Making a Plan

"A third option? Do you really think the two of you can escape the palm of my hand?"

Charles burst out laughing.

Taking advantage of this, Cypher quietly asked Luna,

"Luna! How are you?!"

In Cypher's arms, the familiar scent cleared Luna's muddled mind considerably.

Was I just hit by the Imperius Curse? Coming to her senses, Luna hurriedly stepped back behind Cypher. She closed her eyes, rested her forehead against his back, tugged lightly at his hand, and whispered,

"No. It may have been psychological suggestion or hypnosis."

Cypher softly reassured Luna.

"Are you ready? We're going to start running."

"Mhm." Luna rubbed her forehead against Cypher's back, indicating that she was ready.

"Looks like we can't reach an agreement. Just as expected."

Austin Charles's expression shifted unpredictably.

"Even if I've lost the Norman Dragon Tendril Grass, bringing you two back will still be a major accomplishment!"

Cypher and Luna had been on guard all along. In fact, without discussing it, they both decided to attack first and create an opportunity to escape.

"Expelliarmus!"

"Stupefy!"

Cypher and Luna fired two spells, one after the other.

They had never expected the spells to cause any damage, much less planned to press the attack.

The two immediately turned around, their backs to Austin, and took off running.

"Nebulus!"

Even as he ran, Cypher cast the Smoke Spell that Professor Dumbledore had once used to blanket the entire city of Paris over a decade ago.

His magical power was nowhere near Professor Dumbledore's, but creating a patch of smoke thick enough to blind people was no problem. Combined with the darkness of night, it made them even harder to spot.

Dense smoke spread in every direction, yet the area within ten meters around the two of them remained clear.

With the starlight filling the sky, they could barely make out the outlines of the surrounding buildings.

Fortunately, Hogsmeade's streets were fairly flat. Otherwise, they would definitely have taken a few tumbles.

On the other side...

Austin had already dodged the spells in a flash, but after reconsidering, he had also blocked both spells with the Shield Charm.

After personally experiencing the spells' power,

he frowned. A black rat with red eyes appeared in his hand, crawled down his trench coat to the ground, and ran toward where Cypher and Luna had previously been standing.

"There's no scent of Polyjuice Potion, nor are there any other lingering smells."

The rat sniffed repeatedly around the place where the two had vanished, then squeaked several times. Austin's expression darkened after understanding what it meant.

"The spells aren't something a student should be capable of, but that magical power... I should have Shadow investigate whether there are any exceptionally talented young wizards among the students. Merely distracting that old fool Armando is far too easy. He's often not even at school, so what is there to distract him from..."

He paused.

"If you really manage to escape from my grasp, I'll be quite heartbroken over losing a Faith Crystal!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Justin suddenly threw open his coat.

Countless Swooping Evils flew out from the pockets lining the inside of his trench coat.

The Swooping Evils gathered in the sky like a swarm blotting out the heavens, forming a cloud of black speckled with tiny points of red light in the blink of an eye.

"Anything alive that can move is your target!"

Realizing that he would not be able to obtain the Norman Dragon Tendril Grass easily, and that he might even offend the outstanding descendants raised by two Pure-blood families, Justin decisively resorted to ruthless measures.

"Boss, then I..." Bell asked quietly, his face turning pale at Charles's display.

"Get outside the barrier and maintain it properly. You're no match for them. Just reinforce the barrier for me!"

Justin impatiently cut Bell off.

Then he suddenly remembered something.

"Remember to add an Anti-Elf Apparition Charm. There are plenty of House-elves serving inside Hogwarts!"

"Yes!"

Seeing Justin's impatient expression, Bell quickly vanished from the spot with a crack.

As if being even a moment slower would turn him into a sacrifice for Dark Arts.

"Disillusionment Charm!"

"Obscuro!"

"Cypher, the Poly-Scent Potion. Mix it into the smoke."

Cypher understood and infused the potion into the smoke streaming from his wand.

This would greatly limit anything trying to track them from the ground.

Many creatures identified friend from foe by scent. Without someone controlling them, they would most likely slaughter one another.

"Our Disillusionment Charm can fool those flying creatures. But Charles can see through it at a glance."

The two moved silently through the alleys, occasionally evading low-flying Swooping Evils and rats scurrying wildly beneath their feet.

"What do we do now?"

After running for so long, Luna was exhausted, and her breathing had become slightly ragged.

While Cypher paused to search for a way out, she caught her breath and quietly asked him.

Before Cypher could answer, she continued,

"Fawkes's feather. Let's call Fawkes and have him take us away!"

Cypher froze, then turned to comfort Luna.

"That's one of our last options. Besides, you snuck out with me. You don't want Professor Dumbledore to know what we've been doing, do you?"

Hearing that, Luna bit her bright red lip with her pearly teeth and finally shook her head.

"I'd rather Professor Dumbledore knew that we came to Hogsmeade Village for an illegal transaction than have you put yourself in danger for me. Aberforth... Once we leave, we can have Fawkes go help him."

A stretch of silence followed.

"Can't we just go to the edge of the barrier, break it, and leave?"

Having found the direction, Cypher pulled Luna onward without looking back.

"You're worried I can't break the barrier?"

"Isn't that true? We haven't learned any spells powerful enough to break a barrier. Are you going to use Dark Arts?"

Seeing that Cypher did not dare turn around to look at her, Luna mistakenly thought that he intended to use Dark Arts that would damage his body or even burn his soul.

She could not help grabbing Cypher's hand. Her reddened eyes stared at him resolutely. At the slightest hesitation from Cypher, the girl would decisively pull out the feather and summon Fawkes.

"What are you thinking? How would I know Dark Arts? Haven't you all seen every spell I can use?"

That was right... She really had let her concern cloud her judgment.

Luna lowered her head in embarrassment and let Cypher lead her along.

As Cypher walked ahead, thoughts continued to rise in his mind.

Luna's mental state was still unstable. What a strange method.

I believe the Icy Soul Hammer I cultivated can pierce through the barrier... right?

Of course, he still needed to take a look first.

As long as it worked, tonight's events could come to a nearly perfect conclusion.

He would obtain the Norman Dragon Blood Grass, divert Charles's attention from his investigation, and clear Aberforth of any suspicion of involvement.

Fortune came from danger. This was Cypher's first real battle, and so long as it remained safe, he intended to take a few risks.

Magic was also a matter of will. Once you believed that everyone else was superior and that you could accomplish nothing,

your achievements would ultimately be limited. You would never become a wizard as great as a legend.

Cypher was not moving in a straight line.

The two veered left and right, sometimes deliberately allowing a Swooping Evil to spot them before shooting it down and quickly fleeing.

Austin was being led around in circles by the pair, yet he did not dare attack the buildings without restraint. If he did, every underground force in Hogsmeade would come out to suppress him.

"You little rats! Don't let me catch you!"

When he realized yet again that he had been toyed with, he gritted his teeth as he spoke, but his gaze grew even colder.