Chapter Summaries

Li Weide visited the Hog’s Head Inn with Tom and discussed Aurelius’s recovery before arranging to take Toby as an assistant for his experiments. Aberforth supplied Li Weide with experimental equipment, while Dumbledore accepted a costly glass of sherry and remained at odds with his brother.

• Tom worried that Dumbledore might have been setting him up, and Li Weide teased him for revealing who had brought him to Hogsmeade.
• Aurelius thanked Li Weide for saving him, and Li Weide explained that extracting the Obscurus had helped his own work.
• Aurelius charged Dumbledore one Galleon for a glass of sherry at Aberforth’s instruction, prompting Li Weide and Tom to laugh.
• Aberforth arrived with Toby and Tom Cat, and Li Weide asked Dumbledore to let Toby assist with experiments in the laboratory.
• Dumbledore agreed, and Aberforth gave Li Weide a box of experimental instruments he had prepared.

Li Weide hosted a meal at the Hog's Head Inn, while Nagini completed her combat training and left to travel with a custom wand. Back in Slytherin's Study, Li Weide began preparing to use Basilisk DNA to clone weaker snakes.

• Li Weide stayed for lunch with Aberforth, Dumbledore, and Aurelius, while Toby and Tom Cat watched the shop.
• Li Weide told Aurelius that Nagini was studying magic with a powerful wizard, though Aurelius remained saddened by her distance.
• Nagini mastered the Weather Charm, received a custom wand from Senior Sister, and chose to leave and travel.
• Li Weide and Toby prepared a culture vessel in Slytherin's Study, and Li Weide told Tom that he planned to clone weaker snakes from preserved Basilisk DNA.

Newt Scamander inspected Grindelwald’s creature-filled checkpoints at Dumbledore’s request and found that six of the seven were unsafe because the creatures’ incompatibilities made them more dangerous. He refused to make the corrections himself, leaving Grindelwald to revise the trials and summon him back for another inspection.

• Grindelwald finished preparing seven checkpoints in the Forbidden Forest, and Newt arrived to inspect them for Dumbledore.
• In the laboratory, Li Weide examined Basilisk flesh and blood and asked Tom to use Parselmouth to summon female snakes, preferably vipers.
• Newt declared six checkpoints unacceptable, explaining that incompatible Dark Creatures and magical creatures could distress one another and become more dangerous to students.
• Grindelwald’s Followers checked the tents and confirmed Newt’s findings, so Grindelwald asked him to help adjust the creature placements.
• Newt refused, saying he was responsible only for quality inspection, and told Grindelwald to correct the checkpoints before requesting another inspection.

Grindelwald ordered his Followers to correct the unsafe creature checkpoints after Newt Scamander inspected them, while Dumbledore used the delay to give Hogwarts students time to train. That night, Li Weide and Tom entered the Forbidden Forest to summon snakes, but Grindelwald’s group appeared before they could begin.

• Grindelwald ordered the Followers to find a Magizoologist, dismantle the checkpoints, and return the creatures to their cages.
• Newt told Dumbledore that Grindelwald’s checkpoint arrangements had safety hazards, and Dumbledore explained that he was letting Grindelwald proceed while students trained.
• Newt offered to write a guidebook describing the creatures’ weaknesses, and Dumbledore agreed that the students would need it.
• Li Weide, Tom, and Tom Cat sneaked into the Forbidden Forest to summon snakes, avoiding Grindelwald’s Followers and Mr. Ogg.
• Li Weide stopped Tom from speaking Parseltongue when Grindelwald and a group carrying large crates appeared nearby.

Li Weide and Tom watched Grindelwald use Dark Creatures to open a passage to a Parallel World, where he tried to ambush his counterpart and reclaim the Elder Wand. As the visiting Grindelwald began to fade, Li Weide broke his Shield Charm, took the Elder Wand, and shut down the passage, leaving Grindelwald furious.

• Li Weide realized Grindelwald had gathered Dark Creatures to open a passage to a Parallel World and form a trap for his counterpart.
• Grindelwald's Followers fought the arriving Grindelwald, while Tom stayed nearby and Li Weide slipped away to wait for an opening.
• The Grindelwald who set the trap detonated an explosion beneath his counterpart, injuring him and gaining the advantage.
• The visiting Grindelwald began fading before Grindelwald could finish defeating him, and he switched to defending himself.
• Li Weide fired a spell through the gap between their spells, shattered the visiting Grindelwald's Shield Charm, and caught the Elder Wand.
• Li Weide waved the Elder Wand to scatter the crates and close the vortex, and Grindelwald recognized him and grew furious.

Li Weide took the Elder Wand from Grindelwald and negotiated a contract to design the trials for Grindelwald’s reforms in exchange for access to Dark Creatures and help finding a place to raise them. As Li Weide and Tom returned to Hogwarts, they recognized that Grindelwald’s educational reforms were a patient plan to make future wizards powerful, proud, and more likely to challenge Muggles and the Statute of Secrecy.

• Li Weide seized the Elder Wand from Grindelwald after defeating the weakened Grindelwald from the Parallel World, then revived the injured Followers of Grindelwald.
• Grindelwald agreed to give up the Elder Wand but asked Li Weide to design his challenges, offering access to Dark Creatures and help establishing a place to raise them.
• Li Weide and Grindelwald signed a Magic Contract that let Li Weide design the challenges and set terms for resolving disagreements.
• Li Weide told Tom he planned to explain the night’s events to Dumbledore, arguing Dumbledore would prefer him rather than Grindelwald to control the challenges.
• Li Weide and Tom concluded that Grindelwald’s reforms aimed to strengthen each generation of wizards and gradually encourage them to rule Muggles, threatening the Statute of Secrecy.

Tom caught vipers in the Forbidden Forest while Li Weide brought Dumbledore a second Elder Wand and explained how he had taken it from Grindelwald. Dumbledore learned that Li Weide had also taken over designing Grindelwald's Trial Level, and he questioned whether Grindelwald had been in his right mind.

• Tom gathered vipers with Tom Cat and complained about Li Weide leaving him to do the work.
• Li Weide realized that Slytherin's ghost seemed less cold than Nearly Headless Nick, then went to Dumbledore's office and was found by Professor McGonagall.
• Professor McGonagall confronted Dumbledore about keeping her out of the effort against Grindelwald, and Dumbledore agreed to bring her into the discussion.
• Li Weide gave Dumbledore a second Elder Wand and said he had taken it after Grindelwald's other-world counterpart was trapped.
• Li Weide showed Dumbledore a Magic Contract proving he had taken over designing the Trial Level, leaving Dumbledore to wonder whether Grindelwald was sane.

Li Weide learned that Grindelwald had used the Wizard Compulsory Education Law and his influence over the Ministry to prevent students from escaping his dangerous education reforms. Li Weide took charge of redesigning the trials’ rescue measures, and he discovered that the Elder Wand from his world recognized him while Dumbledore’s did not.

• Li Weide told Dumbledore that Grindelwald had anticipated the delay and transferred the challenge design to him, so Li Weide promised to strengthen the trials’ rescue measures without reducing their difficulty.
• Dumbledore explained that the Wizard Compulsory Education Law required school-age young wizards to attend Hogwarts, while Grindelwald’s influence over the Ministry made it unlikely that parents could withdraw their children or force the school to close.
• Li Weide reassured Dumbledore that Grindelwald wanted to strengthen students rather than cripple them, and suggested openly asking him to seal cursed attacks, weaken dangerous creatures, or replace some with Combat Puppets.
• Dumbledore agreed to accompany Li Weide when he discussed the trials with Grindelwald, then returned Li Weide’s Elder Wand after confirming that it had recognized him as its master.
• Li Weide held Dumbledore’s Elder Wand and sensed that it rejected him, realizing that the two identical-looking Elder Wands from Parallel Worlds recognized different masters.

Li Weide and Dumbledore met Grindelwald to renegotiate the level designs, using both Elder Wands to pressure him into agreeing to changes. Grindelwald accepted their demands and let Li Weide take the unwanted creatures, then angrily ordered them out of his office.

• Professor McGonagall praised Li Weide for stopping Grindelwald from recovering the Elder Wand, and Li Weide asked her to exempt him from Transfiguration homework.
• Li Weide woke Tom to announce that Dumbledore had waived his homework, only for Tom to realize his own assignments remained unchanged.
• Grindelwald told Abernathy to bring Vita back from vacation and return Abernathy to his previous work.
• Li Weide and Dumbledore entered Grindelwald's office and placed both Elder Wands on his desk to secure a more thorough negotiation.
• Li Weide persuaded Grindelwald to remove fatal-cursing Dark Creatures, improve rescue measures, and replace some vicious creatures with Combat Puppets.
• Grindelwald agreed to let Li Weide take the creatures they no longer needed, then ordered Li Weide and Dumbledore out of his office.

Tom discovered Li Weide’s rune-covered Paper Figurines working in the laboratory, while Nagini captured two Dark Wizards and Slytherin resumed searching for the Ancient Sage. The chapter left Tom stunned by Li Weide’s latest creation.

• Tom and Li Weide discussed Grindelwald’s supposed loss of composure while Li Weide studied an Ancient Runes book disguised as A Tale of Two Cities.
• Nagini defeated the Hild Brothers, bound them with magical collars, and sent them to an address before burning their cabin.
• Slytherin, frustrated by his search for the Ancient Sage, changed course to revisit an eerie tomb in Northern Europe.
• Tom brought Li Weide a fruit platter and found palm-sized Paper Figurines bustling through the laboratory.
• Li Weide told Tom that the Paper Figurines could eat fruit to replenish their magic, leaving Tom shocked.

Li Weide demonstrated Biological Puppets powered by a modified Devil’s Snare and considered Gubraithian Fire as an inexhaustible energy source. In the Forbidden Forest, he prepared creatures and materials for student trials while Senior Sister sent Dark Wizards abroad to locate places that reacted to their Alchemy Tools.

• Li Weide explained to Tom how Ancient Runes controlled Paper Figurines animated by a parasitic creature made from a Devil’s Snare.
• Tom suggested the Biological Puppets’ need for food and rest was a major weakness, and Li Weide revealed his plan to test Gubraithian Fire as a new energy source.
• Li Weide inspected Abernathy’s list of creatures in the Forbidden Forest, ordered unsuitable ones stored separately, and requested costly materials for training Combat Puppets.
• Li Weide assigned the Followers of Grindelwald to arrange creatures for challenge tents and went to use eliminated Dark Creatures for experiments.
• Senior Sister gave Dark Wizards Alchemy Tools and ordered them to travel outside Britain, record locations that made the tools react, and report back monthly.
• Senior Sister said she hoped Weide understood that she needed to gain her freedom as soon as possible.

Grindelwald entered Li Weide’s hidden tent to inspect the stages and was drawn into a maze filled with animated armor, poisonous flowers, and a fire dragon. Li Weide revealed that the dangers came from the Mist of Confusion, leaving Grindelwald embarrassed by how convincingly it had fooled him.

• Grindelwald dispelled the tent’s concealment and entered despite its warning sign, where the darkness and enchanted maze impressed him.
• Grindelwald encountered armor controlled by living red threads and froze it after it attacked him.
• Grindelwald froze poisonous flowers whose barbs began melting his Shield Charm.
• A fire dragon attacked Grindelwald, but the illusion ended and left him in Li Weide’s ordinary tent beside real armor and a monstrous flower.
• Li Weide explained that the Boggart-derived Mist of Confusion shaped trials around each challenger’s expectations, and Grindelwald awkwardly left.

Li Weide finished designing Grindelwald’s trial course and gave Dumbledore the materials, then asked for help with his alchemy research. As Grindelwald arrived to collect the documents, Dumbledore began examining Li Weide’s questions and became intrigued by his Gubraithian Fire Energy Core.

• Li Weide reviewed the Mist of Confusion’s power, contacted Senior Sister about converter research, and returned to Hogwarts with his armor and talking lantern.
• Li Weide assigned the armor and lantern to guard Dumbledore’s office, then gave Dumbledore the completed trial-course documents and explained that the Combat Puppets’ bullets caused pain but no lasting harm.
• Li Weide gave Dumbledore a strategy guide to keep from Grindelwald and asked him to examine some alchemy questions before heading to Slytherin's Study.
• Dumbledore sent a white phoenix to summon Grindelwald, then became engrossed in Li Weide’s parchment and his Gubraithian Fire Energy Core research.
• Grindelwald arrived, and the lantern called him an old thief and ordered the armor to draw its sword before Dumbledore let him into the office.

Li Weide’s preparations for Grindelwald’s new practical combat exam continued as students trained and Tom was assigned the seventh-year trial. After the exams, Dumbledore visited Li Weide’s laboratory to discuss an alchemy problem and revealed that Nicolas Flamel had sent possible solutions.

• Li Weide showed Tom a newly hatched Basilisk clone, while Tom reported that Filius and Alastor excelled in combat training; Li Weide told Tom to take the seventh-year trial.
• Grindelwald announced an additional practical combat exam whose scores could improve subject grades, earn House points, and help seventh-years seeking Ministry positions, prompting students to train in greater numbers.
• Li Weide passed his exams with ease, then returned to the laboratory while Professor Slughorn escorted Tom to the seventh-year checkpoint.
• Li Weide cared for the small Basilisk Snick, whose petrifying gaze failed to affect Dumbledore when he visited the laboratory.
• Dumbledore told Li Weide that he had sent the Gubraithian Fire Energy Core problem to his alchemy-expert friend Nicolas Flamel, who had returned several possible solutions.

Li Weide read Nicolas Flamel’s advice on developing Gubraithian Fire and prepared to watch Tom’s challenge in the Forbidden Forest. He and Dumbledore arrived as students faced the trials, while Grindelwald mocked Li Weide’s friendship with Tom and warned Dumbledore not to trust him.

• Dumbledore explored Li Weide’s underground laboratory, spoke with Tom Cat, and watched it introduce him to Venomfang.
• Li Weide read Nicolas Flamel’s suggestions and contact address, then resolved to seek the legendary alchemist’s guidance.
• Li Weide and Dumbledore left Slytherin’s Study to watch Tom’s seventh-year obstacle course challenge, leaving Tom Cat to guard Snick.
• They reached the Forbidden Forest, where students waited outside and injured or eliminated students sat at medical stations.
• Grindelwald sarcastically called Tom fortunate to have Li Weide as a friend, but Dumbledore agreed sincerely, and Grindelwald gave up trying to warn him.

Tom entered a dangerous seventh-year challenge course after drinking an Acuity Potion, while Li Weide and Grindelwald watched his progress through a Two-Way Mirror. Tom overcame several traps and enemies but became trapped in a difficult fight with an armored troll.

• A challenger named Carlos Peel failed after stepping on a Blast-Ended Skrewt, and Li Weide advised the St Mungo's healer to treat him with Dittany.
• Li Weide encouraged Tom before his turn, and Tom drank an Acuity Potion before entering the course.
• Li Weide enlarged a Two-Way Mirror so he, Dumbledore, and Grindelwald could watch Tom's challenge.
• Tom quickly defeated five Knight Puppets, froze the ground to neutralize Blast-Ended Skrewts, and overcame Red Caps, mutated Venomous Tentacula, and Devil's Snare.
• Tom struggled against an Armored Troll whose Goblin Metal armor deflected his spells, and Li Weide suggested using a Fire Charm to heat the armor.

Tom passed the Sphinx’s riddle and forced his way through a final stage guarded by ten armed Combat Puppets, suffering severe injuries before clearing it. Outside the Two-Way Mirror, Li Weide, Grindelwald, and Dumbledore argued over Tom’s choices and Li Weide’s character.

• Tom blinded the armored troll with a Flashbang and continued onward while Li Weide, Grindelwald, and Dumbledore debated whether he should have defeated it or concealed his trail.
• Tom accepted the Sphinx’s riddle, answered “death,” and passed through the doorway as Li Weide and Grindelwald criticized him for following the Sphinx’s rules.
• Tom drove back a group of zombies and hesitated before the final stage, where ten Combat Puppets carried machine guns, grenades, and rifles.
• Tom drank a pain-blocking potion, charged into the final stage, and Transfigured the puppets’ guns into venomous snakes while enduring several hits.
• Tom cleared the stage with a twisted arm and leg, and healers from St Mungo’s rushed to treat him as Grindelwald admired his ruthlessness.

Tom recovered from the trial exam with lasting injuries caused by Li Weide’s unfinished painkilling potion, while Grindelwald planned to hold monthly practical exams. At the end-of-term feast, Tom discovered that his classmates admired him for clearing a seventh-year stage, and he secretly enjoyed the praise.

• Tom woke in the Hospital Wing and learned from Li Weide that the painkilling potion was preventing healing magic from treating his injured arm and leg.
• Grindelwald gave Tom a magic book, then told Li Weide he planned monthly practical exams using Combat Puppets and asked him to improve the Mist of Confusion.
• Tom spent seven days in the Hospital Wing while Li Weide and Professor Slughorn developed an antidote that sped his recovery.
• Tom entered the Great Hall with a crutch for the end-of-term feast and was cheered and escorted to the Slytherin table by students who admired him for clearing a seventh-year stage.
• Li Weide gave Tom the second version of the antidote and asked if he had felt the pleasure of power; Tom denied it despite secretly enjoying the admiration.

Li Weide returned to the Safe House and decided to buy a secret laboratory in Knockturn Alley. Disguised as a middle-aged man, he visited Borgin and Burkes and negotiated over a Vanishing Cabinet, leaving Mr. Borgin outraged at his offer.

• Li Weide returned to the Safe House, where Toby and Tom Cat had brought back his belongings, while Tom kept Snick.
• Li Weide counted his funds and decided to seek a property in Knockturn Alley for a hidden laboratory.
• Li Weide disguised himself as a middle-aged European man and traveled through the Leaky Cauldron to Diagon Alley and Knockturn Alley.
• Li Weide entered Borgin and Burkes, where Mr. Borgin showed him the Hand of Glory and other Dark Arts merchandise.
• Li Weide recognized the Vanishing Cabinet and asked Mr. Borgin about buying its matching cabinet, but Mr. Borgin said he had only one.
• Li Weide offered five Galleons for the cabinet, prompting Mr. Borgin to cry that it was robbery.

Li Weide, using the name John Wick, bargained with Mr. Borgin for a broken Vanishing Cabinet and a dilapidated house in Knockturn Alley. After learning that anything could be claimed by taking it, he bought the house and immediately set out to rob a neighbor.

• Li Weide negotiated the Vanishing Cabinet's price from Mr. Borgin, settling on sixty Galleons in exchange for help finding a place to live.
• Mr. Borgin showed Li Weide a derelict house at the end of Knockturn Alley, where the previous owner and an enemy had died.
• Li Weide learned that Knockturn Alley had no deeds and that whoever took something owned it, then asked whether the rule applied to people too.
• Mr. Borgin, intimidated by Li Weide, sold him the house for two hundred Galleons.
• After Mr. Borgin left, Li Weide kicked in a neighbor's door and announced a robbery.