Chapter 630: Returning in Disappointment
Chapter 630: Returning in Disappointment
“Felix Hep?”
Nicole Nol repeated the man’s introduction in a low voice. Suddenly, she waved her wand, and the air hissed. Sharp, blade-like sounds exploded in her ears.
However, her spells did not harm anyone, nor did they fly far.
Several feet in front of her, several blinding flashes of light erupted, and a solid stone wall appeared, deflecting the spells. Nicole Nol was taken aback. What level of transfiguration was this? She instinctively stepped back—
Another wall blocked her path behind her. Her hand, not holding the wand, touched the rough, cold rock surface, and her heart sank like a drowning person. All her senses told her that the wall was real, with no loopholes. She even suspected that the person in front of her was Dumbledore in disguise. But something incomprehensible happened: the solid wall that had blocked the spells rapidly lost its color, transforming into simple, ink-like lines. Felix Hep’s statue-like figure became faintly visible.
Finally, those lines flickered a few times and merged into the darkness.
Nicole Nol stared at Felix’s silver eyes, her mouth agape in surprise.
“Your eyes... you have the prophetic talent too?”
“Are you talking about Grindelwald? His eyes used to be similar to mine?” Felix asked with interest. “We worked together for over a month, and I never noticed. I thought they were always blue.”
“No, you’re different,” Nicole Nol whispered. “He only had one eye that was different, a rare sign of the prophetic talent.”
“Really?” Felix paused, then made a sound of gratitude. “Well, can we have a proper conversation now? You don’t seem to be hiding your identity. That simplifies things. There are many Apostles, but because of that, it’s hard to determine who’s close or distant... It’s good that you’ve shown up.”
“You won’t learn any secrets from me,” Nicole Nol said warily.
“Even after half a century?” Felix asked.
“To some, our cause has never ended; it’s just dormant.”
“Ah, I see. You’re here to bring back your leader,” Felix said. After a brief silence, he asked again, his eyes meeting her wary gaze, “I’m curious, what’s it like to unconditionally believe in someone?”
Anger flared in the woman’s eyes. “Are you mocking me? That’s very ungentlemanly and doesn’t match your international reputation.”
“No, no, I’m genuinely interested... In the circles I’ve encountered, it’s said that only the Apostles have such strong cohesion, especially the core members. Do you know the Death Eaters? They seem incomparable to the Apostles.”
“The Death Eaters?” the woman sneered. “What are they?”
Felix smiled. “So, what’s it like? Giving a part of your fate to someone else, like the faith of Muggles?”
Nicole Nol studied him for a moment, then a mysterious smile played on her lips.
“I see.” She sighed.
Felix expressed a subtle question, but the woman remained silent.
A moment of silence. Then—
“I want to see Mr. Grindelwald.”
“I’m afraid you’ll be disappointed. Mr. Grindelwald... well, he’s already taken up teaching and no longer involves himself in past matters. It’s best not to disturb him. It’s for the best, for both him and you.”
The atmosphere tensed again. “Are you going to oppose the Apostles?” Nicole Nol said haughtily and coldly.
“But, madam, how many do you represent?”
“More than you can imagine,” Nicole Nol said sharply. “I admit you’re powerful, but how many can you handle? A thousand? Two thousand? Or ten thousand wizards? The entire wizarding world dared not judge all the Apostles back then. Do you think you can represent those two million wizards?”
“Tsk, let me remind you, Grindelwald has been imprisoned for half a century.”
“He did it voluntarily!” Nicole Nol shouted, her eyes blazing. “But he’s out now. No one in this world can stand against the Apostle army, not even Dumbledore. He only uses tricks and schemes, entrapping and outmaneuvering. Mr. Hep, if you join us, you’ll be highly regarded. It’s the only way to prevent Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and the British Wizarding World from becoming ruins—”
“Interesting. Are you suggesting you have plans to start a wizard war?”
Felix smiled slightly, but his tone grew cold. “Do you know what I see, madam? An empty threat. You’re lying; you only represent yourself. And when you mention the Apostle army—”
His pupils were completely filled with silver light, and the runecrafting tome, which had shrunk, floated in the silver mist, surrounded by flickering runic symbols. This tome was different from the one Felix had given Hermione as an adult gift—Hermione’s was empty, needing her to fill it with her understanding of Ancient Runes. Felix’s, however, was the source of the greatest power of a runecrafting master.
The surroundings grew hazy, with cold black walls appearing and disappearing. Noisy voices filled their ears, and young students passed by, vanishing one by one. The walls connected, and windows, staircases, and towers began to form, transforming the overgrown forest into a vast castle.
Nicole Nol turned her head stiffly, her breath condensing on the illusory window, reflecting a face filled with fear. She turned around and met Felix's gaze from across the corridor.
"I don't know how many I can handle. Do you want to find someone to test it out?"
A moment of silence.
"Sorry, I got a bit carried away", Felix said, the majestic castle slowly fading from his view. "But I hate being threatened." He muttered, especially by threats that could come true. The woman in front of him couldn't do it, but Grindelwald might.
If he had to face thousands of wizards at once, his only option would be to run.
"Regardless, your plan has failed, madam. Come with me, and I'll turn you over to the British Ministry of Magic."
Flapping its wings, a brown owl spiraled down, dropped a letter at Nicole Nol's feet, and flew away without looking back. It had taken great effort to deliver the letter, and it intended to eat more owl food upon returning.
Nicole Nol glanced at Felix, seeing no reaction, she picked up the letter, tore it open, and pulled out the parchment inside to read it.
A few short lines, which she read several times. She collapsed to the ground, her face pale and her eyes unfocused.
"Grindelwald's reply? So you've already contacted him. What did he say?"
Nicole Nol closed her eyes, crumpling the letter in her hand.
"I see... You can leave now, Ms. Nol. Don't come back."
"Are you not going to arrest me?" Nicole Nol asked weakly, opening her eyes.
"There's no need." Felix said, and suddenly disappeared.
The wind howled, and Nicole Nol remained where she was, gazing in the direction of Hogwarts. After a long while, she finally left.
"That old man sure has a lot of charm. After all these years, people still remember him", Felix muttered, fiddling with an illusory piece of paper. He shook his head and vanished again, truly leaving this time.
Grindelwald's refusal to come out of retirement was a positive sign. Felix didn't need to stir up more trouble. Who knew what kind of relationship these two had? They might have been a couple. Felix simply weighed his options and decided against handing this hot potato to Madame Bones.
She was under enough pressure already. Adding more might make her quit.
The new week began, and everything at Hogwarts was as usual, except for one thing.
"Potter", Grindelwald said from the podium, flipping through a submitted essay, "can you tell me what you wrote?"
Harry slowly stood up from his seat, unwillingly saying, "Homework, sir."
"So you knew", Grindelwald said softly. "You weren't serious, Potter. Therefore, I'm sorry to say, you'll have to stay after class."
"But, sir—" Harry protested.
"I'll listen to your explanation in my office, but not now. Don't hold up the others", Grindelwald said calmly. "Let's continue the lesson."
Harry sat back down, fuming, while Ron and Hermione gave him sympathetic looks. This wasn't the first time this had happened. Professor Basharat didn't relax his standards just because he knew Harry; if anything, he was even stricter.
Often, the same essay with a different name might pass, but on Harry's, it was riddled with flaws. He hadn't expected it to result in staying after class.
"Due to your 'Muggle disguise' skills being so mediocre, more than half of you failed. This means you could attract the attention of Muggle law enforcement at any moment. And if some of you carelessly pull out your wands, you might face a lethal response."
"Last class, we learned that conventional firearms can fire at supersonic speeds. Does anyone remember the exact number?—Well done, Miss Granger—and the average wizard, those proficient in non-verbal spellcasting, can move at about a third of that speed. Unless you're a high-level mage who can control magic outside your body, you'd better pay attention to my lessons..."
"Detecting danger early is safer than facing it head-on. One effective method is to use an augury charm to enhance your perception and detect danger in advance."
"Now, pair up. One of you will turn your back to the other. The one facing away will use the augury charm, while the other will gather a spell at their wand tip without casting it. Let's see how well you can do this."
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
