Looking at the furious faces around her, Emily almost laughed from anger.
She had been mocked and insulted, yet instead of taking revenge on the enemy or proving themselves with real action, they wanted to dump their anger on women of their own country who were also victims?
What kind of logic was that?
Emily couldn't understand it, and didn't want to.
Even though she didn't get along with Fleur, and could even be said to strongly dislike her.
At this moment, she felt an unusual sense of pity toward Fleur.
The group of French wizards around them really were just as that Arab had said.
All cowards.
And the most disgusting kind at that. The kind that only dared to act tough toward their own people.
Unlike Emily, however, Link didn't feel even the slightest bit angry.
There was still a smile on his face.
An uncontrollable, ice-cold sneer.
He wasn't surprised at all by the reactions of Little Zangwill and the others.
Because similar behavior had already been displayed long ago by the Muggle men of France.
Other countries, for example the monsters in the East Asian "monster room," at least knew to take in the weian women, condemn the perpetrators, and pursue accountability.
Although because of the social environment at the time those weian women still endured enormous psychological pressure, at the very least they were able to live their lives in peace.
But France was different.
Just like now, after their surrender they vented all the humiliation they had suffered from the Axis powers onto the women of their own country.
They shaved large numbers of their own women bald, paraded them through the streets, humiliated them, beat them…
And the charge they used was even more absurd and laughable... treason.
Treason committed by having relations with Axis personnel during the occupation of France.
Were there people among them who had truly and willingly betrayed their country?
Of course there were.
But far more French women had been forced!
The French men didn't care about that. They only looked at the result.
So amid boiling public resentment, the women of France suffered.
They were almost all purged in one sweeping stroke.
Meanwhile the French leadership, in order to divert conflict, watched it all happen with smiles, even providing military and police assistance to the enraged mobs.
They harvested a wave of praise and barely managed to recover some of the domestic reputation they had rapidly lost because of how quickly they had surrendered.
It really was ironic.
No wonder the trend of mocking France in later generations spread from England and America to the entire world.
After Napoleon, France truly had no more men.
With a cold smile, Link swept his gaze across Little Zangwill and the others one last time, then walked toward the Arab man opposite him.
From what the man had just said, things were already very clear.
This guy wanted to force himself on Fleur and even wanted the people from Zangwill Wand Shop to assist.
The two soon stood face to face in complete silence.
Link's height, thanks to years of training and massive amounts of potions, had already reached a rather rare 1.94 meters among ordinary wizards.
The other man could only barely match him thanks to the bulky giant silk headwrap on his head.
Their eyes met, both filled with undisguised malice.
"Hahaha!", After a while, the Arab suddenly burst out laughing and pointed at Link, rattling off another string of words.
"He says you definitely aren't French," Dumbledore stepped forward again at the right moment.
"France doesn't have men as brave as you. Men who dare to stand up for their wives and daughters."
After speaking, Dumbledore cast a half-smiling glance at Little Zangwill and the others.
From that smile it was obvious that the trend of mocking France was just as widespread in wizard circles in England, to the point that even someone as firmly left-leaning as Dumbledore had been influenced.
Unfortunately, the smile on Dumbledore's face quickly disappeared again.
Because the Arab immediately chattered another long paragraph.
Hearing it, Dumbledore stared at him expressionlessly for a moment, clearly angered.
But in the end he didn't take any real action. Instead he leaned closer to Link and continued, "He also said that even if you aren't French, you must be Europeans."
"And European men are all the same, all useless trash who were beaten senseless by his ancestors. He also said the female companion next to you looks pretty good too, and told you to offer her up to him as well."
"Oh? You really are…", Link shook his head and murmured.
He didn't even know how to describe the Arab in front of him anymore.
The man's arrogance had already gone beyond Link's understanding.
All Link could do was attribute it to the diversity and unevenness of the world.
But what the Arab had just said did allow Link to recognize who he was.
This person seemed to be the same Arab wizard from the earlier brochure, the one proudly laughing while carrying a European-style lance.
Link vaguely remembered that the man had even authorized his identity to be printed in the brochure.
His name seemed to be…
"Honored guest, please don't be too angry. This is Mr. Yuri Saladin, a pure-blood wizard noble from Tikrit, and one of the most prestigious kinds. You know how it is, they've never really valued women over there, so please don't…"
Little Zangwill came over with a fawning smile, trying to persuade him.
But before he could finish, Link waved his hand and cut him off.
Little Zangwill's reminder was enough.
Link had already recognized who the man was.
One of the top pure-blood wizard families of the Green faction.
Also descendants of Saladin, the king who had defeated the Crusaders and occupied Jerusalem.
That explained why this guy was so arrogant.
The development paths of wizards had once branched into many directions.
Some chose a lifestyle like today's, staying far from Muggle villages and living in seclusion.
Some chose to hide in plain sight, perfectly integrating into Muggle society.
Some, like Hufflepuff's ghost the Fat Friar, chose religion.
And along this particular branch, wizard families represented by the Saladin family had gone even further.
They directly created a religion.
Using magic to create miracles, they gathered enormous numbers of Muggle followers.
Even after the International Statute of Secrecy was implemented, they never gave up their rule over Muggles.
This made their wealth and influence almost impossible to describe.
Most importantly, because for centuries they had considered themselves gods.
Nearly every one of their members had become a synonym for arrogance and tyranny, never knowing what restraint meant.
"Heh..."
The corner of Link's mouth lifted into a faint cold laugh.
Then he spoke in English, "So you're from the Saladin family? Your actions really bring shame to your ancestors."
"Uh, honored guest, Mr. Yuri Saladin doesn't understand English," Little Zangwill said awkwardly.
But Link seemed not to hear him and continued, "You just said European men are all useless. Honestly, I don't really understand. When it comes to being useless, aren't you Arab wizard nobles even worse than the French wizards?"
"Back when the International Confederation of Wizards was established, you were completely defeated in your war against them."
"Everyone with backbone among you died in that war that lasted several years."
"Those of you who survived, aren't you all descendants of traitors and cowards?"
"You thieves survived by offering up your wives and daughters and children, and now you still have the nerve to come here showing off?"
"Where does your courage come from?"
"Your bloodline?"
"But if I remember correctly, during the massacre carried out by the International Confederation of Wizards after the war, the direct bloodlines of families like the Saladin family were completely wiped out."
"At best, you're just a branch descendant who would have been treated as a slave by the main Saladin line back then."
"And judging from how wealthy you look now, you should even be part of the Saladin family's upper ranks, right?"
"To become part of the Saladin leadership after the war, you must be a lapdog of the International Confederation of Wizards."
"Maybe you even carry the blood of the international coalition army from back then."
"After all, those European wizards who campaigned against the Saladin family weren't exactly good people either, but compared to the men of your own clan, each one of them would look like a good man."
"It's understandable that your mother and grandmother fell in love with them at first sight."
When Link finished speaking, the enormous banquet hall fell into complete silence.
Almost everyone was looking at Link with disbelief.
They couldn't imagine it.
This young man who looked refined, extraordinarily handsome, and had maintained a quiet and reserved demeanor the entire time.
When he actually opened his mouth, his words could be this vicious.
Link's string of questions and the follow-up explanations had practically nailed Yuri Saladin to a pillar of shame from every angle, from history to power struggles.
If Yuri Saladin had been a halo-crowned Saladin prince before.
Now he was just the descendant of the defeated, son of traitors, a mixed-blood bastard, a thief…
Little Zangwill now felt extremely fortunate that Yuri Saladin didn't understand English.
If it had been him being slapped with so many negative labels, each one backed by logic and evidence, leaving no way to argue back.
He probably would have gone insane.
Of course, Dumbledore was also present, a translator who loved stirring up trouble.
But that actually wasn't a big issue.
Because when it came to sarcasm, Arabic was far weaker compared to English.
Separated from the English language context and translated into Arabic, the insulting meaning Yuri Saladin heard would probably be much lighter.
But just as Little Zangwill was secretly feeling relieved, Yuri Saladin suddenly began trembling all over.
Under everyone's slightly surprised gazes, his face began turning red at a visible speed.
The fiery redness couldn't even be hidden by his thick beard.
"You! You're talking bullshit!"
After holding it in for a long time, Yuri Saladin finally roared.
And the moment he opened his mouth, everyone's expressions became even more interesting.
Because what he spoke was English.
"You actually know English?" Little Zangwill said with an ugly expression, pointing at him. "Then why did you pretend you didn't, making us…"
Yuri Saladin turned his bloodshot eyes toward Little Zangwill and said, "Isn't it more interesting this way? Watching you get toyed with like monkeys, sometimes even waving your hands around to gesture. I find it delightful!"
Little Zangwill's expression changed drastically. He pointed at Yuri Saladin, still wanting to say something.
But Yuri Saladin had no interest in continuing the conversation with him.
He looked back at Link, twisted his neck twice, producing loud cracking sounds from his joints, and said, "Infidel, you have desecrated my faith."
"I will launch a holy war against you that will not end until one of us is dead! Not just me. My father and my descendants as well!"
"Until you and everyone related to you by blood are completely slaughtered! Our Saladin family is invincible!"
The moment those words came out, Little Zangwill immediately swallowed what he had been about to say.
A holy war was no joke.
Especially a holy war from the Saladin family.
They were completely insane.
When they said it wouldn't end until one side died, they meant it.
If the father died, the son would continue. If the son died, the grandson would continue. Endlessly.
It could be said they fully embodied the spirit of the Foolish Old Man Who Removed the Mountains.
This was also why their Zangwill Wand Shop treated Yuri Saladin so politely.
The aggressive fear the reckless. The reckless fear those who don't fear death.
At most they were just somewhat aggressive. Naturally they didn't dare provoke a group like the Saladins who didn't fear death.
But Link clearly wasn't afraid.
Hearing this, he simply smiled and continued, "You're using the term holy war too cheaply. If any conflict can be labeled a holy war, does the term still retain its original profound meaning? Using it like this will weaken the meaning of the term."
"Also, I actually had no intention of insulting your religion."
"What someone believes or doesn't believe is entirely a matter of personal freedom."
"What I insulted was only you as a person."
"Don't say useless things," Yuri Saladin said smugly. "You're actually just afraid, aren't you? Afraid of the holy war of our Saladin family! Ha! I knew it. You're all just trash that looks tough on the outside but weak inside!"
Link shook his head. He knew continuing to talk would be meaningless.
The ebony wand was slowly drawn from his hand.
Seeing this, Yuri Saladin across from him grew excited.
He loved getting physical.
He waved his hand, and a female attendant beside him respectfully handed over a jeweled box that had been enchanted with an Undetectable Extension Charm.
Yuri Saladin reached inside and pulled out the ridiculously large lance.
Such a huge wand was clearly unsuitable for combat.
But to Yuri Saladin, that wasn't a big problem.
Because the young man in front of him looked far too young.
A boy this age probably hadn't even graduated from magic school yet, right?
So what was there to fear?
Just fight.
The face he had lost today had to be taken back from Link.
No... Not just from Link.
Yuri Saladin shifted his gaze toward Emily and Fleur behind Link.
His anger had to be released on those two beauties.
And Link had to be present while it happened.
Only then would it count as true revenge.
Yuri Saladin stuck out his tongue and licked his dry lips.
In his mind, he could already see the scene of his victory.
"Witness the courage of Saladin!"
Holding the lance-wand whose tip was already glowing with pale blue magical light, Yuri Saladin roared and charged at Link.
At that moment, he seemed possessed by his ancestors.
Under the glow of the magical light at the spear tip, his entire body radiated a noble aura.
He firmly believed that under such momentum, no one could defeat him.
That he too could be like his ancestors, cutting down the European bandit enemies from horseback.
However, reality was cruel…
Buzz!
Link gently raised the ebony wand in his hand.
And with that simple movement.
An invisible pressure field instantly enveloped Yuri Saladin.
His imposing charge came to an abrupt stop, and he froze in place.
The overwhelming pressure mercilessly squeezed every organ in his body, the pain nearly robbing him of all strength.
Even so, Yuri Saladin did not let go.
The massive lance in his hands still pointed straight at Link.
This was the pride he held as a descendant of Saladin.
"Useless, dying struggle."
Link shook his head, giving his evaluation of Yuri Saladin's actions.
The next moment, an unsettling gray-black mist slowly began to appear around Link.
The mist seemed almost alive, rising and twisting in the air, eventually gathering into giant misty hands that touched Yuri Saladin's lance.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
Dense sounds of shattering echoed through the banquet hall.
Where the mist hands passed, countless cracks began spreading from the spear tip.
The lance wand, made by Zangwill Wand Shop from their strongest alloy materials, now began breaking apart piece by piece, disintegrating into ash like cotton fluff drifting through the air.
Finally, under everyone's horrified gaze, the mist slowly wrapped itself around Yuri Saladin's body.
Yuri Saladin did not corrode into ash like his lance.
The gray-black mist only controlled every joint in his body.
Then, with a thought from Link, Yuri Saladin was forced down onto his knees, slowly crawling to Link and the others, and began banging his head hard against the ground.
He hit it with such force.
That in less than two minutes, a pool of blood had already appeared on the hard, smooth stone floor.
Seeing Yuri Saladin's ferocious expression, his swollen forehead constantly bleeding, his appearance ugly and terrifying, Fleur fearfully hid behind Link.
Meanwhile, what flickered in Emily's eyes was pure disgust.
She even waved her wand and directly sent out a stream of magic power that slapped Yuri Saladin flying away.
A smile lingered at the corner of Link's eyes. He knew this scene was indeed a bit too disgusting for Emily and Fleur.
"You've already paid enough of a price, so I forgive your offense.", Link spoke calmly, then took Emily's hand and slowly left with the group.
These words seemed to stimulate Yuri Saladin. His face swollen, body covered in blood, he struggled to climb up from the ground, mouth slightly open as if he still wanted to say something.
But the next moment, what poured from his mouth was not some vicious curse.
But a stream of pitch-black filthy blood.