A Visit to St. Mungo's

Regardless of why the other three Champion didn't appear in the Great Hall during dinner time, Skylar was clearly not resting in his dormitory room as everyone had guessed.

He appeared at the St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries.

It was nighttime, well past the time when the public could visit the sick, so Skylar had sneaked in secretly.

Although the security at St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries was far less stringent than that of Hogwarts or the Britain Ministry of Magic, it was still a force to be reckoned with. However, all of this was a piece of cake for Skylar; the so-called security measures were merely better than nothing and posed no challenge whatsoever to Skylar.

Given Skylar's magical prowess, especially his mastery of hypnosis, invisibility, and Metamorphmagus and Animagus, infiltrating a mere hospital would be incredibly easy; there's no need to elaborate further here.

This wasn't Skylar's first visit to St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries. As a child, he and Draco had once stolen and eaten some unknown fruit from the yard while playing, resulting in both of them being poisoned and hospitalized. After recovering and being discharged, they were severely scolded by Lucius. Skylar remembered that although Lucius's scolding was fierce, the very next day, the tree in the yard that bore fruit emitting iridescent rainbow light was uprooted and vanished without a trace.

Later, when his grandfather Abraxas contracted Dragon Pox, Skylar's family visited him several times.

Therefore, Skylar had a certain understanding of the internal terrain and structure of the St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries.

At the entrance on the first floor, there was a waiting area staffed by a plump, blonde witch. Although it was night, there were still quite a few patients in the waiting room. On the same floor was the Artefact Accidents, which specialized in treating accidents caused by artifacts, including cauldron explosions, wand misfires, and broom collisions.

Knowing his way around the area, Skylar carefully bypassed the reception desk without alerting anyone, then climbed the adjacent stairs and headed directly to the Spell Damage Department on the fifth floor.

Pushing open the double doors marked "Curse of Spell Damage" led to a long corridor. Ignoring all the wards at either end of the corridor, Skylar headed straight for the last ward at the end of the corridor—Jenus Sitch's ward.

The Jenas Sitch ward is a closed ward. Its door is usually locked to prevent patients from wandering around. It is a ward for permanent patients whose brains have suffered permanent damage from a curse.

Skylar glanced at the sign on the door that read "Attention - Locked - Janus Sitch Ward," confirming he was in the right place. Below these signs was a handwritten business card framed in a brass case. "Head of Therapy: Melanie Straw; Intern Therapist: None."

Skylar shook his head. Usually, each ward requires two therapists to manage it—a head therapist and an intern as an assistant. However, the Jenas Sitch ward and the Muggle psychiatric intensive care unit have the same problem: they often face a shortage of staff. Young therapists don't like it and won't choose this ward for their internships.

No wonder Mrs. Straw in the original novel made a series of mistakes. First, she accidentally let Gilderoy Lockhart out of his closed ward, and then, while delivering Christmas presents, she carelessly placed the Devil's Snare next to Broderick Bode Bode's bedside, causing him to be strangled. All of this was actually due to a shortage of manpower.

Skylar smiled. Perhaps his trip could be considered a good deed, easing Ms. Straw's burden, even though his motives were not entirely pure.

Instead of using Alohomora open the lock on the door, because magic always leaves a trace, he skillfully used Muggle's Universal Lockpick to pry open the lock and enter the ward.

There were five beds in the ward, but only three patients were actually there; two beds remained empty. Skylar had done his homework beforehand, using his intelligence network to find out the patients' daily schedules—during which time the busy Ms. Slaughter would give the patients calming and concentration Potions to help them rest or sleep, giving her ample time to enjoy her dinner.

So, Ms. Slaughter will be dining in the tea room on the sixth floor for the next half hour, so there's no need to worry about her bumping into you.

At this moment, the three patients in the ward were all fast asleep in their respective beds, completely unaware of the presence of Skylar, the intruder.

Skylar first cautiously set up various warning and soundproofing spells around the area before carefully examining the patients' mental state.

Alice and Frank Longbottom's situation was similar to Skylar's prediction: the pain accumulated from prolonged physical torture exceeded the limits of their mental capacity, leading to a complete mental breakdown. As a result, they lost their normal thinking and logic, falling into a dazed and insane state.

Given the current level of medical care in the wizarding world, this is irreversible magical damage.

Restoring their minds and allowing them to regain their past memories, thoughts, and personalities involves extremely complex and profound Magical Theories in the three realms of spirit, magic, and soul, which even Skylar is beyond his capabilities.

However, Skylar was not there to treat them—at least not in the traditional sense of Reparifarge.

Since their memories, thoughts, and personalities are irretrievable, wouldn't simply achieving complete Obliviate reset their mental world?

In this way, although they cannot be said to have "returned" to their original selves, they have at least "returned" to their functions as healthy adults.

Perhaps, maybe, this is a kind of relief for them!

Thinking this, Skylar sighed deeply, then his eyes cleared, and without the slightest hesitation, he raised his wand and softly chanted, "Obliviate!... Obliviate!"

And then--

"Imperio!... Imperio!"

In this way, the two became puppets under their own control.

Skylar erased was only their past experiences. They didn't remember their identities, names, or past, but they retained their ability to speak and read/write in English, as well as all the magic they had once possessed.

Although it is not easy to do this with the Memory Charm, Skylar was one of the few people in the world who could do it. Given Skylar's mastery of the Memory Charm, the possibility of him making a mistake was almost non-existent.

This is the outcome that best aligns with Skylar's plan.

The Longbottoms were usually confined to the closed-off Jenas Sitch ward, which meant they didn't have much contact with other hospital staff. The only person who would visit them was Neville, whose magical knowledge and skills were not particularly impressive, so the chances of their Imperius Curse being detected were extremely slim.

Once night falls and all is quiet, the former Aurors, Longbottom and his wife, can use Disillusionment Charms and various stealth techniques to roam around St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, gathering intelligence and secretly transmitting information outwards, such as using Two-Way Mirrors.

As for the locked ward door? Don't be ridiculous, Skylar didn't believe that a mere lock could stump a pair of renowned Aurors.

As for the possibility of breaking free from the Imperius Curse, it's not impossible. However, as characters without memories, they shouldn't theoretically attempt to resist Skylar's Imperius Curse. Nevertheless, just in case, the cautious Skylar planted a mind-control magic trap in their minds. Once they actually begin to resist the Imperius Curse, the planted curse will activate on its own, forcing them into an endless slumber.

Having done all this, Skylar was about to leave when he glanced around and saw the third patient sleeping on the hospital bed.

The female patient's Agnes. Her face was covered with thick, dark animal fur. Her medical record stated that she had lost the ability to speak and could only make barking sounds similar to dogs.

Although the medical record did not state a diagnosis, Skylar guessed that this was the consequence of a failed Animagus Transfiguration. The soul and spirit had already been transformed into beasts under the effects of the Transfiguration, but the Transfiguration of the physical body was incomplete, resulting in this half-human, half-beast state.

Faced with this situation, Skylar had no better solution.

Although Skylar had considered brainwashing and controlling her, the fact that this witch dared to practice Animagus cultivation indicated that her family background was not ordinary. If a powerful figure were to appear among the visitors who came to see her, the risk of being exposed would outweigh the benefits.

With that thought in mind, Skylar abandoned his plan to control her with the Imperius Curse and quietly left the St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries.