The Ranter, the Power of Sin

The demonic flames burned fiercely, and the starry night was adorned with deep blue flames, making it appear profound and tranquil, like a holy punishment in the darkness.

However, Sean, who was firmly protected in the center by the demonic flames, was on high alert, and various items he had obtained from the system Lottery Draw had appeared in his hands.

George Weasley's trick (purple): A one-time use item that guarantees escape from the scene of a prank.

Finite Incantatem (Purple): Consumable item, 2/2 uses. After using this item, all continuous spells within a 3-meter radius of the user are nullified (including spells cast on the user). (Does not affect Magical Grounds limitations).

Hermione Granger's Echo (Gold): For half an hour while using this card, every five spells you cast will become Silent Casting; every twenty spells you cast will become Wandless Casting; and every forty spells you cast will be amplified. (Echo effects can overlap.)

Dark Sleeper (Gold): Within one hour of use, the user's attraction to and control over dark forces (including Dark Arts, Dark Arts creations, black Magical Creatures, etc.) will increase significantly, and the power of Dark Arts will also increase dramatically.

Sean took out everything he could use in an instant, not daring to relax for even a moment.

The transmission path of the Portkey was not changed, but forcibly distorted!

There are very few wizards in the world who can do this, and the Portkey in Sean's hand was specially made by Dumbledore.

In other words, the person who forcibly distorted the teleportation path of the Sean Portkey was on the same level as Dumbledore, or even...

This made Sean feel an unprecedented sense of crisis. He didn't even have time to observe his surroundings; his first thought was to protect himself.

Through the book "The Collection of Greedy Poet's Stories," Sean had witnessed the existence of a god, and the terrifying poet.

All the reasonable speculations point to the Bard and the Returners, and even that the Returners are a force under the Bard, while Durmstrang has an unclear connection with the Returners.

Sean almost instinctively thought that the powerful wizard who forcibly twisted the path of his Portkey might be the Bard!

Sean had no room for wishful thinking!

Hermione's Echo was activated immediately, and Sean also firmly grasped George Weasley's tricks and the Finite Incantatem. With just a thought, he could break the confinement here and help him escape this place in the form of a prank.

All of this happened in the blink of an eye, Sean immediately looked around.

The oddly shaped shrubs, the crosses exposed to the wind and sun, the faded tombstones—this was a cemetery Sean had never seen before.

"Caw—caw—" Startled, the crow flapped its wings and flew away from this ominous place.

"Dave —give me the situation."

Dave sensed Sean's tense and cautious thoughts; they trembled in the inner pocket of Sean's robe, and the next thought was tinged with coldness and irritability.

"No... wait, suddenly three different smells appeared. I don't recognize them, and they're not people you know. They're about fifty meters to your left and in front of you. The smells are calming, and there's no putrid smell."

Dave controlled his instinctive killing intent and described the enemy's information to Sean in as much detail as possible.

Based on the information Dave sent, Sean looked to his left and saw a huge stone coffin.

He drank a mouthful of Night Vision Potion, and the dim scene became clear.

The sarcophagus was covered in moss, emitting an eerie, fluorescent green glow in Sean's night-vision view. Its dimensions were completely unlike those of a human; it would be more accurate to say it contained the remains of a Troll.

The stone coffin had been there for who knows how many years, its base blending into the dark earth. The dilapidated tombstone directly in front of it was indistinguishable from the inscriptions, as if shrouded in a mist.

"Are those three people behind the stone coffin, or inside it?" Sean asked in a deep voice.

"Behind, no, inside..." Dave said hesitantly, "The smell in that place is strange, I can't describe it quite accurately—the smell is strange!"

Without any hesitation, Sean activated Dark Sleeper.

The black vision and the vision from the Night Vision Potion merged together, creating a bizarre image.

"Avada Kedavra!"

A blinding, thick green light shot out like an arrow, heading straight for the three magical locations that had started moving in Sean's field of vision.

"Boom—" A huge explosion rang out, and dirt flew everywhere.

When his vision cleared up a little, Sean's pupils contracted slightly. The three figures were still standing there, and they didn't seem to have been hurt at all.

And the enemy finally revealed their true form.

"Durmstrang's... Thomas..."

Sean immediately recognized two of them. The one standing on the left was Deep Thomas, the Durmstrang Admissions Officer he had met at Mr. Jensen's house earlier that day. That guy had circumvented the rules of several schools in an attempt to recruit young wizards from a common pool of schools ahead of time.

Standing on the right is the tall, thin wizard who has been following Thomas but has not said a word.

Between the two was a figure wearing a black cloak and a hood.

Sean immediately looked down at the shadowy figure. To his surprise, although the shadowy figure looked very blurry, there were indeed shoes firmly planted on the ground below.

Not those Half-Ghost from the Returners?

As the smoke and dust cleared, Sean finally saw that a semi-circular magical shield surrounded the three of them, protecting them firmly in the center.

"Let me see who it is... Ha, Sean Wallerup— " Thomas, standing on the left, stepped forward with a nauseatingly smug grin on his face.

"What a coincidence, what a coincidence. But it's not surprising that you're here. After all, you're so arrogant... Weren't you extremely cocky when we met you among those Muggle today? Ha, I forgot, you Mudblood love and are best at dealing with trash."

Sean narrowed his eyes and remained silent.

Thomas seemed to enjoy the wary look on Sean's face. "Dumbledore's favorite student, Grindelwald's prized pupil? A sharp mind and great strength? Wallerup, you rely too much on external things."

"Did you tamper with the Portkey's teleportation path?" Sean asked calmly without stepping out of the demonic flames.

Thomas gave a mysterious smile, his expression utterly repulsive.

Instead of answering Sean's question directly, he casually said, "Dumbledore- made Portkey? Too bad you've touched something you shouldn't have."

Something he shouldn't have touched? Sean glanced at the Lloyd Couple, who had their eyes closed, beside him.

Was this couple under some kind of magic I don't know about? This kind of magic has the ability to distort paths when I teleport people?

The three of them moved forward in unison, each step perfectly synchronized and without any difference.

"Wallerup, you're a troublesome and reckless Mudblood, but that's fine. We were just wondering how to get you back—luckily, a fool has delivered himself to our doorstep."

"Invite me back? "Sean frowned. That meant the other party was indeed one of the Returners.

Did I deliver it to the door?

This shows that they don't have the ability to arrest me directly, or they don't dare to do so openly. The strangest situation I've encountered recently is with the Lloyd Couple.

So, my guess was correct. The strange magic surrounding the Lloyd Couple included a trigger-based spell that would be activated when someone tried to take them away using magic, altering the teleportation locations of portal spells like Portkey and Apparition.

According to the information Dave just provided, these three people appeared suddenly, meaning they weren't waiting here for him to fall into their trap.

They must have received a warning that the magic they left behind would be triggered, and then immediately used other means to get to this fixed teleportation point.

Can I interpret this as meaning that it wasn't the "Bard" I imagined deliberately targeting me, but rather that I happened to trigger the magic?

In other words, anyone who triggers this magic will have their Portkey's teleportation path altered and be sent here.

Based on what Thomas said earlier, we can deduce a thing or two. He initially said, "Let me see who it is—", but only started mocking after discovering that the person who was teleported here was Sean.

This wasn't directed at them personally, but at any wizard who might touch the Lloyd Couple.

That means the powerful wizard who could tamper with Dumbledore's specially made Portkey was likely not one of these three. These three might only be responsible for capturing people who came here.

Thinking of this, Sean's anxious mood eased a little. Someone who could be on par with or even stronger Dumbledore was not someone he could approach at his current level.

Dumbledore and Grindelwald are far ahead of other wizards.

Of course, Sean didn't relax at all; he carefully observed the three people who were getting closer and closer.

Thomas and his henchman aside, the man in the middle was hooded and his face was obscured. However, the three of them were moving in such perfect synchronization that it was as if the same person had created three clones.

Could it all be that Thomas?

The three were still slowly approaching Sean. They saw the towering barrier of demonic flames, looked up and then down in unison, before Thomas let out a mocking laugh.

"It seems Grindelwald is really willing to give you everything. And this chilling scent, this captivating magic, Wallerup, you have indeed mastered a portion of the power of Sin. You are now also shrouded in darkness."

Sean's pupils suddenly contracted.

The other party knows that they have Sin within them!

Moreover, he said this magical scent stems from Sin?!

This was clearly caused by Sean activating the power of the Dark Sleeper, resulting in the leakage of dark magic...

Or is it that the power invoked by the Dark Sleeper is essentially the same as the power of Sin?

Furthermore, it is even more noteworthy that Thomas clearly knew this was the power of Sin, meaning he had already witnessed this power.

It's not about observing from afar, but about truly understanding...

Could this mean that there is a Sin behind Thomas that Sean is unaware of?

Was the Sin due to joining the Returners? Or being controlled by Returners?

Thomas continued speaking loudly, "Wallerup, what a clever Ravenclaw you are... I know you must have many, many questions, but don't worry, I will generously and mercifully answer them all for you, answer the question of the nature of this Sin— "

He stopped and smiled.

"Of course, I have to make you completely lose your smile first."

As they spoke, the three of them simultaneously raised their wands, which were exactly the same!

Furthermore, Sean immediately sensed a tremendous crisis; the fluctuation of that magical power was comparable to the magical power Sean had once felt in Dumbledore's hands!

Without a spell, three beams of green light shot out from the tip of the staff and rushed straight towards Sean's deep blue flame barrier!

"Boom—Boom—Boom—"

The three spells struck Sean's demonic flames protection hard, creating a deafening explosion!

Sean took a step back abruptly, his eyes filled with surprise.

The Protego Diabolica was not broken, but it was trembling!

The most powerful aspect of the Protego Diabolica lies in absorption. It protects its master by absorbing incoming spells and infusing them into the Demon Flame, which possesses the effect of the Fidelius Charm.

In Sean's past experiences, the spells that struck the flame barrier only made the demonic flames tremble briefly before their power was absorbed.

The three Thomas in front of us were actually able to cause the demonic flames to tremble violently!

Moreover, their magic was not absorbed by the demonic flames; instead, it generated a huge repulsion, resulting in a massive explosion.

The nature of this magic was something Sean had never seen before.

Could it be that...

Sean's pupils suddenly contracted.

Their power comes from Sin?!

Thomas looked pleased and raised his hand; the two people next to him did the same.

"Oh, oh, oh—this magic, kid Wallerup, aren't you very familiar with this magic?"

"Did you ever imagine that someone other than you could wield such great power?"

"Protego Diabolica?! Hmph, all Grindelwald can offer is a mere trick!"

"He can create an unshakeable fire barrier on his own, and you? You're just a lucky guy who got favored by chance!"

"You have no idea how to use true power!"

Thomas was shouting wildly, and his words made Sean's eyes widen.

"However, none of that matters, Wallerup. I will 'teach' you how to use this great power!"

Sean frowned.

Just then, a blinding white light shone in mid-air.