The Fog Clears

Jimmy kicked aside the Inferi in front of him and pulled Lupin backward.

Although his friend was highly skilled in magic and possessed immense Magic Power, when it came to hand-to-hand combat, someone like him, who had spent a long time living with wild beasts, was far more adept.

"Le... John, get Mr. Lautner out of here, we can't stop him!" Jimmy shouted anxiously.

Lupin looked at the densely packed Inferi piled together. The Inferi flowing beneath them was pitch black, yet the surface of the water still reflected light and shadow, and the dappled light reflected into his eyes, carrying with it a helpless sorrow.

If Werewolf Inferi are allowed to cause widespread destruction in Brooklyn, the Werewolf ' situation will become even more difficult, and the "Anti-Werewolf Law" may soon become the first bill passed at this International Wizarding Congress.

However, they were powerless to do anything. Their Werewolf companions were almost exhausted, and many of them were injured. Staying here would only mean being swallowed up by the Inferi.

"It seems there is no other choice but to leave..." Lupin observed his surroundings, a faint glimmer of hope still lingering in his heart.

Professor Dumbledore...

Looking to the right, Taylor Lautner could take down a group of Inferi with every punch and kick. He wasn't the tallest, but his physical strength was reassuring.

Avoiding the surrounding Inferi, Lupin gradually approached him. "Mr. Lautner, while we still have some strength left, we should consider making our escape."

The nearby Inferi were kicked to the ground, splashing dirty water onto his face. Taylor Lautner spat, looking somewhat different from his usual taciturn self.

He slowly looked around, his fists clenching tighter. "John, you take them away first, and have Jimmy notify the people at the other pipe entrances to evacuate."

"And what about you?"

"I..." Taylor Lautner took a breath and said calmly, "I still have energy, I'll stay a little longer."

Lupin, whose muscles were already starting to ache and feel weak, looked at him for a few seconds, nodded at him, turned and walked towards Jimmy, while also notifying the other Werewolf to withdraw from the battle, his expression showing no change.

Lupin wasn't sure if the Werewolf leader intended to leave. Perhaps he did, or perhaps he never considered leaving from the moment he decided to join the fight.

If any Werewolf were to perish in this incident, the magical governments attending the International Wizarding Congress should be more lenient towards innocent Werewolf.

"Then... remember to come back to the community and find us."

Lupin felt as if the sorrow in his heart had dissipated, and a great peace enveloped him.

This tranquility has been felt when gazing at Hogwarts Castle in the still of the night, and when watching the dark clouds disperse on a stormy, wandering night...

The Aurors surrounding the outer circle slowly gathered together, some even helping those too exhausted to walk, waiting for their captain to Apparition.

The metal Deluminator at the corner of the alley emitted a faint light. Loren wasn't sure if his plan would succeed. That cold gray light source had petrifying Magic Power, which he had extracted from the Basilisk's eyeball last year. Based on his experience from last year's Chamber of Secrets incident, he believed that even lifeless ghosts could be petrified.

He had studied this for a while, Flamel said it required other Magic Power eyes as containers to function.

I don't know if my own Transfiguration counts as a container.

Never mind, let's just do it!

Loren exhaled and put away his wand. With a flick of his index finger, a cold gray Magic Power light swayed and floated out of the Deluminator, drifting towards his right eye socket like a firefly's tail light. He took a step forward to meet it, and his entire outline gradually blurred, his body distorting like a concave-convex mirror. His head and neck stretched out continuously, and his legs below the abdomen came together and extended backward.

Within seconds, a Basilisk nearly ten meters long reappeared in its original position. Its scales were grayish-white, and it had two heterochromatic blue-black snake eyes. In its right vertical eye, a cold gray Magic Power flame slowly burned.

As Hermione continued to approach the battlefield, she faintly heard strange noises coming from behind her. At first, she didn't pay any attention to it, thinking that Loren was brewing some kind of spell. However, the hissing sound of scales rubbing against the bricks and stones grew closer and clearer, sounding like some living thing was approaching.

"Loren, what are you doing—"

Hermione turned her head and stared in surprise.

A grayish-white Basilisk was rapidly approaching. Anyone who saw a Basilisk moving clumsily in the thick fog would be stunned, especially since this Basilisk was keeping one eye open and the other closed.

The Basilisk stumbled forward. To be honest, compared to the bipedal walking of upright apes, the limbless walking of reptiles is much easier to learn. In just over ten meters, Loren had already mastered this unfamiliar body.

He closed his right eye to prevent the Basilisk's Magic Power from leaking out, darted past Hermione, wrapped the base of his tail around Hermione's waist, and lifted her onto the platform on the Basilisk's head.

"Hiss..."

Hermione wasn't Parselmouth, so she didn't understand the meaning of the sentence, but she knew what the speaker meant. So Hermione bent down, pried open the gaps between the scales, and cast a Disillusionment Charm on herself to conceal her identity.

The pipe opening closest to the sluice gate was crowded with stumbling Werewolf Inferi, like a subway station during rush hour. The Inferi in front had already taken up space, but more and more Inferi kept emerging from below the pipe opening, making it completely packed.

The inner circle consisted of wounded Werewolf, their hearts heavy with sorrow; the outer circle held Aurors, their Magic Power depleted, waiting for their captain to lead them away. They all stared blankly at the monster that had sprung out from behind them, too terrified to move.

In the thick fog-shrouded streets of Brooklyn, Basilisk with grayish-white scales was hidden in the mist, appearing and disappearing intermittently.

Loren saw Professor Lupin from afar and bowed slightly to greet him.

To outsiders, this was just a normal ups and downs in the Basilisk's journey, but as Lupin faced the approaching Basilisk with one eye open and one eye closed, he felt an absurd sense of familiarity.

As Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor, he naturally recognized it as a Basilisk. As Basilisk level 5X dangerous creature, looking directly into its eyes would result in instant death and petrification of the body.

But he's fine now.

The Basilisk passed the Aurors and Werewolf and stood before the horde of Inferi. Loren raised his neck, took a deep breath, and exhaled sharply. The thick fog in the surrounding area dissipated, and visibility improved.

"Hiss..."

Drawing the attention of all the Inferi, Loren suddenly opened his right eye.

An invisible gaze replaced the thick fog and enveloped the horde of Inferi. An unseen Magic Power swept forward, and withered, pale skin spread along the Werewolf' black fur, causing the fur to lose its elasticity, the joints and muscles to stiffen, and finally, the eyes to gradually freeze.

The Aurors had been watching fell silent, looking up at the towering figure.

The Werewolf Inferi lay on the ground like building blocks, one by one.

Then the giant, heterochromatic-eyed Giant Serpent with grayish-white scales disappeared into the thick fog, and the rustling crawling sounds faded away in the direction of the other pipe openings.

The meeting seats for the International Wizarding Congress were located on the 13th floor of Woolworth Building, while the 12 floors below were reserved for journalists from various newspapers and some wizards who were observing the proceedings.

Loren and Hermione sat on the inconspicuous seventh floor, looking up at the wizards attending the conference above.

As the president of the International Wizarding Federation and the representative of the United Kingdom, Dumbledore sat in the main seat of the conference, while representatives from other countries were arranged on both sides according to their influence. Some countries were represented by the Director of International Affairs of the Ministry of Magic, while more countries were represented by the Minister of Magic. The main reason for this was that the location of the conference was special, and many ministers wanted to witness it in person.

In addition, the British Ministry of Magic, Cornelius Fudge, had his own considerations. He believed that if Dumbledore appeared at the International Wizarding Congress while he, as Minister for Magic, was absent, many people would think that Dumbledore was the real person in charge of the power struggle in England magic. Fudge absolutely could not tolerate Dumbledore using such despicable tricks to expand his influence.

The American Magical Congress, as the host of this conference, had a slightly larger number of attendees. The seats for humanoid intelligent Magical Creatures were located further back, and they generally did not offer their opinions.

"The first item on the agenda is the Werewolf issue!"

Nidander, leader of the Magical Species Protection Organization of the American Magical Congress, exclaimed, "Werewolf, as a vulnerable group of wizards, have long suffered from Werewolf Disease, making it difficult for them to maintain a normal life and work..."

For the next half hour, he introduced the basic information about Werewolf in a passionate and loud voice, while the newspaper reporters below each had an automatic writing quill pen in hand, scratching away on the parchment.

But Loren found it extremely boring, so he reached out and grabbed the girl's hand, placing it on his lap and slowly playing with it.

Squeeze your palm; it's soft and fluffy.

Pinch your fingertips; they feel soft and bouncy.

By the time he came to his senses, the discussion about Werewolf was coming to an end.

"... In view of the significant contributions made by the Werewolf pack in this magical crisis, we propose to repeal the Anti-Werewolf Law proposed by the British Ministry of Magic. Furthermore, we will work with the French Ministry of Magic, in cooperation with Werewolf leaders Taylor Lautner and John Moon, to form Werewolf Special Action Group to handle Werewolf- related incidents."

"Now, please welcome John Moon, the representative of the Werewolf, to speak."

Lupin, dressed in an ill-fitting suit, slowly rose to his feet. His seat automatically floated to the center of the hall. Listening to the applause that resounded throughout the building, he was momentarily dazed.

The Brooklyn Werewolf Inferi incident felt like it happened just yesterday, but to him it felt like ages, a time between the collective preparations for exile and his impending induction into a respectable special operations team. Tyler Lautner said he wasn't comfortable in this situation, so the task of giving the speech fell to him.

He had met Dumbledore in the side room before the meeting began and learned the truth about the strange Basilisk.

Lupin looked down at his manuscript, his eyes glancing at the two young wizards below. The girl was angrily pulling her hand away from the boy's and patting his shoulder. The boy pretended to be in pain, but his acting was very clumsy. The top-ranked Witch probably saw through him, but still rubbed his shoulder with an amused expression.

Truly, youth is as beautiful as the morning sun.

Those subtle feelings seemed to vanish in an instant. Lupin took a deep breath and began to speak.

"Thank you for the invitation from the American Magical Congress..."

Lupin spoke slowly and calmly, his manner even surpassing that of many Pure-blood wizard. Many reporters were pleasantly surprised, as Werewolf were completely different in their minds.

"... We have discovered a treatment for Werewolf Disease, and we believe that in the near future, all Werewolf will be able to run rationally and clearly under the moonlight."

The applause was even louder than before the speech began, and the flash of the magic camera illuminated the entire venue.

The image of the Werewolf leader John Moon with his gentle smile was frozen in time.

CNN that a malfunction in Brooklyn's underground sewer system caused a sewage backflow, resulting in a large amount of unidentified gas surging up the pipes and creating dense fog that severely congested traffic. Analysis of samples taken by the New York Environmental Protection Bureau's monitoring laboratory indicates the gas's main component is water vapor, with no harmful substances present. Residents are urged not to panic. New York City candidate stated that the incident was caused by a lack of maintenance and disrepair of key facilities in the underground sewer system. He promised to raise funds to renovate the city's sewer system after taking office and urged voters to cast their crucial ballots.

CNN that a fire broke out at the Statue of Liberty yesterday. The New York Fire Department speculated that the fire was caused by plastic debris adhering to the bronze statue's surface, which was ignited by sunlight focused onto the glass. No injuries or property damage were reported.

The luxury hotel's television played bland news reports, and on the suite's living room table sat paper bags from a cheap Brooklyn fast-food restaurant. The hotel staff must have been frustrated as they cleaned the room, wondering why anyone would choose to eat such junk food when the hotel offered far more delicious and upscale international cuisine.

It's not even a chain fast food restaurant.

Two cheese and beef burgers, two sandwiches, and drinks including a large Coke and a large orange soda.

Biting into the beef patty, the rich, creamy cheese stretches into long, thin strands, and every bite is pure bliss.

Loren chewed on his hamburger and mumbled, "The International Wizarding Congress is much more boring than I expected. Do we still have to attend the next few days?"

Hermione struggled to open her mouth wide, biting through every layer of the hamburger with great effort, so she ate slowly. As she swallowed, the little Witch muttered under her breath, "You weren't even listening; you were just squeezing my hand..."

"Squeezing my hand doesn't affect my listening to the speech..."

Loren retorted confidently, taking a sip of orange soda. "What about Grandpa Bates and your parents? We agreed to meet again in a week, but now that everything is over, when are you going to bring them back?"

Hermione glanced hesitantly at the junk food in front of her. "Tomorrow... or maybe the day after tomorrow?"

She took a big gulp of cola through the straw, savoring the caramel and bubbles dancing on her tongue, and let out a satisfied sigh, "It's only because Mom's not here these past couple of days, otherwise I definitely would have gotten scolded..."

Before he could finish speaking, the hotel phone rang.