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Chapter 775: An Unexpected Turn of Events
Chapter 775: An Unexpected Turn of Events
"Are you saying the Dark Lord went to Austria?" Kyle asked, raising an eyebrow at Professor McGonagall, who had arrived to deliver a message.
It was noon of the following day, and the time for Harry's relocation had arrived. Yet, Voldemort had left the UK at such a critical juncture?
"There have been sightings of the Dark Lord near the Swiss border, in the area bordering Austria," Professor McGonagall explained. "This information comes from Madame Maxime, so it's likely accurate."
"What does Professor Dumbledore have to say about this?" Hermione, who had just entered the room, inquired eagerly.
"Professor Dumbledore has already left," Professor McGonagall replied. "However, according to him, he might not be able to participate in tonight's operation. He suggested you proceed with the backup plan you previously established."
The room fell silent, and no one spoke for a moment.
To be honest, while everyone took tonight's operation seriously, they didn't feel particularly anxious because Professor Dumbledore was still around.
With Professor Dumbledore's presence, they firmly believed the operation would succeed.
Even in Moody and Kingsley's plan, there was an alternative strategy to use Harry as bait to lure out the Death Eaters and the Dark Lord, engaging them in a direct confrontation.
However, they knew that neither Sirius nor the Weasley family would agree to this, which was why they hadn't mentioned it.
But this was indeed their intention.
The idea was for Professor Dumbledore to handle the Dark Lord while they dealt with the Death Eaters, leading to a decisive battle or, perhaps, the final showdown.
To this end, they had made extensive preparations behind everyone's back and formulated a series of detailed plans.
However, the premise for all this was that Professor Dumbledore would also participate in the operation; otherwise, their confrontation with the Death Eaters would be insignificant.
"Has Professor Dumbledore already left?" Moody asked again.
"Yes," Professor McGonagall confirmed. "Half an hour ago, Madame Maxime sent a letter. After reading it, he hastily set off and asked me to inform you."
The room fell silent once more.
Everyone understood what Professor McGonagall meant, and Kyle had long suspected that Professor Dumbledore might be lured away. This possibility had been considered when they initially formulated their plans.
However, everyone was also aware that whatever happened at this juncture was part of Voldemort's scheme. They believed that Professor Dumbledore wouldn't fall for it.
To everyone's surprise, he had left so abruptly, without even discussing it with them.
This departure confirmed that there must be something more important than Harry's relocation, or Professor Dumbledore wouldn't have made such a swift decision.
But what could it be?
The group pondered, but no one could think of anything particularly significant about Austria.
Could it be related to the three consecutive International Congresses of Wizards held there?
No, the timing didn't align; even if they went, it wouldn't make a difference. What could be the reason?
The group furrowed their brows, deep in thought, but no one could come up with a plausible explanation.
Kyle narrowed his eyes thoughtfully.
When it came to Austria, there was one place they couldn't ignore—not the International Congress of Wizards' conference hall, which was just a large room designed to impress.
The real famous location was a prison—Nurmengard Tower.
Unlike Azkaban, Nurmengard held only one prisoner—Gellert Grindelwald, a legendary wizard who had almost conquered the entire wizarding world sixty years ago and was also Dumbledore's close friend.
The two had parted ways due to a disagreement and later became bitter enemies due to their differing ideologies.
If there was anyone who could influence Dumbledore's decisions at such a critical moment, it had to be Grindelwald.
So, was Voldemort's target Nurmengard?
Kyle pondered this possibility.
Perhaps, but it could also be that Voldemort simply wanted to lure Dumbledore to a more distant location, and Austria happened to be the chosen place.
Regardless, Voldemort had succeeded.
With the agreed-upon time for action approaching, Dumbledore's absence from the UK could spell trouble if Voldemort returned promptly.
Kyle took a deep breath and rubbed his forehead.
Meanwhile, Professor McGonagall, who had delivered the message, quickly departed, as she had other tasks to attend to and couldn't participate in the operation.
Those who remained at Number 12, Grimmauld Place, looked at each other, hurriedly discussing countermeasures.
Fortunately, they had anticipated such a situation and remained relatively calm.
At six o'clock, Tonks and Dedalus left together, accompanied by another witch whom Kyle hadn't met before.
At the same time, Hagrid arrived. He appeared in Grimmauld Place riding a flying motorcycle with a black sidecar, its engine roaring.
"Oh, Hagrid, I told you not to ride something that draws so much attention," Moody said, frowning.
"Don't worry," Hagrid assured him, patting the motorcycle's sidecar. "After reaching London, I didn't fly it anymore. When Harry was little, I used this bike to bring him to Little Hangleton, so I thought it would be fitting to use it to take him away from there."
Hagrid spoke with a cheerful tone, filled with anticipation, unaware that Moody's mention of "something conspicuous" referred to more than just the motorcycle.
"I'm sorry, Hagrid, but our plan this time is to Apparate."
Hagrid's face froze, and he looked at Moody with a dazed expression.
"Yes. Exactly as you imagined," Moody continued, seemingly unaffected by the look on Hagrid's face. "So, I had to leave you and your motorcycle here."
"What?" Hagrid, who was even taller than Moody, sounded a little aggrieved. "You can't do this... Harry is waiting for me."
"This is the safest way, Hagrid," Moody said, glancing at his watch.
"It's time to go, don't forget to conceal yourself."
He took out his wand, and as the air around them distorted, everyone disappeared.
As Hagrid's dejected gaze fell upon the room, the door opened and then slammed shut.
"Cheer up, Hagrid, and you too, Ron," Mrs. Weasley said as she led Ron out of the room.
Ron, looking as dejected as Hagrid, had been sulking in his room, refusing to join the group when they set off earlier.
Regardless, he had missed the opportunity to participate.
"The task of providing support is equally important, and someone has to do it," Mrs. Weasley said again. "Come on, Ron, go and patrol around Grimmauld Place, especially the route leading to the abandoned garage. Make sure there are no suspicious individuals."
"Okay, Mom, I'm on my way," Ron said, regaining his spirits as he opened the door and left.
Mrs. Weasley turned to Hagrid, looking troubled.
His size was indeed a bit too eye-catching, drawing attention wherever he went, which made it less than ideal for him to be outside.
"Hagrid, you... be ready to provide support at any time. If Death Eaters are chasing Harry later, go and help him."
"No problem," Hagrid said, nodding slightly, though he was a bit disappointed.
And he grumbled to himself.
If he had known they would be Apparating, he should have listened to Maxime and learned that spell properly.
Meanwhile, in Little Hangleton, on Privet Drive.
A boy appeared on the street, sneaking around, his face partially hidden by a hat and his head bowed. But as he occasionally looked up to scan his surroundings, one could vaguely make out his features—it was Harry Potter.
He seemed to be hiding from something, quickly leaving Privet Drive and heading towards the nearby Lavender Moon Crescent.
A man dressed for work noticed this and hurriedly followed, and another oddly dressed person also threw away the newspaper in their hand and closely followed behind.
After they left, a car came out from another direction and drove down the street, blending in with the other vehicles and disappearing from sight.
Meanwhile, in the garden of the house the car had come from, ripples seemed to form in the air, and figures began to appear.
"Hurry up," Mr. Weasley said. "While Tonks is holding off the Death Eaters, we need to quickly take Harry away."
Then came Kyle, followed by Hermione...
As if sensing the commotion, the back door of the house was opened, and Harry, who had left earlier, rushed out and leaped into their midst.
Hermione stepped forward and gave him a big hug, her arms wide open.
"Long time no see, Harry."
"Long time no see, Hermione," Harry said happily.
"Harry, are you ready?" Sirius asked.
"I've been ready for six years," Harry said with a smile, glancing at the luggage and the owl cage beside him. "I didn't expect so many of you to come."
"For foolproof measures," Moody said gruffly.
"Okay, we're running out of time, let's get started," he said, stepping into the room, and everyone followed.
"I'll keep this brief. This time, we'll be using Apparition to take you away from here."
"Apparition?" Harry frowned. "But I haven't learned that spell yet."
"It's okay, you don't need to know it, and you don't even need to know how to Disapparate," Mr. Weasley said, glancing at Kyle.
"I understand."
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Kyle stepped forward, opened the box he was carrying, and placed it on the ground, "Okay, come in."
"This is..." Harry said, looking at the box with confusion.
That's right, Kyle's box was huge, large enough to fit even a dragon. During the Quidditch World Cup, they had used this box to hide from Death Eaters. At that time, Ron had even been knocked out by the dragon inside the box.
This time, it should be the same as before.
As he thought about this, Mr. Weasley explained, "Originally, we wanted to bring you along using Disapparition, but Kyle just finished handling some matters and returned. His magical box is more convenient, and more importantly, it won't expose you."
"Later, he will take you back to Grimmauld Place No. 12."
"Okay," Harry nodded subconsciously.
But then he remembered that there was also a dragon in the box.
He recalled the Triwizard Tournament, where the dragons could spew flames dozens of feet away. Harry's leg had frozen in place as soon as he stepped out.
Coincidentally, at that moment, Kyle also reminded him, "Oh, and once you're inside, don't run around. Stay in the room by the entrance, and especially don't open that door."
"I know, there's something outside..." Harry glanced at Moody and Kingsley and abruptly closed his mouth.
He almost forgot that dragons were banned from being kept as pets, and Kingsley just happened to be an Auror.
"Not just that," Kyle shook his head, "there are a few smaller creatures inside that are even faster, and they have a strong sense of territory. Plus, they're not very familiar with you. If I'm not there with you, they might consider you an enemy."
Hearing Kyle's words, Harry suddenly felt a sense of instinctual reluctance to enter the box.
Actually, it would be fine if the followers remained visible. At least Harry could put on his Invisibility Cloak to avoid exposing himself.
But before Harry could say anything, someone pushed him from behind.
"Come on, Harry. If you have any questions, we'll explain later when it's safe," Hermione said.
She knew Harry too well and naturally understood what he was thinking. To save time, she walked up and gave him a nudge.
Harry stumbled, and his foot landed on the box. Then, uncontrollably, he rolled into the box.
"Thud!"
A dull thump and the sound of something being knocked over came from inside the box.
"Remember, it's safe inside the room. And no matter what you hear, don't open the door," Kyle reminded him again before putting the luggage and owl inside and closing the box.
Outside, there were disorganized footsteps approaching. It was the office worker and the oddly dressed person, hurrying towards them.
"Let's move, quickly!" Moody said. Hermione was the first to close her eyes and disappear with a snap.
Then Bill, Fred, and George also Apparated away from the room at the same time.
Kyle, who was positioned in the middle, picked up the box on the ground, glanced at the others, and said, "See you at Grimmauld Place."
And then he vanished from his original spot.
When he reappeared, the once tidy room had turned into a garage filled with dust and spider webs.
"You're finally here. Did you run into any trouble?" Charlie ran over and handed Kyle a broomstick, "This is your Firebolt. Hurry, I'll cover you from behind."
"Okay," Kyle didn't waste any time. After becoming invisible, he mounted the broomstick and rushed out of the abandoned garage.
The Firebolt was incredibly fast, and in less than a minute, he saw the familiar Grimmauld Place.
The door to number twelve was already open, and Kyle didn't slow down, charging straight in.
When Mrs. Weasley saw Kyle, her initial tension turned into excitement.
As one of the planners, she knew that Kyle was responsible for bringing Harry. Now that Kyle had arrived, it meant Harry was here too.
"Where's Harry?" Hagrid asked anxiously.
Kyle took out the box and opened it.
Harry immediately poked his head out, instinctively surveying his surroundings.
"Mrs. Weasley?"
"Thank goodness," Mrs. Weasley hugged Harry, so excited she almost cried, "Thank goodness you're safe."
A minute later, Charlie returned, looking completely unharmed, not even a wrinkle on his clothes.
"How's it going?"
"Very safe, not a Death Eater in sight," Charlie said with a smile, "This plan was too successful."
"Yes, the plan was very successful," Kyle laughed.
Five minutes later, Sirius also returned using a Portkey.
Although these were timed, they were less convenient than Apparating in emergencies. However, they were safer because it was difficult for the Ministry of Magic to track them if they weren't reported, making them ideal for the return journey.
Sirius spun and landed on the ground, and as soon as he entered, he looked around until he spotted Hagrid chatting with Harry, finally letting out a sigh of relief.
"How's it going over there?" Kyle asked.
"Not bad," Sirius said, casually tossing an empty can aside, "The Death Eaters probably think Harry won't go to Diagon Alley, so they didn't follow."
"Is that so?" Kyle smiled awkwardly, not saying anything more.
After that, the others also returned one by one.
Strangely, it seemed like none of them encountered any enemies, and everyone was unharmed.
Fred and George joyfully celebrated the success of the plan, and Harry was also happy, greeting everyone.
But Kyle frowned.
He had felt something was off earlier... The plan had gone too smoothly, as if all their previous preparations were a joke.
Even if the Death Eaters were up to something, there wouldn't be complete silence, which was very suspicious.
Kyle even had the feeling that they could have walked over with Harry without any problems.
However, at that moment, the others were joyfully celebrating Harry's arrival, so Kyle thought about it and decided not to say anything.
...
(End of Chapter)
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