Night of the Full Moon

At eleven that night, three furtive figures left Hogwarts Castle and headed toward the pitch-black Forbidden Forest in the distance.

A bright full moon hung in the night sky. By its light, Kyle could make out Hagrid's hut not far away.

"Is that you? George and Fred?" a voice called from afar.

Hagrid strode toward them out of the darkness, a massive crossbow and a bulging quiver slung across his back. A lean hunting hound followed behind him.

"Kyle, what are you doing here too?" Hagrid frowned when he saw Kyle. "The Forbidden Forest is very dangerous at night. Go back!"

"The three of us were the ones Professor McGonagall caught this afternoon, but she didn't punish me." Kyle spread his hands.

Hagrid froze for a moment. "All right, then listen carefully. The Forbidden Forest at night is extremely dangerous for young wizards like you. I don't want any of you getting hurt."

He led them to the edge of the Forbidden Forest, raised his lantern high, and pointed to a narrow trail that gradually disappeared into the depths of the dark woods.

They peered into the Forbidden Forest as a light breeze ruffled their hair.

"What we're doing is patrolling the Forbidden Forest. Generally speaking, as long as you three stick close to Fang and me, you'll be safe."

Hagrid patted Fang on the head, signaling him to lead the way. "Stay alert. All right, let's go."

The Forbidden Forest was pitch-black and utterly silent.

Fang and Hagrid walked at the front of the group, one ahead of the other, while the three young wizards followed closely behind Hagrid.

George and Fred held up their wands, their tips glowing with Lumos. One walked on either side, shielding Kyle between them.

Kyle was touched by what they were doing, but also found it a little funny. He patted their arms. "Guys, you really don't need to do this."

Before coming to Hogwarts, Kyle had been New York's Dark Knight, a deadly guardian of the night.

Darkness offered perfect cover, which was why most crimes took place at night. Kyle could only operate during those hours as well.

As a result, Kyle had honed his fighting skills in dark environments.

If the three of them fought in a dark place like the Forbidden Forest right now, Kyle would not even need ninjutsu. With just close-quarters combat and outrageously slippery footwork, taking down both George and Fred would be no problem at all.

George and Fred could not help grinning at Kyle's words.

"What are you thinking? We're not acting as your bodyguards."

"It's just that you don't know Lumos, so we're walking on both sides to light the way."

Is that so? They think I'm some scrub who can't do magic.

Kyle considered it for a moment and drew his wand from his sleeve.

After five years of practicing ninjutsu hand seals, he still was not quite used to using a wand.

"Lumos," Kyle murmured.

As Kyle deliberately increased the flow of magic, a head-sized sphere of light floated from the tip of his wand, illuminating the pitch-black Forbidden Forest as brightly as day.

No, it was even brighter than daytime. After all, the trees in the Forbidden Forest were far too dense for much sunlight to reach the ground directly.

George, Fred, Hagrid: ???

"How did you do that?"

"Even the advanced version of Lumos isn't that bright!"

Hagrid nodded in wholehearted agreement. He had been in the Magical World for so many years, yet he had never seen anyone cast Lumos like a tiny sun.

Of course, he believed Professor Dumbledore could do it easily if he wanted to.

Kyle flicked his wand upward, and the sphere of light rose with the movement, hanging above their heads like the sun. "Isn't it simple? You just need to increase the magical power you put into it."

George, Fred, Hagrid: ...

Increasing magical power input sounded simple enough.

But the brothers had no idea how to do it.

Hagrid had never heard of such a technique either.

George and Fred gripped their wands with all their strength, their faces turning red as they strained like severe constipation sufferers desperately trying to clear a long-blocked bowel...

"What are you doing?" Kyle asked curiously.

"Increasing the magical power input," George answered honestly.

Kyle cleared his throat, trying not to laugh. "That's not how you increase magical power input at all."

Seeing that his Lumos was inferior to Kyle's, who had not even started school, Fred could not quite save face. "Then how are we supposed to do it?"

Kyle opened his mouth, only to find that he could not explain it clearly either.

Is controlling the magic inside your body really that hard? Really?

"First this, then that." Kyle pointed at the little sun overhead. "Then it floats out."

Feeling thoroughly brushed off, the two grabbed Kyle by the neck from either side. They clearly had made up their minds to strangle him to death if he tried to fob them off again.

"Stop, stop, stop! I'll teach you two the trick to controlling magical power when we get back!"

Kyle began making calculations in his mind.

Tree climbing and water walking were not particularly profound techniques, but if they could be used to build connections, they were well worth it.

Kyle had not forgotten his identity as the Son of the Dark Lord.

Even if he had no plans to rule the Magical World, it was still necessary to expand his network.

Hagrid glanced at the three young wizards roughhousing and could not help coughing to remind them, "We haven't finished the patrol yet."

At Hagrid's words, the three stopped fooling around.

Having extorted magical control techniques from Kyle, the brothers exchanged satisfied winks.

But at that moment, an abrupt wolf howl shattered the silence of the Forbidden Forest.

Hagrid's expression changed drastically when he heard it.

"Go! We need to get back, quickly!" Hagrid shouted. "Kyle, put out your Lumos!"

Kyle could hear the urgency in Hagrid's voice and did as he was told.

The four of them and the dog raced back along the path they had come from.

Fang ran incredibly fast and soon vanished from their sight.

"Hagrid, is it werewolves?" George asked.

"That's right. That's a werewolf calling for its companions. Damn it! Tonight is a full moon!"

At Hagrid's answer, George and Fred's teeth began to chatter, and their legs moved even faster.

Another wolf howl rang out, more mournful than the last. Judging by its volume, it seemed to be coming from much closer.

"They've caught up!" Hagrid stopped running. "We can't outrun it!"

He led the three behind a towering oak tree, took the crossbow from his back, nocked an arrow, and raised it to fire.

Kyle glanced at the tree beside him, then climbed it with hands and feet, reaching the top more than ten meters up in just a few leaps.

George and Fred nearly had their jaws drop at the sight.

Crouching in the tree, Kyle pulled out a pair of insulated gloves from his pocket and put them on. Holding his breath and focusing his mind, he quietly waited for the werewolf to arrive.

The four listened intently. Before long, an eerie black shadow entered their view.

Two green points of light, like ghost flames floating in the air, appeared first.

A strange creature wrapped in thick fur stood on two legs. Its upright triangular ears twitched from time to time in the cold wind, keenly catching every faint sound from its surroundings.

That was a werewolf.