Chapter 481: Evil Meets Its Match
Chapter 481: Evil Meets Its Match
Surprisingly, on the afternoon of the Full Moon, just as Liam and the others were busy preparing, the doorbell rang again. When Liam opened the door, he found Tonks, with her pale pink hair, standing outside.
"Hello, Liam", Tonks greeted him warmly. "Lupin is here, right? Today is important for him, so I came to check on him."
"Please come in", Liam said, opening the iron gate to let Tonks in. During Lupin's temporary stay, he hadn't cut off his connections with the outside world, so it was natural for Tonks to visit on such a night out of concern.
For the rest of the time, Tonks dealt with Lupin, while Liam went to the kitchen to help Hermione with dinner. With the help of Magic, dinner was ready in just a few minutes. After a quick meal, everyone rushed to a nearby forest to wait for Lupin's transformation. To pass the time, Liam started chatting with Tonks.
"The Order of the Phoenix has already suffered some casualties", Tonks mentioned. Liam, having been in China, was unaware of the recent developments in the British Wizarding World. After listening to Tonks, he learned that the situation had deteriorated significantly, especially after Voldemort's public return at the Ministry of Magic. The dark forces that had been suppressed for decades were now out in the open, and the Death Eaters had launched several terrorist attacks and targeted assassinations. This had left the Ministry of Magic and the Order of the Phoenix members exhausted throughout the summer.
"There have also been attacks on Muggles. I was wondering about the London Brockdale Bridge collapse mentioned in The Times. That bridge was built when I was in primary school, and it shouldn't have collapsed so soon. If it was a Death Eater attack, it all makes sense", Hermione said, sounding angry. "This is a war, but the Death Eaters have clearly brought it to the Muggles. They've crossed the line."
"Who would have thought? But they've been using this despicable tactic since the last war, terrorizing everyone through the indiscriminate killing of innocents. Not to mention, many Death Eaters enjoy the violence", Tonks nodded. "Several of my colleagues have resigned and emigrated because they fear for their families' safety. The attacks on Bones and Emmeline Vance have scared them. Honestly, I'm a bit worried about my Muggle father's safety."
Tonks then looked at Liam and Hermione. "According to our intelligence, you two have been added to their list. After you completely crippled Bellatrix's leg during the battle at the Ministry of Magic, they're out for revenge. For your safety, you might want to consider hiding at The Burrow for a while—"
Before Liam could respond, a gray wolf slowly emerged from the forest. Its eyes glinted with human intelligence.
"Lupin, you really did it!" Tonks exclaimed, rushing over to the wolf. Lupin seemed startled and tensed up, ready to flee, but then he relaxed and lay down, allowing Tonks to hug his neck and nuzzle him affectionately.
After a while, Tonks and Lupin walked over. "Now Lupin can't resist my pursuit anymore. He doesn't have to worry about hurting me."
As Liam and Hermione approached to collect Lupin's saliva, blood, and fur for analysis, Tonks understood why they were confident about their safety. A Wizard who could completely reverse the negative aspects of being a Werewolf was undoubtedly a Master of Magic, and Liam was also a highly skilled Alchemist. No one would dare attack a home like theirs, as they wouldn't know how many traps might be set up. Just like how even at the height of his power, Voldemort never attacked Nicolas Flamel's home.
"We did it, we really did it", Liam and the others cheered after a series of tests confirmed that Lupin retained his human consciousness and was no longer contagious.
The next morning, after breakfast, the four of them began planning their next steps. They decided that, given Liam's magical abilities and the energy reserves in the laboratory, they could treat one Werewolf per week. They would focus on helping the friends in the plantation first before considering spreading the news. After the discussion, Lupin returned to Norway to arrange the necessary preparations, and Tonks had to go back to work at the Ministry of Magic. She mentioned that all Aurors had been working overtime for over a month, and she had only been granted a day off after a week of continuous work.
That afternoon, Lupin brought a blond girl who looked to be only five or six years old. "This is the girl who was bitten. Her name is Mary. We all agreed she should be treated first", Lupin said, pointing to the little girl. "After all, we've been Werewolves for so many years, and we've grown used to it."
It seemed that the Werewolves Lupin had recruited were all good people, which made Liam very happy. The Contract for this little girl was different from those of the adult Werewolves. Liam stipulated that she would choose whether to pay a lump sum or sign a work agreement when she turned 17.
After the Contract was signed, Lupin hurriedly left. There had been an issue during the last full moon, and he needed to return to Norway to handle it. After seeing Lupin off, they took the child to the basement to start the treatment.
Mary was a very well-behaved but somewhat shy little girl. Hermione spent a lot of effort to help her relax. Once Mary was at ease, everything went smoothly, and the process was much less demanding and less time-consuming than when Lupin was treated. This was because Lupin was the first, and Liam had to spend a lot of time selecting and arranging the basic runes for the human body. As a result, the entire treatment process required a sustained and significant amount of Magic, making it quite challenging.
Now that Liam had experience treating Lupin, he could directly select the runes he needed, which greatly sped up the process. It took only a third of the time it took to treat Lupin to completely heal Mary. During the subsequent training, Mary transformed into a small wolf with a coat of pure white fur, soft and fluffy like a cuddly toy. Liam had to remind himself several times that this was a human, not a wolf, to resist the urge to touch her. Hermione, after helping the little wolf with her tests, held and petted her for several minutes before finally letting Liam take Mary back to her human form.
"Looks like the little white wolf can't be male", Liam thought to himself for no apparent reason. They waited for Lupin to come and take Mary away, but even after dinner, it was very late, and Lupin still hadn't arrived. By nine o'clock, Mary was already dozing off, so Hermione conjured a children's bed in the guest room for her to sleep in.
Seeing the little girl a bit frightened, Rose Crystal, who had just come out for a stroll, volunteered to keep her company. After listening to a few stories from the adorable doll, Mary quickly fell asleep.
The next morning, after breakfast, Lupin finally rushed over, his eyes bloodshot.
"What happened?" Liam asked nervously, noting Lupin's grim expression. To his surprise, Lupin replied, "During the full moon two days ago, one of our people bit someone."
"How is that possible?" Liam stood up in shock. Because the plantation housed ordinary people, Liam had previously instructed Lupin to dig a small underground shelter about 17 or 18 kilometers outside the Manor, reinforced with a lot of steel and concrete. During the full moon, the Werewolves would hide there to get through the night. Additionally, the Wolfsbane Potion they had prepared was enough for five Werewolves, who would drink it before the full moon to maintain their sanity and guard the entrance, preventing other Werewolves from accidentally escaping. How could they have bitten a human under such conditions?
"The victim was a Ministry of Magic official, some kind of Nordic Non-Human Liaison", Lupin frowned, recalling. "I found out today that she was exiled there. She was desperate to prove herself and bring glory to the Ministry. Someone at the bar told me that she said she would bring a Werewolf's head to the Ministry as proof of her achievement."
The story that followed was unbelievable. The liaison officer had intended to kill an innocent and claim it as a victory. When she blew open the basement door, a Killing Curse forced back the Werewolves who had taken the Wolfsbane Potion and were still rational. This allowed several irrational Werewolves to charge out and attack her. By the time the rational Werewolves regained control, the liaison officer's right hand and the part of her left leg below the knee had been bitten off, and she had multiple bite wounds on her body. Fortunately, the emergency potion Liam had left in the basement saved her life. Before fleeing, the Werewolves destroyed the shelter and erased her memory of the past month, then left her in a town.
"What's the name of the liaison officer?" Liam asked, suddenly recalling something when he heard "Nordic Non-Human Liaison."
"Umbridge, I heard she was a teacher at your school last year", Lupin said, mentioning a name Liam knew well.
(End of Chapter)
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