea was calm, and everything was peaceful.

Only the rope tied to the Flying Broomstick floating in the air dug painfully into his stomach.

He struggled onto the Flying Broomstick, tore off the rope, then pulled a wand from his hair. He froze for a moment before suddenly crying out, "Lupin!"

The Flying Broomstick turned around and dove down.

Lupin leaned against a pile of broken machinery, his face pale as he looked at Anton gently. "You saved me again."

Anton's expression turned strange. "I was planning to recruit you as my bodyguard and Teacher."

Lupin smiled. "Once I recover, I'll be your bodyguard."

Seeing that Lupin was all right, Anton hurriedly raised the broomstick again and looked at the Old Wizard. "Where are Anna and Pedro?"

"Floating on the sea." The Old Wizard shrugged his headless shoulders. "Unfortunately, my foolish Teacher didn't die."

"..."

A huge wooden board drifted across the sea. Pedro lay on it with his eyes closed, while Anna sat beside him, clutching the suitcase tightly. When she saw Anton descend through the white clouds on a Flying Broomstick—

"Anton!" Anna cried out in delight, tossing aside the suitcase and pouncing toward him.

She threw her arms around him tightly. "That's wonderful, you're all right!"

"I saw everything. You stood in front of us. You're a hero!"

As she spoke, she impulsively kissed Anton on the cheek.

Then she realized what she had done. Blushing, she ran back, picked up the suitcase to hide her face, and peeked at him with one big eye exposed.

Anton was stunned. He touched his somewhat damp cheek and found himself facing the Old Wizard's teasing, strange grin.

He looked at Anna's delicate face, took a deep breath, and silently warned himself that he absolutely must not be a creep.

Being a creep was shameful.

So he gave her a brilliant smile. "I think we can become good friends."

Anna blinked her large eyes. "Good friends?"

She smiled sweetly and nodded hard. "All right. You'll be my best friend."

Only then did Anton breathe a sigh of relief. See? He had been overthinking it.

So he began to laugh as well.

Their laughter echoed across the sea. Having survived the disaster, the two laughed loudly, and their voices carried far away.

However, Anton soon could not laugh anymore.

When he used the Flying Broomstick to tow that huge wooden board back to the Small Island, looked at the desolate ruins, and touched his growling stomach...

"Anna, it looks like no one can live here anymore. How about we go to your home to rest and recover for a while? Look, Pedro is your father's good friend."

Anna shook her head. "We can, but I don't know how to get back. The few family estates I know are hidden by powerful magic. You can only teleport inside with special spells, and my father has gone out."

Anton blinked. "When will he return?"

"Half a year, maybe?"

"That long?" Anton sucked in a breath. "He just left you here like this?"

Anna looked somewhat dejected. Her toe gently nudged a small stone. "Anna has a very strange illness. My father has been trying to find a way to cure me. He runs around everywhere, and sometimes I only see him a few times a year."

Blood Curse Orc!

Anton immediately thought of that and sighed.

After a moment of silence, he stared blankly at the sky and sea, unsure where to go next.

This was so damn frustrating. Why was he always troubled by this problem?