Desperate Counterattack

Skylar fell silent for a moment, his fingertips slowly tracing an invisible line across the tabletop, as though redrawing the entire map of the war.

He knew very well that if this were a game of chess, then Walpurgis had successfully expanded the board until he was forced to play ten games at once. Any delayed move would be magnified without end.

Yet at the same time, he realized something.

The very fact that Walpurgis had chosen this strategy proved that they did not dare face him head-on.

They avoided Hogwarts not because it was unimportant, but because it was too important—so important that once they failed, their entire arrangement would collapse in an instant.

That meant the enemy was still wary.

Wary of him holding the center, wary that he still possessed trump cards capable of turning the tide.

Skylar slowly exhaled and gradually suppressed the turbulent thoughts within him.

He could not allow himself to be led around by the nose.

Since they had chosen to tear the world apart on multiple fronts, then he had to do the opposite: gather those scattered flames of war once more and force Walpurgis to reveal its true core.

This war was no longer a simple conflict between good and evil.

It was a contest of patience, structure, and will.

No matter how deeply Walpurgis hid or how widely they spread their plans—as long as they wanted to win, they would sooner or later have to step into the light.

He stopped his finger over the location marked as Germany's Black Forest. Then he raised his head, his tone returning to its usual calm and clarity.

"Dino."

The House Elf whose name had been called immediately straightened, pressing both hands to his sides.

"Go to Germany again at once," Skylar said.