Chapter 517: During the Match 4
The plump official in front of Little Barty Crouch frantically patted his body, muttering again and again: “My Telescope… where’s my Telescope?”
A group of brides from the Bulgarian team had already glided into the stadium. Their skin shimmered with a faint, pearl-like glow—pure and flawless. Silver-white hair, untouched by wind, floated like soft mist. With delicate tiptoes and arms gracefully extended, their movements were fluid, ethereal—like living illusions, or spirits not of this world. The sight left onlookers breathless.
Inside the compartment, the spectators were utterly transfixed. Some stood frozen in place, others stared with dazed smiles, a few had undone their robes, and a few even stretched their arms wide as if to embrace the vision.
Even the official who had lost his Telescope stopped searching. He stumbled to the railing, his shiny mouth watering, drool streaming from his lip.
Only Shiny, the tiny house-elf, remained unaffected—aside from her usual fear. Little Barty Crouch, however, paid no attention to the brides at all. He held the telescope, scanning the compartment numbers, then suddenly paused.
In a distant compartment, Harry Potter sat with a vacant, foolish grin, legs propped on the railing as if about to charge out—only to be yanked back by an adult wizard beside him.
Little Barty Crouch adjusted the lens, confirmed the compartment’s number and position, then sneered contemptuously. He placed the telescope gently beside Shiny.
The house-elf, small and slender, occupied only a sliver of the chair. She hadn’t noticed the new object at her side.
The music ended. Roars erupted from the crowd—people didn’t want the Bulgarian brides to leave. But soon, Ireland’s home team mascot arrived: a giant clover hovered above the stadium, raining down endless golden coins. Chaos broke out as fans scrambled to grab them, quickly forgetting the earlier enchantment.
The officials inside the compartment couldn’t stoop to such behavior. They wiped their mouths, straightened their robes, and exchanged awkward yet polite smiles.
But the plump official turned—and saw his telescope lying right at the house-elf’s feet.
Furious, he yanked her from her seat. “Thief! So it was you who stole my Telescope!” he bellowed. “You’ve ruined my view of the entire performance!”
Shiny shrieked in shock, “Shiny didn’t! Shiny’s a good little sprite! Shiny never steals!”
Before she could finish, her face went deathly pale. She felt it—the sudden severing of Little Barty Crouch’s control over her. Worse, he’d reclaimed his wand.
“Don’t lie! Look at the Telescope right beside you!” the official snapped, shoving her back onto the chair. He snatched his telescope back. “Get out of this compartment! I’ll be speaking to Crouch about why he keeps a thief among his sprites!”
The compartment door flew open behind her before she could react. Shiny knew—Little Barty Crouch was escaping. She screamed, “No—no—Master will kill me!”
She strained to reach out, to re-tether him—but was kicked violently to the ground.
“That’s what you get, you little thief!” the official growled, then slammed the door shut with a forceful thud.
“Calm down, Kully. That’s Crouch’s little sprite,” said another official, finally stepping in. “Maybe you just set it down somewhere else by accident.”
Shiny lay on the ground outside, her eyes wide with panic, rolling wildly—yet utterly unable to move. A Petrificus Totalus spell had struck her the moment she was thrown out.
Her tiny ears pressed to the ground, listening as familiar footsteps receded into the distance. Fat tears rolled from her bulbous eyes like drops of light.
...
Gellert Grindelwald traced the rough bark of the tree with his long, slender fingers, whispering an ancient, strange incantation. After a long moment, he lowered his hand.
Just like Dumbledore, he used no special instruments, no dazzling light. Everything was calm, ordinary—almost as if no spell had been cast at all. Yet, without a doubt, he had already investigated and understood everything.
Before Gellert Grindelwald, Wade didn’t activate his special vision. Like Dreian and the others beside him, he saw nothing.
“An interesting spell,” Gellert Grindelwald said, a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips—half admiration, half mockery. “You were right not to interfere. Our friends have been awakened. They’re not moving now only because they’re still in a state of ‘light slumber.’”
“So… even without direct orders, if they’re attacked, they’ll wake up immediately?” Wade asked.
“Precisely,” Gellert Grindelwald replied, gazing up at the towering oak tree. His silver hair fluttered in the breeze, his eyes deep and unreadable. No one knew what he was thinking.
The group fell silent. After a moment, the old man turned and said, “All of you—withdraw from the forest. Set up a Protection Charm around the perimeter as a barrier. Then we’ll deal with the trees.”
Dreian nodded and pressed the communication pea, transmitting the order.
The members of the Wizard Purity Party, scattered across the forest, confirmed the giant tree’s location and Apparated in an instant—arriving at the forest’s edge in the blink of an eye.
Wade did the same, appearing on the outer edge. Beyond the darkness, he could make out the endless rows of tents—but in the night, they were invisible. Only the stadium lights stood out, glaringly conspicuous.
“You’ve learned Apparition?” Antoine approached, slinging an arm around Wade’s shoulder and giving him a playful shake. “Last time, I was worried you’d get caught in the crossfire of those two’s battle!”
Wade asked, “Do you have enough people to set up a Protection Barrier?”
“Encircling the entire forest? Impossible. But we just need to block the direction of the camp,” Antoine said casually. “That dark wizard isn’t going to attack from the wasteland and swamp, is he?”
Wizards Apparated one by one, standing a few meters apart. Each drew their wand, faces solemn and focused—silent, yet resolute.
Like a fragile yet unyielding wall, guarding against unseen enemies.
Wade couldn’t help but compare them to a guardian line in his mind—yet a strange unease tugged at him.
It was probably because the Wizard Purity Party didn’t quite fit the image of guardians. Even if their actions had changed.
“I’m worried,” Wade frowned. “That kind of giant tree—no Protection Barrier will hold for long. Unless we can—”
He didn’t finish.
A voice cut through the air ahead: “Braun, come here.”
It was Gellert Grindelwald.
Wade paused mid-sentence. Then he remembered—Braun was his alias within the Wizard Purity Party.
He felt the weight of eyes from all directions. Slowly, he began walking toward Gellert Grindelwald.
Antoine waved to another young wizard beside him. “Come on, come on! Remember what I taught you—let’s make our heroics look cool!”
(End of Chapter)
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