Chapter 724: The Mist
Chapter 724: The Mist
During the two-hour journey, Liam and the Miniature Dolls who had come to support them shared a dinner. The remaining time was spent analyzing and planning their next moves.
"Our destination is a clearing in the middle of Hampshire", Liam said, pointing at a 3D map projected on the cleared table with his wand. "This clearing is northeast of Portsmouth and is currently a nature reserve."
"As for the Wizard side, I reviewed some of the Ministry of Magic's records and can confirm that no Wizard has lived here for the past 300 years", Liam continued. "The only connection to the Magicworld here is a few common magical herbs growing in the forest, but these herbs are not unique to this area and are not even the best quality."
"So, you have no idea why the enemy chose this place as the battlefield", Canary, the Puppet's strategist, said, crossing her arms. "Having the enemy choose the battlefield is actually very disadvantageous for you. By the way, can you lure them out?"
"Highly unlikely", Liam shrugged. "I need to disrupt the dark ritual the Dark Wizards are preparing, and they know this. Under these circumstances, I doubt they will abandon their pre-set positions to come out and fight me."
"That's bad", Canary muttered, then looked down at the map seriously. "If that's the case, you'll have to go in head-on. But such a large area is terrible for the attacking side. By the way, can you call for more reinforcements?"
"Calling in reinforcements is a good idea. Let me think about who we can mobilize—" Hermione was speaking when her Owl Brooch began to vibrate. She immediately excused herself and left the room. A few minutes later, she returned with a troubled expression.
"What happened?" Liam asked, and the Miniature Dolls turned to look at Hermione. After a deep breath, Hermione said, "Penelope just contacted me. She told me that the Dark Lord has appeared and defeated a seven-member Auror team outside Hogsmeade. The entire Hogsmeade is now on high alert."
"Are you sure it's him?" Liam asked, not wanting to take any chances. "And who is the Dark Lord with? The Death Eaters?"
"The Dark Lord acted alone today, without any Death Eaters", Hermione said, frowning. This behavior was completely different from his usual tactics, where a group of Death Eaters would lead the charge, and Voldemort would make a decisive appearance at the end. It was unprecedented for Voldemort to fight alone.
"I think this might be a diversion", Canary speculated. "If the Dark Lord is acting alone, he has the mobility to maintain significant pressure in the surrounding areas."
"You're right", Liam nodded. "In this situation, Professor Dumbledore and those defending Hogsmeade can't leave their posts. Even if they could spare a few people, sending them here would be sending them to their deaths."
"But we're not short on manpower", Canary said. "This Aerial Fortress stores 1,500 Alchemical Robots. While they are far less skilled than wizards, we have a numerical advantage. Of course, the only true humans among these resources are the few of us in this room."
After nearly an hour of discussion, Ryan and the others concluded that their best strategy was to adapt on the fly. After all, the intelligence they had was limited, and there were many unknowns they couldn't prepare for.
At 8:40 PM, the Aerial Fortress finally arrived five kilometers away from the designated location. Standing at the edge of the castle, Liam could only see the forest shrouded in a thick, white mist.
"Passive Magic Surveillance can't see what's inside, and active reconnaissance spells might alert the people hiding there, causing them to harm the hostage or prematurely execute their plan to destroy the Muggle population", Hermione said as she walked up behind him.
"There's some good news, though. We're almost certain the Jumping Cauldron is inside because we can sense a strong Magic fluctuation in the core area of this place, likely caused by a powerful Alchemy Item", Canary added, flying over. "Rose Crystal and the others are ready. As soon as you give the order, we'll fly over. The five kilometers will only take us a minute or so."
"Then I'll leave this to you." Liam said, and with Hermione, he leaped down. As they neared the ground, he summoned his Wings to slow their descent, landing silently.
"This is definitely not natural." Once on the ground, Liam looked toward the target and saw the milky, opaque fog standing like a wall before them, as if an invisible barrier had separated the strange fog from the normal area.
"Still, we have to go through it!" Hermione's face showed a mix of determination and frustration. "Even if it's a trap, we can't ignore the innocent Muggles."
"You're right. Let's go in." Liam smiled. "The chances of us recovering the Jumping Cauldron aren't small. I think the Dark Lord knows a defective item won't fool me. More accurately, his plan to turn the surrounding Muggles into wights is genuine. This ensures we fall into his trap exactly as he planned."
As they stepped through the invisible barrier, Liam suddenly felt the surroundings become eerily quiet, with visibility dropping to no more than 20 meters. The fog seemed to absorb all sound, enveloping everything in a hazy silence.
"Any discoveries?" Hermione asked after walking a short distance. "I noticed my Magic reconnaissance range has drastically decreased, and I can't detect any animals or insects in the area."
"There's something seriously wrong with this place", Liam said, stopping to place his hand on a tree. After a few seconds, he removed his hand and turned to Hermione. "It feels like all life has been drained away. Normally, the trees should give me a response when I cast a spell, but now there's nothing. The strange part is, they're still alive."
Seeing Hermione's puzzled expression, Liam explained, "Plants, unlike animals, don't react as visibly to Magic, but they do respond to natural Magic. Now, they show no reaction at all to my spells."
"Is our communication with the outside world still intact?" Hermione asked, her face tense. "Especially with the Miniature Dolls on standby at the Aerial Fortress?"
"For now, it's still normal", Liam replied. "When I built the Aerial Fortress Magic Tower, I incorporated some unique Magic communication methods that have never been seen in this world. So, our connection with the Aerial Fortress is still working. However, the Alchemy Items I use to communicate with Lupin and the guerrilla fighters have failed. These fogs likely have a shielding effect."
"Damn! This feeling of being completely in the dark is awful", Hermione grumbled. She then steeled herself and continued walking with Liam into the depths of the forest.
(End of Chapter)
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