Chapter 671: The Trip to France
Chapter 671: The Trip to France
In the October sunlight, at a manor located in the center of the British Isles, Liam, Hermione, Rose Crystal, and the rarely seen Gill were gathered around a round table in the Tea Room, enjoying afternoon tea while listening to the information Gill had gathered in London over the past few days. As a spirit born and raised in London, Gill had a distinct advantage in gathering intelligence.
"By now, we can pretty much confirm the attackers", Gill said, setting down her teacup. "I've been lurking in Diagon Alley, Knockturn Alley, and outside the newly repaired Ministry of Magic. From the conversations I overheard, I can be fairly certain that the attackers in this operation were mainly those mercenaries. After their failed attack on Hogsmeade, they suffered heavy losses. So, after escaping, they vented their frustrations on innocent people."
"Furthermore, the Aurors from the Ministry of Magic did their best in this incident", Gill continued. "According to the information I gathered, those Dark Wizards only rampaged for seven minutes in Poca Village before encountering the Aurors sent from Hogsmeade and the Ministry. If the Aurors hadn't arrived in time, the village would have suffered much greater damage."
"Considering that Hogsmeade and the Ministry had just been attacked, their response was quite swift", Hermione nodded. "This also confirms that there are no spies from our side involved in this attack."
"That's good news. In our next move, we only need to focus on the fight itself, without worrying too much about internal issues", Liam smiled. Fighting a straightforward battle was a simple matter, but once internal espionage was involved, it would bring a whole series of complex issues to handle.
"Our first target is here", Liam took out a map of Europe and pointed to a spot. Everyone leaned in, and they saw that Liam was pointing to Calais, France. "Based on Gill's reconnaissance over the past few days, those Dark Wizards don't stay in the desolate London Wizarding World. Instead, they choose to live in the prosperous French Wizarding World. Near Calais, there is a manor belonging to a Pureblood Wizard. Gill tracked two of those Dark Wizards and found that all the Dark Wizard mercenaries are staying there."
"Why do they live in France?" Rose Crystal asked curiously. "I mean, they were hired by that Dark Lord to fight, so why don't they stay in Britain?"
"It's quite understandable. You can't expect these scoundrels to have a habit of saving money. For them, the natural thing to do after obtaining wealth is to enjoy it", Hermione explained to Rose Crystal. "Compared to the desolate London Wizarding World, the prosperous French Wizarding World is a much better place for them to spend their Galleons."
"Additionally, Calais is the closest French region to Britain. Even the most ordinary wizard can easily Apparate across the English Channel to reach Britain. So living in France doesn't hinder their activities in Britain", Gill added. "I discovered this by possessing two Dark Wizards."
"Can these Dark Wizards freely go out shopping?" Rose Crystal's eyes widened, her two purple irises shimmering like crystals. "Where are the French Aurors?"
"They can indeed travel freely", Gill spread her hands in a helpless gesture. "As for the French Aurors, they pretend not to see the Dark Wizards' Death Eater Marks when they encounter them. The Dark Wizards, in turn, give the French students face and never stir up trouble in France."
"Oh, French students—" Liam and Hermione exchanged glances and shook their heads. For the British, the term "French students" often explained a lot.
"So, what is the most important thing we need to pay attention to in this operation?" Hermione asked, picking up the file Gill had left on the table. "At least, fourteen poorly organized Dark Wizards are no match for us."
"Our main concern is that this operation must not attract the attention of the French Ministry of Magic. Otherwise, French Aurors might join the battle as a hostile third party", Liam said. "After all, for the French Students, they might even choose to tacitly acknowledge the Dark Lord's London Ministry of Magic as the representative of the British Wizarding World to ensure their own safety. To avoid giving the Dark Lord an excuse to invade France, they might very well take direct action to stop us from attacking his subordinates."
"Can we take preemptive action to disable the French Ministry of Magic?" Gill asked. "If Uncle opens all the weapon permissions to me, I can guarantee—"
"The French Students are not our friends, but they are not our enemies either", Liam said, patting Gill's silver hair firmly. "It's not time for that yet. The last stone-throwing operation in Britain has already taught us a valuable lesson. Sometimes, taking the initiative only brings more enemies. Besides, don't always think about the lower-level weapon vaults in the Radiation World. They have already destroyed one world, and I don't want to see another world destroyed."
"Leave those people to me. You just need to prevent them from escaping", Hermione suddenly said. "I learned a powerful spell from Lady Silvermoon last time, and I want to try it out."
"If you're confident, I have no objections", Liam said, meeting Hermione's eyes. Seeing the determination and resolve in her gaze, he slowly nodded. "I will do everything in my power to help you."
Three days after the Poca Village tragedy, at 2:30 AM, Ryan and the others set out from their manor, riding a cloaked spaceship to a small hill near a manor in Calais, France.
"Is it right below us? They are still quite careless", Liam said, standing on the hill and noticing that the manor had only the most basic Muggle Repelling Charms and some Invisibility Charms, along with a few common defensive spells. There were no complex defenses as he had imagined.
"This isn't carelessness", Gill said. "While the French Students may allow them to live here, they will not let them build a fortress on their territory. Moreover, in the last war, Uncle's Headmaster Dumbledore's faction rarely took the initiative to attack, so the Dark Lord's side saw no need for excessive defense."
"So this time, we need to change their perspective and keep them in a state of constant fear", Liam said. "Only then will they understand that there are some things they cannot do, and it will prevent them from further harming the innocent."
With that, Liam took out a dozen silver balls, each the size of a ping-pong ball, from his Spatial Bag and tossed them into the air. The balls quickly sprouted tiny wings and began to vibrate rapidly, then flew off in all directions around the manor.
"How does this look like a Golden Snitch?" Hermione asked, watching the silver balls fly away. "But it seems a bit different from a Golden Snitch."
"It's a Transfiguration of a Golden Snitch. I made it after getting my hands on an abandoned Golden Snitch", Liam explained, then pulled out a golden plate embedded with gems. "Unlike the original Golden Snitch, this new small flying magical item is equipped with an Optical and Magical Dual Detector. If multiple are used together, they can quickly map out a small area of a dimension."
As they spoke, the silver balls had taken their positions. Soon, a sky-blue, translucent 3D map projected above the golden plate.
"Is this the manor below?" Hermione asked, looking at the projection and then at the manor in the moonlight nearby. "But what are these bright and dim light specks and the lines connecting them on the map?"
(End of Chapter)
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