Chapter 210: Safe
Chapter 210: Safe (Request for Subscriptions, Favorites, and Recommendations)
A blue light flashed, and Liam and Hermione appeared in a dusty warehouse. The floor was littered with footprints, and the door had been completely knocked inward.
"We're back. It looks like the Wizards who were chasing us have left", Liam said, surveying the surroundings. At this moment, he also received a notification from the System, earning 12 Deviation Points in the Beauty and the Beast World. Not only did this compensate for the points spent on the escape System, but he even gained an extra two points.
Hermione also looked around and, upon confirming they were temporarily safe, she made a cut on her hand. She then used the blood to draw a strange rune on her palm.
"Blood Seal", Hermione recited in the Amazonian Native Language. When she finished the spell, the rune on her hand turned golden. Seeing this, Hermione pressed her hand to her forehead, and the golden rune appeared there before quickly seeping into her body.
By the time Liam realized what was happening, Hermione had already completed the spell and was swaying, looking like she might collapse at any moment. Liam quickly stepped forward to support her.
"There are many ways to keep a secret. Why did you choose the most extreme one?" Liam asked, his voice tinged with concern. "You know that Blood Concealment is a Magic that uses your life to protect a secret. Its effect is not much different from an Unbreakable Vow, and in some ways, it's even stronger. This spell is activated by your own will, unlike the Unbreakable Vow, which can be circumvented with clever wordplay."
"First, I really don't know any other way", Hermione smiled. "Second, your ability is worth protecting with my life. Since you were willing to show me this ability, I naturally want to prove myself worthy of your trust."
"Stupid girl", Liam said, not knowing what else to say. He simply hugged her tightly.
Suddenly, a voice broke the silence: "Liam, Hermione, where are you?" Liam recognized it as Professor Sprout's voice.
"Has everyone broken through from the outside? Are we safe now?" Hermione asked, looking at Liam.
"Maybe. We've been gone for about an hour, so Professor Sprout and the Brazilian Ministry of Magic might have driven off those Dark Wizards. But we should still be cautious", Liam replied. They both rolled around in the dust to make it look like they had just escaped. Then, Liam cast a Disillusionment Charm on both of them before slowly making their way to the hall with a small Pyramid Temple.
It's worth noting that the Gift of Blood was truly useful. Even when they moved slowly and were nearly invisible, they could still sense each other's blood, allowing them to maintain their positions.
Exiting the tunnel into the hall, they found several Blood Deity Cultists lying dead on the floor, while more cultists were squatting with their hands on their heads at the base of the pyramid. Aurors in black robes with the Brazilian Ministry of Magic emblem on their chests were patrolling around.
Professor Sprout was standing with Headmaster Fernandez, her voice amplified by a charm as she repeatedly called out Liam and Hermione's names, her voice already hoarse.
"Who's there?" An Auror on patrol suddenly pointed his wand at Liam and Hermione's location.
"It's us, don't attack", Liam said, removing the Disillusionment Charm from both of them.
"You're safe, thank goodness", Professor Sprout ran over, but stopped a few meters away. "Tell me, what courses did each of you choose this year? I need to make sure you're not imposters who drank Polyjuice Potion."
"I chose to study Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, and Care of Magical Creatures", Hermione said.
"I chose the same subjects as her", Liam added. Professor Sprout had asked them very cleverly, directly inquiring what courses each of them had chosen, a question that would make someone who didn't know the answer assume the two had different schedules.
"It's really you two, thank Merlin. I'm so relieved", Professor Sprout said, immediately pulling them into a tight embrace. "After that cloud of smoke cleared, we realized you were both missing. It wasn't until we defeated those attackers and Alicia told us that you had been swallowed by a sudden Sky Pit that we knew what had happened."
"Later, after interrogating the captives, we learned about their plot. It took some time to infiltrate here and discover that someone had not only escaped from that dimension but also severely damaged the Blood God Cult. However, they never knew about the invisible attacker. I thought it might be you two, and it seems my hunch was right. By the way, how did you manage to escape?" Professor Sprout asked finally.
Liam and Hermione had already rehearsed their story. They simply said that after falling through the Sky Pit, they mistakenly entered the dimension. They stumbled upon the control hub of the Temple and, after encountering something that caused the entire dimension to collapse, they managed to escape.
Once they arrived here, they used spells to mask their presence and remained hidden. The Dark Wizards were too busy dealing with the attack to conduct a thorough search, which allowed them to stay hidden until now.
"You both did a fantastic job. Headmaster Fernandez even mentioned that he has already applied to the Wizengamot for the Order of Merlin on your behalf", Professor Sprout said with a smile as she released them. Given that they were safe and had earned such an honor, it reflected well on her as their professor.
Seeing the disheveled and weary Liam and Hermione, Professor Sprout quickly concluded the conversation and escorted them back to the school.
As soon as they entered Castrobrusso, the School Healer took them to the Hospital Wing for a full body check-up. The results showed that both had suffered injuries due to magic power overload, which meant they would have to spend the night in the Hospital Wing.
After changing into hospital gowns, Liam noticed that Hermione was lying on the bed next to him, and there was another person at the far end of the ward.
At that moment, the School Healer approached with a bottle of purple potion, pouring it into a cup on Liam's bedside table. "Thank Merlin your injuries aren't severe. If they were worse, magic power overload could have left you completely without magic", he said, handing the cup to Liam. "I suggest you drink it all in one go; it's a bit strong."
Liam took the advice and downed the small cup in one gulp. The potion tasted like an intensified version of Huoxiang Zhengqi Water. As he swallowed, he felt a warm current flow from his throat to his stomach, then spread throughout his body.
"Have a sweet", the School Healer offered, passing him a skull-shaped candy. "But honestly, you two are quite lucky." He then pointed to the figure lying at the far end of the ward.
"Professor Ferdinand now has to take over a dozen different potions every day. For the past few months, he was imprisoned in the greenhouse and repeatedly subjected to the Imperius Curse by that imposter. That's why he claimed he needed to go into seclusion for research, letting Old Bark take over his classes. Fortunately, his condition is recoverable, but it will take time and careful treatment."
Seeing that Liam's expression had improved, the School Healer moved to Hermione's bed and helped her finish the remaining half of her potion. Watching Hermione's face contort as she drank the potion, Liam felt a sense of relief at the thought of returning to their normal routine.
(End of Chapter)
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