Chapter Summaries

Doran delivered a captive to Muggle Gaunt’s organization through a chain of secret transfers and discovered how extensive its operations were. After returning through the Floo Network, he reported to Luke and learned that the organization expected reports even from its agents.

• Doran used a single-use Portkey to reach a conspicuous exchange point near a Muggle settlement, where a woman and a Troll-like figure took the captive from him.
• The woman gave Doran another coin Portkey, and he traveled to a small room that contained a house-elf and a Floo Network fireplace.
• The house-elf directed Doran to write a report before leaving and provided parchment, a quill, and Floo Powder.
• Doran returned through the Floo Network and brought his report to Luke, who told him he did not read reports.
• The woman said she would report Doran’s performance to her superiors and asked him to make her report look good when he wrote it.

Luke told Duolan that he had been selected as a candidate for Rita’s assistant, while Gemma Tasski endured interrogation without confessing and recognized that a message had been written on her face. The chapter left Gemma hoping to survive and Luke waiting for Duolan’s report as his plans advanced.

• Luke told Duolan he had been chosen because he was suitable and sent him back to await Rita’s decision.
• Gemma Tasski refused to confess to spying, insisting that the charges against her were false.
• A young Wizard struck Gemma, but a young witch stopped him and reminded him that force required authorization.
• Gemma realized that words had been written on her face and understood that someone wanted her alive for the secrets she knew.
• After Duolan left, Luke reviewed reports confirming that the United States mission had succeeded and considered his next move.

Rita Nathan Lang faced pressure to confess to her crimes in exchange for a reduced sentence, while the investigators struggled to interrogate Sirius Black. The chapter ended with the young Wizard taking over Sirius’s questioning, despite recognizing that Sirius had been wrongfully convicted and that someone wanted information about Luke Gaunt’s role.

• Yue Rui Feng warned Rita Nathan Lang that she could face eight or ten years in Azkaban, then offered to seek a one-year sentence if Rita confessed.
• Rita rejected Yue Rui Feng’s promises and decided to wait until she could discover who had ordered the assault on her.
• A middle-aged Wizard told the young Wizard that the investigators had made no progress with Sirius Black and could not use harsher methods.
• Sirius mocked the investigators for questioning him instead of a suspected Death Eater, while the young Wizard objected that Sirius had been wrongfully convicted.
• The middle-aged Wizard sent the young Wizard into Sirius’s interrogation room to take over while he went to get a break.

Sirius used the Ministry’s guilt over its mistake to pressure his interrogators, while Nathan Lang warned him that the people behind Rita’s situation could still be dangerous. Rita orchestrated protests and a newspaper campaign to pressure Fudge and the Ministry, as Fleur and Chrissie watched Hogwarts for signs of danger.

• Sirius insulted the Ministry interrogators and tested whether they would admit the Ministry’s fault.
• Nathan Lang warned Sirius to keep up his pressure on Fudge, then left without explaining his concerns.
• Rita arranged protests outside the Ministry and recruited a man to condemn her persecution in the newspaper.
• The man promised to publish his accusations against Rita’s enemies, giving her campaign another public voice.
• Fleur and Chrissie cautiously observed Hogwarts, puzzled by how calmly its students treated the possibility of another attack.

Luke was ambushed near the Forbidden Forest by a concealed attacker whose physical strikes nearly broke through his Iron Armor Spells. He retreated toward the castle while trying to identify the attacker, but the chapter left him injured and still under threat.

• Luke encountered a huge flaming Dragon Head and responded as a powerful water attack struck his flames, filling the area with steam.
• Luke realized an unseen attacker was targeting him and used fog, a boulder, and concealed magic while trying to discover how the opponent tracked him.
• A white spear burst from the mist and shattered the boulder, while another hidden strike broke Luke’s first Iron Armor Spell and nearly destroyed the second.
• Luke suspected the attacker was using his movements to locate him and noted that Hagrid had not reacted to the clash.
• Luke tried to flee toward the castle, but a sudden strike sent him flying and left him injured as the attacker remained hidden.

Luke was lured into the Forbidden Forest by an attacker whose influence on his thoughts and senses left him unable to trust what he perceived. After enduring water attacks and exhausting himself with spells, he recognized the attacker as a giant horned white snake, but the fight continued.

• Luke cast enhancement spells and rushed toward the Forbidden Forest, where water attacks struck him and carried him past his wall of fire.
• Luke realized that the attacker might be manipulating his thoughts and senses, and that Dumbledore and Hagrid's lack of response was suspicious.
• Luke used a powerful Magic Shield and then unleashed a massive wave of flames, burning part of the forest's outer edge.
• Luke was driven deeper into the Forbidden Forest, exhausted and in pain, while the attacker continued to attack and cut off his retreat.
• Luke heard a rustling sound and saw a giant white snake with a prominent horn, identifying the attacker as a creature rather than an unseen person.

Hail encountered a Long-Horned Water Snake in the Forbidden Forest and learned that its frightening attacks had only been intended as play. The snake explained that Chase Salazarin had told it to stay in the forest, then revealed it had an important message for Hail.

• Hail assessed the Long-Horned Water Snake’s strength and wondered why it had attacked him.
• The snake explained that it had tried to lure Hail into the Forbidden Forest after Chase Salazarin warned it not to leave.
• Hail challenged the snake’s claim that it meant no harm, and it admitted it had only wanted to play with him.
• Hail asked whether the snake wanted the horn in his wand, and it confirmed that it recognized the piece it had given Chase Salazarin.
• The snake said it had something important to tell Hail.

Luke questioned Joe, the Long-Horned Water Snake, while she led him deeper into the Forbidden Forest to show him what his ancestor had left behind. As Joe revealed her abilities and claimed she had been keeping the inheritance for him, Luke remained suspicious and looked for a way to leave safely.

• Luke forced himself upright after Joe had injured him and asked what she wanted, making clear he would not trust her merely because she claimed to be connected to his ancestor.
• Joe said she had come to take a look at Luke and explained that her innate ability controlled water, created it through magic, and concealed her and Luke from nearby people.
• Luke asked why their earlier battle had gone unnoticed and learned that Joe could weaken their presence and influence the thoughts of people nearby.
• Joe told Luke to call her Joe and led him toward the center of the Forbidden Forest, where the trees had grown twisted and no creatures were in sight.
• Joe said Luke's ancestor had left things for him according to a prophecy and that she had kept them for him; Luke stayed wary and asked whether he could leave after seeing them.

Luke confronted Joe, the Long-Horned Water Snake, and deduced that she wanted him to help lift a Seal in the Forbidden Forest. He negotiated for a benefit while they cautiously moved toward the sealed place, each prepared to fight if the other made a wrong move.

• Luke explained that Joe had exposed herself by assuming he was Slytherin's descendant before he had said so.
• Joe revealed that Slytherin had sealed her in the Forbidden Forest and confirmed that Luke carried some of Salazar Slytherin's aura.
• Luke guessed that Joe wanted him to help lift her Seal, and Joe invited him to see the place.
• Luke demanded to know what he would gain for helping, while Joe argued that no one had offered her benefits when she was sealed.
• Luke awakened the magical power within his Snakewood wand and showed Joe that he could challenge her if necessary.
• Joe and Luke resumed their cautious standoff and began moving toward the sealed place after exchanging promises.

Seal followed Joe to a magical tree connected to time and learned that it had stolen centuries from her. Joe explained that Hogwarts had promised a descendant would help her recover her lost time, leaving Seal to decide what the tree’s connection to him meant.

• Luke reflected on his family’s inherited bond with snakes and the obedient Basilisk he kept at Hogwarts.
• Seal and Joe discussed her age, her lost time, and how Hogwarts had once tricked her into guarding the tree.
• Joe led Seal through a grove of magically distorted trees to the tree that had taken her time.
• Joe revealed that Hogwarts had taken a branch from the tree and promised one of his descendants would help her reclaim her lost time.
• Seal questioned whether Hogwarts had simply deceived Joe and wondered how the tree could be connected to him.

Taylor disappeared after fighting someone near the Forbidden Forest, and Dumbledore led the anxious girls to Hagrid's Hut to investigate. Hagrid revealed that he had fallen asleep during his patrol, while Hermione suspected that someone hiding in the forest had attacked Taylor.

• Taylor vanished, and Dumbledore could not sense his location or find signs that he had teleported.
• Taylor's companions followed his likely route to Hagrid's Hut, where they found scorched ground and lingering traces of magic.
• Hagrid told Dumbledore that Taylor had fought someone near the Forbidden Forest and that many Magical Creatures had recently gone missing.
• Dumbledore entered Hagrid's Hut and woke Hagrid, who realized that he had fallen asleep unexpectedly.
• Hermione told Dumbledore that someone hiding in the Forbidden Forest might have attacked Taylor.

Luke and Joe investigated a golden-leaved tree in the Forbidden Forest that stole time from creatures, while Luke’s pocket watch revealed that time around them had slowed dramatically. After finding a mysterious box and a blank letter, Luke was left facing the tree’s secrets and wondering what to do next.

• Luke checked his magical pocket watch and discovered that time was advancing far more slowly than normal.
• Luke found a Runespoor and other Magical Creatures near the tree, and Joe explained that the tree had stolen their time and left them near death.
• Luke examined the Runespoor and decided to take it away before it died.
• Joe led Luke toward a box she remembered Hogwarts had left near the tree.
• Luke opened the box, found a blank letter, and watched golden writing appear on a white card.

Dumbledore refused to take the children into the Forbidden Forest, then went to investigate alone after Hagrid revealed that Taylor had foreseen a dangerous scene there. Elsewhere, Taylor found a card bearing his own signature beside a strange tree that could turn people into fruit, flowers, or buds, and decided to follow its message.

• Taylor asked Dumbledore to bring the group into the Forbidden Forest, but Dumbledore refused and explained that he could not guarantee their safety.
• Dumbledore left to investigate the forest while the others waited anxiously at Hogwarts.
• Hagrid told the group that she had seen Taylor and described a scene resembling an ancient ball.
• Taylor found his own signature on a card and realized that he had written it himself.
• Taylor warned Joe that touching the strange tree would steal time and turn a person into one of its fruits, flowers, or buds.
• Taylor studied the tree and decided to try what the card said.

Taylor used the tree to enter a dangerous process that left him trapped inside a shattered glass ball, while Luke asked Dumbledore to help carry out Taylor’s goal. The chapter left Joe agreeing to investigate the Wizarding world as Taylor’s condition remained uncertain.

• Taylor hesitated before the tree, then pressed his hand against it and left a silver snake-shaped mark on its trunk.
• Taylor saw changing visions and purple stars before his glass ball shattered, leaving his miniature form curled inside it.
• Luke showed Dumbledore the shattered glass ball containing Taylor and asked him to help achieve Taylor’s goal.
• Dumbledore departed after calming the others, then received a magical message that flew into Luke’s robes.
• Taylor told Joe he might not return and asked her to explore the Wizarding world; Joe agreed to take a look.

Luke woke in a medieval world with his magic nearly depleted and an overwhelming hunger. A kind silver-haired, violet-eyed young lady brought him to her castle, where he received food and was checked for illness.

• Luke regained consciousness beneath a tree and realized that crossing worlds had left him weak, hungry, and nearly out of magic.
• A silver-haired, violet-eyed young lady and her maids found Luke, and she offered to take him to her family's castle.
• Luke ate an apple and explained that he was hungry while the young lady's attendants remained wary of him.
• At the castle, two men tested Luke's hair with a potion and found no sign of illness.
• The young lady gave medicine to the two serfs who had brought Luke, and Luke sat down to a rich meal in the banquet hall.

Muggle recovered his strength in the Christo Family castle while trying to determine when and where he had arrived. After introducing himself as Muggle Gaunt, he asked Claudia Christo whether a major epidemic was spreading.

• Muggle ate an enormous meal as Claudia quietly had more dishes brought to the table.
• Claudia introduced herself and identified the castle as belonging to the Christo Family.
• Muggle said he was Muggle Gaunt, and Claudia questioned his identity despite recognizing the Gaunt emblem.
• Claudia told Muggle that the Black Death had spread across Europe and had killed Wizards as well as Muggles.
• Muggle asked Claudia whether a large-scale epidemic was currently spreading.

Muggle recovered in the Slyther family’s castle during the Black Death and planned his next steps in the fourteenth-century Wizarding World. He arranged to leave and seek Hogwarts and a way back to his own time, while Claudia and her brother remained wary of him.

• Muggle reflected on the Black Death, the divide between Wizards and Muggles, and his ambitions to reshape the Wizarding World.
• Claudia questioned Muggle about his sudden arrival and remained suspicious of his claim to be a Gaunt.
• Muggle asked Claudia for the location of Hogwarts and explained that he needed to find a way to return to his own time.
• Claudia agreed to provide portable food and medicine so Muggle could leave the castle.
• Claudia's brother returned as Muggle prepared to depart and investigate the tree in the Forbidden Forest.

Elton offered the Claudito family a bag of valuable Magic Gems in exchange for medicine and food, while learning how badly the Black Death had devastated the region. After Miluk returned and assessed Elton warily, he urged him to remain at the castle for a few more days before continuing toward Hogwarts.

• Miluk returned from a supply journey and embraced his sister Chrisia, explaining that he had brought back materials and had hurried home because he was worried about her.
• Elton introduced himself to Miluk and offered Magic Gems as thanks to Chrisia and payment for medicine, food, and travel supplies.
• Miluk and Chrisia were astonished by the gems, and Miluk assured Elton that the payment exceeded the value of the supplies the family could provide.
• Elton learned that the Black Death had made the outside world dangerous and that clean water, medicine, and food were scarce.
• Miluk declined to send people out in groups to gather supplies and advised Elton to stay at the castle for a few more days.

Milton negotiated with Miluk and Claudia for help buying food and medicine, offering money and explaining that he wanted to see the suffering outside and help where he could. Miluk agreed to take him to purchase supplies in five days, while Claudia would accompany him to distribute food the next day.

• Milton said he wanted to go with Miluk to procure food and medicine and help people he encountered.
• Miluk explained that Milton's large payment had earned his basic trust, though he questioned whether Milton truly belonged to the Gaunt Family.
• Milton confirmed he was a member of the Gaunt Family but declined to explain further.
• Miluk agreed to take Milton to buy supplies in five days, and Claudia offered to go with him to distribute food the next day.
• Miluk arranged a guest room for Milton, and the three finished their meal before retiring.

Luke joined Claudia and Ni Yu as they brought food and medicinal dregs to the Christo Family's farmers, while keeping his Gaunt origins and his feelings about the family to himself. The group reached the village, where the desperate villagers gathered to receive supplies and the worsening crisis weighed on Claudia and Milton.

• Luke woke, dressed, and joined Claudia and Ni Yu for breakfast before the group set out to visit the farmers.
• Claudia prepared food and medicinal dregs for the farmers, and Luke followed her while avoiding questions about his origins.
• The group passed a clear river and reached the village, where villagers gathered at the entrance for supplies.
• Claudia's people distributed the food and medicinal dregs while her subordinates kept order with a whip.
• Luke watched a sick child collapse as the farmers' suffering and the lack of an effective Black Death treatment left Claudia and Milton facing a grim situation.