"What? Someone could block you?" Fwooper was startled to hear this. "Doesn't that mean we're still not out of danger? But our people are not in good condition, and there's no way we can set off again anytime soon!"
"The situation isn't that tense," Thunderbird calmly reassured Fwooper. "Although the wizard who blocked me could barely stop me, there's no way he could defeat me. And with the Pure Land Society losing so many people this time, it won't be easy for them to regroup. So you still have some time to rest, but you can't drag it out for too long. I'll stay here until you successfully cross the border into Norway."
"That's good…" Fwooper breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing Thunderbird's assurance. With Thunderbird escorting them, the journey ahead would surely be much safer.
At this moment, Jobberknoll, who was in charge of the aftermath, walked toward the two, looking anxious. "One of the seriously injured wizards has worsened again; it looks like he won't make it. The other five are relatively stable, but they need at least two days of rest on the spot."
"No, we can't stay here. Some of the Pure Land Society members escaped; it won't be long before they gather people and catch up. We can't afford another battle!" Fwooper resolutely shook her head.
"Then what should we do? We can't just abandon them, can we? If we do that, those wizards will definitely have objections, and it would be bad if it caused conflict," Jobberknoll frowned, looking at Fwooper with a conflicted expression.
"If they have objections, deal with them. This isn't playtime. Indecision will only lead to greater losses. I can't always block everyone. Those useless ones don't matter, but what if the cargo is damaged?" Thunderbird retorted coldly.
"But…" Jobberknoll felt a bit uncomfortable hearing Thunderbird being so ruthless even to her own people.
"This is also for the greater good," Fwooper, feeling quite helpless, advised Jobberknoll. "You must know the relationship between those Pure Land Society members and the local Ministry of Magic. If we encounter them again, it won't just be this many people. At that time, we will face the risk of total annihilation. How about this…" Fwooper also felt that abandoning the seriously injured seemed a bit too heartless. "Let's give everyone another three hours to rest. Once the time is up, we'll set off immediately. As for the seriously injured, they can only be carried along the way. After we cross the border, I'll give everyone some time to rest, but during the journey, the condition of those injured will just have to be left to fate."
"This… Alright, this is the only way now. I'll go notify those wizards." Jobberknoll nodded helplessly, then turned and walked toward the group in the distance.
When the collaborators learned they had to set off immediately after three hours, although they were somewhat reluctant, they also knew their current location was indeed unsafe. Under the real threat to their lives, they all readily agreed. Of course, another reason they agreed so quickly was that they learned from Jobberknoll that Thunderbird would be accompanying them. They had witnessed the methods of this killer, and the other party clearly didn't care about them as collaborators. If they angered him, it wasn't impossible for him to directly make an example of them.
After the plan was finalized, these wizards quickly ate and rested. It was already difficult just living in the far north. Not to mention the major battle they had just experienced, these wizards were now not only physically and mentally exhausted, but their injuries were also eroding their will. The seriously injured were even worse off. Even though Fwooper generously provided a large amount of potion, in the current climate, they could only barely cling to life.
As soon as the scheduled time arrived, Fwooper called everyone to set off without any delay. As for the seriously injured and the bodies of their companions, they could only be transported. The bodies of the Pure Land Society wizards, after a simple collection, were casually thrown outside the camp. They would not try to desecrate the enemy's bodies; doing so would gain them no benefit other than enraging the other side.
Due to a sudden reduction of nearly half their manpower, coupled with everyone's poor condition, their travel speed wasn't fast. The journey, originally estimated to take only half a day, actually took a day and a night. However, it seemed that the pressure Thunderbird brought upon the Pure Land Society wizards was too great, or perhaps they had lost too many elites and couldn't gather enough people, as the journey was remarkably calm, and they didn't encounter any enemies again. As a result, they crossed the border without any incident, not even encountering an Auror.
This was undoubtedly fortunate for the club. The moment they crossed the border, many wizards in the transport team couldn't help but let out excited cheers. The pressure from their previous encounters had simply been too great. But unfortunately for them, two more seriously injured individuals died on the spot during the journey due to worsening conditions, and several wizards who originally had only minor injuries became seriously injured due to prolonged lack of rest in the harsh environment.
At this time, the transport team's location was already at the northernmost tip of Europe; a little further north and they would enter the Arctic Circle. In such a place, there is a long polar night, and beautiful auroras flow across the sky. Fearing that light would expose them, they were very restrained in their use of light sources throughout the journey, only moving forward by the light of the moon and the aurora. Therefore, in their eyes, besides the aurora, all the stars were as clear as a cloud map, truly like a scene from a dream.
But at this moment, they had no mind to appreciate this beautiful scenery. They just wanted to find a warm place to lie down. In such a dark, cold, and exhausting situation, perhaps seeing fire, hot food, and a bed was the most practical desire.
"This won't do. The accompanying wizards have reached their physiological limit. If they continue to push themselves, more and more people will worsen. We must find a place to rest." Jobberknoll, shivering from the cold, waded through the thick snow to Fwooper's side, reporting with a melancholic expression.
"We need to go a bit further east. Only when we are completely away from the Norwegian border can we truly be safe. Let everyone hold on for another hour; I promise this is the last stretch of the journey." Fwooper's ears were also red from the cold, but she still shouted against the biting wind.
"Alright, but then there will likely be over ten seriously injured people, which means the transport team won't be able to continue moving for a short period after resting," Jobberknoll knew Fwooper was right, but still cautiously reminded her.
"As long as we can reach a safe area, we can rest for a longer period, but the supplies we prepared might not be enough this time," Fwooper shouted worriedly, then looked expectantly at Thunderbird beside her.
"I understand." Thunderbird nodded in understanding. "Once you all settle down, I will return to headquarters to have them prepare supplies and reinforcements to be sent over. However, the rest of the journey will be up to you. I will not continue to accompany you after returning to Germany."
"Don't worry, the remaining journey isn't very dangerous, and I'll be able to recover by then. As long as we follow the original plan, I guarantee there will be no mistakes." Fwooper smiled with relief upon hearing Thunderbird's words. Her teacher was as reliable as ever.
"That's good. I'll leave the rest to you. Make sure the cargo is absolutely safe." Thunderbird nodded with satisfaction.
Afterward, the club continued to travel a long distance in the harsh climate, finally finding an open space in a forest in northwestern Russia to set up camp. However, as the accompanying wizards gradually relaxed their tense nerves, their bodies simply couldn't take it anymore. Many wizards collapsed directly to the ground, temporarily losing consciousness. This situation was actually very critical. If they were allowed to just fall asleep like that, they could very well die in their dreams.
Fwooper and Jobberknoll were immediately anxious upon seeing this, and quickly called other conscious wizards to perform first aid on them. After several more hours of frantic work, everyone's condition finally stabilized. However, the situation on site was even more severe than Jobberknoll had predicted earlier. Over half of the accompanying wizards had lost their mobility, either falling ill on the spot or having their injuries worsen. And the remaining people not only had to care for these sick ones but also had to look after the magical animals. It seemed they wouldn't be able to continue their journey for a while.
"No time to lose, I'll return to headquarters now. If it's fast, supplies and support will arrive within half a day; if slow, within two days. Be careful here!" Thunderbird, after assessing the situation, immediately bid farewell to Fwooper and others, pulled out a Portkey, and vanished from the spot.
Fwooper and Jobberknoll, standing still, could only helplessly face the mess before them, and the hardships they were about to endure had only just begun.
…
"Sir, Shalltear and your briefcase are still in Northern Europe. Is it really appropriate for you to return alone like this?"
Alan, upon returning to Germany, did not immediately go to the Silver Spears headquarters. It was still deep in the night, so he returned to the safe house and found Hog, who was leisurely watching surveillance.
"I returned to Germany just to provide an alibi for the club. After I report to the club, I still have to return to Northern Europe from the Vanishing Cabinet." Alan took off his Silver Spear uniform. To be honest, this trip had exhausted him. Not to mention the day and night he spent walking with Fwooper and others, the battle with the Pure Land Society wizards alone was not as easy as everyone saw. With his current magic reserves, controlling Blue Fiendfyre was still very strenuous. In fact, after killing Seth outside the camp earlier, his magic was already almost depleted. Fortunately, he only had to act with Karkaroff afterward. If those Pure Land Society wizards had really gathered more people and attacked, he probably would have had to escape.